Neveah Rose Moretti
9 years ago she was framed by the enemy, and accused of murder by her family.
9 years ago her mother took her away to protect her.
What happens if now, she's back in the town where it all began?
Hurt, betrayal, regret, love
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I head toward the bar, ignoring Gio's calls for me and get a drink, downing it in one go before ordering another.
He wasn't supposed to find out.
Not like that at least.
I feel him sit next to me, mouth opening and closing, unsure what to say.
Turning away, I look back to my now full glass, bringing it to my lips before it gets snatched away from me.
"You're 17 Veah, you shouldn't be drinking" he says to me with a frown but I only scoff in response
"I shouldn't be doing a lot at 17, Gio. Killing my mother's rapist is probably one of them" I say before grabbing my whiskey back and turning away
We sit like that in silence before he decides to speak up.
"Is it true? Volkov was the one who-" he asks but I cut him off
"Look, I'm not doing this right now, especially not with you" I say as I finish my drink and head out to my car. I feel him follow me out, but ignore it and continue running before he grabs my wrist.
"Neveah just listen to me- "
"What do you want Gio? You wanna know if they killed her? That they only got to her because of me? You know I didn't kill Dante, but at least you can blame me for what happened to mom" I say and his face morphs instantly.
He pulls me into him hugging me close.
"Listen to me, this wasn't your fault, you didn't pull the trigger, you didn't kill her." he says into my ear but I pull away pushing him back.
"You don't get to do this! You can't just show up after 9 years and comfort me. God, do you have any idea how hard this? I needed you. For years, I needed you to tell me that everything okay. I needed your comfort. I needed my brother, but you weren't there." I yell at his face
"And fuck where were you through all that? First day of school, birthdays, accomplishments, break ups, everything with mom. You weren't there. You don't get to do this now when I just learned how to live without you." I say as tears threaten to fall.
"God Nev. I'm so so fucking sorry. We though that you'd be safe with mom away from all this mafia shit. You were supposed to okay. And fuck I can't even begin to apologize for what we did after Dante, but please."
His voice sounded pained, desperate, But I was in no state to listen, seconds away from a panic attack.
I need to get out of here
"You left me when I needed you to stay" I whisper out but before he can reply I start heading to my car.
"Nev please- you've have had like 3 drinks you can't drive right now." he interrupts grabbing my hand again
I take in a deep breath calming down, knowing he's right.
"Look I'll call a cab, or walk. You don't have to worry about me. "
"You're phones dead, you're wearing nothing but a dress. It's freezing and the middle of the night. Just let me take you home."
Fuck.
"Fine"
He leads me into his car. And we sit in silence. Light music playing over the radio.
I can feel him glancing my way every few minutes before he looks back at the road.
Until mom's favorite song begins to play in the radio and my eyes turn glossy. I look toward him and see his breath stills.
"You know I haven't heard it since we left?" I say
"Hmm?"
"The song, she used to sing it to all all them time but after we left I've never heard it again. Then after she died it hurt too much to listen."
He looks at me before turning down the volume but I stop him.
"It's okay" I say an we continue to sit in silence.
My phone finally turns on and tens of notifications are coming in
Sergio: call me when you can
Sergio: are you still there?
Sergio: mija I know you don't wanna talk but call me back
Sergio: please tell me you left the club
Sergio: the club is burnt to ashes
Sergio: Nev at least answer so I know you're not dead
I stop reading there and call him. He answered after the first ring
S: "gracias a dio. Are you okay?" I can hear the relief in his voice. (thank god)
N: "I'm fine, I left a while ago and didn't check my calls. What do you mean the club's burnt to ashes?"
S: "The Greeks showed up minutes after you left. They blew it up. No one survived and then you weren't picking up the phone and-" he says
N: "Mierda dad. I'm sorry my phone died but I'm okay I promise." (shit)
S: "Are you on your way home? That doesn't sound like your car"
N: "Uhh yeah Gio's taking me home" I say
S: "Are you drunk? " he asks me. I can tell he's not upset but more worried
N: "I- no. Just tipsy but I didn't wanna drive"
S:"I heard what he said, Nev It's not-"
N: "Not my fault. I know. Look papá, I have to go but I'll call you later. "
He hesitates for a moment before replying
"Okay mija, te amo. Text me when you get home" (I love you)
"yo también te amo" I say before hanginf up. (I love you too)
Gio and I sit in silence for a few minutes before he speaks up.
"So this Serg-Jimmy guy he's your-"
"adoptive dad"
"Oh. "
"yeah" I say
"So does he know about the mafia, or what we do?" he asks distantly
"No, he just happened to be the perfect law-abiding citizen who casually helps his daughter commit murder on the weekends" I say sarcastically and we sit back into silence.
