My eyes turned slightly to the side, and I could’ve sworn an angel was beside me. She had long golden hair and the most beautiful blue eyes, but her hands and white coat were burgundy with blood. She was shouting orders as she hovered over Massimo. I couldn’t see his face. She was covering him, and for some reason, the thought of losing him sent my heart into a panic, and my breaths were almost too shallow to catch. All I felt were needles piercing me on the inside whenever I took a breath.
I turned my head to the other side, and that was when I met eyes with another angel. Uncle Tito. He had crawled his way over to me, and his hands were on me, his mouth moving again.
In the distance, more gunshots rang out.
It was an odd combination.
Voices were in a tunnel, so were the loud pops and explosions, but…they were beginning to fade. All but my husband’s voice and Uncle Tito’s, but the voices were twisting, becoming one, before the words faded altogether like a whispered prayer.
When I thought the word prayer…it felt like I was levitating. I closed my eyes to the sensation, but my husband’s voice ordered me to open my eyes, and it felt like a command. I was tired. So tired. But I slowly opened my eyes. I realized we were running deeper into the woods, about to clear the other side. The cold air seemed to slap me in the face, and I could make out a caravan of vehicles in the distance.
The armored SUVs were in a line, one pulling off as fast as the one before it.
Rocco seemed to jump inside of one, me in his arms, and in the next second, the door slammed shut and the tires screamed as we tore away from the property. I moaned as the car rocked. Somewhere in my shoulder, a fire burned, unlike anything I’d ever felt before. It felt like someone was taking a blowtorch to my skin.
“Shh, my Amora,” Rocco pulled me closer to his heart, so close, it almost seemed like his heart was beating against mine, but when my eyes found his, I lost my breath. His eyes were dilated, and so wild, I almost wanted to crawl out of his arms and get closer to the man sitting next to me.
An actual man, not a crazed animal full of blood.
Uncle Tito.
Someone had shoved him into the same SUV, probably at my husband’s order. Uncle Tito had my wrist in his hand, and his eyes were closed. He was keeping tabs on my pulse. When I’d lost my breath, his eyes came to mine until my heart ratemust’ve faded into a normal rhythm again, or one he thought was acceptable.
The truth hit me then.
My husband’s eyes were not for me—they were for a world that had done this to me, his son and his unborn daughter, to everyone we cared about who had all been on our property, our home, who had suffered from being at the wrong place at the wrong time.
What was supposed to be a safe place from the world had become a war zone.
Chapter 41
A Villa Divided
Aria Amora
Iwasn’t sure where I was, exactly, but I knew I was somewhere in Sicily. Marciano had told me that much.
Maybe an extensive piece of property hidden in the hills that was a secret to the rest of the world. Marciano was high on the security ladder of the family (along with Mac, Saverio, and Evelina)—well, our faction of it—and he seemed to be the one who had hidden us here.
Marciano was pleased with Uncle Tito’s willingness to speak, and therefore, he was pleased with me. He called me Auntie and told me I’d warmed Uncle Tito into speaking again, although he understood the reason why Uncle Tito had shut the world out. His uncle had lost the great love of his life. I really liked Marciano. He was a massive man with an even bigger heart. And even though he was a Fausti through and through, he was a bit more relaxed than most of them, a bit more genial. He reminded me of Romeo, but…he belonged to Brando.
A tepid early spring breeze rustled the soft green grass and the hundreds of ancient olive trees on the property, their leaves rustling, making a soft melody together.
I might not have known where we were, exactly, but I knew we were on land that lent itself to olive trees, and in turn, offeredtheir bearings for olive oil making. I could smell the peppery scent in the air, like I’d just taken a whiff out of a glass bottle of it, and the smell lingered in my nose. Marciano described the oil as carrying, “the sea's salt on the air.”
In the not too far distance, I could smell the salty scent of the sea.
Marciano had showed me and the women around the property, which Scarlett was already familiar with, and he made all of us familiar with an escape route that led directly to the sea, which he said would have boats waiting to take us to safety if we had another land attack. Every so often, he would even make us practice and have test runs. Thandie helped him.
Sighing, I took a seat on a wooden bench not far from the swaying trees. The breeze this close to the sea was almost nonstop. It was so peaceful.
The wind howled in an eerie tone, and the trees shimmered, the susurration of their leaves repetitive, therapeutic music to my ears. I closed my eyes, attempting to forget where I was, what had happened that day, to find my center.
The baby in my womb.
Exhaling out a long breath, I kept my eyes closed.
I allowed myself to relive the moments for only a moment.
