Chapter 49
LIANA
As we all sit at the island with breakfast in front of us, I can’t help but shuffle the fruit around on my plate while I think about whether my mom will meet with me today.
Massi places his hand on my bouncing leg and says, “She’ll show up.”
“How do you always do that?”
“Do what?”
“Know what I’m thinking without me saying anything.”
“You can’t give me that much credit,” he says with a small laugh. “It’s the biggest elephant in the room.”
“No, it’s more than just today,” I say, sliding my hand on top of his. “You always know what I’m thinking and what to say to help make me feel better.”
“That’s my duty as your husband, mia moglie. To be here when you need me the most. To anticipate your needs without you having to say a word. I love you, Liana, and I’ll always be here for you.”
The first genuine smile I’ve had in days, curls at my lips, and my heart skips a beat. “I—”
My phone rings, and I snap my gaze to it on the counter. An unknown number from Italy pops up on the screen, and I’m pretty sure I stop breathing.
Is that her?
Grabbing my phone, I slide my gaze back to Massi’s. “Put it on speaker,” he says.
Nodding, I answer it, press the speaker button, and say, “Hello?”
There’s a scuffle on the other end, and just when I’m about to say hello again, her voice comes through.
“Liana?”
“Mo—” I stop myself, knowing I don’t want to tell her who she is to me on the phone like this. “Vittoria, are you okay?”
“Yes, sweetheart, I’m fine.”
My shoulders sag forward when she calls me sweetheart. I never thought I’d hear that word out of her mouth again, and the emotions from hearing it hit me all at once. Tears well in my eyes, but I take a deep breath and force them at bay.
“I wanted to call you quickly because I’m not going to be able to meet with you today,” she says.
My heart drops, but she continues. “Ignazio is sending me to my favorite spa for the day. He surprised me with it this morning.”
“Oh,” I say, not sure how to respond. That’s peculiar timing for him to send her away.
“I would still really like to meet with you, though.” Those words have me sitting up taller on the barstool. “But I have to tell you something. I asked Ignazio if he knew who you were last night.”
Massi’s eyes widen, and he snaps his gaze to his brothers who are sitting across from us. They seem to have a silent conversation with each other.
“What did he say?” I ask.
“He said he didn’t, but I know he wasn’t being honest, and I think him sending me to the spa is a way to get me away while he figures out what to do about you.”
“That sounds about right,” I mumble.
“Now, I’m not sure why my husband doesn’t want me speaking to you, but something told me I needed to hear you out.”
“I … I really appreciate that … Vittoria.” Calling her by her fake name doesn’t sit well with me.
“I’m going to have a guard on me, but if you can get to the spa before me, I’ll be able to meet you back there. My guard won’t be able to go back into the women’s area.”
“Of course, yes. I can absolutely do that. Just text me the address and what time you’re going to be there.”
“I will,” she says.
Massi squeezes my leg, getting my attention, and mouths the words Delete the text.
“Oh, and Vittoria?”
“Yes?”
“Make sure you delete the text after you send it to me. You just … never know who might see it, and I don’t want anything to happen to you if Ignazio finds out you’re going behind his back.”
Massi nods to me.
“Of course. I’ll see you in a bit,” she says.
“See you,” I say, then hang up.
I bring my gaze up to Massi, who’s looking at his brothers. “How bad is it that Ignazio knows I spoke to her?”
“It’s not great,” Gui says with a sigh.
“We need to be careful and always watch our backs, especially when Liana goes to meet with her,” Massi says, then looks at me. “I don’t think you should go in the spa by yourself.”
“It’s a spa, Massi. They’re not going to let you back in the women’s area.”
“I know, but I don’t like this plan.”
“You’re all coming with me, right?”
The boys all nod.
“I’ll call you from my phone and keep it on so you hear everything that’s going on.”
“Have we considered this could be a setup?” Gui asks.
“It could be, but the chances are unlikely,” Gio says. “Why would she warn Liana that she told Ignazio about her if she was trying to set her up?”
Gui contemplates that, then says, “I guess that could be true, but what if that’s just to try and get her to trust her? It’s kind of suspicious that she’s going to a spa where men, like us, aren’t able to be there in case anything happens.”
“But we’ll be close by and she’ll have her phone on the entire time so we can hear everything that’s happening,” Gio says.
I glance at Massi. “What do you think?”
He looks at me and lets out a sigh. “What is your heart telling you?”
My mom would never turn on me like that, but I guess at this point she’s not my mom.
She’s a stranger who doesn’t remember a thing about me.
But still, even with that very reasonable suspicion Gui has, I’m not convinced she’d set me up.
There must be a part of her, deep down inside, that remembers me, right?
“I think I need to just go for it. If anything happens, you guys will be close by,” I say.
Massi studies me for a moment then says, “I can’t have anything happen to you. I’m not willing to take that chance, so I need you to wear a tracker.”
“A tracker?”
“It’s just in the form of jewelry. Diamond studs.
I need you to wear them and never take them off.
If you end up in a terrible fucking situation, they always go for your phone first. You need to wear them.
Your hair is long enough that any kidnapper wouldn’t even think to check your ears. At least not right away.”
“Massi, that seems—”
“I’m not willing to take the chance on you, Liana. You know what this world brings, and if I can avoid it at any cost, I will. You’ll wear the tracker.”
He’s right. Lux and Isabella were both kidnapped. It’s not entirely uncommon in this line of work, so if this gets me another step closer to speaking with my mom, I’ll do it.
I nod. “Okay, fine. You’re right. I’ll wear the tracker and I’ll make sure to leave my phone on so you guys can hear everything that’s going on.”
My phone dings with a message from my mom. I click on the address she sent.
“According to GPS, the spa is almost two hours from here. She’s going to be there in about two and a half hours, which means we need to leave soon. Like, now.”
“That’s the plan, then. Let’s go,” Massi says.