Liam's Revenge

Chapter 10 - The Tape

My world fades in and out of focus, like a blurry watercolor artistic painting slowly coming into existence to an untrained eye.

The warmth of a fire flickers against my closed eyelids, and the faint, not unpleasant scent of leather and pipe tobacco fills my nostrils.

Where the hell am I? Just what has happened?

A dull ache throbs behind my eyes, and it's then when it all comes back to me.

That horrifying scene that had sent me reeling. Enzo and Kieran.

It can't be. It just can't be. That tape I just saw: it must be a fake.

A muffled voice reaches my ears, "Alex? Are you alright?" It's Liam, and he sounds closer now. The mere knowledge of his presence next to mine brings me relief.

I groan, slowly forcing my eyelids open. The opulent study swims into view, the image distorted by the tears that well up in the corners of my eyes.

Don Luciano is standing triumphant by the projector screen, the video mercifully switched off, a cold smile playing on his lips. Liam is kneeling beside me, his brow furrowed in worry.

"What... what the fuck was that?" My question comes out hoarse, a mere impotent whisper. "It can't be true. Tell me that it's fake," I address Liam.

The memory of the video, of my father working alongside Enzo Volpe, is still a raw, gaping wound in my heart.

Liam reaches out, his hand hovering gently over mine. "It's alright, Alex," he murmurs. "We'll figure this out. It... It's not fake, I can assure ye. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I should've prepared ye fer this."

But even his words can't erase the doubt gnawing at me.

How could Enzo be involved with something like this? With Kieran, of all people?

How long has that been going on and what does it all mean? Has he known Kieran is my father from the very beginning?

A million questions swirl in my head, and they are such a tangled, horrid, unsolvable mess.

I feel like there'll be no easy answers.

Taking a shaky breath, I force myself to focus, longing for the presence of my childhood friend.

The girl who has known me the longest. The girl who knows me the best.

"I... Look. I need to talk to Ri. Shouldn't we call Rigena and Patrick?" I ask Liam, pointedly ignoring Don Luciano, my subconscious seeing him as the source of all my pain.

Don Luciano throws his head back and lets out a hearty laugh, the sound echoing through the vast emptiness of the room. "Those two?" he scoffs, wiping a tear from his eye. "No need, cara mia. Leave them to enjoy their act of copulation. In fact, I prefer that the less people know about this, the better. This little... misunderstanding is between you, me, and Enzo Volpe."

Misunderstanding? There's literally nothing to misunderstand about the video I just saw. It's all there, laid out for me to see, crystal clear.

There is no mistake.

A cold fire ignites in my chest. I may not know the whole story yet, but one thing is clear – Luciano il Serpente knows it. Plus, he seems to have excluded Liam from his little speech.

I won't be anyone's pawn in this twisted game. I push Liam's hand away and struggle to my feet.

The room sways slightly, but I stand my ground, my gaze locked on Luciano's.

"Misunderstanding?" I echo, this time out loud, my voice surprisingly steady."I think we both know the truth here, Don Luciano. And whatever game you're playing, whatever the reason why you brought me here to show me this video... I'm not interested."