“That’s a new one for him, right?”
“Right.” He nodded. “In my humble opinion, it can do a heart good to feel things it has never before. He is feeling everything now, not just existing for vengeance.”
“I disagree about the heart. Sometimes when the heart feels things it never has before, it hurts. Really bad.”
“Good thing the heart has the amazing capacity to heal itself after time when it comes to such things, ah?” Uncle Tito took a sip of coffee and then placed the cup down. “All that Amadeo did,farfalla, he did for you. You understand that, don’t you? You showed him something he had not seen in a long time. Such innocence…an innocence he hadn’t seen since his mother.”
“Why…” My knee bobbed under the table. “Why didn’t he tell me? Who he was? What he’d done?”
He smiled, but it made the kindness in his eyes turn to sadness. “He was unsure then, as well.”
“Unsure of what?”
He picked our plates up and set them in the sink. “Perhaps in time you will understand. It is not my place to say. The words should be shared between husband and wife. If you would like to know, speak to your husband. Open the lines of communication.” He took a deep breath. “You speak of the heart. The heart cannot beat without an open flow. If it has clots.” He shrugged. “It will die. Think of a marriage in these same terms.”
The good doctor stayed with me about an hour longer, and after we shared normal, family gossip, from Noemi’s side of the family, he kissed my head firmly and left.
After he’d gone, the house seemed too quiet. All I did was stew on the same issues over and over, my brain starting to short circuit, my heart bleeding out or maybe backing up. Uncle Tito had given me more to consider, which made my need to get out stronger.
Giovanni would have to okay it with my husband before any plans were made. I knew my husband would make me take Giovanni if I left the house.
I needed to be away fromeverythingrelated to him.
Maybe without his influence, I could think clearly, and if things were not as bad as they seemed, maybe my heart could start to heal. Or maybe get rid of the clot, as Uncle Tito had said.
I called Keely and told her to meet me at our place in thirty minutes. We could have some of the cake Scarlett had sent with Uncle Tito.
You see, I’d figured out a few things after I moved in.
My husband really knew everything, but the watch was a way for him to keep track of my movements. Giovanni, too, once I crossed over into the other side of the house. I always came down from the bedroom, so he had no idea about the secret firehouse.
Right before the thirty minutes, I asked Giovanni to look for a pair of boots in my closet. I told him my legs were hurting.Lie.He gave me a suspicious look but did as I asked. I’d never asked him to do anything for me before. I quickly called the control room and told them to check the cameras in the back of the house. It seemed like two men were fighting out in the street.
Leaving my watch on the kitchen counter, I took off out of the front door, using my hands to signal to Keelytonotget out of the car. She understood right away and restarted the car before I was even in it. She took off once I was in, and I had to slam the door shut while we burnt rubber.
“Okay.” She eyed her rearview mirror, making sure we were not being followed. “Why are we running fromyourhouse?”
“I...need a break. I don’t feel like being surrounded by men today.”
“Ooh. The honeymoon is over. Let the games begin!”
“It’s not a game, Keely. It’s marriage.” I waved a hand. “We just had a fight.”
“Over what type of diapers to use?”
Only if our issues were that domesticated. I couldn’t give her the entire truth, so basic would have to do. “Something like that.”
“Answer one question. Do we hate him or not?”
“Not.” My answer came quick. How could I hate him after he sacrificed his life for mine? But how could I not be angry with him for not telling me the complete truth right away? Having enough of my issues, I turned to face her. “Who’s Cashel Kelly?”
The car swerved and I glanced at the mirror, wondering if one of the guys had caught up to us. It seemed all clear, but they were sneaky. I expected them to act like cops and pull us over at any minute.
“Cash,” she said underneath her breath. “Almost everyone calls him Cash. And Stone told you about him.”
“Not exactly. He was fishing for information the night we had dinner.”
She nodded. “What did you tell him?”
