Page 280 of Niccolo

She hugged her grandmother, then said hello to all of us and let us know Massimo was still in surgery.

I glanced at the toy ring on her finger and remembered Massimo had proposed to her. I wasn’t sure the Widow knew yet, so I didn’t say anything… but I was impressed. Everything that had happened over the last 24 hours – not to mention Massimo’s current situation – must have put her under a crushing amount of stress. And yet she was polite to us, if a bit reserved. Nothing like the legendary wild child of theCosa NostraI’d heard stories about for years.

We left her and the Widow to check on Adriano, who was recuperating in a room on the same floor. While the rest of the family talked to him, I checked my phone.

Still no word from Hong Kong.

Roberto – what the fuck is going on with you?!

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Massimo survived the surgery, thank God! But the doctors informed us they had put him into a medically induced coma to let his body heal. It was temporary, but they didn’t anticipate him waking for at least another 12 hours.

At least we got to visit him in the ICU. We weren’t supposed to be there, but the Widow insisted.

Massimo looked absolutely ghastly – pale and gaunt, his face slack like a dead man.

Lucia burst into tears as soon as she saw him. She kissed him on the lips, then took up residence in a chair by his bed and continually held his giant hand in her two tiny ones.

Dario held Massimo’s other hand and whispered something in his ear. Alessandra and Bianca both cried and, one by one, kissed his cheek.

I murmured, “Come back to us, brother,” as I gently touched his shoulder.

The doctors told us to go home and get some rest – that there was nothing we could do for him by staying.

The only one who refused was Lucia. Shedemandedto be allowed to spend the night by his side.

The doctors weren’t happy about it –

But the frail old lady dressed in a 19th-century lace dress had a way of getting what she wanted. And what she wanted was for her granddaughter to be happy – or at least less stressed.

“That would be fine,” the lead doctor agreed with a forced smile.

“You’ll call us if he wakes?” I asked Lucia as I handed her a card with my number on it.

“Abso-fucking-lutely,” she promised.

Ah – there was the Lucia I’d heard about!

If the stories about her were true, then it was odd to think of her as Massimo’s fiancée.

He was so laid back, while her legendary temper and penchant for profanity seemed more suited to Adriano.

But… opposites attract.

Or so they tell me, anyway.

The woman I wanted to be with was a perfect match for me in every way…

At least until I lost her forever.

All of us but Lucia returned to the Widow’s palazzo, where we had an excellent but subdued dinner.

Dario pulled me aside afterwards and asked, “Any word from Hong Kong?”

“No.”

He knew better than to remark on how alarming that was.

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