“You sure?”
“Yes, I’m fucking sure.”
My skin was warm with a prickly burn, which was soothed when Joey smoothed on the ointment before placing the plastic wrap on my scalded skin.
“Thanks, Joey.”
I got up, and just as I reached for my shirt, I heard the creak of my bedroom door opening. This could only mean one person since everyone else in this goddamn house had the decency to knock—except her.
“Madre,” I said without turning toward her.
“Castello, when will you stop desecrating your body with the ink of the devil?”
I pulled my shirt over my shoulders. “It’s my body, Mother.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, son. Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, and you’re ruining it.”
I sighed then nodded toward Joey, dismissing him. Within five minutes, he had his shit packed up and his tail out of my bedroom.
I turned to face her and stepped closer to give her a chaste kiss on the cheek. “You look good,Madre.”
“Thank you, Castello. My health has improved much, and that’s all thanks to you.”
I pulled on my suit jacket. “To me?”
“Yes. You are finally giving me, our family, what we need to heal. Soon thatdonna diavolowill pay for what she has done to us. She brought this pain upon us by seducing your brother, leading him down the path of temptation. And when Carlo finally realized how wicked she really is, she and her family decided he was no good for her, a low-life who deserved to be buried.”
I fastened the buttons of my jacket. “Madre, what do we really know about Carlo and Tatum? All we know is that the Linscotts had him murdered, but we do not know their motive behind it. I thought Tatum would fill the gaps for us, but according to her, she didn’t even know Carlo was dead.”
She scoffed. “Not only is she a whore, but a liar too.”
“We don’t know why the Linscotts had Carlo murdered.”
“Does it matter?” Her eyes flashed with anger. “They killed my son, your brother, and caused your father’s death as well. No matter what kind of motive they had, they deserve to be punished.”
I stared at my mother, her eyes shining with unshed tears, and my heart ached for her. I placed my hands on her shoulders. “Do not worry,Madre. I will do what needs to be done, and I will get to the truth.” I gave her another kiss on the cheek.
“The truth will make no difference now, Castello. What’s done is done. All that matters is that all of this will be over soon.”
“Yes,Madre,soon this will all be behind us.” I sighed, my mind not the least bit satisfied with not knowing what the hell really happened.
She stepped forward, straightening the handkerchief peeking out from my suit jacket. “I knew I could count on you, Castello. I knew you would be strong enough to do what needs to be done. All these years I tried to convince your father that you were the better son, the son who should follow in his footsteps rather than your brother.”
With that, I stepped back, out of her reach. “Madre, please.”
“It’s the truth, Castello. You were always the stronger one, the focused one. I don’t know why your father insisted on making Carlo his second. Look at what happened. He got himself killed, all because of some spoiled rich girl. You”—she came closer, placing her palm on my cheek—“you would never do something as foolish as that. I have faith in you, Castello, faith in your loyalty to our family.”
I placed my hand over hers and slowly pulled it away from my face. “I won’t fail you,Madre.”
“Oh, I have no doubt about that, my son.”
I squeezed her hand one final time and kissed her on the cheek before attempting to walk out of the room.
“Castello?”
I stopped. “Yes,Madre.”
“I trust everything is in place for tonight’s event.”