I stand there shaking, watching until they're gone. Then I run inside, lock all the doors, and try to breathe.
Elena finds me in the kitchen. "Mama? Who was that?"
"No one, baby. Just someone asking directions."
"You look scared."
"I'm fine." I pull her close. "Everything's fine."
But it's not fine.
Someone's looking for Lupo. Someone who knows what he looks like. Who knows he was injured near here. Who knows he might still be alive.
The afternoon crawls by. Every sound makes me jump. Every car on the distant road makes my heart race.
Are they coming back? Are they watching? Did they believe me?
By the time six o'clock approaches, I'm a wreck. I hear Lupo's footsteps before I see him. He comes through the door, tired and dusty from work, and stops when he sees my face. "What's wrong?"
"More men came today. Looking for someone."
His whole body goes tense. "What men?"
"Two of them. In a nice car. They showed me a photo." I pull him into the kitchen, away from Elena's room. "Lupo, it was you. In the photo. But you looked different. Dressed in a suit, clean-shaven. You looked like—like someone who could be important."
He's very still. "What did you tell them?"
"Nothing. I said I'd never seen you. But—" My voice breaks. "They said they're searching the whole area. Asking at every farm. They know you were injured near here several weeks ago. They're not going to stop looking. They’re staying until they find you."
"Did they threaten you?"
"No. They were polite. Left a phone number in case I saw anything." I grip his arms. "Who are you? Really? Do you have any idea? The man in the photo—you looked powerful. Dangerous. Like someone who was important."
"I don't know." But his hands are shaking. "I don't remember. You know I don't remember."
"But you're starting to. I can see it. The memories are coming back more and more." I search his face. "What if these men are from your old life? What if they're here to take you back?"
"I'm not going anywhere."
"You don't know that. You don't know what you're going back to. What if you remember and you want—"
"Isabella." He cups my face, forcing me to look at him. "Whatever I was before, whoever those men are looking for—that's not who I am now. I'm here. With you. With Elena. That's all that matters."
I want to believe him. But I'm terrified.
"What if they come back?"
"Then we deal with it." His voice is firm. "Together. But right now, we stay calm. We act normal. You didn't tell them anything, they have no proof I'm here. Maybe they'll move on. Search somewhere else."
"And if they don't?"
"Then I'll handle it." There's something in his eyes. Something cold and hard. "I'll do whatever it takes to protect you and Elena. You know that."
I do know that. I've seen what he's capable of.
But I'm still scared.
That night, after Elena's asleep, we lie in bed and I can feel the tension radiating off him.
