Adriana laughed but covered her mouth, and Marco moved to stand near us, placing his hand on the small of Adriana’s back. The tips of her ears turned red, and she refused to make eye contact with me.
Interesting.
“Sasha, can I have a word?” Mr. Moretti’s deep baritone pulled my attention away from the cozy pair.
“Uh, Sure.”
I followed him down a few halls before he stopped. When he finally fixed me with his stare, I wanted to run away. Luca’shardassface was nothing compared to his father’s. This right here was why this man had power. He demanded it.
“Why are you here?”
“Luca was shot.”
He sighed, annoyed with me. “Yes, I know. But why areyouhere? Last I checked, you ran out on him.”
“I did—”
“You did. You broke my son. So again,I ask. Why are you here? Are you planning an encore?”
“No. I just wanted to make sure he was okay. I care about him.”
A derisive snort in my direction let me know how the rest of this conversation would go. Mr. Moretti took two giant steps forward, pinning me to the wall. I tried to sidestep him, only to havehimgrab my arms violently. “Listen, Ms. Mitchell. You’re not welcome here. I want you to say your goodbyes to my wife and Adriana and then leave. Do not come back. Do not call my son. Disappear. You got me?”
When I didn’t respond, he shook me, and my teeth clattered from the force. “Understand?”
I nodded—anything to get him to let me go.
“Good.”
Without another word, he left me scared in the hallway. Shaking my sore arms, I tried to compose myself.That was the scariest fucking thing I’d ever experienced. Well, besides the drive-by.
I eyed the tender skin Mr. Moretti left behind. Pressing my fingers into the red flesh, I found it hard to believe what just happened. Regular people don’t get violent and intimidate folks. That’s not normal.
Slowly, I wandered back to the waiting room, wiping away my tears and taking calming breaths. As I turned the corner, I pulled my lips into a small smile. Fake it till you make it, or whatever.
Mr. Moretti’s glare followed me as I walked through the room. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and it took everything in me to keep my shoulders from curving under pressure. My gut screamed to run, not bother with the goodbyes, but I knew that would only put me under more scrutiny.
When Rosa looked up at me, her eyebrows drew together. “Honey, are you okay?”
I guess my smile didn’t fool her. Shit.
“Uh, yeah.” Pressing my hands down the drying blood on my dress,I grimaced. “I think I’m going to head home and change. You can’t see it, but this dress is pretty much soaked.”
Rosa tilted her head, disbelief etched into her features, but she nodded. “Okay. You be safe, and we’ll see you in the morning?”
I managed a weak smile. “You bet.”
Dante was fast asleep in Adriana’s arms, so I gave her a quick wave and asked her to call me with any updates.
Ashley walked into the hospital as I made it to the lobby. “You wouldn’t believe how full the parking garage was. I guess it is a full moon.”
Of all her quirks, her obsession with the moon cycle was one of the more bizarre. I once asked her if she believed in astrology, and she told me that was just a bunch of nonsense. Classic Gemini.
“We’re going.”
I passed right by her and out the door. It took a minute before she caught up and started leading me to her car.
“What happened? I thought we were in for the midnight vigil. Is Luca okay?”