Chapter 37 Massimo
MASSIMO
As we pull up to Ignazio’s, I take in the old Sicilian castle-looking fortress that’s hidden away, nestled behind a sea of trees on a cliff that overlooks the ocean.
“We’re here, signore,” the driver says.
Before I’m able to make my way up the steps to the large front door, it opens and an older gentleman wearing a black suit and tie with a white button-up is standing there, ready to greet me.
“Bon jornu, Signor Bonetti,” he greets.
“Bon jornu …”
He holds his hand up to his chest and says, “I’m Gaspare. Welcome to the Faraci home.” He extends his arm for me to walk in.
I step into the grand foyer that has high ceilings and opens to a sweeping double staircase. The architecture in the home is intricate, homing in on both Arab and Norman styles, coming together to make a beautiful masterpiece.
“Your parents are right this way. Please, follow me,” Gaspare says.
We make our way down the hall, our shoes clicking on the ceramic tile floors. I follow him to what feels like the opposite side of this place, until we walk into a brightly lit room—thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows—that appears to be the living room.
I see my mom first, and her eyes widen when she sees me. “Massimo, sweetheart, you’re here.” She brings herself to a stand while I walk around the couch to give her a hug.
“It’s good to see you, Mom. Did Dad not tell you I was coming?”
“Oh, no, he did, I was just so surprised to hear you were here in Sicily.”
She sits back down while my dad stands, opening his arms to give me a hug. “This was quite the surprise, son.”
“Hopefully, a good one,” I say as I pull back.
My dad is smiling and says, “Yes,” then gestures to the man sitting in the chair across from them. “This is a dear friend of mine, Ignazio. Ignazio, I’m proud to introduce you to my eldest son, Massimo. He recently took over for me, allowing us the opportunity to travel more.”
The older man stands up, looking me over with a blank expression on his face. Then he extends his hand out to shake, and a grin forms on his face. “It’s good to finally meet you, Massimo. I haven’t seen pictures of you since you were younger.”
I shake his hand. “My parents have sent you photos of me?”
“They used to often, but as you’ve gotten older, those family pictures have tapered off.”
That’s true. We haven’t taken a family photo since high school.
“Well, it’s great to meet you as well, sir.”
“Why don’t you take a seat. We were just discussing some things for the ball tomorrow evening.”
“Ahh, yes,” I say, sitting in the open chair next to the couch my parents are sitting on. I direct my attention to Ignazio. “I hope it’s okay that me, my wife, and my brother attend?”
“Of course, the more the merrier. I hold this ball once a year for all the families in Sicily to attend, so it’s great you’re here to meet all of the dons.”
“Where are Liana and Gui, sweetheart?” my mom asks.
“They’re at Balistreri’s working on the final dresses for Liana’s collection.”
“Your wife is a designer?” Ignazio asks.
“She is. The best in America.”
“My youngest is a model here in Sicily. You’ll meet her at the ball tomorrow.”
“How many children do you have?”
“Two, one boy and one girl. My son won’t be able to make it, though.”
“And what about your wife?”
The corner of his eyes, where wrinkles formed from the smile he’s kept on his face this entire time, spasm. It was so discreet, but I caught it.
“Unfortunately, she probably won’t be able to attend either. She’s been feeling a bit under the weather.”
“That’s too bad. Maybe we’ll be able to meet her before we head back to the states.”
Ignazio continues to smile but doesn’t say a word. My parents are staring off in different directions, and just when I’m about to say something to break the awkward fucking silence, Ignazio says, “One can hope.”
“If you’ll excuse me,” my mom says, pushing herself up from the couch. “I need to make a quick phone call.” She gives me a tight smile, then excuses herself from the room.
My dad clears his throat, then sits up taller on the couch and says, “I need to grab something from our room. I’ll be back in just a moment.”
I furrow my brow as he hurries out of the room. What the hell is going on with them? They’ve been acting strange ever since I showed up.
Ignazio pulls my attention back to him when he says, “So, do you all have masks for the ball? If not, I’m sure I have some options.”
“Actually, we do. Thank you though.”
Knowing my parents mentioned this ball before they left, I came prepared and brought a mask for Gui, and the masks Liana and I wore the night we met.
I’ve kept them all these years for no reason other than it was what my future wife wore the first time we met.
The fact we get to wear them again tomorrow night is just a bonus.
It’s quiet between Ignazio and me, neither of us speaking while my parents are gone. There’s something off about him, but I can’t pinpoint it. Maybe it’s the fact that his smile hasn’t left his face since I got here. It’s too … fake, but why would he need to put a show on for me?
Pushing myself up to a stand, I say, “Do you mind if I use your bathroom.”
“Of course not.” He points down the hall in the direction my parents went. “Head down the hall, take a right, and it’s the first door on the left.”
I give him a tight smile and nod, then head in the direction he said. I’m about to walk into the bathroom when I hear my parents’ hushed voices. I almost ignore it, but then my mom says something that gets my attention. “How do you expect me to keep this secret from him?”
Her tone is frantic, as if whatever secret she’s keeping from whomever she’s talking about is straining her.
Should I respect their privacy? Absolutely. But ever since I got here, there’s been a weird fucking energy in the air, and if my parents are hiding something from me, I need to know what it is.
I creep down a few doors until I’m standing right outside of theirs, making sure to keep to the side of the doorframe where they’re unable to see me.
“Look at the situation we’ve gotten ourselves in now, Andreas. How are we supposed to—”
“Shhh!” my dad hisses out.
There’s a pause, then my mom continues in a softer tone, but I lean in closer so I can still hear her. “He wasn’t supposed to be here. How are we supposed to continue keeping this from him now?”
There’s an aching feeling in my stomach. What the fuck could she possibly be talking about?
“Had I known he was going to come to Italy, I would’ve changed our plans, made something up, I don’t know. But now that he’s here, we have to get it together. You need to make sure you keep quiet about this though.”
“I’ve been quiet thus far. If he finds out now that I’ve known about this all these years, he’ll never forgive me.”
“It’s not about forgiveness at this point, Rosa, it’s about loyalty, and in this situation, our loyalty is with Ignazio. Do you understand?”
My mom is silent, and I’m not sure if there’s something else going on in there.
My dad continues. “Ignazio has been a friend for decades, and he is extremely influential here. If we lose him as an ally, do you know what it could do to our family?”
I furrow my brow, not fully understanding.
Ignazio might be powerful here, but when we’re in the states, our influence is substantial.
And now that we have an alliance with the DiMaggios, it extends our influence even more.
How could Ignazio have more power than our families combined?
Not to mention, we now have an alliance with the Velasco Cartel, thanks to Amalia Velasco.
They’re in every major city in the US and all over South America. I don’t fucking understand.
“I know,” my mom sighs out. “I know. I’m just … I didn’t expect to have to outright lie to our son like this.”
My heart fucking drops. What the hell?
“I know, Rosa darling.” There’s a pause before my dad continues. “It might not seem like it, but this is the best thing to do for our family. Besides, it’s not like she has a bad life. She has a great one. We’re not doing anything wrong by keeping this information from him.”
What? Who is she?
“I just didn’t think we’d end up in a situation where we’d have to hide it from him is all.”
“I didn’t either, but here we are, and now we have to make sure he never finds out. Do you understand, Rosa?”
“Yes. Yes, I understand.” She sounds defeated.
I slowly back away from the door, then turn around and head toward the living room. I don’t know what the fuck is going on here, but now that I know my parents are keeping something serious from me, I need to find out what it is, and so help me God, I’ll find out one way or another.