Valentina
“Help me get her out, and I’ll do anything you want.”
I held onto Matteo’s arm, the smile on my face real, as the cold wind sliced through my resolve as we stood in the middle of the estate grounds.
His eyes bore into mine, searching for something he already had.
Trust.
He was the only one I could trust at this point.
“Help me get her out, and I’ll do anything you want.” I repeated the words in my mind, over and over, like a mantra I needed to believe in.
What could I give Matteo in return that he couldn’t get by himself?
He got me, once Isabella was out of the picture.
But Matteo wasn’t a man who made promises out of the goodness of his heart. He was calculating, always weighing the benefits.
I released my grip on his arm slowly, unsure of how much I should push. “What do you want from me, Matteo? Truly. If I agree to this, to help you find my sister for me, what will it cost me?”
His eyes flickered with something unreadable before his mask slipped back into place. “You’ll know when the time comes.”
Vague.
Typical.
No matter how much we get to know each other, he was determined to keep dangling me on a string. But I needed to figure out what he would want from me, what would make him agree to this.
I pulled back and turned slightly away from him, gazing at the dark woods surrounding the estate.
A gunshot again.
Boom.
His body on mine.
A part of me still clung to the belief that maybe, just maybe, Matteo would find Isabella fast enough before something happened to my sister. But the other part – the part learning how to fight – whispered that I had to rely on myself.
I couldn’t afford to leave my fate in anyone else’s hands.
Least of all Matteo’s.
And then there was the mystery of who had Isabella now.
Dante was a dead man, a revelation that had shaken me to the core. But someone was out there, pretending to be him and lying to my sister. Someone was in the estate, leaving notes for me to find.
I shivered at the thought. Matteo’s estate was supposed to be secure, yet I was being manipulated right under his nose.
Was it Caterina?
Was she the one who left the note that was now in Matteo’s pockets?
She was a master in disguise, having kept the fact that she had married Dante before, and he was likely dead when I came to her. Masking her features and true intentions so no one knew who she was.
Still, I had no choice but to ask her more questions about Dante and if I could, Isabella’s life before she was taken.
I spared a glance at Matteo, who watched me closely. Did he suspect what I was thinking? Did he know that I wouldn’t stand back and let him work on his own.
Did he know I would be walking into dangerous grounds?
“I’ll start looking for leads tonight,” Matteo said, his voice cutting through the heavy silence. “You’ll get dressed and come with me.”
I had promised to do whatever he wanted.
One of the things he wanted was to take me far from the estate.
I nodded absently, barely hearing him as my thoughts churned. Once he took me from this place, I would lose everything to solve this issue.
“Just give me an hour or so,” I whispered, my voice quieter than I intended. “I need some time to think.”
Matteo’s gaze softened again, but he nodded. “Take your time. I’ll be here.” He placed the ghost of a kiss on my forehead before moving backwards.
I turned on my heel immediately, discarding all thoughts of the warmth that kiss sent down my body, the cold wet feet making scrunching noises under my feet as I left Matteo behind.
The coldness in the air mirrored the icy grip around my heart. Everything felt too fragile, like one wrong move could shatter the world I’d built around myself.
I wasn’t sure what scared me more – running away with Isabella or finding out just how deep the betrayals were.
As I walked towards the study where Caterina most likely would be, getting ready for whatever lessons she had planned on me, I hesitated. My mind raced with questions, most of them circling around her.
I could confront her now. Ask her why she chose to keep those information away from me.
But…
Something stopped me.
Would she even tell me the truth if I asked her? Or would she lie, feed me more half-truths just to protect herself.
It was quite obvious she wouldn’t care for me the same way she cared for Isabella.
I climbed the stairs to the second floor to the room I shared with Matteo now, my feet dragging slightly as the weight of everything settled onto my shoulders.
The mansion was quiet as always.
Perhaps too quiet.
I could hear the faint ticking of a grandfather clock in the hallway, the echo of my own breathing filling the space around me.
When I reached my room, I paused at the door, my hand hovering over the knob.
Something felt off.
Like the air had shifted, thickened with tension.
The door was slightly open, not the way I had left it when I left to join Matteo outside.
Slowly, I pushed it open.
The dim light from the hallway cast long shadows across the room, but even in the low light, I knew something was amiss.
The faint scent of lavender lingered in the air, followed by the movement of feet.
I might not have known how to fight, but I knew when someone was in a room they weren’t supposed to be in.
Clack.
The sound of the vase falling to the floor was followed by someone darted across the room floor to the open door. A female by the looks of it.
I froze.
For a split second, I considered calling for Matteo, but when the adrenaline rush came in, it sent me running after the figure.
Though I knew I would never catch up to her.
“Close down the estate. No one leaves, and no one comes in.” I screamed down the hallway as I ran after the figure, but no one was there to hear me.
And she was gone.