The Council was called to order. Felice sat on Valentino’s left, Luca on his right. He hadn’t looked in my direction once. He was facing forwards, the muscles in his jaw grinding. Nic winked at me before turning his attention to his oldest brother. I wished I could have shared his confidence.
Valentino cleared his throat. ‘Welcome, everyone, to what promises to be a memorable meeting.’ He flicked his gaze to me. I looked into those azure eyes and saw my own hopelessness reflected back. ‘Today, we remember those who have given their blood to protect this family.’ He placed a hand on his chest and dipped his head. ‘We think of Calvino and Rico. Ora riposano in pace.’
Quiet murmurings echoed along the table as the other Falcones pressed their hands to their hearts as Valentino had. ‘Ora riposano in pace.’
Valentino snapped his head up and the tender moment was gone. He looked straight at me when he said, ‘We are here today to discuss a serious matter, which concerns Donata Marino and the Marino family.’
There was a hiss from somewhere at the far end of the table. Elena pulled her lips back, her teeth bared, at the mention of her sister. Valentino pointed towards me. ‘For those who are not aware, I present to you Sophie Gracewell, daughter of Michael Gracewell.’
Luca looked at me for the first time. His expression was shuttered.
‘She has come to us today seeking the order of Sanctuary, for the protection of her mother and herself,’ Valentino added with a sneer.
A man with a heavy white beard seated part way down the table, said, ‘Such ceremony for small matters, Valentino. Of course we offer Sanctuary – it’s nothing for us.’
‘So it would appear,’ muttered Felice.
Outside, the storm clouds were sinking lower and lower. The room was charged, and the hairs on my arm were standing up. The urgency of the situation licked at my consciousness.
‘It’s ludicrous,’ Elena cried. Her hands rose into the air, gesticulating above the heads around her. ‘These people are the family of the man who killed your father, Valentino. They certainly do not deserve Sanctuary.’
A man with puffed-up white hair and a face creviced with wrinkles clapped his palm on the table. ‘We do not punish innocents,’ he said in a voice croaky with age. ‘Elena, you are letting your personal feelings override your duty to protect. That is the Falcone cause.’
Her voice turned hard. ‘That has not been our cause for a long time, Tommaso.’
I was watching Valentino. He and Felice had their heads bent together. His lips moved hurriedly, and every so often Felice’s eyes would grow very large. He glared at me, and I felt like there was a sniper rifle trained on my forehead. Luca sat apart from their huddle, his mouth set in a hard line as his twin angled his body towards Felice, continuing their hushed conversation.
Dom was speaking at the other end of the table. ‘I say we send her back to Donata. We’ve got all the information we need. What Sophie does now shouldn’t concern us.’
‘Exactly,’ said Elena in an exasperated voice. ‘At least one of my children sees sense.’
I couldn’t place the look on Felice’s face, but it was utterly mirthless. He was staring so hard at me I felt the heat underneath my skin. I lifted my chin, determined not to break under his attempts to intimidate me.
Someone slammed their fist on the table and I was startled back into the conversation. Gino’s glass of water had toppled over and spilt on to his lap. Luca was standing up, his palms pressed against the table. ‘I owe Sophie Gracewell my life. Is that really nothing, Mother? Con tutto il rispetto, si sbaglia.’
‘That doesn’t excuse her blood ties!’ shouted someone else, his voice joining with the heat of others. ‘We just buried Calvino. Are we all so quick to forget how and where he died? Are we all so quick to forget his death at the hands of Jack Gracewell?’
‘The girl is just a teenager. Una innocente,’ Paulie said, and my heart swelled with gratitude. ‘We must believe she is here to assist us. She brought news of Donata’s plotting.’
‘Unreliable news,’ said a young man with a shaved head and a severe nose. He fiddled with the gold chain around his neck. ‘Who knows if it was made up just to get us on side?’
‘Donata has Sophie in her sights,’ said Luca. ‘We don’t know what she plans to use her for. We don’t know if she plans to kill her.’
Well, he mightn’t have been able to stomach looking at me properly after what had happened upstairs, but at least he was fighting for me. I exhaled a quiet sigh of relief. The word of the Falcone underboss would carry a lot of weight in this room.
‘Donata won’t have time to use anyone for anything,’ said Gino. ‘Because we’re going to kill that Marino bitch and mount her head above the fireplace.’
‘Dio,’ muttered an old woman right across from me. ‘Is this what we have become?’
‘Gino,’ cautioned Elena. ‘Watch your language.’
He snapped his head down, folding his arms in a childish huff. ‘You weren’t complaining when Nic dumped Sara into the lake with all that cazzate on her skin.’
I felt a sudden whack of nausea. It was Nic. Nic threw Sara Marino in the lake. He had carved those words on to her body. I covered my mouth and concentrated on not getting sick. I had come here willingly. I had known discovering more horrible truths was a possibility. It was their world. But this … I had never expected this.