28. Federica
FEDERICA
Iwake up with my head splitting open.
For a second, I think I’m back in the wedding suite after the window exploded. Then I feel the zip tie around my wrists, the carpet under my cheek, and the wrongness of the room.
Luxury. Heavy curtains. Antique bed. Bars over the windows.
A prison with good upholstery.
“Fede?”
I freeze.
I know that voice.
I twist around so fast pain flashes behind my eyes.
Valentina is on the floor near the bed, wrists tied, hair tangled, face thinner than I remember. Her eyes fill when she sees me.
“Oh my God,” I whisper.
We crawl toward each other because neither of us can stand. I press my forehead to hers and make a sound I don’t recognize.
“You’re alive,” I say.
“So are you.” She laughs and cries at the same time. “That robe is a choice.”
“Thanks. It was a gift from my bridesmaids.”
“Youv got married?” Her eyes go wide. “To whom?”
Your brother, actually. Funny story. “Later.” I look her over. “Are you hurt?”
“Not really. Honestly, I’m just pissed and hungry as fuck.”
“Good. Pissed and hungry is what we need.”
My throat burns. Now that I’ve finally found her again, there’s a thousand things I want to say to her.
For some reason, what comes out first is, “I’m sorry about our trip to Europe. I bailed because I was giving every penny to Camillo and I was too proud to tell you. I was scared you’d say I was being used.”
Her face softens. “I knew. I hoped you’d figure it out.”
I close my eyes. “I’m sorry about your parents.”
Valentina’s mouth trembles. “They were brave. They bought me time to run. I almost made the tree line.”
Almost.
I look at the window. Beyond the bars, a garden stretches below. In the middle sits a wooden platform surrounded by hay and kindling. I frown. What the hell is that about?
Nothing good, my lizard brain supplies.
My stomach turns. I stumble upright and grip the bars.
“Fede, don’t. I tried.”
I pull anyway. The metal groans.
Valentina goes quiet.
I pull again, pain screaming through my shoulders. One bolt shifts.
“I was always stronger than people thought,” I grit out. “Skipped leg day a lot. Never skipped arm day.”
But the truth is, part of what’s fueling me is fury. I keep replaying that guy trying to grab Alessio and it’s enough to multiply my strength a thousandfold. He dared try to touch my son. He actually fucking dared.
The thought surprises me a little. I’ve known Alessio so little, but thinking about him as my kid doesn’t feel strange. It feels right in a way nothing else ever has.
Except Valerio.
I pull again. Valerio’s face paints itself in my mind. The last glimpse I got of him, the heartbreak and guilt and fury all mixed into one.
He owes me an explanation for all those texts. I won’t die before I get it.
The bars groan louder. Valentina’s jaw falls. “Jesus Christ, girl. I’m stealing your gym membership.”
I laugh, then pull harder. Something tells me Valentina has done plenty to loosen these, but they must have been starving her here, feeding her only what’s strictly necessary for her survival. She has no muscles left.
I do.
The bars twist, then nearly dislodge?—
The door opens.
Mateo Rubio walks in, smiling.
“Well,” he says. “That could become annoying.”
Two men grab us before I can finish the job. They slam the bars back into place.
My muscles burn, but my humiliation burns hotter.
Mateo gestures toward the window. “Come along, ladies. We’re having a bonfire.”
Suddenly, I understand what the platform and the hay in the garden were about.
My blood runs cold.
Holy shit.
He’s going to burn us alive.