Page 18 of Reign of Fate
I giggle. “She’s an active little girl with an amazing imagination. She’s wonderful. You’ve done a great job with her.”
“I’ll be taking Adriana home now, but I wanted to thank you for all you did today,” he says. “By this time, Mrs. Withers would be needing a nap.” Oh my, I could get lost in that smile. I wonder if I’m drooling.
“Can I let you in on a secret?” I lower my voice and whisper, “As soon as you leave, I’m going to have a snooze. I’m not much on exercise, but Adriana is a workout. I’m going to need to start a training regime to keep up.”
There it is again, a softness in his expression, but it lasts only seconds and it’s gone again. Ivo steps back and reminds me of breakfast tomorrow.
“We’ll pick you up around nine. The appointment at the school isn’t until ten thirty. It’ll give us plenty of time.”
Adriana doesn’t stir even as her father picks her up and puts her in the car. He takes his place behind the wheel, and they drive off. I liked having the house filled with laughter and all that bubbling energy that children bring into it.
I always thought I would be a mother one day. That dream was dashed when Guido became wheelchair-bound and needed all my attention. Honestly, I used to get a pang of jealousy when I saw other women with their rounded bellies or holding their babies in their arms. Fate had another road for me to travel, and although I’ve had difficult moments, I also had a good life with Guido. I wonder what my life will be like with Ivo and his adorable little girl.
EIGHT
I Won’t Embarrass You
IVO
Two months later…
In the last months, Elisa and I have had dinner together every Friday night. Each night, it gets harder to leave her at the door. I can see she wants me to kiss her properly but feel like I’m being unfaithful to Maria. I need to move past this, and the only man I can talk to is Raffaele. That’s why I called him right after our date tonight and told him I needed to talk.
It’s nearing midnight, and I’m standing in a cemetery next to my wife’s grave, with Raffaele right by my side, just like the day we buried her. I still feel the ache in my gut, the same pain as the day she left this world.
“Ivo, what do you need?” Raffaele asks. I turn and see his expression of concern. “If you want me to release you from the promise you made, consider it done. I’ll find an appropriate man for Elisa.”
The idea of Elisa with anyone else fills me with rage. “Fuck no!” I growl. I rake a hand through my hair and pace back and forth. “Why do I feel this way? I loved Maria, but she’s gone. I should be able to move on.”
“Moving on isn’t always as simple as it sounds,” Raffaele says with a sigh. “You’re trying to hang onto her because you’re afraid of forgetting her.” His words hit home. Maria was my first love, and when she died, part of me died along with her. “She’ll always have a place in your heart. Maria was one of the best people I’ve ever met, and in our world of torture, blood, and death, she was an oasis of calm. But she isn’t here with us anymore, and she would want you to move on and give Adriana a good life with a good woman by your side. Elisa’s one of the finest women inUltimo Morte.”
“I don’t want to say goodbye,” I admit, my throat clogged with emotion.
“You already said goodbye. It’s been four years,” Raffaele reminds me gently.
“I want Adriana to know her.”
“Then tell her all the stories you can remember about her mother. Do you think Elisa will mind?” he asks incredulously, then answers his own question. “That’s ridiculous. Elisa isn’t Adriana’s mother, but she can be a good mother figure in her life. And what’s wrong if Adriana considers her a mom? It means she had two women love her in her life. The one who gave her life and another to see her through life. You know in your heart Maria would love this for her daughter and for you, because that’s the kind of woman she was.” Everything Raffaele says is the truth. “I’ll give you a moment. I’ll be by the car,” he says and steps away, leaving me alone with a cold headstone.
Anyone would think me crazy to be talking to a tombstone. “You know I loved you. Every moment of every day we shared, I loved you. I’m not even sure what I’m feeling for Elisa. It’s not the same as what we had. I don’t think what we had could ever be duplicated.” I run my hand over my face, keeping the tears at bay. “Shit! I want her. And not just in my bed, in my life. Raffaele gave me an out, and I didn’t take it.” I pause, then crouch down and reach out to touch the stone. “She’s so good with Adriana. She’s patient, and Adriana’s shown her stubborn side. I thought for sure Elisa would run for the hills, but she didn’t. She sat in Adriana’s room and waited for her to calm down, then gently called her over and gave her all the time she needed to put her frustrations into words.” My throat tightens, and I choke out, “It’s exactly what you would have done.” I wipe away the only tear I allow to fall and clear my throat. “I have to move on, but you need to know that I’ll never forget what we had.”
I place the flowers on the grave and get to my feet. I begin to walk away, but stop to turn back. “I’ll come visit, and I’ll bring Adriana when she’s older.”
The next evening…
It’s approaching the six-month mark since Guido’s death, and it’s almost time to set the wedding date. Elisa hasn’t mentioned it once and is probably wondering if I’m going to back out. The truth is that I’ve been busy trying to decipher the pages and pages of numbers on the USB keys we found hidden in Guido’s den.
Dates, amounts, and codes that we believe are bank accounts. The money adds up to over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. This is money that’s missing from Guido’s personal accounts.Guido wasn’t working in the business, but somehow accumulated information that shows money is gone missing. So many unanswered questions that we may never have answers to. How do you question a dead man?
We’ve been digging into Bruto’s accounts, but there’s nothing out of the norm being transferred in or out. Raffaele’s convinced that he either knows about it or is involved in some way. We’ve made some surprise visits to him, and Bruto was courteous and respectful, but there’s something not right about him lately.
I’ve asked Elisa’s guards if Bruto’s ever returned to see her, and he hasn’t. Neither has Ruggero. Elisa doesn’t have anyone come and visit except Evangeline, Adriana, and me. I find that odd as well. I’m aware that Elisa likes her quiet and isn’t a social butterfly, but it seems like she’s cut herself off from the rest of the women in the family and even from her own parents.
In a way, this suits me fine. I detest the social events Raffaele insists I attend and only go begrudgingly. As my wife, Elisa will need to be by my side, and since Raffaele has made Evangeline his queen, and with me being his consigliere, that means Elisa will have to rise to the occasion and accompany Evangeline to many of the women’s social functions.
Raffaele and I have enlisted the assistance of several hackers to see if they can break the code on the USB keys. They’ve made some progress, but each file is encrypted and has a password. The progress is slow. We thought about asking Reno for Dante’s help, but decided to hold off and try this on our own first.
We’ve made sure to take the duty of paying Elisa’s bills away from Bruto and found that Guido’s accounts have been drastically drained, after his death, since we first gave Bruto that responsibility. I’ve not mentioned this to Elisa because Raffaele wants to keep this under wraps until we get to the bottom of it.
