The day my father took my sister's virginity is the password. Not only is this disgusting, but now I have to wonder just what type of sick relationship they had all these years.
Pushing that from my mind, I start navigating the phone's menu, noticing a lot of missed calls from a certain number. There are also hundreds of messages from the same number.
Maybe…
I start going through all of them, and soon, it's clear who the sender is. And Chiara doesn't seem to know that our father is dead.
"Jackpot," I whisper to myself.
I guess I finally have a way to lure her in.
I quickly get to work, studying their text patterns so I can imitate them before I start sending out small texts, pretending Father is under duress. Soon, a whole thread of conversation begins, and my plan is officially in motion.
After daysof fake conversations with Chiara, everything is set up for the trap. I'd thought about all the details, including the aftermath and how I'd catch Enzo unawares.
"Don't worry, Lia. I'll be able to handle her," I tell her as I try to convince her to leave. "Please, just remember what you promised me. Not a word to Enzo about whether I'm alive or not," I add as I watch her head to the door.
"Yes, but still. I don't feel good about this, Miss."
"Everything will be fine. Chiara will finally get what shedeserves, and soon I will be free," I take a deep breath, closing my eyes and imagining the future that awaits me.
"But Signor Enzo…" she trails off, unsure.
"He won't even know what hit him. And I'd like to keep it like that."
It takes a little more cajoling, but I finally get her to leave.
I'd planned everything, from Chiara's death to how I'd make it seem like it wasmewho died here—everything to catch Enzo when he least expects it, drive a knife through his treacherous heart, and get my baby with me.
If it weren't for Luca, I would simply disappear after I'm done with Chiara, never to be spotted again. But seeing as my baby is myonlypurpose, there's just one more hurdle—my husband.
It's almost midnight, and everyone's gone home for the night. I'd asked Lia to get rid of the people tasked with my care, and somehow she managed that.
Now I just wait.
I'd simply planted the idea in Chiara's mind that her sister isn't actually dead but is in a coma. I'd also given her the exact location, knowing she'd come here to kill me once and for all.
But this time I won't be weakened by childbirth, nor will I be naïve enough to not see her scheming from a mile away.
No, this time she's walking intomytrap, and she'll be playing bymyrules.
I quickly get in bed, hooking myself up to the machines and waiting for Chiara to arrive. Her tongue had been very loose with Daddy Dearest, and she'd spilled absolutely everything she wanted to do to me—as well as the time she'd do it.
So I just wait.
53
ALLEGRA
Because I'd timedeverything according to plan, I don't have to linger in bed much longer. The door to the salon opens slowly, and I know exactly who it is.
She locks the door behind her—like I knew she would—and she steps forward. Holding my eyes closed, I rely on my ears to listen for her every move.
She checks the machines before settling right next to my bed.
"Fucking bitch, you have nine lives or what?" she snickers, her hands going for the monitors. I hear the beeping as she plays with the settings, thinking they'll cause me harm.
Of course the impulse would be to disconnect me from every machine, and that's exactly what she does after she realizes she can't figure out how the monitors work. She proceeds to strip the wires from my body in a hurry, almost as if she can't wait to see me die.
