A Truth and a Lie

by V. Sousa

  With all the windows in the front, it kind of reminded me of Alcatraz, and it looked ancient too, so I wouldn’t have been surprised if this place was haunted.

  Vincent’s house fit him well, though. Dark, creepy, and a splash of arrogance.

  “Please, just don’t provoke him,” Emmett said while he knocked on the door. “The quicker we get to eat, the quicker we can leave.”

  I wanted to argue that my attitude toward him was almost uncontrollable, that he brought the worst out of me, and it wasn’t my fault his father was the equivalent of el diablo, but Emmett already looked stressed, so I just kept my mouth shut.

  “Fine by me. Let’s get this over with.”

  The massive doors were pulled open, and a woman greeted us with a tight smile. “Good evening, Emmett. It’s good to see you. It’s been so long.”

  I didn’t recognize her, so I wondered how they knew each other. She looked young, and I had to admit that she was very beautiful.

  Emmett gave her a nod. “You as well, Stephanie.”

  Oh, okay, now it made sense. It was Vincent’s wife. I thought I was going to finally meet her at the wedding, but I guess Vincent doesn’t allow his wife to leave the house unless absolutely necessary—or at least that’s what Lorenzo told me when I asked.

  I’d always wondered what she would look like, and this was nothing like what I’d pictured.

  Vincent must have had a type because Stephanie and Emilia could have passed for sisters—petite, dirty blonde hair, light brown eyes, and a button nose. I didn’t know why, but for some reason, I’d pictured her as being the complete opposite.

  He mustn’t have really cared for her because he let her open the door. Growing up, my father always had a rule that only a guard or himself was to open the door in case an enemy was on the other side.

  Now that I thought about it, I didn’t even think Vincent had any guards. I’d thought it was weird when we pulled up, and there wasn’t a gate. I just figured all the security would be inside the house, but when I looked around, there were no men in sight. Meanwhile, the number of men my father and Emmett had around could have made up two different soccer teams.

  Stephanie closed the door behind us and faced her body to Emmett, but her eyes pointed to the floor. “Your father would like for you to meet him in his office.”

  Emmett nodded and turned to me. “Are you going to be okay?” He was probably nervous that I was going to plant a bomb or something.

  I gave him a reassuring smile and nodded. “Yeah, I’ll just hang out with Stephanie.”

  He nodded once more and squeezed my shoulder before walking away.

  I turned back to Stephanie, and even though she was still looking down, I smiled at her. “You have a beautiful home. I’m Rose, by the way. It’s nice to meet you.”

  It was true. Although the outside resembled a haunted prison, the interior décor was beautiful. A replica David of Michelangelo statue greeted you in the entry with double staircases leading to the upstairs, and art lined the walls. It screamed wealth, but I expected nothing less from Vincent.

  Stephanie’s gaze stayed glued to the floor of the entryway. “If you’ll follow me, I can show you around a bit,” she said softly.

  She tilted her head up for a second and was so busy trying to avoid eye contact that she accidentally tripped on my foot when she went to step around me.

  I stuck my arm out to catch her so she didn’t fall, but my angle was wrong, which caused us to drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

  I jumped up, then bent down and stuck my hand out to help her up when she flinched. I quickly pulled my hand back to my side and frowned.

  From what Emmett told me, Stephanie had been married to Vincent for a little over twenty years, since she was only sixteen, and judging by the way she flinched when I got close to her, he most definitely wasn’t a loving husband.

  She must have snapped out of whatever state she’d put herself in when she thought I was going to hit her because she quickly got up and started apologizing.

  After the fourth time saying she was sorry, I gently placed my arms on either side of her and forced her to look at me. That was when I noticed the frantic look in her eyes. “You don’t have to apologize, Stephanie. It was an accident. It’s okay.”

  She nodded in return, and I felt her relax a little under my grip.

  I hooked my arm in hers and walked in the direction she was headed before she tripped. “How about that tour?”

  By the end of the tour, I’d seen every part of the house except for the basement, which Stephanie said was Vincent’s space, which was off-limits.

  I didn’t have any time to ask questions because the next thing I knew, I was being pulled toward Emmett’s younger half-siblings’ bedroom to meet them. Stephanie had four children with Vincent—ten-year-old Romeo, eight-year-old Natalia, six-year-old Jacob, and three-year-old Gianna.

  We were all in Gianna’s room while Gianna sat on my lap, Jacob talked to me about all his friends at school, Natalia showed me her dolls, and Romeo sat quietly beside me.

  Emmett’s siblings were the sweetest despite the kind of person their father was. They were apprehensive at first, but once they warmed up to me, they were all over me, talking a mile a minute.

  Gianna got up from my lap to get her favorite doll Lucy to change her outfit because she wanted Lucy and me to match.

  I helped Gianna put the outfit on and looked at all the other doll clothes she had. “I love all your doll clothes. I wish I had them in my size,” I said to Gianna, and her eyes lit up.

  “I can ask miss Emily to make some for you. She’s the one who makes our dolls’ clothes for us,” Natalia said, trying to pull me up.

  Stephanie got up and turned to her kids. “Let’s go downstairs and get ready for dinner. Your father should be ready.” Natalia frowned and dropped my hand, then we all got up and made way to the dining room.

  We’d just sat down when Emmett and his father appeared from one of the hallways. Emmett sat in the seat beside me while Vincent sat across from him.

  “Rose, it’s so good to see you,” Vincent said, looking me over while licking his lips.

  I’d wondered when I married Emmett if Vincent would stop being an inappropriate creep toward me. I guess I got my answer. I really wanted to tell him where to go and how to get there, but I’d promised Emmett I would play nice, so I gave him a fake smile and forced out, “You also, Mr. Rossi.”

  He looked me up and down one last time before he focused on Emmett. “This is the first time you’re seeing your sister Gianna. Gianna, say hello to your brother Emmett.”

  Gianna was on the other side of me, so she moved to hide behind my arm.

  “Gianna, do not be rude. Say hello to your brother. Now,” Vincent barked at her.

  When she still didn’t say it, Vincent punched the table, and everyone jumped. I looked at Gianna and saw tears starting to build.

  He opened his mouth, probably to yell at her, and I sat up in my seat a little, ready to give him a piece of my mind if he did, but Emmett cut him off instead. “She’s shy, and she doesn’t know me, so it’s not a big deal.” He turned to Gianna. “Hello, I’m Emmett. It’s nice to meet you.”

  Gianna gave Emmett a shy smile while Vincent gave him a dirty look and turned to his wife. “Go get the food. I’m hungry.”

  Stephanie jumped up and practically ran to the kitchen.

  “So, Emmett, how’s business going?” Vincent asked with a mocking expression.

  “Good. Profits have been high lately, and I have a good system going.”

  I quickly got bored with their conversation and decided to help Stephanie in the kitchen. “I’m going to give Stephanie a hand,” I whispered in Emmett’s ear before walking away.

  The minute I got into the kitchen, I saw the panic on Stephanie’s face. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay? What happened?” I asked quickly.

  She jumped when she heard my voice. “Oh, Rose, it’s nothing.
I just left the meatballs in the oven for a little too long, and they’re a little dry. Vincent will be upset, but it’s okay.” She gave me a sad smile.

  I nodded, and without giving it a second thought, I picked up the pan of meatballs and dropped it on the floor, causing the glass to shatter and sauce to go everywhere. I instantly heard chairs being pushed back and stomping feet getting louder.

  I looked over at Stephanie’s shocked face and gave her a wink just as Emmett came barreling into the room with Vincent close behind him. Maybe I was sticking my nose where it didn’t belong, but I couldn’t sit back and watch him treat his family like shit.

  “You okay? What happened?” Emmett asked, looking around.

  “I’m so clumsy,” I said with a small laugh. “I was just smelling Stephanie’s meatballs, and the pan slipped right out of my fingers.”

  I grabbed some paper towels and started cleaning up the mess while Stephanie started picking up the glass.

  Vincent snorted. “Well, I guess I will have to do without my favorite dish now, won’t I?”

  I gave him a big fake smile and shrugged. “Stephanie and I will finish cleaning up this mess and will be right out with the rest of it!”

  Vincent gave one last snort and walked out of the kitchen. He probably didn’t believe me, but he didn’t call me on it.

  Emmett just looked at me, laughed, and followed his father back to the dining room.

  When they were out of sight, Stephanie dropped everything she had and hugged me. “Thank you for that. You have no idea what you just did for me.”

  I dropped the paper towel in my hand and hugged her back. “Anytime. Vincent’s an asshole. If you don’t mind me asking, though, why are you still with him?”

  She dropped down to the floor and continued to collect glass. I figured she wasn’t going to answer my question until I heard her start to speak in an almost inaudible whisper. “Besides the fact that he’ll probably kill me, I married him when I was sixteen years old. My father signed off on the marriage so he could get in good with the Family. I never finished high school, so without him, I have nothing. He wasn’t as bad when I was younger. Other women told me horror stories of marriage and their husbands, so I just kept telling myself that it could be worse. He would sometimes push me around and call me names, but he didn’t beat me until years later.

  “I was twenty-five when I first met Emmett. He’d just turned eight and had come to New York to stay for a week for the first time. Vincent had just had the basement redone to be soundproof. Emmett was running through the house chasing me and accidentally smashed into the basement door, making a small dent. I told him it was no big deal, but when Vincent got home, he dragged Emmett downstairs and beat him so bad the poor boy stayed down there for two days because he couldn’t walk up the steps. I tried stopping Vincent, but he slapped me and locked me in our bedroom. From that day forward, I vowed I would never have Vincent’s children, so I convinced one of the maids to sneak in birth control for me. I never really wanted to sleep with Vincent, but I was always taught that sex was a chore, so I never fought him.

  “Vincent always questioned why I wasn’t getting pregnant. He would tell me I was broken, but I didn’t mind because I would never want my children to go through what Emmett went through, so I took the verbal lashings he would give me. It wasn’t until one day he came home early, and I had forgotten to hide the birth control, and he found it. That was the first time Vincent ever beat me. He kept me locked in a room in the basement for four months, forcing himself on me until I got pregnant. I dream of one day taking my children and running away, but Vincent’s resources would never allow that.”

  Looking into Stephanie’s eyes, I saw years of pain behind them, and it broke my heart. Tears started to build in my eyes, and she wiped them away.

  “Don’t cry for me, Rose. This is the life I was given, and I’ve come to terms with it. You’ve done so much for me already, and I thank you. Let’s get back out there. I’m sure you’re hungry.”

  The rest of dinner went by in a fog.

  I couldn’t stop replaying the story Stephanie had told me. I couldn’t even look at Vincent because, to be honest, I might have taken my steak knife, jumped over the table, and stabbed him in the dick.

  I was staring off into space, still thinking, when I felt Emmett shake my arm. “Right, Rose?”

  “Right,” I said back without even knowing what I was responding to.

  He pulled me up out of the chair and turned to everyone. “Well, we have to get going. I have a few things to do at the office. It was a pleasure.”

  I gave my goodbyes to Emmett’s siblings, and when I reached Stephanie, I pulled out the piece of paper I’d swiped from the kitchen earlier in the night, and I shoved it in her pocket while I hugged her.

  “If you ever need anything, don’t be afraid to call,” I whispered in her ear before I pulled away.

  She nodded, and I was walking to the door when Vincent grabbed my arm and pulled me in for a hug.

  “Can’t wait to see you again, Rose,” he said into my ear.

  I tried pulling away, but he tightened his grip on me. I was about to bite the fucker, but Emmett’s voice stopped me.

  “You can let go of my wife now, Father.” He had the don’t fuck with me tone, and I had to admit, I was kind of turned on by it.

  Who was I kidding, though? Anything Emmett did turned me on. He may have hurt me, but that didn’t make him any less attractive.

  Vincent let go of me, and I practically ran to Emmett’s side. “Let’s get out of here,” I said while pulling him toward the car.

  I must’ve fallen asleep on the ride back because I woke up in Emmett’s arms, being carried into the house.

  “Careful, big guy,” I responded in a sleepy voice. “You’re going to catch a cough carrying this smoke show.”

  He let out a light chuckle. “You still got those lame-ass jokes, huh?”

  “Oh, shut it. You loved my lame-ass jokes.”

  We got to my room, and he laid me down on the bed. “You’re right. Good night, Rosie.”

  “Wait,” I rushed out. “Happy birthday, Emmett.” I grabbed his face, pulled him down toward me, and kissed him on the cheek.

  We both froze when my lips met his face.

  I quickly pulled away and punched his arm, trying to turn our interaction into something more friendly. I didn’t know where that came from. I wasn’t even thinking—it was so instinctual. I blame it on me still being half-asleep.

  His eyebrows jumped in surprise. “You remembered?”

  “Of course, I did. I thought that’s why we were going to dinner at your father’s, but when there was no cake, I got very confused.”

  “I doubt my father even knows how old I am, let alone when my birthday is.”

  “Well, it’s okay. He’s a douche. I actually have something for you.” I got up and not so gracefully walked into my closet. When I found the photo album, I pulled it out and handed it to him. “It’s kinda corny, but I got it for you for your eighteenth birthday, and I totally forgot about it until I was packing up my stuff for the move and found it hidden in the depths of my closet.”

  He opened it up and started looking inside.

  “It has pictures of all of us inside, even Tommy and Claire, but it’s mostly you, Sammy, and me from when we were younger up until I was sixteen. I recently added a few more of you and Sammy from before he died. Anyway, I hope you like it.”

  It had made me sad when I found a picture of Emmett, Sammy, and me from a couple of days before Sammy died. They both had an arm around me, and we were all smiling from ear to ear at the camera. The girl I was back then was almost unrecognizable.

  In that picture, I didn’t have a care in the world. If you had told me back then that the following week I would lose everything important to me, I would’ve laughed in your face and punched you for good measure.

  “Thank you.” He walked out of the room with the album in his hands, and I didn’t
see him for the rest of the night or the next day.

  Sixteen

  Rose

  Seventeen Years Old

  Sammy had been banging on my door for the past five minutes, yelling at me to hurry up, or we were going to be late to Emmett and Tommy’s graduation party. But Emmett liked my hair when it was curled, and my hair was thick as hell, so it took a while for me to perfect it.

  “Give me a minute, Sammy. I’m almost done,” I yelled through my door.

  “If you’re not done in the next five minutes, I’m leaving without you, Bee.”

  I released the last curl, unplugged the curling iron, and took a look in the mirror to make sure I looked good. I threw the door open just as Sammy was going in for another loud-ass knock, and I had to dodge his fist because it was still coming down.

  “Perfection is not easy, Sammy. You would understand if you had more than two inches of hair.” I stuck my tongue out at him, and he laughed.

  “Oh, cry me a river. Let’s go before Emmett gets mad.”

  Thankfully, Emmett lived across the street, so it only took a minute to get there.

  Walking in, I looked around at all the people and let out a huff. It was going to take me forever to find Emmett.

  After fifteen minutes and two laps around the main floor, I gave up searching for him and made my way outside for some fresh air. Once outside, I noticed someone lying in the grass, and when I moved a little closer, I saw that it was Emmett, so I popped down beside him.

  “I just spent a solid amount of time looking for you inside. I should’ve known you were out here. You’ve never liked crowds like that.”

  It was quiet for a while. He didn’t speak, and neither did I, the two of us just content with looking up at the dark sky.

  “I used to be bad at math when I was younger, so Mom and I used to come out here and practice every day after school. My dad used to tell me that school isn’t a priority and that I should stop being such a pussy. I guess a part of me knew that Dad wouldn’t show up today because he never cared about school, but it really fucking sucks that my mom couldn’t be there for me because I know she would’ve been the first person there.”