Page 10 of A Seed Of Peril
“Looks like someone’s ready to play,” I said, amused.
“When is she ever not?”
I laughed. “Good point.” Dominic continued to linger on my mind. “Where is Dominic, anyway?”
“In his office with his mother,” Dino said as we walked further into the foyer. “He wanted to talk to her today.”
Oh?Dominic never mentioned anything about that. I hoped everything was alright.
“They must’ve got lost in conversation or something,” Dino added.
Suddenly, I wanted to be Dominic’s support rather than play with dolls. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to play with Katrina, per se, but I didn’t want Dominic facing any potential demons of his past alone. If he told me to go away, I would respect that and come back downstairs.
I got Dino’s attention and leaned in close to his ear. “Tell Katrina I had to make a quick detour.”
He nodded once and went off to join her in the living room while I ventured upstairs.
Taking a right, I headed a few feet through the upstairs hallway toward Dominic’s office. I loved how wide and spacious his new office was; mountains better than at our old place.
Sorry, Hector.
Beyond its black, double doors, a stunning black and red epoxy floor stood out the most within the rich brown and creamy beige walls and ceiling. The splashes of red on the floor made it almost resemble blood splatter. Two black cushioned sofas sat across each other with a glass coffee table between, and two darkened beige leather armchairs angled toward each other just past the sofas. A white area rug was beneath the coffee table. Off to the right of the furniture was a pool table with a replica of Van Gogh’s Starry Night on that wall, and off to the left side of that half of the room sat Dominic’s prized possession—his Fazioli baby grand piano. A tall and wide bookshelf was anchored to the wall where the piano was, containing some classic literature, and paperweights designed to look like famous composers such as Bach and Chopin were spread out randomly on those shelves.
Up ahead of the seating area was a single step leading to Dominic’s executive desk and matching black, high-back leather chair. The desk’s oak was stained a mix of rich walnut and cherry. His desktop computer was toward the left corner of the desk with minimal paperwork, a desk lamp, and a landline phone also filling up some of its space. A Beethoven paperweight held his paperwork secure. His nameplate, reading his first and last name, sat proudly on the desk. Off to the left of his desk was a medium, round, oak table with three wide barrel leather chairs, the chairs a dark gray. On the other side of that upper half of the room was a mini-bar, complete with a glass shelf full of alcohol and different wines, along with storage for the drinkware and a built-in sink.
Behind Dominic’s desk was an eighty-inch television mounted to the wall.
I knocked on the door, choosing not to just barge in. Hearing him tell me to come in, I opened the door and poked my head through. Dominic and his mother sat on the sofas across from each other, a glass of water in her hand and a smaller glass of golden, honey-colored alcohol in his. Probably his usual glass of Walker.
Dominic appeared relaxed, sitting back against the sofa, while Bianca, on the other hand, leaned forward a bit, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. She put her glass of water on a coaster on the table.
“I’m sorry. Did I interrupt?—”
Dominic waved his hand for me to enter the room. “Come, join us.”
I pulled the door closed behind me and joined Dominic, sitting beside him. While I came up here because I wanted to be a support for Dominic to lean on, seeing Bianca teary-eyed made me feel awkward, like I didn’t belong in here after all. If Dominic changed his mind and sent me away, I wouldn’t hesitate to respect that.
Bianca sniffed, wiping her nose. “I’m so sorry, Dominic. I never stopped loving you. I wanted to make sure you knew that.”
I had given Bianca that benefit of the doubt; she may have shut down in her marriage purely out of survival instinct and wound up shutting out her son as a result, but my gut and my heart told me she never loved her son any less throughout the abuse.
As Dominic sipped on his drink—the scent telling me it was indeed a glass of Walker—I rested my hand on his and laced our fingers together, gently squeezing his hand to let him know I was here for him.
“I know,” was all he said. His tone didn’t give anything away, but I assumed he may have felt slightly awkward with it all now that I was here. Bianca was more desperate than him to repair their broken bond, and Dominic had never been good with talking about feelings and emotions.
“Please forgive me,” she continued. “No child deserves the kind of mother I was. I failed to protect you.” She paused, swallowing back more tears. “But I promise… I won’t anymore.” Bianca stood up from the sofa.
Assuming she was leaving because of me, I began to say, “Please don’t leave on my account,” but my words went in one ear and out the other as she stepped in front of her son, holding his face in her palms. Dominic tensed at her sudden touch. I gently squeezed his hand again to let him know it was okay. That he was safe.
“I don’t care what you are now or what you do. You’ll always be myragazzino.” She briefly stared at him, smiling through fresh tears that dripped down her face, like she admired the man he became. She then swept her fingers through some of his hair. “I’m so proud of you.” She leaned in, kissing his forehead. She backed away and then wiped her eyes and nose, sniffing. “I know I have a lot of work to do, and I’m ready to do it.”
After an uncomfortable beat of silence, Bianca looked at the door and then again at us. “I-I’ll just go.”
Dominic freed his hand from mine, setting his drink on the table and standing up. Placing his hand on the small of her back, I watched in silence while he led her to the door. He opened the door a crack, telling his mother he couldn’t yet forgive her.
“I needed you all those years ago,” he added. “And I didn’t have you. So, understand why I’m hesitant to forgive you, let alone fully trust you again.”
Dominic’s anger crept into his words, sneaking up on him. My mind went back to that night weeks ago, the image of him falling to his knees in defeat, crying a river of tears. Momentarily closing my eyes while silently drawing in a breath, I opened my eyes as that breath left me.