The Mafia's mind

Chapter XXXII

POV: Angelo

As I walk over to the table my eyes land upon the figure of a familiar brunette, sat opposite my father.

My breath catches in my throat and my pulse skyrockets.

Other than the encounter at that cafe, I hadn't seen her in 7 years.
She was the reason I left in the first place.

It was stupid of me to think I could avoid her forever, in fact a small part of me always knew we'd meet again.

Seeing her yesterday caused all the memories to come flooding back.

She changed me. I'm not the same man I was before.

I was a stone cold killer when I met her, and now I'm even more ruthless. My name alone makes the devil shudder.

In these past 7 years I have committed sins so harsh, even I question myself. The darkness buried within me all surfaced when I left, and for a period of time I didn't know how I would survive.

I spent the last year recovering from the trauma of recent experience and I finally decided to return home for good.

It was only supposed to be a visit for business, but being back with my family has made me realise I want to stay. And if Aletta is here, so be it.

I can never forgive myself for what I did to her.

I'm not the only one who has changed though.

Yesterday, I identified a new found confidence in her aura. The way she spoke, so harshly, she's not a kid anymore. The way she dismissed me yesterday made me realise she's not the person I knew before.

I snap out of the trance I'm in and approach the table.

"Sorry I'm late." I announce, taking a seat besides Dima.

"Nice to see you bro." I say while giving him a pat on the shoulder.

Me and Dima have become closer than I could have ever imagined. It was tough when we first met, considering the circumstances, but he reached out to me often, visiting me as soon as he tracked me down.

We spoke often and soon enough became best friends.

I guess it's true what they say, twins are inseparable.

Despite us being complete opposites, we get along so well. And it's great being an uncle too!

Dimas two kids, Laura and Christian are great. Laura is such a diva and Christian is exactly like his father. I love being the cool uncle. Never would I have thought I would love kids so much, but I guess I do.

I exchange greetings with everyone, except Aletta who refuses to even acknowledge my presence.

Throughout the conversations that I engage in, my eyes constantly flick over to Aletta who chats away with Nicola, Bella and my mother.

She laughs so sweetly at the small jokes every now and then making my heart flutter. Time did her good, her beauty is even more captivating now, somehow.