I checked my body. A blanket covered me, but I was naked underneath. Panic took over me. I reached a hand to check between my legs. Something was inside me. A…tube of sorts. I felt the extended length and found a plastic bag attached to it. That must be a catheter? To my huge relief, I felt no wetness, no soreness other than the mild uncomfort caused by the catheter. No indication I’d been violated.
For now, at least.
My hand moved to the source of pain and found a lump on my stomach that felt like a bandage or a dressing. Had I been shot?
Tears burned my eyes, but I didn’t let them fall. Crying wouldn’t help me. I had to be strong for whatever was going on. To face whoever took me—it wasn’t so hard to guess it was the Lanzas—and find a way out.
Were they planning to kill me? Of course not. Not now. They wouldn’t patch me up if that was the plan. Torture me? Rape me? Rape me and then kill me like Seppi did to Leo’s Mom?
Every horrifying story I’d heard from people or seen on the news or in a movie ran through my mind. My life was the biggest horror show I was forced to experience live. What did I expect? I was the girl born on Halloween. Horrifying me had been the entertainment of others since I could remember. For some reason, despite my luck and long history of unfortunate events, I was convinced having my wedding on that fucking day was okay.
Like it’d have mattered. The Lanzas would have come on any day the wedding would have been. What was I thinking?
I thought of Nicky and her protective embrace. I thought of Leo and his smile. I thought of Tino and all the trouble I’d caused him. I thought of my wedding that went from a fairytale to a nightmare. I thought of all my plans to finish high school and get a scholarship to become a distinguished violinist.
It was highly likely I’d never see any of those again.
Anger kicked in and held back the panic. I bit back a scream as I forced myself up, the pain unbearable.
Carefully, I felt my way out of the bed, securing the blanket tightly around me. My bare feet touched the floor. Smooth and cold. Not hardwood. Porcelain.
I adjusted the blanket around my body so that it covered my back and I could hold it from the front. Then I stood, stifling a groan. A faint squeaking of a door opening boomed in the silence. Light drifted in and blinded me for a second. I blinked a few times, my heartbeat throbbing in my skull. Then my eyes adjusted, and I could see the figure standing in the doorway.
“Tino!” Grateful tears of relief rushed out of my eyes. “Oh thank God. I thought I was kidnapped.”
He rushed toward me. “What are you doing up? You need to rest.”
“I was… It doesn’t matter. Where’s Nicky and Leo? And where are we?”
Brightness flared in the room as he flipped a switch. There was a window where the sea and sand stretched behind the curtains. It was a moonless night, though. No wonder I couldn’t see anything. The room itself was big yet simple with the décor and furniture. A king size bed. A wardrobe. Two small chairs and a small table. There was a door to my left, which I assumed was the bathroom door.
“Let’s get you back to bed first. You must rest until your wound is closed. You were shot. You had surgery.” Tino’s strong arms were on my back, and he carried me with one effortless move.
Startled and embarrassed to be in his arms naked, even with the blanket around my body, I flinched. “I can walk.”
He smirked as he placed me on the mattress and adjusted the pillows behind my head as if I’d said nothing. His eyes traveled to the blanket I was holding onto like my life depended on it. “The weather here isn’t like Chicago. It’s hot and humid. Nurse Arancia thought it’d be better to keep you naked so no infection would happen and to be easier for her to clean you and change your dressing. Are you cold?”
And terribly worried. “A little, but that’s the least of my concerns. Please answer my questions.”
He grabbed a chair and sat by my side. “Nicole is fine. Not a scratch. Leo took a bullet in the shoulder. Nothing serious, though. He’s already on his feet.”
“Thank God. And what is this place?”
“Italy. A private island of mine.”
I shook my head in confusion. “O-kay. What are we doing here? And where are Nicky and Leo? They should be the ones taking care of me, not you.”
“Nicole and Leo aren’t here. It’s only you and me…and Arancia, the nurse and housekeeper that has been taking care of you…and the bodyguards, of course.”
“What? Why aren’t they here? Where are they?”
“What’s the last thing you remember?”
It was all fuzzy. “The shooting…and then Leo wasn’t standing next to me… There were screams… Nicky was running toward me, but then someone or something knocked me down on the floor. Everything went black afterwards. It’s the Lanzas who did it, right?”
He stared at me pensively for a few moments, as if he was saying, “I told you so.” “Right. They’d managed to hide among the guests of the Halloween party.”
I pursed my lips. “So where’s my sister and my…husband?” The word felt strange. Off. Were we even married? Did the priest get to finish the ceremony?
Something flickered in his eyes at the word, too. He, too, felt its weirdness, or maybe it angered him. It sure did. Marrying Leo turned a family ally into an enemy and got his son shot. “Nicole is safe back home. Guarded around the clock. Leo is making sure she stays safe.”
That alarmed me, not assured me. “How?”
“However he sees fit. He’s a man now, and he needs to take care of his family.”
My heart raced. “Is he gonna retaliate? Is that what it is?”
“I don’t mean to rub salt on your wounds, but any actions have consequences, especially in our world. You’re both adults. You knew what you were getting yourselves into and still went through with it. It’s time to deal with those consequences.”
“Can’t he just drop it? He hurt them, and they hurt him back. Can’t it end that way?”
He leaned forward, a dark frown on his expression. “It never ends that way.”
A horrible chill ran down my spine. “What did you do when Leo’s Mom was killed?” The situation was pretty similar. The Lanzas almost killed me. I needed to know how far Leo would go.
“You don’t want to know.”
My lips trembled. “Tino, you have to help him. You can’t just leave him to them like that. He’s not as powerful as you are.”
He left his chair angrily. “Ever since his mother, I’ve gone easy on that boy for years, fixing every mistake he makes for him, and look what happened.”
Now was not the time for tough love. Leo could die out there. “Please, Tino.”
“You don’t have to beg for him. I am still helping even though I shouldn’t.”
“How are you helping him?”
“I left everything behind and got you here where no one can ever touch you again.”
My heart banged harder. I swallowed, the taste of my mouth awful. “Thank you, Tino, but that’s not gonna help him with the Lanzas.”
“He caused that mess with them. He needs to take care of it on his own.”
“Tino, you can’t—”