Mafia Love (Faithfully Yours)

Chapter 3-2

Finn didn’t like the idea of being showed up by a girl, his father was always teaching him that he had to deal with his enemies and competition ruthlessly and this girl was just that. If he didn’t deal with her then his friends would think that he was weak. He moved forward and shoved Reese quite hard. She fell on to the grass and her eyes teared up.

“For someone with a big mouth you are being a big baby… are you gonna cry for your mommy?” He joked and the kids around him laughed.

Reese was going to cry until he said that, she slowly got up from the grass, she had had quite enough of everything and just wanted to go back home to her mom but that wasn’t going to happen. Derek had told her she had to be tougher because the world was tough, she balled up her fists and looked up at Finn. “You are a bully and a sore loser.” She yelled at him.

“And what are you going to do about it?” Finn laughed. All the other kids seemed to laugh with him like he was their leader and they had to do everything he did. This reminded Reese of what Kayden had said to her earlier on and she couldn’t really report him because snitches got stitches.

Reese lunged forward at Finn and started to attack him with her balled fists, he didn’t expect it coming so he crossed his arms and staggered backwards.

“I’m not going to cry for my mommy.” Reese screamed at him. Finally Kayden came forward and grabbed Reese from the back, pulling her away from Finn.

“Are you stupid?!” He yelled at her.

“Let go off me!” Reese writhed from his strong grasp. She suddenly started to feel scared and panicked. The events from the other night started to play in her head. She screeched for Kayden to let go of her but he kept on holding on to her tightly.

A grown up appeared from the crowd of kids that was now looking shocked and confused at what was happening.

“Finn Salvatore! You should be ashamed of yourself!” Finn’s grandmother looked at him. “She’s just a little girl.”

“Kayden bring her into the house she is having a panic attack.” The old woman ordered. “The rest of you carry on as you were.”

Finn followed from behind, he was more curious about this girl who had had the gall to fight back. Usually his friends were too scared to even answer back at him.

“Put her on the couch.” Finn’s grandmother instructed. Kayden was a little freaked out now, his father had told him to watch her, he would not be happy with him. Reese was hyperventilating.

“What’s her name?” Caterina looked at her grandson who shrugged his shoulders.

“It’s Reese, her name is Reese.” Kayden answered quickly.

Caterina gestured for Kayden to let go of the writhing child who was in tears and struggling to take in a breath of air. She sat next to her and calmly spoke to her slowly soothing her back. “Reese sweetheart you are safe, no one is going to hurt you here. Can you count for me?” She said.

She continued to speak to her and instruct her until Reese calmed down. “There there little one, feeling better now?”

Reese nodded and looked at her surroundings with a frown. “You had a panic attack sweetheart.” Caterina told her looking at the child’s striking beautiful green eyes. She gestured for one of the helpers to come forward. “Bring a glass of cold sweet lemonade for her, it will help her feel better.” She took out her handkerchief and offered it to Reese to wipe her face.

Reese turned looked at Finn who was also looking at her. “You owe me an apology.” She said quietly, her green eyes starring tenaciously into his.

Finn was stunned at the words which made Caterina smile. She was impressed with the girl’s bravery.

“I don’t owe you anything.” He growled at her.

“Actually Finn you do.” Caterina instructed. “You are a man, men don’t fight and hit women and you shoved her didn’t you?” She gave her grandson a serious look.

“She was being insolent” Finn complained.

“Do you even know what that word means? What would your mother say to that! I won’t ask you again to apologise Finn.”

“I am sorry, men don’t hit women.” He said to Reese lowering his head. He looked sad for a moment.

“Girls can be better video game players you know.” Reese wasn’t going to let this go. “I beat your high score fair and square.”

Caterina couldn’t help but laugh. “So this is what the little tiff is about? Really Finn?” She looked at her grandson who’s face coloured as he looked at his feet. He looked back up at Reese and regarded her then at his grandmother

“Can Kayden and I go back outside now?” He asked.

“Yes you can but I’m going to have your father talk to you about what happened outside.” Caterina said. She needed her grandson to understand that he had done something wrong and needed to be corrected. Ever since his mother had passed away a little over six months ago, Finn was acting out and his attitude was not getting better. His father had to do something about it.

She gestured that they could leave and she turned to Reese to give her her full attention. “Don’t you want to go back out there?” She asked her.

Reese shook her head. “Is it okay if I sit here and just read my book.” She asked politely.

“Of course, what book are you reading?” Caterina smiled at her.

“The wizard of Oz, it’s my favourite.” She answered as the helper came back in with a tray in her hands.

“You know that was really brave of you, fighting someone bigger than you and standing up for what you believe in. Girls can be just as good as boys at a lot of things.” Caterina said and smiled at her. She couldn’t help but be drawn to the little girl.

“My mommy tells me that too all the time.” Reese regarded what she had just said then she sighed and her brow furrowed at the thought of her mom.

Caterina watched the girl who seemed like she was lost in thought for a moment. She wondered where her thoughts had just taken her.

Outside the house Finn was still annoyed. “How do you know that girl?” He asked his best friend.

“She is my half sister.” Kayden looked embarrassed about the situation. “I didn’t have a choice but to bring her with, my dad called your grandmother and asked if it would be fine.” He sighed.

Finn didn’t answer him, he was more worried about what his father would have to say about his outburst.

Later on that evening as Reese prepared for bed Amanda walked into her bedroom after she had a re account of what had happened at the party from Kayden. She was irritated that her son had had to go through that much less watch the little twerp. She hated Reese with every thing in her, she would always be the bane of her and her son’s existence.

“You just couldn’t help yourself could you! I knew that pretentious little helpless mouse act of yours was just that! A facade!” She hissed at Reese who was startled by her stepmother. She had just finished braiding her hair like her mom taught her and was getting up from the chair in front of the dresser.

Reese kept quiet, she didn’t want any trouble at all.

“Oh I hear you were all talk at the party, all of a sudden cat’s got your tongue? You will speak when you are spoken to you hear me!” Amanda looked at Reese with so much contempt.

“I didn’t do anything wrong.” Reese said quietly.

“Your entire existence is what’s wrong in this house!” She snapped. “You need to be punished for embarrassing us at the party.”

“If you hit me daddy will be mad, I’ll tell him.” The thought of being hit terrified her so she decided to use the one thing she knew her stepmother was scared of. She had noticed how Derek’s words always made her go quiet. She prayed it would work this time as well.

“Oh so it’s daddy now?” She retorted.

Amanda was seething mad but she knew Derek would definitely come down on her quite hard if he found out. “You can’t use that excuse forever, he won’t always be there to protect you.” She sneered at Reese before walking out of her room. What Amanda didn’t know was that Derek had come home quite earlier than she had anticipated and had been standing just outside the passage listening just before she stomped out of the room. He was proud that Reese had stood up for herself but he was even more worried that she would have a hard time in the house now that she had challenged Amanda. She had been right, he wouldn’t always be there in the house to protect her.

The fact that Caterina Salvatore was also taking an interest in his daughter worried him. She had asked questions about Reese and requested to see more of her at the estate in the future and Derek definitely didn’t want that.

He had backed away from the passage just before Amanda stomped out of the room, he walked back to the passage and knocked on Reese’s door before he opened the it.

She was sitting on the bed looking a little frustrated. This is not what he wanted for her at all, to spend her life in constant frustration as she lived here. He went to sit next to her but she seemed to shrink a little further away from him.

“Reese? I am sorry that I scare you. I’m your father, I’d never hurt you.” He said to her, she seemed to relax as she looked at him. It was almost like with no words spoken at all there was some sort of trust that was established between the two of them.

“Like me, you are a person of very few words aren’t you?” He smiled at her. “Finn’s grandmother told me what happened today, good on you for standing up for yourself and good for standing up to Amanda.” He sighed.

Reese still didn’t know what to say to this man who supposedly was her father, she had so many questions in her head though but she didn’t think she was permitted to ask them.

“Reese I’m going to do something but I don’t want you to think that it’s because you did anything wrong. It’s not safe for you to be here in this house, especially if I’m not here so I’m going to send you away to boarding school okay?” He said almost as if he was asking for her permission.

She nodded slowly still looking at him.

“But I want you to know something, I’m sorry that I wasn’t there for you and mommy.” There was a lump in his throat as he said this. “I won’t ever let anybody hurt you again okay?”

Reese’s eyes teared up as she nodded her head. He held up his arms and she willingly went to him. He hugged his daughter for the first time in a long time. They stayed like that for quite some time before he tucked her into bed and kissed her goodnight. “I love you.” He whispered quietly to her.

“Daddy.” She said, the word sounded a little foreign to her but she liked how she felt when she said it.

“Yes?” He turned to look at her.

“I’ll do well at school I promise.” She smiled at him which made him smile.

(Salvatore Manor)

“I don’t see what the big deal is anyway, she’s just a nobody and she is annoying.” Finn was standing in front of his grandmother and father.

“Your best friend’s sister is a nobody?” Caterina was shocked at the words that were coming out of her grandson’s mouth and even more upset that her son seemed like he didn’t want to be bothered about the situation.

“Kayden doesn’t like her.” Finn insisted that he didn’t see a problem with this afternoon’s incident as he shrugged his shoulders.

Silas Salvatore got up and walked towards his son. “Is that how you speak to my mother when I am not around.” Finn froze, his father could be very scary.

“Uhmm, I’m sorry grandma.” He turned to his grandmother.

“Being Ruthless doesn’t mean that you go bullying smaller and helpless people just because you can. That tells me that you have some sort of inferiority complex and you don’t have control over your own emotions.” Silas’ voice was stern and resonant as he spoke.

“Yes father.” Finn said quietly looking at his father.

“She’s right, you are a sore loser because she beat you fair and square, to add on to your lesson I think you should spend time in the cold basement and learn how to control your anger…your emotions because your enemies will use that against you. You don’t come out until I say you can come out.” He said coldly.

“Yes Father.” Finn looked down at his feet, he didn’t like the basement.

“Alfred, take him to the basement.” Silas ordered his butler who came out of nowhere and led Finn out of the study.

Caterina waited for them to leave then turned to her son.

“How long do you plan to raise that boy like he is some sort of robot that you just input instructions into? He is a boy who is still grieving the loss of his mother, you have not given him the chance to do that!”

“Mother he is not a boy he is almost a man! A man who is going to have to take over when I’m gone and it doesn’t do me good to baby him like you think I should!”

“I don’t know where I went wrong with you because I raised you with all the love that a mother could give!” She sighed.

“I had to grow up and run an empire, being soft and empathetic doesn’t get anyone anywhere. You wanted me to correct his behaviour and I did just that, he was wrong and now he knows.”

“What you mean is being soft and empathetic earned you love and now that she’s gone you think it was a waste! You need to grieve Mia’s death too son.” Caterina tried to get through to her son.

“Enough mother! She’s gone, what good does it do.” It was more of a statement than a question.

Silas walked towards the door of his study and held it opens to show his mother that he wanted to be left alone. She walked out quietly because she knew she would get nowhere with him.

It was two o’clock in the morning when Alfred was finally given the instruction to fetch Finn out of the basement. He led him to his room and instructed him to take a hot shower while he prepared his warm blankets.

As Finn showered he thought about the girl’s words, he had been a sore loser and he had let what his friends would think influence how he had acted. He couldn’t get angry at his father for punishing him. He had to learn to control his emotions or else he would never become a great leader like his father.

He had to become a better leader, he had to prove to his father that he could run the Salvatore empire one day and he would do just that.