Losing Love

19

Hope's POV:

Kyle opens the door to a créme coloured room, my dad turns to us and gestures to the big créme coloured couch. I look over at Kyle who's glaring at my dad, it's clear that he doesn't want me to know whatever my dad is going to tell me. I slowly walk over to the couch and sit down. My back is straightened and my hands are placed lightly on my knees. Kyle sits down on the other side of the couch, as far away from me as possible.

"I'm sure you're very confused over what is happening" my dad hesitates, "so I'll just get straight to the point." I nod.

"Before you were born, my best friend Luca Moretti was the boss of Cosa Nostra" He says it as if I'm supposed to know what it means. Understanding the confused expression clear on my face, he adds, "also known as the American-Italian Mafia."

What the fuck.

To be perfectly honest, I didn't think the Mafia was real. Okay, but what does this have to do with me?

"I was Luca's right hand man."

They must think I'm stupid, Mafia? Right hand man? Really?

I begin to burst into laughter, clutching my stomach from laughing hysterically. After a couple minutes of laughing at my dad's humour, I look up to see everyone staring at me seriously. My dad pulls out a gun from his waistband and Kyle does the same. They place the guns on the table in the room and turn back to me, "now do you believe us?" He questions with an eyebrow raised.

My eyes widen and I take deep breathes in to prevent freaking out, as I realise that this isn't a joke.

"Was?" I squeak out, recalling the way my dad mentioned his friend as a past memory.

My dad nods his head and continues, "Luca and his wife died in a car crash 13 years ago."

That sounds familiar.

"They had one son, he was meant to take over after his father at the age of 20. But he was only 10 years old at the time. I took over Luca's position until his son was of age."

My dad was the fucking boss of the Mafia?

I stare at my parents in disbelief as I feel tears force themselves down my cheeks, I remember Ryder.

Kyle and my mom are staring at the ground, while my dad looks at me with apologetic eyes.

"Before Luca's son turned 20, we needed new recruits. Ones we could trust. Your brother was meant to take over the position of right hand man when he turned 20 and I figured it would be better to have someone he was close to." I began to panic at his choice of words, I had a thought over who he had recruited but I pushed it out immediately. My dad could never do something that terrible. Not to me, not to Kyle, and certainly not to Ryder.

He looks away from me as he completes his sentence.

"I chose Ryder."

My heart stops beating. I stare at the people I thought were my family, the people I thought I could trust. I try to move, to run out, to say or do anything but I can't. Im frozen in place. Turns out you can't trust anyone in this lifetime. All of them knew, they all knew and nobody told me.

"Y-you're the reason h-he left me" I utter in between sobs.

My dads eyes turn glossy as he looks back up at me, his eyes full of regret.

"He wanted to leave and I warned him that he couldn't get out of this life unless it was in a body bag." He attempts to say confidently but instead chokes on his own words.