Page 69 of Mafia Scars

“The day she left she told me she was pregnant, and the baby wasn’t mine. There was no sorrow in her words. It was very clear what she wanted. Of course, we argued, and then she left, but it was never that I just allowed her to leave.”

“Why didn’t you tell us that?” Claudius spat.

“Because you may be grown men now, and yes, you would have been old enough to understand what happened at fifteen and thirteen, but to me you were both my little boys. My children. I had to look after you and make sure you knew you had a parent who would always be there for you. No matter what. I wanted to come back here straight after, but I thought maybe if we stayed in LA, it would be better. I thought she might come back to me. To us. That was wrong too. It was stupid of me not to see that she didn’t want us. So, that’s on me and I take full responsibility for that. I guess my heart just got the best of me.”

I pulled in a breath. The years that had followed after Mom’s departure were awful. Things had been bad, but Pa was still trying the normal life for her. He’d paid off his debts with the money he earned working at the used car sales job he hated, and with his second job as a waiter. He tried, and we had such a terrible time.

Pa shook his head and continued. “I wish Raphael had told me what happened because I would have understood the pain from betrayal. The story is so similar. I would have understood. Both our wives cheated on us, and mine cheated on me well before his did. He knew how hurt I was by it, how hurt we were by it, and should have confided in me. Maybe if he’d told me, no one would have died.”

My head was a mess of fog and turmoil. What the hell kind of day was this? I was ready for it to be done.

“Maybe. We can’t dwell on it,” I offered. “And you did what you had to back then. All of it.”

I didn’t want to think about Mom anymore. Hearing she was pregnant at the time she left us made me sick. It pushed the knife deeper in my heart and resounded my need to completely forget her.

Claudius sat back down and glanced at me, then back to Pa. “Agreed. I’m sorry, Pa. I… get it.”

Pa nodded his gratitude. I couldn’t imagine what he must have gone through during that time.

Claudius sighed and focused back on me. “If we’re in this, we’re doing it together. I’m not leaving Luc in the lurch. Are you, Pa?”

Pa sighed, then rested back in his chair. “No, I’m in.”

“Thanks. Now that that’s cleared, can we brainstorm a few things?” To be honest, I just wanted to stop talking about Mom. She was someone I would never get over, and I needed to push her out of my mind for good. Over the years, she’d never made contact. Her silence and absence made her intentions very clear.

“Let’s do it.” Claudius nodded. Pa did too.

“Who do you think told Tag about Raphael?”

Pa shook his head. “I have no idea. I’ve been thinking about possible people, and I keep coming up blank. It’s worse because we weren’t around then.”

“How about we look at who was around at that time and start questioning people,” I offered.

“We can, but the guys from back then wouldn’t have been included on anything as big as that. Raphael didn’t tell anybody what he was doing.”

“So, it’s someone who heard something?”

Claudius shook his head. “Why would they stay silent for so long? I think… it was an accident.”

“What do you mean?” I narrowed my eyes.

“I think he found out by accident, and whoever told him didn’t exactly tell him.”

That was all so vague and speculative.

“So, he figured it out by what was told to him?”

“Could be, right?” Claudius bit the inside of his lip.

I considered it. Yes that could be right. “There must be more, because they knew I was in LA,” I pointed out, going over all the key events that had taken place. “They knew I was in LA, then shortly after that, Amelia’s house was broken into and they took her stuff to ID her. Someone must have told them I was in LA.”

“Who was at the house that night when we met with Raphael? The night he chose you to take over,” Pa asked.

“No one.” Claudius offered. “The butler opened the door for us then left.”

I remembered that too. It didn’t seem like there anyone else was in the house. Unless if they hid.

My phone rang.