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“Because we need to leave.”
“Why?”
“I already told you – there’s a slim chance my uncle and cousin know about this cabin. And if that’s the case, we need to go find somewhere else.”
“Where are we going to stay?”
“There are tons of cabins up here. Some people come in the summertime, and a few live in them year-round, but most owners have them for ski season and don’t come up here any other time. All we have to do is find a place that’s deserted and far away from everybody else, and we should be okay.”
“How do we find them?”
“We go hiking.”
“And…?”
“And keep on hiking until we find one that looks like it’s deserted.”
She stared at me. “You’re joking.”
“Have you ever known me to joke about any of this, even once?”
“…no,” she grumbled.
“Exactly.” I grabbed the JanSport I’d bought at the store and pushed it into her arms. “Go pack your clothes. We’ll eat a quick lunch, and then we’re heading out.”
“What about the car?”
“We’re leaving it here.”
“Why?”
“Because this place is at the end of the road. From here on out, we’re walking through the woods.”
“…okay,” she said, and I was surprised she didn’t offer any more resistance.
36
Lucia
Before lunch, Massimo asked if I wanted to take a shower.
“That’s a hard no.”
“I turned on the water heater before we went to town,” he said. “It should be warm by now, and wherever we wind up tonight probably won’t have hot water.”
“Oh… well, in that case…”
I took the shower. The water was only a few degrees above lukewarm, but it was enough.
I didn’t wash my hair, though. The outside air was cool, even at midday, and I didn’t want to catch a cold as we hiked.
As I showered, I thought about the lesson Massimo had given me on guns.
Nona had never wanted me to touch them. And her goons certainly never taught me anything.
Massimo had been the first person ever to teach me how to handle a gun…
And it felt like power.
