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I tell myself I’ve grown used to his anger. A thrill of exhilaration runs through me. Point one, Elise.
“Hey, what’s up, girlfriend?” I look up to see Angelina walking over to me. I grin at her. She’s glowing as if lit from within, a happy mother and happy wife.
I look to see Tavi and Orlando are chatting at the edge of the garden.
“Oh, hey. How are you? That baptism was beautiful.”
“Thank you,” she says warmly, then sidles up beside me. “So I’m told we’re reading Tarot cards tonight?”
“Ha, supposedly. Who’s got the baby?”
She snorts. “Your future husband, of course. Seriously, Elise, he’s going to be a fantastic dad. Did you see how adorable he is with Nicolo?”
Has she been brainwashed or something? I don’t respond at first, but after a minute passes, her face grows suspicious.
“Elise… what’s going on?”
I turn away from her. Angelina’s the only real friend I have here so far. I don’t want to push her away.
“It’s hard to imagine the guy who’s imprisoned me as a good dad or good husband, you know?” I ignore the pang that hits my chest. I thought I could share my reticence and anger with her, but I don’t know if she gets it anymore. I can’t share it with Marialena, or any of the other women here. Vittoria’s married to Romeo, and she looks at him with the same starry eyes as Angelina has for Orlando. Tosca, the matriarch of the family, has been kind to me, but her adherence to Family laws supersedes all else.
And there are no other friends for me outside the Rossi circle, nor will there ever be. The Rossi family keeps things so close to the vest, they even have a family doctor who does house calls. It’s practically a damn cult.
Angelina smiles. “I know, babe. I do. I thought the same thing at first, but you’ll see… they have a strong moral code. And yeah, they don’t do things the way you and I do, or did, but they’re loyal. So loyal.” Her voice gets a faraway sound to it and her eyes grow distant. I have the strange, unshakable feeling she isn’t telling me everything.
Maybe she’s only mulling over her own unexpected foray into love. I watch her absentmindedly finger her necklace, the “riot of flowers” Orlando paid a small fortune for. I’ve been jealous of that stunning piece since I first saw it.
Angelina continues. “You know, I didn’t think I’d come to fall in love, but I did.”
I snort. “Love? Yeah, no.”
I look back at Tavi. The beautiful, handsome-as-sin, diabolical Tavi.
I will not love this man.
“We’ll see,” Angelina says softly. “We’re going back to the house, and girl, wait until you see that spread they’ve got for us. And let’s see what the cards say tonight, okay?”
Back at The Castle, I realize Angelina was absolutely right about at least one thing. The entire Great Hall’s been transformed into something out of a fantasy, which doesn’t take much because it’s already magnificent. Huge tables covered in silvery tablecloths bear large platters of fruit cut into works of art, another table hosts crackers and cheese from all over the world, and another a fondue station that has my mouth watering. One made of cheese with an array of things to dip into it, another with a chocolate fountain. Yum. Chocolate’s my obsession.
Uniformed staff bear trays with flutes of champagne, while still others have platters of appetizers and finger sandwiches. Round tables are set with fabric tablecloths and water glasses. Carafes, mugs for coffee and overflowing baskets of bread with little pats of butter in the shape of rose petals wait at every table.
Okay, so my family never did anything like this, most especially for a child who’ll never even remember it. A sudden realization hits me straight in the solar plexus.
I draw in a sharp breath. If this is how they do a baptism, the wedding’s going to be epic. I cringe at the very thought.
I’ve kept close to Tavi on purpose, so he knows I’m still nearby, and I’ve managed to hide my bare wrist from him. I had a member of staff fetch me a long-sleeved cardigan and donned it as soon as we got home. If he knows, he hasn’t let on. I suspect he doesn’t, not yet.
I feel my upper arm through the sweater. He’s embedded something there, though, I know he has, and I know he’s enabled my phone with air tags as well.
I’m not going to try to escape. First, I have nowhere to escape to, and I wouldn’t want to put any more of a burden on my best friend than I already have.
But a girl can have a little fun.
I take a large plate of food and walk over to the table where Angelina and Marialena sit, easily thirty feet from Tavi. My wrist should be on fire by now. I swing it freely for one gleeful second before I hide it again. I’m hardly free, but I do have the momentary upper hand. Heh.
