Chapter 9 - Luciano Had to Own the Shove
Everyone inside the Moretti family called Luciano’s reaction protective.
He did protect Ellie.
But the shove became part of the review too.
Celina threw the box.
Then rushed toward him.
Luciano caught her wrist.
At that point he had control of the immediate danger.
Then he shoved her hard enough to send her into the photo display.
Glass shattered.
She could have been seriously injured.
She wasn’t.
But that did not make the force automatically necessary.
When Ellie eventually asked:
“Did you push Celina because she hurt Bunny?”
Luciano answered carefully.
“I pushed her because I was angry and because she came toward us.”
“Was that good?”
“Stopping her from reaching you was good.”
“The push?”
He hesitated.
“I used more force than I needed.”
Ellie frowned.
“But she was mean.”
“Yes.”
“So why do you care?”
Because this family had spent generations believing power made actions righteous.
Aldo used money and lawyers.
Celina used status and intimidation.
Luciano did not want Ellie learning that his version was acceptable simply because he loved her.
“Because being angry doesn’t make everything okay.”
Ellie considered that.
Then nodded.
“Bunny still stays broken?”
“For now.”
“Good.”
Luciano almost smiled.
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Children understand accountability better than adults when adults stop trying to decorate it.
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