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“I have a headache.”
“Shit, of course you do. Sorry.” She sits next to me on her bed.
“Don’t curse, Mia.”
She laughs. “Clearly, you’re fine. Priorities as solid as ever. Not worrying about how to get out of this hell, how to recover. Nope, still thinking about propriety. Makes total sense.”
“Why did I come home, again?” I sigh.
“Because I needed to see proof of life, that’s why.” She narrows her eyes at me. I open my arms out, presenting myself. She cocks her head. “I mean, physically, you’re in one piece, yes. But holy shit, Ellie, you were bombed, burned, shot at, knocked out, and your neck was sliced open, Ellie! Your neck!”
“I was there.”
“Sorry, I’m yelling again.” She flops back onto her pillows.
“How’s college life? Have you adjusted a bit better since I last called you? You were—“
She puts a hand on my arm. “I love you, but we are not going to talk about stupid classes at stupid college right now.” She pauses. “Have you talked to Luna?”
“No.” I lay down beside her. “Tío says the Italians took me. I mean, she couldn’t have known. She wouldn’t have. So I’m sure she’s trying to get to the bottom of what exactly is going on. Hopefully calm everyone down.”
“How? How could she not know? She makes it her business to know everything. I just, I mean…” her voice cracks. “Did your best friend kidnap your husband, Ellie?”
I sit up quickly to look down into her eyes. “No, I know she didn’t. She’ll call any minute now and tell me what’s going on.”
She squeezes her eyes shut. “And when she does, can you even believe her? She’s notla familia,after all. And we’re notfamiglia.If she really wants to rule, then her clan comes first. Her business comes first.” She opens her eyes and sits up. “And I hate it.I hate it!I hate this life.”
“I am starting to agree.” I say softly, putting a hand up to my neck absently.
“What?” Her eyebrows shoot through the roof.
I bite my lip, debating what to say. “I…I think Mark is cheating on me.”
“Let me get this straight. The bombs and drug lords and betrayal by your lifelong best friend, cool, fine, no big. But your husband goes dicking somewhere else and now you agree with me?”
I huff out a laugh. “Well, it’s one thing to go through all this with a partner. It’s another to be alone.”
“Buuuut,” She looks up. “I mean, cheating is not unheard of in our life, Ellie. I know Mamá lectured you about that. Men will be men and all that bullshit.”
“She did, but she was wrong. I’ve given everything to Mark and—“ I cut myself off. I don’t want to cry anymore. “I haven’t talked to him about it yet. I might be wrong. He just travels so much and still won’t let me in. He always saw this as a business transaction. He didn’t agree to a marriage partnership. He didn’t want a real relationship, he told me so. I thought affection would grow between us, but…” My voice gives out and I shrug.
“I thought it had.” She gets up to hand me my water bottle from her dresser.
I take it, but search her face. “What do you mean?”
“The last few times I’ve been around you two. He stares at you, glares at anyone who comes near you, gushes about you to people. To me, it seemed like he’d fallen pretty hard, honestly.”
I inhale and exhale, letting it all go. Even if there is any truth to what she saw, it’s over now. “He’s just a really, really good actor. C’mon, let’s go stress bake.”
“Yes! I thought you’d never ask.” She laughs and I do too. It seems more like a nervous release than actual joy, but I’ll take it.
We do bake. And cook. And sing and drink and make a mess.
We spend the whole afternoon and evening with Mamá and Olga in the kitchen like we used to when we were young. I love every second. After we’ve laughed and danced and eaten and done a fantastic job of pretending I wasn’t just kidnapped, it’s time for me to leave.
And I don’t want to.
For the first time in months, this feels more like home than the house I share with Mark.
