Page 44 of Vita Mia

Mirabella nodded and wiped at her tears.

“The doctors said Eve can be released at any time. I think it might be best if we take her and head to Chianti. Get her out of here, tonight,” Giovanni said.

Mirabella nodded.

“She doesn’t understand what she saw,” Giovanni reassured her.

“Yes, she does.”

“It’s possible she doesn’t.”

“She knows. I’m lost, Gio. I don’t know what we do from here? How do we help Eve?”

He kissed her softly. She stopped him and pushed him away. A kiss was the last thing she needed. Nothing he said or did could change what has happened. “I need to go to Eve. She wakes, she needs me. And Leeza too.”

“Wait,” he took her hand.

“I can’t say goodbye to Minnie again. I can’t face her. I can’t face them.” She pulled her hand from his and left. Giovanni wiped his hand down his face. He let her go.

***

GIOVANNI WALKED THEfamily out of the hospital and saw to his little girl being put in the car. Mirabella hugged him tightly before she joined the kids and they drove away. When Gio turned he was a bit surprised to see Clyde. Mirabella’s cousin hadn’t said a word when they came out. He observed them and smoked a cigarette. Clyde’s gaze turned back to the building where his daughter killed herself. Minnie was too sick with grief and guilt to be consoled by Mirabella. The women had an unsettling parting leaving them both in tears. And Giovanni imagined the same would happen to him and Clyde if he tried to explain the horror to the man. Still he refused to be a coward and walk away.

He approached Clyde. The man he knew seemed to have aged ten years since they saw each other last. He expected hostility. He braced for it.

“I’ve spoken to the officials. They are making the proper arrangements,” Giovanni began.

“Thank you,” Clyde said and flicked his cigarette.

“The doctors think it was her sedation. She might have been confused because of the drugs and jumped out of the window by accident.”

“Wasn’t no accident. My daughter has been confused most of her life. Trying to understand herself. Minnie thought she needed more discipline. I thought she needed more freedom. We agreed that with your family she’d get both. Maybe even be a criminal like the rest of you, but she’d be alive. Guess I was wrong.”

“Belinda accomplished a lot here, she was in modeling school,” Giovanni offered.

“Yah, I heard about that. She called me from Paris, once. Really excited. Said she was in love too,” Clyde said.

Giovanni didn’t know how to respond. He never really paid much attention to the young woman. In Capri, he discovered she had a unique artistic talent like his wife, but didn’t pursue it further. He did know that she and Leo were seeing each other inside and out of his house. He truly believed that if he were less controlling and let the young people do what they wished they’d be better for it. Now all he could think of was the different ways he should have prevented her fate.

“I knew she was fond of a young man who helped save her life in the fire. His name was Leo.”

“Where is he?” Clyde asked.

“He didn’t make it.”

Clyde shoved his hands down in his pockets. “Minnie said you people are evil. And Minnie don’t throw that word at people unless she really believes it.”

“We’re a family. We’ve had our share of bad times, but we’re not evil.”

“Maybe so, maybe not.” Clyde looked at Giovanni. “I saw what you did in Virginia. How you handle things. I hear stories of what happened to Marietta and Lorenzo from Minnie. And now I’m here to take my dead daughter home. You may not want to face it, but this family, it ain’t for nothing good.”

Giovanni’s jaw clenched. “I’m not going to apologize for who we are. But I will apologize to you, Clyde, for not protecting your daughter. On my life if I could do anything differently so that she would be here today I would.” Giovanni extended his hand.

Clyde stared at his hand for a moment then shook it. The mutual respect stood. But Giovanni was clear on where Clyde and Minnie stood.

“We leaving in the morning, Minnie is already back at the hotel. I had to sign some papers with the authorities. There was one man in particular who wanted to talk about you. Some kind of Lieutenant.”

“Générale?” Giovanni asked.

---