Zach and Meredith didn't come to Shadow Hills alone. Alaric and Jo accompanied the couple. Bonnie wasn't surprised when Damon and his uncles began to circle the wagons. Giuseppe's actions had put the nearly 70-year relationship between their families in jeopardy. Her family would only be satisfied with blood as retribution for the attack. She knew from experience that the debt need not be settled solely with the guilty party. The life of anyone in the organization could be forfeit if the Benedetto Family didn't feel satisfied. Damon wanted to keep everything quiet until he had a handle on the situation.
The item at the top of the agenda had been to get medical attention for Bonnie. Jo and Meredith were concerned about the variety of visible injuries. However, they were even more concerned about the state of the girl's pregnancy. Bonnie hadn't reported any symptoms that would suggest a miscarriage but nothing could be ruled out in the face of such a violent attack. Jo had gone as far as to harangue Dr. Huerta for Bonnie's medical records before their arrival. The doctor had refused to violate doctor-patient confidentiality until Bonnie gave permission over the phone. She trusted her aunts-in-law with the information. Jo and Meredith had always been good to her.
The two Salvatore women commandeered the local doctor's office and gave Bonnie a full work up. Jo tried to keep Damon out of the room because she wanted to have a frank conversation with the young woman. However, he insisted on being with there for the examination. Fortunately, the attack hadn't harmed the babies. She was just entering her second trimester and everything was progressing normally. Moreover, all of Bonnie's injuries were on the mend. She was fitted with a sling to immobilize her arm and elbow. Meredith diagnosed a serious elbow sprain that would take a week or more to heal. The good news was that Bonnie didn't have any torn ligaments so surgery wasn't necessary.
When they returned to the mansion, everyone sat down to eat dinner as a family. The adults were mostly quiet. The topics on their minds weren't appropriate for the dinner table or mixed company. However, Sarah's cheerful chattering helped breathe life into the room. No one could resist her contagious happiness. Sarah insisted on detailing all the fun she had since arriving in Shadow Hills. She told them all about her shopping spree with Bonnie at the local toy store. The little girl proved just how resilient children could be in the face of adversity. Bonnie was thrilled that the fear stemming for what she witnessed was starting to ebb away.
After dinner, Bonnie and Sarah baked cookies with Jo's assistance. While the cookies cooled, Sarah went outside with Ric to play with the remote control car that Damon had given her.
Jo stayed behind to help Bonnie clean up the kitchen. "I've been hoping to talk to you alone, Bonnie."
Bonnie stopped loading the dishwasher and looked at the older woman. "What's on your mind?"
Jo dried her hands and said, "Let's sit down for this."
Bonnie closed the dishwasher and said, "I feel as if I am being called into the principal's office. What's wrong?"
Jo sat down at the island with Bonnie and said, "I am not going to beat around the bush about this, Bonnie. I am concerned about your weight."
"We talked about that earlier at the doctor's office. Dr. Huerta was concerned, but I am taking the prenatal vitamins every day. I also started eating healthy snacks between meals as he recommended," she replied.
"I am more concerned about why you were so underweight in the beginning. I looked at your medical records and you have been underweight for well over a year. I didn't bring this up in front of Damon because I didn't want to embarrass you," Jo explained.
Bonnie tensed and said, "I've always been petite…you know that."
Jo nodded. "You have always had the lean build of a dancer. However, there is a difference between being lean and being unhealthy. Meredith mentioned that you have a fairly intense daily exercise regimen."
The younger woman was beginning to get defensive. "Just because I don't dance anymore doesn't mean I intend to let myself go."
"You know very well that isn't what I meant. I think that you have been exercising too much and eating too little in order to lose weight. I don't want to make assumptions but please tell me this isn't in some bid to please Damon."
Bonnie felt her cheeks grow hot with embarrassment. She stood up. "I am not having this conversation with you. I am eating properly now."
"I am not trying to offend you or hurt your feelings, Bonnie. I am worried about you. What you were doing prior to finding out that you are pregnant was unhealthy. You're a smart girl and you are beautiful. Damon isn't going to be any more interested in you if you wear a smaller size."
She huffed in annoyance. "You don't know anything about my marriage to Damon. You have no right making assumptions about him or me."
Jo held up a placating hand. "Listen, I have been where you are. Ric loves me but he has a wandering eye. When I was younger, I thought that his infidelity was because of me. I thought that I was doing something wrong. For God's sake, I got breast implants to entice him. It didn't work and they gave me back problems. I'm older now and I know that it's just his personality. The Salvatore men are incapable of fidelity. I care for you and I don't want to see you make the same mistakes that I did."
Bonnie knew that Jo wasn't trying to embarrass her. This conversation was coming from a place of genuine concern. "Why are you still with him?"
Jo stood up and smiled sadly. "I stay with Ric because I love him. I had to learn to accept him as he was. Expecting more would only set me up for failure and heartbreak. The best thing I ever did was get those stupid implants removed. He can take me as I am or he can leave. In 17 years, he hasn't gone anywhere and he never will. Just consider it a little food for thought, Bonnie."
She watched the older woman walk out of the room and considered her warning. Bonnie knew more about her husband's extramarital activities than she let on. While Katherine was Damon's main mistress, he frequently had dalliances with other women. He was currently seeing a local news anchor in his free time but Katherine was the only long-term relationship. Bonnie didn't know if she could live with Damon cheating on her for the rest of their married lives. It hurt her too much. However, Jo was right about not altering herself for Damon's benefit. Everything she had done to capture his attention had fallen flat. He hadn't even noticed the weight loss. He was no more and no less interested in her than he had always been. It was just as well since she was pregnant now. She planned to do everything in her power to reach the weight goals set by Dr. Huerta.
Ric walked into the kitchen carrying Sarah on his shoulders. His grin faded when he saw the tight expression on Bonnie's face. "Is everything okay?"
Bonnie nodded and said, "Uh, everything is fine. The two of you are just in time to have some cookies. They are finally cool enough to eat."
Ric didn't believe Bonnie but he could understand why she wouldn't want to confide in him.
Sarah cheered. "Cookies! I want to share some with Papa."
She smiled at her daughter and walked over to the counter. She grabbed a freezer bag and loaded it with a generous number of cookies. She figured that Ric would indulge in the chocolaty treats as well. Bonnie handed the bag over to Sarah and kissed her cheek. "I bet he'll love that, bambolina."
"Thank you, Mama." She petted the top of Ric's head. "Let's go find Papa."
Ric chuckled and carried Sarah down the hall to the office. Damon had disappeared into the room shortly after they finished eating dinner. Ric walked into the office with Sarah still on his shoulders. The girl adored her great-uncle and it showed. "Someone has been looking everywhere for you, Damon."
Sarah was holding the bag of cookies while grasping a handful of Ric's hair to keep her balance. "I didn't know where you went," she added with an adorable pout.
Damon offered his daughter a guilty smile because he hadn't spent very much time with her. He had spent most of the afternoon trying to get a handle on the current situation. More importantly, he had to pinpoint his father's location. Not knowing Giuseppe's current position was dangerous. He stood up and met them in the middle of the room. Damon took his daughter from Ric's shoulders and hugged her. "Is that right? Have you been looking for me?"
She nodded her head and handed him the freezer bag with double chocolate pecan cookies in it. "Me and Mama baked cookies for you."
Damon took the bag and chuckled. "Are these just for me?"
Sarah looked up at him with big blue eyes. "And for me, too."
He was surprised that Bonnie was letting Sarah have cookies so late. Normally, Damon was the parent that let their little princess get away with murder. Bonnie was the one that set and enforced the rules. However, everything was out of whack because she was usually in bed at this time. "Well, cookies are no good without dipping them into a cold glass of milk. What do you say we go get some milk from the kitchen?"
Her face lit up as she nodded excitedly. "Can we have choco milk?"
Damon smiled. "You can have whatever you want."
Ric shook his head with a smirk. He liked seeing his nephew interact with his daughter. Damon rarely looked happier than he did with Sarah in his arms. However, his smile faltered when smelled the bourbon coming off him. Now he knew why Damon had locked himself in the office.
Sarah looked over her shoulder at Ric. "Are you coming with us, Zio?"
He said, "As long as you don't tell Aunt Jo that I had cookies. She has me on a diet."
Sarah looked very solemn as she nodded. She promised, "I won't tell."
Damon chuckled as they walked into the empty kitchen. "Well, Sarah might not tell but I will."
Ric grabbed a carton of milk and the chocolate syrup from the refrigerator.
The five year old pointed at her father. "Being a tattle tale isn't nice, Papa."
Ric grinned and said, "Yeah, Damon, being a tattle tale isn't nice."
Damon rolled his eyes at Ric as he sat down at the island with Sarah. He said, "It isn't tattling if it is to protect someone. Auntie Jo wants Zio to be healthy so that he lives a long time."
Sarah's eyes went big. She held the bag of cookies against her chest protectively. "I'm sorry, Zio. You can't have any cookies. I want you to live forever! You can have milk. Mama says it is good for you."
Ric had to hold back a laugh at her sincerity. He made the three of them glasses of chocolate milk. He sat beside his great-niece at the island. "You're right. Milk is very good for you."
Damon opened the freezer bag and took out some of the cookies. He placed two in front of Sarah.
She beamed up at him as she took a huge bite. "Thank you, Papa."
Damon broke one of his cookies in half and dunked it into his glass of chocolate milk.
Sarah watched him and tried to mimic the actions. She stuck half her hand into the glass but pulled the soggy cookie out with a huge smile on her face. Sarah stuffed the cookie into her mouth with a happy little grin.
Ric asked, "Have you had fun here with Mama, Principessa?"
She nodded while dunking the other half of her cookie into the chocolate milk. "We went shopping. Mama let me pick out all the toys I wanted. I even got a new bike. It's so pretty, Zio."
"Wow. Have you ridden your new bike?" Damon asked.
Sarah stopped nibbling on her cookie and shook her head. "I don't know how and Mama was sick so she couldn't teach me."
Ric winced when he heard the way her voice went quiet at the last part. "Mama was sick?"
Damon gave Ric a warning look. He didn't want to pressure Sarah about what happened at home. His daughter had been through enough.
Sarah nodded. She fidgeted with a cookie and refused to look at her father or uncle. "Can we stay here, Papa? I don't want to go home."
He had the urge to throw his glass against the wall but managed to restrain his temper. Damon picked up Sarah and sat her on his knee. "We can stay here for as long as you want to, bambolina."
"Good. I like it here," she replied. She picked up another cookie and dunked it into the glass.
Damon frowned because that was the first crack he'd seen in his daughter's cheerful attitude. As a child, he used to pretend that everything was okay, too. He knew that no one was coming to save him. He didn't want Sarah to grow up that way. He didn't want her to turn out the way that he did. Most people would think that he had everything together in his life. However, all he wanted do right now was crawl into the bottom of the nearest bottle. The one thing he had going for him was his ability to be a functioning alcoholic.
Damon's alcoholism was a secret to no one, least of all him. He couldn't pinpoint the moment when he began to need a drink when he woke up each morning. However, he could clearly remember the moment when he learned that he couldn't go a day without a drink. He was all of 20 years old at the time full of swagger and cockiness. One night he decided to drag race in a car right off of Velocita's assembly line. He won the race but ended up wrapping the car around a tree. He wouldn't have survived if Zach hadn't been there to pull his broken body from the burning wreckage.
Damon had to spend three weeks in the hospital because his injuries were so severe. Damon started going through withdrawals after his third day in the hospital. It got so bad that Ric had to smuggle in a flask filled with bourbon. As he fought off the beginnings of the DTs he had to accept that he had become an alcoholic. It had surpassed the point of merely a drinking problem or a youthful indiscretion. However, in hindsight no one should have been surprised by the revelation.
He started drinking at the ripe old age of thirteen. Giuseppe never bothered to put his liquor under lock and key. The man barely even batted an eyelash a year later when he saw his son drinking a glass of his scotch at the dinner table. Then again, Ric and Zach had started drinking as teenagers, too. Perhaps the only difference was that Damon's uncles had better impulse control than he did. However, he was certain that any trained professional would diagnosis the three of them as being dependent on alcohol. Drinking excessively was just the way that they learned how to cope with their lives. It wasn't just Giuseppe's abuse that drove them to drink. The man also insisted that they all know the taste of blood when they were little more than children. Damon's first kill came when he was 15 years old.
Giuseppe had suspected that there was a snitch in his organization for weeks. One of their shipments had nearly been intercepted by the ATF. They might have been caught red-handed if it wasn't for the payoffs that Giuseppe liberally spread around the local police department. They tipped him off ahead of time and he was able to switch the meeting place. However, after that narrow escape with the feds he began investigating his four capos. They were the only ones that knew the details of the shipment outside of his Uncles Bruno and Jackie.
Giuseppe ended up landing on Francisco De Santis or as Damon used to call him at the time, Uncle Frankie. The man had been like a father to him. He taught Damon how to clean his gun and to fire it. He used to take the boys hunting a couple times a year. Giuseppe forced Damon to torture the man until he confessed to being an informant. Francisco had been busted with a trunk full of semi automatic weapons that he had been skimming from the organization and selling for his own profit. The ATF dropped the case in exchange for his information and later testimony. When Giuseppe was satisfied, he made Damon slit Francisco's throat. He hadn't been able to sleep without nightmares for weeks after that happened. Damon knew that he had never stood a chance of being a decent human being after that.
Damon looked down when he realized that Sarah was talking to him again.
"I promise I'll take care of it," she said.
He blinked in confusion. "You'll take care of what?"
She sighed dramatically. "Weren't you listening to me, Papa?"
Ric stifled a laugh and shook his head as he swiped a cookie since Sarah wasn't looking his way.
Damon couldn't understand how his daughter could look so much like Stefan sometimes. However, she had definitely inherited that brooding forehead from him. "I'm sorry. I am listening to you now."
"I want a puppy, Papa."
He winced and asked, "A puppy? Wouldn't you like a fish instead, bambolina?"
"No, I want a puppy," she argued.
"But a puppy will probably use your pretty new doll as a chew toy," he countered.
Sarah said, "I have lots of dolls. I do not have lots of friends. My puppy would be my bestest friend ever."
Damon mentally cursed because he had officially lost this battle. He wasn't about tell his 5 year old daughter that she couldn't have a friend. It was bad enough that she was homeschooled with only her cousins as playmates. Occasionally, she had the opportunity to play with Elijah and Hayley's children. He said, "I guess you can have a puppy but you will have to share him with your cousins. You can all take care of him together."
Sarah didn't look so sure about that. Stefan's three children and Zach's four children lived at the manor. That was a lot of people to share one puppy. "Can we have two puppies?" she asked.
Ric couldn't help it that time. He cracked up laughing. "I think two puppies sounds like a great idea."
Damon glared at his uncle over Sarah's head.
"Two puppies!" she screeched happily.
Stefan walked into the kitchen with a forced smile on his face. The smile was strictly for Sarah's benefit. He said, "Hey, big brother."
Sarah's face lit up. She squealed and raised her arms toward him. "Zio!"
He crossed the kitchen and picked her up. Stefan squeezed her and then peppered her face with kisses. "There's my favorite niece!"
She hugged his neck and then asked, "Are Nico and Bella with you?"
Stefan chuckled and set her down on the ground. "Yes, they are in the living room with Tony. They can't wait to see you."
Sarah looked up at Damon with big eyes.
He laughed and handed over the bag of cookies. "Go on! Go share the cookies with your cousins."
The three men watched as the five year old bounded out of the kitchen.
Sarah yelled, "Bella! Nico! Tony! I got cookies!"
The twins cheered in response.
Damon said, "You didn't have to come, Stefan."
The younger man raked a hand through his chestnut brown hair. "I think we both know that I did. Damon, I never for …"
"You don't need to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. I know you wouldn't have left Bonnie alone with him on purpose." Damon would have loved to blame his brother. They were adversarial most of the time and a scapegoat would be nice. However, this fell squarely on his shoulders. He was the one that left his wife alone for two weeks.
Zach walked into the kitchen. "Should we do this, gents?"
Ric stood up and nodded. He was interested in what Damon had to tell them. They all knew what happened between Bonnie and Giuseppe back at the manor. Damon recounted the tale for Ric and Zach when they arrived earlier in the evening. Ric had filled Stefan in via phone.
The four Salvatore men walked to Sheila Bennett's old office. Damon always set up shop there when he brought Bonnie and Sarah to Shadow Hills. The room was soundproof, spacious, and had a well stocked bar.
Damon walked behind the desk and sat down.
Ric locked the door and nodded for Damon to get started.
"You all know that Giuseppe beat my wife to a pulp and tried to rape her. My daughter bore witness to at least part of that. He could have caused Bonnie to miscarry our twins. Now Sarah is scared to go home. I know that he is our father and your brother…."
Zach added, "He's also the boss. Taking him out is a move that we can't come back from. If any of the capos find out what we did…it'll be a civil war. It will tear the organization apart."
"You're right he is the boss but this can't be allowed to stand. Giuseppe needs to die before he hurts anyone else. What he did to all of us was terrible but it was in the past. We are grown men now and we survived. Now we are always playing interference and trying to contain this psychopath. We keep him supplied in willing prostitutes and mistresses so that he isn't out here forcing himself on innocent women. We hire the oldest possible maids at the Manor hoping that they won't catch his attention. Our wives don't even feel safe around him because they know he might turn on them without notice."
No one responded to Damon because they all knew that it was true. Giuseppe had become more violent and unhinged in the last five years.
He continued. "We can't continue to pretend that we can handle him. Even our wives know that is bullshit. Bonnie looked me in the eye today and said she is scared that one day Giuseppe will turn his attention to Sarah. I told her that was ridiculous because Sarah is his granddaughter but Bonnie reminded me that Giuseppe is her godfather. Then she told me that Jo and Caroline have the same fears for Josie, Lizzie, and Bella. Apparently, this summer Jo asked Caroline, Meredith, and Bonnie to make sure Josie and Lizzie were never alone."
An uncomfortable silence filled the office as they all tried to make sense of this situation. The wheels turning in their heads were practically audible. Damon could almost see them connecting the dots the way he had that afternoon.
Ric's jaw tightened because Jo had never mentioned her concerns to him. He couldn't believe that his wife didn't trust him enough to protect their daughters.
Zach was suddenly incredibly grateful to have four sons. His only concern was Giuseppe trying to push them into the family business before they were ready. Lucian was only 12 years old and Giuseppe wanted him to start training already.
Stefan blanched as he thought about his own little girl. Bella was only five years old. She adored Giuseppe and he had never been anything but loving towards her. However, he thought about Giuseppe's relationship with Bonnie. He doted on the girl when she was a child. Stefan had been envious of that attention at one point.
Ric said, "I've wanted to kill the asshole for years. I can make it look like an accident."
Damon asked, "How much do you know about Sheila and Giuseppe?"
The older man sat down in front of the desk. "They were together off and on since they were teenagers. She was probably the only person he was ever capable of loving. She definitely never put up with his shit."
"I guess part of Sheila not putting up with his shit meant having an insurance policy. She recorded some of her conversations with him over the years. She gave everything to Bonnie after we got married. Sheila told Bonnie to only use the recordings if she felt her life was in danger."
Ric snorted. "That sounds like Sheila."
Damon removed a tablet from the top drawer and pulled up the audio file from earlier. "Zach, I'm warning you that this might be hard to hear."
Zach raised an eyebrow at the warning but motioned for Damon to get on with it.
He pushed play and then relaxed in the chair as he watched his uncles and brother learn the truth about the man that raised them.
Zach was out of his seat as soon as the audio ended. Even if he could accept that killing their father was a business decision, he would never forgive Giuseppe for murdering his mother. He could barely remember Cecilia because she was taken from him so early in life. Zach bellowed as he slammed his fist into the wall as hard as he could.
Stefan jumped but remained silent. He couldn't imagine what Zach was feeling. Giuseppe had taken his mother from him too, but it was in a less permanent way. Lilly was still a shell of a human being even after nearly 20 years away from him. His mother still saw a therapist because she suffered from PTSD. He asked, "What do we do? We can't keep going on like this."
Damon said, "I say that we take a page out of the old man's book. You are right about killing him causing trouble because he is the boss. But maybe his bad heart just gives out…"
Zach scoffed. "That's too good for him."
Damon grinned. "Just because that is what his death certificate will say, doesn't mean that is how he will die. I have something much slower and more painful in mind for Giuseppe."
Ric said, "But first we need to get our house in order. Once Gio is dead, there can be no doubts about who will take his place. You know John Gilbert has delusions of grandeur."
John had been Giuseppe's consigliere for the last eight years. Damon despised the man because he was a kiss ass and a weasel. However, John could pose a problem if he made a play for the top spot in the organization. Damon said, "Send Mason to feel John out…discreetly. Figure out where his head is."
Ric nodded. "I'll get Mason on the phone tonight."