52. Dario
52
Dario
9 years ago
F rom the moment I saw Theadora di Luca in her father’s garden, she captivated me with her long, black hair and eyes so dark it was as if she’d swallowed my soul when she stared up at me.
“Who are you?” she asked curiously. She wore a pretty pink dress, but her knees were mud stained and there were leaves caught in her glossy hair.
“Dario Peretti, but my friends call me Dar. My father is here to see yours.” I wasn’t sure why Dad had brought me along. The minute we arrived, he told me to wait in the garden, which was a relief. I’d met Francesco di Luca once before, and he scared me.
“Oh. I’m Theadora, but you can call me Thea. How old are you?” She kicked some gravel with the toe of her shoe and peered up at me through thick lashes.
“Hi, Thea. I’m 12.”
“I’m 10 and Verity’s 3.”
“Verity?” I didn’t know Francesco had two daughters. Dad hadn’t said much to me in the car on the way over. Only that Francesco’s daughter might be around.
Thea clammed up immediately. “Verity is my…cat.”
Oh. I guess that made sense. My Nonna’s cat was 18 and still going strong. “Can I see her?”
“No.” Theadora spun and ran off into the trees, her hair flying like a banner in the humid afternoon air. I paused for a moment and then gave chase, ignoring the sweat trickling down my neck. By the time I caught up with her - she was faster than I expected - she’d ducked inside a small stone chapel. Thick moss partially obscured the entrance, but a flash of pink gave her away.
The air was blissfully cool inside. Cobwebs covered the weathered stone wall while light filtered through the stained glass window at the head of the nave.
An old wooden bench lay on its side. When I peered through the gloom, I could see red wax stains on the floor in places. The place reeked of neglect and age, and I wondered if it was haunted.
Although I guessed not, as Thea didn’t seem scared.
“You should go,” she said in a flat voice when she saw me. “Papa doesn’t want me to have friends.”
She sat on a lump of stone, resting her chin on her knees. For such a pretty girl, she seemed so very sad. Why was she sad?
“Your papa told me to come and find you,” I lied, sitting down on the same piece of stone, keeping a respectable distance between us.
From her frown, she didn’t believe me, but she made no further attempt to run off.
We sat in silence for a while. Eventually, my curiosity got the better of me. It was one of my less endearing qualities, according to my mama. She always said my curious nature would get me killed one day. Usually after she’d caught me poking around in my father’s study.
“Why doesn’t your papa want you to have friends?” As far as I knew, she didn’t go to my school. If she had, I would have noticed her for sure. She was way prettier than the stupid girls who hung around me and my friends. All they cared about were movies, bands, and celebrities. I had no time for any of them.
“He says having friends would be too distracting.” She rubbed her arm and when I looked closer, I spotted a patchwork of bruises. Some faded and yellow. Others blue and more recent. “I have a private tutor for lessons. He teaches me all the stuff Papa says I need to know.”
It seemed safer not to ask any more questions. A small voice in my head warned me Thea wouldn’t answer them even if I did. Instead, I told her about the music I liked, books I’d read. Stuff she probably wasn’t interested in but was too polite to say so.
We sat together for what felt like hours in the cool, dark chapel, watching the sunlight flicker in through the cracked glass panes, until I heard Dad calling my name.
“I have to go,” I said reluctantly, even though I didn’t like leaving Thea. The sight of her bruised arm made me feel hot and itchy inside. It was obvious she needed someone to protect her. I was still a kid, though, even if I was tall for my age. Mama constantly complained about my growth spurts. She claimed one day soon I’d be as big as my father.
I hoped so. My father was a mountain of a man. Nobody messed with him unless they were really dumb.
“Bye, Thea,” I said, hovering in the doorway as my papa’s voice got louder and more insistent. If I didn’t hurry, he’d be mad and never let me come back here, which was the last thing I wanted.
“Bye, Dar.” Thea flashed a smile so brilliant it almost blinded me. It was in that moment that I vowed I’d do everything in my power to take care of her.
What a fool I was.
I soon learned that Thea didn’t need anyone to protect her, and that she wasn’t the sweet, innocent girl I’d fallen for.
No. Thea di Luca was more than capable of ripping a man’s heart from his chest and spitting in the hole left behind.