Chapter 149.
“You don’t mean that,” Raniero sat up. “Bastiano, we were going to get married. We’ve been together for ten years.”
“You mean you played me for ten years.”
“I didn’t play you, I love you.”
“But you love your brother’s money more. You love your mother’s hatred more. You’re jealous of a child and his mother. You’re jealous of your brother’s happiness. He looked for her for so fucking long and he finally found her and instead of being thrilled for him the way Tito and I are, you let your jealmsey cloud your judgement and you listened
your
“other’s vitriol. You will be accompanying your mother back to Sicily.”
“Your position is revoked in the family because I can’t trust you,” Torq said
sadly.
“You
not be trusted around my son and my wife
Raniero blinked in horror, “you don’t
“Around my woman? Around my son? You insulted them. You spoke terribly about
“You’re putting them first ahead of your blood?”
them
“He is my blood!” Torq roared with fury, a vein in his temple bulging with the rage he was feeling. “The boy is my blood. He is my son. I am not my fucking father, who will hide my child away like filthy secret. Years ago, when my grandfather died, I wanted to bring you out into the open and it your decision, yours Raniero to stay hidden but it was never what I wanted. Now you’re punishing me, expecting me to put you first ahead of my son? Do you want me to allow you to continue to disrespect the woman who gave him life? For what purpose, Raniero? Tell me, what you hope to gain from me putting them last. What?” he stepped away from his brother and shook his head, “get up off the floor. I can’t even with you right now.”
Raniero gave a scoff, “for once, I wanted to be first. Why could you not accept me as the first?”
“I am not your father.” Torq shook his head. “I am your brother, not your father. I do not owe you the same things a father owes you. I would give you the world as your brother, but you can never be my son, never be my heir. Do you not understand this?”
The question seemed to startle Raniero, “I didn’t –”
“You did. You look to me as a father figure because I am older than you and I did for you what your own father would not, including loving you unconditionally, but I am not your papa. I am your brother. You will return to Sicily until such time I feel your head is on straight and can be trusted. If you choose not to affiliate with the Lozano family, you were given Corrado’s money to live off and I will accept this. If you affiliate with an enemy of our family, it will not be accepted, and you will be treated as an enemy.”
“You are exiling me?”
“No. I am sending you home to take of your mother and you will make tough decisions while you are gone. She is not loyal to Lozano, and she never was. If you wish to continue to drink the water from her well of poison, then it is a choice you will need to make. I love you,” he lifted him off the floor and squeezed his shoulder, “I love you because you are my brother but right now, I do not like the man you showed yourself to be in the last twenty–four hours.
You need to reflect on what you think your role in this family is meant to be.”
