Fifty-Six
He focused back on the girls to see them all staring at him.
“Have you had a girlfriend?” Faith asked.
“A few.”
“Do you have one now?” Hope asked.
He shook his head. “I’m guessing you guys weren’t allowed a boyfriend.”
They laughed.
“No. Father wanted us to be virgins when he used us for business deals or gave us to a sadist.”
Jesus. What the hell? “A sadist? For what?”
“To torture and kill us when he was ready. The sick fucker was giving Father something he wanted, and in exchange, he would give the man one of us to play with. No one would ever ask questions because very few people knew of our existence or would never think to check on us.”
“Father knew this?”
Faith laughed. “Fuck yeah. He loved it.”
“What did he do to you?” Angelica asked.
Dominic sighed. “Besides, take me away from my family and lie to me for twenty-five years?”
“Yes.”
“He would slap me and tell me I needed to start acting like a Moretti. It sounds like I got off easy compared to you guys.”
The three women nodded. They could be triplets, they looked so much alike, but he knew Faith was the oldest by how she acted.
“Did you know about us all your life?”
“He told me my mother hated boys and wanted only to keep the girls, so I suspected I might have at least one sister. Found out about all three of you when I was about twenty.”
“And you didn’t try to see us?” Faith asked.
“No. My-our father made it sound like you all didn’t want me around,” Dominic said.
“Why would he do that do you think?” Hope asked.
“He was always spouting off shit like he refused to have a pussy for a son and was doing everything he could to toughen me up. I think he thought one way was to take away my mother and tell me she hated me.”
“You know she told us about you once,” Faith said.
One of Dominic’s brows rose. “What did she say?”
“She told us that she had a baby boy, but God had to take him back because he was so special.”
“She would never talk about it again, and she cried for days, so we didn’t try to ask,” Angelica said.
“You are all making her out to be an angel.”
“Because she is. She put herself between our father and us to protect us. She’s five-foot-two and maybe a hundred pounds. There were times he’d beaten her so bad that she was in bed for a few weeks trying to recuperate from it. I’m shocked he didn’t kill her.” Angelica sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes.
“What do you plan on doing?” Faith asked.
He shrugged. “Nothing I can do but wait.”
“Wait for what?” Hope asked.
“For her to die so I can take over.” Dominic wanted to kick himself when he saw the devastation on the girl’s face.
He heard a whistle and then felt a puff of air on his cheek. He turned to see a knife protruding from the cushion by his head. Jesus Christ.
He looked at the girls and knew Hope was the culprit from the pure fiery anger on her face. “You could have cut my head off.”
“No. I’m very good with a knife. This is my only warning. You say that one more time and my knife will hit its mark on your body the next time. Don’t fuck with our mother.” Hope stood and walked out of the room.
Faith sighed. “All of us would like to get to know you, but first, you have to get the chip off your shoulder.”
“I better go,” he said and stood.
“I pray you’ll come back,” Faith said. “I know our mother would love to have you here and teach you the business. You might even be a help to her.”
“We’ll see. I got what I came for.”
“Which was what?” Angelica asked.
“To see the woman who threw me away.”
“But now that you know she didn’t?” Faith asked.
“I’m not sure.” He needed time to think. His emotions and thoughts were jumbled up in his head.
“All right. Be safe, and I hope to see you soon,” Faith said.
Dominic nodded and walked out of the room, ignoring Graham as he stood waiting. He heard Aria in the room down the hall.
“He’s leaving? Really? Oh, God, will he ever come back?”
“I don’t know, Mama,” Hope said.
He heard Aria start crying and her men’s and daughters’ voices trying to calm her. When he got to his car, he turned to look at the family mansion. It was much larger than he thought it would be. The fact that he now had his room in the place made him start to feel like a part of it.
He drove away, thinking about his next move. He hadn’t expected them to open their arms to him. Now that they had, it might have changed things.
Dominic thought he knew what his life would be like for the next several years. His father had given him one business to do what he wanted, so he turned it into a high-end lounge. He could have easily lived off what he made for the rest of his life, but he found it wasn’t enough, and he was getting bored.
He sold his aunt’s house after she died and bought another lounge he was overhauling to make it look like his first one and a condo closer to the lounge. If he worked late, he had a small apartment over the first lounge where he spent a lot of time.
The lounge was the only time his father had looked proud of him, so he worked to make it even more successful.
Dominic decided to put aside his family drama and planned to work until he dropped out. He knew in his heart what he was going to do, but it was like Faith said, he had to get the chip off his shoulder first.
Chapter Five
“Hey, boss, Franky needs to talk to you,” Buzz said.
Dominic looked up from his desk and sighed. “What the fuck did he do this time?”
Buzz shrugged. “I’m not sure.”
“Send him in.”
Dominic sat back and rubbed the back of his neck where a tension headache had started hours ago, and the Tylenol he had taken hadn’t helped.
“Hey, boss.”
Dominic looked his employee over and could tell he was agitated. “What’s up?”
“Well, you see, I was helping at a high-stakes poker game last night at Micky’s place. It got pretty heated, and the men, most of them bad, were putting up cars and shit. I don’t know his name, one of the guys was desperate and put in his cousin.”
Dominic sat up. “What the fuck?”
“I know. I thought it was fucked up, too. What made it worse was that the guy had his men go get her to see if she was real and as beautiful as he said he was. God, the look on her face made me sick after she realized what was happening. Damn, she was one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen. I could tell the cousin felt bad but not bad enough to stop the bet. Of course, he lost.”
“What happened?”
“You won’t try to guess who won her?”
“Fuck, man, just tell me.”
“The bastard Marino.”
That fucker. If he had an archnemesis, he would be the one. They went to the same school, but the bastard had been a few years older.
It was hate at first sight for them. Maybe it was because they both came from mafia families, or their personalities just clashed. The guy liked hurting women, and Dominic had stepped in a few times. Oh, hell. This girl would be dead within a week with that man. He was one sick fucker.
“Where is she right now?”
“They have her stashed in a warehouse on the south side. Marino had to go do something for his father before he could spend some quality time with her. That’s what he called it.”
“Do you know which warehouse?”
“Yeah. I overheard them.”
“Okay, let me make a call. You tell the guys to get ready to go. Leave Buzz and Jon here. Tell the guys going with us that they’ll need firepower.”
“You got it.”
Dominic looked down at his phone. It had been a few weeks since he’d met his mother and sisters, and every day, he came closer to seeing them and hoping to have a relationship with them all. He wanted to ensure he was ready so he didn’t fuck it up like the last time. This might be the step needed to bridge the gap between him and the rest of the families.
He sighed and made the call.
“Maclean residence?”
“Hello, this is Dominic Moretti. I need to speak with Alastair or Graham.”
“I’ll see if either is available.”
It took a minute before he heard the deep voice.
“This is Graham.”
“Hey, I need a favor.”
“Oh, really,” Graham said sarcastically.
Dominic quickly told him the story. “I want to save her, but I don’t have enough experienced men.”
“Where is she?”
“A warehouse. One of my guys knows where it’s at.”
“What do you want me to do with her when we save her?” Graham asked.
“I’ll take care of her.”
“Marino is a crazy fuck. If he has any idea it was you, he’ll be coming for you,” Graham said.
“I know.” Hell, he’d enjoy it.
“She’d be better off somewhere he can’t get to her,” Graham said. “Maybe stay with family.”
“What about you? Won’t he try to get to you and your family if you help me get her?” Dominic asked.
Graham chuckled. “He knows better. He’s fucked with my family once before and lost a lot. He won’t try it again.”
Dominic sighed. “I’ll find a place to stash her.”
“Bring her here,” Graham said.
“Oh, no. I’d like to keep her close.”
“You’ll be here with her, and she’ll have your sisters and Beth to help. Her life as she knew it is gone forever, and it will take time for her to adjust. We’ll put you in a bedroom together. When things cool down, you can move to your mom’s house, where you can help with the business. I hear you’re quite the businessman.”
“Hey, thanks. So, you’ll help me?” Dominic asked. He hadn’t expected that.
“Does this mean you have your head out of your ass and will become a decent part of the family?”
“Yes. I was planning on it anyway.” He had been planning on getting in touch with his sisters and mother sooner rather than later.
“You are the prince of the Moretti family, and you must take your place beside your mother and her men,” Graham said. “You’ve got a lot to learn.”
Dominic sighed. “I know.”
“Good. We’ll head that way. Call when you get the address, and I’ll tell you where to meet us.”
“Okay. Thanks.”Original from NôvelDrama.Org.
“That’s what brothers are for.”
Graham hung up, and Dominic was left feeling like he’d made a huge step in his life, and it would only be for the better.