Her appearance made sense now. She thought me cowed, molded by Romeo’s superior strength. She would never have come here if she believed I was still cold-hearted and calculated.
Whatever gift my father had prepared for me, it would have been perfect. No one knew me better than he did.
Warmth enveloped me again, and long fingers wrapped around my tight ones.
“I’m sorry, wife. I’m so sorry,” he whispered into my hair.
“Why are you comforting me?” I asked, my insides void like a desert. All the emotions dried up, and my tongue was dry and thick in my mouth.
I’d expected Romeo to rail, to attack as he always did. To use force. He was silent, but his thigh pressed against me, its warmth a comfort against the spreading numb.
“You know why,” Romeo answered almost reluctantly.
I met his solemn gaze. He was pale and shaking, his skin tinged gray and racked with tremors. Sweat beaded on his upper lip as the poisons worked through him. The effects would last a few more hours yet. Uncomfortable, but not enough to kill. He worked a damp napkin over his forehead.
“No, I don’t. Why would you stay here after what I’ve just done to you?” I disentangled his hand from mine, shuffling down the couch. He’d given me a gift, a reminder of the man who mattered most to me, and I’d repaid him with poison.
“For the same reason, I will continue to attend these afternoon teas, and ingest whatever special ingredient you decide on. Because you’re my wife.”
There was more in those loaded words. A promise. Like his heels dug into the shag carpet. It brushed against me, a tender caress. He wanted more, his fingers curling unconsciously. His body was a taut bow in the dragging silence, and I didn’t have the strength to fight anymore. My mom’s actions had stripped me of my steel resolve.
I fingered the envelope. A gaping sadness was a pulsing open wound. Perhaps that was why I poured Romeo a glass of iced water. I didn’t want to be alone just yet. Not with the storm dismantling my foundations. I was reeling too hard to be left alone, and I didn’t want it. Or once, I wanted to share the burden.
We could suffer together. Just this once.
17
Dear Anita,
We are the same, you and me. I’ve known it since you were six years old. You fled the mountain of dolls in your playroom to knock on the door of my greenhouse. There was something so earnest in your countenance. You were curious and solemn. I didn’t have to remind you to be quiet. Sometimes I wished you would chatter more. But I think those were your mom’s worriesfiltering through me. I waited for boredom to coax you away to what young ladies seem to crave. But you stayed. The plants spoke to you, just as they do to me. I hope you appreciate the gift that I’ve organized for you. A chance to create your own empire. My notes are just the start. I’ve already taught you everything I know, but this will give you the tools you need to expand. I have faith in you. You have instinct, drive, and determination. I don’t need to say what else is similar about us, you know. Just as I’m sure you know what I do for the Orazios.
I would give anything to be at your side. But if you’re reading this, I am not. My daughter. My legacy. The treasure I don’t deserve. I am looking down on you, always.
Whatever the future holds, know I love you, daughter.
Please be kind to your mom. She doesn’tunderstand what drives us both, but she has been a good wife. As best as one can with the challenges of loving someone like us can bring. If you put aside your animosity, I believe you could find a world where she helps you. You’ve found a good match, if this letter is in your hands. Your mom will always provide well for you in that respect, even though you don’t mesh with her methods. There are benefits to opening your heart, as hard as it may seem. I feel blessed to have been one of the few who got to know your love.
I’ve been selfish with you, letting my joy impede your growth. But on this special day, I want you to know how proud I am of you. I hope this letter never reaches you because it would mean my plans were unneeded. It means I would have been there to walk you down the aisle. That I could see the man who captured the heart of one of the most wonderful women I know.
My gift is something I’d planned for myself, but what can’t be for me is a boon for you. Never will you find mecloser, and I hope I can assist you in the growth of your new legacy.
Your loving father.
P.S. I am not there to protect you any longer, but do not allow the Orazios to discover what you’re capable of. It will not be worth the wrath Matteo Orazio will rain down on your head.
18
Teresa Bianco clearly didn’t understand how close I was to snapping. A cup of tea had accompanied her blithe explanation of the absent gift. I shuddered at the sight. My stomach was still recovering from the afternoon tea Anita had poisoned me with. Days later, the thought of food still made my skin break out in goosebumps. It wasn’t just the toxic food that made my stomach swoop, but the unhinged machinations of my wife.
She hadn’t held back in punishing my ego. I was going to take out all my frustration and anger on her mom.
“What brings you to see me, Romeo?” Teresa took a delicate sip. I looked around the bungalow she was renting. It was small, tidy, with a distinct musk of damp. White sheets covered half the furniture, as if she was leaving at any moment. It was close to the bay, and the afternoon swell was blowing in salt-scented air. I pushed the cup away, not willing to tempt fate.
“I’ve come for the gift Antoni wanted Anita to have.”
My words were blunt enough to bludgeon. My wife had barely left the guest room she’d moved into for days. She’d read her father’s letter with deadened eyes and scrunched it up when finished. Whatever he’d written sent her into a mute, fugue state. I’d become accustomed to the blaze of her ire. Seeing it snuffed into darkness disturbed me. Paolo came to me, wringing his hands. He wanted me to help bring her out, and I laughed in his face. What did he think I could do to cajole her? She hated me. My chest throbbed with a bone-deep ache.
But then I remembered. I was Romeo Orazio. And I always got what I wanted.
