Page 184 of Mine Again
“No.”
She blinks. “No? That’s it?”
“If a maid had discovered it, your father would have been told. He might have gone looking for more cameras, and if he found them, I wanted you to be able to say you knew nothing about them.”
“How gallant of you.” She tips her head back, eyes lifting to the ceiling as if praying for patience. Then her gaze snaps back to me.
“Wait… did you say ‘them’? How many more are there?”
I lean back in my chair, not breaking eye contact. “Six.”
Her posture goes rigid, a faint tremor rippling through hershoulders as if an invisible draft had touched her.
Her mouth falls open. She stares at me like I have just confessed to planting bombs.
“Six? All of them in my bedroom?”
“No. Only one in your bedroom. The others are spread throughout the house where you tended to spend time or pass through… the dining room, library, and hallways.”
“My sisters’ bedrooms?” she asks, horrified.
“Of course not. I might have stalked you, but I’m not a pervert,” I reply, offended. “You liked spending time in Mari’s or Mia’s rooms, but I never followed you in there.”
She lets out a relieved sigh.
I notice she does not deny that I stalked her. She seems bothered only by the locations. A small part of me finds that telling, and the rest satisfying.
“But why would you do that?”
“So I could see you not just at night… and to make sure you were always safe.” My voice is steady, unashamed. “You were, and you are, mine to watch over, whether I was there or not.”
She glares at me, caught between liking what she heard and being appalled by it. A minute ticks by. Her lips press together in that tight line I have learned means she is trying not to yell.
She draws in a slow breath, then releases it with a shake of her head.
“You should have told me. Don’t you think I deserve a say in something like that?”
I shrug. “If I had asked, you might have said no.”
“That’s the point of asking, Luca,” she huffs, annoyed. “You made the choice for me, and that’s not the same as protecting me.”
“I disagree. Not when you saying ‘no’ would have put you in danger.”
She exhales, exasperated, and turns toward the screens, as if looking anywhere but at me will stop her from saying something she might regret.
“Unbelievable.” Her fists clench. “All of this was long before youand I were torn apart. How much danger did you imagine I would be in?”
“Isa, in our world danger lurks everywhere. I like to be prepared. And it turned out to be brilliant because, not long after I installed them, those cameras became my only way to watch over you.”
She huffs but has no comeback for that.
Another long, slow breath escapes her. Realizing there isn’t much more to say about it, she changes the subject.
“I need to get in touch with Mamma. She’ll be worried about me disappearing. She’s probably already alerted God knows who.”
“It’s already taken care of. You messaged her the day before yesterday.”
“I did, did I?” she asks, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
