Chapter 510 – The Gathering (2)

Gael felt like he was floating during the whole ceremony and service—as if he was just doing it on auto-pilot and observing. He was devastated about Uncle Pietro’s death but he also felt detached from the whole ordeal. His chest was numb and he couldn’t let it out.

His father and Giovanni were mourning for their brother’s death that Gael had to step up and do things that the two were supposed to do. He didn’t mind this at all and it kept him on his feet instead of letting grief consume him.

Angela had been so good to him the whole day. But she constantly looked up at him with a worried look as if she was waiting for him to break down and he hadn’t. He hadn’t even cried since that tragic night. It was like death had become an unwanted norm and he was just going through the motions. He had to smile at her from time to time just to make the crease she had between her brows disappear.

There were so many things to do in KMH. The jobs they had to carry because the soldiers who were supposed to do them died in that war and fire.

His father was injured and just lost his brother, so did Giovanni. So for the past few days, Gael had been relying on Sebastian, and had delegated tasks to their staff, and put more work on his men. He hadn’t actually had the chance to breathe, much less really feel the loss of Uncle Pietro. And whenever he’d finally had time to rest in the evening after a busy day, he just wanted to spend it with Angela and forget about everything else.

Now, Uncle Pietro was laid to rest.

The private party that mostly consisted of close family members and bosses and ranked men from other crime families that they worked with over the years were gathered in a speakeasy bar that was located behind a restaurant they owned. There, they celebrated the life that Uncle Pietro lived with everyone only speaking praises of him.

Now that his uncle was six feet under, Gael felt the ache in his chest. He was at the table with Angela, Gabby, Mariano, Rick, and Trigger when his chest tightened as if it was about to combust. Feeling suffocated, he got up from his seat and whispered to Angela, “I’ll just get some fresh air.”

Her eyes flickered to his, worry lacing in them. “Do you want me to go with you?”

He lifted a corner of his lips in a small smile and laid a kiss on her temple. “I’m good. Stay here.”

Why did it have to be here now when they were in a room full of criminals? His heart raced erratically in his chest and sweat trickled down his back and some gathering on his forehead as he walked out of the speakeasy bar and headed up to the rooftop. He didn’t worry about leaving Angela there for a few minutes. The mafia gave a lot of respect to the dead, they wouldn’t dare do anything and have everybody shun them if they didn’t behave. Moreover, Angela was surrounded by people who would protect her.

As soon as Gael stepped out on the roof, he inhaled the crisp, cold air and welcomed the little calmness it gave him. If he were still smoking now, he would have probably burned through a whole pack or two. He clenched his hands when it began to tremble and waves of soul-crushing pain rushed through him.

Uncle Pietro was one of the good ones. Gael wasn’t as close to him as he was to Giovanni because he was older and didn’t speak much, but he was definitely one of the men Gael looked up to. Uncle Pietro mostly worked in Italy and whenever Gael was there, he got to learn a lot about the business from him and the ways of keeping the people within their network.

Gael was like an intern to his uncle while Alessandro was busy taking up more responsibilities from their father. There was a time that Gael had been feared because of his uncle, knowing that working under Pietro meant that he had gained his respect. His uncle was the one who coined him the name “Phantom”.

However, things changed when Gael’s grandfather died, and then Pietro got cancer. The latter didn’t want anyone around him—he became a recluse and pushed people away. All his life, Pietro had been looked up to, but when they learned about his sickness, they looked at him differently and that pissed him off. So Gael decided to focus on other things while Alessandro gave him more responsibilities.

It was only since last year that Pietro was open to family once more. It was as if the old man knew his time was about to come and wanted to repair the gap he had with family members before he left the earth.

Right now, on this open roof where Gael was alone under the stars, he regretted that he didn’t try harder to be in his uncle’s life even if the older man pushed them away at a certain time.

Moist gathered in his eyes and he blinked it away fast, taking in deep breaths to calm himself.

His head snapped to the side when he heard a faint noise that sounded like sniffing or sobbing. The rooftop should be off-limits to outsiders. Gael followed the sound, and then he came to a stop at the corner by the vents when he saw Sebastian sitting on the floor with his head between his knees.

Gael thought his brother had left earlier. It looked like he was just hiding here all along. His chest throbbed seeing his brother like that. He shouldn’t have been surprised. After all, Sebastian was really close to Pietro. Back at the church, Sebastian looked like he was about to lose his shit and Gael had to calm him down. He saw the signs and he didn’t want his brother to fall off the wagon again.

So he reminded Sebastian, “You’ve come this far. Uncle might be gone but he’s still watching over you. Don’t disappoint him.” It was all Gael said, but it was clear that he meant: You better not fuck up again. Stay away from drugs.

Taking a deep breath, he walked over and sat next to his brother, leaning against a concrete wall with his knees up and his arms resting on them. Sebastian stiffened as if only now realizing that he was no longer alone. Gael was tempted to give him a scolding for not being aware of his surroundings, but he let it go for now.

“Fuck this.” Sebastian groaned, running his hands down his wet face.

Yeah. Fuck this, indeed. Gael’s head fell back against the wall as he closed his eyes and even though he tried to stop it, the moment he did, a drop of tear slid down his cheek. His jaw clenched. In the span of seven months, he’d lost a lot of people close to him.

A few of his soldiers, Jino, and then his uncle. It was like he couldn’t get a second to breathe.

The two of them stayed quiet for a while just being there for each other even without talking to each other.

A gust of wind swept through them and then Giovanni’s voice rang in the open space. “What the—I thought this place was empty.”

Gael and Sebastian looked up, watching as Giovanni walked from the other side of the rooftop, possibly from somewhere dark. And then Giovanni dropped to the other side of Sebastian, his eyes looking red like he too had been crying.

Giovanni and Gael exchanged knowing looks but didn’t say anything. They didn’t need to.

Sniffing, Giovanni muttered under his breath, “When I was seven, Pete took me to a party and showed me off to a lady he was hot for. The prick used me so the lady would see him as a father or husband material and get her to sleep with him. When I realized what he did, I threatened him that I would tell Dad.” He chuckled. “I got him to buy me my first Super Nintendo.”

“You are so old,” Sebastian snorted. “Like ancient.”

“I was a genius at seven, you rascal.” Giovanni grinned. “I ate that shit up. I let him take me out again so he can get all his girls and by the end of the year, I had so many expensive toys I could open up a museum.”

The smile slipped off Giovanni’s face and two big tears rolled down his cheeks. Then he blew out a harsh breath. “I’m going to miss that cocky bastard.”

Yeah. They all surely would.

The three of them fell quiet.

It was Giovanni who first spoke, clearing his throat. “What happens here stays here.”

Already feeling more like himself, Sebastian elbowed Giovanni and Gael. “I’ll tell everyone you two are a bunch of pussies hiding up here to cry because you don’t wanna get caught.”

Simultaneously Gael and Giovanni smacked Sebastian up in the head. The younger man rubbed on the spots.

“I’ll kick your ass,” said Giovanni at the same time that Gael muttered, “Do it and I’ll put you right next to Zio Pietro.”

Sebastian abruptly stood up, laughing as he headed back inside.