Mafia's Redemption: Terzo - Chapter 43: Chapter 43

DANI
“I’m not gonna wait any longer, I need to take her to the hospital.” It was angry Terzo grunting. “Fuck! Why is this keeping on happening to her?”
“T, calm down. You can’t help if you’re too angry. You can’t think straight. Dr. Valerio said, Dan’s gonna be fine, then she’s gonna be fine. It’s only been two hours.” Celestina’s voice was calmer as if she was whispering at him.
“Yes. That’s what I’m talking about. It’s already two fucking hours. Ahg!” Thud. “This is my fucking fault. I shouldn’t have taken her to that fucking club. Look what happened?”
“And what are you gonna do then?” Was that Magnus? “Lock her up in your castle? Might as well slay a dragon or train a dragon to guard her.”
“I don’t like your tone, Tucker,” Terzo grunted.
“Well, suck it up, bro. It happened. In your line of business, this will happen often. And you married her, prepare her for the worst if you want to keep Dani, because she needs to get used to all these messes, blood, and violence, unless you can eliminate your enemies discreetly. But I do believe that Dani is a strong woman with fire in her heart. That’s what made you this ‘you’.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I could feel Terzo glaring at Magnus, his spine rigid and his fists cracking.
“It’s not a bad thing, T. I started to like you, like this,” Celestina said. “You’re changing. Your heart is thawing and starts beating. You become more human and what Papa has always wanted.”
“I agree with Cee. You balance between compassion, your ability to make decisions, and your leadership skills, bro. Your human emotion is off the charts. Welcome back to the world of living,” Magnus said gleefully.
“Shut the fuck up. If I need an advice about the fucking numbers and leadership, I’ll ask you. Right now, I need to wake up my wife.”
“Man, you’re gonna be the future leader of this organization. The only thing that was stopping your father from turning the mantle on you was your marital status. Now that you got Dani—”
“I can’t. Not right now. Not until—”
My eyes cracked open. I knew it. I passed out, and I was back at the compound in bed. “God, you couldn’t just shut up.” I tried to sit down, but Terzo was quick to hold me and put my head back to the pillow.
“I need to sit down, Terzo.”
“Okay, Okay. Easy.” He assisted me as if I’d just woken up from a coma and regarded me with a gaze filled with worries and regrets.
“I’m not gonna break.”
“Dani, enough being stubborn for today. I’m your husband, and for once, listen to me. This isn’t the first time—”
“T?” Celestina called out, clearly irritated by her brother’s behavior. “She just fainted. Give her a break. I know you care about her, but so does everyone around. We’re worried. You’re worried, I get that, but give her a room to breathe without you breathing on her neck.”
He shot a glare at her sister. “Why does suddenly everyone know things and I don’t? Why does everyone suddenly have their own opinion? Why does suddenly everyone care?”
“We all do, T.”
My eyes shifted between my husband, Magnus, leaning against the vanity mirror, Celestina sitting at the ottoman chair, and then Gio in the end corner.
“Should I go back to sleep? But I need AirPods.”
“This is not a joke, Dani. You just had a panic attack.” Terzo wasn’t just pissed off. He was so serious, stoic, his gaze so intense, filled with deep concern, and at the same time, it was hard, sharp, and cruel.
“Panic attack? What do you mean?” I remembered everything that happened at the club. The images of us drinking, me and him kissing, Celestina and I dancing, and all of a sudden, shots fired, and I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t walk, as if my legs just turned into a paddle. The images of blood and violence flashed so fast my brain froze.
“Dani. Hey, sweetheart.” Terzo shook me and cupped my head. “Look at me. Breathe, darling. Breathe.”
I did as he said a couple of times until I felt a lot better. “Do you have juice or candy or something?”
“What?” He looked confused. His features softened while everyone seemed to be muted.
“Remember when I told you I don’t think I will collapse from hypoglycemia?”
“Yeah, before—”
I pressed a finger against his lips to stop talking. I might have sex with a mafia, but I always preferred to keep my sexual activities private.
Terzo’s gaze warmed a bit, and he kissed the palm of my hand. “I’m worried about you, Dani. This is the second time you fainted, and it has nothing to do with low blood sugar bullshit. You’re having a panic attack. Is there something you wanna tell me?”
“You wanna hear it? Here we go. Well, I’m not used to getting shot at. This world, your world, is new to me. I was just dancing with—” I swallowed hard. “Can I get a juice or something sweet?”
Terzo groaned at my interruption.
Marco had the right timing. He walked in carrying a glass of fruit juice and gave it to the waiting Terzo. “Glad you’re okay.”
“Thanks.” I took the glass from Terzo and raised my finger for him not to talk. I took a sip. I tasted a lot of pomegranate and berries. I drank half of it before I gave the glass to Terzo. “I’ll feel better soon.”
“Can I get you something else?”
“I’m good. What was I saying?” I gestured with my finger. “Right. I was just dancing with Cee and suddenly, bam. This wasn’t my life months ago.”
“I think you need to see a doctor.” I knew exactly what he meant.
“Again?” I looked straight into his eyes. He was definitely worried.
“A psychologist, Dani,” Celestina said.
“I’m not seeing a shrink.” I looked at them one by one, sharing the same sympathy. “How did you guys cope with this situation? You, banker, what did you do?”
Magnus shrugged. “I didn’t have much of a choice. This was the only life I had because Mr. Braddson gave me this chance, or Terzo was gonna pull the trigger.”
“I’m not the one who tried to kill you, asshole. It was Cade.” Terzo looked over his shoulder before facing me again. “I’ll take you to the States.”
“Who’s Cade?”
“Mr. Braddson’s son,” Magnus answered.
“What?” My eyes widened at Terzo. “No. I’m not leaving until I fix the situation with my father. I want him to know that I don’t have the damn book so that he can stop threatening everyone around me. I want him to stop threatening all of you.”
“If I may.” Marco raised his hand. Terzo nodded, and then he continued, “I’m not worried about us. Don Gaetano has more army than your father. Your father has only like twenty-five? But Don Gaetano still values your relationship with his son, which is why he hasn’t ordered retaliation after what his men did at the slaughterhouse. Yes, he can hire people, mercenaries, assassins to kill us, but you know why he hasn’t done it? He thinks you have the book or someone does, and scared his secret might come out.” It made a lot of sense.
“And Papa doesn’t want any more killings. A lot of people died when my ex betrayed us. He’s done with it, Dani,” Celestina said. “He wants his legacy not to end in more blood on the ground as my brother continues. You blamed my brother for the death of your brother, and he doesn’t want you to blame Papa if your father is killed. I know this is complicated, but Papa and Terzo are trying hard to avoid this family feud between mine and yours.”
“I’m still wondering why that book means a lot to him that he doesn’t care about lives.”
I looked at Magnus. “This is more than just a ledger.”
“Do you have any idea what it is?”
I shook my head. “Maybe there is no book. He’s just playing games with us. I know this is unfortunate, but the time I spent with my father, we didn’t share secrets. We barely talked about my life, my brother, and occasionally about running a business. He had more time in his office and with his men. Do you know, guys, the feeling towards someone that you can’t explain as if he’s hiding something from you, or you know you can’t open up to him? It was more than doubts.”
“Yeah, I know what what you mean,” Magnus said.
“I feel that about him. Something was holding me up. I don’t know, I don’t feel the connection between us. The moment I met him, there was no excitement. I just thought I wanted to give it a chance like everybody else who longed for a parent, longed to be seen and validated.”