THE MAFIA’S HEIR

THIRD PERSON’S POV

She rushed out of the dinning area and made her way towards the entrance of the mansion. It had finally happened. What she had dreaded for a very long time had somehow happened. The mistake she had made was to tell a lie. A lie that she had to go on covering up for years. Ever since she got married to Alexander, they had made this promise of never keeping the truth away from each other. But this very lie was something she had told even before they made that pact of truthfulness. Now, she had literally been exposed and she more scared, than shocked. Quite alright, suddenly seeing her little sister that she hadn’t seen in over 7 years was such a shock, but what she dreaded more was Alexander leaving her. How was he going to react when he found out that all along, she had a family but lied that she didn’t? All the while, she had cut contact with, and abandoned her poor mother and sister. The decisions she had made in life were not solely based on her personal decisions. Most were decisions she had been forced to make.

“Bella!!” She heard him call her name as he followed her behind. Her legs failed to run at a faster speed because of how heavy her baby made her feel. Nevertheless, she increased her pace with all the will strength she could gather. Why she was running away? It was because she doubted she had what it took to look him in the eyes after such deception. She personally knew how bad he had felt on her behalf, over being alone in the world, and always promised to be her family and companion for life. Now…. “Stop walking away this instant!” He suddenly growled, making her automatically stand still in her spot. She knew how serious he was, when he sounded like that. He covered the distance between them and turned her to face him. “What’s this about?” He asked, carefully gauging her face to see her reaction. He didn’t need a soothe sayer to tell him that a huge secret of his wife had just been discovered. She hardly talked about her dead family, but at least, he had heard her mention the name ‘Peggy’, as that of her late sister.

If indeed her family were dead, she was supposed to be the suprised and curious, not running off like a thief. She was supposed to stay back and want to understand what was happening. At that point, he already knew that his wife and greatest love of his life had been deceiving him for a very long time now. But he didn’t believe it was possible. He didn’t want to believe it, and that was why he was giving her the chance to tell him none of his assumptions were actually true. That it was all a stupid thought in his head. That being a mafia had made him too calculative most times.

“Alexander…” She muttered, her lips quivering as she shuddered with great fear. “Alexander please.” Tears welled up in her eyes and she tried holding him, but he pulled away, tears clogging his own eyes as well. It was true then. His wife had been heartless enough as to have abandoned her family for years?

“You… you actually left them?” He was only able to make out that question, shaking his head in disapproval. “You left your parents and little sister? All for what?”

“Please Alex, I c.. ca…. I can explain.” More tears poured out of her eyes as she held tightly on his shirt. At that moment, all he could see was a liar, not his wife. Gently, he pulled his shirt out of her grip and walked towards his car. This was crazy. For months, he had worried about her. Worried about how much not having her family with her, was probably telling on her during her pregnancy. What had she planned to do? Keep her children away from them as well? Only God knew how much her family would have been hurt, over not being able to reach out to their daughter for years. He just couldn’t take it, he needed some space to think. He needed to clear his head. Walking to his car, he hopped in and drove away. Bella fell to the ground in tears as she watched her husband drive off. What was going to happen now? Was he going to leave her when he finally found out the real truth? The actual reason she had done all that she did? They had already found this one out, it wasn’t gonna be long before they found out about the other. And the other was worse. Alexander would surely leave her then. She hated herself more than ever now. She hated herself for truly falling in love with the man over the years. She hated herself for deceiving someone she had claimed to love that way.

“Bella!” She looked up to see Mia and Kyle running towards her. She looked at them and the looks they gave only meant one thing. They knew the first truth already. “Where is Alexander?” Mia asked, walking up to her and holding her hand in support.

“I’m so sorry!” More tears rolled down her spotless face onto her red coated lips. “Please Kyle, help me talk to him.” She held onto Kyle immediately, crawling over to where he stood.

“Oh my God! Auntie Bella, no!” Kyle yelled out in disapproval, trying to pull her up on her feet. “Please, please, please! I cannot afford to lose him now.” Her cries increased.

“Bella, I think you should get inside. We all need to talk. Please.” Mia muttered, pulling her towards the entrance of the mansion. Bella followed them with putting up any resistance.

Now, she wondered who she had to face. Was Peggy still on that call, waiting for her to be brought back in, for a discussion? She walked into the living room to see everyone seated, her husband’s parents inclusive.

“Sit down love.” Mia whispered into her ears and gently pushed her down to the plush sofa. After that, Manuel walked towards her and squatted to her level.

“Bella, we have to talk. You have to tell us what’s going on? Peggy told us something very shocking.” He said, and gave a small smile when he noticed how agitated she had become. “Not to worry, we put her off the line for now. It is your decision to speak with her when you see fit. But as your family, we deserve to know what’s happening.”

“Excuse me everyone.” Mia excused herself and walked out of listening reach. She had an intent, and that was to call Alexander back. He shouldn’t leave her alone in such physical and emotional conditions.

“Bella, you need to tell us if what Peggy said is true.” Bianca muttered, joining her on the sofa and holding hands with her. “Is Peggy truly your sister?” Tears clogged Bella’s eyes once more as she bowed her head, ashamed to look at the people she called family. The people she had been deceiving for years. Speaking to them about this only meant one thing. She’d have to tell the real truth eventually, and that was something she wasn’t really prepared for. But it did not seem like she had a choice at that moment.

“Yes.” She finally nodded in agreement. “Yes, she is my sister.” The tears left her eyes and trailed down her cheeks. What bothered her the most was how fast everything was escalating.

“That means, Felicity is your mother.” Bianca said, and she nodded in agreement.

“But why did you abandon your family?” Alexander’s father finally asked, making more tears pour down her face. “What did you stand to gain by doing so?” Initially, Alexander’s parents never liked her, particularly because she had been a drug addict when Alexander had found her and literally saved her. To them, she wasn’t fit to be a part of the Russo family, but thankfully, their Nonno had supported Alexander and given them the go ahead to be married. Oh, how her husband’s father was going to gloat in her face after the confession she was about to make. She knew she had to confess the truth, but just hadn’t gathered the guts to say word at the moment, and it only seemed to aggravate the man’s temper.

“You should really understand the fact that you stand to lose more by not speaking up now.” He spoke harshly, making her choke on more tears. She was so pitiful at the moment.

“I’m sorry.” She managed.

“Then show that you are, by letting the family know why you have deceived us all these while. With all that Alexander has done and sacrificed for you, he doesn’t deserve to be lied to in such a manner. And most of all, I would not believe that you lied about your family for no reason.” The man had always been a smart man. He knew there was more to this. She didn’t want to lie because they would eventually find out her secret in time, the same way this one had unexpectedly happened. Added to that, she was tired of carrying it in her heart all these years. Even up until now, she was still being haunted by her worst nightmare, and she just couldn’t remain quiet anymore. What if God had made things happen this way, so she would have the guts to finally face her fears and tell the truth?

“I was…. I was trafficked down to Italy.” She finally spoke out, everywhere going silent immediately. “You all already know that I had been an addict before I met Alexander.” Unknowingly to her, Alexander had just stepped into the living room, quietly standing by the corner and listening to what she had to say. Everyone else except Bianca and Bella had been aware of his presence, but chose to be quiet in order not to scare Bella from speaking further.

“It wasn’t a new thing.” She continued. “I used to live in Newyork with my mom, my younger sister, and my foster brother; Carter. I had gotten a good job after graduating with an excellent result, and was doing so well. That was until I came across Patawan.” She said, making Manuel’s ears stand in attention.

“By Patawan, you mean Tawan?” Manuel asked, wanting to be sure he was thinking right, and she nodded in agreement.

“I met Patawan during a party I had accompanied a work colleague to. Work was becoming extremely demanding and an infuriating when my boss started trying to harrass me sexually. So after one of my busy days at work, I followed my work friend to a party hosted by Patawan. My friend introduced me to him and we hit things off immediately. He asked me to join him for a drink, which I did. I didn’t know what happened in the party, but I only remember waking up somewhere strange the next day. Apparently, my drink had been spiked. I had been so furious when I woke up and stormed out of his apartment. I was more disappointed because I thought he was a really cool guy, only to be disappointed by morning. A week later, he showed up at my apartment with a bouquet of flower and apologized for his behavior. I accepted his apology, and he asked me to go on a date with him. Initially, I was skeptical, but I finally gave in.”

“We had continued to see each other for few weeks, before a asked me to accompany him for a party on a certain night. I ended up being convinced to test out coke for the first time in my life. I had passed out and Patawan had taken me to his den in Newyork.” The entire place was as calm as a grave while she spoke. “When I woke up the next morning, I felt so different. I was weirdly unbothered about where I was, and just wanted to head to my apartment. The Euphoric feeling was still very much in my system. It was my first time feeling that way, but I felt strangely whole. When I attempted to leave the room, he walked in an asked me if I loved the feeling of being strung out, and I didn’t answer. Coke was something I knew was wrong, and was somewhat displeased about how good it made me feel. I was more displeased at myself because I was falling for the wrong guy. At the time, I didn’t know how manipulative he was. He had convinced me that he only made me try it out because he honestly wanted me to have a lot more fun, nothing more. I had gotten home later on and while taking out my clothes for laundry, I found a little amount of substance in my jean pockets. I knew what is was and I could have thrown it away but for some reason, I didn’t. I just kept it inside my drawer.” She sighed.

“The following week had been really crazy for me. Not only was I finding it difficult to get over the feeling the coke had given me, I was finding things difficult at work with my boss. I had also tried to give Patawan space, but was finding it difficult to do so because I was already becoming emotionally attached. On a certain night, I returned home after my boss had unsuccessfully assaulted me again. For some reasons, I decided to have another taste of the substance I had put out in my drawer, hoping it could relieve me a bit. That was how it all began.” She quickly cleaned away the tears that made it’s way down her cheek once more. “Before I knew it, I was the one looking for more. I had found my way back to Patawan and asked for more substance. He told me that it was no longer free and that I’d have to pay the person who supplied him. The price was quite exhorbitant, but I didn’t mind. I just always wanted to feel so good. Gradually, I bought and bought and bought until I cleared all my savings. I approached my boss for a salary advance which he was reluctant to give me, but finally did after much plea. He was probably thinking his assistance was gonna make me succumb to his sexual requests, but he was wrong.”

“A few weeks later, I had finally exhausted the advance salary I had collected, and began skipping work. I normally went over to Patawan’s place where we would party and get strung out on coke. I guess my boss had reached out directly to my foster brother concerning my absence at work, and he decided to come see me and know why I hadn’t been at work. Unluckily, I had passed out from excess inhalation of substance that day, and was on the brink of death when my mom and brother got to my apartment and rescued me. I had been so ashmaed because they were so disappointed in me. My mom insisted that I got detoxified and put under therapy, as she was worried taking me to a rehabilitation home would be quite extreme. After a couple of weeks, I got myself and I resumed work. It wasn’t long before Patawan began paying me visits again. At first, I would always tell him I wasn’t interested but soon, I finally succumbed. My hunger for drugs became worse this time, because it felt like my system was finally getting what it had been deprived off, all the while.” Bianca squeezed her hand in encouragement as she spoke.

“There were days I’d go to Patawan and plead with him so much, after which he’d give me some substance, letting me know that he had vouched to his supplier that I’d be able to pay for it later. That was how I began accumulating debts. Soon enough, my family found out that I had gone back to doing drugs, and insisted I went to a rehabilitation home, especially because it had sucked me up so dry. After my first two days in the rehabilitation center, Patawan came for me and broke me out of the facility. I truly wasn’t willing to go along with him, but I didn’t like the feeling up being locked up and hungry for substance either. I foolishly thought he had come to rescue me, but didn’t know I was about to see the real side of him. When we got to his den, I met several other girls; mostly teenagers, who were lined up there. That was when I realized I was in deep shit. He told me I owed him a lot of money that I couldn’t even begin to imagine. Apparently, he had been the one who supplied the drugs to me, not someone else. It would take me a lifetime to work and offset such a huge debt. I couldn’t believe that he had deceived me into falling in love with him, only to be using me. He had given me the choice of paying back, or killing me to offset my debts. With a gun pointed to my head, I ended up agreeing to the worse thing I should have ever agreed to. He was taking me with him to Italy, where I would get a better job and work to offset my bills. I was so ashamed and disappointed in myself because my mother had been a single mom who struggled so hard to put my sister and I through school. How could I come up and tell her I had incurred a huge debt and didn’t know how to pay it off?”

Alexander’s father grunted impatiently, wanting her to get to the point of her whole story already, but the rest of the family seemed very much hooked on her story to be bothered about its slow pace.

“So because of that, I cut off all contacts with my family, only calling them with unknown numbers once in every six months. I always called to check up on them, but never stayed on the line long enough to be asked where I was. My mom had been so broken by my disappearance, but I convinced myself I was doing this for her good. Meanwhile, Patawan had brought me into a kind of life I least expected. It was later on that I realized what he had done to me. He had trafficked me. He had sent me off to the Russo drug factory, where I worked day and night shift for him. He was caring the least bit for me and I was slowly becoming a shadow of myself, falling into the pool of addiction all the more. One day, I had blacked out during an inspection on the factory, and that was how I met Alexander. He was the Don at the time, and had been the visited for a special inspection. For Alexander, he was just concerned about the woman who had passed out from excess coke in her system.”

“He always came over to the factory to check up on me and it was weird that a man who oversaw a large scale cocaine factory such as that of the Russos, was bothered about an addicted woman. But I guess it gradually turned into something more as time went. Somehow, Patawan heard about it and decided to use it to his advantage.” She suddenly paused, tears cloud her eyes once more. In that moment, everyone knew this was the part they had all been waiting for.

“Go on.” Alexander’s father urged impatiently, and she nodded.

“He told me that Alexander was beginning to fall in love with me, and that it was going to be beneficial to him. I was heartbroken because he seemed so okay with the fact that another man was interested in me. I asked him what he wanted, and he told me to play along and act like I loved Alexander as well.” She couldn’t hold back her tears anymore and just let them flow out freely. “I wanted to refuse.” She choked out in between tears, as everyone’s eyes widened in shock. “I never wanted to hurt Alexander deceiving him about my feelings for him, like Patawan had done to me. But Patawan threatened that he would hurt my family if I didn’t do as he asked. Alexander was going to be his cash cow and he couldn’t pass out on the chance.”

“What?” Alexander whispered in shock from where he had silently stood all the while, making Bianca and Bella look up at him in shock. Bella was more shocked when she realized that he had been there with them.

Apparently, after Alexander drove off in anger, he hadn’t even gone far off when he had a change of heart and reversed his car to get back to his crying wife. He thought he overreacted, and felt remorseful. When Mia called and asked him to return to the mansion, it turned out he had already gotten there. He walked inside only to see Bella talking, and decided to be patiently listen to all she had to say. If only he knew that her confession would break him this way, he would not have returned here. Tears clogged his eyes as he looked at the woman he had always loved. The woman who created a lot of beautiful memories with him, and made him take jumps he never believed he was capable of. She made him do crazy things for the sake of love, like he never imagined. Now, he just realized all the years they had spent together was all built on lies and deceit. He felt his heart shattering to pieces as her teary eyes locked with his.

“So…” He managed to say, praying for the mental and emotional strength to say the rest of what he had to say. “You never really loved me?” He asked, hoping she would tell him that he heard wrongly. He knew he heard right. She had been in love with Patawan, and was most certainly still in contact with him until now. Was she the reason he had returned to Italy? Had they been seeing each other?

Immediately she stood from the sofa, not minding how difficult it had been with her protruded belly, and rushed towards him, falling to her knees when she got there.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“That was initially!” She cried. “No. You were such a wonderful man, Alex. You were just so good to me and I couldn’t help but fall in love with you as time went. Please forgive me!” She pleaded, her eyes and pale skin completely red. Her face had gotten blotched in a short period of time.

“I was such a wonderful man yet you deceived me.” He muttered disdainfully. “Now I understand what has been going on.” He chuckled bitterly. “Were you really actively funding the Saint Francisco orphanage, or you were busy giving out my money to Tawan? You even begged me not to kill him after he tried to hurt you. Now I understand it all. He had been enraged you had gotten pregnant for me, after wanting you to just suck money from me. You were even probably cheating on me with him.” He whispered the last part.

That particular realization made Alexander go crazy and before he knew it, a tear dropped. Manuel’s heart ached so much for his cousin, but he was also shocked by all he was hearing.

“No no no!!” She raised her hands up. “No, I never cheated on you. I was very much faithful to you, please.” Her whole neck was drenched in her tears at that point.

“I would be a fool to ever believe a word you say again.” He muttered in disgust as he grounded his teeth in internal agony, and walked out of the mansion. Bella felt such an excruciating pain in her heart that made her wail out so loudly.

“Please don’t leave me!!” She fell to the floor in tears, as Bianca and Mia quickly reached out to her. This had been her greatest nightmare. The truth coming out, and the one true love of her life giving up on them.