Trapped (Sinners of Boston #5)

35. Delilah

THIRTY-FIVE

DELILAH

“Are you alone?”

I nodded, but Dad glanced over my shoulder.

“Alright. Come in.”

I walked inside, and he patted my shoulder. Dad was never one for big displays of emotion. I hadn’t seen him since the wedding nearly four months ago, and he looked like he’d aged years. Bags hung under his red-rimmed eyes. A grim disappointment set his jaw.

The air was thick with the tension of our strained relationship. He brought me into the living room, the scent of leather and cigar smoke mingling with my stepmother’s perfume. Zofia sat in her usual chair, her eyes narrowing.

“Well, if it isn’t the runaway bride,” she sneered, her voice dripping with disdain. “Vodka?”

She poured me a shot from the bottle on the table, not even bothering to wait for a response. She’d always been a horrible human being. I sat in the chair furthest from her and focused on my dad.

He sat in front of me, his gaze hard.

“Running away from Dimitri was the most foolish thing you’ve ever done. Do you have any idea the chaos you’ve caused? The shame you’ve brought on this family?”

Zofia sat back, crossing her legs. “ Solnyshko , we only want what’s best for you. You know that, don’t you?”

“Not really.”

Zofia smiled. “You’ve always been headstrong. It’s just…sometimes, solnyshko , we need to think about more than just ourselves. Our actions affect everyone around us.”

Classic Zofia move—a compliment laced with criticism.

“Family is everything,” she pressed on, leaning forward, her eyes locked on mine. “And sometimes, family requires sacrifice. We all have to do things we don’t like for the good of the family. It’s time you start thinking about your role in all this.”

She framed submission as duty and manipulation as love. It was a skill she’d perfected over the years, making you feel guilty for wanting something different.

“And we can forgive, you know,” she added softly, almost a whisper. “We can move past this incident. We can put it all behind us if you apologize.”

I looked from her to my father, seeing the same demand for compliance in his eyes. “I’m not here to apologize about my decision. I don’t regret leaving Dimitri, not for a second. I came to ask you about Luca.”

My father stiffened. “What about him?”

“I need to know the truth about him, Dad. I think I know who he really is, and I think you do, too.”

Zofia pursed her lips, glancing at my father. “What is she talking about?”

He waved a hand. “She’s babbling nonsense.”

“Dad, I’ve seen pictures of him at Santino’s house. He carries a photo of him in his wallet. Did you really think you’d get away with this forever? That you could…steal a fucking child?”

Zofia’s tinkling laughter broke the silence.

Dad shook his head. “I’ve never heard such chepukha in my life.”

“Tell me the truth. Who is Luca?”

Dad’s voice was flat, almost bored. “Luca is no one important. Just a boy that your imagination has turned into something else.”

Heat flared in my chest. “He’s not just some boy. He’s Santino’s cousin who supposedly died in a fire you started.”

Zofia laughed again. “Such wild fantasies.”

I ignored her. “Dad, I need the truth. This isn’t just about family feuds or old crimes. People’s lives are at stake.”

“If you like living, you will drop this. Forget about Luca.”

I swallowed hard. “I can’t do that.”

He stood abruptly, his chair scraping back hard. “Then you are no daughter of mine!”

I stayed seated. “What the hell have you been doing to him?”

“I didn’t do anything to him,” he snapped. “I saved him. His family was killed, so I gave him another one.”

“You stole him from his real family and raised him in a world of lies. Why?”

His face flushed. “His family was a threat. Taking him in was the only way to neutralize them.”

“By turning him into one of us? By keeping him hidden all these years?”

“A dead child holds no value. But a living one who believes his family left him for dead, that’s useful. Luca isn’t here because he doesn’t remember who he is. He’s here because I made him believe there was nothing left to go back to.”

I stared at him, horrified. “You made him think his family abandoned him?”

“It wasn’t difficult. He was young and scared. He believed me because he had no other choice.” Dad glared at me, his voice rising sharply. “I saved his life.”

“After killing his parents!”

My father’s gaze hardened. “Luca is an adult. If he wanted to leave, he would have. But he hasn’t. He knows who I am, and what I’ve done for him. Don’t kid yourself into thinking you can change that with a few words. And if you try to change his mind, you’ll be the one who suffers.”

A sick feeling settled in my chest. “You turned him into one of us, made him live a life he never asked for. And for what? To keep your enemies close?”

He didn’t respond, his silence confirming everything. My stepmother shifted uncomfortably in her chair.

“Where is he?” I asked.

“I won’t tell you that.”

“Dad, come on. You must’ve known this day would come.”

“Which is…what?” My father grabbed the shot I refused to touch, downing it. “What makes you think he’ll want to go back?”

“You killed his parents.”

His shameless gaze stabbed into me. “I did what was necessary for our family. You wouldn’t understand. You’ve lived a sheltered life.”

“I’ve lived a lie, surrounded by murderers who justify their sins as survival tactics!”

Dad laughed. “And what do you think your makarony is?”

“He’s not a selfish asshole!”

“Don’t talk to your father like that , ” Zofia shouted.

I glared at her. “It doesn’t surprise me that you’re defending how he kidnapped a child!”

“Luca is an adult,” my father seethed. “If he wanted to go home, he could have.”

“I’m finding Luca, with or without your help. And when I do, I’m telling him the truth.”

Dad’s face twisted. “You’re no longer part of this family, you worthless suka ! You’re on your own, so don’t you dare come back here begging for help when Costa tires of you and throws you to his men!”

I headed to the door.

My father followed, shouting. I blocked out most of what he said, but a few of his insults managed to penetrate the wall in my head.

Whore, whore, whore .

I left the house, slamming the door behind me.

When I told Santino about Luca, he’d be furious. He might not want me anymore. What if telling Santino the truth was the thing that finally drove him away?

I’d fallen for him in a way I never expected. He wasn’t just protection from my twisted family; he was the man whose arms I craved. He talked about how I hooked him, but he’d seduced me that first night. Every encounter with him built me up, even the ones on my knees. Because he’d been the one to push for a relationship. He’d told me that he wanted more. He’d shown me what it was like to be cared for.

But this secret had the power to destroy everything.

I drove back home, dazed. Then I parked the car and headed up the elevator, dreading the moment those doors opened.