The Beginning (The Life 1)

We each did our round of cheek bussing before heading for the door. I don’t usually pay attention to the conversations between my sisters, but lucky for me, this morning, I did. They were both full of fire, but until I know more, that was not the best course of action. I plan to make Victoria pay sure, but not at the expense of Gianna’s safety.

I looked at the two of them in the rearview mirror before pulling out of the driveway. “Rosa, Anna, never hate the enemy; it clouds your judgment.” They stopped short in their gabfest and looked at me like I had two heads.

“It’s too late; we hate her. Do you know what everyone is saying?” Anna, the least levelheaded of the two, pouted.

“Yeah, Gabe, we’ve asked around, and it seems she’s been hating on her own sister forever. Some of her friends were once Gia’s friends, and she made them hate her too.”

“How do you know this?”

“Like I said, we asked. Not to worry though, we have a plan.” I just raised my brow at that one.

“Tell me about it.” I drove slow, showing none of the rush that I felt. I hadn’t had a chance to listen in this morning, so I have no idea what kind of morning she had.

The twins gave me a rundown of what they had planned to make Victoria’s life hell until we pulled into the Fontane driveway. I stopped them before they could get out of the truck. “What did Sun Tzu say about warfare?”

“A lot.” Anna grinned.

“Yes, but which of his tenets can be used in this situation?” They looked at each other with a frown.

“Um, Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.”

“Oh-oh, I know. Know thyself know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.”

“Those are both good, but we’re not there yet. The one you’re looking for is the first and most important. All warfare is based on deception. You have to deceive the enemy.”

“We know that.”

“Who’s your enemy?”

“Isn’t it Victoria?”

“Who runs our home?”

“That’s easy. Pop does.”

“Who runs Pop?”

“Ma!” They both said together.

'Exactly!"

“So, you’re saying…”

“Victoria couldn’t be that openly hostile to Gianna if there were repercussions, don’t you think?” They still looked confused. “Would Ma or Pop allow me to treat either of you that way?”

“Of course not.”

“So, why haven’t you thought about it? You haven’t seen beyond your dislike of Victoria. Is that how I taught you two?” They looked at each other and back at me, then nodded with understanding.

“So, what should we do?”

“Go get her.”

GIANNA

I barely slept half a wink all night. For some inexplicable reason, I kept expecting Gabriel to call. I slept with the phone under my pillow, afraid it would be found, though I’ve done a good job of hiding the one grandma had snuck to me months ago. I’m sure that the bare-bones phone she’d got me that only made outgoing calls wasn’t worth anywhere near what his is.

Grandma had chosen that particular phone because of my fear of it ringing at an inopportune moment and giving away the fact that I was now in contact with my mother’s side of the family. I guess Becky and Victoria’s gaslighting had worked over the years in making me believe the worst of myself. I was never clumsy or forgetful until they convinced dad that I was all those things and worst.

Grandma and the aunts had waited until I got older to get in touch through one of mom’s old friends in the neighborhood, another group of people that I’d been ostracized from, thanks to Becky. Mrs. Martino had spent a whole afternoon telling me about my mom and sharing memories of my childhood.

That was months ago, and it was the first time that I’d started doubting the things I’d come to believe about myself. Once the fog started lifting, I no longer felt as hopeless as before. I shifted to just biding my time, thinking of ways to get out as soon as possible.

And now there’s Gabriel! If I believed in fate, I’d accept that his coming into my life a few short days ago was destined. I feel hope and apprehension every time I think of what happened the day before. On the one hand, I’m embarrassed that the Russo kids know enough about my home life to go to such lengths, and on the other, I think they may be a way out.

I eased my door open and peeped down the hallway, making sure it was clear. After the hair pulling last night, I’m not sure what kind of mood Victoria was going to be in this morning, and since dad is usually gone by now, there’s nothing stopping her from losing her shit on me again.