Chapter 10

Sicily, 6:00 PM

Three black Roles Royce limousines arrived at a mansion that belonged to the Salvador family, this was just one of their many houses here in Sicily alone, it wasn't as big as the Paradiso which was their main family residence, but it was just as elegant. Several bodyguards stepped out of each car, all of them dressed in the customary black suits and dark sunglasses, they arranged themselves at both sides of the cars waiting for their master to step out. Bonucci Salvador rose from the second limousine which was in the middle, he looked around himself to see the environment while his guards shut the door of the car, he walked forward towards the entrance of the mansion and his guards marched behind him, two stayed behind for surveillance and two guards were already stationed at the large golden doors of the mansion before Bonucci even arrived, as he entered into the house, sixteen maids who were all of the same height and body size were arranged on both sides of the walkway and they all bowed as he passed through their midst

"Welcome home my Lord", they all greeted in unison, Bonucci didn't respond to them and just kept going, so did his guards, the ones stationed at the entrance shut the doors when everyone had gone through

Bonucci walked around the house until he got to a set of spiral stairs which seemed like they lead up to a haunted attic, he turned back to address his bodyguards, "you all can go now", they all bowed and began to walk away

"Oh, and before I forget, if anyone comes looking for me, no matter who they are or claim to be, I'm not in this house, do you all understand?"

"Yes Sir!!" they all answered

Bonucci began to climb the spiral stairs to the top floor, the place was quite dark and eerie, webs hung around the walls and it was very dusty as well, none of the house's staff and cleaners were allowed to walk up this stairs no matter what which made it become very dirty over time.

Bonucci got to the top of the stairs and it was just a dead end with a small window and nothing but walls at both sides, there were a lot more cobwebs up here, he turned to the wall on his right and used his fingers to feel the concrete bricks, he couldn't quite remember where the special one was and he didn't want to mark it to protect it from intruders, he ran his palm over the wall gently until he felt a soft brick

"Ahah!!" he cheered, he pushed the brick into the wall with three fingers and it made some clicking and unbolting sounds, the bricks on the wall began to shift in until they cut out the shape of a door entrance, Bonucci looked back at the stairs just to be sure no one else was up here before walking into the opening, the wall sealed back after Bonucci entered, completely concealing the presence of this hidden room

The hidden room that Bonucci entered was filled with portraits, pictures and personal belongings of his dead ex wife and Angelo's mother, Diana Salvador. Bonucci himself was in some of the pictures, and baby Angelo was present in others. Bonucci stood at the front of a giant twelve feet tall painted portrait of Diana, she had dark brown hair just like Angelo's, full cherry red lips and her eyes were as blue as the ocean, something Bonucci really wished that Angelo inherited from his mother.

He stared at the portrait for a couple of minutes, then went around the room and gathered some candles, he lit them all around himself and the portrait which was at the centre of the room, he held a smaller picture of her where she carried Angelo as a baby in her arms, he caressed the picture until he noticed a tear drop on it which he quickly wiped off, he dried his eyes and pulled himself together then looked back at the giant portrait

"I'm back again Diana, it's...just me again, today makes it eighteen years since you left us Diana, till this day it still breaks my heart that our time together had to be cut so short, and it hurts me even more that...that I was the cause of it all, they should have killed me instead, not you, I was the one they were after Diana, not you!!..."

Bonucci wiped more tears off his eyes and wheezed like a sobbing child, he looked at the picture in his hand with his reddened eyes

"I failed you Diana, I failed him too" he stroked the part of the picture where baby Angelo was, "I failed both of you...I wasn't there for him...I wasn't there for him when he needed me the most, I was so...I was so engulfed in my pain that...I failed to see that Angelo was going through so much more pain than I even did, he was just eleven Diana, he was just a child!!..." Bonucci sobbed and sniffed hard, he wiped the tears of his eyes again and sighed deeply "I can't imagine the trauma he must have gone through, to see you...to see his mother...drilled with bullets...at such a young age, I can't imagine how many nightmares he must have had...it's easy to see why he doesn't want anything to do with this family anymore, and...and I can't blame him Diana, but I can't let him go either...I just can't Diana", he placed his hand on his forehead and squeezed it

"And for some reason I failed to see what he was going through, all those years after you died I just...I just left him to grow up with nannies, I wasn't there for him, I only thought about myself I...I never bothered to think of what he was going through, I never bothered to talk to him about his pain, and look where it got me, look what I've done to my family, my son, he's my first son Diana, he's our son, my heir, I can't let him go astray Diana, I can't!!"

Bonucci looked up to Diana's eyes in the giant portrait again, he sobbed calmly as he just stared at them

"You were a perfect wife Diana, you were everything, you gave me everything, but I was foolish, I still cheated on you, I never tried to get close to our son...and despite the fact that you knew all of this you still stayed by my side till the end, you loved me that much, but I didn't deserve it, I married Lucia shortly after your death because I was selfish Diana, I thought maybe she could take away my pains and fill the hole you left in my life, but she was nothing compared to you Diana, and I let her pull me away from Angelo, I didn't understand how the presence of a step mother would affect him, and she made sure I never thought about it, she is my biggest regret till this day, but at the end it is all still my fault, I didn't get to understand how valuable and good you were to me until i lost you, and now...the only part of you that I still have left with me, I'm about to lose him too"

Bonucci stood there and sobbed silently, reflecting on all the mistakes he'd made in his life, he wiped his eyes again with a handkerchief, and gazed at Diana's portrait

"I really hope you can forgive me Diana, wherever you are, if you're listening to me, please find it in your heart to forgive me, I promise you Diana, I'll make things right, I'll bring Angelo back home, I just need you to guide me, talk to my spirit, show me the way to achieve this goal of mine, and I promise I'll make everything right again, I promise you my love"

Bonucci took one last glance at the picture in his hand, at the baby Angelo who innocently smiled in his mother's hands, Bonucci smiled with tearfully eyes, he folded the picture and put it back into his pocket, then he put off all the candles one by one and walked out of the room.