A long list of whys racked up in my head, and the answers would never be mine. Leo and his dad were a brief chapter in my life that wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place and would forever remain incomplete.
As curious as I was to find the answers to my questions, I decided Don Sebastiano—God, even his name was hot. Bellomo literally translated intobeautiful man. Was anything about him not sexy?—was a riddle not meant to be solved or all the appeal would be lost.
It was enough for me to know that someone like him cared about someone like me when he didn’t have to.
I texted Nicky to tell her I’d booked the theatre today and would be late at practice. Then I switched off my phone and started Biber’s Mystery Sonatas. Dedicated to the mystery man, my Abel Magwitch, Don Sebastiano.
I played until I became one with the chords. No more monsters. No more darkness. No more debts or cages. Just me and the music, shutting the whole world out, losing track of time.
A loud click disrupted my peace, bringing me back to the real world. “Miss Baldi, it’s after nine. We have to close.”
Lifting a hand to my forehead, I squinted into the spotlight flaring in my eyes. I couldn’t make out the voice or the face of who said that, but it must have been the janitor or one of the Drama teachers responsible for the theatre.
“Okay. Sorry. I’m heading out now.” I gathered my things, and the lights went out before I even finished.
“Seriously? You couldn’t just wait one more minute?” I mumbled as I looked for my phone. When I switched it back on, the battery was at two percent. I rolled my eyes and carried my backpack and violin case, not trying to turn on the flashlight. The phone would be dead in a second, and I wouldn’t even have the light from the screen.
As I took the shortcut backstage, the soreness in my fingers, neck and feet from playing and standing all these hours hit me all at once. When I was lost in the music, I couldn’t feel any of it. I couldn’t feel anything other than the rush of the melody. A psycho stalker magnet like me should have been more aware of her surroundings at all times. I couldn’t afford to lose myself like that.
But I was safe now. The word I was never able to believe was finally real. My father was gone. Both my stalkers were gone. I was sa—
My voice was stifled in my throat along with my gasp. For a second, I didn’t know what was happening. Then the shock faded a fraction as a heavy hand over my mouth and an arm around my waist dragged me in the dark.
I kicked and screamed in vain. My cries were muffled, and no one was at the theater to hear them anyway. The body pressing my whole front against the cold surface it hit was much stronger than I was, holding me tighter with every resistant move I made.
My phone fell down, rendering the place pitch black. I jerked my body one more time in a feeble attempt to break free from the attacker’s grasp, my palms on the coldness I now realized was a wall.
“Shhhh.”
My heart stopped along with every other muscle in my body. I even forgot how to breathe. I knew thisshhhhby heart even though I’d heard it only once before.
“I’m gonna take my hand off your mouth now. You gonna scream?”
I managed to shake my head once.
Hedid ashepromised, and so did I, still not breathing, my head dizzy with shock and lack of oxygen.
“Good girl,”hewhispered,hisbreath and beard pricking my skin. “Go ahead. You can breathe now.”
As if I had been waiting forhispermission, I gasped for air. “You’re back.”
“I’ve never left, my sweet Angel.”
“Yes, you have.” I shook with tears.
“No. I’ve always been here.”Hisvoice took a harsh turn. “And I’ve seen what you’ve done.”
“What-t?”
“The boy.”Hishand crept on my collarbone, and another gasp escaped me.He’d been watching all long?He’d seen me with Leo? Was that whyhewas here? To tell meheknew? To warn me? To scare me?
Washejealous?
Hisfingers glided up to my neck and suddenly tightened around my throat. “Naughty girl. Don’t you know you’re mine?”
The pressure on my neck was too much. My ears rang as I took a big breath through my nose, inhalinghisscent that confused the hell out of me. The cologne I’d associated with desire and fear together. The fragrance I’d been missing for months.
“Yours?” I gurgled.
