A/N: Claudia moved to Milan when she was nineteen.
November 2007
Her father was dead. Claudia took a sip of brandy and let the amber liquid wash away everything she was feeling. She should be upset that her father died. But mostly she was relieved. She was mostly upset with the fact that she wasn't upset.
The bastard would never live another day and she was finally free to come home. Claudia jerked her head towards the door when she heard knocking. "Go away." The knocking became more incessant and she walked over to the door. "I said go away."
What was the point of hired help if they couldn't leave you alone when you asked? Claudia opened the door and dropped her glass when she saw the man standing there. "Max."
Her childhood wasn't filled with slumber parties and soccer games. It was filled with lonely days. When she was little, she wasn't allowed to bring her friends home. Looking back, she still wasn't sure if that was her father's doing or if the other children's parents were afraid to let them come over. As she got older, she didn't want to invite her friends over. Her father was teetering on the edge of insanity and she didn't want her friends to know how crazy her dad was.
When she was ten a new family moved into the neighborhood, a business associate of her father's, Maximus Giambetti. He had a wife, Teresa, and two sons, Max and Milo. Max was her age and Milo a year older than Johnny. She'd always been a tomboy and was thrilled to know someone her age who didn't think having guards made her a freak. She and Max became fast friends and for nine years they were nearly inseparable.
But she hadn't seen or spoken to him in almost thirteen years.
Max immediately knelt down and started picking up the broken glass.
"Leave it," Claudia said. "What are you doing here?"
"Is it okay if I come in?" Max asked.
"Of course," Claudia said, stepping aside so Max could enter the den.
"You okay?" Max asked, his eyes filled with concern. "I came as soon as I heard you were home."
Claudia nodded, "I'm fine," Claudia said, sitting down and motioning for Max to sit down next to her.
"He can't hurt you anymore," Max said, resting his hand on Claudia's knee.
Claudia bitterly laughed, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Now there's the irony," Claudia said. "Technically he never hurt me. Never laid a hand on me. Never touched me."
Max clenched his jaw, "He still hurt you," Max said. "I wish you would've let me tell my dad - "
"Then what? Maria was dead, my mom was gone. Who was going to look after John?" Claudia asked.
"He was your father, he had no business - "
"He never laid a hand on me. He was always careful not to touch me." Anthony Zacchara was crazy but he wasn't stupid. He constantly watched her. The older she got, the more he watched her. But he never walked in on her while she was changing. He complimented her figure and suggested she stop dressing like a tomboy and offered to take her shopping. Most fathers didn't want their daughters wearing tight revealing clothing. Hers was the exception, he even bought clothes for her that she'd never would've worn. And she never did.
"He didn't have to," Max said.
Her father's hugs always lasted a few seconds too long. He held her too tightly, too closely. He never copped a feel or touched her somewhere he shouldn't, but he touched her too often for her own comfort. Claudia took a deep breath and ran her hand over her arms. "I'm glad he's dead," Claudia said.
There was no love lost between her and her father. He sent her overseas when she was nineteen. To this day, she wasn't sure why. She got perfect grades in school, she even became an English major because it was what he wanted. But one day when she got back from class, she found her dorm room packed up and her father waiting with her passport.
"Daddy! What are you doing here? Why are my things packed up?" Claudia asked.
"Everything will be shipped," Anthony said. "You're moving to Milan to live with your Uncle Rudy."
"Milan? Daddy - "
"Your plane leaves in an hour," Anthony said. "Stop crying. It's already been decided. Most girls your age would love to finish their education in Europe. Come give your father a hug and Daniel will take you to the airport."
But she wasn't most girls. She never had been. "He sent me away and he never called me. He never returned my calls. He never let me talk to Johnny. I sent him presents, they got sent back to me," Claudia said, blinking back tears. After a long bout of homesickness, she got used to being in Milan. She even grew to love it. She quickly switched majors from English to Business and after graduating she started helping her Uncle Rudy launder money. But even though she hated her father, she still wanted him to send for her to come home. And he never did.
Claudia wiped her eyes, "I'm sorry," Claudia said. "You came to see me and I'm sitting here crying - "
"It's okay," Max said, pulling Claudia into his arms for a hug.
Claudia tensed up then relaxed as Max gently ran his hand over her back. She held onto him tightly as she cried. There weren't many people that got to see her cry. She wasn't the same girl that was banished to Milan thirteen years ago. Crying was a sign of weakness and Claudia Zacchara wasn't weak, not anymore. But Max was her friend, probably the only real friend she had even though she hadn't seen or spoken to him once since she left.
It meant a lot to her that Max was here. He was the one person that knew how much she hated her father and why. Max also knew how much she loved him and didn't think she was sick for loving him as much as she hated him.
Claudia pulled back, "Thank you for coming," Claudia said.
Max reached forward, brushing Claudia's hair out of her face. "It's good to see you," Max quietly said. "I wasn't sure you'd want to see me. I thought you were still mad at me."
"Still mad at you?" Claudia asked. She could count the times she had been mad at Max on one hand, and most of the reasons were stupid and she forgave him instantly.
"When you were sent away, I thought you were mad at me," Max said. "I thought you found out about my dad - "
"Your dad? What does he have to do with me getting sent away?" Claudia asked.
"You don't know?" Max asked. "Claudia - " Max paused and shook his head, and took a deep breath as if he was gathering his thoughts. "I thought you knew. If I had known you didn't, I would've told you."
"Whatever it is, just tell me," Claudia said.
"Your dad wanted you to get married. There was this family in Venezuela, the Alcazars. They were arms dealers. The dad, Ramon, he was a widower. He had two sons around our age," Max said.
"My dad wanted me to marry one of the boys?" Claudia asked. "I was barely nineteen."
"No, he - he wanted you to marry Ramon," Max said.
"The dad? If his sons are our age, then he must've been at least twice my age," Claudia said. Her dad wanted to marry her off to an old man? For what? For money? For a shipment? For weapons? "I think I'm going to be sick."
Max squeezed Claudia's shoulder, "I'm sorry, all this time - I thought you knew," Max said.
"What does this have to do with your dad?" Claudia asked.
"My dad found out. He confronted your dad, he told him he was wrong. They got in a big argument about it and your dad was ready to marry you off to Alcazar," Max said. "Your dad - he really wanted whatever it was Alcazar was going to give him. Anthony was your father and your mother was gone, my dad couldn't stop him. So he called your Uncle. A few days later, you were gone."
Claudia drew her knees to her chest as she digested everything. One by one the pieces started to fall into place.
"I don't know why you dress that way. A young attractive girl like you, you're not going to be young forever. You need to start thinking about the future, about getting married. That day may be sooner than you think."
"You're moving to Milan to live with your Uncle Rudy."
"Stop calling, you're not coming home."
"Claudia, I told you not to call. You're not my daughter anymore."
"He called me," Claudia said. "A few days after I left, your dad called me."
"Signorina Claudia, there's a phone call for you."
"Daddy?" Claudia asked as she grabbed the phone.
"Claudia, it's Maximus."
"Mr. Giambetti. "Is something wrong? Is it Johnny? Daddy?"
"No, they're fine. I was just calling to see how you're settling in Milan."
"Okay, I guess."
"Good. Call me if you need anything. Take care."
At the time she wasn't sure why Mr. Giambetti had called her. She thought he was just checking up on her. And he was. But he was also making sure she was in Milan and not Venezuela. "I'll have to thank him."
"You're not mad?" Max asked.
"Oh, I'm mad," Claudia said, turning towards Max, tears streaming down her face. "Not at you. Not at your dad. He saved me." What kind of man auctions off his daughter to the highest bidder? She'd always thought her dad was sick, but she didn't have any idea how sick until now.
"A few weeks after you left, our dads' partnership fell apart. I overheard an argument and your name came up. That's how I found out. I confronted my dad and he told me everything. I thought about trying to find you, but he said you were okay and that I should wait for you to call," Max said. "You never did."
"I know," Claudia said. Those first few months were really hard on her. She was ripped away from the only family she knew and living with a family she didn't know. Even though her father was a monster, he was still her father and he loved her in his own twisted way. She missed Johnny, but she couldn't talk to him. Her father wouldn't let her. After she started to adjust to Milan, she realized she was free and she didn't want any reminders from home. Sadly, that included Max. In Milan, she was finally free to live her own life by her own rules and not live in fear of her father. "It was selfish, really."
"You're not selfish," Max said.
Claudia laughed, "You're probably the only person who would ever say that," Claudia said.
"Then I'm the only person that really knows you," Max said.
Claudia slowly smiled and nodded, "Probably," Claudia said. Maybe she was living her life on her own terms, but she was also keeping people at arm's length. She didn't have any friends, not really. Not anymore. Max was the person who knew her best. Even though she wasn't the scared girl that used to spend as much time as she could at his house so she didn't have to go home, he still knew her best.
Claudia rested her head on her knees and turned her head, and noticed he was watching her. Claudia met his gaze and her breath caught in her throat when she saw the look in his eyes. After all these years, he still believed in her. He still loved her. And in a heartbeat she could break him. One of the things she perfected in Milan was using men. Using them to get what she wanted and once she had it, she left them broken before they could use her. But she'd never do that to Max. She couldn't. She cared about him too much to ever hurt him. That's why she never let herself fall in love with him. Even as a teenager, she knew he had a crush on her. But she never let it go further than a couple kisses. Max, I just want to be friends. That was a lie. And he knew it. He knew the real reason. He knew she didn't feel like she was good enough for him. Even though her father never touched her, she still felt dirty and less than.
"You okay?" Max asked. "It's a lot to take in."
"I will be," Claudia said, getting up and walking across the room to the bar. "Want a drink? I kinda dropped mine." She fixed each of them a brandy and handed him one. "Enough about the past and my sorry excuse for a father. Tell me about you. Are you married?"
"No," Max said.
"Kids?" Claudia asked.
"No," Max said. "There - there was this girl and - "
"Want me to go talk to her? Did she break your heart?" Claudia asked. She wasn't sure who this girl was, but if she walked away from Max she was the stupidest woman on the face of the earth.
Max laughed softly, "No, that's okay," Max said. "She didn't mean to break my heart. She just did. She moved away and I haven't seen her in a while. But she's home now. Maybe things will be different this time."
"Oh," Claudia said, mentally kicking herself. He was talking about her.
"Claudia, I'm sorry," Max said. "I'm not trying - "
"I know," Claudia said. "It's okay, really it is."
"You know, I hated that you left. I really missed you. Especially those first few years. Then I realized you weren't coming back. And I was glad you got away," Max said. "I know you can hold a grudge, but I figured you couldn't stay mad at me all those years. After a while, I decided you wanted to stay gone and I was happy for you." Max reached over and gently touched her face, "You got away, not under the best circumstances, but you got out."
"It's what I always wanted," Claudia said. She thought about running away more times than she could count, but she couldn't bear the thought of leaving behind her baby brother.
"I know," Max said, glancing at his watch. "It's late. I'm sure you're tired with traveling and everything. I'm going to head home. Call me if you need anything." Max reached in his pocket and handed her his card.
"I don't think I can stay here. John won't talk to me and I really hate this house," Claudia said. "Can you drop me off at a hotel?"
"Milo's apartment just got repainted, he moved back to his place a few days ago. My guest room is free," Max said. "It's yours if you want it, for however long you want it."
"Thank you," Claudia said. She wasn't sure of her plans. Maybe she'd stay and try to rebuild her relationship with her brother. Or maybe she'd go back to Milan. With her father dead, she finally had a chance to break free of her past and his hold over her. She could start over again in Crimson Pointe or move to Manhattan. She'd spent plenty of years running from her past. Maybe it was time to stop running.
Claudia flashed a smile as Max helped her with her jacket. There was only one thing she was sure of, she wasn't alone in the world anymore.
THE END