Unfinished Business

The black sedan raced through the urban streets, and engine noise merged with the noise in Izzy's head. Marco drove at a fast pace but didn't speak. He was chiseled and focused on what lay ahead. City lights flickered through the glass, creating ever-changing shapes on her skin.

“Am I allowed to know where you’re taking me?” Izzy asked, breaking the tense silence.

Marco didn’t glance back. “Santino’s orders. You’ll be safe there.”

“Safe?” Izzy laughed dryly. “Because staying with the DeLucas is the safest thing I could do.”

Marco’s hands gripped the wheel ever so slightly, but he did not speak about it. It was not what she hoped for, but it was not surprising either. She focused her attention again on the window, looking at the city that was passing by and thinking deeply about something.

Santino words re-echoed in her mind, his caution about her family's fate reborn more loudly than she wished to admit. Could she really trust him? Could she trust herself to make the right decision in a world where no concept of right and wrong seemed to exist?

The vehicle slowed near an indistinguishable structure on the outskirts of the town. Marco parked in a backstreet and cut the engine. No more

word, he stepped out and opened her door.

“We’re here,” he said, his voice clipped.

Izzy hesitated then stepped out, looking up at the structure. It seemed vacant-no lights in the windows and the face of the building crumbling with time. She shook her head. "This is your idea of safety?"

Marco took no notice of the jab. He led her inside. The stairwell had a hint of mildew and their footsteps echoed in that cramped space. They reached the second floor where Marco opened a heavy door, stepping aside to let her pass.

The room was plain, but a surprisIngly clean. Against one wall sat a couch, in the corner a small kitchenette, and a table with one chair. Not luxurious for sure, but not the filthy hideaway she had expected either.

"I'll be downstairs if you need anything," Marco said, stepping back toward the door.

“Wait,” Izzy said, stopping him in his tracks. “Why does Santino care so much about what I do? He hardly knows me.”

Marco's expression didn't change, but his silence was just a fraction too long. "Santino doesn't do anything he doesn't have a reason to do," he finally spoke. "You might want to keep that in mind."

At the moment she tried to ask more, he just passed by her and shut the door behind him. The sound of the lock that clicked as it was being locked made shivers run down her spine.

Izzy sighed in frustration and ran a hand through her hair. She fell onto the couch while her thoughts raced. She needed some clarity, some sort of plan. Before she could organize her thoughts however, her phone buzzed in her purse. Izzy hesitated then finally withdrew it.

Giovanni.

Her heart raced as she replied. “Gio.”

“Where have you been?” His voice sounded urgent. “I’ve been trying to reach you for hours.”

“Okay,” she said quickly, but the tightness in her chest showed she wasn’t calm.

"I just needed some space."

"Space?" he snapped. "Izzy, do you have any idea how dangerous things are right now? You can't just disappear like that.”

“I’m not a kid, Gio,” she replied angrily. “I don’t need your approval to live my life.” There was a pause, and then Giovanni spoke softly but firmly. “You’re my sister, Izzy.”

It’s "my duty to protect you.”

Her grip on the phone tightened. “Maybe you should focus on protecting the family instead.”

"What does that mean?" "It means you are too busy fighting a battle you can't win to notice what is happening right in front of you," she said, the words spilling out before she could hold them back. Giovanni was silent for a moment, and when he spoke again, his voice was icy.

"Where are you?"

“Safe,” she said, dodging the question.

“With the DeLucas?” The accusation in his tone was unmistakable.

Izzy froze. “What?”

"I know you meet Santino," Giovanni said, cutting like a blade. "Izzy, do you even realize what you're doing? Connecting with him puts all of us on the line."

I'm trying to end this war before it harms us, " she said, raising her voice. "Something you should have done much earlier.

Giovanni's laugh was bitter. "Do you really think you can trust him? He's playing you, Izzy. He doesn't give a damn about peace; it's power that turns him on."

“And what about you, Gio?” she shot back. “Are you any different?”

The line went silent, the gravity of her words hanging in the air. At last, Giovanni spoke, his voice barely above a whisper and charged with tension. "Come home, Izzy. We can discuss this in person."

“I can’t,” she said, her voice softer now. “Not yet.”

You're making a mistake. Santino will turn against you when it benefits him.

“Maybe,” she admitted. “But at least I’m trying to fix this mess. Can you do the same?”

Before he knew it, she ended the conversation and put the phone on the table. Her hands were shaking. She looked at it for long moments while her chest was full of mixed feelings.

A knock on the door interrupted her reverie. She jumped up, all cautiously approaching the caller with a racing heart. “Who is it?”

"It's me," said Santino's voice clearly from outside the door. She paused for a moment before unlocking and opening it

Santino stood there, his face unreadable but his presence always commanding.

“Mind if I come in?” he asked.

Izzy stepped aside, letting him enter.

He shut the door behind him and casually leaned against it, looking around the room before focusing on her. "You seem like you had an interesting evening," he said, keeping his tone light but his gaze sharp.

"You might say that," she said, folding her arms. "Giovanni called."

Santino’s brow arched slightly. “And?”

“He knows that we are meeting,” she said, watching his reaction closely. “He is not unhappy.”

Santino smiled but not with humor. "I would expect him not to be."

Izzy sighed and then ran a hand through her hair. "I don't know what to do, Santino. Gio thinks you're messing with me, and maybe he's right."

Santino pushed off the door and took a step closer, keeping his gaze unflinching. "I've been honest with you, Izzy. More than anyone else in your life. You have to decide if that matters to you."

His words hung in the air and Izzy’s breath caught for a moment. she hated that he affected her this way, his presence made her question everything she thought she knew or understood But his eyes spoke nothing but the truth.

I do not know if I can trust you, she said quietly.

Santino nodded, his expression softening for a fraction of a second. "Fair enough, but trust isn't something that happens overnight. It's earned."

He turned towards the door and stopped with his hand resting on the handle. “I will let you have your time to think, Izzy. But don’t take forever to decide. Time is flying, this city doesn’t pause for anyone.”

And with that he was gone leaving her all by herself again. Her doubts, her fears and the impossible choice that was placed before her.