Chapter 28 #2
"I know you all want to know this big announcement I have. But before I begin, I need you to understand something. What I am about to tell you is going to be shocking. I need you all to let me explain everything before asking questions."
Adriano rubbed his hands against his dress pants, a small gesture most people would miss, but I didn't. His palms were probably sweating from his nervousness.
My heart tightened.
Seeing Adriano nervous was something that rarely happened. He could stand in front of hundreds of dangerous men without blinking, but standing here in front of the people he loved the most was clearly different.
Gabriel glanced between Adriano and his siblings, anticipation written all over his face. I could tell he had been waiting for this moment for a very long time.
Everyone nodded slowly, their expressions becoming serious and curious. Even the younger kids seemed to sense that whatever was coming was important.
"When Dad would visit Italy when we were young, he would sleep with countless women," Adriano began. "Of course, no one knew or dared to say anything because he was the Mafia boss at the time."
The room remained silent as everyone listened. "One day, after he returned from one of his trips, I overheard him on the phone talking about a baby. Someone was claiming the child was his."
His jaw tightened slightly as he remembered.
"Over time, I started putting the pieces together and realized our father had gotten another woman pregnant. The next time he went to Italy, I demanded to go with him. I wanted to know who this child was."
He paused for a moment. "He never knew I had figured out his secret. And he never questioned why I wanted to come. He just assumed I loved Italy."
Everyone's eyes stayed locked on him. "I came here, and within a week I found out that Ano V's neighbors had adopted a baby named Gabriel. He was born around the same time our father and I arrived."
Confusion immediately crossed everyone's faces. "What are you saying, Adriano?" Miliana asked, her eyebrows furrowing together.
Adriano looked over at Gabriel for a moment before turning back to his siblings.
"Gabriel is our half-brother."
The silence that followed was deafening.
He was adopted by the family next door because Enzo didn't want anyone to know and his mother was nowhere to be seen. The couple couldn't have children of their own, so they took him in and loved him as their son. They gave him a good life.
Adriano's voice softened.
"I never told any of you because I was afraid of Dad finding out that I knew his secret all these years. And because I never wanted to put a target on Gabriel's back because of who I am and who our family is."
His eyes lowered slightly. "I am sorry I kept this from all of you for so long."
Nobody spoke. For what felt like an eternity, everyone just sat there trying to process everything Adriano had dropped on them.
I couldn't blame them. It took me an entire night to process this information, and they were hearing it for the first time.
Gabriel stood quietly beside me, watching every single reaction. Waiting. Waiting for his siblings to accept him.
"Did you know?" Leena finally asked, her voice quieter than before. Her eyes were fixed on Gabriel. "All these years?"
Gabriel's expression shifted slightly, guilt flashing across his face. "Yes," he admitted softly. "I have known since Adriano told me when we were kids."
The room went still. And then...the reaction I had feared happened.
They turned toward Adriano.
It was like everything clicked in their minds all at once.
The weight of the secret. The years that had passed. The fact that their older brother had known something so life-changing and kept it hidden.
And then everything exploded.
Everyone started talking at once, voices overlapping so loudly that it became impossible to understand every word being thrown around.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WOULD KEEP THIS FROM US!"
"INCONSIDERATE FIGLIO DI UNA CAGNA! COME HAI POTUTO—"(You inconsiderate son of a bitch! How could you—)
"I THOUGHT WE TOLD EACH OTHER EVERYTHING! VINCOLATO DA UN GIURAMENTO, NO?"(Bound by an oath, no?)
I stopped listening. Not because I didn't care about what they were saying, but because I couldn't take my eyes off Adriano.
He just sat there. Frozen. Like a deer caught in headlights. Every insult, every accusation, every raised voice was hitting him one after another. He wasn't defending himself. He wasn't arguing back.
He was just taking it. And my heart broke.
My anger started burning hotter as I watched his siblings' furious expressions. Their words were sharp enough to cut, each one leaving invisible wounds on a man who already carried more than anyone knew.
They didn't understand.
They didn't see how long he had carried this. How much fear and guilt had been sitting on his shoulders all these years.
Yana and Raf immediately began ushering the kids out of the room when the yelling started. The younger ones didn't need to see this. They didn't need to watch their family fall apart.
Soon, only the adults remained.
Gio was trying desperately to calm down Leena, but she was too angry to listen. Matteo and Yana were standing as well, emotions running high. Everyone was talking over each other, pointing fingers, voices filled with betrayal.
My chest tightened. The Basilio siblings had always been a force nobody could break.
But right now...they were breaking each other. Gabriel stepped forward, placing himself between Adriano and the others. "Don't attack Adriano," he said firmly.
The room quieted slightly.
"This was my decision just as much as it was his. I have known all of you my entire life. I could have come forward. I could have told you myself."
He looked around at them. "But I didn't." His voice softened. "So don't put all of this on him." But they weren't ready to hear it. Not yet.
My eyes went back to Adriano. He was still silent and I knew exactly why. He thought he deserved this.
He believed that because he had kept this secret, he had earned every bit of anger they threw at him. He was blaming himself. And that scared me more than anything. Adriano never did that. He carried responsibility, yes. He carried guilt, yes.
But he never allowed himself to fall apart. Until now. I walked over and placed my hand gently on his shoulder. He flinched. Actually flinched. That alone told me how far gone he was in his own thoughts.
He slowly looked up at me, and for a moment I saw everything he was trying to hide. Pain, regret, fear. Then, just like that, his expression became blank.
Emotionless. My stomach dropped. No. I knew that look. When Adriano shut down completely, when he locked every emotion away, it meant someone was about to get hurt. He looked back toward his siblings before standing.
Without saying a word, he walked out of the room. I turned toward his siblings, my disappointment and anger boiling over. I shook my head, feeling tears prick the corners of my eyes.
"Do you even realize how difficult and terrifying this was for him?" My voice shook, but I didn't care. "I'm honestly surprised he didn't have a heart attack from the amount of stress he put himself through preparing for this moment."
They stared at me. "He was afraid." I pointed toward the door Adriano had disappeared through. "Your big, terrifying, impossible-to-break brother was afraid."
My voice grew louder. "So get your heads out of your asses. Get off your damn high horses and come back down to reality."
Nobody spoke. "Think about why he kept this from you. Think about why he was scared to tell you. Stop accusing him of being inconsiderate when he spent years trying to protect everyone involved!"
With that, I turned and walked out of the room. I was furious. My ears felt hot. My chest rose and fell with every angry breath. But more than anything...I was scared.
Because I knew my husband. And I knew that this was not over. Not even close.