She refused to notarize them until I paid the agreed amount. Like a chump with no brains, I handed over the requested amount without thought. I would have thought more if Camille hadn’t been beside me while I transferred my hard-earned money to an offshore account.
My thoughts shift back to the present when Giovanni says, “I’ll loop in Elio and Nico.” His voice shifts from the don of the Cosa Nostra to a concerned sibling. “They’re still working.”
I don’t bother hiding my surprise.
The Carusos don’t stop until we get answers.
“But, Dante, you need to be careful. If this is about more than Lucia rejecting Edoardo, there may be rules in play we can’t ignore.”
“I understand,” I say, and I mean it.
“We’ll gather as much intel as we can before you arrive back at the compound.”
I squeeze the bridge of my nose to ease the pain my next confession will cause. “I’m not coming back to the compound.”
Giovanni’s scoff is disapproving and all too familiar. “Did you hear a word I fucking spoke? This could go above us.Wayabove us.”
“I heard,” I counter. “But I want to be close enough that if she needs me, I’m not a ten-minute drive away.”
Nothing but silence sounds out of my phone speaker.
I fucking hate it.
“I’ll give her space. All the space she needs. There’ll be an entire fucking wall between usif that’s what she wants.”My last five words are whispers, but Giovanni hears them. His back molars ring down the line, followed by the ripple of his clenched fist. “Don’t act like you wouldn’t have done the same if Valentina had chosen to stay at her aunt’s.”
That settles it.
His exhale is a soft surrender, as are the words he speaks next. “Call me if you need anything.”
“I will.”
When he ends our call, I store my phone and turn back to face Camille. She hasn’t moved. She’s still exactly where I left her. The only difference is that her gaze is fixed on the street where Lucia vanished. She’s struggling to piece together a puzzle more complex than a child should take on.
“What are you thinking,stellina?”
She peers up at me with intense, searching eyes. Without her saying a word, I know what Lucia is trying to teach her matters, because the most valuable lessons aren’t taught; they’re experienced.
