Absolution (Disenchanted Book 3)

by L. D. Davis

  Two hours later, while I was still tied up, I sent Lydia another text. She hadn’t answered my first one, but that was to be expected.

  Are you okay?

  Again, I got no response, but I was not surprised. About an hour later, I had to accept the truth. I was trying to save a sinking ship. The biggest, most important project of my career was about to fail. I could stay on the phone all day, send emails until my fingers fell off, but it would not make any difference. It hurt, and it was terrifying, but there was literally nothing else I could do for the day.

  It was time for me to grovel at my girlfriend’s feet, beg for her forgiveness, and hear her out. I’d been thinking about that all morning, how I hadn’t really listened to her, and I felt like such an ass.

  My phone rang, and I almost dropped it racing to see who the caller was. When I saw it was Giovanni, I groaned in frustration. There wasn’t anything wrong with my cousin, but he wasn’t who I wanted to talk to. I decided to send the call to voicemail and call him back later after things settled. Before I could leave the office, however, Celia burst in, near hysteria.

  “He left the hospital! He checked out and went home with that whore and her bastard child!”

  I was confused. I didn’t know what she was talking about, and I was also surprised to hear those words come out of her mouth.

  “Celia, what are you talking about?”

  “Massimo! He checked out of the hospital and…and he’s left us. He’s left us for Tessa.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Marco

  I tried reaching Massimo and Tess on their phones, but both went straight to voicemail.

  Celia sat on the couch in my father’s office, sobbing. “This is not how it is supposed to be.”

  “Not how what is supposed to be, Celia? You have to tell me what is happening.”

  “He is trying to humiliate me!” she said with such vehemence that it made her whole body shake. A vein stuck out on the side of her neck, and her face was bright red. The mark Lydia had left on her cheek was still there, somehow making her appear sinister.

  “I don’t understand. How is he humiliating you?”

  “By leaving me and going to be with that whore!”

  I sighed and rubbed my fingers across my forehead. I’d called the hospital already and discovered that Massimo had indeed been released but had left with Tess. Celia only found out because my brother’s personal assistant had come to her home to collect some of Massimo’s things. When she called him, he told her he wasn’t coming back, and he would be in touch about the children later. He’d hung up on her and refused any more of her calls.

  I knew Tess and my brother had a strong bond, and even I had my suspicions more than once about just how deep that bond ran. However, I could never convince myself that he was anything but faithful to his wife. His actions today were out of character and damn confusing. The only way I was going to get to the bottom of any of it was to go to Tess’s house to talk to Massimo. That also meant that I had to put off talking to Lydia. Again.

  “I am going to go see what is going on,” I muttered to Celia as I sent Lydia another text.

  She stood up and came to me, wrapping her small hands around my wrists. “No. Just…just take me and my children away from here. Please.”

  Carefully, I peeled her fingers off and spoke calmly. “Before I can make any kind of decision like that, I have to talk to my brother.”

  For some reason, she seemed apprehensive about that, biting her bottom lip as she stared worriedly at me. I didn’t have time to stand there and argue about it, though, and left immediately. The sooner I went, the sooner I could get back to Lydia.

  I drove too fast and a little recklessly to the villa Tess was renting in Lago di Garlate. Every couple minutes, I checked my phone, but there were no calls or messages from Lydia. The more time that passed without hearing from her, the edgier I became. I just wanted to clear up this misunderstanding between Massimo, Celia, and Tess so I could take care of my own problems.

  I knocked on the door loudly and without patience. From the other side, I heard a dog bark and a child’s playful voice, as well as Tess’s gentle yet authoritative tone. Moments later, she opened the door, and a huge Newfoundland with black fur stood at her side, happily wagging his tail in greeting. As I followed Tessa through the house, I took in the bright but homely décor. Greek and Italian artwork were displayed on the walls, and framed pictures of friends and family were perched on tables and others surfaces. Daniel’s image was most prominent.

  I’d never really gotten a good look at the child. I’d seen a couple pictures of him but had only seen him in person twice. The first time was a brief encounter a couple months ago when the child had been bundled up in rain gear. I saw him again the other night during the fireworks but not up close. Now that I was really seeing his face in different views, there was something familiar about him. It nagged at me, made me feel uncomfortable in a way I didn’t understand.

  We entered a living room, lit spectacularly by sunlight through large windows and skylights. Massimo sat in an oversized armchair. There was more color to his face than I’d seen in some time, and even his cough sounded better than it had a couple days ago. His nurse Michael was there, checking the bags of solutions that hung on an IV pole behind my brother’s chair. He acknowledged me with a quick nod and smile and left the room after telling Massimo he was stepping outside to make a phone call.

  Before any of us could talk, a small figure zoomed into the room and leapt into his mother’s arms. She barely got a good hold of him before he began to wiggle, his arms outstretched toward Massimo. I watched as Tessa gingerly put the boy down on his lap. She and my brother exchanged a long look. He smiled at her with so much love and adoration that it knocked the breath from my lungs. Nervously, but without hesitation, she put her hand in his when he reached for it, and all three looked at me. Tessa, Massimo, and Daniel, who had his mother’s skin and mouth and his father’s eyes and hair. Massimo’s eyes and hair. My eyes and hair. Our father’s, too.

  I stumbled back several steps as I gawked at my brother and his other family. Daniel, who didn’t know any better, sung a childhood song to himself, a song my mother had taught me and all my siblings.

  “How could you? How could you do that to her—to your family?”

  “There is much you do not understand,” Massimo, the betrayer, the cheater, the home breaker, said.

  “What is there to understand? You have betrayed your marriage vows, and now you humiliate Celia, your family, and even Tessa by moving in here with her and her illegitimate child.”

  Tessa flinched, and I felt bad for saying what I said, but not bad enough. What she did with my brother was much worse.

  “You need to stop this, Massimo. Immediately, and go back to your family.”

  “Tessa and Daniel are my family, and if you call my son illegitimate again, I swear I will kill you.”

  My hands fisted. “Kill me? If you were not sick and weak, and if you did not have a child on your lap right now, I would beat the shit out of you.”

  “Marco!” Tess admonished.

  I turned my glare on her. “How dare you, Tessa? You were like family to us!”

  Massimo managed a low, menacing tone despite his illness. “Do not raise your voice to her. Ever.”

  “You disgust me,” I spat. “Some things never change. You were a degenerate twenty years ago, and nothing’s changed.”

  Massimo tried to call my name as I turned and marched back toward the door, but he started to cough. I left the house, slamming the door behind me.

  Back at the estate, I found Celia in her kitchen having lunch with her children. I told Laura to keep an eye on the kids and led her mother to the parlor and closed the door.

  “Well?” she asked anxiously, wringing her hands.

  “I didn’t want to believe it, but…he is with her, Celia, and Daniel is…”

  “He’s Massimo’s child. I know. I have had to li
ve with that knowledge since I first saw him.”

  Tears formed in her eyes, and she sniffled. I put my hands on her shoulders to comfort her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I wanted to pretend everything was still the same, but there is no pretending anymore. Everyone will know now. I can’t…I can’t deal with that humiliation, Marcello. I can’t.”

  I sighed and nodded. “I know, but…I don’t understand why he’s done this. What else has been going on that I don’t know about, Celia?”

  She shrugged and averted her gaze. “All that matters is that he is openly living with the mother of his bastard child, and that he has left his family. Please, please do not make me stay here and endure this. You must take us with you. Massimo obviously does not want his children we have together, or he would not have done this.”

  I sighed again and dragged a hand over my face. “I will help you get to America one way or another, but I don’t know if I can take you with me when I leave this time. We need to talk to the rest of the family first, and after what happened between you and Lydia, I can’t just bring you and your kids on our flight home.”

  She blinked in surprise and looked at me strangely. “But…you don’t have to worry about that.”

  Suddenly, there was a dull ache in my chest. “What do you mean?”

  “You…you don’t know?”

  The shred of patience I had left was breaking. “Know what, Celia?”

  “Oh…I guess we are both blindsided today. Lydia took her children and your sister and left. She’s already on a plane back to America.”

  I didn’t even stop to think about what she said. I took off for the second floor, taking the stairs three at a time, and ran into the bedroom. Lydia wasn’t there, and the big suitcase that had sat in a corner since we’d arrived days ago was gone. There were still little signs of her here and there—a hairbrush and hair tie, a robe hanging on the back of the door, and a sweater over the back of a chair—but not much else. I hurried to the kids’ room, and it was much of the same. A couple of toys were left behind on one of the beds, a pile of dirty clothes in a basket, and one of Gavi’s comic books was on the bedside table, but they were gone.

  I took out my phone, thinking maybe I’d somehow missed her call. There was another missed call from Giovanni, but nothing from Lydia. As I dialed her, I headed back to the first floor to see if they were in the kitchen or out in the yard. It went to voicemail, but I kept calling, and calling, and calling. I went from room to room in search of my family, but the house was eerily quiet. When I got to the kitchen, I found my mother sitting alone at the table, a cup of tea in front of her.

  “Where are they?” I demanded.

  She didn’t look at me. Her fingers tapped the side of her cup. It was obvious she was upset about something, and it made my stomach twist.

  “I tried. I really did try to make her stay. I begged her not to leave, Marcello. It has only been a few days, but we fell in love with her and those children. Eventually, we knew she would have to go back, but not like this.”

  “Where. Are. They.”

  Her gaze snapped to mine, fire burning behind those eyes. She spoke in a tone that used to make me quake. Honestly, it made me quake still. “I am your mother, Marcello Mangini, and you will watch your tone and respect me. Where do you think they are? They left, and because Sofia did not want her to travel alone, she left with her.” She sniffled, and as she went on speaking, her voice frayed. “My baby left so quickly I barely got to hug her and kiss her goodbye. Lydia might never come back, or maybe she will send Sofia back here and never let us see our grandbaby and those children again, and it is your fault. I warned you, and you did not listen.”

  I knew reaching Lydia was only a matter of getting on a plane and going after her, but that fact didn’t matter. What mattered was that she had been hurt deeply enough to leave in the first place. My heart shattered into a hundred pieces as I stood in my mother’s kitchen and struggled to hold back tears.

  Mamma was hurting for the loss of Sophia, Lydia, and the children. I could read the anger and disappointment in me all over her face, but she was still my mother. She came to me, put her warm hands on my face and told me she loved me. I hugged her tightly and allowed a few tears to slip before I straightened up and wiped my eyes.

  “I am going to leave as soon as possible, but…there is an issue with Massimo.”

  She looked at me expectantly. “What issue?”

  I didn’t want to be the one to break the news to her, but it was necessary. “He’s left Celia. When he was released from the hospital this morning, he went to Tessa’s. I drove over there and…Mamma, they are together, and Daniel is…Daniel is Massimo’s son. I never thought he would do such a thing—or Tessa for that matter—but he cheated on Celia and left her and their children.”

  I was surprised when my mother didn’t seem surprised herself. She appeared resigned. “I am guessing you were pigheaded and irrational and did not have a real conversation with your brother.”

  I stared at her. “Why would I need to have a real conversation with him about that? It is plain as day what he’s done.”

  “You really need to talk to Massimo.”

  My eyes widened. “You know something. In fact, you know a lot, don’t you? You already know about Daniel.”

  She smiled sadly. “He is a spitting image of his father. Of course, I know.”

  I recoiled. “And you’re okay with his infidelity?”

  “Marcello, make your plans to go back to America, and go talk to your brother.”

  I did as my mother told me for once. I found a commercial flight back to the States, but unfortunately, it didn’t leave until morning. I tried calling Lydia several times, but each time, it went to voicemail. When I called Sofia’s phone, it did the same, and any FaceTime calls to the kids went unanswered. If anything was wrong, I would hear about it, but my concern for my pregnant girlfriend, our kids, and my sister was mounting.

  Celia found me in the office as I packed my things. I noticed that she had used makeup and her hair to cover the mark on her face.

  “Laura and Lucia took the younger ones out for a couple hours. As soon as they left, I packed a few bags. I haven’t told them yet that we are going on a trip to America with their uncle. They will be too excited to see your house by the lake and all the animals to question why we are going.”

  “Celia,” I said softly.

  “Oh! And I found tutors fluent in our language who can help the kids transition into American schools. They help them with their schoolwork while teaching them the language.”

  “Celia.”

  “That gala you told me about is coming soon, right? I have not been to a formal function in years, but I think I can clean up well.”

  “Celia!” I finally got her attention with a shout. “I am leaving in the morning.”

  “Okay, and…what about me and the children?”

  I put the last of my paperwork in my bag and zipped it up. “I can’t just show up in America with you and the kids. I have to plan ahead for that, make sure you have a place to live and transportation. Like you said, you’ll need someone to help the kids transition to English-speaking schools and activities. That takes time.”

  “But we can stay with you until that happens. Your cabin is big enough.”

  “You know I plan to have Lydia move in there. It’s not possible for the two of you to reside under the same roof.”

  Her mouth opened and closed. “But…she left you. She has gone back to…Ohio or wherever.”

  Just hearing those words ripped me apart, but I did well to hide it. “I know, but if I have any hope of getting her back, I cannot have you in that cabin. Also, you should know before I make any major decisions that require me to remove my brother’s children from the country, I need to talk to him first.”

  “You did talk to him, and you saw the truth with your own eyes!”

  “I saw what I saw and jumped to conclusions. Listen, my brot
her is still sick. I don’t want to be estranged from him again. So, I will hear him out before I make any other plans.”

  I put my bag on my shoulder and walked past her to the door.

  “You would just leave me here? To face all of this on my own? Marcello…please…”

  I peered over my shoulder and saw the desperation in her face. “I am your friend, Celia. You are my family, but so is Massimo. He is my blood, and before I possibly hurt him in any way, I need to hear what he has to say for himself.”

  I walked out, thankful she didn’t follow.

  In the evening, as I made the trip back across the city to Tessa’s, I thought about all the conversations I’d had over the past couple months with both Celia and Massimo. I also thought about what Lydia had said about Massimo not wanting to be around his wife. In my mind’s eye, I saw every time one of the women of my family made the sign of the horns when my sister-in-law or her mother walked into a room. I always thought it was silly female cattiness, but was it possible it was more than that?

  Something else Lydia had said to me back at her sister’s wedding, which felt like ages ago rather than a matter of days, came to my mind.

  “You are in too deep to see it. Marco, I love that you love your family. I love that you have made such a serious, noble vow to your brother, but you don’t see how unbalanced your involvement is with Celia and her children. You are not her husband. You are not their father. That is not your role…”

  Before today, I hadn’t thought I was in too deep, but now I wondered if Lydia was right, if I was blinded by my past feelings for Celia. I had once loved her more than anything and anyone. I loved her still, but not in the same way as before. If our circumstances were different, perhaps in time romance would bloom between us again. She was smart, beautiful, and familiar in so many ways, but the fact was, circumstances were not different, and I didn’t want her in that way. I only wanted Lydia, and I’d done a piss poor job showing her that. I was only beginning to understand how much of a jerk I’d been over the past couple months. It had been difficult for her to open herself and trust me with her heart, and I’d done nothing but handle it carelessly. Forgiveness for me would not be easy, if not impossible.