Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
ROSALIA
My champagne gown tonight is meant for ease of movement more than for style. Don’t get me wrong, the one shoulder detail is beautiful and the draping down my legs makes me appear taller than I am, but I know this dress will be destroyed by the end of the night.
I’m on Silas’ arm tonight as we discuss the charity’s efforts with those gathered here. There’s a silent auction happening in the next room, and one of the lots is to name the organization. Sometimes, not having a clue what you’re doing helps your cause.
The underlying reason for this event is where my focus is.
I’ve seen my father’s head of brown and white hair in the crowd once or twice, and my stomach is tense with what I think are nerves.
It’s only when a cramp wracks my body so hard that I have to fight to breathe that I realize it’s not because of my father.
“Please tell me you’re wearing your alpha blocker cream,” Silas says conversationally as we walk. I’m breathing shallowly as I nod, my teeth tightly grinding together.
“Mmhmm,” I gasp. “And triple layered panties.”
I’ve been slicking since this morning for seemingly no reason. I’m not aroused, it’s just a slow drip like a leaky faucet. It’s obnoxious but was manageable. Now, I feel as if I’m on borrowed time as I force myself to work through the pain.
“What’s your pain level?” Silas growls.
“Hush. You’re not my daddy or my alpha, Silas. Get it together,” I rasp, keeping my eyes open and slightly unfocused so I won’t appear to be in pain. “Sorry. It’s about a four. I have a very high tolerance for pain, so I suppose this would be a normal person’s eight.”
“No, you’re right. I was starting to panic. I don’t care if I have permanent damage from your nails, we have to get through tonight. But know that if you were my omega, I would already have you on your way home,” he grumbles.
Giving him a bright fake smile, I shrug. “Guess it’s a good thing that I have my alphas wrapped around my finger, huh?”
Silas laughs, the sound turning several heads, as he is a very eligible alpha.
“They’ve definitely changed their tune,” he says. “I’m impressed. I really thought Lyle was going to need to annul your marriage or we’d just call it a day and dig a big grave in our garden.”
“Why is it always the garden?” I tease him, shaking my head.
“You know why, Rosa. Decomposing bodies make great fertilizer.”
“So they do,” I murmur, smiling as the next cramp rips through my stomach. Fuck.
It’s a good thing I’m good at masking my pain. I’ve certainly been doing it for long enough.
“Daughter! What a surprise to see you here.”
Crap on a cracker…
“Papa,” I greet him. The large man I’ve been calling my father for my entire life dwarfs my body as he towers over me.
Thankfully, Silas doesn’t attempt to pull me behind himself to shield me, but his body is full of strain as he fights his protective instincts.
“Silas, this is my father, Renzo Accetta.”
“Are you here for the charity?” he asks, pretending to be innocent and sweet. “I’m so proud of what she’s helped us to accomplish.”
“I’m surprised she’s had the time since she’s newly married,” Papa murmurs. “I figured she’d be working on giving me grandbabies instead of spending her time here.”
“Women are capable of more than simply being broodmares,” Silas says simply. “Times have changed from when you were her age. Embrace it or be reduced to dust. At least, that’s what I think.”
There’s nothing the least bit threatening about him as he delivers this tidbit of advice, and I think that’s what makes Silas and his pack so special. He can move around the edges of society, placing himself where he’s needed and getting people to do what he wants.
Papa’s lips thin for a moment before he shrugs. “My daughter is a smart girl. She’ll do what is expected of her. I’m going to see the silent auction before it closes.”
“Its location is being moved as we get ready for the entertainment,” Silas says easily. “We are shuffling things around to ensure there’s room for everyone.”
“The mansion is huge. Split your audience,” Papa grunts, unknowingly sealing his fate.
This has been the plan the entire time, and we already have ushers shuttling people into place.
My family will end up in the large courtyard for their slaughter.
It’s easier to clean up afterward, and there’s already body bags waiting.
The gate allows them to be thrown into the back of panel vans and then driven out to pig farms. Anything the pigs can’t eat will be incinerated.
The Accetta family will end with me. I plan to officially change my name with the courthouse tomorrow to Rosalia Domino. If that’s not a statement that my marriage is real to the world, I don’t know what is.
Hollis’ appearance at the street festival was eye opening for me. While I don’t give a fuck what people who don’t fuck, finance, or feed me think, Nico does. He has an entirely different weight on his shoulders I hope to help lift soon.
“Thank you, Papa. We’ll start doing that now.”
My father snorts and lumbers away, muttering about how inept I am.
“He’s so charming,” Silas says under his breath.
“Like an angry hippo chasing a speed boat,” I agree, wincing as the pain ramps up further.
“Let’s find you a distraction and some pain meds,” Silas sighs.
While pain meds are in woeful short supply, the distraction of funneling people where they need to be does help me.
My family sneers when I gently give them directions, but listen when Easton or Cassidy lead them away.
I’m short of breath by the time the actual performance begins across the house with our aerial dancers, and Silas helps me stay on my feet as we walk out into the courtyard.
The reason my family didn’t blink an eye at all being together is because there are other people peppering the crowd.
I can see Hollis moving smoothly through the room with a secret smile on her face, and there are a few others I don’t recognize, yet know they belong here if they’re here.
Some of Nico's more polished made men in the room are schmoozing with my family, but so are members of the Five Packs, pretending to be normal people.
The reason they are able to influence this city is because no one understands how dangerous they actually are.
Cassidy goes by another name when she’s in public, Abbott sounds like a businessman, and Lyle pretends to be a lawyer whose precious ears can’t hear a word of law breaking.
They’re all facades to hide the darkness lurking behind their eyes.
As I see the packs around the room, I know I’m in good hands.
My family members have a distinctive appearance to them. They have aristocratic noses, fierce eyes, and they’re easy to tell apart. Photos of the people on my personal shit list have been passed around as well, so everyone knows who to keep for me to kill.
“Is everyone here?” I ask under my breath.
“Yes. We are closing the doors now. Everyone who was invited to the event in your family has been escorted outside,” Silas says, pulling the door behind him until it clicks shut. “Easton has several kill bags tossed into the bushes, and we’re all armed to the teeth. It’s time to play.”
Nodding, I straighten, looking around the room for someone to pick a fight with. My cousin, Maura, is laughing with her husband, and I begin walking in her direction. Now that my mind is unclouded, I can remember that her son, Rico, is the man who loved to taunt me day after day after I was raped.
I think taking his mama from him is exactly what the mental health therapist would want me to do. That is, if I saw one and she was as psychotic as I am.
Rico is off to the side next to her, talking with Hollis.
She’s pretending to be interested in what he has to say, and allows him to put his hand on her arm.
I can see now the fire banked in her gaze as she keeps her lids half closed as she listens to him, and I decide that I much prefer having her on our side tonight.
“Rosalia. I see you’re pretending to be your father’s perfect daughter today,” Maura says, turning toward me. “Were you really going to just walk by and not say hello to me? The disrespect!”
I have a purse hanging from my wrist, but the only things inside of it are lipgloss and a Lady Smith. I usually would try to play nice with her. I simply don’t have the patience, my stomach hurts, and I have murder on my mind.
This mansion is away from surrounding houses, and the owner has a gun range outside. People who live near here are used to the sound of gunfire, which means I don’t need to worry about a silencer. The walls are also fairly thick and the performers have very loud music.
My little murdering heart is free to do what I’ve wanted to do for a long time.
“Hello, Aunt Maura,” I purr. “Did you donate to the charity tonight?”
“I bid on a few things, yes,” she says, sounding bored. When someone bids, it’s all electronic and they have to enter their credit card information. If she wins, she will be charged, even if she’s dead.
A thrill of excitement shivers up my spine, and I wonder if it’ll make me a bad person to ask Pablo to empty all of their bank accounts to donate to charities around the city. I know tonight’s event will be a success, I think we should spread the love.
Or maybe I can fix Nico’s problem of funding for the victims of sexual abuse at the hands of his father. The possibilities are endless.
Before I can get too excited, I open my clutch.
“That’s wonderful,” I say, bored. “It’s so nice to know you’re not a completely heartless bitch.”
“Rosalia—!”
Pulling my gun, I give her my best fake apologetic smile before I shoot her in the head. Turning, I drop my purse and kill her husband as well.
“Mama!” Rico screams. “Rosa, you fucking whore!”
“Hush, I’m not ready to deal with you yet,” I reply calmly, aiming for his leg and shooting him.