“Enzo?” she said after we’d been driving for a few minutes.
“Yeah?”
“How long have I been gone?”
I glanced over at her, surprised to find her eyes on me for the first time since I’d taken her out of that damn house. And I fucking hated how haunted they were. “A week,” I told her. “Seven days.” I wanted to ask her details about what happened during that time. I could guess well enough. But a part of me needed to hear it. Needed to know everything she’d gone through. But not today.
“It feels like longer.” She turned her head away and stared out the windshield, and both of us fell silent as I pulled onto the highway and headed toward the city. When she did speak again, her voice was hard and cold. “It was the guy from the club. The one who left the bruises on my leg.”
“I know,” I told her.
Surprised, she asked, “How?”
“Because we went through the video feed at the club and saw him put you in his car.” I paused. “And because he confessed it to me before I killed him.”
She went back to staring out the windshield. “I hope it was painful.”
“It was,” I told her. “Very.”
“Good,” she said after a moment.
She fell quiet again, and I wished more than anything that I could hear what was going through her head.
“We’re here,” I said as we pulled into the drive in front of the hotel. “Stay where you are. I’ll be right back.” Getting out of the vehicle, I met the valet around the front of the car. It was the young guy with the blond hair, but I’d always gotten a good vibe from him. He seemed mature for his age.
He met me with a smile, eyes carefully averted from the blood on my shirt and jacket. “Good evening, Mr. Delligatti.”
“Good evening. I need you to clear out the lobby for me.”
To his credit, he disguised his surprise. “Clear out the lobby, sir?”
“Yes. Go inside and tell the front desk I need the entire lobby emptied.” I offered no explanation, and he knew better than to ask for one.
“Yes, sir. Give me one moment.” Turning on his heel, he walked briskly inside, stopping only to say something to his partner at the valet stand. She glanced up at me and followed him.
Two minutes later, he was back, and he was alone. “The lobby has been cleared, sir.”
“Thank you,” I told him, and handed him my keys and a wad of cash. “Please turn around and wait for me and my guest to get inside before you park the car. Then bring the bag in the backseat up to my room and leave it outside the door.”
“Yes, sir.”
He did as I asked, and I walked over to the passenger side and opened the door for Sera. “Watch where you’re walking. Do you want me to carry you?”
“No,” she said. “I’m okay.” But she didn’t immediately go into the hotel. “Thank you,” she whispered, and there were tears in her eyes. “Again.”
“Come on,” I told her. Wrapping my arms around her and the thick blanket, I helped her inside, my senses on high alert the entire time. I heard a car door close behind us when we were about halfway through the lobby. True to his word, the valet had completely emptied it. Even the desk clerks were gone.
Sera was quiet as we took the elevator up to my room. And as I opened the door, I could sense her hesitation as she stood just outside, staring into the small foyer. “Sera?”
She made no move to enter.
“Sera, let’s go inside.”
I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to carry her in there when she took a shaky breath and crossed the threshold. I followed her in, shutting and locking the door behind us. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her flinch when she heard the click of the deadbolt. “I have to lock it. Because of who I am.”
“I know,” she answered. “It’s okay.”
“As soon as the valet brings the bag of clothes up, I’ll go get us something to eat. You can take a shower if you’d like.”
