Chapter 32
Katarina
The dream is a loop.
We’re outside someone’s house, the lawn freshly mowed, the air buzzing as people walk around in hurried steps as if preparing for something grand. A party, perhaps.
I’m running after a boy who refuses to turn around. The weather is warm and safe, almost perfect. Then the sun glitches. The warmth itself hits a wall of ice, and suddenly I’m awake.
The room is dark, but my eyes catch a shadow figure of a man at the foot of the bed.
My heart stops.
For a split second, I think it’s Damiano back from wherever he disappeared to this morning. I expect the press of his body on the mattress, the scent of whiskey and cigarettes to coat the air, or the low murmur of his voice apologizing for coming home late.
Nothing.
“Damiano?” I murmur, pushing myself up from the mattress. “Where were you? I waited for hours…”
“It’s Julian.” He says.
His voice is quiet, tinged with urgency. I reach for the lamp, but before I can touch it, Julian’s hand is on mine, preventing it from reaching the switch.
“Don’t,” he whispers. His eyes glint frantically as he moves closer and whispers, “Kat, we have to leave. Right now.”
“Julian, what are you doing? If Damiano catches you in here—”
“Ssshhhh,” he reaches up to hold his thumb over my lips as he cups my face.
“Damiano is the reason I’m here.” He pulls me up and drags me across the room. He pulls a jacket I recognize as his from the chair and drapes it over my shoulders, his fingers pausing on the collar for a second as if to steady me. “We don’t have much time.”
“Julian, what is going on?!” I get out of his hold in panic as memories of this morning flash in my mind.
“You’re in danger!” Julian’s breathing is shallow as he forces me to sit on the edge of the bed, taking my shaking hands in his. “I overheard him back at the graveyard. He’s enraged. He’s talking about harming you. He’s not the man you think he is, Kat.”
I let out a dry, nervous laugh, my fingers clutching the jacket he just put on me, my stomach twisting.
“Stop being dramatic. Damiano gets intense, but he cares about me. He loves me.” The words slip out before I can stop them.
I remember the way Damiano said them to me, straightforward and unguarded, as if loving me was the most natural thing in the world. It felt real. It felt certain.
“He doesn’t love you. Not tonight.” Julian looks at me with such profound pity that hurt more than his words.
Then he takes my phone from the nightstand, opens a message he sent, and holds it up for me to see.
“Here, see for yourself. I didn’t want to show you this, I really didn’t, but I can’t let him hurt you anymore.”
He hits play.
The video is shaky and dark, the lens smeared with rain, everything looking warped. The rain sounds like static on the microphone. A shadow passes, then Damiano appears in the middle of the screen. His lips move, and his voice cuts through the rain, unmistakable.
“I let her into our house, Enzo! I told her I was in love with her!”
I freeze.
“You’re not thinking straight.” Lorenzo appears in front of him, both of them getting soaked by the rain. He tries to subdue Damiano, but the latter is too angry.
“No… I should kill her. The same way they killed Mamma. A bullet to the forehead. It’s only fair. An eye for an eye.”
My heart drops.
Then the video cuts off. I stare at the screen, his words ricochet off my skull.
Kill me? What does he mean?
The silence afterward is smothering, pressing all the air from my lungs. The betrayal feels like a physical slap to the face, leaving my skin numb.
The man who murmured promises into the crook of my neck had just said he wanted to kill me.
“He wants to kill me,” I whisper. The words wrap like chains, squeezing my throat. “Wh-why? Why would he say that, Julian?”
“It doesn’t matter, we have to go,” Julian says fiercely, cupping my face. “I promised Mateo I’d take care of you. I’m getting you out of here, Kat. I’ve got a car ready. We have to leave now.”
A cold sweat breaks out across my forehead. I move, my body operating on a primal survival instinct.
Kill her. His words keep repeating in my head.
I grab the locket Mateo gave me from the nightstand. Julian helps me into a pair of sneakers, kneeling before me to tie the laces when my hands fail to function. He looks up at me, his gaze soft and reassuring.
“I got you. I promise.” He says as my breaths become shallow gasps, threatening a panic attack.
When he gets up on his feet, he pulls me towards the door.
“Wait. Pedro! I can’t leave him.”
Julian immediately scans the room, whispering Pedro’s name, hoping he’ll come. I spot him sleeping under one of the chairs in front of the fireplace and pick him up. His round body stretches but returns to sleeping just as fast as soon as he’s snug on my chest.
“Make sure he stays quiet,” Julian warns before picking up a duffel bag on the floor.
We slip out of the room, the hallway dark and quiet. Every squeak of our shoes sounds like a bomb going off. Julian stays a step ahead, checking every corner, his hand always reaching back to make sure I’m right behind him.
“The side door,” He hisses, gesturing for me to stay low.
We creep down the hallway trying to make no sound. My heart is hammering against my chest with every step of the way. At each doorway, Julian pauses to listen, making sure no one is around, then motions for me to follow.
My breath is shallow, my every nerve is on edge as we pass multiple closed doors and skirt around the faint glow of the living room nightlight.
We take the back stairs, moving quickly, and slip through the narrow service corridor that leads to a mudroom.
There, Julian slowly unlocks the side door, peering outside before giving me a nod.
We run into the cool air. The thick fog from the recent rain almost swallows the lemon trees.
“Hold my hand,” Julian whispers, and I oblige.
We move along the stone perimeter of the house, every rustle of the leaves making me jump.
“The Jeep is just beyond the olive grove,” Julian says, his voice low.
We break into a run across the open grass. The moist ground clings to my shoes, slowing me down. I keep looking back at the villa, waiting for the searchlights to flare, but Julian has timed everything correctly.
“Almost there, Kat,” Julian breathes, catching me when I stumble over a tree root. He doesn’t let go of my hand, pulling me into the dense cover of the trees.
When we reach the tree line, tucked under a camouflage tarp is an old, rugged Jeep. Julian rips the tarp back, the heavy fabric groaning.
“Get in,” he orders, his voice firm with adrenaline.
I scramble into the passenger seat, Julian taking Pedro off my hands and putting him and the duffel in the back seat.
My hands are trembling so violently that I fail to buckle my seatbelt.
Julian reaches over me when he’s in the driver’s seat, his arm brushing mine as he clicks the belt into place.
He pauses for a second, looking into my eyes.
“Breathe. I got you.” He says, and I nod.
The engine sputters, making a loud mechanical cough.
“Come on, come on,” Julian mutters, gripping the steering wheel.
He cranks it again, and the engine finally roars to life. He throws it into gear, and we lurch forward, the tires spinning in the mud before catching on the gravel. I sink low into the seat, my stare fixed on the sideview mirror, watching the villa disappear into the mist.
When we reach the back gate, I brace myself for the confrontation ahead. I know there are guards at every corner and exit of this place. Instead, the gate is already unlocked, half open, as if someone had been expecting us. Julian doesn’t even slow the car; we just slip through.
For a moment, I didn’t understand how that’s possible. Did he bribe them? Threaten them? Impossible, these are loyal guards. So there could only be one answer.
I don’t ask, afraid of hearing the brutal answer. The fear sits heavy in my chest as we speed into the night.
Julian reaches over and places a hand on mine, gently squeezing it. “I’m sorry it had to be like this. But you’re going to be okay. I’ll make sure of it.”
As the Jeep weaves through the dark, the shock finally begins to melt into a raw, agonizing ache.
I turn my head toward the window, watching the moon, and let the tears fall.
I don’t sob because I don’t want Julian to know I’m crying.
I just let the hot tears streak down my face, mourning the man I thought loved me.
Every time I close my eyes, I hear his snarl on the recording.
The sound takes the love we built and sets it on fire.