Promised For Truce

Chapter 25

Nina turned the radio's dial, surfing through a range of channels until she came across an audio play she used to listen to as a kid. It was a mystery drama from the fifties. She leaned back in the chaise lounge and let her eyes rest on the dancing flames in the fireplace. The radio drama brought her mind back to New Orleans, and eventually, the feeling guided her to the time Luciano spoke about his parents.

She stepped out of the library and into the hallway, coming eye to eye with her husband as he shut the door to his study.

"I was just coming over," she said.

"For?"

She walked back into the library, leaving the door open so Luciano would follow after her. "Where is that photo album you talked about?" She went over to the never-ending row of spines on the many shelves.

Luciano crouched down, his finger skimming over the albums until he found the right one. "This one," he mumbled and pulled it out.

"Thank you," Nina said as she took the cotton white book from him. "Will you stay around to narrate?" The shimmer of hope in her eyes began to fade when he didn't answer right away. "Or are you tired?"

"No," he answered to her last question, moved over to the chaise lounge and gestured for his wife to come to him. "I want you here."

She didn't have to be told twice and she sat beside him, their knees brushing each other. But it wasn't close enough in Luciano's opinion and so, he shook his head and told her to sit sideways in his lap. He grabbed the bare skin of her legs – as her dress had slits – and had his other hand on her waist before adjusting her position.

"Are you comfortable?" he asked.

Both of them were fully aware that he only asked this to get a reaction out of her.

Nina scared her blush off and instead, she gave him a sweet smile. "Very."

Luciano's attempts at making Nina feel flustered would never cease. In a way, Nina was glad it never would. It was part of their routine.

The album was opened by Nina. Strangely enough, the first image was not a photograph but a detailed drawing. An array of emotions flowed through Luciano's veins and through his heart as he saw the depiction of himself and his family – joy as it send him to a place he hadn't visited in a long time, melancholy and anger as it was a reminder of what was taken from him, and worry as he had almost lost everything again with the recent terrors.

"Who drew this?" curiosity and awe tinged her voice as her finger touched the edges of the ink drawing.

Pride filled Luciano as he said, "My grandmother."

The drawing showed the Gallucci family in the garden of Nicolò's mansion. In the middle stood Nicolò, on his left was a young man, and on his right a young woman. The younger couple made Nina knit her brows until she realized it must have been Luciano's parents.

"Is this Teodoro?" Nina tapped on the boy in the young woman's arms to which Luciano nodded. "So, this must be you," she concluded as she pointed at the boy in front of the young man.

"Yes."

"What is your mother's name?"

"Giulia." Luciano moved on to the next page showing her a picture of his parents as newlyweds. "What? Not curious about my father's name?"

"It's Riccardo, right? I remember seeing it along with your and your uncles their name on the list." Her eyes slid back to the photo. "He does resemble Nicolò."

"In more ways than just their looks. They always took care of their family."

"Still do," Nina spoke up, correcting him to which he arched a brow. "Your Nonno still looks out for you."