by Serena Light
"Not deliberately."
"Deliberately? I wouldn't do it even if I was drunk! I would never betray you!" Vincent exclaimed as he stood to his feet, toppling the glass of scotch. "Arcangelo! Come on, you can't possibly think I would betray you!"
"I don't know, things have become very different since you got married." Arcangelo shrugged nonchalantly as he also stood up form his place, casually slipping his hands into his pockets as he walked over to the window.
"Arcangelo, you can't possibly mean that." Vincent chuckled humourlessly. "It's still me, I'm still Vincent, I haven't changed!"
"Are you sure? Because the Vincent I knew wouldn't disobey a direct order and go and almost choke the life out of an innocent university student--who, just so coincidently, happened to have saved my life."
"I couldn't have been sure!"
"But I was."
Vincent stammered over his words as he looked at his best friend in disbelief, not believing that he was actually accusing him of treason.
"Where did you go after I told you to go home that night?"
"What does this have to do-"
"Answer me, Vincent or so help me God for I will have your head mounted on a spike."
Swallowing thickly, Vincent thought back to that night before responding.
"Bar." He spoke in recollection. "I went to a bar to get myself a drink."
"And let me guess, one drink turned into several and you started babbling," Arcangelo spoke coldly as Vincent tensed, never having been on the receiving end of that voice and bone-chilling glare. "You started talking and somewhere in the middle Rosalie came up and all the wrong people heard about her."
"I-I-"
"You fucking idiot!" Arcangelo hissed as he grabbed Vincent by the front of his suit, pulling him closer as he glared down at him, the anger tangible as Vincent didn't know how to respond. "Because of your foolishness, a young girl got marked! She is going to die! Only because she saved me!"
With his teeth gritted and eyes ablaze with fire, Arcangelo pushed Vincent away from him, causing him to stumble and trip over a folding in the rug.
"Get out!" He exclaimed at the man lying on the floor. "You're no brother of mine!"
"A-Arcangelo, calm down-"
"-You have given her a fucking death sentence! An innocent! And we promised her to protect the innocent!" Arcangelo yelled as Vincent clambered back. "You broke that oath we made. Get the fuck out of my sight before I put a bullet through your head."
"Arcangelo, please, listen to me!"
"No!" Arcangelo growled. "Vincenzo Ettore Moretti, I, Arcangelo Iva-" He started to say when Vincent intervened by throwing the scotch in his face.
The suddenness having Arcangelo stumble back in surprise as he stood dumbfounded, his shirt covered by the liquid.
"I was in the basement bar! I was here! I talked to the other guys! I didn't mention Rosalie, I swear on Claudia's life that I never uttered Rosalie's name!" Vincent rushed out, his hands shaking as he stared at his best friend with wide eyes. "Please...please...don't sever ties with me, don't treat me like a stranger...Arcangelo...you know me..."
Vincent stared at his best friend with panic, never have imagined something like this to happen. An inaudible choke escaped him as he stumbled to his feet wanting to make things right between his best friend and him, knowing that Arcangelo deserved the truth. They were brothers in arm. Partners in crime. Two halves to one whole. It all just couldn't end like that.
Not in the blink of an eye.
"Vincent," Arcangelo growled lowly as he swiped his hand over his face. "Don't fucking throw drinks in my face again. You know how much I detest it."
A forced laugh escaped Vincent as he stared at his friend uncertainly, fidgeting in his place, waiting for him to continue.
"W-what now?"
"Well, whoever is the snitch wanted me to suspect you," Arcangelo stated with a devious glint in his eyes as the other man swallowed thickly.
"What...What do you mean?
"Let's give him what he wants,"
Chapter VII: Explorers
After almost three weeks of isolation, Rosalie was almost as good as new. All the bruises were gone, most of her injuries were healed, and it was just her rib cage that was still bound since it needed more time to heal, but other than that, she was back in top shape.
She knew that she had been here for three weeks and during that time she didn't see anything of Arcangelo; she wondered if he was avoiding her, but then realized that she had no right to inquire about him.
Rosalie was allowed outside her room and she had the free will to walk around. During these three weeks, she figured that this place was huge and she hasn't discovered it, instead she spent most of her time in the kitchen, talking to the maids and helping out with cooking every now and again.
During her time spent in the kitchen, she got acquainted with a few of the people that worked around the mansion. She even found out that they were all very polite and cordial people and she had just got in the way of one of the worst persons there on her first day. Someone who, for some reason, wouldn't be a problem anymore. Rosalie had her suspicions of it being a Mafia household, and figured that it was exactly that--given the luxury and style everything was made in and the amount of secrecy regarding what goes on.
"What do you mean, you don't know?" One of the older guards asked with a chuckle at the response he got for her presence at the estate. "How do you not know?"
"Well, Arcangelo never specified." She shrugged as she cut up the vegetables, noticing how everyone tensed whenever she took his name. "Why do you guys do that?"
"Do what?"
"Wince every time I take his name?"
"Well, sweety," He spoke as he took a carrot. "Names, especially dangerous names, have power. And like people love to say 'speak of the devil and he shall appear' and believe me, honey, he is the Godfather of the devil."
"Isn't he a rumor?"
"In your world, he is nothing but a rumor. In our world, he is the god. The king. And no one can get in his way." The guard spoke with a slight shiver down in spine.
"I can only imagine," Rosalie muttered as she handed the vegetables to one of the girls around her. "Say, what's your name. I'm Rosalie."
"We all know who are, dearie." Teresa, the head chief, chuckled from the stove. "And that knucklehead over there is Major, head of security and Boss's guard."
"You work beside him?"
"Not beside him per say, that would suggest that I am one of his oldest friends, I work more for him."
"Oldest friends?" Rosalie chortled as she leaned forward onto the counter. "I don't think he is capable of having friends."
"Oh, no. They are more like his childhood companies that became brothers. His second-in-command; Vincenzo Moretti, the one with the green eyes. Lorenzo Balducci, the man who ensures everything is in order for the boss. Marcelo Vitali, the chief of staff. And Romeo Alleva, the one in charge of recruits training. These five guys have been together since they were born. All grew up together and lived in the same neighborhood."
"Really?" Rosalie inquired with curiosity as she didn't imagine the ruthless mafia boss to have any friends.
"They all wanted to do such different things." Teresa chimed in. "I've known these boys since they were babes. Always found together, and whenever something happened, it was always those five to have caused it. They even had a name for their little gang. BRAVE, I believe."
"Brave?" She giggled in response. "Why?"
"B for Balducci. R for Regnante. A for Alleva. V for Vitali. E for Ettore. BRAVE."
"Ettore? Who is Ettore?"
"Vincenzo (Vincent) Ettore Moretti."
"Ah."
"They were such good boys, then everything just...fell apart." Teresa reminisced as she stirred the pot, a sad smile on her face as tears welled in her eyes. "It was so horrible. Oh God, the boys never recovered, they all went dark. You have to understand something, Rosalie, they weren't always like this. They were
n't evil. But since that day, they never were the same..."
"Well obviously, Teresa. Who can witness and live with what they did and stay the same?" Major inquired flatly as he stirred the coffee in his cup.
"What day?" Rosalie asked in curiosity as she looked at Major and Teresa, trying to understand what they were talking about.
Teresa opened her mouth to say something when a low grumbling voice had everyone freezes in their places.
"One more word, Teresa," The voice spoke with venom dripping from every syllable. "You know the rules."
"Yes, sir," She murmured in shame as she hung her head.
Feeling his piercing gaze on her, Rosalie slowly lifted her head and met his unwavering glare as he was dressed in an expensive steel grey suit. A little girl, of 4 years of age, in his arms with a 6-year-old boy standing with his hand in Arcangelo's.
"Major," Arcangelo called out to the guard who instantly stood to attention. "Alyna will be here any moment, so I need you to be there, along with Salv and Gun."
"Yes, sir." Major nodded as he stepped out of the kitchen going to look for the other two guards.
"And Teresa, I need someone to look after these two." He resumed as he put down the little girl. "Alyna is livid and you know how frightened Claudia gets with loud altercations," Arcangelo spoke gently as he stroked the little girl's hair, placing a kiss on her forehead.
"Arsenio, can you please keep an eye on her?" He turned to the little boy, who nodded eagerly.
Rosalie looked at the two little children, both of them looking confused and frightened as her heart went out to them. Such innocent little children in the midst of chaos.
"May I look after them?" Rosalie spoke up just as Arcangelo was about to leave. Everyone, including him, freezing as the maids held their breath. "Please?"
Turning to look over his shoulder, he was about to say something when the sound of glass shattering outside had people jump in fright.
"Where the fuck are you?!" A feminine voice screamed as Arcangelo closed his eyes to remain calm, Claudia whimpering in fear, huddling towards the boy with her uncle out of her reach.
"Arsenio, prendere Claudia e andare con lei (Arsenio take Claudia and go with her)." He told the little boy who nodded and grasped the girl's hand before approaching Rosalie.
With a nod of confirmation in her direction, he stepped out as Alyna's voice grew an octave at the sight of him.
"How can you do that!? He is my husband! But most of all he is your best friend, you can't do this to him! To me!"
"Lower your voice." Rosalie heard Arcangelo growl as instant fear prickled at her from every direction.
"How can you sever all ties and then expect me to come and stay here with the kids?! You are disowning me!"
"Stop this bullshit, Alyna."
"He is my husband and you can't expect me to just be up and leave him when he needs me the most! I have had enough-" the woman went on when Rosalie felt the boy take hold of her hand and lead her out towards the gardens.
"Arsenio?" Rosalie called out questioningly because she recalling that to be what Arcangelo called him. "Are you Arsenio?"
The boy looked at her uncertainly before nodding. Smiling, she halted in the middle of the garden, crouching before the two.
"Hello, I'm Rosalie. A...friend of your uncle's."
"Uncle Arcangelo has a girlfriend." The girl gasped in shock, her tears instantly stopping. "Are you really his friend?"
"Well, not actually a friend, more of a...what can I say...client?"
"Oh." The girl spoke with a disappointed look.
"I'm sorry, what's your name, sweety?"
"I'm Claudia." The girl grinned. "This is my cousin, Arsenio."
Rosalie smiled in response before an idea came to mind.
"Hey, you two have roamed this place before right?"
"Yes." Arsenio nodded as he looked at her with interest.
"Could you show me around?" Rosalie asked as she bit her lip uncertainly. "I mean, I've been wanting to look around, but I've been terribly scared to do that in case I get lost. So can I trust you two to show me around without getting lost?"
Instantly the two looked at each other before turning back to her, a wide grin on their faces before nodding vigorously. Smiling, Rosalie stood up and just as she did, the children grabbed hold of her hand, running across the lush green grass.
Looking around her, Rosalie realized how huge everything was. The estate was three stories tall with porcelain white walls, numerous windows, and a navy blue tiled roof.
"The yards first!" Claudia exclaimed as they shrieked with laughter, tugging Rosalie along with them. "And then we'll show you the dogs and the fountain!"
"And dad's cars!" Arsenio piped in. "Then we'll meet all the guards too!"
Rosalie laughed as she allowed them to pull her along. She didn't think it would be much, she imagined it to be a long stretch of green grass, but when they made it through the lawn--which she realized took quite some time and had her out of breath with her side aching--she realized that these 'yards' weren't just any yards.
They weren't yards at all. They were courts.
A tennis and a basketball court and an Olympic size pool all side by side at the back of the mansion. Looking around her in awe, Rosalie realized that mansion was an understatement, it was a castle.
"Wow." She gasped under her breath as she explored the basketball and tennis court. The children giggling and showing her around with great enthusiasm. They even introduced her to the few guards that were patrolling the ground, their hands folded behind their backs as Rosalie figured they were hiding away their guns.
Once she had a look at all three courts, the children started to walk back towards the house, but instead of going around it they made their way towards a patio that stretched all the way to the castle's width. Stepping onto the marble floor, she realized they were heading for the courtyard in the center of the house.
"Now, the fountain!" They spoke in sync as the ground beneath them changed from marble to rocks.
Looking around her, Rosalie noticed four paths connecting the mansion to the courtyard, with patches of lush green grass and vibrant flowers and a few benches between them--were all leading to the center of the yard. And in the middle stood a 15 feet tall porcelain fountain that had an angel standing tall, surrounded by intricate designs and water being spewed in its direction.
Gawking silently, she walked towards the gleaming structure before she looked into the clear blue water that was in the basin.
"Magnificent." She breathed silently as she traced the meticulous designs carved onto the ceramic structure. "Wow."
"Okay, let's go to the dogs!" Arsenio exclaimed, impatient to show her around.
When they said they'll take her to the dogs, she took their word for it. They took her to an enclosed area further away that had seven dogs engaged behind the fence, all of them ranging from one ferocious breed to another. They were terrifying to look at from afar, but the moment the children approached the fence, the beasts turned from wolves to puppies. Yapping and jumping as they tried to get to the children.
Rosalie felt safe knowing that these dogs were all locked up and couldn't harm her. If only she had known there was a dog that wasn't locked inside.
She held her breath as she watched a Doberman Pinscher approach her. It's black fur glinting in the sunlight with its cropped ears and tail it almost reached her knee. It sniffed the area around Rosalie's feet, deeming her to mean no harm before he turned away from her as if though she didn't interest him enough.
One bark from that monstrosity and the children squealed with joy, tackling the dog with hugs and belly rubs and ear scratching. The dog playing with them as he licked their faces, and nuzzled into them affectionately.
"This is Isaac," Arsenio told Rosalie who was watching them scratch the dog's belly from a safe distance that would give her a head start if she had to run. "He is dad's dog. That's why he's not with the others. They are for the
guards."
"Ah. Okay." She nodded in understanding. "Should we go onto your dad's cars?"
Standing up from the ground, they made their way to the garage, where they showed Rosalie the most expensive cars as if though they were a dinky collection. It mortified her at how easily they shrugged them off, saying things like, "eh, it's just a Lamborghini". She was genuinely scared of touching them and scaring their beauty. It suddenly hit her that she had never felt any more out of place than now in the midst of these expensive luxury cars in her denim jeans and a button-up blouse.
"Let's go inside," Claudia suggested as they made their way across the round porch and through the large double doors that looked like they were made of gold.
Inside, the showed the ground floor first, telling her that the estate was divided into the south, east and west wings. They showed her the south wing first, taking her all the way up to the third floor and opening all the rooms for her to have a look around.
According to one of the guards, who was assigned to the children and had supposedly been following them since they stepped out of the kitchen - and introduced himself as Salv - the south wing was where all the informal guests came, this was where they all casually sat or stayed the night, like Arcangelo's sister, Alyna--the same woman who had been screaming at him during the day.
The west wing was for the formal guest. They were all settled in the conference room on the ground floor, and if they were going to be staying, they had rooms on the first floor with the second floor being where all the serious transactions occurred with guns and money and everything.
And finally, they made their way to the east wing, the guard stopping at the intersection where the east wing connected with the south.
Rosalie looked at him in confusion as he simply moved away. Much to her surprise, there weren't any guards here, unlike the rest of the estate.
"This is our favorite part of this place," Arsenio informed as they walked down the brightly lit corridor with paintings on the wall and antiques on pedestals. Being so busy in admiring everything around her, she was forced to a sudden halt as they stood before two large oak doors that had intricate designing on the wood with the handles glinting golden.
