Love thy Enemies

The Devil Was Once An Angel

Part 2

“Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Val and Anto! Happy birthday to you!”

Eighteen years ago I was in my mother's arms and today my brother and I are orphaned in a mansion filled with faces I can't see. We're looked at each other. How did this happen? Oh that's right. Pierre. The right hand man who is a sign that working alone is the best option to avoid casualties. It turns out that night we were in Rome, Pierre came to air out the laundry. He shot mamma and papa. The house surveillance has the whole scene recorded. The Bently was covered in bullet holes. The floor littered with bullet casings. Pierre is the type to pick on little girls and use them for his own pleasure. I remember the way he held down Lauri and had his way with her. She may have been a stripper but no means no. Three weeks later Lauri hung herself in his apartment. The tape from the private room was never found because he made sure he destroyed it and every copy he knew of. At the funeral he stood behind me and Antonio, offering his not so genuine condolences. I shrugged his hand off my shoulder and pulled Antonio away from that man. We never liked being pitied especially when it came from this man. He knew I hated him and I knew he had a hand in my parents death. It was no accident and God forbid I find all the evidence I need to put him in hell where he belongs. The memories of that night still haunt me late into adult life. The way their bodies were shot up and filled with holes, to a point we couldn't do an open casket send off. It was too grueling. Too disturbing. No one should have to see it.

"Kyna. Baby are you up?" I nudged her gently, but she was cold and wet. When I looked at my hands I saw blood. Her eyes opened softly as she breathed out her last words.

"You killed me."

I woke up in a jolt causing my baby next to me to wake up instantly. I was gasping in so much air, clutching my chest and throat to feel the air. It was like I couldn't get enough air into my lungs. I patted the bed frantically, feeling for her body. Her voice sounded so distant as her hands grabbed mine. I pulled away only to grab her and hold her in a tight embrace.

"I'm sorry." I heaved out as I allowed myself to cry. In this life I was taught early on to never show emotion as that's all a sign of weakness. Even towards my brother, the love was there, but it wasn't obvious.

“If they know you care,
they'll use it against you.”

The wise words of the late Marcello Versailles. I never wanted to pit my own children against each other, so I swore whoever I'd take as a bride would only give me one child. Two is the maximum and the only exception for that is twins. Whoever she is, she will understand or that'll be the first time in my life I'll stoop as low as Pierre.

"Val you're, crushing me. Ardente pour favor!" (Please stop it.)

"Oh right. I uh-" I blanked I couldn't say anything back. I just got up and left. Even though she was yelling at me to come back so we can talk about it but how do I even start.

“Oh hey baby, you know how I told you I was in the mafia by birth? Yeah that, I forgot to mention my parents were gonners from the jump and both were shot to death, oh oh and get this, yeah this one is a real kicker, the man who killed my parents will definitely come after you and our child if I don't kill him, that's why me and Anto don't talk since the birth of his kid. This world we're in, at least the one involving the mafia, is very dangerous so I don't blame you if you hate me, resent me and just don't want anything to do with me afterwards. Really I don't. You make me feel things I don't know how to deal with. It's like giving a caveman a brand new iPhone and expecting the best possible outcome. I'm sorry. I am a monster and I wanna change that enough for you so that we don't continue the cycle without choice.

They say there's always a choice, but they don't know what's its like to know how one mistake can shut down a whole city in a massacre. The line between me and them wasn't so thin and neither was it thick, it was just there.

Jasmine. Why am I thinking about her? Especially at this time of the night? She was the one I used to date through high school. The first time I can say I was played like a fool. I was doing way too much for her, knowing damn well if the roles were reversed she wouldn't think twice about letting me bleed to my death. Why was I so infatuated with her? I guess it was a hype. I didn't have control of what I wanted at home, but at least at school I could easily choose who I wanted to associate with and who I didn't. Thankfully Kyna didn't have to see what a bitch I was during high school. I was immature because I was heartbroken. My reasoning is pathetic really it is, but I'm sure we've all been down that road before. Acting like a pussy, thinking it's going to get me some and it worked for the most part.

Jasmine though. Her saturated chocolate cream skin had me on my knees for more. I suppose I should admit I have a type for chocolate skins. I see why father liked mother so much, she had coffee skin, and so did grandma, cocoa skin. Guess it never gets old. If Kyna knew she'd leave me and never come back. Jasmine's dead, and it's my fault. We went out four nights after my birthday. She wanted to ride the ferris wheel at night. Back then she was my girl, and she was still warm. Her motives weren't clear. She fucked Antonio thinking it was me. She knew very clearly that there was one distinct difference between the two of us. The scar above Antonio's left eye is perfectly mirrored on my right eye. It's a silly thing but that way we formed our own identities. She knew what she was doing, even faked a pregnancy saying it was mine when I knew damn well it wasn't, and even if it was why did she abort it? She took my child away from me before I could even know them. Lie or not she could have made it clear and when it came to her revealing she was Pierre's daughter revenge was on the horizon. Only when she found out Pierre's treason against me she had a change of heart and chose freedom. Now she's six feet under, next to her mother. At least that's what we were told, and it held true because no one ever saw her ever again. It was the first time seeing Pierre crying after his wife's death.

Even monsters cry too, but that doesn't mean shit.

I still wanted revenge.

Forgive me Father for I will sin
to avenge my parents.