Bride by Initiation: Secret Society Mafia Marriage Pact (The Underworld Book 1)
Bride by Initiation: Chapter 30

When I get to work, I’m still fuming about our fight. Someone from The Underworld put those coins in our bathroom. But it doesn’t negate the fact that he had lipstick in his pocket.

They put it there too.

I sigh and close my eyes, leaning against the elevator wall. My heart tells me that Sean wouldn’t cheat on me. He’s not that type of person, but he does get bored.

So do I, and I haven’t cheated on him, nor would I.

I take a deep breath and open my eyes. Everything between us is better than I ever imagined it could be. Yet I’m always worrying about the other shoe dropping like it always did in my other relationships. The fact Sean has the same issues as I do when dating someone doesn’t make my anxiety any better.

He wouldn’t cheat on me.

I need to figure out how to trust in us.

What if he did meet up with another woman?

The Underworld planted that lipstick.

Did they?

The elevator stops on the fifth floor, and the doors open. People get off, and the doors start to shut, but a woman’s hand shoots out between the doors as they’re sliding closed.

The metal reopens, and I freeze.

Sylvia grins at me and says, ‘Hey, darling. Miss me?’

‘What are you doing here?’

‘Let’s go for a walk.’

I don’t argue and push past the man in front of me. I quietly follow her down the hall, and she unlocks a door. We step inside an empty office.

Cardboard covers the windows. It’s a smaller office than the one I work in and appears to be under construction.

‘What are we doing here?’ I question.

‘We need to talk,’ Sylvia informs me.

‘About what?’ I ask, and glance at my watch, adding, ‘I have a lot of work to do today.’

‘Your schedule’s been cleared,’ she announces.

I arch my eyebrows. ‘What do you mean it’s been cleared?’

‘It’s been taken care of. You’re not expected in the office today.’

‘You can’t interfere with my work. I have important cases I’m working on,’ I declare.

She holds her hand up. ‘Yes, I know, but it’ll be fine. Trust me. Besides, I thought you wanted to know about your father’s past.’

I sit there in stunned silence.

She arches a brow. ‘Well? Do you still want to know?’

‘Yes, of course I do.’

‘Okay. Then that’s why I’m here. Have a seat.’ She motions to a metal chair.

I obey, and she sits down in one across from me.

‘Seems like an odd space to put some metal chairs when it’s under construction,’ I comment.

She smiles. ‘I wanted to be prepared.’

‘You get an A for effort,’ I mutter, then cross my arms and legs.

‘You and Sean going through a lot?’ she questions.

My heart aches, but I keep a straight face and meet her gaze, not saying anything.

She leans over and pats my knee. ‘Don’t worry, dear. Everything will be okay. I have faith in you two.’

My stomach flips. I bite on my lip and wait.

She gives me another soft expression and then sits back. ‘Your father knows about The Underworld.’

My eyebrows raise in surprise. ‘He does?’

She nods. ‘Yes. He didn’t know Sean’s father was involved, though. He had heard about it from Marcello Abruzzo.’

‘His sister’s husband; Valentina’s father?’

She affirms, ‘Yes.’

‘She’s told me about her parents. Her mom is my aunt, I guess?’

‘Yes, I know she told you.’

‘Of course you do,’ I sarcastically reply.

She laughs. ‘Don’t worry. The days of everyone knowing everything about you will soon be over.’

‘They will?’

She smiles. ‘Yes. If you decide to take your seat at the table, all the spying and intrusions into your house will come to an end.’

Anger fills me. ‘You planted that lipstick in Sean’s pants, didn’t you? And those coins in my drawer?’

Her face falls, and she shakes her head. ‘I didn’t plant anything.’

‘Didn’t you?’

‘No. I’m not saying it wasn’t somebody else, but it wasn’t me. I don’t know anything about that,’ she insists.

‘Would you tell me if you did?’ I hurl, tired of The Underworld interfering in my life. Yet I so badly want to believe Sean wouldn’t cheat on me, and that they planted it.

Her expression turns stern. ‘Yes, I would tell you. You’re at the final stage.’

‘Of?’ I question.

A look what might be pride lights up her face. ‘Of getting your seat at the table. If you still want it.’

I take a deep breath and slowly release it.

‘You do still want it, right?’ she asks, peering at me closer.

‘Yes, of course,’ I say without a doubt.

She lowers her voice. ‘Even if you have to endure one more final test?’

A chill runs down my spine. ‘Like what?’

‘No one gets a seat at the table without a sacrifice. I don’t know what the Omni will choose, but you and Sean must be prepared for the ceremony. If you don’t follow through, you know the consequences,’ she warns.

‘Death,’ I mutter, the chill in my bones deepening.

She swallows hard, pinning me with a fearful look. ‘Yes.’

I lift my chin. ‘I’m taking my seat.’

She studies me for a moment, then smiles. ‘Okay.’

‘Tell me more about my father.’

She licks her lips and continues. ‘Your father didn’t believe an Abruzzo could be good. And it’s not his fault. The killing during that time was excessive. The wars were never-ending. And the Abruzzos were doing reprehensible things to women and children.’

‘I’ve heard stories,’ I admit.

‘You don’t know the half of it,’ she declares. ‘Your father witnessed much of it. He only became a spy for the Marino family and infiltrated the Abruzzos because of his sister.’

My heart beats faster. ‘Valentina’s mom?’

‘Yes. She fell in love with Marcello. Neither of them knew who the other was when they met. It just happened. They were star-crossed lovers and never meant to be together. They hid for a while.’

My heart hurts, thinking of Valentina’s parents, in love but being scared to show the world.

Sylvia continues, ‘Your father and the rest of your family were opposed to their relationship. But your aunt’s love for Marcello and his for her was too strong. They ran away together and got married, and that’s when your father infiltrated the Abruzzos.’

‘Marcello’s family was okay with them being married?’ I question.

Sylvia’s voice turns sharp. ‘No. Marcello knew he could never tell them what blood ran through Aurora’s veins. When your father infiltrated the Abruzzos, he was accepted as her brother, and no one was the wiser.’

I blurt out, ‘That’s a big secret to keep.’

Sylvia nods. ‘And a dangerous one.’

My stomach flips.

‘Your father did it to protect her, and he tried to get her to leave many times, but she wouldn’t. And Marcello loved Aurora so much, he allowed your father to spy on his family.’

I blink hard, feeling bad for everybody involved, especially Valentina.

Sylvia tilts her head, watching my reaction, then states, ‘Valentina was born, and your father loved her. I’m sure he still does. But he couldn’t get past Marcello being an Abruzzo.’

‘The Abruzzos do horrible things,’ I assert.

‘Yes, they do. But Marcello wasn’t like them. He didn’t agree with human trafficking or bloodshed. He told your father about The Underworld. He wanted to solidify a better future for Valentina. But your father didn’t believe that the Abruzzos could change. He didn’t understand that Marcello wasn’t anything like his brothers or other family members.’

I ask, ‘He continued to keep my father’s secret?’

Sylvia uncrosses and recrosses her legs. ‘He did. He never told the Abruzzos. After Sean Sr.’s death, Marcello and Aurora ended up fleeing to Italy with Valentina. They disappeared. Your father could never replace them, and then it was too late. Marcello’s brother, Salvatore, killed them during an Underworld ritual and took Valentina to raise as his own. She was sixteen at the time.’

My insides quiver, and my heart hurts. ‘She didn’t tell me that happened.‘

Anger infuses Sylvia’s tone when she says, ‘Salvatore sits at the table. He’s one of the most powerful Omni. Valentina was old enough to realize she had to play the game, but she has never forgiven him. She had to accept him as her new father figure, or she would have been thrown into a brothel.’

Horror fills me.

‘Your father only sees Valentina as being under Salvatore’s wing; that she is his protégé. He doesn’t know Salvatore killed Marcello and Aurora. He only knows that his sister married the enemy. Now, thanks to you, he knows she’s dead.’

Guilt for being the bearer of pain for my father assaults me.

Sylvia continues, ‘Luca’s intentions are pure. He only wants to protect you.’

‘But now he knows that Valentina’s alive. We can tell him⁠—’

‘You cannot disclose The Underworld’s business to any outsider,’ Sylvia snaps.

‘But she doesn’t deserve to be alone!’ I protest.

Sylvia’s expression softens. ‘That’s true. But Valentina’s not on her own. She now has you. And I can’t blame your father for not changing his mind; however, he can’t know about The Underworld. So as much as you want to be angry with him, you need to make peace. If you don’t, it will eat at you and, at some point, influence your decisions at the table.’

‘How’s that fair to Valentina?’ I question.

‘It’s not. But Valentina’s fine. Like I said, she now has you and Sean. Correct?’ She arches her eyebrows.

I blink hard and nod. ‘Yeah.’

She crosses her arms. ‘Okay, so now you know. But if you carry this anger for your father into your seat at the table, you’ll make mistakes. Others will get hurt. So you have to make peace with the situation. He did what he did to protect his sister and niece, but ultimately he sees it as his failure.’

I argue, ‘It’s not his fault they fell in love. But he could have given Marcello the benefit of the doubt.’

Sylvia holds up her hand. ‘You can’t play the what-if game, Zara. Things were different back then. As I said, the war between the families was at an all-time high. You don’t have any idea what it was like, or what your father witnessed. The things the Abruzzos did were unforgivable, even if Marcello didn’t participate.’

I close my eyes, trying to think of how to get my father to accept Valentina again.

Sylvia warns, ‘You’ll go crazy trying to figure out the impossible. Some things are meant to be left alone, and this is one of those. If you cannot move past this, you cannot take your seat at the table. Do you understand?’

‘Why can’t I take a seat at the table just because I want to bring my family together?’ I spout.

‘There’s more to it. The Underworld is not for everyone to know about, and you know that,’ she cautions.

‘But you said my father already knows about it.’

She sighs. ‘He knows what the intent behind it was. He does not know the extent of it, though, and he’s never to replace out. He does not have the capacity, just like Sean’s uncles, to get over the past. But you don’t need to lose your father, or your mother, over this.’

I glance at the covered windows, my insides quivering. I don’t want to lose my parents, but I also want to be fair to Valentina. Thinking of her alone on holidays or for major life events makes me sad.

Once again, it’s as if Sylvia can read my mind. She repeats, ‘She has you. It’s more than she’s had since her parents died. Trust me. She’s going to need you at some point.’

I meet Sylvia’s gaze.

She questions, ‘Are you able to separate the two? I need to know. Otherwise, you cannot take your seat at the table.’

I take a moment to ponder her question. Then I nod and answer, ‘Yes. I will separate the two.’

‘Good. And are you willing to make the sacrifice at the final ceremony? No matter what it entails?’

My mouth turns dry. ‘Do I have to kill someone again?’

She shrugs. ‘I don’t know what the sacrifice will be, but you must be willing to follow through. Otherwise, don’t walk into the ceremony, because you won’t walk out.’

I shudder, not wanting to die.

What will they make me do?

‘Zara, you don’t have to do this. You can maintain your current level,’ she offers.

I lift my chin and square my shoulders. ‘No. I will take my seat at the table.’

She rises. ‘Then we must go. The seventh moon is coming. We have limited time.’

Nerves fill me. ‘It’s going to happen tonight?’

She nods. ‘Yes.’

I follow her out of the office and onto the roof, where a helicopter awaits. We get in and lift off, zooming over the city.

A thousand thoughts plague me, but the worst thing is my anxiety. It looms over me, getting worse as more time passes.

There’s only one important question right now: What will I have to sacrifice to get my seat with the Omni?