"Okay." He put his arms around me.
"I love you, kiddo."
"Love you, too."
My throat constricted as I watched him snuggle down into his sheets. I went to the door and looked back to see he was still watching me, his black eyes gleamed in the dark, eyelids at half-mast. I blew him a kiss and closed the door.
Pietro and Elda were still deep in conversation as I slipped down the hall. Whatever had happened, I hoped it wouldn't ruin their holiday.
They left at five in the morning to catch a flight to Gallipoli. Elda had kindly told me to sleep in, so that's what I did. When I rolled over and checked the clock the next morning, it was almost nine.
When I got out of the shower and checked my phone, there was a text from Raf.
So you're a free woman now? How about that movie date?
I smiled. He didn't waste any time.
Me: Come over Saturday night? Pietro and Elda told me we could use their theatre room.
Raf: Brava! What time?
Me: Why don't you come at seven and we can make dinner together and then watch after?
Raf: ???? What can I bring?
Me: I got it. No worries.
Raf: Okay, a presto!
I smiled at the butterflies fluttering under my ribcage at the thought of a cuddly evening with Raf and squelched the anxiety about my eye-glow that threatened to surface.
I walked to the Eurospar and took my time buying groceries. I picked up stamps, charged up my phone, took a nap, and lazed outside of a cafe with a book. I read for half an hour before I felt the urge to talk to someone, so I texted Fed. A surge of guilt hit me. I had neglected her, and I was embarrassed that I'd assumed she was jealous of Dante and me.
Ciao Bella, join me for a coffee?
Fed: Where have you been? It's been ages! Are you hanging out with Dante a lot?
I paused. I had to assume Dante didn't tell her what had transpired between us since Festa del Redentore.
Me: Not so much anymore.
Fed: What happened? Never mind, save it so you can tell me in person. Can't wait! Have to work. Come visit me at work if you want. I'll give you a free gelato.??
Me: Mmmmm! Sweet! What time are you finished?
Fed: Six. Ciao!
My phone rang in my hand and I jumped. It was Elda. They must have arrived in Puglia. I accepted her call with a grin. "Hi, how was your flight?"
"Saxony?" Her voice sounded weird. Urgent, yet like she was trying to be quiet.
I lost my grin. "Yeah, what's up? Everything okay?"
"We're here. But I had to call you because...wait a second..." A door shut in the background.
"Are you okay? What's going on?"
"I could get into huge trouble for telling you this because of Pietro's confidentiality clause, but...well it’s more important that you know what's going on. I don't have a lot of time so I'll have to be quick. Are you listening?"
"Of course, you've got me on pins and needles, tell me for Pete's sake."
"Pietro's client, they are a bank. One of the biggest in Venezia actually."
"Is this about the break-in?"
"Shhh!" She shushed me and I jerked my head back in surprise, Elda had never shushed me. "Are you alone? Maybe just listen, don't say anything."
"You're freaking me out, can I say that?"
"Sorry, I don't think you need to freak out, just listen. The break-in that Pietro was talking about was at this bank. Only one thing was stolen, which is so crazy that it has to be a statement."
"What do you mean?"
"The stick, Saxony. The hard drive with Nic's videos on them. They were stolen from my lockbox. They were the only thing that was stolen. All the originals are gone. Now do you get it?"
Her words sank in. The fire flickered in my belly, but my skin felt ice-cold. Nic's videos were stolen? My mind immediately jumped to Dante. But how could he have pulled that off?
"He's coming for Isaia soon, I know it."
"What? Who?"
"Enzo. He's going to call my debt and take my little boy." Her voice broke and so did my heart to hear the fear saturating her words.
"Breathe, Elda. That's not going to happen. He can't take a boy from his parents."
"You don't know, Saxony. He can." She breathed into the phone, and the sound of a heavy wind shooshed into my ear.
"He's not going to want Isaia—he's not a magus." Even as I said the words, the smoke in my mind began to clear away from the problem.
Elda said the words as the thought formed in my mind. "Enzo won't know that, and by the time he does they could have already taken him."
I closed my eyes. She was right, but I wasn't going to feed her fear. "If he does come for Isaia, which I doubt he will, then just tell him that he didn't inherit the fire. Tell him that Nic made the videos just to be prepared..."
"You think he'll believe that?" She sounded incredulous. "I have to go, the boys are asking for me. Pietro doesn't know any of this. He doesn't even know that I was the owner of the lockbox. He's not the lawyer assigned to the case, one of his partners is. You can imagine..." She stopped herself. "I'm so sorry you've been dragged into all of this, Saxony. I just thought you should know. Be careful, okay? If someone comes knocking on our door, don't answer it."
I opened my mouth to say something comforting, but the line went dead. I set my phone on the table. I chewed my lip and stared without seeing. Enzo didn't know it yet, but Isaia would not be of interest to him anymore.
Isaia wouldn't, but I would.
Twenty-Seven
I stepped out from under the grocery store's awning and into the sun carrying two bags of groceries. I blinked in the light, set the bags down, and put my sunglasses on.
As I walked home, I replayed the conversation I’d had with Elda over and over in my head, heard the fear in her voice. Would Enzo really do such a thing? I now had more appreciation for the sheltered life my parents had given me. I was raised listening to classical and gospel music and taught not to swear. At some point, we all have to grow up and enter the real world. But if the real world had scary guys like Enzo lurking in the shadows and holding a debt over your head, I wasn't so sure I wanted to grow up anymore.
A flash of bright green caught my eye and I looked up to see a man wearing a green t-shirt with two yellow stripes across the back, just as he disappeared around a corner.
I gasped and my heart rattled against my ribs. It was the man from the tabacchi shop fire. I took off after him, my grocery bags swinging wildly against my legs. I turned the corner of the calle just before he disappeared at the far end.
"Aspetta, per favore!" I called, asking him to wait.
His head reappeared. I jogged up the calle. He had a smile of curiosity on his face.
"Parle inglese?" I slowed to a walk.
"Pochino." His chest bounced as he huffed the word. "What happened?"
"You broke into a tabacchi shop a few weeks ago," I blurted.
His pleasant expression melted to scorn. "Bah!" He flapped his hands at me once and turned away.
I dropped the groceries and grabbed his arm. The fire ripped upward into my chest. "I saw you." I narrowed my eyes at him. My face flushed with heat and my eyes burned. I could feel them starting to glow and I did nothing to try and stop it.
His expression went from annoyed to terrified. He yelled something in Italian, yanked his arm from my grasp, and fled.
I tore after him. The fire licked downward, giving fuel to my legs. I caught him easily, hooking his ankle with my foot.
He sprawled onto the stones, crying out and rolling over onto his back and elbows. He crawled backward and held a palm out at me, babbling a Catholic prayer.
I stood over him, fists coiled. "You could have killed three people," I hissed, my eyes fully alight. "One of them was a little boy." I should have tried to temper the fire, but it felt so satisfying to make him afraid. I closed the distance between us as he crawled backward.
"No, no no," he intoned. "There was no kids."
"That makes it okay?" My husky voice echoed through the calle. I clenched my teeth so hard I thought they might lock together. He'd just admitted his crime.