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“Are you okay?” the driver asked. This spoke to just how crazy and awful the whole situation was. The driver had never spoken to me before unless he absolutely had to. He had angled the mirror to see me better, so I figured I’d make the effort to reply.
“I’m fine.” I was annoyed that things had happened so fast, and I’d allowed myself to be sent back to the house. I should have stayed to find out what happened. I understood now why the uncles had been angry; they had every right to be there. They were the head of the family, after all. I couldn’t believe Nonna Rosa had set it all up without their knowledge. “Jesus,” I huffed into my hand as I let it all process. What would happen now? What did all this mean? Who could have been behind it? Losing the elders was huge, and I couldn’t imagine where we went from there. I certainly wasn’t prepared for this yet, so I needed to get my head in the game to be ready for the next shoe to drop.
When I arrived back at the house and stood in the entryway, something strange came over me. I realized I was alone in the house for the first time. No uncles, Nonna, Salvo, Mariano, Stefano, or Anna. All were either dead, missing, or out dealing with the aftermath of what had happened. I’d hoped for a moment like this since I arrived.
I rushed toward Nonna’s office, ignoring the house staff as I passed through the rooms. I stopped at her office door and found it locked. I remembered seeing her coming out a few times, and she always turned toward the window. I never thought much of it until now. I ran my hand along the top of the windowsill but felt nothing. Humm. I searched the curtains, and just when I’d thought my theory was wrong, I looked down into the track and saw the key. It was completely unnoticeable unless you knew what you’re looking for.
“There you are.” I fished it out and disappeared inside.
The office was bland and simple, much like Nonna was. I shook her mouse on her computer, and it flickered on, and her password bar popped up. I started typing in different words, but then it hit me, and I typed it in.
Mikey.
Her desktop was full of files. I didn’t care what was important and what wasn’t. I wanted it all. Opening the transfer link the way Ugo showed me, I highlighted everything and started to transfer the Coppola data from her computer to Elio’s.
I spotted her old filing cabinet and shimmied it open with the letter opener from her desk. I chuckled at how outdated her office was. Quickly, I flipped the tabs on the files, speed reading the names. I had no idea what I was looking for, but I felt I’d know it when I saw it.
When my birth name popped up in the M section, I pulled it out and fingered through what was inside. There was a copy of my birth certificate, a photo of my father holding me as a baby with my mother in the background looking uneasy. Then…a baby photo with a date on it. It was two years after I was born. Who was this? And why was it in my file? There were indentations along the side of the photo like someone had written something on a piece of paper over the photograph. Moving it in the light I made out the words.
You should.
I shook my head, not wanting yet another mystery to solve, and tossed the paperwork into my bag along with a few other photos. I was about to close the cabinet when I spotted both Ugo’s and my mother’s files. Curiosity got the best of me, and I shoved those in my bag too.
I jumped when I heard something crash. I looked up at the ceiling, as I was quite sure my own room was above this office. I checked to see where the progression of the file transfer was.
Damn, it was only at forty percent.
I heard another noise above and couldn’t ignore it anymore. I turned off the monitor, returned the mail opener, and locked the door behind me as I left. I would just have to go back later and hope Nonna stayed away for the rest of the night. I decided to skip returning the key. That way, I could ensure I was the only one who could get into the room. I raced up the stairs, down the hall and flew into my room.
What the hell?
A girl lay on my bed. Her stomach was bleeding, and she was struggling to breathe.
“Oh, my God!” I rushed forward and climbed on all fours toward her across the mattress. “Anja?” I recognized her as the girl Stefano had planted at Noemi’s house. “Oh, Anja. What’s happened? What are you doing here?” A strong smell assaulted my nose, and I fought to clear it away.
“Leave,” she struggled to speak, “you need to leave.”
“Who did this?” I grabbed a pillow to press against her stomach wound, but I knew I was too late. The poor young woman who’d been caught up in a power tug-of-war would never go home again. I had hoped she was long gone and back with her family. I realized that was naïve of me.
“She thinks I know,” she grunted.
“Know what?” I grabbed her hand. I wanted her to get it out so I could repay whoever had done this to her.
“Her secret.”
“What secret?” It was frustrating that her mind was working in spurts. It felt like talking to my mother. Her eyes widened, and she looked above me, a tear rolled through her eyelashes.
“Behind you,” she whispered urgently. Fear filled me as I turned to look.
Noemi was holding a gun in one hand and a lit candle in the other. When she moved, the flame shook and flickered.
“There’s no one who can hear you scream,” she said as she closed the door, and I felt my blood run cold. “The kingdom is falling.”
“What are you doing?” I felt Anja’s hand go limp in mine, and I glanced at her lifeless eyes and let out a sob. I felt so bad for her.
“She knew!” Noemi’s shifty eyes moved to Anja. “She embedded herself in my home and figured it out.”
“What did she find out?”
