Chapter 56
Chapter Fifty-Six
Gualtiero
Isensed Ella as soon as we arrived in Lucerne earlier today.
That familiar energy brushed against me, faint but alive.
And then it went silent.
I have a dozen men combing the streets with photos of her and all her known disguises. So far, no sign of my angel. I fear she sensed me too and slipped away before I could close in.
This visceral bond we share is both a blessing and a curse.
Uberto and his team have been working nonstop. He has men monitoring every security camera in town and all the train stations in the area. I’ve posted men at every nearby stop. If she left, it was not by train.
Maybe she is hiding somewhere in these mountains, waiting for the danger to pass.
It never will.
But the gods must be on Ella’s side, because nothing so far is going right for us.
When we left Monza Station, I had two leads: the signal from her earrings and my gut telling me she’d boarded that train.
While I drove toward Milan, Mauro chased the earrings, and Uberto hacked into the ATM cameras. That’s when we saw her, or at least a disguised version of her.
Ella had changed her clothes and hair. She withdrew cash as a brunette, a wig covering her ears. It made it impossible to tell if she was still wearing the sapphire studs.
When Uberto scanned the footage at the Monza station, Ella as a brunette was nowhere to be seen. He concluded she must have put her earrings into the other woman’s bag early on and taken off to God knows where, while the girl continued on to the train station.
But when Mauro intercepted her after chasing her for an hour, she swore that she and her boyfriend had arrived by train at Monza around the time we got there, before catching a taxi to go north.
Uberto confirmed the woman’s claims. Turns out Ella changed disguises again and got on the train as a redhead. Uberto even found the moment Ella dropped the earrings into the woman’s bag.
My angel is clever. Even if I hate the result, I’m proud of her.
And my gut had been right. She was on that train.
My men walked right past her twice before she boarded. She gave nothing away. No sign of fear or hesitation.
I never thought she had it in her to keep her cool like this. I keep underestimating her drive to be free.
Then we realized too late that the train was bound for Basel, not Milan.
Trusting the departure board was a mistake. I should have double checked everything. It shows how messed up I am when it comes to her.
Even a day later, I still can’t believe she ran.
After our mind-blowing night together, things should have returned to normal, not fallen apart completely.
I’ve had all night to think about why she looked so furious when she went for her daily jog. It must have been the reason she ran when the opportunity opened up. I don’t think she would have otherwise.
Our conversation that morning has replayed in my mind over and over. Her face had lost all color when she realized she could be pregnant.
She looked horrified, while I was ecstatic about the possibility.
I want her growing round with my child. It’s why I kept her pills.
Now that I have found her, why wait to start our life?
My phone rings. Mateo’s name flashes on the screen. I step away from my men for privacy. Not everyone here can be trusted.
“Any news?” he asks when I answer. He’s back in Sicily, holding the fort.
“Nothing,” I say, rubbing my neck. “It’s like she vanished.”
“Ella only withdrew three thousand euros,” he reminds me. “That’s not enough to disappear forever. She will need more soon.”
Her inability to withdraw more than two hundred and fifty euros at a time is the only bright side in this, the only thing that’s working for me.
“We are ready when she does,” he continues. “Her card is monitored around the clock.”
“Is Molinaro still in Tuscany?” I ask.
He fled to his estate there after the Rome debacle and upped his security. He’s right to worry. Unfortunately, dealing with him will have to wait. Ella is the priority.
“Yes, as far as we can tell, the bastard hasn’t left his compound. He’s holed up there like the pussy he is.”
“I’m sure our mole has informed him about Ella being missing, and he’ll be searching for her, too.”
After everything that happened in Rome, she knows how dangerous the world is outside my protection. And she ignored it.
What if he gets to her before I do? I don’t want to imagine what he’d do to her.
“Good thing you’ve kept Sofia alive. His daughter may still prove useful should he find Ella before us.”
My stomach turns, acid burning my throat.
“That cannot happen, Teo,” I say. “We have to find her first.”
The thought of her being out there alone, fair game to every predator in this world, makes me feel sick.
“We’ve got an army working on finding her. We’ll get her back.”
I pray he’s right. I need her.
A life without her is unimaginable.
Mateo sighs. “Why did she run, Tiero? I thought you two were back on track.”
“So did I.” I drag a hand over my face. “Our last night together… it was different, unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Teo, I’ve never felt anybody so deeply.”
Everything about it is burned into me. Her scent, her taste, her soft sounds. The way she surrendered to me. It was pure perfection.
The world outside could have exploded, and I wouldn’t have cared.
“And she got spooked by that? Why?”
“Not that. But by the fact she could be pregnant. Remember, I told you the next morning?”
“Does she not want children?” Mateo asks, surprised.
“No, that’s not it. She just got spooked by the possibility.”
“I don’t get it. Why would that make her run?”
I let out a long, frustrated breath and stare at the sky, not saying anything.
“Tiero, what have you done?” he asks, exasperated.
“Nothing… but she might think I forgot protection on purpose.”
“Did you?”
My grip tightens on the phone. I pause. “Not exactly.”
“Tiero.”
I sigh. “Fine. Maybe a little. I had the idea to get her pregnant weeks ago, to give her a reason to stay, but what happened Thursday night wasn’t planned.”
The truth is, using a condom never even entered my mind… or hers.
He exhales sharply. “You realize that’s insane, right?”
“Do not lecture me, Teo.”
“I have to. She’s not like the women in our world. She isn’t used to following orders, even if they are for her own good.
“You have already taken control of her life. Of course, she’d resist that, but knocking her up on purpose? Jesus, man. That’s affecting the rest of her life. No wonder she’s furious and ran.”
His words sting because they are true.
“You cannot keep making decisions for her. If you want her in your life, you will have to treat her like an equal. Talk to her. Listen to her. Let her in. You can’t cage someone like Ella and expect her to love you for it.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose, tension building behind my eyes.
“I thought giving her a child to focus on would help her adjust faster.”
“Then when you find her,” he says, voice softer, “tell her you messed up. Ask for her help to fix it. Women love that. It makes them feel seen.”
I let out a humorless laugh. “And you are the expert? You’ve had as many girlfriends as me… zero.”
“True, but I listen to girls talk. So when I find my One, I do not want to screw it up like you have.”
“Great,” I mutter. “A love guru now.”
He chuckles. “There is still time. We will find her. And then you will tell her what she means to you. That is what she needs, Tiero. Not control. Love.”
I stare out over the lake, heart heavy. “Then let us find her so I can fix what I broke.”
We talk a bit longer before I feel it.
A sudden jolt runs through me, so fierce that I nearly double over. The world sharpens around me, the air thick with her presence.
“Got to go,” I mutter and hang up, my pulse already racing.
She is here.
“Move,” I order, signaling to my men. They are beside me in seconds.
“She is close,” I tell them, scanning every face on the street. “Check every car, every alley, every corner.”
The pull inside me burns brighter. It’s like I can feel her fear, her heartbeat, her breath.
I am close enough to taste her in the air. Which means… she can too.
But I will not lose her this time.
I am coming for you, angel.