Page 47 of A Debt to Pay

“Luci,” a small voice whispers, again quiet enough I think I’m imagining it.

“Luciana!” The voice is louder and I know I heard it this time.

I open the door, pregnancy test still in hand, and there he is. Someone I never expected to see is standing right in front of me.

“Nonno?” I must have said it a little too loud because immediately he shushes me.

“Tranquilla, Luci, you never know who’s listening.”

I’ve never seen him this way. So official, so paranoid, so unlike the man I grew up knowing.

I scan around the room, still mindblown that Nonno is standing right in front of me, and notice one of the windows is open. “Did you climb through the window? I don’t get it. How did you get past the gates and the guards?”

“I worked in this world many years ago. My papa, nonno, and zio too. I know more about Alessandro’s family than he does, and I’d bet my life on that. Now let’s go.”

“What do you mean, let’s go?”

Nonno looks at me like I’m the dumbest person he’s ever met. “You sent me that email. I told you I would get you out, but we need to leave now.”

Panic rushes through me. The email. I almost forgot I sent him that. “I can’t go.”

There’s that look again. “What do you mean, you can’t go? Don’t tell me you fell in love with him.”

“He’s not the man you think he is.”

“You don’t know him or his family. He’s exactly the man I think he is. Now let’s go!” He reaches for my hand, the hand holding the pregnancy test, and freezes.

“Luciana Stella Bonacci.” Tears well up in my eyes as he says my full name. He never calls me by my full name. “Please tell me this isn’t what I think it is.”

“I’m sorry, Nonno.” His face is stoic, and that’s infinitely worse than anger for him. Silence is worse than yelling.

“Now we really have to go. We will take care of you, but we have to leave now. No one in this house can know about this mess.”

He grabs my hand, sets a piece of paper on the bed, and leads me to the window. In the panic of his reaction to the pregnancy test, I blindly let him guide me. I barely process him leading me off the property, stopping occasionally because he sees someone coming. Nothing is said until we get in the car and I notice I’m no longer holding the pregnancy test and I’ve started crying. When did that happen? Did I drop it? Did Nonno take it? I’ve blacked out everything that’s happened between Nonno grabbing me and getting in the car. Did I put up any sort of fight? Now the most terrifying one, did I willingly leave with him?

Nonno speaks, breaking me out of my inner monologue of questions. “You’ll see one day that this is all for you. Everything I do is for your safety.”

The sound of the car’s engine echoes through the silent space until I’m the one who breaks it.

“Where are we going? Home?” Home. That’s such a foreign concept. Only a few weeks ago I would have given anything to be in that house again.

“We can never go home. Caterina and Stella are waiting just out of town in the other car and we’re leaving somewhere else. Somewhere safe.”

I’m almost scared to ask. Of what the answer might be. “Where’s that?”

He licks his lips before answering. “You’ll see.”

Chapter 44

Alessandro

Wedding Day

How is a man supposed to feel the morning of his wedding? No matter how hard I think, I can’t come up with a good answer. This wedding was one of obligation, not love, or that’s what I thought it would be.

I throw on a pair of sweats and head downstairs for breakfast as people run around, getting ready for today. This is exactly what Luci described. I imagine how the blue in her eyes would sparkle as she takes it all in. The day couldn’t be better, sunny and surprisingly warm for October. The garden and house are superb. Hues of blues, purples, and greens surround the house and garden, bringing her vision to life. The flowers in the garden are different from the one it was modeled after, but I told herthis will be her dream wedding and I stand by that. Marco, Andrea, and El are in the kitchen when I get there.

“Hello, groom. When is Luci coming down? We need to get her beautified!” Only El is this chipper in the morning. She might as well take shots of espresso before drinking her morning coffee.