Page 142 of Nights At Sea

“I think he felt guilty for keeping that part of his life from me, but I suppose he wasn’t allowed to tell a soul, and that included me. I had to swear to him I wouldn’t tell anyone.”

“Ha… you’re telling me.”

“You don’t count… you’re not just anyone. You’re part of me. And Ethan knew about Lex all along because they worked together in the past.”

I smile goofily at the ceiling. Our bantering is just so normal… it’s food for my battered soul.

Rolling over, I hug my bestie. “I love you, Rhi. I’ve missed you so much. Thanks for coming to my rescue.”

“Are you kidding me, sweets? You know I’d do anything for you. I’d cross oceans and climb mountains. I love you!” Her arms tighten around me. She is the best of the best. How did I get so lucky to have her in my life?

“What Lex found out about Tiero…How bad is it?” I ask but change my mind the next moment. “No, actually don’t tell me. I don’t want to know. I still can’t reconcile in my head that the man I’ve fallen in love with is the boss of a large crime organization. It does my head in.”

“Yes, it’s probably best you don’t know. My mouth dropped open, and I was speechless for a whole five minutes.”

“Wow,” I tease. “That never happens.”

“I know, right? After that, I had plenty to say. It drove me crazy thinking I pushed you into that world.”

“Rhia, seriously, stop! Remember, we tried to get information on him and there was nothing. Neither one of us could have known. As you said back then, just because he was a wealthy Italian with security guarding him up to his ears, doesn’t automatically make him a mafioso.”

“Just that in this case, it did.”

“You know, as horrible as parts of it have been, I have this sense that everything is playing out just as it ought to. I’ve been contemplating fate and destiny. You’ve always believed in it, but I never liked the idea of things being predetermined. I’d like to think I have a say in what’s happening in my life, but with all that has transpired, it sure doesn’t look like it.

“I really feel I was destined to meet Tiero. This crazy connection we shared from the very first moment… And the raven that landed right in front of me mere minutes before I laid eyes on him… it clearly was warning me of all the things to come. It’s like some higher plan is unfolding, and I’m just there for the ride, not having any idea where it’s gonna take me. With any luck, I’ll still be alive at the end, and if not, I’ll join my parents, and my threefold soul will be put back together. And strangely, I’m okay with that possibility, too.”

“Well, it wouldn’t be okay with me. I need you in my life! And not as a ghost haunting me,” Rhia says, trying to joke, but there isn’t any humor in her voice.

“I get what you’re saying. And yes, this whole Sicily trip, the way it came about and fell into place… when I think about it, it’s giving me goosebumps. Look!” She shows me her forearms that are peppered with the tiny bumps. “El, things may unfold as they’re meant to, but you always have a choice. You have a choice of how you think and feel about things, and how you react… which obviously is intricately linked to how you think and feel.”

“But do I really have a choice in that?” I interject. “Isn’t most of what we think habitual? We’ve programmed ourselves to react a certain way. I hear you say lemon sorbet, and my face scrunches up. It’s a habit. Maybe I could learn to appreciate the sour taste. God, this all is way too big for me to understand.”

“Hmm… good point. It really shows it’s best to think things through and talk them out with someone you trust before acting. I do believe, though, that the choices you make at any given moment can change the course of what’s happening. If you hadn’t fled the other morning, you’d still be with Gualtiero, and I would have come marching in to rescue you and just imagine that shitstorm.”

The image of an avenging Rhia riding into Tiero’s mansion with a lance, like the ones used in jousting, pops into my head.

A lance? Really? The things my mind comes up with…

The vibrating of a phone on the coffee table grabs our attention. “Ah, that would be a message from fake-you. I haven’t heard from you today yet,” she says, getting off the bed to retrieve her phone.

Reading the message, she smiles. “Aww. Look, you’ve sent me safari pictures. Those lions are magnificent.”

She passes the phone to me, and I’m greeted by a pack of lions resting in the shade of a tree. As I scroll up, I see more pictures… scenery shots, photos of the hotel and food I’ve supposedly eaten and more animal pictures. One message says, “I haven’t sat on anything in Africa yet.”

“Wouldn’t you think it’s strange that I haven’t sent you any selfies?”

“I would and I have, but I wasn’t going to point it out to your fake self. I want them to believe I think everything is just fine. Though it could be interesting to see how they fix that. But it doesn’t take a genius to Photoshop a picture.”

The phone vibrates in my hands again with a new message. I stare at it for long seconds and feel the lump in my throat grow rapidly.

“What is it?” Rhia asks, looking worried.

I turn the screen toward her, and her hand flies to her chest. “Aww, El.”

Tears well in my eyes for the umpteenth time today. My fake self sent Rhia a picture of Tiero and me.

And we look so much in love.

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