70. Chapter Seventy
Chapter Seventy
Mateo
T oday was brutal.
Ella collapsed while she was with Tiero this morning. One moment, they were talking; the next, she was upset, and every monitor alarm was blaring. Her medical team rushed in, scrambling to get to her, while Tiero, despite his injuries, nearly threw himself out of bed to stay by her side. Dr. Romolo and I had to hold him back. He fought us every step of the way until Romolo sedated him.
They managed to stabilize Ella. She’s as well as can be expected, but I was the one who had to break the news to Tiero about how sick she really is.
He’s beside himself with worry and all over me and Uberto to find a donor. Turns out, he and Ella have the same blood type.
What are the chances of that?
But it should make things easier. Once we find someone, we can take care of them both.
As I’d hoped, Ella’s presence has given Tiero a boost. He’s awake longer, more alert, more himself.
The power of love.
But it’s not enough.
He needs new lungs.
It’s late when I walk into Tiero’s room, my eyes glued to the piece of paper Santino just handed me from Uberto. A deep frown settles on my face.
“What is it?” Tiero asks as I let myself fall into the chair beside his bed.
“Uberto found a few matches with your blood type in Rome, but they’re all over fifty with existing health problems. The young, healthy ones all seem—”
“Call him off,” Tiero interrupts, his voice steady but firm. “We don’t need to find a donor anymore.”
“What? Why?”
He looks at me, his expression unreadable, yet I feel a little faint.
Tiero’s eyes lock on mine. There’s a strange, almost unsettling clarity in his gaze.
“It’s time to step out of my shadow and shine, Teo,” he says, his voice calm, but there’s an undercurrent of something deeper. Something I can’t yet grasp.
I stare at him, trying to make sense of his words.
But I don’t understand.
“What is that supposed to mean?” I ask, the confusion obvious in my tone.
He’s about to say something big, something that’s going to change everything. Then a flicker of realization hits me.
“No. Just no.” My voice cracks before I can stop it.
My heart is pounding in my chest as I try to process this, but it’s like everything is happening too fast.
My brother, my best friend, the one who has always been there for me, he’s about to break my heart.
He looks at me, his eyes unwavering. His voice softens, and I know it’s coming.
“I’ve decided to give my heart to Ella.”
I can barely breathe. The words don’t make sense. I shake my head, but even as I do, the weight of what he’s saying settles over me.
Still, my mind refuses to believe what I just heard.
“Say again?” I can barely manage the words.
It’s like my whole body is bracing for impact, and it still hits me harder than I expect.
“I’m sorry for the burden I’m placing on your shoulders, but I need to save her. Teo, the day I met Ella was the day I was actually born. Looking back at my life before her, I merely existed.”
I want to scream at him, but I can’t. The words are caught in my throat as he continues.
“I would have loved nothing more than to make a life with her, have a dozen babies, and just be happy.” He pauses, his eyes clouding over with grief.
I stare at him, wanting to argue. But how can I?
Since Mari has become mine, I get what he’s saying, what he’s feeling.
He continues, his voice rough. “The day I realized I can’t have that with her was the day I died. Without her, life means nothing. And even if we find new lungs for me, that’s what I would face.”
My chest aches. I want to tell him I’ll fix this, but I’m not sure I can.
“But God, the universe, or whoever is in charge, has been merciful. I’ve been given this unique chance to live on in her, be part of her until her last breath and we meet again. I cannot imagine a better way to go.”
His words hit me harder than anything I’ve ever heard. I’m watching my brother make the decision to walk away from everything, from me.
I see the pain in his eyes, but more so the determination.
My lips are pressed together in a tight line, and I fight the urge to scream, to cry, to do anything to make this make sense. But I can’t.
“When?” I manage to choke out. It’s the only thing I can say, because I need to know when I’m going to lose him.
“The day after tomorrow.”
The finality of his words makes my head spin. It’s like the world is crumbling beneath my feet, and it is.
I put my hand over my eyes, trying to stop the surge of tears at my overwhelming sense of loss.
“Fuck!” I whisper. “How do you expect me to go on without you? We’ve always done this together. I’ve never wanted to be the Don.”
He gives me a look I can’t quite read.
“Then don’t be. I’ve learned something these past few months. Teo, you need to do the things that make you happy. This family business we inherited and uphold is not amongst them.”
I laugh bitterly and repeat the words we’ve heard all our lives. “You’re born into la famiglia , you’ll die in la famiglia .” It’s a fact.
But he doesn’t back down. “There is a way,” he tells me. “I developed it after Ella ran. But it’s too late for me now. I’m going to die in la famiglia , but you won’t have to.”
I freeze. “What do you mean?”
He doesn’t hesitate. “There’s an encrypted thumb drive hidden in the wall behind the bathroom vanity in Ella’s room. You’ll need the two lock combinations we made up for the tree house.”
I nod. We’ve both known those numbers since we were kids. The memory hits me like a flash. Us running around together, keeping secrets from the rest of the world.
I never thought I’d have to use those numbers for something like this.
“It’s not an overnight disappearance. This will have to be carefully planned and nobody, and I mean nobody, can know about it,” Tiero implores.
I nod, opening my mouth to say something, but the weight of everything presses down on me so much it suffocates any response I might have had.
After a long, unbearable silence, I ask, “What will happen to our businesses, our family legacy, should I leave?”
His eyes meet mine, and for a moment, I see everything. The sacrifice, the love, the devastation.
“They’d fall to the wolves,” he says flatly, already detached to a degree.
“If you decide to stay, you’ll have to establish yourself firmly at the helm, no leniencies, no mercies. You can’t afford even the smallest sign of weakness or it will be exploited.”
I take a deep breath, trying to calm the storm rising in my chest.
“I want you to be happy.” Tiero’s voice is a quiet whisper.
I don’t know how to respond.
What would make me happy is for my brother to live and find his happily ever after with his girl.
“Only you can resolve your conflicting emotions about what you want and what we were brought up to believe.”
The idea of stepping away from it all would be a betrayal of everything we’ve known, of our ancestors who painstakingly built what we reap today.
Loyalty to la famiglia has been carved into our souls from birth.
I let out a frustrated sigh, rubbing my chin vigorously.
“How are things with Mari?” Tiero asks when the silence threatens to take over.
My tension immediately eases, and I can’t help the smile taking over my face. That’s her power over me.
“She’s amazing. She makes me feel more than I ever thought possible.”
A brief flicker of happiness shines through his eyes, but then he turns serious again.
“Teo, don’t wait to make her yours. None of us know what’s around the corner.”
“I won’t,” I promise. “I won’t let her slip through my fingers.”
“Be happy, Teo,” he says quietly, his voice strained. “Be happy with her.”