It's much later that I find Enzo in his study, immersed in a book. I softly knock and he lifts his head, a smile playing on his lips.
"Lina."
"Enzo... can I talk to you about something?"
"Of course, piccola. What is it?"
"When did you get home?" I start, and he regards me strangely.
"Not too long ago." He looks at his watch. "Maybe half an hour ago, why?"
"I... I don't know how to say this but... I came across your wife today."
"Allegra?" He frowns. "Here?" He seems surprised.
"Yes. She... she was cheating on you." I blurt out. Enzo's expression doesn't change.
"Here?" I nod.
"Damn, I told her to keep it out!" He curses under his breath. He knew?
"You... you know about it?"
"It doesn't matter," he says. "Our marriage isn't a normal one. She's... we're not together." He shakes his head briefly, as if annoyed.
"Who was it this time? Was it one of the guards?" He asks as if this is a common occurrence.
"I don't know," I answer honestly. "But it wasn't just one." I'm almost embarrassed as I say this. Enzo just raises an eyebrow.
"She was with three men... in the living room."
"Fuck! I told her to keep that shit out of my house." He stands out, clearly pissed. "Damn! Claudia or Lucca could have seen her." He smashes his fist on the desk and I keep myself still, though the urge to flinch is there.
"That's what I was worried about too. Luckily only I saw her, but even for my eyes it was..." I trail off.
"Oh, Lina! Of course!" He comes and takes me into his arms. "I'm sorry you had to see that. I'll have words with her so she doesn't do it in here anymore."
"What happened, Enzo? You were so in love with each other." I whisper, the situation confounding me. I'd met Allegra before. She'd come with Enzo to visit me. She'd been the loveliest woman, and I could see how much they loved each other. It just makes little sense.
"Not everything is as it seems, Lina. I couldn't give her what she wanted..."
I shake my head. "It's not right."
"Don't worry about it, piccola." He strokes my hair. "One day, I'll tell you all about it."
"YOU LOOK BEAUTIFUL, mamma" Claudia is resting her head on her hands as she looks at me.
"You think so?" I twirl around a little, examining the back of the gown.
We'd picked up this dress when we'd gone shopping. I somehow didn't want to pass up the opportunity of wearing a white dress at my wedding, considering it might be the only one I'll ever have.
The dress is a creamy white with a high neck and short sleeves. The hem reaches my calves. It's not very skintight, but it molds nicely to my body. The sales assistant had suggested I tried some shorter dresses, and some that emphasized my cleavage too much. Yeah, they hadn't looked bad, but I'd been so uncomfortable in them, feeling extremely self-conscious about myself. It must be that I've gotten so used to wearing church-acceptable clothing that I've lost the taste for anything on the more daring side.
I smile a little, pleasantly satisfied with my look.
An intruding thought tells me that maybe Marcello will like it too, but I quickly catch myself. It's better to nip this crush in the bud before it's too late. I mean, who knows, maybe he's actually an awful person.
I sigh.
I don't even know if that would be better or worse. Sure, it would be better because then I could dislike him... or at least not like him. But then it would be worse because we will actually live with him and his family. I sneak a glance at Claudia, and she's admiring her own dress in the mirror. I don't think she's ever worn anything as colorful as that. It's a nice dusty pink, with glitter on the sleeves. Regardless of the circumstances that brought us to this point... maybe it's for the better? Claudia can finally have a normal childhood, and I will make sure she's safe at all times. That makes me a little worried though... us moving to a foreign house, especially after the whole fiasco with Father Guerra.
I shake my head, trying to dispel those thoughts. It's worth it to dwell on that. Surely not everyone is like Father Guerra.
"Are you ready?" She jumps from the bed and nods at me. I take her hand and we leave the room. The ceremony is going to be officiated here, and after that we will leave for Marcello's house. I'd already packed all of our meager belongings.
As we go down the stairs, I can see Enzo deep in conversation with Marcello. There is a significant distance between the two, and it just reminds me of the fact that Marcello can't stand being touched.
It had seemed odd when he'd said that, but who am I to judge. Maybe he has his own demons to grapple with.
Like I know I have....
We are about halfway down the staircase when they both look up. Enzo smiles at us, while Marcello looks almost bored.
His eyes sweep over my body and I get the urge to cover myself up, but I breeze through it. His gaze then settles on Claudia, and his eyes widen for a second.
Claudia tugs her hand free and dashes towards the bottom.
"It's you!" She exclaims, pointing at Marcello.
For a second I'm worried that she's going to touch him, so I go after her. Wait, but how does she even know him?
"Hello, there," Marcello crouches down to be on eye level with her. The corner of his mouth slowly goes up, and I'm stunned. Marcello... He's smiling... at Claudia.
"How do you know each other?" Enzo asks, suspicion dripping from his voice.
"We met briefly. At Sacre Coeur." Marcello straightens himself and gives Claudia a tender look before his face is blank once again. He looks at me and nods. An awkward silence ensues, as we both just look at each other.
"Well, then... the priest is in the drawing room. Let's get this done, shall we?" Enzo interrupts and motions us towards the drawing room.
The ceremony is brief, following which we both sign the marriage certificate. That's it...
It's official.
I turn my head ever so slightly to look at Marcello. There's at least a couple of feet of distance between us. I keep expecting his expression to change, to drop a hint of what he's feeling, like he'd done at the last meeting. But so far, I feel he's even more distant than before.
He has a few shushed words with Enzo, before turning to me.
"You're ready?"
"Yes..." I start, caught a little off guard. "Let me take my bag." I turn towards Claudia. "Go get your backpack."
She nods at me and runs to the room. I'm about to follow when Enzo stops me.
"I've had someone take your luggage to the car." He mentions and comes closer.
"It's all going to be all right, Lina." He tugs a strand of hair behind my ear. "I'm sorry it had to be like this, but..." He shakes his head, his voice full of anguish.
"I'll be fine, Enzo. Don't worry about me." I give him a quick hug.
Marcello is standing in the doorway, watching our exchange. I feel a little self-conscious as I pass by him to meet Claudia by the stairs.
"Going?" She asks, and I hold out my hand out for her.