“We’re going to walk along the river,” Geno said decisively. “We’ll stop at Miranda’s and purchase a coat for Amara.” He turned in the direction of the river walkway leading to the smaller clusters of boutique shops.
Amaranthe loved the feel of the breeze on her face. The sun was out and kept the temperature from being too cold as they moved together in silence along the sidewalk. There were several little squares with shops. The high-rises boasted well-known famous names, but Geno bypassed those and went straight to one of the smaller boutiques sandwiched between a jewelry store and a wine shop. Both buildings were quaint and small, but beautifully appointed.
Leonardo was already in Miranda’s Miracles, checking the store before they allowed Geno and Amaranthe to walk in. Amaranthe didn’t understand how an enemy would guess ahead of time where they would go. Why would a bodyguard have to check a store out before they went inside? She could understand them checking the street before they left the store, but it hardly made sense for him to go inside first.
“I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to this, Geno,” she admitted, breaking the silence between them.
His hand tightened around hers. “You will.”
Geno felt and sounded sad. She moved closer to him. “Families have fights, Geno. They argue. But they get over it.”
He didn’t respond. Stefano had gutted him. Maybe Stefano didn’t realize what he’d done, but then Stefano was too intelligent not to know. He had to be hurting, too. She couldn’t imagine how they were going to repair the damage, but she knew it had to be fixed. She just wasn’t equipped to do it. She had no family and no knowledge of how they worked.
She looked up at Geno’s set mask as they entered the little boutique. He had withdrawn from her the moment she brought up families fighting. It occurred to her that she was new. Their relationship was new. Both were counting on the intimacy of their telepathic communication to allow them to have a fast and deep bond. Sadly, Geno had a telepathic connection with Stefano, and he’d counted on that to know they were always solid and close. She had been the one questioning their relationship, now she feared Geno would, and she couldn’t blame him.
Geno’s hand tightened around hers as the clerk hurried to greet them. “Geno, how lovely to see you.”
Geno nodded his head at the woman. She looked to be about fifty, but Amaranthe recognized her as a former model and knew she was much older than that by a good fifteen years. She had great skin and a genuine smile when her gaze rested on Amaranthe and their linked hands.
“My fiancée, Amaranthe. We need a warm coat for her.”
“I’m Miranda.” The owner of the boutique smiled at her. “At last. A woman courageous enough to take on Geno Ferraro. I’m so happy to meet you.”
“Amara, I need to make a couple of phone calls. I’m going to step outside. Miranda will take you around. Get anything you need or want. We can have everything otherthan the coat sent to the house.” He bent down to brush a kiss on top of her head. “And don’t give me any trouble about who is paying again. I don’t like those kinds of arguments.”
Miranda laughed as he walked out, Fiero and Dante moving fast, exiting first, with Bravo behind him. “He’s a force to be reckoned with. We’re cousins a couple of times removed. I’ve known him since he was a boy. Even then, once he made up his mind, no one could dissuade him.” The smile faded. “None of us understood when his parents abandoned the boys. They just opted out after Eugene’s accident. Margo and Eugene retreated so far from all of us, no one could reach them. It was sad to watch those boys go from fun-loving, happy children to very sober youngsters in a matter of months. Everything fell on Geno.”
Miranda glanced toward the door, her beautiful face showing genuine affection. “He stepped up immediately, taking responsibility for his younger brothers. He always takes responsibility for everyone. He’s a really good man, Amaranthe.”
“Yes, he is,” Amaranthe agreed, following Miranda to the rack of coats.
The boutique might be small, but every item had been chosen with care. They were unique, bought from artists Miranda had discovered in her travels and wanted to support. Amaranthe caught glimpses of hand-painted silk scarves and several flowing dresses that were gorgeous and far too long for someone as short as she was.
The boutique smelled subtly of fresh citrus and vanilla. There was a soothing quality to the aroma that appealed to Amaranthe and helped to allow her nerves to settle. She hadn’t realized she’d been coiled so tightly.
“Have you had any items go missing recently? Little things? I’ve heard from some of the other store owners there has been a spate of robberies lately. Small things, but valuable. You have such unique, beautiful treasures, I wouldthink the thieves would want to target you, but you also have a state-of-the-art security system.”
“My security system didn’t prevent the thefts,” Miranda acknowledged. “Two weeks ago, a young woman came in and looked around. She was clearly a tourist, not unusual. I could tell she had money from the way she was dressed, but I was very suspicious of her behavior. She paid attention, without seeming to, to the cameras in the store. Also, the lights. I thought that was strange. She wore a thin pair of gloves the entire time, but she kept touching this one little clutch I had. It was beautiful, and it was one of the items that disappeared overnight. I believe she got in that evening somehow after I closed the store.”
Alarm radiated through Amaranthe. The boutique had been visited at night by a shadow rider—a woman. She was certain of it. “Did you do anything different that day?”
Miranda nodded. “Normally, I’m open until eight on Fridays, but I had an appointment. A dear friend had flown in from Paris. I closed at six.”
Closing early had most likely saved her life. The riders had come to kill to her, just as they had Geno’s other relatives and his parents, but Miranda had been safely having dinner with a friend.
“Have you seen that woman since?”
Miranda nodded. “Just recently. Every morning before I come to work, I have coffee in that little café across the street. I like to people watch. She came into the square with a man yesterday morning. He was older by a good fifteen or twenty years, although I didn’t think he was her father. Not a lover, either. He seemed to be giving her orders. In any case, she was very attentive. She listened and kept nodding her head. Twice she looked toward my shop.”
Amaranthe took the coat Miranda held out to her without seeing it. She raised her stricken gaze to Miranda’s. She was being targeted for murder. There was no doubt in Amaranthe’s mind, but why? What had Miranda done thatwould bring these murderers down on her? Simply because she was a distant relative of Geno’s? Did they hate his family that much?
If these people were willing to murder Miranda simply because she was related to Geno, surely Stefano had to know they would be willing to kill his children and wife. The more she thought about it, the less sense it made that Stefano had held back the information Nicoletta had provided. He had a wife and children he loved. What difference did it make to acknowledge there had been another family in Australia that was no longer working in Queensland?
Geno, these murderers are targeting Miranda. I think they are going to come here tonight or possibly tomorrow night.
There was silence while Geno considered what she told him.Details.
She repeated everything Miranda had said to her while she pretended to look over the details of the beautiful jacket the former model had placed in her hands.
