Amore Mio (#4)

Chapter 34: Monsters In My Head

          The last time I had spoken with Federigo was in Bulgaria when I questioned him about the brother I believed had died after Mike put the thought in my head. He had said he died in the plane crash as I once believed. Of course, I knew that wasn't the case after seeing him alive and standing against me that day. Whether or not Federigo knew was another thing. I couldn't trust him. I'd soon know.

          As for the other question I posed before him about why the Drago king would marry off his daughter to a criminal when their families were rivals...

          "It was a marriage of convenience as many are in our world," he had said. "We came to an understanding. Bartolomeo was sick and he needed to pass his crown down before he died. Leona was too stubborn to allow for it to be passed to Raffaello who was too young. She wanted to be queen as the firstborn with her twin, but Aria had no desire for the throne. So, Bartolomeo's hand was forced. Better to have the Bonferroni clan as an ally through marriage than an enemy who would destroy the royal bloodline after his passing."

          I wanted to believe him. I wanted to believe that my father—although a bastard—would divulge the truth after my persistent questioning. That he wouldn't have a hand in any part of the conspiracy brewing around me. That he wasn't the reason behind everything that had been happening. But I couldn't trust him.

          I couldn't let him vanish into thin air, so contained he was with Mother in Milan at the Bonferroni base, watched by those solely loyal to me.

          Mother understood, but Federigo's rage was unparalleled. I got informed of his every move, and he was still fuming.

          My fingers fiddled with the old pack of cigarettes he had tossed to me after our brawl when I hadn't realized who he was. Now, it all made sense.

          The thumb of my other hand rubbed against the gloss of the old Polaroid photograph. It was of us. Me and him with Lina the day she was born. He had a smile while he held her. However, I was distracted with the fragile thing in his arms. I remembered how he wasn't afraid to hold her, but I feared I might break her easily. I remembered everything now and the agony from those memories was brutal.

As I closed my eyes, my encounter with him ransacked my mind.

***

"How long do you plan on running, huh? Haven't you gotten tired, Luca?" I spat, repulsed by the mask he wore to conceal his identity. "Or should I say Luciano?"

Arie had gone limp in his arms, but he held her up stiffly with the knife still aimed at her neck. He was too bewildered to utter a single word or move a muscle.

"Do you expect mercy from me after threatening the one in your arms? Tell me, Luciano."

Nothing escaped his mouth which was all his mask allowed me to see along with his eyes from those small holes.

"Answer me!" I bellowed.

"No," he finally said calmly.

A heartbeat passed before he slowly removed the mask and revealed himself completely. My breath caught in my throat. Although all the facts and evidence pointed to it, I still wanted to deny the existence of my twin, but I couldn't cling onto that hope any longer when I was staring at the mirror image of myself.

I had tried to keep him and his memories barred behind walls that were impenetrable. Even the theories behind his existence were fiercer and dragged its feral claws around my head. Now, those floodgates swung wide open and drowned my mind. There was no stopping it.