29. Benjamin
“ A re you sure you want to go down this path?” I bite my lip as my friend paces across my room.
He comes to an abrupt stop, turning to face me.
“I don’t have another option. There’s no fucking way I’m alright with what Allesandro and Cristian are doing.
Leandro had a point. Granted, I’d hoped to talk to Roman before making this decision…
and, uh, Carter surprised me, but I won’t stay here.
Not with them fucking everything up. And… ”
“And what?” I ask. When he doesn’t say anything, I pat the bed next to me. His shoulders slump as he slowly moves toward me and climbs onto the bed. “What, Lio?”
“I… He hurt me. I can handle when he hurts me for the right reason. Or fuck, even in the beginning, the way he twisted me up. But this? This destroys me. He may not have laid a finger on me, but he may as well have razed me to the ground. There’s…
nothing.” Lio leans into me, twisting his engagement ring around on his finger.
“We’re supposed to get married, and yeah, I know it’s to unite the Families, but…
he’s choosing Cristian over me—over our entire family.
I don’t mind sharing, you know that. But… maybe I’m selfish.”
“You are not selfish,” I growl. “Fuck him. Even if you are sharing, that doesn’t give him the right to put someone ahead of you. And for sure, he shouldn’t be breaking the rules.”
“I can’t trust him,” Lio whispers. “I can’t kneel for him when I don’t trust him to catch me if I fall, or to build me up when I falter. I never realized how much trust meant until it was gone.”
I grab my friend and pull him into my arms as he breaks down.
Rocking him, I murmur nonsense words to him as I desperately try to figure out our options.
Fuck Allesandro and Cristian. They don’t deserve any of us.
But…fuck. I have no clue what Hollis and Tennant will do, and those two are part of us now. There’s also the rest of the Boys…
“Alright. Uh. We need to be smart about this. When would you want to leave? We need to talk to Sarah and find out if there's anything we should be concerned about with transferring Ignacio—if he even wants to come. There’s also Roman, although I’m not sure if he’ll come.
And if he doesn't…I’m not sure Ignacio will.
Or Tennant,” I pause before softly adding, “Or Hollis.”
Lio flinches at Hollis’s name, the pain on his face deepening as he pulls away from me.
I wish I had a magical answer for him to make this better, but the truth is…
we fell for people who were already in relationships.
That makes this harder. Granted, they’re not assholes like Cristian and Allesandro.
Sighing, Lio picks at my comforter and I slap his hand lightly. Rolling his eyes at me, he shrugs one shoulder. “I guess…talk to Sarah about the medical care, and I don’t know…do we call a meeting with everyone? To let them know our plans? Offer them the option of coming with us.”
“It won’t go over well,” I warn Lio. “Even if the others embrace it, that’s more than standing up to Allesandro. He’ll take this as mutiny. Those are his Boys. And I have no idea what he’d think of the Amatos leaving.”
“If he were a worthwhile leader, there would be no reason to break away. But he broke the rules. Where is his loyalty? His courage? It’s like he’s stuck back in that cell with Cristian, refusing to walk away from it. They’ve bonded, yes, but…it’s warped.
“I’ve been kidnapped before. Fuck, look what Peter put me through. And Jax for you. We both understand the psychological impact that shit has on a person. But nothing excuses what they’re doing.”
I stare at the engagement ring he keeps playing with; moving it, pulling it as close to off as he can, before putting it back.
There’s no words I can give him on this decision.
I know he already feels like he’s betraying Allesandro, but I worry he’ll go too far.
Allesandro isn’t exactly known for being rational.
“I understand. And agree. Alright, you want me to set up a meeting tomorrow? That way you can talk to everyone after you’ve gone on your rescue mission. You need to get some sleep right now. There’s time for a nap. I can talk to Sarah and start putting things in motion while you rest.”
“You’re a perfect Second. And the best friend I could ask for,” Lio whispers as he blinks away tears, and my heart clenches at the sight. My strong friend is hurting, and fuck do I want to stab Allesandro. Sadly, I already pushed my luck with Cristian.
“Get some sleep. You need it.” I kiss the top of his head and slide off the bed.
“You okay with me bunking in here?” Lio asks softly. “I…”
“I know. You don’t want to go back to your room.
Yeah, go ahead. I’ll kick you out when it’s time for you to start getting ready to meet Antonio.
I’m going to track down Sarah, Tennant, Roman, and Carter.
If I’m lucky, some of them will be together.
I’m sure they can help spread the word for me.
But I’ll make sure everyone knows to show up. ”
Lio strips down to his underwear and slides between the sheets. He curls into a ball, before mumbling, “After breakfast. I want this shit taken care of. I…just can’t stay.”
“I understand.” I stare at him as he drifts to sleep before exhaling. Fuck . This is not what I want to be doing, but…I’m his Second for a reason.
Fucking Allesandro. And fucking Cristian. I hope those two assholes know exactly what they’re doing, because they’re tossing the best of us away.
They don’t deserve us. I hope the others understand why we’re doing this—and…
that we’re not trying to force them. We have to take the best route for us.
And that means saving my best friend from the pain he faces here, because even in sleep, his face doesn’t lose the lines of anxiety and heartache.
And that can be laid right at those two assholes’ feet…