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“Sure,” Casey shouts back. If Ruby and I hadn’t said goodbye to her, she would have walked out of the shop without saying anything to us.
I’m left with Ruby and Piero and wondering when Gianni will return. I kind of hope he doesn’t, as I don’t want to witness him and Piero in their silent battle. His bad mood when he left is only a telltale sign of the mood he will be in this evening after my stupid announcement. I don’t want Piero aggravating him further.
And what if Gianni doesn’t make it back? Do I drive to his house anyway? I’m about to check my phone when Piero comes out of the office.
“Hey, Ruby, you might as well get off home. The shop is dead, and I’m sure Chloe and I can lock up.” Ruby stands with her hand on the side of the counter as if it is holding her up. She glances at the huge clock which hangs on the left-hand wall. It is forty-five minutes before her shift ends. I can tell from her face that she’s unsure about this. It’s unusual, irregular even.
“There’s no need.” She smiles. “I can stay until I’m done.” Some people’s reluctance to break the rules surprises me. If Piero told me to go home early, I would already be putting on my coat and starting my car. Some people aren’t like that—Ruby isn’t like that. She finishes at seven, so she’ll stay until seven. And even though it is Piero, the boss, telling her to go home, she still feels as though she’s doing something wrong.
“I insist.” Piero jabs the air with his words. “You have helped us out this week and come out of your way. Your commute is long, so you might as well have a head start.” He beams a solid smile in her direction that seems to do the trick.
“Well, if you’re sure.” She unties her apron as she pads to the office. She glances at me with an apologetic look, but I nod it away.
As Ruby gathers her things in the office, I’m struck by the fact there’s now only Piero and me in the shop. Before, I would not have been bothered by this, but now? I’m not sure what I feel. Uneasy? I can’t quite explain it, but I scramble for something to do, anything to avoid talking to Piero. I wonder if the gossip about Gianni and me has reached his ears. I search for a job, but Ruby has been too efficient. Everything has been done, and all that’s left to do is stand behind the counter and pray for a customer.
Right on cue, a group of businesswomen arrive, and I exhale with relief as I busy myself with their order.
“Do you need a hand?” Ruby asks as she walks out of the office, her jacket fastened and bag on her shoulder.
“No, you get off,” I insist. “I got this.” She thanks me with a smile and leaves the shop.
I take my time with the order. I don’t want these women to leave. Piero is in the office, doing what, I don’t know, but I hope he stays there until it is time to close.
Two lattes and an Americano later, the women have paid and gone. I clean the machine. I wipe down the already clean counter and pray for more customers. I keep glancing at the hands on the clock, willing them to move forward. I want to get my phone to call Gianni, but it is in the office where Piero is hiding. God, I need to stop this. Piero has done nothing wrong. He’s polite and well-mannered. Yes, he has a thing with his brother, but that has nothing to do with me. If Gianni were here, then maybe it would be a different situation.
But Gianni isn’t here.
I need to stop this silliness.
Piero is no threat to me.
I’m at work. This is a normal day.
But so was the day with Lewis.
Is that what’s wrong with me? This all feels too familiar—the staff leaving, Lewis and I remaining, the quiet shop, getting ready to shut for the day. Panic builds, but I must stop it. Gianni isn’t here. This can’t happen now, not in front of Piero.
I’m about to step outside and get some air when Piero comes marching out of the office. His phone is ringing, and he appears to be very animated. He answers it quickly, stopping in the middle of the shop.
“What is it? No, I’m still here. Yes. I sent Ruby home early. The shop is dead. Right. Really? Oh my God. Okay. What do you want me to do? Okay. No, I can do that. Are they sure? Okay.” Piero ends the call. His smile is gone. He stares at me, his phone still gripped in his hand.
“That was Gianni,” he says. “The police called him. There has been a sighting of Carl near the shop.” A cold breeze rushes over my skin. The door must be open, but it isn’t. I’d not gotten that far. It is the last thing I expected Piero to say. His face is pale, a slight tremor to his hand. He doesn’t strike me as a man of action and appears out of his depth.
“I have to go,” I announce, already hot-footing it to the office.
“Gianni said you’re not to leave in your car. He said I have to take you somewhere safe.” I stop by the doorway. The niggle remains. Why is Gianni calling Piero? After all that he has said and all I’ve seen. It doesn’t feel right. I need to check my phone. “I’ll close the shop, and I’ll drive you somewhere. Gianni says he’ll call us and tell us where to meet him. He’s on the way back from the other branch, and traffic is awful.” Piero is giving me too much information. None of this makes sense. If Carl had been sighted, then the police would be here. They would have called me. No, this isn’t right, but I need to be careful about how I play this. Piero is obviously up to something, but what?
“Okay,” I say slowly. “I’ll grab my things.” Piero nods and starts turning everything off. I slowly jog into the office and over to my locker. I jam my key in and pull my belongings out, my jacket tumbling to the floor. I bend down to scoop up my jacket at the same time as trying to find my phone. I must be quick. It will not take Piero long to turn everything off. My hands are shaking as I pull my phone out of my bag. There are no missed calls. There’s nothing from the police. There’s one single text sitting on the screen, Gianni’s emoji telling me that the text is from him. Four brief words that even I can read.
Gianni:I love you too.
“Chloe?” Piero stands in the doorway. I don’t have time to feel the elation of Gianni’s declaration. All I see is Piero.
“I was checking my phone to see if Gianni or the police have called.” I almost giggle in my effort to keep the panic from my voice. Piero glares at me, assessing my reactions. I’m not sure whether Piero knows about Gianni and me.
“Why would Gianni call you personally?” Piero asks. Okay, so maybe Piero doesn’t know about us. I need to be careful. Maybe Gianni didn’t ring me for that reason. He still wants to go ahead with this charade and keep our relationship a secret, but it still doesn’t feel right. I get the impression Piero is the last person Gianni would trust to keep me safe.
“Come.” Piero holds out his hand. “We need to leave now.”
