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I stagger to my feet and shut off the water, then grab a fluffy white towel and dry off as quickly as I can. I have to get downstairs and speak with Rio. Even if he’s not well enough to do anything right now, I have to tell him what the man said to me in the club.
And then, together, we will uncover the truth about our enemy. And go get our daughter back.
If it’s not already too late to save her.
* * *
Rio
When Bianca entersthe sitting room, a waft of her sweet citrus scent accompanies her. Her skin is pink and clean-looking, and her hair still damp. She’s wearing a black sweater and casual black sweatpants, and she looks as beautiful and innocent as ever.
But as she comes close, I notice subtle differences in her demeanor. The tension in her jaw, the rigid line of her shoulders, and worst of all, an empty darkness behind her eyes that I’ve never seen there before.
It matches what I see in the mirror every morning when I stare at my own reflection. I never want to see that in my wife, and yet there it is, right in front of me.
Pity rises in my chest for the mental journey I know she has ahead of her. But no matter how hard it is, I will not do to her what my mother did to me. I will never tell her to lock the darkness away, because when you do that, it only grows.
I will get her the help she needs to deal with the trauma of killing someone. If she wants it.
But not until we get our daughter back.
She squats down beside me and strokes a gentle hand over my thigh, and I have to fight not to fold her into my arms and command her to stay there forever.
Instead, I cover her hand with mine, taking a moment to simply enjoy the connection, skin to skin.
“Are you feeling all right, Rio? What did the doctor say?” Her voice is surprisingly strong.
I half expected her to be crying and trembling, but she isn’t showing any of the angst I know must be eating her up deep down inside.
“I’m fine,mia cara. All stitched up and almost as good as new. Areyou…all right?”
Ah, there it is, finally. The brief tremble of her mouth, the jolt of her pulse beneath my fingers as I caress her wrist.
But then she lifts her lips into an obviously fake smile and raises her chin to meet my gaze. “Of course. I’m fine. I didn’t get…shot.”
“Bianca, we will talk about what happened out there in the forest—”
“No. I don’t want to. Not now.” She snatches her hand back from beneath mine and rubs her palms together.
I open my mouth to say something else, but she shakes her head, stalling my words.
“Rio, wait. There’s something I need to tell you. I have information that I think you need to hear. I… I would have told you earlier, but this whole night has been… Well.”
She swallows, and her eyes dart around nervously. She is not all right. Not by a long shot.
I pat the seat beside me on my uninjured side, and she climbs up and slides onto it. I wrap my right arm around her shoulders, securing her against me, and she lets out a long sigh as if my touch has given her comfort.
“Rio, please don’t be mad at me. I wanted to tell you… I tried a few times to tell you…”
My senses instantly go on alert. Somehow, I know this is going to be momentous.
“What is it, Bianca? The nanny alluded to something out there. She said you were told. In the club. Is that what you want to talk to me about?”
She nods, and keeps nodding, as if her nerves have gotten the better of her.
I take her chin between my thumb and forefinger and bring her nod to an end. “What did the man say to you, Bianca?”
Her body begins to shake. She clutches her hands in her lap. “He said… He said… It’s so crazy, and it can’t be real. I’m sure of it. But Rio, he said my mother, Rina…”
