Stella (Book One of Dark Souls Series)

Pistachio

*~*
cuore- a fist-sized organ that pumps blood throughout your body.
*~*

As I sat behind my father's desk, staring at the proof of his evilness, I wondered why I felt so disappointed.

Why was I surprised that my name has been on file since 2013?

"You were in high school, this is ridiculous," Stefano said in disbelief as he sifted through the papers.

"He didn't even have the decency to wait until I became of legal age."

My first sign-off was September 17, 2013. It was my first day of freshman school, and it was an order for a cocaine shipment into the U.S. Alone, that could get place me in jail for at least thirty years.

"Stef?"

"Yep?"

I looked at my older brother to see him hunched over a table, confusion on his face as he scanned several documents I hadn't seen before.

"Why did you call Gaia that night instead of me?" I asked, shutting down my father's computer.

I'd faxed all of his files to my penthouse and made sure everything was back in place before closing his drawers.

"It is a bad habit of mine, a reflex."

I stood up, puzzled by his response. "Why is calling my ex-girlfriend your first thought?"

The look on his face and the hesitation in his eyes sparked anger inside of me that I took years to control.

"This whole family is full of shit," I said, shaking my head in disbelief. "All of you."

As I made my way out of the room, my brother followed closely behind.

"Do you really think she is the best choice for this family?" Stefano hissed silently even though we were a floor above the family.

I whipped around, hardly towering over him.

"You have hated her from the beginning," I growled, pointing my finger at him. "You haven't even given her a chance. You agreed to spend a day with her and every time she's ready, you find a reason to rain check. Your thoughts about my woman can disappear into thin air because she is not going anywhere."

"Until you blackout again and lose control of yourself," my brother said with a knowing grin as he shoved his hands into his pocket. "And she is not entirely yours if half of Italy has been inside of her."

All of the anger I tried to bury boiled inside of me as I threw a fist of pure rage at his face. Stefano staggered back before falling to the ground when I sent another punch to the other side of his face.

"Get the hell off of me!" he shouted, trying to dodge more of my hits.

I wanted him to pay for every time he hurt Stella's feelings, and for all the insulting comments he made about her when she wasn't present.

"I told you that whoever disrespected her would pay, didn't I?" I growled, grabbing him the collar of his shirt and throwing another punch. Blood rushed from his nose and I saw his red-stained teeth when he hissed in pain.