I wasn’t exactly asking them to have their husbands kill someone, but I figured with Natalia’s story added to the mix, they’d at least want to investigate this Ricci guy seeing as how they were into rescuing women and young girls from such situations. The truth is, I had no idea what the guys’ plans were now that things with Gabriel had been settled somewhat; no one had told me what the next steps were.
They didn’t say much more than that they’d get back to me after discussing it with the guys, but then they asked a lot of questions which I didn’t have the answers to, like where in Sicily Ricci was, etc. At this point, Sofia, who had been sitting next to me listening in, spoke up and told them the name of the village she came from.
After that, they asked her a lot of questions, then gave us an email address to contact them, and promised to call later if they found out anything. After hanging up, I looked at Sofia, who was looking as bemused as I was. “I hope we did the right thing.” I was a bit nervous now that we’d gotten others involved, especially since this involved Gabriel’s personal business.
“What exactly are you expecting them to do?”
“Well, since their husbands went to all this trouble to get Gabriel back here, I figured they might have a way to keep him from going back.” From her reaction, it was obvious that she hadn’t thought of that either. I’m guessing that everyone expects Gabriel to just give up on his idea of revenge now that he has the kids and me back here with him, but I’m not too sure about that.
Sure, he’s excited to be a dad, but I don’t see the guy who’d gone after Becky and Victoria the way he had just giving up just like that. Sofia seemed to be thinking along the same lines even though I hadn’t said it out loud, as was evident by her next words.
“Maybe you’re right in what you said earlier. Maybe Gabe isn’t going to stop. He’s very good at hiding his thoughts, so I’m afraid we wouldn’t even know when he decides to strike again.” She looked tired and beat, and some of the anger I’d been harboring against her since learning what she’d done dissipated.
I still don’t understand why she’d done it, but I find it hard to blame the victim. She’d gone about it the wrong way, sure, but she was coming from a place of fear. I try to imagine what I would’ve done had I been in her position; what would I have felt? I know how it feels to want revenge against the ones who harmed you, so I won’t fault her for that.
But in thinking that way, I realized that Gabriel is always the one fighting other people’s demons. He’d helped me with my own drama though it was nowhere near the hell his mother had endured. “Isn’t it sad that Gabriel’s always the one fighting everyone else’s battles for them? But who fights his?”
“Gabriel’s battles? What….? Oh, I see. You still blame me, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do. But I have a better understanding now that you’ve told me the truth. I still think that Gabriel will carry that burden for the rest of his life; you should never have told him that. I understand that you didn’t expect things to go this far, but the reality is that your son hates his existence so much that he was willing to sacrifice himself.”
“But why would Gabriel hate himself? He did nothing wrong.”
“He exists because of what happened to you. You asked him to live with that when you told him the truth. Gabriel is extremely intelligent, but he’s also very sensitive. You’re the mother he loves more than reason; of course, he’d want to eliminate anything that causes you pain.” She had a lost look on her face.
She’s a very sheltered and protected woman. I knew that from my time with them more than two years ago, but I never knew to what extent she’d been shielded. From what I can see, she’s never had to deal with her own trauma, not really. First Draco, then Gabriel tried to protect her from her past, but I don’t think they’d done her any favors.
Then a sudden thought struck me, something I myself had faced after Gabriel had vanquished Becky and Victoria. It was of the many nights I’d spent thinking of all the things I should’ve said and done, all the things I regret not doing for myself. There was no way to go back and fix it, of course, but I do wish I’d have had the guts to get some of my own back. Now I wonder if I were in her shoes if I’d want to take care of this bastard myself. I know for sure I’d have liked to belt Becky at least once.