Fratelli: The Awakening (The Vampire Cartel #1)

50. A Fragile Trust Part One

Chapter 50

A Fragile Trust Part One

B ellagio Casino, Las Vegas - Nevada

April 16, 2018

(5 Days Before Death)

Dolly let go of her brother. Her vision cleared, and she could take in the lavish surroundings of the Bellagio’s VIP section. She felt disoriented as if she emerged from a long sleep. In confusion, she glanced down at her scantily clad state of dress. She had never been so naked in public. And then there was her body. It had changed. She’d always been curvy. Somehow, she had changed. Her heavy bosom stood up without the aid of a bra. Her stomach was flat, she had curves to her hips and her ass. Did Darlene have plastic surgery in three days?

She touched her hair, which felt softer, thicker, and longer, pinned up in a messy bun at the top of her head. Her heart pounded with a mixture of fear, confusion, and anger. The memories of what Darlene had done using her body were like shards of glass that pierced her mind.

Lucio stood nearby, his gaze hopeful. She glanced at him and Tristan. His classically handsome features were strong and apparent even in the shadows where he watched her from. Dolly forced down her anger. She vowed when she got free, her emotions would not control her. This time, she was going to face it all. No more running. Then there was another part of her that was eternally grateful. After all, Lucio had banished Darlene to the dark void and chosen her.

“Stop acting weird! I got to go…” Russell said as he pushed her back off him. He turned his chair to follow his new entourage.

“What? No! Wait,” she grabbed his chair. “You aren’t going anywhere with these people.”

“He’s up now. We need him back on stage,” a man with large headphones and a clipboard said to her, a bit aggravated by her interference.

“I got him, he’s cool,” Lamont said.

“I said no!” she insisted. “And what are you doing here with him, anyway?”

“ Let him go, beautiful. Let us talk. He’s safe ,” Lucio whispered into her ear. She turned, thinking Lucio was near. Her heart raced with fear. Thankfully, he was still where he stood next to his driver, Tristan.

“Move, sis, you’re embarrassing me, fuck. I got to go! Stop being weird. They’re calling my name!” Russell glared at her. “You hear that!”

Dolly looked up. She listened. The crowd shouted one name: ‘Green Ninja’. Over and over, they made the call. It was Russell. ‘Green Ninja’ was his streamer name. There was no alternative for her except to let go of him. She looked around at those in the VIP section and saw normal, average people. She didn’t know if she could trust her eyes. They could all be vampires.

“ They are not vampires, Dolly, only me and Tristan suffer with the curse in this section. No one else. Now, can I please speak with you? ” Lucio pleaded.

“Get out of my head!” she shouted.

Her brother looked back at her, alarmed. The others looked at her as if she were crazy. Embarrassed, she smiled and tried to seem normal. She blew a kiss to Russell.

“ Relax, sweetheart. He is fine ,” Lucio whispered to her again. “ You can speak to me too, this way. Say anything and I can hear you. Try it. ”

Quietly, she seethed with anger at the intrusion. She would not be his little pet freak like Darlene was. She glanced back at him. He stood stoically, as if he hadn’t spoken.

“See you in a few, sis!” Russell said as the crew helped navigate the chair off the ramp to the stage. She waved at him and clapped for him.

When he disappeared from sight and appeared on the Jumbotron, energizing the crowd, she approached Lucio. “You want to talk, fine. Let’s get it over with, but I am not going anywhere alone with you,” she looked at Tristan for help. “Can you please come too?”

Tristan’s eyes stretched at the request. Lucio narrowed his eyes at her over the disrespect. Dolly feared his hard disapproval would turn violent. He must have sensed her fear, because the anger in his eyes melted away. “It’s fine, Tristan. Join us.”

“Boss—I—” Tristan stammered.

“Do it!” Lucio ordered.

Tristan started toward the other end of the section. He gave her a respectful nod and gestured toward a black door on the other side. She followed Tristan, keeping her distance from Lucio. Inside the soundproof room was a casino dealer table and chairs, a smoking section, and a bar with a bartender. Dolly’s gaze volleyed from one side of the room to the next, in search of an exit. There was only one way in and one way out.

She felt Lucio approach. In fact, the tantalizing smell of his aftershave arrived before he did. She turned to face him with her hand out to keep him from coming too close. Tristan stood by the door. He pulled out a cigarillo that he had pre-rolled with marijuana, fired it up, and ignored them both.

“Dolly,” Lucio began, his voice soft but firm. His innate captivating presence disarmed her. She slowly lowered her hand. “I know you’re angry, and you have every right to be. But you need to understand my intentions?—”

“Understand them, Lucio?” Dolly’s jaw locked tight with repressed anger. “That you used my body to satisfy your lust? That you fed on me without my knowledge? How you would treat me like a piece of meat and act like everything was normal? I thought Tyrone was a monster. I never knew that actual monsters like you existed. That’s on me. No understanding needed.”

Her words were a stake to his heart. Lucio swiped his hand back over his dark hair and let go a deep breath. To his disappointment, any movement from him made her recoil back and away from him. He could sense her frustration and fear. It replaced the sweet, fragrant skin he had grown used to. “I never intended to hurt you. I fell in love with you, Dolly, before and after Darlene.”

“After? Yeah, right,” she scoffed. “So, Darlene made it all up? You never loved her?”

“Not what I’m saying. I love her. Darlene… I know what it’s like to exist in the darkness. She protected you from that pain. She watched your life at a distance and never really taken part. Darlene helped open my eyes in these few days to who I am and what I want.”

“Her darkness is sexy to you?” Dolly asked, repulsed.

“Yes. Her darkness is, and so is your light. For me, you both are one woman, you are all I see. I didn’t even know she existed until… that night.”

Dolly’s breath hitched, and she wanted to turn away and push his truth away, but she faced him and everything. Through it all, she felt tainted and used every time he spoke of Darlene with affection in his voice. Suddenly her jealous rage became too much: “I need to help my brother get out of here. I’m tired of this fake love story you’re selling. We’re leaving Vegas tonight. I’ll call my friend Charmaine and borrow the money to get flights out for us. Don’t worry, I’m not looking for your money or for you to solve my problems anymore. If there is one thing I learned from you and all of this Lucio, it’s that in life we are all in this alone.”

Lucio’s tone deepened. “I didn’t teach you that.”

“Oh, yes, you and Darlene, both taught me well,” she said.

“You can’t leave. I can’t let you go,” he said.

He reached out, smooth and quick to catch her hand in his. She pulled her hand free from the warmth of his touch. “You can’t let me go? You don’t own me, Lucio. I will not have my brother be a part of this twisted world.”

“He’s safe here,” Lucio insisted. He closed the gap between them. “Safer than he would be if you left. They know you now. By the turn of the moon, my father will too. The world knows Russell now,” Lucio said.

“Oh, I see,” she said. She put her hands to her head and paced. “I see it all clearly now.”

“What do you see?”

“That this was all your plan. From the start. Showing up at the gas station, then my house. Me losing my job. The fake date in New Orleans. You were going to bring me in, lock me in, and you used my brother as the key.”

“I never pretended to be anything other than myself with you,” Lucio reasoned.

“You bend the truth. You bend reality. Darlene thinks she loves you—and she hates vampires. Hell, after one night of fake romance with you, I fell for it, too. But I’m not na?ve, I’m just ignorant.”

“Are you done?” Lucio asked.

“Not even close. You don’t know what love is. That’s why you hang those women on the wall. That’s why you go through all of this ceremony to make us believe in you. Because you don’t know what love is, you just know that you don’t have it.”

Tristan, who pretended not to hear the conversation, looked up. Dolly caught Tristan’s gaze, and he lowered it. She shook her head at them both with pity. “How many people have you trapped into your curse? Forced to join you in your hell? Were they friends, confidants, co-conspirators, or lovers like me and Darlene? How many Lucio?”

Lucio swallowed his pride. “Okay, I’m the bad guy. You tell me how it works?”

“I’m no expert on love, Lucio. I don’t think anyone is. I just know the few times I felt love and gave love in my life.”

“And when did you give it? When did you feel it?” he asked sincerely.

“Love is sacrifice. Look at me, Lucio. Look at my life. My mother gave me up so I could be part of a family. I’m sure she had her reasons, but I like to think it was a sacrifice out of love. My parents sacrificed everything to raise me and my brother, who had medical issues. Forget what you want from me and see the real me. My entire life has been about sacrifice since my parents died. I’ve done nothing but sacrifice myself for Russell. Hell, I even fucked you for the sacrifice. Who have you ever loved enough to sacrifice something for?”

“You,” he confessed.

She rolled her eyes.

“I have declared war on my family. My father has less than a month to live and all I can think of is not letting go of you. To you, this happened fast, so I’m fake. My feelings are fake. Everything is fake. To Darlene, it’s not happening fast enough. I’m not giving enough attention. I’m not proving my love is just for her. But to me, time means nothing. For me, ten minutes of knowing you is ten decades of waiting for you. I don’t wait to feel anything. I just feel it. And I felt it the first night with you. Now my brother knows about you, my enemies know about you. And they heard Darlene call herself my mate.” Lucio glanced at Tristan. “I’ll protect you with my life to prove I love you, but also to keep you safe.”

“I don’t want your love,” Dolly said. She wiped away her loose tears. “I don’t even know what you are.”

“You can’t just walk away. We’re both in it too deep. You don’t understand the dangers out there. I can teach you things. We can figure it out together.”

“Russell doesn’t know what’s going on, when he finds out he will freak!” Dolly paced and wrung her hands.

“Then we won’t tell him,” Lucio interrupted, gently. “Let him enjoy his moment. I promise you, Dolly, he can have a thousand of those moments if you wish.”

Dolly searched his eyes for any sign of deceit. Despite everything, she could feel his genuine concern for her and her brother. But that was not enough. She now knew the truth. Once you open your eyes to the deception in the world, you can no longer close them. How could she forget all the sexcapades she now knew? What he shared with Darlene was never as deep as what they shared in the few moments when she was in control of her body. He betrayed her in the most hurtful way. He was her devil, not her God or savior. And she could not trust him with her life.