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“Yes. I’ll take you for the tour after this, if you feel up to it.”
Roxy comes out of the break room with a face like thunder, throws Leo’s phone on the kitchen counter, and stalks off.
“Better leave her,” Leo says, after we hear her run back upstairs. “Let the storm blow itself out.”
I hadn’t planned to go after her, but I nod. Leo stacks the dry dishes on the kitchen counter, and then looks out at the gardens again.
“I wouldn’t mind taking a look out there,” he says. “Get some fresh air.”
“You’ll love it,” I tell him with a wide smile, grabbing his hand.
He looks down at his hand in mine, eyebrows rising, the mole disappearing into a wrinkle as he does—but he doesn’t pull away.
CHAPTER37
JULIAN
Leoand I walk hand-in-hand through the well-maintained grounds of Redwood Manor, and I show him the rose garden, the lush green lawns, and the colorful flower beds, until we reach the golfing green. After that, we turn back and I show him the pool, and then the hedge maze—which he doesn’t want to go into—and the Mars fountain in the fishpond, where we stop for a few minutes to watch the birds dip in and out of the water.
“This is where my mother was murdered,” I tell him, trailing a hand in the water.
“Shit,” he says. And then, “Sorry.”
“Where’s your mother?” I ask. “You never mention her.”
“Ah, she died a while back. I was twenty. She got real sick with a flu that was going around that year, went downhill fast. It was tough. I loved her a lot.”
“I’m sorry,” I say, because he said he was sorry about my mother. I want to be polite, after all.
He sits next to me on the edge of the fountain. “I had time to say goodbye.” I wish I’d had the same. I don’t say it, but Leo seems to hear it all the same, reaching out to put a hand over mine. “Is that your mom’s portrait in the salon? The one with the necklace?” At my nod, he smiles. “You look a lot like her.”
I like that idea. Every time I see the portrait, I see it new, just like my own face in the mirror. But no one’s ever told me before that I look like her.
We sit in silence for a while, watching the birds and listening to the water. It’s a peaceful spot, despite its history. I feel comfortable with Leo beside me, his hand brushing mine every now and then. It’s strange, really, how easy it is to be around him, considering that our Families are old enemies. But perhaps that’swhyit’s easy. We understand the darkness that resides within each of us. I lean back, resting my hands on the rim of the fountain, and tilt my face up to the sun, closing my eyes.
“It’s beautiful here,” Leo says, almost wistful. “But…”
“But what?”
He looks down, tracing the pattern on a tile. “A lot of bad memories for you, surely. You never thought about…” His mouth twists. “Leaving?”
I make a decision then, and stand. “Come with me,” I tell him. “I want to show you something.”
I take Leo’s hand again and we walk in silence down to the redwood grove that gives the estate its name. He touches one of the towering trees in awe, looking up as it lords over us, but I want his attention on the ground.
“Here,” I say, leading him to the largest tree, one whose roots ripple the ground around it. I take him around the trunk, and show him a little patch of wildflowers growing at the base.
“Pretty,” he says with a small smile.
I put my mouth to his ear. “This is where I spread my mother’s ashes,” I tell him quietly. “Don’t say anything. You never know who’s listening here. But this is why I can’t leave. Not until I find who killed her, and she can rest in peace.”
He crouches down and runs a gentle hand over the petals, then crosses himself swiftly.
Praying. He’s praying.
He stands and holds out his hand again, and I take it.
“Thank you for showing me,” he murmurs.
