Iwoke with a start, grabbing my gun as I sat bolt upright in the armchair I’d dragged into the corner of the Barbieri twins’ room. The three little bodies were where I’d left them, deep in sleep under their covers, but something felt wrong. I narrowed my gaze against the darkness of the room, searching until I saw the shadowy figure standing at the foot of Nerina’s bed. I was on my feet in a flash, grabbing the man by the chest and slamming him against the wall, gun pressed to his temple.
“Finn?” I breathed in confusion, pressing my forearm against his chest to hold him in place as he looked right through me. He didn’t even flinch, completely unaware I could have nearly shot him. I released him, stepped back and holstered the gun. “What are you doing here? What time is it?”
It was still dark outside, and I wasn’t expecting them back until morning at the earliest. He didn’t speak, his jaw clenched, and his dark eyes were fixed on Nerina over my shoulder. An uneasy feeling prickled across my skin. His eyes were almost pitch black, vacant and hollow. His face looked all wrong—too tight, too tense, too cold. Shit. I’d only ever seen this side of Finn once before, many years ago, when his darkness consumed him and took him far out of reach, to a place where he felt nothing yet everything.
I took another cautious step closer. Softening my voice, I tried to reach him. “Finn. It’s me, Enzo. Let’s go outside.”
He didn’t move. I wasn’t sure he was even breathing. I ran my hand down my face, wondering what the hell to do. This was my fault. Ettore Grimaldi. Seeing him again had triggered this episode, locking him in a cage of darkness.
“Neri’s sleeping. She’s okay. She’s safe. See?” I pointed at her sleeping form. “Let’s not wake her up. Come on,” I mumbled, edging towards the door and opening it.
The landing light streamed in, and my eyes widened. Finn was covered in dried blood. It was splattered across his face, down his neck, and all over his hands. He was wearing a black shirt and trousers, but I’d bet they were ruined. My heart thundered.
“Finn. Don’t let Neri see you like this. You’ll scare her.”
That must have registered in some deep part of his mind because he blinked. He turned his head and looked at me for the first time. He nodded once, then strode past me out of the room. I closed the door softly behind us and watched him vanish into a bedroom at the end of the landing. I knocked on Fabi’s door so he could take the next watch of the children. He opened it, rubbing his eyes.
“Already?”
“Finn is back,” I lowered my voice so he wouldn’t hear. “But he’s… not in a good place. I think I fucked up.”
Fabi groaned, shoving past me. “What have you done now, Aiani? Where is he?”
He stormed into what I presumed was Finn’s bedroom when he stayed over at the Barbieris’ villa, then paused in the doorway. “Cazzo,Finn. What happened to you?”
I pushed past Fabi and found Finn perched on the edge of his double bed, staring at his bloodstained hands. He didn’t even look up as Fabi stepped into the room behind me. A surge of protectiveness roared through my veins, and I grabbed Fabi’s bicep, pulling him out onto the landing.
“What happened to him?” Fabi snarled at me.
“I found and captured Ettore Grimaldi.”
“Who?”
“Grim. The underground’s Grim Reaper.”
Fabi’s eyes widened. “I thought he was dead.”
“He faked his own death when Alessio and Finn took over the South. I offered him to Finn tonight.”
Fabi threw his hands up into his hair. “Cristo,Aiani. That’s fucked. You just surprised him with it, with no warning?”
Yeah, that was a bad call. Hindsight’s a bitch. I ran my hand down my face. “I know, but I’ll look after him. I know what he needs.”
“He doesn’t need you,” Fabi growled, shoving me in the chest. Rage ignited beneath my skin, but I kept it in check. “He needs Alessio. Where is he? Why didn’t he come back with Finn?” He pulled out his phone and opened his tracking app. “He’s still in Verona.”
“Finn must have returned on his own. I think he wanted to see Neri. Look, I’ve seen Finn like this before. I know what he needs. Just let me help him.”
Fabi bared his teeth at me, clearly resenting that I was the one who had caused this, but I was also the only one who could help him out of it. When we were together, Finn had come across aman who had been one of Grim’s clients in a club. He’d beaten the shit out of him and then come banging on my door, covered in blood, with that same darkness in his eyes. He’d needed me to make him feel again.
“Fabi, just watch the kids. Let me deal with this.”
“Fine,” he snapped. “But if you don’t fix this, you’d better run. Alessio will tear you limb from limb when he finds out.”
Yeah, I was well aware.
I closed the bedroom door behind me as softly as I could to avoid spooking him into a violent rage. When he still hadn’t moved from his spot, I approached him, pulled off my shirt, and knelt on the carpet before him. His eyes remained fixed on his hands, staring. Perhaps seeing nothing, or perhaps seeing everything those hands had just done.
“Finn,” I whispered. “I’m going to get you undressed, okay? Wash it all away.”
