Chapter 6

The sixth day was our wedding anniversary.

In the morning, Dario gave me back my phone. He didn't mention the rules he'd laid down the night before. He only said he was taking me out that evening.

The car stopped in front of the small hillside chapel.

Five years ago, this was where he'd proposed to me.

Back then, the power struggle inside the Moretti family had just ended. His gunshot wound hadn't healed, and standing too long made him turn pale. Still, he'd gotten down on one knee in front of me, holding a ring that hadn't cost much, and said that no matter how high he rose, I would always be the most honored woman in his house.

There was no one else in the chapel.

Dario led me to the front pew and handed me a dark velvet box.

When I opened it, my breath caught.

It was my mother's necklace.

I hadn't seen it since the fire.

"Where did you find it?"

"In a safe at the old Cavallo house."

"When?"

"Last year."

"Then why did you wait until now to give it to me?"

Dario looked at me for a moment.

"I was going to wait until your next round of treatment was over."

I went still.

He realized how that sounded too. After a moment of silence, he stepped behind me and fastened the necklace around my neck.

"Elena, I know you don't want to hear any explanations right now."

"Then don't explain."

"Okay."

He didn't say anything more.

The pendant felt cold against my chest, and I suddenly remembered something my mother had said years ago. She had pointed at the old barn and told me it had the best light. Even after I married, she said, I should keep some work of my own.

Back then, I'd laughed and told Dario that even if I married him, I wasn't going to be a pretty Moretti ornament.

He'd answered right away, "I'm marrying Elena, the love of my life, not some ornament for the Moretti family."

But the longer I thought about it, the more it seemed that something had gone wrong. Somewhere between then and now, it had all turned into something else entirely. When we returned to the estate, several Moretti elders were already waiting in the living room.

On the table lay the papers that would formally recognize the baby once it was born.

Viola was there too.

There was an old silver bangle on her wrist that hadn't been there before.

I knew that bangle.

Before each Moretti heir was born, the birth mother would temporarily wear the silver bangle. Once the baby was born, the bangle would be placed in the nursery. It wasn't reserved for the Don's wife, but it made the birth mother's connection to the heir clear to everyone.

Viola made a point of holding up her wrist.

"Pretty, isn't it?"

I didn't answer.

One of the elders raised his glass with a smile. "Since the heir will be here any day now, perhaps it's time some titles were—"

Dario simply took the glass out of my hand.

"She can't drink today."

Only then did he look up at the man.

"And one more thing: Viola is only the baby's birth mother. Anyone who calls her by the wrong title can get the hell out."

Viola went pale.

But I only grew more tense.

Back in my room, Luca's text came in.

"Tomorrow at the Port of Palermo, the medical supply convoy will pass through the private clinic's transfer area. There will be an 11-minute window at the back door. The license plates and personnel are ready."

The next text was just five words.

"This is our only chance."