Chapter 5 - THE MEAL THAT EXPOSED A LIE
Arthur began eating again.
Not much.
A small bowl of pasta.
Vegetable soup.
Toast with olive oil.
Simple food.
Nora prepared it whenever her schedule allowed.
Within a week, his color improved.
He could walk across the estate without becoming dizzy.
His hands stopped trembling.
But the nightmares remained.
One evening, Nora found him sitting alone in the kitchen.
The lights were dim.
A bowl of untouched soup rested before him.
She stopped.
“Something wrong with it?”
Arthur looked up.
“No.”
“Then why aren't you eating?”
He hesitated.
“Bad night.”
Nora sat across from him.
“Want to talk about it?”
Arthur gave a humorless laugh.
“Most people don't ask me that.”
“Most people are afraid of you.”
He looked at her.
“Are you?”
Nora considered the question.
“Sometimes.”
Arthur's expression changed.
“Fair.”
She looked at the soup.
“Then tell me something harmless.”
“Such as?”
“What was your favorite meal when you were little?”
Arthur stared.
Then smiled faintly.
“Maria's pasta.”
Nora laughed.
“Besides that.”
He thought.
“Bread dipped in tomato sauce.”
She nodded.
“Grandma used to make that.”
Arthur looked down.
“She always gave me the biggest piece.”
Nora smiled.
“She did that with everyone.”
For a moment, the kitchen felt almost peaceful.
Then Arthur said:
“I was there the night the diner burned.”
Nora went still.
He continued.
“I arrived after the fire started.”
Her face changed.
“You saw it?”
Arthur nodded.
“Did you see Grandma?”
He closed his eyes.
“No.”
Nora swallowed.
“Mom said nobody ever explained what happened.”
Arthur stared at the table.
“It wasn't an accident.”
The words hung between them.
Nora felt cold.
“What?”
Arthur looked at her.
“Someone ordered the fire.”
She stared.
“Who?”
Arthur hesitated.
Then said:
“Frank Bellucci.”
Nora's face drained.
“Bellucci?”
Arthur nodded.
She stood so abruptly that her chair scraped the floor.
“Rocco's father?”
Arthur looked up.
“Yes.”
Nora pressed a hand over her mouth.
May you like
The family threatening her brother was the same family responsible for her grandmother's death.
And suddenly, the debt was no longer just about money.
