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Agnes’ eyes widen. “And where, exactly, are we going, Gabriel?”
There’s that grandmotherly tone to her voice. Her eyes narrow, and I let out a breath.
“We’re going to the family estate. In Italy. I had business there anyway. It’ll be safe until things calm down. And—” I shove my hands into my pockets, sucking on my teeth as I try to calm myself. “It will be good for Cecelia and Danny to see where they come from.”
“You’re not leaving without Bella, are you?” Agnes looks aghast at the idea, and I rock on my heels, trying to calmly explain. I still feel as if adrenaline is crashing through me, as if I need to move, to do something, and it’s taking everything in me to do all of this in a measured, careful fashion. “You can’t leave her with them, Gabriel.”
“I won’t. But I have to make sure you all are safe. Which means you can’t stay here. I’m going to go and talk to her father, but in the meantime, I’m getting you all to a well-secured hotel. Once I’ve figured out what to do about Bella, we’ll leave.”
Agnes looks mollified by that. “I’ll go upstairs and start packing their things,” she says, and I shake my head.
“I’ll do it. I want to check in on them, anyway. And you need to rest. Aldo, the two of you go sit down. I’ll come down and find you shortly.”
Agnes looks like she wants to argue—she’s never been able to admit when she needs a break—but Aldo murmurs something quietly to her, and she allows him to lead her to the living room. I take the steps two at a time, hurrying up to Danny’s room.
He and Cecelia are both in there. Danny is pushing a toy car back and forth on a track, intent on it as if it’s the only thing keeping him from falling apart. It very well might be. Cecelia is holding her doll—not the one she wanted so badly, but the dark-haired one in the Victorian dress that Bella told her she loved.
“What’s going on?” Cecelia asks as she looks up at me, clearly picking up on the agitated look on my face. I try to smooth it, not wanting to frighten either of them, but it’s impossible to make everything as alright as I would like it to be. The whole house is in a state of tense agitation, waiting for what happens next.
“We’re going on a trip,” I tell her calmly. “We’ll be gone for a little while, so whatever you want, you should pack. Clothes, your dolls, their clothes—you can bring as much as you want. I’ll help Danny pack, and then I’ll come check on you, okay?”
Cecelia presses her lips together, chewing on the lower one, her eyes wide. “Where is Agnes?”
“She’s downstairs with Aldo, resting. It’s been a long day. But she’s coming with us, too.”
“And Bella?” Cecelia gives me a narrow look, as if she suspects that the answer might not be what she wants. And once again, I can’t bring myself to lie to her.
I hate that she’s grown up so much, in a matter of hours. That ugly parts of the world have been revealed to her that she might never have known about otherwise. That something has happened to her now, today, that will stick with her forever.
“I’m going to do my best to make sure she comes with us,” I tell Cecelia quietly. Next to her, Danny stops pushing his car. He doesn’t look up at me, and my heart wrenches in my chest.
I can see how much Bella means to them. How smoothly and perfectly she’s integrated herself into their lives, into all of ours, in the brief time that she’s been here.
I can’t allow Igor to harm her.
Cecelia nods, pushing herself up from the floor and past me, out into the hall to go to her room. I get a suitcase out of Danny’s closet, setting it on the dark blue duvet of his bed. I open it and start to move around the room, taking items out of drawers and asking him if he wants them. He nods a few times without looking, before I finally set a pile of shirts down, and kneel down next to him.
“Danny?”
“I was scared.” He pushes the car again. “I wanted to be brave. Like Batman.” He picks up the toy action figure next to the car, and drops it. “But I was scared.”
“Oh, Danny.” I wrap an arm around him, pulling him into my chest. “Batman is a grown-up. You don’t have to be brave like that. I’m the one who is brave for you. Okay? That’s why we’re leaving for a little while, as much as I’d like to stay here. So that you and your sister, and Agnes and Aldo, can be safe.”
He nods, sniffling again. “And Bella?”
Danny is very young. Too young to tell the truth to in this instance, I think. Cecelia is old enough to know if I lie to her, but with the frail shape of my son in my arms, crying because he couldn’t do more to protect the people he loves, I simply nod.
“And Bella,” I promise.
I’m going to do my damndest to keep that promise, before we leave.
—
I get the children, Agnes, and Aldo to the hotel before I go to Masseo’s mansion. The hotel I’ve chosen is one with an upper set of floors accessible only by keycards, with a separate elevator and security guarding the entrances to go in, checking keycards of anyone who wants access. I get a suite of rooms—one for the children and me, one for Agnes and Aldo, separated by a large living area where they can relax and play. I leave them there, with instructions to order room service if they get hungry and not to leave the room, and then head back down to where Jason is waiting for me. He was meant to be off today, and I’m glad, because it meant he wasn’t there when the attack happened. He answered as soon as I called, and now he’s sitting, tense and pale, in the driver’s seat as I give him instructions to go to Masseo D’Amelio’s home.
He stays silent on the drive over, and I don’t blame him. My household has never been one where there’s a constant threat of danger, where there’s always the possibility of violence or retribution. I’ve been meticulous in my business dealings, to keep from forging connections where rivalries could come back to bite me. I’ve remained neutral, working with a number of different organizations, always sticking to business and nothing more.
It shouldn’t be surprising that the one time I allowed it to become personal, when I ignored my instincts and my better judgment and forged ahead anyway because I wanted, things have come unraveled.
