Page 37 of Vita Mia

“Will you? Would you?” She looked over at him. “Because it’s going to take another sacrifice. The biggest one of our lives to save our kids. I don’t know if I could ever live without you Gio. But I have to protect my children. From us both.”

Giovanni wiped at his tears.

“I’ve cause you so much pain.”

“Nocaro, you have given me so much love. The price for it is pain.”

He shook his head.

“You’re right. Protecting the children has to come first. I swear to you Bella. I’ll give my life for them if I have too. I swear.” He pulled her hand up to his lips and kissed it. She wept silently while holding their baby. There was little left in him to offer so he held her hand and remained silent the rest of the way.

***

FOUR DAYS LATER —

“Any more news, Domi?” Catalina asked.

Dominic found a seat at the small kitchen table next to her. The staff had prepared his breakfast but he’d lost his appetite.

“Belinda is up and talking. She’s told us enough to piece the story together,” Dominic began.

“How did this fire start?” Catalina asked.

“According to Belinda she taught Eve how to play with matches months ago. But she told her not to do it again.”

“Wait. What? Matches? Why would she—”

“Since then Eve would tell her that she liked to make fire. She didn’t know what that meant. The night of the fire she saw Eve sneaking down the hall on the third floor by the storage closets.

“She saw her and she didn’t think to stop her?”

“She didn’t know that the kids were kept in villa Rosso and that Eve snuck back in the house. Belinda said that she and Leo had gone to the attic to make out. They fell asleep, but woke to the smoke. When they went to the door the entire floor was on fire. Eve had somehow managed to escape the worse of it. But she was in shock. All she said to them is that she ‘made fire’.”

“Sweet merciful, God. My poor Evie. Poor everyone.” Catalina made the sign of the cross over her.

“It’s too much for Mirabella and Giovanni. They’re devastated,” Dominic said. “Think of what has happened to this family in the past year. The kids have been a second thought while we fought our war against Lorenzo, so they blame themselves. Renaldo tells me they barely speak to each other now.”

“Eve? Has she been able to talk?” Catalina asked with a shaky voice.

“The doctors think she could. She still has trouble breathing but she isn’t speaking. Giovanni and Mirabella stay at her side. They don’t leave the hospital. Eve wakes and never responds to either of them.”

“I need to get there. I need to be there,” Catalina said.

“There’s nothing you can do. Trust me. I want to be there too.”

“Cecilia? Ana? Ella? Ernesto? Leo? All of them dead?” Catalina asked.

Dominic nodded. “Nico is in Sorrento helping with the clean-up and search for the bodies.”

“He can’t do that. If he finds her body... it’ll kill him.”

“He won’t stop. He doesn’t believe she’s gone. Hell, I don’t believe it. I guess we all need to find her.”

“How could this happen? How could any of it happen? Lorenzo? Marietta? Now this? Are we cursed, Domi? Is this God’s punishment for what we did to Lorenzo?”

Dominic gave her a wan smile.

“It’s not God’s reward. I can assure you of that.”

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