Page 131 of Dreadful
He rests his arm on the back of the bench, and I lean into him again but keep Gio in my periphery. After several more minutes of quiet reverence, his broad shoulders rise and fall with a weight that I feel in my soul. When he turns around to face us, the sun glitters against the damp streaks on his cheeks, but his voice is strong when he speaks in Italian.
“I’m ready.”
I choke back a sob as I nod to him. Sever takes my hand to place it on his bicep and grabs his cane with his other before leading us to the cliffside.
Since we haven’t had to fight for our lives lately, he hasn’t been in pain in weeks, but this cliffside isn’t mobility friendly, and the measly wooden fence is perilous for anyone, so he’s using my grip and his cane as security measures more than anything. Plus, I get to hold him this way, and he knows I love that.
When we get to Gio, though, Sever sets his cane down and signals for mynonnoto let him help with the urn. Gio is mighty but short, and the urn takes up a fourth of him, so Sever takes it and holds it out for me.
I remove the lid and carefully cut the bag of ashes inside with the pearl-handled knife that Tony and Gio gave me. When I’m finished, Gio reaches up and swipes my tears like he’s done so many times before, and I do the same for him.
“I heard what Sever said.” Gio’s rough voice cuts me to the quick, but I tamp down the urge to sob so I don’t interrupt him. “Tonywouldbe proud of hisdolce nipotina. You meant everything to us, and you still do.”
“Dammit Gio. I’m trying to keep the crying to a minimum.” I chuckle and wipe my tears. He shakes his head.
“Don’t do that. Let all the emotion in so we can let it all go. That’s what we promised Antonio, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
His words are like a hole in a dam, not quite enough to break me, but I give into the fissure. We both cry silently together, comforting each other by accepting the other’s grief. I let him back away first, but we both leave the streaky tears on our cheeks this time. Wiping them away would be pointless. More will come.
Gio looks to Sever, signaling he should start, and my love clears his throat.
“I didn’t know Tony for nearly long enough, but I’ve come to love the two of you. Gio, I’m learning to embrace the depth of my emotions because of you. I’m a better man for it.” Gio pats the middle of his back and smiles. Sever returns it before gazing at me. “And Tallie, you’re the woman you are thanks to yournonni. Because of that, I love them both, too.”
Somehow my heart aches more, and I embrace the pain. I grip the back of Sever’s jeans to stabilize him as he pours a third of Tony’s ashes off the cliff and into the wind. When he finishes, he hands the urn to me. It’s lighter, but the emotions in my chest are still just as heavy.
He steps behind me to place his hands on my shoulders and whispers into my ear, “You can do this,dolcezza.”
I nod and inhale deeply before I begin. “Gio, you and Tony took me in when I was a broken child. You showed me how to love, and you showed me how to fight for it. You both accepted me for who I was and the darkness I carried. I’ll never stop missing him, and I’ll never forget him. I don’t want to, and I won’t be able to, because I see him in you. The two of you taught me everything good I know. If Sever and I have children, I’ll know exactly how to love them well because I learned it from you.”
Gio’s grief-reddened eyes stream tears, and he motions for me to bend for his hug. I lean into him, still holding the urn, and when he lets go, I step forward, and Sever holds my arms from behind to help me tip it.
When I’ve finished, I hand the lighter urn to Gio. He faces the ocean and steps forward before beginning his eulogy in Italian.
“Antonio and I loved each other fiercely, but that love wasn’t the first for either of us nor was it the last. Italy was our first. And you, Talia, were the last. All three will always be in my heart. And Antonio will always fill my soul. He was truly my soul’s mate and he died saving me. He was a kind hero, an even better husband, and the best grandfather. He deserves to be home. I vow to live the rest of my days happy in his honor, the way he would want, and I’ll remember him in everything I do…to Tony.”
“To Tony,” Sever and I whisper as Gio raises the urn. We watch in silence as the last of mynonno’sashes fly into the whipping wind and out into the world. He’ll be at peace on the shores of Italy, just like he always wanted.
When the last of Tony drifts away, Gio hugs me on my left, and Sever embraces me from the right. Pain irrevocably united us, but love keeps us together.
Gio is the first to return to the car, leaving me and Sever behind. He turns me to face him and lifts my chin to meet his eyes.
“What Gio said? I promise the same.” My brow furrows a little and he continues. “I’ll love you fiercely, Talia. You’re my soulmate. You never dreamed of a happy ending, but I vow to live the rest of my days by your side, and I vow to love you beyond happily ever after.”
Tears prick my eyes again, and I kiss him before making my promise in kind.
“I promise to love you beyond happily ever after, Sever. And a happy ever after with you is all I’ll ever need.”
The End…