No.
I blink a few times, but the image stays.
Crumpled white sheets soaked in vermillion. Dark gashes sliced into their necks. Closed eyes, and pale faces.
Their fingers are linked loosely together, and the thought of them using their last moments to reach for each other makes me choke on a sob.
Sophia jumps on the bed and starts prodding Tommaso’s arm, trying to awaken her master.
“Get away from there,” I cry out.
She must pick up on the desperation in my voice, because she listens. She hops back down and runs up to me. The poor dog. How long did she spend locked in here with them, confused about why Tommaso wasn’t answering her?
My heart falls to pieces.
Polo spent two years with them at the castello, working side by side with them, sharing meals, laughter, stories. How could he do this? Did they see him right before he did it? Did their eyes flash with confusion when they saw him lift his knife?
Bile slicks the back of my throat, and I press my palm to my mouth, but I can’t hold it back. I vomit in the corner.
Over the sound of my own retching, I hear something crash in the living room below, and it snaps me into action. I wipe my mouth with the back of my sleeve, slam the door to the bedroom shut, and push a heavy desk against it.
That will hold Polo, but not for long.
I need something to knock him out.
But there’s nothing remotely resembling a weapon in this bedroom. I rush over to the closet and start digging through the shelves. Clothes, jewelry, more clothes. Crap!
Dropping to the ground, I pull out a random cardboard box just as Polo wiggles the doorknob.
“Come out of there, Martina,” he shouts. “You’re wasting time.”
I throw the lid off the box, hoping this is exactly the kind of place Tommaso may have stashed a gun, but my chest falls when I see the contents. It’s a set of new bathroom accessories—hooks, a small round mirror, and a long towel rack.
There’s a loud thud and then a sharp squeal. Polo’s moving the desk. I don’t have time to look for anything else.
I grab the iron towel rack. It’s heavy. I can swing it at him.
Getting into position at the side of the door, I wait while Polo continues trying to get inside. Let him exert himself.
It’s the scariest few moments of my life.
My heart ricochets inside my chest as I count down the seconds. Sophia’s not barking anymore, she’s pressed up to my leg, hiding behind me. Tears spring to my eyes, but I wipe them off with my sleeve and keep my focus on the door.
Gio didn’t teach me how to hurt people. He’s only ever taught me how to defend myself.
But that’s what I’m doing now, isn’t it? I flick my gaze to the bodies on the bed and feel a sharp spike of anger.
How dare he?
I hold my breath as Polo finally starts squeezing through the crack in the door.
I lift the towel bar and swing.
The blow lands, but it doesn’t have the effect I hoped it would. Instead of tumbling to the ground, he simply stumbles a few steps before whirling around and advancing on me. His eyes are so wide, I can see the entirety of his irises.
Blood drips down his forehead as he steps closer and closer. His mouth curves into a terrifying smile. “Got you,” he whispers.
Then everything happens very quickly. There’s a blur of fur, and a flash of sharp white teeth. Sophia bites into Polo’s calf, and he lets out a bloodcurdling scream. He tries to kick her off, but I’m on him, pelting him with the towel bar. I don’t stop until he falls to the ground.
“Sophia, let’s go!”
I leap over Polo, tumble down the stairs, and sprint out of the house toward the yard. I manage to put some distance between us, and that’s when I suddenly realize I have my phone in my back pocket. In my panic, I forgot it was there. Stupid! I take it out and dial Giorgio.
He picks up on the second ring. “What is it?”
The sound of his voice works an uncontrollable sob out of me. “Gio.”
“Piccolina? What’s going on?”
“Allegra and Tommaso are dead. Polo killed them. He managed to get in touch with Sal. He’s going to bring me to him. He attacked me in the kitchen—”
“Martina.”
His sharp tone cuts through the blood rushing inside my ears. “Yes?”
“Are you hurt?”
My heart pounds. “I’m okay. A bit bruised.”
“Where is Polo right now?”
“In the staff house. Sophia and I got away from him, but I don’t know for how long.”
“Mari, listen to me. You need to get off the property. Run to the garage and take one of my cars. The keys are hanging on the wall. Drive to the airfield where we landed, and I’ll work on getting you out by plane.”
“Okay, okay.” I whip my gaze around. “Sophia!”
“Mari, you don’t have time—”
“She saved my life. I’m not leaving her. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have been able to get away from Polo,” I tell him as I run to the garage. My ears are peeled for sounds of footsteps, but there’s nothing. I see the keys, grab the first ones I find, and press on the button.
A car beeps.
“That’s the red Mercedes,” Giorgio tells me. “Go, Mari.”
My sneakers pound against the ground. I open the car, get Sophia into the back seat, and slide into the front. “Okay, I’m in.”
“You’re doing great,” he says, not a hint of panic in his voice. “There’s a remote clipped above you that will open the gate.”
Pulling out of the garage, I scan the courtyard, but Polo is nowhere to be found. I jam my finger on the remote as I approach the gate, and it swings open at a glacial pace.
“Come on, come on, come on.”
“What’s happening?”
“The gate is slow.”
“It’ll be just a second. There’s a camera right there. I can see you, Mari.”
I take a deep breath. It’s just a camera, but it gives me a bit of comfort knowing that he’s watching over me.
Finally, the opening is big enough for the car to squeeze through, and I slam on the gas.
“Drive fast but be careful,” he says. “Take a left when you reach the main road.”
“Then what?”
“You’ll see signs for the airfield. The exit is labeled clearly, you won’t miss it.”
I wish I’d seen it when we arrived here, but it was too dark. I keep my eyes peeled as I take the turn.
“I’m already in contact with your brother,” Giorgio says. “The plane was in the air on its way to pick up De Rossi, but he’s rerouted it to go to you instead. It will be landing at the airstrip in half an hour. It’ll take you fifteen minutes to get there. Park as close as you can and stay in the car. If you see anyone approaching, you’ll have to move.”
“Okay, I got it.” My clammy hands strangle the wheel as I race down the country road. The adrenaline pumping through me is like a mind-enhancing drug, and my vision tunnels on the strip of asphalt ahead. I’ve never driven as well or as fast as I am now. “I got it, Gio. I got it,” I repeat as much to him as to myself.
“That’s my girl. I’ll stay on the line with you until you’re on that plane, all right?”
Sophia whines from the seat behind me.
“Talk to me,” I say.
“I don’t want to distract you.”
“Please. Hearing your voice helps. God, Gio, I can’t believe he killed them.”
“Are you certain Allegra and Tommaso are…”
I bite my lip to hold back a new slew of tears. Not now. I need to see the damn road. “Yes. He slit their throats.”
“Pezzo di merda.”
“He told me he’s your half-brother.”
“Not anymore,” Giorgio’s voice is pure ice. “Soon, he’ll be nothing but a pile of ash. That fucking boy killed two people who respected and loved him. And he did it all for a man who never will.”
I pass a car. “Polo’s mom asked you to take him in. She knew you were also Sal’s son?”
Giorgio sucks in an audible breath. “Yes. Our mothers were friends. They lived in the same neighborhood in Naples. Sal would often come to the neighborhood to find his nightly entertainment. Usually, he stuck to hookers, but he didn’t really care. If he saw something he wanted, he took it. To him, women were never more than objects to own and discard.”
A tear escapes my eye. “Polo doesn’t care that his father is a monster.”
“He is his flesh and blood. That’s always meant more to him than it ever did to me. I have another father, Mari, so I’ve seen just how useless they can be. After my childhood, I never craved that kind of figure in my life. But Polo’s mom wasn’t married when she became pregnant with him, and she stayed alone her entire life. Polo romanticized the notion of what a father is.”
“He’s fucked up. Tommaso and Allegra—” An ache moves down my throat. “I just left their bodies there.”
“I’ll take care of it. I’m already driving back.”
“What?” I ask as I drive past a sign with an image of a plane on it. I must be getting close.
“I’ll bury Tommaso and Allegra and then come straight to you and your brother.”
I pull my lips into my mouth. The image of the two of them lying on their bed will forever be seared into my memory. I won’t forget the kindness they showed me.
Kindness I repaid by bringing death to their doorstep.
“Two more lives lost on my account,” I whisper as the realization cascades through me.
Oh God. I’m cursed. I must be.
“Stop it,” Giorgio growls through the receiver. “If you want to place blame, place it on someone who deserves it—me. Cazzo, Mari. I should have known. There were signs, and I ignored them. I thought we were the same. Same history. Same original sin. Deep down, I was sure Polo would reject Sal the way I did, but it was wishful thinking. Turns out, we couldn’t be more different.”
I spot another sign for the airstrip, this one with an arrow. I take the next turn, and the airfield unfurls ahead of me. “I’m nearly there.”
“Park behind the hangar so you can’t be seen from the road,” he instructs. “Do you see anyone following you?”
In the rearview mirror is an empty road. “No. There’s no one.”
“Did Polo say he told Sal you’ve been with me or give him any information about where you are?”
“I don’t think he did. I think he wanted to be the hero and be the one who delivered me to the don.”
“He wanted to get all the credit. We’re lucky. It would be far worse if Sal’s men were the ones looking for you. They would have been far more competent than Polo.”
The hangar’s bulky form grows closer and closer, and I veer off the paved road onto the grass behind it. After parking in the building’s shadow, I turn off the ignition and reach behind to check on Sophia. She’s lying curled up on the floor between the seats. What if she’s hurt? I didn’t have time to check her when we were running away.
“What’s happening now?” Giorgio asks.
“I’m parked, but I need to take a look at Sophia. She may have gotten injured when Polo kicked at her.” I run my hand over her fur.
“She bit him?”
“Yes. He tried to grab me in the greenhouse, but I managed to fight him off. I used the moves you taught me.”
“God, Mari. I’m so fucking proud of you.”
“After I left the greenhouse, I hid in Tommaso and Allegra’s bedroom, but Polo managed to break in. That’s when Sophia and I took him down.”
Warmth slips into his voice as he says, “That dog’s going on a diet of prime meat for the rest of her life.”
Sophia’s back and belly seem fine, so I move onto checking her legs. When I touch one of the front ones, she jerks it back and whimpers.
“I think one of her legs is hurt,” I tell Giorgio.
“I’ll ask Damiano to have a vet ready for when you land. He’s already called a doctor for you.”
“I’m fine,” I insist, giving Sophia a scratch behind her ear. She blinks at me with her big round eyes and then drops her head down to the ground. Her energy seems low, and worry swirls inside my gut.
“You’re in shock. You might have injuries you’re not even aware of,” Giorgio says. “You need to see a doctor.”
“I just want to see you. When will that be?” As the question leaves my mouth, I realize I don’t even know where the plane will take me.
“Tonight. I promise.”
A whirring sound reaches my ears, and I twist around, peering up at the sky through the windshield. “The plane’s here!”
“Stay in the car until it comes to a stop. Can you see the number written on the side?”
“Yes.”
“Read it to me.”
I squint. “N707AM.”
“That’s it. Okay, put the phone in your pocket and get yourself and Sophia ready to run. Tell me when you get on.”
Sophia barely perks up when I say her name, so I lift her out of the back seat and put her on my lap. “I’m going to have to carry you to the plane, girl,” I whisper to her, praying I’ll be able to make it all the way. She’s far from tiny.
When the plane comes to a stop, I jump out of the car and book it. The pilot manages to get the stairs down just as I reach them, and he takes Sophia off my hands.
As soon as I’m inside the cabin, I pull my phone out of my pocket and press it to my ear. “I made it,” I say breathlessly.
There’s a long silence.
“Gio?”
“Thank fucking God.” His voice shakes.
The raw anguish in those three words makes tears flood my eyes. Giorgio’s been holding that back this entire time, staying calm so that I wouldn’t freak out. “Mari, if anything happened to you, I would—” He makes a choked sound. “I’m so fucking glad you’re all right.”
The tears fall, dragging down my cheeks. “I got away. We did it.”
“No, you did. Remember that.”
I sniff and catch a glimpse of the pilot gesturing at me. “I have to go. We’re about to take off.”
“I—” He blows out a breath. “I’ll see you soon.”
After I hang up the phone, I finally break down and weep. Adrenaline seeps out of my body, and with it goes all of my energy. The past hour took everything out of me. God, what the hell just happened? I can’t believe it. It feels like I watched a horror movie, like the events happened to someone other than me.
Sophia nudges her nose against my thigh, and I pet her while tears leak down my face and sobs ravage my chest.
The pilot tells me our destination over the PA system. We’re going to be landing at an airstrip on the border of Campana and Lazio. It must be close to where my brother is staying at the moment. The prospect of seeing Dem so soon makes me cry even harder. He must be so worried about me.
My head pounds, and my entire body hurts, right down to my bones.
But I’m alive.
Hard to believe that only a few weeks ago, I wasn’t sure if I even wanted to live. But that was before Giorgio.
He’s changed everything, hasn’t he?
The plane bursts through thick, white clouds, and through my tears, I see an endless blue sky.
