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Drapes were pulled back, showcasing an open floor-to-ceiling window, which blew back and forth in the breeze.
Her fingers tapped on the blanket. Her other hand rested on the sleeping body of an orange fox, its fur bushy and wild, like he, a nocturnal animal, should be. I didn’t see him until my wheelchair took me closer, and my mouth dropped when I did. A loud gasp fell out of me, heard over the beautiful song as Trix lowered the volume.
“He’s precious, isn’t he?” Her smile spoke of unconditional love for the creature, still sleeping placidly.
“I wanted to call him that, you know. Precious. It’s more fitting than Trouble.” Her fingers weaved through his fur, scratching at his ears. “He’s no trouble at all.”
“Is that his name?”
She nodded, her eyes on her furry companion for a moment. “Mercer started calling him it when he was just a cub. He was a feisty little thing, and he liked to dig up the flower beds. It wouldn’t have been an issue if my husband hadn’t buried all sorts of things out there, including an enemy or two.”
Trix’s shoulders vibrated as a small giggle crept out. She took in my lack of reciprocation. “Did Mercer tell you about his grandfather?”
“Mercer doesn’t tell me anything.” I looked away, my body itching with irritation. I scratched at the annoyance, making my skin red.
“Is that a nervous thing?” Trix pressed gently.
I shrugged.
“Well, my husband was a mafia boss,” she said those words like murder and manipulation schemes were the norm. As normal as if he were a lawyer or a doctor. “I thought Mercer might have told you on one of those little Post-its he wrote to you while in his Nonno’s cell.”
I simply shook my head. I could not say a word, not without offending Trix, surely.
And she knew her confessions had made me uncomfortable. Almost like I was sitting on a bomb about to go off.
“Don’t worry, honey. They were all bad people. He never hurt the innocent.” Her smile was genuine, making her words believable. “Like Mercer.”
I digested the information, struggling with the weight of her truth. It was a hard lump to swallow, but it made sense. Mercer lived in his family home...a beautiful and sophisticated home atop a creepy torture chamber to gift his enemies painful deaths. The average person didn’t have one of those...but a mafia boss? Well, sure, they would.
“And you were okay with it?” I asked, eyebrows sneaking closer to my hairline as each second ticked by.
“I loved him. I still love him dearly. Was he a perfect man? No. If you wait for one of those, I doubt you’ll ever truly love someone, but...he was perfect for me. Good to me. And that’s what matters.” Her smile grew, and she laughed. “You can lower those accusing eyebrows now.”
And I did. The brows retreated to their regular position.
“Men are complex, honey, and lots of them don’t know how to love...”
“Your grandson did.” The words crept around the lump in my throat.
Trix sighed. “Mercer loved Chandelle, but they weren’t forever...despite the shit she fed him. He could have, should have, done better for himself from the start. It’s nice to see he’s noticing that now, too.” She gave an accusing look of her own, her eyebrows wiggling in my direction.
I drove my chair closer. “What do you mean?”
“You, darling.”
“He hates me. He keeps me here, but he hates me. If I didn’t have her heart—”
“Yes. If you didn’t have her heart, you wouldn’t be here. But you do, and you are. And it’s not her heart he’s looking at when he side-eyes you when he thinks no one is looking. It wasn’t her heart he was touching when he breathed in the scent of your hair this morning. I noticed, even if you didn’t. I notice everything, and I’ve noticed he’s not touching her heart, but you’re touching his.”
“Please... he’d happily keep me in my room, out of sight. Only happy because a part of her is still here—”
“Do you think that man would put that contraption on the staircase if he wanted to keep you locked in your bedroom? Though, I’ll admit, these legs,” she tapped them, “are glad he did. Do you even think you’d have a bedroom...? Or would you still be in that cell?”
“I thought it would’ve been your idea to get me out.”
“It would have been, but he’d already beat me to it when I found out about you. He isn’t perfect. Hell, he did kidnap you, and that’s beyond crazy. Crazier than some of the other stuff this last year led him to do. But he could be good...for you.”
“He’s been pretty bad so far. He’s been awful.”
