And he gave her the keys to the cabin.
There are a handful of guards who also fit the criteria of knowledge, but none of them have the motivation Giacomo has. After all, he used to be the heir to the estate until Guido grew sick of his shit and named Aerin in his place. He claims not to care, but maybe it’s a façade.
Dragging myself from the desk, I pull my second phone out of my boot and read a coded text from Pidge. He found something. I dial Pidge’s number, but before it connects a shriek cuts through the air and my heart stalls in my chest.
Aerin!
Abandoning my phone, I dart from the office and into the living room where Aerin is on the floor, huddled against the wall with tears pouring down her face while her mother stands over her, a stricken look of shock on her face.
“Aerin, what’s the matter?” she demands, her voice trembling while she clutches a tape measure in her hand. Several other guards pour into the room, weapons raised, but upon seeing no threat, they lower them.
I reach Aerin’s side in seconds and crash to my knees. “Aerin? What’s wrong? What happened?”
28
AERIN
The moment Falco lands next to me, I clutch at him and the tears pour down my cheeks. “M-make her stop,” I gasp, unable to stop the trembling moving through me like a wave. It’s as if I’m about to shake apart at the seams.
“What happened?” Falco’s voice is harsher as he turns to my mother, positioning himself between me and her so I move my hands to clutch at his back.
“I have no idea!” Mom says. “I was simply taking measurements for the adjustments to her dress because I noticed she’d lost a little bit of weight. I was winding the tape around her arm and she just freaked out.”
My heart’s pounding like it’s about to crack my ribcage in half, my stomach twists with nausea, and all I see when I close my eyes is flashes of Falco’s arm cut up from the wire. It’s like I’ve been dragged right back to that night in the cabin with no idea if anyone’s going to make it in time to save us.
When I open my eyes, Falco’s comforting face is there. His jaw tightens as he looks me up and down. “Aerin. Look at me.”
Through the pools of tears, I do.
“Deep breath. Like me. You see?” He takes an exaggerated, slow breath.
I follow to the best of my ability, but it results mostly in short, sharp gasps rather than a deep breath. My chest is far too tight.
“Again,” he instructs, mimicking what he did before.
I follow. Back and forth we go for a few long minutes until, either through the breathing or the distraction of his presence, my chest allows me to take a deep lungful and hold it without feeling like I’m about to explode.
“Did it remind you of the cabin?” he asks in a low voice.
All I can do is nod.
“What’s going on?” Mom demands. “Talk to me, dammit!”
“The tape around her arm triggered her,” Falco explains as he stands. “It sent her back to the cabin and scared her.”
“But nothing happened to her arm,” Mom remarks, clutching at her necklace. “So why is that even an issue?”
“You don’t need a direct relation to a traumatic injury to be traumatized by its occurrence. Aerin witnessed it happen and is the sole reason I still have my arm. That leaves a mark, no matter how careful you are.”
“Don’t be stupid,” Mom says. “She’s perfectly fine.”
“Mom!” I gasp, slowly climbing to my feet. Falco tenses and reaches out for me, offering his arm for support and I take it to hold myself steady. “You don’t know how terrifying that was. You tightened the tape on my arm and-and the next thing Iknew, I was back in that cabin and there was blood everywhere and I just…” I trail off, seeing not a hint of understanding in her eyes. “Have you never been affected by anything you’ve seen?”
“No, darling. Because I’m a grown-up.”
Falco tenses underneath my touch, but he doesn’t speak.
“Then I guess I’m not there yet,” I murmur shakily.
