THE MAFIA'S JEWEL

na'

do this morning was come to my garden, but what is before me r

s my dad always sent me pictures of how they had been thriving. Sometimes he even teased that the plants here wer

and that is surprising becaus

ant, the Heliconia, had dropped its head into the soil that was making me uneasy, but it wasn't just that. I

pa. They both smiled and talked, then Papa asked me to sign two papers. I asked him why, and he said it was a marriage contract. I was confused. Was I marrying this old man? My dad must have sensed my fear because he immediately told me I was marrying the man's nephew, a mafia boss, and he wasn't around. Still confused, I signed on the spaces f

always dreamt of being in a mind-blowing romance with a dominant man, being claimed, but this is different. I kn

f fear jolts th

family. Let me spend time with my mom and sis

hts. I turn to see who decided a cough was the best way t

ther's oldest workers. Sh

orning,

ning, Mis

to give

rainbow brace

e threw it away.I picked it up from the trash and It was my favourite bracelet, but I must ha

ning your room. I thought y

a. Thank y

come." She t

out the catastrophic combination of weeds and dying plants standing in front

la s

sed," she pauses, "y

what?"

no

one. In fact, she requested more hands on the e

el she fired. And when we tried to keep the garden, to water... to weed it, your

Camila must be making th

n't love this garden... Beatriz struc

definitely could not have been done by wind. But it wasn't possible. Camila must have seen wrong. I stare at her, looking for any sign she is kidding, but her expr

her to the main building to find my mom. I am sure Camila made a mista