CHAPTER 19
By the time they got back to the house, everyone had retired. The house was deathly quiet but was still lit up. Celeste walked up the spiral stairs leading up to her room on the second floor.
She felt like she could fly, as she swept into her room with barely contained excitement. Marcello had stayed behind in the living room to talk to a scary-looking man who had been waiting for him there.
As soon as she locked the door behind her, she snatched her phone and dialed Isabella's number. It was late and Isabella was probably asleep, but Celeste knew she would kill her if she didn't wake her up and tell her everything.
It kept ringing but no one picked. Celeste frowned as she dried her hair, still fresh out of the shower.
'I hope she isn't with that bastard Felix' Celeste thought furiously.
She dialed again and this time around a disgruntled Isabella picked, she was grumbling about the time and Celeste laughed.
"What's funny Celeste? You must be a witch to be calling me by this time" she groaned,
"Oh stop being dramatic Bella you have called me at worst times," Celeste said rolling her eyes as she applied an eye cream.
"Whatever, you better have a good reason to be calling" she growled, causing Celeste to chuckle. She could almost hear Isabella's scream after she dropped her bombshell.
"Well I just wanted to ask you to be my maid of honor at my wedding Tomorrow," Celeste said, twirling excitedly with her phone clutched to her ear while waiting for the scream.
There was a brief silence on the other end before Isabella spoke again,
"I need my sleep, Celeste, had a bad day and am not in the mood for bad jokes" she yelled, Celeste could hear the frustration in her voice.
"Oh sorry, I had no idea. What happened?" Celeste asked worried,
" Nothing special, just my ex-boyfriend barging in on my date and picking a fight with my date" she sighed.
Celeste exploded. " He did what?! She thundered,
" It doesn't matter now Celeste, I don't want to think about it",
Celeste was furious, after almost ruining Isabella's life and sending her into a dangerous phase of depression, he had the guts to try meddling with her personal life now.
"When I get back to New York I'll teach that dick a lesson" she growled, her steps increasing in tempo as she paced the length of her room, wedding invitation forgotten.
"It's fine Celeste, I can handle it just tell me why you're calling me by 2 am on a bloody Wednesday morning" Isabella hissed,
Celeste smiled as she recollected her initial reason for calling Isabella.
"I'm getting married to Marcello Martino on Thursday Isabella" she screamed.
"I don't understand Celeste, is this a new level of delusion?" She asked. Celeste decided to tell everything in detail, and not long after she finished, the scream she predicted came.
"My goodness, Celeste!... Go, girl!... But are you really sure of the wedding?" Isabella squealed.
"Well, tomorrow will tell if he is serious or not...I mean he was the one who proposed" Celeste said, smiling lovingly as she remembered the moments at the beach.
"I am so happy for you Celeste, I mean talk about finally!" Isabella said,
"I know right?... I mean I was ready to book the next flight to New York if he rejected me" she whispered, shuddering at the thought of everything that could've gone wrong after her confession.
Isabella hummed, "But Celeste...I am happy for you, but are you sure of his feelings...I mean marriage is a big deal"
"I know Bella, I was so caught up in the moment that I was scared to ask," Celeste said in a small voice as she pictured his face when he was staring at her like she was something he had never seen before.
Marcello had never looked at her like that until that moment after she confessed her feelings.
"Be careful Celeste I don't want to experience what my mom did" Isabella sighed,
Celeste shook her head and then caught herself as she realized Isabella couldn't see her. Isabella's father had cheated on her mother and even brought the woman to live with them and they had no idea.
When her mother found out, she wanted to divorce him, but he started gaslighting and abusing her until Isabella had enough and saved up money to rent an apartment for her mother.
Then their third year in college, they divorced and since then Isabella wouldn't touch anything marriage with a pole.
She preferred flirting and having fun in the name of open relationships, but she eventually fell for Felix and even considered marrying him until he cheated.
It shattered Isabella and she was depressed for a long time. It had taken a huge chunk of Celeste's savings and a trip to Hawaii to get her out of her shell.
"I think I can trust him, Bella, though I'm scared...it sounds too good to be true" Celeste sighed, feeling disheartened as she thought about what Isabella said.
"Don't worry Celeste I'll be there okay, whatever happens, we'll survive" Isabella assured her.
Celeste felt the tension easing off her shoulders. " You're right Bella, I can't get discouraged" she said firmly,
"Exactly, just enjoy your day. Even though I'm not totally excited about the hasty marriage considering the reasons for it, I think he has a point and most important is that he reciprocates your feelings" Isabella said.
"Well, will you be my maid of honor then?" Celeste teased,
"Like you need to ask, that's my rightful position" Isabella boasted in a mock deep voice that had Celeste laughing,
"Okay off to bed you go, see you soon" Celeste sighed,
"Sweet dreams Mrs Martino" Isabella teased and the call ended.
*
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Lorenzo sat across from Bruno his consigliere, He had just finished giving the other man orders on various people who he was to arrange an immediate flight, so they could attend the wedding.
Topping the list was Celeste's mom, her Uncle, her maid of honor and roommate, and some other relatives who she had said she wanted by her side.
He didn't want to involve the press, so it wouldn't be the usual grand wedding suitable for a Mafia boss.
He would have sent Luca, but he needed Luca here to make sure no one accidentally exposed his secret. Luca was known to be ruthless when it came to physical combat, so no one would try to act recklessly around him.
Raffaele had received his orders to keep Marcello company throughout the day and give him a false lead on the poison track so he couldn't come back to the house and disrupt Lorenzo's plans until he signed the marriage certificate with Celeste.
Now Lorenzo had finished setting his plan in motion, he decided to attend to business.
" Luca delivered his news yesterday about dealing with the BLACK RAIDERS, but he couldn't find any information surrounding their true intentions," Lorenzo said,
Bruno nodded, downing his scotch. After they had sent the Butler to the torture house, his Boss had taken the flight straight to Cefalu for his cousin's wedding, while he stopped at Palermo to meet an important guest.
"Well according to Luca, the leader of the BLACK RAIDERS blew himself up to avoid getting caught so it seems whoever they are working for has to be someone powerful enough to instill fear in them to the extent of taking their lives" Bruno mused aloud,
Lorenzo smirked, powerful indeed. He knew something fishy was going on, but he couldn't place his hand on it.
"Someone is giving those rats intel from within or Luca would've caught them all alive" he swore violently.
Luca was known for his stealth and swift way of dealing with rivals or enemies of the CASANOVA MAFIA. However, for these men to nearly escape Luca then there was a spy within.
"Boss, what do you suggest we do? We can't have a traitor among us, it's bad for business" Bruno grumbled, his thick brows furrowing.
"My wedding is tomorrow and I do not want anything going wrong on that day, my wife has to have the best day of her life then, but I want every underboss gathered at my villa two days after for an important meeting" Lorenzo ordered.
Bruno nodded, standing up since it was obvious he had been dismissed.
"Boss, should I continue the investigation on Galiloe's death?" Bruno asked tentatively, knowing it was a stupid question.
And just as he expected, Lorenzo sent him an icy glare that had him scrambling out of the house before he found a bullet embedded in his skull.
After he left, Lorenzo strolled outside with his usual glass of whiskey in his hand. His mind turned every event in his head, someone was giving out information from the mafia, but he just couldn't decide who.
Why would they snuggle arms into Sicily unless there was going to be a clash, but The Salvatore MAFIA made peace with the CASANOVA a long time ago even before his father was born.
Unless there was a new boss who wanted to stir up trouble. A foolish one who must be drunk with power.
An evil smile crept up Lorenzo's face as his blood hummed with excitement. It was about time this peaceful charade ended, no two bosses could rule Italy's dark side. But he would let them make the first move before he buried them alive.