She pressed his hand to her heart. "I loved you when I was a teenager. You didn't see me then. "We" only started foryoua couple days ago. I'm okay with waiting and hoping one day you might loveme."
He shook his head. "ButAmy-"
"It's okay," she interrupted. One day he might love her—so long as he was okay marrying her knowing how she felt about him. It was enough fornow.
He took his hand back. "It's my turn totalk."
True. She stilled and nodded. "Oh, fair enough. I'mlistening."
He opened his mouth to speak, but the door behind him flew open. Her mother and sister's voice filled the air, but it was Evie who made it by her bedside first. "Hello? The nurse said Amy was awake and we could sneakin."
Lucio stepped away from the bed. "Comein."
Evie moved the chair so their mom could sit while Evie took a corner of the bed. "Oh Amy, you look pretty beatup."
Her sister’s slightly cold hands checked her sore cheek. She certainly felt like she’d survived a disaster. The dirt must have scraped against her everywhere. Amy let out a sigh realizing even when worried, Evie looked like a model. Amy tried to ignore the comparison and smiled. "Thanks, sis. I feelthat."
Evie gave her a small smile. "Your wedding is probablydelayed?"
Her mother then added, "I'd say three months minimum if you want to walk down the aisle, but all that matters right now is yourhealth."
Three months felt like forever. She didn't want to wait that long, not now. She turned to Lucio but he inched toward the door. "Lucio, where are yougoing?"
He returned to her bedside and gazed at her. "I'm going to call my mother while you speak to your family. I'll be back in fiveminutes."
"Hurry." She saw the white hall and a straight line of rectangular lights and his tall muscular backside as heturned.
He waved and winked at her over his shoulder. "Always."
She couldn’t wait to marry Lucio now that he knew how she felt and hadn’t reacted negatively. One day he might love her too and she could wait for it. Patience was a virtue she had long developed and he was worthit.
20
Lucio tooka seat in one of the plastic chairs in the empty waiting room and tried to get a little comfortable. It didn't work, so he stood and paced toward the end of the room. Outside the window to the left he noticed that the press brightened the evening sky with all their lights pointed toward thedoor.
They'd be waiting for either him or one of his family members to exit the hospital, but guards kept a semblance of order. He stepped away from the glass to ensure no one saw him and dug his phone from his back pocket. He sank back in the plastic seat and called hisbrother.
"This isMarco."
Lucio spoke without introduction. "I need you to get a full background check on Suzie Oster. She was part of Amy's kidnapping and lived upstairs from her inLondon."
"Her friend?" Marcorepeated.
"Yeah." None of them had seen the American as a threat but clearly they needed to implement reports on every guest that stayed at the palace, even supposedfriends.
Marco returned after a pause. "On it. I'll get Babik to run her carplates."
"She would have had to rent one at the airport rather than take our car—I know I sent a limo." Lucio stared at the doors that led back to Amy's room. She looked like a half-done mummy from one of those horror movies with those casts of hers on one half of her body, when she used to look like an angel and it was still his fault. She hadn't deservedthis.
The vision of Amy jumping for her freedom left his entire body cold. Her friend Suzie needed to be found. Now. "She's probably left the country. Also, Amy said she can only identify four men so we’ll have to prove the five are working in aconspiracy."
"We'll find out what happened." Marco’s tone held a note of sympathy. "And don’t worry about the case now. We’ve gotthis."
Lucio leaned forward in the hard plastic chair. There was much he needed to discover and fast. "Amy shared that Suzie said she was paid. The five men don't have money in their accounts and even Edvard's father paid for that report with cash above his income level. We're not seeing who is paying for all thischaos."
Marco made a noise with his throat that sounded like he agreed but he said, "Let me patch Antonio in. Onesecond."
The phone clicked and Lucio understood he was being placed in the family three-way. Antonio joined and said, "Lucio. Sophia's parents have been petitioning for the release of theirdaughter."
