But if this is Allegra's twin, then where ismyAllegra?
"Oh, fuck off," my father continues. "As if your parents didn't approach me to gain a footing in New York. What, after Franzè left you all broke, are you going to sit there and lie to my face that you never had an ulterior motive?"
"It's called a by-product," Allegra's sister quips sarcastically.
"I'm amazed at your shamelessness. As if you didn't just kill your sister for wealth and connections," my father throws at her, and I freeze.
Killed? What does he mean by that? No... It can't be.
"I've wanted to kill that bitch for years. This time I had my parents' blessing. You should have seen her begging me for her life," she laughs, and Rocco joins in.
I'm still frozen, speechless, but I force myself to listen… to understand.
My little tigress can't be dead. She can't.
"I would have loved to see that. I never liked the chit. Too mouthy."
"Well, aren't you glad you have me now? I'm even better with my mouth."
I hear clothes ruffling, the chafing noise of lips smacking together.
"Are you sure you got rid of the body properly? We don't need any surprises at this point," Father mutters in between what I suspect are kisses.
"Of course. I dropped it at the morgue," Chiara answers in a breathy tone, before the dynamic changes completely.
"You're a dirty little whore, aren't you?" Father groans, and my stomach drops.
"Whores take money for it. My currency is orgasms. How many are you going to give me today, daddy?" Chiara's voice takes on a saccharine tone.
"However many you want. Fuck," he moans, and the sloppy sounds of a blowjob permeate the room.
I stop the audio, unable to take it anymore.
Allegra is dead.
I stand up on shaky legs, going to Luca's room and dismissing Mrs. Marshall for a couple of hours.
Taking him in my arms, I hug him to my chest, finally letting the tears fall.
How can she be dead? How? And how did I not know?
No, it can't be. I refuse to believe Allegra is dead. My Allegra is alive and well, and I'll find her. But even as I try to convince myself of that, the way Chiara talked about her sister… about killing her.
My heart breaks into a million pieces as I start rationalizingthat I may never see my tigress again. I'll never be able to hug her or tell her how much I love her.
Did I ever tell her?
"God," I groan out loud, the thought nauseating.
I never even told her how I felt. How she'd carved herself into my heart almost from our first interaction, and how I'd only fallen deeper and deeper for her. How she's the only woman I'd ever let close to me, the only one I've ever loved.
And now she'll never know. She died thinking I'm a fucking monster.
I look down at Luca and I see the little boy who's never going to know his mother. He's never going to remember her warmth or the way she loved him with her entire heart.
I spend some time just holding him, rocking back and forth, lost in my emotions.
I'm holding the last piece of Allegra in this world.
