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Quickly, Ellis greets the rest of the family. With a wink in Sabine’s direction, Ellis continues, “Man, you did well for yourself there. I saw a photo of you online, at the charity thing. I couldn’t help but notice the collar of diamonds.”
“It was the best option for the dress,” I answer casually, remembering the blinding necklace around her throat as she rode me. I’ve yet to rope her to the bed, but I will. I’ll thread diamonds around her wrists while I fuck myself catatonic.
In reply, Sabine and Ben laugh quietly. Ellis smirks. “Of course it was. YourMaximilianfinally found a home, huh? I’m pleased for you.”
Everything in that safe, hand-made by me, was intended for my future wife, whoever she may be. It turns out it’s Ava.
A message on my phone catches my eye. I don’t need to open it because the message is short and easy to read.
Luca is here.
“Hopefully Jeremy’s back with her now.”
I almost don’t hear Ellis, my head roaring, drowning everything out.
Luca is here.
My head snaps to attention, my thoughts paralysed. “What?”
“Jeremy walked me here,” Ellis explains. “To show me the way because you ignored my text. But then he was heading right back.”
Racing for the door, I yell at one of the officers. “One of you with me! Luca Russo is here.”
I hurtle down the corridor, pulling up the tracking app on my phone. The minuscule tracker hidden in the setting of Ava’s ring, pulses on the screen. The map tells me she’s still at the hospital, moving through the car park in a south-westerly direction.
Dodging porters and disorientated visitors, I call Jeremy.
“She’s gone!” he answers. “I was just about to call.”
“It’s Luca. Check the car park. South-west direction. Block the exit if you need to. I’m following the tracker.”
Running through the main doors I consult the app again, relieved to see she’s still moving within the hospital perimeter. The Belgian officer runs into the car park, talking into his radio as I charge off towards Ava. I call Dad, surprised at how level my voice is, because inside . . . inside I’m falling apart. “Ava’s been taken by Luca. Call security to block the car park exit, and then get as many officers here as you can.”
I scan the open-air car park, hunting for her. Clouds that had been covering the moon slide away at speed. To my right, Jeremy is running for the exit.
The app directs me to a point twenty metres away. For a moment, I think about redirecting Jeremy, but a nagging worry stays my hand. What if Luca evades me? What if, somehow, the app is faulty and leading me astray?
So no, I leave Jeremy to stand guard at the exit as I close in on the stationary dot on my phone.
There are several parked cars ahead. The engines are silent, the windows foggy with condensation. I creep past two, three, looking in windows and discounting them before moving on to a fourth, a fifth.
Consulting the app again, I can’t understand why she isn’t here. And then I spot it. Ava’s diamond. My heart drops to my feet as I pick it up from the ground.
A rumbling engine starting nearby has my ears pricking. Immediately, I hurtle towards the dark-coloured car, sprinting as fast as I can. My chest heaves, my arms pumping as adrenaline scours through my veins. The headlights blind me as it swings out from the space and speeds away.
It’s got to be Luca.
“Nooooo!” I roar, my voice echoing across the car park.
Engine revving, Luca’s Mercedes roars down the straight towards the exit barrier, but I can see Jeremy there. See two security men, police officers as well. They gesture with torches for the car to slow down, but it’s not stopping. It’s going to ram through the barrier and out the other side to freedom because there are no other cars queuing, ready to slot their ticket in the machine and slow him down.
And that’s when I hear a sound that gives me hope.
From out of nowhere, Dad’s chauffeur appears, driving in front of the Mercedes and blocking the exit. Luca brakes hard, the car fishtailing. When he regains control, he races towards the opposite end of the car park.
I chase after him, my lungs bellowing. I worry there’s an exit I don’t know about. A place where Luca will drive away, my whole life inside the vehicle.
When he reaches the end of the lane, he turns left. I cut through the parked cars, trying to second-guess his direction. That’s when I spot a man getting into his car, the key in his hand. I run up to him and push my way inside, snatching the key from his hand and revving the hell out of the parking space.
