“He’s been dealt with.” Elio’s tone made me shiver.
“And what does that mean?”
“He’s alive but won’t be able to walk for a while.” I shook my head at Piero, confused about what Elio meant.
Piero spoke up. “He broke a number one rule. He left the car alone, out of sight. That’s forbidden.”
“So, he was,” I tried to find the right word, “disciplined?”
“He’s lucky that’s all that happened,” Elio barked. His dark expression told me he was in a bad place. “You could have been killed.”
“There are rules, Sienna.” Piero gave Elio a look. “Our drivers are responsible for the safety of the family. Breaking a rule, especially such a basic one, is completely unacceptable. The only reason he is still breathing at all is because of Vinni.”
“You must be starved. Here, try these, Sienna.” Andrea stepped forward with a warm plate of pastries.
“Thanks.” A few bites in, and I felt mildly better. More than anything, I wanted my nerves to settle, but I figured that would take a few days.
“Nobody stood out to me,” I started mid-thought. “I didn’t feel like I was being watched. I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary at all. I just made my way over to Jimmy as he was coming out of the coffee shop. He pressed the unlock button on his key, and boom.” I swallowed hard, hating that I felt tears coat my eyes. “You hear about those people who go through something traumatic and they lose the memory of what happened…” I trailed off, thinking how different my situation was. “Why couldn’t I have that? I remember every single detail of that blast. The way the blast looked, and a second later the ear-piercing sound, the moment my feet lifted off the ground, even the impact of the steel mailbox. I must have blacked out for a few seconds, and when I woke, I…” I looked at Elio as I remembered something, but as I started to speak, there was a noise at the door.
“Where is she?” I heard my mother’s voice in a high shriek. Her shoes clicked as she hurried across the floor.
“Please, Elenora, wait!” Francesco was on her heels, and I met them both in the hallway.
“What happened? Are you all right? Do you have any idea who did this?” Elenora came at me like a firing squad.
“I’m okay,” I assured her as I felt Elio come up behind me. “It was close, but I’m all right.”
“See,” Francesco threw his hands up to calm everyone, “she’s okay, you’re okay. We’re all okay.”
“We,” she spun and pointed a finger in his face, “are nowhere near okay.” She turned back to me and gave me a pointed look. “I think it’s time we spoke.”
I looked at Elio, whose jaw was flexing, and his neck strained with the effort to keep calm. “I’ll be right back. I promise.”
“She must not leave the property.” He spoke over me, and my mother’s face twisted in anger.
“Shecan leave at any point.” Elenora stepped forward, but Francesco pulled her back as Piero joined my side. “She is not your family. She does not need to obey your rules.”
“Elenora,” Francesco warned, “you’re in their house, and she is very much a member of the Capri family. Whether you choose to recognize that or not.”
“That was your doing,” she shot back, and his face turned to stone.
“Don’t,” he growled, and I felt like leaving the entire lot of them to find a quiet corner.
“Everyone, please.” Andrea came to my rescue. “Elenora, of course you can speak alone with your daughter, if it’s all right with her.” I nodded. “Feel free to go out by the pool, and I’ll make sure we all give you the privacy you need.”
“Thank you.” My mother muttered as she immediately headed for the big French doors that led out to the pool.
“It will be fine.” I ran a hand up Elio’s vibrating chest, and his hand covered it and gave it squeeze.
“Not too far away,” he grumbled as I gave him a reassuring smile.
Elenora paced by the marble stairs that led down into the shallow end of the pool. She looked pale and stressed.
“You wanted to talk?” I wasn’t sure how to start the conversation.
“There’s something you need to know.”
“All right.” A quick response about there being a lot of things I wanted to know leapt to my tongue, but I didn’t want to risk that she might change her mind. I twisted my hands together nervously, yet relieved she was finally going to share something with me.