The Mafia's Good Girl
The Mafia’s Good Girl – Chapter 80

~ Violet ~

– – – – – Two Weeks Later – – – – –

More weeks had passed and the wedding day was getting closer and closer. Today, Violet was running around the estate in her wedding shoes to break them in. Gifts were starting to pour in and the maids carried them into the library, filling almost the entire place up. Not only that she had to start writing thank you notes, pack for the honeymoon, and get a final count on the guest list — but she also had to get a final haircut and delegate wedding day duties by this week.

So much to do, so little time!

The wedding was coming in two weeks and Violet felt overwhelmed. It was supposed to be a small and intimate wedding, but somewhere down the line, the guest list of fifty had turned into two hundred. The five-course meal turned into seven and the wedding band of three people turned into a small orchestra.

Violet didn’t think of getting a wedding organizer to help out because she thought she could handle it. But now that everything was blowing out of proportions, not even Talia and Elena’s help was enough. It was too late to get a wedding organizer now, and since Damon was still preoccupied at work, Violet had to handle everything on her own.

In the midst of this busyness and desperation, Violet resolved to ask her other bridesmaid for help. Yes, she invited Celina DeSantis to help out with the wedding preparation.

“Violet, honey, where do you want these?” Celina asked, holding up the undergarments that were sent by the tailor.

“You can put them in my room, thanks,” Violet replied.

Violet and Talia watched as Celina carried the package to her room. They were doing the thank you notes in the dining room while all the maids handled the gifts, so Celina was tasked with the side jobs. Violet was starting to warm up to Celina after realizing what would happen to her after the wedding. She was trying to be kind, that was the least she could do. And having an extra hand wouldn’t hurt as Celina was her bridesmaid after all.

“I still can’t believe you invited her to help us,” Talia muttered once Celina was out of the room. “She’s gonna burn this whole place down,”

“Don’t be mean, she’s not that bad,” Violet hissed. “Plus, we can use all the help we can get,”

Talia opened her mouth like she was about to protest some more, but before she could do anything, Elena appeared before them.

“Miss Violet, someone’s here to see you,” she said.

“Who is it, Elena? If it’s my hair guy, tell him to wait—“

“It’s your brother,”

Violet dropped her pen and froze instantly. She looked up to see Elena’s serious face and she knew this wasn’t a joke. Dylan was really here!

Not wasting another second, Violet got up and raced to the door. She saw a man’s silhouette standing at the doorway, and as she got closer, she could see his facial features. That dark hair and blue eyes, it was Dylan.

“Dylan?!” Violet exclaimed and hugged her brother tightly. “Oh my God, it’s really you!”

She hadn’t seen Dylan in weeks and the last time they talked, things didn’t end so well. She tried reaching out and sending several invitations, but Dylan never responded. She thought she was losing him forever, so when he suddenly showed up at the estate, she was beyond overjoyed.

“Hey, Vi…” Dylan said as he hugged her back. Violet was holding onto him with all her might, but Dylan’s hug was weak and feeble.

“Oh, man, I’ve missed you so much! And mom too, how is she doing?” she beamed.

“She’s… alright,”

Violet looked up at her brother and saw the look in his eyes. He was lying.

“Dyl…” she pressed.

“No, actually she’s not alright. She’s been getting sicker, and this little news of yours… isn’t helping either,” Dylan said as he pulled out the invitations Violet sent them from behind his back.

Violet was taken aback by what he said. She pulled away from the hug, taking a step back and studying the invitations in his hand.

“So, you got my letters,” she trailed. “I didn’t hear anything from you and mom. I thought they were lost in the mail or something—”

“Mom cried every night because of these letters,” he interjected, cutting her off sharply. Then he let the papers go and they fall on the ground. “You broke her heart, Vi,”

Violet fell silent. She watched as the letters fell to the ground. Her thoughtful and loving handwritten notes were one with the dirt and dust now. Violet should be mad about this, but she wasn’t. She was more hurt than mad, and she felt very guilty. The thought of her actions hurting her mother hurt her.

I… I’m sorry, mom.

Wiping a tear that fell off her cheek, Violet looked up at Dylan and shot point-blankly, “Dylan, why are you here?”

Because clearly, you’re not here with good news.

“I’m here to take you home,” Dylan stated matter-of-factly.

“What?” she gaped.

“Come home, come with me. We’ll leave this stupid town behind!”

“What are you talking about?”

Dylan let out a sigh. Then he raked his hair with his hand and spoke calmly, “I’m moving mom to Texas. They have a better facility for her there. We’re leaving in two weeks,”

“…What…?”

Violet couldn’t believe what she was hearing, but the look in Dylan’s eyes said that he was dead serious.

“Come on, Vi. We can start a new life out there,” he coaxed her, reaching for her arm. “You can go back to school. I will too. We’ll both work and take care of mom together—”

“But I’m getting married in two weeks!” Violet cut him off.

“You don’t have to!” he argued, shaking his head from side to side. “You deserve so much more than this,”

What does that even mean?

Violet flinched back and Dylan’s hand fell off her arm. Violet studied the look on her brother’s face as he stared at the estate with disdain.

“I thought you understand, Dyl…” she croaked. “I love him…”

“And we love you,” Dylan interjected. “Look, I don’t care about Damon or what he does. I don’t care anymore for DeSantis and revenge. Mom isn’t doing well and I’m worried about her. I’m doing this for mom. So if you care about your family, you’ll come with us,”

“Dylan…”

“You’re not gonna turn your back on family, are you?”

Dylan’s words struck a chord in her. Violet’s heart was breaking and she couldn’t hold back the tears any longer.

“Dylan, please, don’t do this!” she begged. “Don’t make me choose—”

“Why?” he cut her off. “Because you’ll choose him?

Dylan and Violet held a staring contest. Dylan’s eyes were full of conviction. He believed he was doing the right thing. Meanwhile, Violet’s gaze was fractured and dim. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do.

“Dyl, I…”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

~ Damon ~

“Yeah, it’s such s**t luck,” Damon said into the phone. Sitting inside the office of one of his clubs in the city, he was talking to Hugo DeSantis about the recent cruise ship accident that claimed the lives of so many of Hugo’s followers.

“No, I don’t know anything about it. All I heard was that they’re going on that cruise to play poker. But sure, I’ll look into it, I’ll let you know if I have anything—”

* KNOCK * KNOCK *

Suddenly, a knock was heard at the door, pulling Damon’s focus away. He looked up from the desk to see Liam creaking the door open.

“Boss,” he said.

“I’m on a call,” Damon shooed him away.

“Sorry to bother you, but someone’s trying to break into the building,” Liam said persistently. “You might wanna see this,”

Damon eyed Liam suspiciously and Liam pushed the door further back, revealing Dylan Carvey escorted by several of his guys. He had bruises on his face and arm, a clear sign that they had been in a fight.

“Send him in,” Damon nodded before turning to the phone again. “Hugo, I have something I gotta deal with. I’ll call you back in a second,”

The guys brought Dylan into the office and sat him down before Damon’s desk. Dylan’s eyes were filled with anger and disdain as Liam’s hand was firm on his shoulder, not giving him a chance to escape.

“No, you got nothing to worry about. We’re family and family is always number one priority,” Damon said into the phone. “Alright, ciao,”

Dylan let out a mocking scoff as Damon turned off the call. Damon wasn’t too happy with that, but he was trying his best to be cordial. This was Violet’s older brother after all.

“Dylan Carvey,” Damon greeted him. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“You know exactly why I’m here,” he spat, not returning any of the politeness Damon showed him.

“It’s about Violet,” Damon deduced.

“What did you do to her? Did you drug her? Bribe her?”

“Bribe?” he almost laughed.

“How much is it?” Dylan sneered. “And how long is the contract this time?”

Damon narrowed his eyes at Dylan. Those degrading remarks made his b***d boil and his fists clench.

“Wow, you think so lowly of me,” he said through gritted teeth, holding back the anger.

“What are you planning to do with her after this little contract is over? Toss her aside like some yesterday’s news?” Dylan spat again.

Damon was losing his temper. Liam could see it and he tightened his grip on Dylan’s shoulder to the point of hurting him. Dylan cringed in response and Damon gave Liam a look, telling him to calm down. Liam loosened his grip on Dylan’s shoulder and Damon took a deep breath. This was Violet’s brother, he couldn’t do anything to him or Violet would hate him. And since violence wasn’t an option, Damon opted for something else.

“You know something? You’re her brother. You let her come to me the first time and that’s on you. You’re the one who failed her, not me,”

Damon’s words cut through Dylan like a knife. A punch to the gut would hurt much less.

“And do you really think that I’m gonna hurt her?” Damon continued. “Because if I want her dead, she’d be dead already,”

“Don’t you dare touch her, you motherfúcker!” Dylan shouted and lunged forward, but he couldn’t get too far as Liam brought him back down in an instant.

“Guess what?” Damon laughed menacingly. “I already did,”

That did it for Dylan. He couldn’t contain it any longer and he jumped at Damon with all his might. His fist went up in a flash and he punched Damon right in the face.

* SMACK! *

“You fúcker!” Liam was quick to respond and he hit Dylan back in his face.

* SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! *

“Stop!” Damon ordered before Liam took any more punches. B***d was dripping on the side of Dylan’s mouth and Liam’s hand was tight on his collar.

“Boss, what do you want us to do with him?” Liam asked. The other men were waiting eagerly behind.

“Get him out of here,” Damon said as he wiped the b***d on his l*p.

“But, boss, he’s disrespected y—“

“Now, Liam!” Damon roared.

“You got it,” Liam said as he brought Dylan up and out of the room.

Normally, when a guy did something like this to Damon, he wouldn’t come out of the room alive. But this was different, this was a family matter.

And we can’t turn our back on family.