Authors note: Hello everyone. Thank you to everyone who has left comments and votes on the chapters so far. They mean the world to me, even if just to know someone is reading the series. Thank you once again to Paul who continues to be my second set of eyes. ~ellie.
*****
"I didn't do anything wrong!" Trista cried as she sat across the desk from her father.
"Even if your mother had been correct in her assumptions, you had no care at all for that girl's feelings, or Matteo's, for that matter," Roberto said patiently, wanting to be sure his daughter understood exactly what she had done wrong. "Now there is a lovely young woman in the world who believes our entire family think she's nothing but an opportunistic gold-digger, and two of your brothers who believe that your mother, through you, deliberately sabotaged their relationships with this woman. Not to mention my own friendship with her, which saddens me more than I can say."
Theresa knew she had done something terrible the moment the usually calm and serene Stefano refused to even look at her, let alone talk to her, leaving Roberto to have this conversation with his wife and daughter while he hovered in the background.
"I'm sorry. Who knew everyone would take the truth so badly," Trista shrugged indifferently.
"Have you heard nothing we have said?" Stefano roared, voicing his rage for the first time. "Your mother lied to you! There was no truth in anything you said to that girl!"
"I did nothing wrong!" Trista said again, blinking at being yelled at by her father for the first time in her life.
"Veronica Donati was guilty of Murder, attempted murder, and assorted other criminal activities. And do you know what she said to anyone who visited her in prison before and after her conviction?" Roberto asked, then answered the question. "I didn't do anything wrong."
"The privilege of being part of this family seems to have given the Vitali women a bizarre sense of entitlement that allows you to believe you can treat anyone badly and be totally justified in doing so! Well, I will not tolerate it! You are cut off for six months, Trista! Your bank accounts have been frozen, your credit cards cancelled! You may ask your mother or myself for an allowance, but, trust me, if you use our name or position to obtain finances or goods without payment, I will not be so lenient!" Stefano said. Now that he had started talking, it seemed he couldn't help letting his rage out on both women.
"You can't do that!" Trista yelled back. "I have a life to live! I can't survive like that!"
"Then get a job," Roberto said. "Each of your older brothers had a traineeship of some description at your age and earned their own money instead of relying on us to support them. Even Vanessa has begun working toward establishing herself instead of spending thousands of dollars flying around the country to bully her brother's girlfriends under the guise of seeking media interest in her designs."
"It's not my fault the stupid bitch was too ugly to get photographed on the night. All she had to do was stand with Matteo while the press was there and it all would have been worth it," Trista shook her head incredibly as if it was all Cat's faults that this was happening to her now. Even Theresa looked shocked at her daughter's words.
"I think you were right," Roberto said sadly to Stefano. "I'll call and make the arrangements." He watched as Theresa paled visibly. "You will stay home for the next forty-eight hours, Trista, believe me when I say that if we have to come and find you, you will regret it more so than you already regret your mistakes."
"Fine!" Trista snapped after looking at her mother and realising she would get no help from her. "Am I excused?"
"Yes, but don't go too far," Roberto said, and watched his daughter flounce from the room. "Not you, Theresa!" he growled making the woman sit back down.
"Have you not learned the lessons of Maria and what she did to our family? Do you not know what happened to the mother of the Savoy, or the mother of the Pellegrini who put the future of their sons before the rest of their family?" Roberto asked in the same calm voice. "Did you not think we would be horrified that you would so overtly try to destroy our sons by pitting them against each other and the woman they love?"
"That was never my intention. I didn't have all of the information about this Catriona Leone," she explained, trying to keep her voice calm. "As far as I was aware, she had worked for Vanessa, used her family connections to gain your assistance in a dubious court case and began dating Ricco. When she was finally discovered to be not as innocent as she pretended she left town in a hurry and started to date Matteo. What was I supposed to think?"
"You were supposed to know that I wouldn't have defended anyone who did not deserve our respect and assistance!" Roberto snapped.
"If we find any other action taken on your part to harm our children, there will be very dire consequences. Neither Roberto nor I will risk losing one more child in this house to the machinations of misguided and ultimately evil thinking. You have spoilt and favoured your children over the others for long enough, and I believe we will be taking a greater hand in ensuring all of the trials have been completed to our satisfaction," Stefano snarled. "There are enough cousins to fill the table with the oldest three sons should it come to that," he threatened, making her gasp loudly and cover her face in horror.
"Go and speak with Trista and make her understand that she did indeed do something wrong," Roberto advised.
*****
Cat had settled into a comfortable routine where as long as she showed up at the house for meals she was left alone to do her art, aside of Finola's visits each afternoon and the constant check-ups of Pete Donati, who she thought seemed to take his follow up of patients a little too seriously.
Cat smiled as she let Romy Donati into the small cabin she had been assigned for the gathering. She was amazed at how many cabins, yurts and other temporary structures there were on the vast property. Finola had also arrived early with her children and had visited Cat daily to ask about drawing techniques and do some small exercises that Cat said were the very same ones she had been given when she was learning to hone her craft. The appearance of Romy Donati at her door surprised her.
"I just need your signature on a few documents," he said by way of explanation as she invited him into the cluttered space.
"I have already signed the non-disclosure thingamajig and the commission paperwork with Peri. She should have copies, but I can probably find them for you if you need them," she offered.
"No, this is not about your art," Romy chuckled, taking a seat at the table. "It's about the apartment you were staying in before coming here. Matteo has transferred ownership into your name, and the settlement for that has been rushed through and should become official on Friday, so if you can just sign where the tags indicate, please."
"Wait! What?" Cat blinked at him. "Matteo is selling me the apartment? I can't afford that! I thought he had rented it and told him to break the lease and get his money back."
"He is gifting it to you," Romy explained.
