Page 46 of Matteo
“I see,” Dad stated matter-of-factly, and I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly he saw.
“What do you see, Nico?”
My dad’s harsh features eased as my mother came up behind him wearing an apron and kissed his cheek. Then she flicked a glance at the screen and her face brightened with a wide grin.
“Girls. I didn’t know you were going to call. Give me a minute and I’ll turn off the oven so we can chat. Where are the boys?”
I glanced up, finding the twins still leaning against the frame.
“We’re here, Mom,” Cassius shouted across the room to ensure Mom could hear him. “But we have an ammunition class we can’t be late for.”
“Actually, I have an English class coming up too,” Hannah added.
“Me too, Mom,” Gianna chimed in. “Arianna just saw the new addition, so we wanted to give you a quick call.”
“You love it, then?”
“Very much. Thank you.” I blushed a little, never one for being the center of attention.
“It should keep you busy and out of trouble for a while,” she teased. “Let’s try to keep any mischief to a minimum. Shall we?”
I flashed her a sheepish look. “I’ve been keeping trouble to a minimum.”
“Great, there go my plans down the toilet. I was about to rob a bank,” Hannah answered.
Dad shook his head. “All the money we have, and they grew up to be little thieves.”
“Nothing beats making our own money,” Hannah retorted.
“Stealing money isn’t exactly making your own money, Hannah.”
Gianna waved her hand. “You’re wasting your breath. It’s their extra-curricular activity. Ahobby.”
“It proved quite a lucrative hobby,” I reasoned. Especially when we didn’t get caught. During our summer visit to Italy, we managed to rake in quite a bit of funding. Of course, we only stole from criminals, and most of the time we got away with it. Until we didn’t.
“The Italians wouldn’t agree with you,” Dad remarked dryly, reminding me of the summer we majorly fucked up.
Let’s just say that certain Italians—like Enrico Marchetti of the Omertà—weren’t amused when we stole from them. Thankfully, he had a wife with a sense of humor, and we had our dad and Uncle Luca who loved us.
“It wasn’t my fault. Enrico Marchetti is so… serious,” I muttered.
Dad shook his head disapprovingly.
“Okay, girls, get to class.” He pulled Mom around onto his lap, and she laughed. “Your mom and I have some baking to do.”
The line cut off, and I shared a look with my siblings.
“Yuck,” Gianna muttered. “Now I know what our parents are doing.”
“How do you think you came to be?” Cassius called out. “BySancte Spiritus?”
“I didn’t know you spoke Latin,” I remarked.
“Of course he does. Cassius knows it all.” Gianna flipped him off. “I would have you know that my sisters and I were immaculately conceived, while you two…”
My phone beeped with an incoming text message.
Dad: The Vitales are holding a party in a week. I’ve confirmed our attendance.
