Page 3 of Sins of Sorrow


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Lorenzo, on the other hand, takes a running leap onto the light gray sofa across the room, landing with a soft thud face down. His laugh is muffled as his mother scolds him.

“Enzo!” she hisses. “This is not the place for jokes!” Pulling him up, she pushes his small body until he’s sitting on the couch as he should be.

Mamma’s hand on my back urges me forward, and I sit on the bigger of the two couches as she and Giulio do the same. Handing us both a book, she passes another to my cousin. “Read these, boys. And keep quiet until we tell you otherwise.Please, behave.” She shares a look with my aunt before I look down at my book.

The Giving Treeby Shel Silverstein.

I huff out an annoyed breath, not wanting to read this dumb book again but knowing if I don’t, Mamma will be angry. The book is made for little kids, and I’mnine. But Mamma says the best way to practice my second language is through repetition.

Staring at the pages without reading the words, wewait in the room for what feels like forever. Mamma and Aunt Andrea keep sharing looks. Guilio gets restless, sliding off the couch and onto the floor to crawl under the table. I sneak a peek at Enzo and see that he looks as though he’s about to fall asleep with his arm propped up on the side of the couch.

What is taking so long?

More long minutes pass before the sound of footsteps pulls my attention and I glue my eyes to what I can see of the hallway. Moments later, a lady and a girl appear, both with smiles on their faces.

The girl looks to be about my age. She wears a puffy pink dress and her dark brown hair is long. I wonder if she has any brothers for me to play with.

Mamma and Aunt Andrea stand. Should I?

“Hello, ladies. Boys,” the lady greets happily, walking over to us.

Sliding off the couch, I stand close to Mamma as the lady approaches and reaches for her hands.

“It’s so nice to meet you! I’m Leighton, and this is my daughter, Vincenza. Come here, Vincenza.”

The girl bounces over to her mother and waves at mine.

“I wasn’t aware Gabriele was bringing his whole family for his meeting with my husband, or I never would have let my father take our boys this week for a hunting trip! They would have loved more little boys to play with.”

“That’s alright,” Mamma affirms. “It seems as though our presence was a bit of a surprise. My nameis Valentina, and these are my sons Sylvester and Giulio.”

Aunt Andrea steps forward and extends a hand to shake with the lady, Lee-something. “Thank you for having us in your gorgeous home. I’m Andrea, Gabriele’s wife. And this is our son Lorenzo.”

“Ah, yes. I’ve met Gabriele a few times now! So nice to finally meet you.” She gestures for everyone to sit, so we do, and she takes a seat in the armchair across from us. The girl settles on the floor by her mother's side with a chapter book on her lap.

“How old are your boys?” Aunt Andrea asks as she places her hand on Enzo’s knee to keep him from wiggling.

“Luciano, my oldest, is fourteen. Then we have Joseph, who is eleven, Vincenza here, just turned nine, and Samuele, my baby, is four.” She sighs. “They just grow so quickly. I can’t believe I have a teenager.” Looking over at my mother, she squeals, “And you! Look at that baby bump! When are you due?”

“Federico will be arriving in three to four months. Lord never knows with my boys, they come when they please. Sylvester was nearly two weeks late, but Giulio was a month early. I’ve stopped trying to guess when the Lucchetti boys may arrive.” My eyes trace where my mother rubs my baby brother in her stomach, and she smiles warmly at me. “Sly is nine, Giulio is six.”

“Oh, I understand that, honey. My kids were all over the place too.” She smiles warmly at Enzo. “And you, sir? How old are you?”

Enzo shifts in his seat, sitting up taller as he proudly boasts, “I’m about to turn ten!”

“Such a little man you are!” Lee-whatever says affectionately.

Her sentence is barely finished when a woman wearing the same plain dress as all the other maids comes into the room.

“Your presence is requested in the dining room,” she tells us and curtsies low before leaving.

It’s very strange.

The grown-ups stand and Mamma pulls Giulio to his feet before we follow the lady out of the room. I watch as the girl bounces on her feet, skipping and twirling the whole way across the hall.

She’s odd. So bouncy, and why is her dress so big?

When we enter through the open double doors of the dining room, Papà, Uncle Gabriele, and the scary man are already sitting at the table. They stand when they see us, and I follow Mamma over to the side where Papà sits.