Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 113710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 569(@200wpm)___ 455(@250wpm)___ 379(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 113710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 569(@200wpm)___ 455(@250wpm)___ 379(@300wpm)
“Co-come on, Daddy,” Camille murmurs, stealing me from my thoughts. As she leads Lucia and Gabriele out of the conference room, she glances back at me. “It-it’s time to go home.”
I breathe a little easier at how she says “home.” For a few fragile moments, that protective bubble almost burst when I stupidly gave permission for her executioner to enter the compound under the guise of a custody mediation hearing.
My father was greeting Henry Gottle Sr. in the foyer of our home when Anna offered to collect Camille from her room so Henry could officially meet her as he does all the children he makes a ruling about.
Neither Henry nor my father knew of her plan to poison Camille. That morning, everyone’s eyes were on Edoardo before they shifted to Carmela.
The way the top rung was used as a prop doubled the strength of the Carusos’ reign. The rules were adjusted to accommodate immediate retribution, and it also gave us free rein on a handful of bad practices we’d been trying to drive out of Sicily for years.
Buildings will be scarred with the grunt of vengeance for centuries to come.
“Th-thanks, Daddy,” Camille whispers when I step ahead of her to open the door.
Her walk out of her mute world is slow, but I know she’ll get there. Not only does she have my brothers and me ready to fight her every battle, but now she also has Lucia and Gabriele.
While Camille and Gabriele bond over the musical snow globe glinting in the morning sunlight, Lucia turns her gaze to me. Her eyes are full of life from her family together in one spot, and she marks the significance with three words I’ll burn the world to hear topple from her mouth on repeat.
“I love you.”
When I gather her hand in mine to kiss her knuckles, the restless pain I’ve carried for five years finally relents. It will never fully disappear. The nonexistent bump in Lucia’s midsection announces our family will be complete in a little over seven months, but my work is far from done.
I won’t stop moving mountains until the Cosa Nostra is worthy of all of us, which means not only will my children not be rated by their gender, but the love of my life won’t be either.