Page 116 of Enduring Caine
“I’m glad you’re safe. I don’t need to hear the details unless you want to tell me, but Sofia called about everything that happened over Christmas.” He held my good shoulder, eyes falling to my injured arm. “And then your call from Giovanni’s… I’ve been worried sick about you.”
Nine years ago, Mario had pulled me out of Giovanni’s world. His concern was about more than one shooting or one near-kidnapping. It was about my soul. I owed so much to him, including an explanation of what had happened over the last three weeks. “I’ll tell you everything later. But for now, let me say this: They didn’t pull me back in. They didn’t hurt me. And Samantha and I are stronger for our experience.”
More than that, I’d finally stood my ground against Giovanni. I’d left part of my soul at his estate all those years ago, proud that I’d left him, yet guilty over being party to what he did. But with the fresco in hand and the hope of Giovanni helping the TPC, I could let it go. My scales were balanced and I could leave that shame behind.
He nodded, searching my face as though he hoped for more. My cousin was my best friend in the world and would know I was not yet ready to explain. “I suppose that will have to do for now.”
I closed the door as he left, then crossed to the bed, sitting next to Samantha. “Anything interesting?”
“One sec,” she muttered, reading as she typed, “‘Phone wasn’t working. I’m fine. Text you tomorrow.’”
“Someone worried?”
She flashed the phone to me, scrolling quickly through her messages. “Two hundred and fifty-three text messages. One’s from Matt, two from Cass, five from Elliot, and the rest are from Lucy.”
A laugh burst out of me. This hardly surprised me. “Were any of them important?”
“Cass reminded me to have a good time.” She smiled at the phone. “She’s worried about what happened at New Year’s but seems happy I’m here with you.”
“Before she handed over your passport, she told me you don’t relax enough.”
Samantha frowned. “I imagine you agreed?”
“Sì, of course! I’ve told you this many times.” I tapped her nose. “And Matt?”
“I still don’t know.” The offer of a permanent position with the Special Investigations Unit at Foster Mutual Insurance would be perfect for her. But it also meant settling down into one town instead of spending her days on the road. It meant tying herself to Brenton, which she’d been running from for over six years. “He offered to amend my existing contract to an SIU role in place of daily adjusting. Maybe that’s a good short-term plan?”
Short-term. She was still thinking until spring, like she had when she originally arrived in Brenton, intending to leave once her sister’s cancer treatments were done. I wanted long-term. I wanted forever. But all I could do was nudge her in that direction, gently. “When do you need to decide?”
She huffed out a breath. “When I get home.”
“Alright, bella. We can talk about it this week—or not. It’s up to you.”
She gave me a half-smile. Something else was holding her back, and I was unsure what it was. “Elliot thanked us for all the help and said he’s optimistic about Gio’s cooperation. Henri’s left his undercover role there; sounds like it wasn’t particularly fruitful anyway, because of the crazy amount of security. Johann’s time produced more intel, but it dried up over the last year and a half.”
“That’s when Leonardo took over. I guess he really is good at his job.”
She hummed absently. “I only skimmed Lucy’s, but I think half of them were about Lorenzo.”
“Not my brother Lorenzo?”
“Yup.” She tossed the phone onto the bedside table. “She’s still debating whether to text him. He is single, right?”
“As far as I know.”
She ran a hand over her face. “Can he handle a Lucy?”
“Can anyone handle a Lucy? Other than you?”
Her other hand joined the first one on her face, scrubbing over her eyes and cheeks. “The other half were about an apartment she found. Two bedrooms near Foster Mutual. She starts there in the spring.”
“Two?”
“I told you her solution to my apartment search problem was to move in with her, right?”
I nodded.
“She’s got a one bedroom now and I told her it was too small. So I guess she went on the hunt.” Her hands dragged down her face until I could see her lovely eyes. “She has an appointment for me to go see it with her when I get back. From the sounds of it, she’s magically discovered a place that fits all my criteria.”