“Here,” he said, setting down his luggage. “For you.”
Sticking out his arm, he instructed me to pull up his sleeve. A tattoo of a rose bloomed across his wrist, crimson and cold—part of it was ink, the other part natural element. I blinked. A true rose appeared from underneath his sleeve, by what seemed like magic. He offered it to me.
The real rose was in the same condition as the one on his wrist. Its rich color held, but its petals were rimmed with ice. I lifted it to my nose, a habit, and sniffed. The cold seemed to trap the smell.So fragrant.Drifting in with the smell of pine and candlewax and wood from the fires, it was almost intoxicating.
“Lev,” I said, my voice not hiding the awe. “You didn’t tell me you were a magician!”
“I dabble.” He winked.
Perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised. Sometimes he appeared by what seemed like magic.
Like another apparition, a hand slid up my back, coming to rest on my shoulder. Warmth as hot as the fires blazing seeped through the thick pajama top, causing me to shiver.
Lev nodded in acknowledgment.
I couldn’t see him, but I felt it. Brando returned the nod. He cleared his throat and increased the pressure on my bones. “My brothers tell me that you disappeared after France.” He cleared his throat once more and then stuck out his hand.
The two men shook.
“Thank you, for taking care of my wife.”
“Yes,” I added, very softly. “Thank you, Lev. I wanted to tell you that after France. I even tried to call.”
“A man who knows all has to be every place and nowhere at once.” He pulled out a card from his pocket and handed it to Brando.
Brando looked it over. His face turned hard. “Tell me where you got this,” he almost snapped.
The tone of his voice and the unexpected turn in his feelings made every hair stand at attention on my body. All at once I felt stripped of every ounce of clothing, of all safety. I tried to turn, to see what the card said, but his grip on my shoulder stopped me.
“What is it, Brando?”
Romeo hissed through his teeth. Rocco said something sharp in Italian underneath his breath. The men all hummed with dangerous vibes. I realized, when I attempted to turn again, that they had all moved forward, forming a thicker shield. Safety in numbers.
“Nemours,” Lev said. “He asked me to deliver both. I would have declined, but I feel it is best if you know.”
If the men were sending off hot waves of anger before, a sudden drop in temperature followed up. The change in their feelings shocked me. I leaned against Brando, distributing my weight. Good thing. I finally saw what was clutched in his hand, the pressure making the veins snaking and protruding from underneath his skin swell.
The card actually wasn’t a card at all. It was a toe tag from the morgue with my name on it. Nemours had signed off on it as the undertaker.
Message received.
“He sent a woman to approach me,” Lev added, going into more detail. “He knows better than to approach me in person. But beware. The woman he sent is sneaky, and so is Nemours. They might try to slip in during the storm. I did not see them or a trail outside, though.”
Rocco assured him that the castle was safe. After France, Rocco’s team had grown by leaps and bounds. I had a hard time keeping up. Lothario’s treachery didn’t go down well withla famiglia, once Rocco filled them in. Men started to pour in from all different sides of the family to assure that we at least had a few months of peace. After all, if Luca ever decided to seek vengeance on Lothario for dooming his son,theywould be safe from his wrath.
Donato left immediately, going to secure the vicinity, and to make sure no men were maimed and left out in the snow to die a horrible, cold death.
“Thank you,” I said to Lev once more. This time my voice came out quieter. The only reason there was no tremble was because the wine from earlier flaunted its bravery. “Are you staying the night?”
“Yes,” Lev nodded. “If that is possible?”
“Of course,” I assured him. I called to one of the girls in the castle, asking her to show Lev to his room.
After wishing us a good night, he left us to it. Brando kept me close while we walked back to the rose room, but he shook his head once we were to the door.
“We’re not sleeping in here tonight,” he said, voice firm. “I’ll have one of the men take our things and bring them tola stanza segreta.”
The secret room, I thought with dimness. Therewasa secret room in the castle. It had no windows, rather like the dungeon of the castle. But if Nemours—or Nemours dressed as a woman?— were out there with a weapon, I’d take it. I’d had my quota of battles for a while.
