Page 86 of Vita Mia

MiaBella shook her head no.

“He beat the system, twice,” Ryder said.

“Maybe the system beat him,” MiaBella said. “He isn’t here, and the system is. He was the one that blew up in that van that went off the cliff. Right? So how did he win? The Mafiosi is under siege by the new laws. The Camorra is so secretive I don’t even know if they still exist.”

“Oh, they exist. I saw them, remember?”

MiaBella glanced over to him.

Ryder stared in her eyes and dared her to deny it. She didn’t. She touched the now healed scar above his brow. “This is sexy,” she said.

“You think so?” he chuckled.

She nodded.

“Makes you look dangerous.”

“You like dangerous guys?”

“I don’t know. I asked my mum if she did. She said yes.” MiaBella grinned. “And I’m supposed to be her little twin so I suppose I do too.”

He laughed. They sat in silence for a moment.

“So, all you know of your father is the stories the family told you? Now your mother is telling different stories, and it’s upsetting everyone. Am I right?”

She shrugged.

“I guess. It feels weird to have her talk so openly to a stranger about us. I didn’t plan to react this way. No offense.”

“None taken.”

MiaBella stretched her arms above her head.

“I love the smell of the ocean,” MiaBella inhaled. “It reminds me of so many good memories.”

“Mia? We don’t have to do this.”

“Do what?”

“Your brother Gianni is right. You can film your mother yourselves and put it up on YouTube or wherever. Release it to the press. You don’t owe me anything.”

MiaBella cast a look over at him. And instantly he was mesmerized by her deep brown eyes. She stared at him and then shyly looked away.

“I was ten when my sister told me the story of my father and his cousin Lorenzo. I do know why they used to jump into the sea. What the competition between them really meant.”

“What did it mean?”

“They thought it was to compete for my Patri’s love.”

“And who is Patri?”

“His name was Don Tomosino Battaglia but everyone under him in the family called him Patri, which is close to Papa but has more meaning.”

“Oh? Okay.”

“My father and uncle were made to prove their bravery. They had to know how far either would go, and who would pull the other one back if they went too far. My sister said my uncle Lo could swim the furthest and my father could dive the deepest. That together they were great. But when they were apart, all of the magic was gone.”

“Interesting.”

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