Filthy Marcellos: Legacy: A Legacy Prequel

by Bethany-Kris

“You ready?” Andino asked.

  Snaps snorted, his nose pressing to the ground. Andino flipped the stick he’d been walking with. It was maybe six inches thick and a foot long. A broken tree branch that had fallen on the path and he picked it up as they walked.

  “High,” Andino ordered.

  Snaps’ head flew up, his gaze trained straight ahead. Good dog, Andino praised silently. All that time and training paid off. Snaps loved to learn.

  “Get it,” Andino said fast.

  The stick flew from his hand in a flash of movement. Snaps probably hadn’t even seen his master throw the stick, but the dog was already going after it. To most people, Snaps looked lazy as fuck. Andino didn’t mind letting people believe that, either.

  Snaps was twenty feet in front of the stick before it even began to drop from the air to fall to the ground. In a blink, the dog turned and charged forward. Snaps’ two paws pressed hard into the paved walk and then the dog lunged into the air.

  Six feet high, the dog caught the stick. Snaps’ jaw clamped around the wood with an audible crunch. The stick splintered into nothing but scraps. Snaps landed to the ground near silently, shaking his head at the same time. What was left of the stick fell from the dog’s mouth to the ground before Snaps was back at Andino’s side.

  Chuffing, Snaps waited for his praise. He always waited. He never pressed for it.

  “Good dog,” Andino said.

  Snaps pushed his large head into Andino’s palm. Andino stroked the dog back.

  When Andino’s life felt like it was going too fast, Snaps always managed to slow it down. Today was no exception. But even worse was when Andino’s life suddenly felt like it wasn’t his own to control, as if he was now someone else’s toy to command, Snaps was still the same.

  His dog.

  His companion.

  After the news Andino learned the day before, he was still trying to adjust to what it all meant. A boss, that’s what he was intended to be. He’d decided it didn’t necessarily feel wrong, but the things he enjoyed most about his life, like being solitary, would have to change.

  He wasn’t ready for that at all.

  “Whoa, that was crazy,” came a soft, sensual voice to Andino’s left.

  He spun fast on his heel, alarmed that Snaps hadn’t alerted him to the fact someone was around. Andino was sure he’d been alone.

  Apparently not.

  The woman, in her baggy tank and jogging shorts, stood at the mouth of a connecting trail. Her blonde hair, streaked with waves of teal and purple, was pulled into a loose ponytail. She had the lean, toned body of a runner and Andino found himself staring at all the curves of her body, from her hips to her waist, and up to her breasts. She was fit, tall, and by the expression she wore as he kept staring at her, fiery and feisty, too.

  Andino liked that in a woman.

  The woman put a fist to her jutted hip.

  “Do you stare often?” she asked.

  Andino smirked, amused at her candor. “I do when something deserves my attention.”

  The woman grinned. “That’s what you got?”

  Andino just shrugged.

  What the hell else could he do?

  “I only speak the truth,” he said.

  The woman looked him up and down. “Do you often wear a suit when you walk your dog on running trails?”

  “Sometimes.”

  “Huh.”

  Andino cocked a brow. “Do you often question random people on the trails?”

  “Sometimes. Is that a problem?”

  A smartass.

  Fantastic.

  Chapter Thirteen

  LUCIA

  “Principessa,” Lucian said, placing a kiss to the top of his daughter’s head.

  “Hey, Daddy,” Lucia greeted.

  She went back to the binder of information that she needed to study. Apparently volunteering for a women’s and children’s shelter for the summer wasn’t as easy as simply signing up for the job. Lucia had policies to memorize, schedules, and a bunch more.

  It was worth it. She wanted to help.

  “Where is your mother?”

  “Reading in her room.”

  Lucian pulled out a chair at the table and sat down beside Lucia. “I was thinking …”

  Sighing, Lucia closed her binder and gave her father the attention he wanted. Lucia, being the youngest child out of her four siblings, had always been the baby. Her parents seemed to think she needed more attention and care than her older siblings simply because there was such a difference in age. Maybe they figured she felt left out. Lucia never had.

  Being the family baby at only seventeen, almost eighteen, meant being babied like one. She needed some breathing room, some time away from her family and room to grow. She knew they didn’t understand, and that they would be hurt by her wanting to leave, so she chose her actions in quieter ways. Like volunteering at a woman’s shelter for the summer.

  With her father’s past, she knew Lucian wouldn’t put the brakes on Lucia spending eight hours a day, five days a week at a shelter to help. He was more likely to donate a bunch of money, which he already did, and buy her a car to get to and from the location every day. She wanted to volunteer, too, but it was a small step away from her family and their smothering.

  “Thinking what?” she asked her father.

  “About college in the fall,” Lucian answered. “Couldn’t you pick Columbia instead of a college out of state? It’s a great school, Lucia, and it has all the programs you want for social development.”

  Lucia dropped her father’s gaze. If he could see her eyes, he could see her lies. “But I fell in love with that campus when we visited.”

  Lucian made a sad noise under his breath. “I know, bella ragazza.”

  “I’ll come back, Dad. Holidays, vacation, and some weekends.”

  “You’re not making it better, Lucia.”

  She smiled. “I’m sorry.”

  “I worry about you being alone.”

  “Don’t. I’m an adult. I can handle college.”

  “Graduating high school and being almost eighteen does not make you an adult, Lucia.”

  “But—”

  “I’m sorry, sweetheart, I can’t help but worry. I know you want to grow up, but I’m not sure we’re ready for you to.”

  Lucia dropped her hands to the table with a smack and stood from her seat quickly. “That’s the whole problem.”

  Lucian glanced up at her with surprise deepening the lines in his face. “I don’t understand.”

  “You’re not ready to let me go. You’re not ready for me to grow up. You, Dad, not me.”

  “Oh.”

  Lucia picked up the binder off the table and said, “I’m choosing the college out of state, not Columbia. It’s already been settled, tuition and first year is paid, plus I was accepted months ago. I have the grades for it, and I want to do this. Let me do it.”

  Lucian dropped his head. “Okay.”

  Lucia was surprised her father had dropped it that easily. It wasn’t like Lucian at all. Lucia knew exactly where she had gotten her stubbornness and fight from—her father. The man had given her far more than just his namesake when she was brought into the world as her mother and father’s unexpected surprise later in life.

  Guilt chewed Lucia up inside.

  “I’ll be back, Daddy,” she said softly.

  “We have the summer, right?” her father asked.

  Well, she did. Her father was a different story. As a Marcello principessa, Lucia knew what her father and the rest of the men in her family were involved with. She wasn’t blind or dumb. She had witnessed more than enough things over the years to know her family might as well be royalty in the world of organized crime. Her father and two uncles held three of the highest seats in the family. Even her brother was mixed up in it all. Thankfully, it kept her father busy. She had the summer off, but Lucian probably didn’t. His job was non-stop.

  “Sort of, yes. I have this volunteerin
g thing, too.”

  “I’m proud that you took this on,” Lucian said, reaching out to tap the binder. “I’ve always tried to donate to the shelters and organizations for the women and children, but it makes me extremely proud that you’ve taken the extra step to do this.”

  The guilt flooded Lucia again. She’d done it because she needed the break from her family and the fact it would look good on a résumé. She also did it for the experience. Lucia came from a ridiculously wealthy family. Her father might have lived some of his early years on the streets, forging for food and trying to survive, but she never had. She never worried about one single thing. Nothing was out of reach if she asked her mother and father for it.

  Lucia wondered if she needed a wakeup call from real life.

  Maybe this job would do that.

  “I think you’ll get something amazing from it,” Lucian added when Lucia stayed quiet.

  “I hope so,” she responded.

  Standing from the table, her father drew her in for a tight hug that said he still wasn’t quite ready to let Lucia out of his sights. She let him hold on until he was ready to let go, because all too soon, her father wouldn’t have a choice but to let her go.

  Lucian was a good father—a great one, actually. But for once, Lucia simply wanted to step out of her family’s shadow and be her own person. She didn’t think her dad would understand.

  Would he?

  “I love you, Lucia,” her father murmured. “You always were the easy one out of the four. I never had to worry about you getting into some kind of trouble, or causing us any heartache. My good girl, huh?”

  She had always been the good girl.

  Lucia didn’t know anything else.

  Lucia sighed. “Yeah.”

  “Hmm, what was that?”

  “I love you, too, Papà.”

  Releasing her from his hug, Lucian said, “I should go find your mother. I have news she’ll want to hear.”

  “Oh?”

  Lucian smiled widely. “Retirement is coming early for me. Your mother has been pestering me for years to do this, and I finally have. It feels good. She will be pissed off like nothing else if I don’t tell her right away.”

  Retirement.

  Lucia didn’t know what to say.

  “So, no more … famiglia?” Lucia asked, choosing her words carefully. Outright asking about the mafia or her father’s involvement would likely get her nowhere. “None at all?”

  Lucian shrugged, still happy. “Mostly, no.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Lucia poked her head into the state of the art kitchen and found the chef working behind a large stove. The man blinked a couple of times before he finally recognized her.

  “Lucia?”

  She nodded. “Hi. Is my cousin around?”

  “Andino is in his office. I can let Skip know you’re here, if you want.”

  “That would be great, thanks.”

  “Go find a table. Do you want something to eat?”

  “No, I’m okay.”

  “Sure,” the chef said. “Go, I’ll let your cousin know you’re here to see him.”

  Lucia wasn’t surprised that the man was confused at her presence. It wasn’t often that Lucia went to Andino’s main restaurant in the city, because her cousin was known to use the place for the more illegal side of his business. Like the mafia. More than once, Lucian had told his daughter to steer clear.

  Quickly, she found a quiet table toward the back and slid into a chair. Resting her bag in the chair beside her, she waited for Andino to come out from the back. It didn’t take him long. Her cousin strolled across the restaurant floor, waving at a couple of patrons as he passed, and then joined Lucia at the table.

  “Hey, kid,” Andino said, smiling.

  Lucia forced herself not to roll her eyes. “Hey.”

  “Didn’t your daddy tell you to stay away from this place?”

  “So?”

  Andino chuckled. “You should follow the rules, Lucia.”

  “I wanted to find out something, and I was in the neighborhood.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes,” she confirmed.

  Andino leaned back in the chair and fixed the buttons on his suit jacket as he asked, “Well, what do you need?”

  “Where’s Johnathan?”

  Lucia had only seen her oldest sibling once since his release from prison. John was her only brother, but besides that, he was also the only person who truly understood Lucia and how suffocating their parents could be. For John, she knew it was an entirely different reason. But honestly, Lucia just needed a break and John seemed like the right person to go to for it.

  “Working today. Why?” Andino asked.

  “I want to talk to him.”

  Her cousin lifted a single brow. “He’s working, which means you probably shouldn’t be around him, Lucia. I know how your father would feel to find out you were slumming it up with John while he was doing business.”

  Frustrated, Lucia grabbed her bag and stood. “Thanks for nothing.”

  “Hey, hey.” Andino stood from the table, reaching out to grab Lucia’s wrist.

  “What?” she asked, snappier than she intended.

  “What is up with you?” he asked.

  “I want to see my brother. He doesn’t answer my phone calls and he never comes around to the house so I can talk to him there. I figured coming to see you would probably point me in the right direction. I’m not surprised it didn’t. All this family does is take care of business first, right?”

  Andino’s gaze flicked away. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”

  “I’m sorry, Andi. I know I’m not allowed to be hanging around here. I shouldn’t have come.”

  “It’s fine, kid. Just keep quiet to your dad, huh?”

  Lucia nodded. “I will.”

  “Where are you going after this?”

  “I was going to go sit with Grandpapa while Grandmama ran some errands.”

  Cecelia, her grandmother, always felt uncomfortable leaving her husband home alone when she left the house, for whatever reason. Lucia didn’t mind sitting with her grandfather. Then, he had someone watching him and someone to talk to. Antony, her grandfather, never minded.

  Andino nodded. “All right. I’ll give a John a call. Let him know where you’re going to be.”

  Lucia’s anger ebbed away. “Thanks.”

  “No problem.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Are you sure you’ll be fine?” Cecelia asked.

  “We’ll be perfect,” Lucia told her grandmother. “I’m sure he’ll get into his usual trouble.”

  Cecelia laughed, the lines around her eyes deepening in her joy. “Okay.”

  “Don’t worry, Grandmama.”

  “He’s been tired a lot lately,” Cecelia explained quietly. “I can’t help but worry.”

  Lucia frowned, saddened over her grandmother’s concerns for her husband’s health. Antony Marcello always seemed to be the strongest, most formidable person in their family, but truth be told, he wasn’t getting any younger. A sharp tongue and a strong soul did not make for a healthy body.

  “Just go do your stuff,” Lucia said. “He’ll be okay with me. I’ll put on his music and he’ll be happy.”

  Cecelia smiled. “Okay. Thank you for coming today.”

  “I’ll always come, Grandmama.”

  Her grandmother’s hand patted her cheek gently. The leathery feel of Cecelia’s palm reminded Lucia that her grandmother wasn’t a young woman, either.

  “Our good girl, huh?”

  Lucia batted her grandmother’s hand away lightly. “Go. You’re wasting time.”

  “Going, going.”

  Lucia closed the front door to the large Marcello mansion the moment her grandmother stepped out into the marble entrance. Making her way back through the house, she found her grandfather sitting in the living room in his leather recliner with his feet up, a glass of water beside him, and a remote in his hand as
he flicked through the television channels.

  “Did she pester you about me again?” Antony asked, his voice raspy with age.

  Lucia laughed. “Nothing gets past you, does it?”

  “I only look old, Lucia. I may feel it at times, too, but my mind is the same as it was when I was twenty-five. Sharp, quick, and too smart for everyone else.”

  “That’s all that matters, Grandpapa.”

  Antony waved a weathered hand high. “They all worry too much.”

  “I know what you mean.” Lucia eyed the water her grandfather sipped from. “You didn’t spike that with something when Grandmama wasn’t looking, right?”

  Antony smiled slyly. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

  “No drinking, Grandpapa.”

  “Oh, it’s just water. Stop it. She doesn’t even give me wine anymore.”

  Lucia fake pouted. “Poor you.”

  “She worries too much,” Antony repeated with a sigh. Flicking his wrist at the couch beside his chair, he added, “Sit, or your legs will get tired. Then I’ll have to listen to your father go on about how I don’t take care of you while you babysit me.”

  “I’m not babysitting you.”

  “Same thing.”

  Lucia shook her head, knowing better than to argue with her grandfather. Antony, no matter his age, was too stubborn for his own good. The man would choke on his words before he would ever spit out that he might be wrong about something.

  Taking a seat on the couch, Lucia asked, “What do you want to do today?”

  Antony smiled, reached over, and took his youngest grandchild’s hand in his. “Sit here and enjoy the day with you, Lucia.”

  “Okay, Grandpapa. We can do that.”

  “Good.” Antony nodded at the television. “They have a true crime marathon on today for the mob and the New York families.”

  Lucia couldn’t have stopped her laughter even if she tried. “Really?”

  “Yes. They made a show about my rise to power in the eighties and nineties, too.”

  “I know, I watched it when I was fifteen,” she admitted.

  It was how she learned most of her family’s history and legacy in Cosa Nostra. The conversation that had followed with her father had been interesting, especially since Lucian didn’t hide a thing when Lucia asked about it all. It was the only time they did talk about it.