Page 8 of Betrayed By Sin
“Oh, you have no idea.”He sets his glass down and cracks his knuckles like he’s preparing for battle.“Let me tell you about the time he and I tried to sneak into the mayor’s house.”
Cameron groans.“Not this story.”
Luca ignores him.“So, we were about thirteen and fifteen, your father was the older one, obviously, and we got it in our heads that we needed to prove ourselves. And what better way than breaking into the most heavily guarded house in the city?”
I raise a brow.“That sounds incredibly stupid.”
Luca grins.“It was. But you have to understand, your father wasn’t afraid of anything. He was reckless, and I was dumb enough to go along with it. We had this brilliant plan, right? We were going to sneak in, steal the mayor’s fancy cigar box, and leave a note just to let him know we could.”
“You wanted to rob the mayor for fun?”I ask.
“It wasn’t robbing! It was… strategic embarrassment.”
“You mean a prank?”
“Sure, if you want to call it that. Our family has always been powerful, and when the mayor slighted our family Alexander didn’t take kindly to it. He never has to authority. Anyway, we actually got in pretty easily. Climbed the side of the house, got in through a balcony door. Your father always made it look easy.”
“And?”I ask, already knowing this isn’t going to end well.
“And we found the damn cigars, right where we thought they’d be. But then…”Luca’s face twists like he’s trying not to laugh.“Then we hear this sound. This deep, low growl.”
I wince. “A dog?”
Luca leans in, eyes gleaming.“Amonsterof a dog. The biggest Rottweiler I’ve ever seen. And guess what your brilliant father does?”
I shake my head.“Oh no.”
“He looks at me, completely calm, and says, ‘Luca, don’t run.’”
The table erupts into quiet chuckles. Even my mother hides a smirk behind her wine glass.
“And what do I do?”Luca continues.“I run. Like hell. And what does the dog do? It chases me. I’m knocking over furniture, breaking vases. Meanwhile, Alexander? That bastard doesn’t move. He just watches me suffer.”
I bite my lip, trying not to laugh.“And how did you escape?”
Luca sighs dramatically.“Your father finally decided he shouldmaybehelp, so he throws a steak from the kitchen across the room, and the dog goes after it. We barely make it out, and guess what he says to me when we get back home, smoking a stolen cigar?”
“What?”
Luca deepens his voice, imitating my father.“‘I told you not to run.’”
The whole table bursts into laughter, even Cameron shaking his head at the ridiculousness of it all. I find myself laughing too, picturing my father, cool and composed while my uncle was running for his life.
Luca smiles at me.“So, there you have it, Magnolia. Your father, the great Alexander Donati. A genius, a lunatic, and the best friend I ever had.”
I don’t know why, but something tightens in my chest. Maybe it’s the way Luca says it, like he still misses him. Like he still sees him, even now in me by the way he stares into my eyes with a wistful gaze.
I swallow past the lump in my throat and manage a smile.
“Sounds like he was something else.”
My mother nods.“Oh, sweetheart, he was everything.”
I cling to every word, every little detail about him. It’s like piecing together a puzzle of someone I never got to know.
A cousin, I think his name is Nico, leans forward, grinning. “What about you, Magnolia? Do you have any bad habits we should know about?”
A small laugh escapes me. “I don’t break into homes, if that’s what you mean.”
