Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi

*Elio*

I had driven to the meeting place that Alessandro had given me in a rush, my mind running a million miles an hour as I considered what the implications of the warehouse fire were. "Hey man," I said as I walked up to Alessandro.

We were meeting in a busy coffee shop, which I had learned from my father was the best way to meet and ensure you wouldn't be overheard. Meeting somewhere private might feel safe, but it was always possible for a wiretap to be placed somewhere without you knowing. Meeting at random public places ensured that the only way we'd be listened to was if someone tried to listen in person, and at that point, we'd be better able to see them. "Hey, how are you doing?" Alessandro asked.

"I could be better," I said honestly.

Looking at him, he looked like he could be better too. When I sat down, I noticed the lines of stress in his face. When I was growing up, Alessandro had always been the cool, fun uncle, even though he wasn't exactly my uncle.

The family always said I was a lot like him. I'd once overheard my parents talking about how different he was with me than he was with the rest of the people in his life, and I felt like I was now seeing that other side of him that they'd spoken of. It was obvious that he was all business right now, with absolutely no sign of the fun uncle I'd grown up with. The second I sat down, he leaned forward and began speaking in a low tone.

"Alright, this was definitely done on purpose. I have a guy who investigates fires and had him check it out for me. He said there's no doubt in his mind this was a targeted attack. There was evidence of multiple ignition points, which just wouldn't happen naturally."

"What the fuck?" I said quietly. "Why would someone do this?"

"I know exactly who did it, and I know why." He took a sip of his coffee, looking grim.

"Tell me everything. I'm tired of being kept in the dark," I said.

He nodded. "I know exactly how that feels. Look, I know your parents don't want you to get involved in this life, but you're not a kid anymore and this is your decision. I want you to be fully informed on everything so you don't go in blind. If you want to back out, now is the time to tell me. Once I get you more involved, there's no turning back."

It wasn't a question for me. I wanted this. I wanted to be a part of the family business, and I was tired of being left out of it like some defenseless kid. With everything that was happening between Cat and me, it was now or never. If I had any hope of becoming a part of the mafia, I needed to do it now.

"I want this. Tell me everything," I said firmly.

Alessandro nodded and sat down his coffee, gesturing to me to lean in farther.

"It all starts with the son of a bitch who killed Caterina's dad, Vinny. He's a scumbag named Antonio who thinks that he can do whatever he wants. After he killed Vinny, we spent years looking for him, but we never could get a hold of him. He's now managed to start his own family. I don't know who the fuck would want to follow him willingly because the guy is fucking ruthless, but he's even managed to convince a few of our own to betray us and get with him."

He paused for a moment and continued. "He didn't know about our deal with the Russians, so he started trying to get an in with them, but he pretty quickly figured out that they were with us and started targeting them too. Even with their family and ours fighting him on both sides, he managed to get enough followers to gain power. At this point he's older, but he's still fucking dangerous."

"Damn, you really think he's here now?"

"There's not a doubt in my mind. Somehow he must have figured out our plans to expand, and he wanted to come here and try to destroy everything. I can't emphasize enough how dangerous he is. He doesn't give a fuck if someone is a part of this or not. He targets everyone. I know for a fact some of the people who work for him only do it because he threatened their families." He paused and took a sip, thinking about what to say next.

"I always knew the guy who killed Vinny had something to do with the life, but I had no idea he was so prolific," I said.

"Yup, and that's another thing. He killed Vinny purely to make a point. It was senseless and it shows exactly the kind of piece of shit that Antonio is. He doesn't respect human life at all. I'm a brutal son of a bitch when it's necessary, but Antonio's brutal just for the sake of brutality."

His words filled me with rage as I thought about the people I loved being targeted. The first person I thought about was Cat. Antonio was the man who had killed her father in cold blood. I was sure he would love the chance to take her out as well.

"Alright, thanks for telling me everything," I said. "I've got to get going. I'll be in touch."

I sped back to my house as quickly as possible, praying Caterina would still be there. I knew it had pissed her off when I left without explanation, but I hoped she had at least waited around so I could apologize again.

I was desperate to see her after hearing from Alessandro that she could be in serious danger. In my head I knew there was no way that she had gotten into any trouble in the short time I'd been talking with Alessandro, but my heart would be in my throat until I laid eyes on her and could confirm for myself that she was safe and sound.

I walked into my house and felt my whole body go slack with relief to see her sitting at my dining room table eating a bowl of oatmeal. I walked over and knelt beside her, pulling her hand into both of mine. She looked at me with surprise, her mouth full of oatmeal.

"I'm so sorry for rushing out like that," I said, worried that she was still angry.

"It's okay," she managed to say around her food, looking confused. She swallowed her bite and said, "What's wrong? You look so stressed out. Is it because of the fire?"

I hated that I was about to lie to her, but it felt like she'd be safer if she didn't know anything.

"Yeah, I'm really worried about it. I just feel like someone did it on purpose to try to threaten me."

As I spoke, an idea came to me that I knew could alleviate my stress.

"Is there any chance you and your mom would move in with me? Not permanently, of course, but just for now so I can make sure you're safe."

She looked even more confused. "Why would we do that? I don't really want to move in here with my mom."

"Please, Cat, I'm just worried about your safety. If someone's targeting me, it's only a matter of time before they figure out how important you are to me. The idea of you being in danger terrifies me. I couldn't think straight the whole drive here because I was so stressed about it."

Her brow furrowed as she looked down at me. I could tell she wanted to argue, but she seemed conflicted about it. I wondered what was stopping her, normally she didn't hesitate to lay into me.

"I don't want to do that, Elio," she said quietly before turning away from me and back to her oatmeal.

I stood up and turned around, trying to hide my frustration. The last thing I wanted to do was take my anger at Antonio out on Caterina. It wasn't her fault that she didn't understand the danger here, considering I was the one avoiding telling her the whole truth.

I took a deep breath and turned back around, sitting in the chair across from Cat but reaching out to take her hand again. I was working hard to keep this conversation calm.

"I know it sounds crazy, but I'm just asking you to trust me right now. I'm begging you to trust me, Cat. I need to ensure that you're going to be safe."

She kept her eyes down, refusing to look up at me. I reached out and tucked my finger under her chin, gently lifting it so that she met my eye. "Hey, sweetheart, what's wrong?" I asked softly.

Normally I'd have expected her to be yelling at me indignantly if I kept insisting on something after she'd said no. I didn't want her to think that being my girlfriend meant she couldn't argue with me anymore. Her feisty attitude was a pain in my ass, but it was also part of what I loved about her. She was passionate about her beliefs, and that was a good thing. I would never want to stifle that.

"I feel like if I argue with you, you'll just see me as the stupid kid I used to be," she finally said, biting her lip anxiously.

"Caterina, how could you ever think that? You're seriously afraid that I don't see you for the woman that you are? After what we did last night? I promise you, nothing you do will ever make me think of you as a kid. I respect you too much for that."

I moved my hand from her chin to cup her cheek. She turned and kissed the palm of my hand, the sad look in her eyes finally starting to go away.

She turned back to me with a sassy smile. "Well in that case, no, absolutely not. We're not moving in here."

I rolled my eyes; I didn't know why I had expected anything different.

"Alright, fine, but I'm moving in with you two until I know things are safe."

"Come on, Elio. What does a warehouse fire have to do with my safety? You're being ridiculous," she said in exasperation.

"I'm just being cautious. I care about you too much to risk your safety." I knew it was a flimsy excuse, but I had no idea what else to say to her.

She sighed, frustrated that I was obviously keeping something from her. I had no idea how I was going to be able to keep her safe without telling her the truth about everything, but I was determined to try.