fearing I could provoke him into causing much greater damage than he originally intended.
“I'm running out of patience, Olivia. If you don't choose, they all die.”
It became crystal clear there would be no way out of this. Alessandro wouldn’t relent until I named a person who was going to pay with their life for something I had done. It was wrong and the guilt was eating me alive, but there was nothing left for me to do than give him what he wanted.
“I will ask one last time and after that, I'll make my own decision,” he warned when he noticed my hesitation. “Who will it be, Olivia?”
His thirst for vengeance could be satiated only with spilled blood, and he had already rejected mine. I didn't want to choose, but I had to. If I were to make it personal, the choice would have been easy. Trisha had betrayed me and her actions started the domino effect that landed me straight into Alessandro's hands, but I couldn't let my selfishness leave May without a mother. No matter how much Trisha had hurt me in the past, she was the one person who could care for May in my absence. That left me with the only other choice. “My...My f-father,” I choked out, resigned.
Alessandro smirked like he was surprised. “Interesting choice. Is he the one who sold you to those gangsters?”
I nodded my head. Anything to keep Trisha safe. May couldn't make it without her mother.
“You must hate him a great deal,” he taunted.
“I do,” I muttered.
“So much that you want him dead for handing you over to those men when he knew what kind of hell they would put you through?” he asked in a conversational tone.
There was a splintering sensation around my heart. “Yes.”
His eyes narrowed on my face. “And what was your stepmother's involvement?”
I remembered the money I gave her and closed my eyes, pushing the distant thoughts of anger away. “She...She couldn't do anything to h-help.”
“Do you think she would have saved you if she had the chance?”
I drew in a breath. “It wasn't her fault. It was my f-father's debt.”
“I didn't ask if it was her fault.” He continued the torture. “I asked if she would have helped had she gotten the chance. Those are two very different things.”
I gulped and fought to keep my voice even to no avail. “Yes, she would’ve h-helped. She has d-done everything she could to s-save me.”
“Of course. Only a woman with no conscience could condemn another woman to such a fate. Her stepdaughter nonetheless.”
I wrapped my arms around my middle, forcing myself not to scream as he continued tearing me apart with this merciless game.
“You're right. It was foolish of me to ask. There is only one thing that confuses me. Perhaps you could help me understand.”
I peered up at him in breathless anticipation, shaking like a leaf.
“Your stepmother told this crazy story to my soldiers,” he said in a pleasant tone. “Something about how you gave her more than enough money to pay the debt, but she got greedy and kept it for herself, then let the men have you regardless.”
“I-It's not t-true,” I mumbled, shocked he should know about that.
Alessandro shrugged. “What did you do with the money from those tips?”
“I'd spent it,” I blurted out quickly.
“Yes, you spent it all right. It's fucking ironic how you gave up every penny to settle your father's debt only to end up paying for it all over again,” Alessandro asserted. “You see, that’s the beautiful thing about having a gun pressed to your head, tesoro. It makes you confess all your sins and your stepmother sang like a canary. I just don't understand why you’re defending that bitch when you know she deserves it.” His eyes narrowed, and he smirked as though he came to a realization. “It's your little sister, isn't it?”
I swallowed. “Leave May out of this!”
He waved his hand in dismissal of my words. “Don't worry. The child is safe. I still have some morals left.”
“Alessandro, you s-said—”
“I know, piccola and I’m going to be fair. I told you I would give you a chance to choose, so I’ll let you choose. If you want your father dead, I’m going to honor your decision,” he explained. “However, your stepmother's wrongdoings cannot go unpunished. It’s a matter that came to my attention by pure coincidence and I’m forced to deal with it.”