Chapter 78

Chapter 78
Arianna POV: 

By this point, I jumped out of a moving vehicle, ran away from kidnappers, and faced down men I knew had loaded guns, but getting on the standard terrified me more than anything. 

This room was full of strangers, and now they would all know my most humiliating secrets, my personal life laid bare for them to dissect and decide if I was in the wrong or in the right. 

I lay my hand down on the book, “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you god?” 

“I swear,” I pressed my dress as I sat down. 

I braced myself for what I knew was coming: be an awful line of questioning, but he didn’t hesitate. 

“Ms. Caputo, your father paid off your house loan, correct?” He began 

I replied through gritted teeth. “Yes,” 

“And though you two had not seen each other for ten, fifteen years, he paid for your mother‘s funeral, correct?” He continued. 

“Yes,” I almost grunted. I knew where he was going with this, on paper, my father looked a saint. 

“ So you hadn’t seen or spoken to each other in quite a long time, and at your lowest moment, your father appeared and took care of everything?” He offered. 

“Financially, yes,” I didn’t fight him, if I came across this angry, I would play right into their hands. 

I sat there waiting for their questions, fiddling with my ring. He was right, it did help, as if he were holding my hand. I wouldn’t let them take this from me, I would die many years later as his wife, not today. I won’t let them crucify me for putting an evil man in prison. 

“Now, onto your mother,” the lawyer spoke, and my heart stopped. 

“She refused to let you see your father, didn’t she?” He asked. 

“No, I didn’t want to see him,” I corrected a little too harshly. 

“Until after she died and he paid for everything?” He smirked. 

“ I didn’t know why she left him, but I knew it caused her pain, so I didn’t wanna make it worse for her,” I explained, but I wanted to throw my shoe at his head. This was beyond a line crossed, bringing my mother into this. You would think he had some decency.

“ Your sister didn’t live with you, though, she still lived with her father?” He pressed. 

Yes,” my tone was questioning, where was he going with this? 

“ Your mother didn’t want her?” He pushed. 

“No, Guilia refused to come with; she wouldn’t leave,” I protested. If he tried to make my mother look bad, I swear I might just leap from the stand and claw my father's eyes out. 

“Must’ve been hard growing up without your father, without your sister, and a mother who refused to explain why you have to be without them,” he sounded sympathetic. 

“No, my mother and I were very happy,” I defended her. I would give anything for that little house upstate where nothing bad ever happened to have remained untouched. 

“But there must have been some resentment,  it must’ve stayed. She may have made some comments about him from time to time, and it must’ve lingered in your head. Made you mistrust him, made you lash out?” he continued. “You loved your mother. Everyone does, so you must’ve had some anger towards your father?” 

“No, I was grateful for a family,” I hissed, my breath was hot because it was the truth. I was so grateful for him when he came back into my life, I had no clue I would end up here.

“ So you didn’t have any suspicions about your father, nothing made you wary of him?” He pressed. 

“ he was my father after all,” I shot back. 

“Was? Isn’t he still?” The lawyer asked. 

“After trying to pressure me to commit tax fraud, I don’t consider him family anymore,” I pushed. “Not to mention, I haven’t seen my sister in months. She could be dead for all I know,” I looked at my father. He gave that same expression he always did when I didn’t stumble during his tests. The pride shown on his face, his eyes glimmering with hope as he watched me. I got nauseous at the sight. 

“So you claim, but all of this started after you got involved with Mr. Risci, correct?” He turned his head to the side. 

“No,” I corrected him. 

“ You and Mr. Risci knew each other beforehand?” He asked. 

“No, but we weren’t involved.” 

My eyes fled to the jury to see what they thought of this. Their face is crossed and confused, just like mine.

“ So during this tumultuous time of your life, you met a handsome man, a powerful man, and you found love?” He asked. 

“ We didn't want to complicate things, but yes,” I looked out into the audience and saw him smiling at me. 

“Safe to say, though, that Mr. Risci has provided you with a very comfortable lifestyle, protecting you from all this harassment?” He leaned against the podium. “Hard not to feel indebted to him, isn’t it?” 

“No, he’s never made me feel like I owe him anything.” I didn’t fold, it was the truth. Giovanni had always told me I didn’t deserve to be treated like a puppet or locked in a cage, pushed to my limits day by day. He’d never acted as though he needed anything from me, only providing me the protection he thought anyone deserved. 

“ So you don’t feel as though you owe him your life?” 

“ I feel he’s a good man,” I smiled. 

My father‘s lawyer faulted for a second before staring up at the judge, “No further questions, your honor.” 

I sighed a breath of relief, and without thinking, placed my hands on the podium to stand. My ring was shining clearly in the sunlight for everyone to see.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me, you’re engaged!” My father snapped. “You are engaged? After everything I’ve done for you. Do you have any idea, and now you’re gonna marry him?” He stood up, and the bailiff grabbed him. I stepped back and stumbled, tripping on the chair.

“Order, order, bailiff, take him into custody, we need to recess,” the judge demanded. 

I hadn’t expected my father to have such a visceral reaction, but it may have done the trick. The jury looked at each other, fear on their faces. He had shown himself in his true colors. This might’ve just been our saving grace. All the posturing and parading about as the honest and good man he was was now out the window. 

I went out into the hall, trying to hide my smile and hold my breath. Just this morning, I thought that we had no shot in hell of putting him behind bars, but now? Now we might have a chance. 

Practically leapt into Giovanni’s arms when I saw him, and he held me tightly. We both hid our smiles into each other. He whispered in my ear, “This is almost over,”

I believed him, too. I believed that the light at the end of the tunnel had returned to us, and we would find ourselves back in Italy as husband and wife.