It was more than anger. It was more than fear. It felt like someone poured a bucket of sand in my mouth as the ex-love of my life held my mouth open and pinched my nose shut. I wasn’t prepared for this. Nobody told me being a single mother would be this difficult.

And to find out Lucas was a fucking drug dealer? Another drug dealer?! It was as if I had a magnet that pulled in every shady asshole close to me.

“I’m not a drug dealer,” he said to me, after I clocked out of my shift.

“I knew there was something weird. I knew it! That’s why Carmelo has been acting so weird, isn’t it? Oh, God. I think I’m going to be sick.” I knelt down against the curb and held my stomach. My whole world was spinning and I was out of answers, with no direction.

“Calm the fuck down. I can explain everything to you if you just hear me out,” he said. All his charm, his towering stature, and good looks meant nothing now. It disgusted me to even think about what happened in the kitchen. To think I even kissed the prick.

“Just leave me alone. I need to pick up Jen from summer school,” I said, shielding my eyes from even looking at him. I didn’t know whether I wanted to cry or to bite his neck and tear his jugular out. Yes, I was that angry. My child was involved and no one fucked with my daughter.

“I’ve never sold a drug in my life,” he said. “I have a code.”

I stopped dead in my tracks and turned around, finally facing him. “A code? Who are you? Like, for real. Who the hell are you? Why are you in Monroe? I know you didn’t come here just to enjoy the beautiful scenery. What are you up to? Is your name really Lucas?” I asked, waiting for a response. Although, I didn’t expect much from him.

“Come here.” He grabbed my arm and pulled me into the alleyway, looking around. “You want to know who I am? Where I come from? Do you? Because once you know, there’s no coming back from that information.”

“I want to know,” I said. “I need to know.”

“Then come with me,” he said, dragging me to his car. “We’re going for a ride.”

* * *

He took me to the house he was staying at in Monroe. Thank God for that. For a second there, I thought he might take me to Detroit and kill me or something. At this point, I had absolutely no clue who this man really was, and that frightened me to no end.

We stepped onto the gravel and leaves, and rustled up to his front door. “Come in,” he said, pushing the door open for me. At least he was still a gentleman.

The inside of the house was normal. It was a bit plain, actually. Pictures of men from the old days, all dressed in fine Italian suits. Some were holding cigars and gesturing wildly, while others bore serious postures and expressions. Nothing was out of the ordinary. That is, until I saw the pistol on the table.

“Don’t worry. It’s not loaded,” he said.

“What is a pistol doing on the kitchen table? Who the hell are you?” I shouted, backing away from him.

“Sit down,” he said, grabbing a bottle of wine from the counter. He grabbed two clean glasses and poured two cups.

“I’m fine. Thanks,” I muttered, pushing the glass away from me.

“Drink it. It’s a gift from Carmelo,” he said. Carmelo? How is he tied up in this? I wondered. Everything was getting a little too weird for me.

I took a small sip and set the glass down. He did the same. “I’m from the Luciotti family,” he stated, leaning back in his chair and carefully observing how I reacted.

“Is that supposed to mean something to me?” I asked.

“You don’t know about us?”

“No, I don’t. Can you just tell me what the hell is going on already?” I asked, feeling as though my head was about to burst.

“Those men in those pictures. See that one on the right, with the cigar? That’s Chris Giocanda. He was one of the first wise guys to join our crew. That was before my time, of course. I never really knew the guy. My father, however, has a lot of stories about him. Now, see that other guy? The one with the angry look on his face? That’s Joe Viatola. He was a tough son of a bitch and I knew him plenty before he died. I can go on if you’d like,” he said.

“You’re telling me that…” I stopped speaking. There was a knot in my throat that I couldn’t swallow.

“You had me figured out a long time ago, I guess,” he sighed.

I whispered, glancing out of my peripheral to make sure no one else was around us “The Mafia?” I swallowed loudly, feeling my body temperature start to rise.

“I like to use the phrase ‘organized crime’,” he said.

I stood up out of my chair and backed away from the maniac. How many people had he killed in his lifetime? How many poor families had he run into the ground? He was evil. He was worse than Cade!

He grabbed my arm and said “Sit down.” I slapped him clear across the face.

“Get away from me, you maniac!” I shouted. “I'll scream! I swear to God, I'll scream!”

“What the hell?” He felt his cheek and took a step back. “Calm down. I'm not going to hurt you. That's not my intent.”

“Tell me … have you?” I choked out the question, feeling my body start to shake. Last night was so great. But now everything was falling apart. My old life came flooding back into plain sight. And there was the question that begged to be answered: what was I going to do? Better yet, where were Jen and I supposed to run to next?

“Are you asking me if I've killed someone before?” he asked, somehow straight faced and calm.

“Yes. I need to know,” I whispered, standing as near to the door as possible.

“Yes. I have,” he said.

I felt my body weaken. I grew faint with disgust and dread. “I need to leave now,” I whispered. I hoped to god he would let me out, that he wasn't one of those psychopaths who kept women in their freezers. “Never talk to me again,” I said.

“Wait, you don't understand! They weren’t normal, good people.” I unlocked the door and backed out onto the porch. “They signed up for the same life as me. We all know the rules of the game,” he said.

The rules of the game. Was that how he saw all this? A game? In any case, I didn't want to stay and find out. “Goodbye, Lucas. I wish we had never met,” I said. Jen would be out of school by now and I needed to figure out a plan of action for us. We weren't safe now. Not with Cade. Not with Lucas.