Page 58 of Tristano

A flash of brown eyes hits my mind, and I know it’s her. Meeting her changed my life irrevocably. I wouldn’t change it for the world though.

Walking over to the fridge, I open it looking for something other than tap water to drink. Sighing, I grab the trash can and start emptying the fridge when I find nothing but takeout containers and condiments. For crying out loud, how many different bottles of BBQ sauce does one woman need? Or is the food that bad that she has to smother the taste with this shit?

Lucky for her, she’s moving into a house with a fully stocked fridge and into a city with killer food.

I wonder if she will like Bella Italiano.I think to myself.

Fridge emptied, I tie the bag off and take it out to the dumpster.

“Hey you.” I hear her voice float toward me.

After tossing the bag into the dumpster, I look over my shoulder.

Ricky waves at me as he pulls off, ensuring she’s in my care.

Guy might be a cop, but I respect how he handled today. He could have refused to keep me updated. Hell, he could have called me out for being a criminal. I know he knows I am one.

He didn’t though. He put Serena first, which makes him okay in my books.

“That didn’t take as long as I thought.”

“I didn’t want to hang around too long. Not good for business.”

She comes up next to me, and I fall into step with her.

“You okay?” I nudge her shoulder.

She gives me a sad smile. “I will be. Did you get much done while I was gone?”

“Your living room is packed up, and I started in on the kitchen.”

“I can’t thank you enough,” she tells me as we step inside.

“It’s nothing.” I shrug.

“It’s everything.” She looks around the place and shakes her head. “It’s weird seeing nothing on the walls.”

“Let’s sit down and take a break. I was about to order some food.”

“Food would be good,” she agrees, her eyes moving around the empty space.

I order something quick from the Chinese place down the street before moving to find Serena sitting in the middle of the living room on the floor.

I take a seat behind her, pulling her into my arms.

“Tell me about it.”

She deflates, her body melting into mine.

“Meredith thinks the john that picked her up that night was in on the abduction. She said he’s tall with blonde hair and had some sort of tattoo on his wrist. She said it looked like a bracelet. She has no proof, but I kind of think she’s right. I don’t remember much about that night, but I remember that he parked away from us. Normally, they pull right up in front of us. Maybe he was trying to lure one of us away.”

I run my hands over her hair as she talks, trying to keep her calm. “We will find them. Did she say she would call?”

“She was hesitant, but I think she will call you. I gave her Ricky’s number too, but he’s a cop. No matter what I say, she’s not going to trust him.”

“Does she trust you?” I ask.

“I think she wants to, but I don’t think she does. It’s hard to earn back trust once it’s been broken. I’m not sure we will ever get back there again,” she says sadly.

---