(Marco POV)
The floorboards creak above my head, and I freeze. Every muscle in my body locks up as I lie flat on my stomach under Izzy's bed, the dust making my nose itch. The doorknob turns with a soft click.
Shit. Shit.
"Isabella? Baby, are you awake?"
Sofia's voice slurs through the darkness, thick with champagne and emotion. I bite down on my tongue to keep from breathing too loud. The bed frame dips slightly as someone sits on the edge, and I can smell the alcohol radiating off her, expensive wine mixed with something stronger.
"I know you're probably asleep, but I just... I needed to talk to someone." Sofia's voice wavers. "God, what a night. What a perfect night."
Perfect. Right. If she only knew her new stepson was currently hiding under her daughter's bed like some kind of perverted teenager.
The mattress shifts again, and I catch a glimpse of Sofia's feet in those ridiculous gold heels she wore to the wedding. One shoe drops to the floor with a soft thud, then the other. She's settling in for a long conversation with her unconscious daughter.
"I know you're angry with me, sweetheart. I can see it in your eyes every time you look at me." Sofia's voice cracks. "But you have to understand, I did this for us. For our future. Your father... God rest his soul... he left us with nothing but debt and memories."
I close my eyes, trying to block out the guilt in her voice. Izzy's going to hate hearing this tomorrow. She worships her dead father's memory, sees him as some kind of saint. The truth about their financial situation will crush her.
"Antonio... he's a good man, Isabella. I know you can't see it yet, but he is. He takes care of his family. He protects them." Sofia sniffles. "And now we're his family too."
His family. The words make my stomach turn. I've been Antonio's family for twenty-two years, and I know exactly what that means. It means loyalty tests. It means blood on your hands. It means never being able to leave.
"I just want you to be happy, baby. I want you to accept Marco as your brother. He's such a sweet boy, and he needs a sister. Antonio says he's been... troubled lately. Rebellious."
Rebellious.
Sofia's breathing gets heavier, and I realize she's crying. "I need you to understand, Isabella. I need you to forgive me. Because there's no going back now. We're Rossis now, and that means... that means we follow Antonio's rules."
The bed creaks as she shifts position. "He has very strict rules about family loyalty. Very strict." Her voice drops to almost a whisper. "He told me tonight about his first wife's brother. Did you know Antonio was married before? Years ago, before Marco was born."
I stop breathing entirely. Antonio never talks about his first wife. Never. I've asked him about my mother exactly three times in my life, and each time he shut me down so hard I thought he might hit me.
"Apparently, his brother-in-law got... ideas. Started thinking he could make decisions for the family business without consulting Antonio. Started thinking he knew better." Sofia's voice is getting drowsier, but there's fear threading through it. "Antonio said he dealt with it. Permanently. Said family betrayal is the worst kind of betrayal."
My heart pounds so loud I'm sure Sofia can hear it. Under the bed, I clench my fists, fingernails digging into my palms. Family betrayal is the worst kind of betrayal.
"He looked me right in the eye when he told me that story, Isabella. Right in the eye. And he said, 'Sofia, I hope you understand that I will always protect my family. From any threat. Even threats from within.'"
The mattress shifts as Sofia lies down fully, her voice muffled now. "I was so scared, baby. So scared. Because I realized... I realized he was warning me. Warning me about what happens to family members who don't stay in line."
I want to crawl out from under this bed and run. I want to grab Izzy and get as far away from this house as possible. But I can't move, can't breathe, can't do anything but lie here and listen to Sofia's drunken confessions.
"And then I thought about you, and how angry you are, and how you refuse to take his name, and I got even more scared." Sofia's breathing is slowing down, but she keeps talking. "Because if you don't fall in line, if you don't accept this family... what if he sees you as a threat? What if he sees me as a threat for not controlling you?"
The room goes quiet except for Sofia's increasingly steady breathing. I count to sixty, then another sixty, before I'm sure she's asleep. Even then, I wait another five minutes before I start the careful process of sliding out from under the bed.
My back aches from lying on the floor, and my legs are half asleep. I move like a snake, inch by inch, until I can see Sofia's face in the dim light filtering through the curtains. She's passed out, one arm flung over her eyes, mouth slightly open.
I should leave. I should get out of here before someone else shows up. But I can't stop staring at Izzy's sleeping form on the other side of the bed. Even in the dark, I can see the tension in her face, the way her eyebrows are drawn together like she's having a nightmare.
Family betrayal is the worst kind of betrayal.
Antonio's message is crystal clear. He knows. Maybe not the details, maybe not the full extent of what's between Izzy and me, but he knows something is there. And he's warning everyone, Sofia, me, probably even Izzy, that he won't tolerate it.
I think about the way he looked at us during the wedding, the way his eyes narrowed when he saw us talking. The way he called us up on stage like we were his prized possessions. My son and daughter.
Daughter. He's already thinking of her as his daughter, which means he's already thinking of me as her brother. Which means what we have, what we are, is exactly the kind of family betrayal that gets people killed.
I take a step toward the door, then stop. Izzy stirs in her sleep, and for a moment I think she's going to wake up. Her eyes flutter open, unfocused and confused.
"Marco?" she whispers.
"Shh." I put a finger to my lips, glancing at Sofia. "Your mom's still here."
Izzy sits up carefully, her hair messy. Even in the dark, even with her mother three feet away, I want to touch her. Want to climb into that bed and hold her until the sun comes up.
But Sofia's words echo in my head. Family betrayal is the worst kind of betrayal.
"You need to go," Izzy whispers, reading my face. "If someone finds you here, "
"I know." But I don't move. I can't. "Izzy, we need to talk. Tomorrow. About what this means."
She nods, understanding passing between us. We both know something changed tonight. The stakes just got higher.
"Be careful," she mouths silently.
I nod and head for the door, checking the hallway before stepping out. The mansion is quiet, but I can feel eyes watching from every shadow. Rosa's probably lurking somewhere, waiting to report back to Antonio about any suspicious activity.
As I make my way back to my room, Sofia's words play on repeat in my head. He dealt with it. Permanently. The casual way she said it, like she was talking about taking out the trash instead of murder.
I've always known what Antonio is. I've always known what his world involves. But tonight, hearing it from Sofia's lips, understanding that his violence extends to his own family... it changes everything.
He killed his first wife's brother for betraying the family. What would he do to his son and stepdaughter for betraying him in the most fundamental way possible?
I reach my room and close the door behind me, leaning against it. My hands are shaking. Whether from fear or adrenaline, I can't tell.
One thing is certain: Antonio suspects something. And if he suspects, he's watching. And if he's watching, Izzy and I are in more danger than we ever imagined.