"It's not your fault." She takes my hand. "And we're going somewhere safer now. Right?"
"Much safer. I promise."
We walk to the cars together. Elena is already buckled in the back seat, her rabbit on her lap, chattering to Ciro about the chickens riding in the truck behind us.
The convoy pulls out. Three cars. One truck with the chickens. Six guards total.
Just to move a woman and a child and some poultry to Naples.
This is my life now.
And I wouldn't change it for anything.
The drive takes a few hours. Elena sleeps for part of it, worn out from yesterday. Isabella is quiet, watching the landscape change from rural to urban as we approach Naples.
When we enter the city, she sits up straighter. Taking it all in. The crowds. The traffic. The noise and chaos that is Naples.
So different from the quiet farm.
"It's loud," she says.
"You'll get used to it."
"Will we go into the city often?"
"When you want to. But the villa is separate. Up in the hills. Quieter." I squeeze her hand. "You'll see."
We climb up the hills and the view opens up. The bay. Vesuvius in the distance. The wealthy villas with their gates and walls.
Elena wakes as we turn onto my private road. "Are we there?"
"Almost."
The gates open automatically. The car climbs the winding driveway. And then—
The villa appears before us. The pool visible on one side, the gardens on the other.
Isabella's breath catches. "Lupo. This is—"
"Home," I say firmly. "This is our home now."
The cars stop in the circular driveway. I get out and open Elena's door, lifting her out.
She stares at the villa with wide eyes. "This is where we're going to live?"
"Yes."
"It's so big! Like a palace!"
"It's just a house. A big house. Our house." I set her down and take her hand. "Come on. Let me show you."
Isabella joins us, her eyes still taking in everything. The size. The luxury. The perfection of it all.
I can see her struggling. This isn't her world. Wasn't ever supposed to be.
But it's our world now.
The front door opens and Emilia appears. She's been with me for years—my housekeeper, cook, the closest thing to family I had before Isabella and Elena.
