Antonio ( Underworld Mafia Romance 3)

“Sounds like she had a crush on you.”

“Maybe, but to me, she was just a little sister.” I sometimes think I had one before and Maggie was filling the void. “She’s not little anymore, though. She’s in college now.”

“And she’s still in love with you?”

I don’t answer. Is she? Is love really what she feels towards me, or is it just gratitude? Admiration? Anyway, she’s never confessed anything to me, tried to flirt with me or anything like that. We’re just friends.

“Otto seems to think you’ll end up together,” Triss says.

I shrug. “I don’t know where he got that idea.”

“From Maggie, maybe?”

“I don’t think so. Anyway, he’s wrong. Maggie doesn’t belong to me. If she turned him down, I’m sure she has a good reason.”

“Like the fact that he’s a delinquent?” Triss suggests.

I give another shrug. Only Maggie can answer that.

“Let me just get this straight. Otto attacked you because he thought you were cheating on Maggie, even though the two of you don’t have a relationship, and he hates the fact that Maggie chose you over him, which may not even be true?”

“He wasn’t thinking clearly. That’s for sure.”

“But you’re not dating Maggie?” Triss asks.

Why is she asking me this again? Does it bother her that much?

“I’m not dating Maggie,” I tell her plainly.

Did she just let out a sigh of relief?

“That’s good,” she says. “I mean it’s good that Otto attacked you for no reason. No. Not that. I mean it’s good that you didn’t get hurt. I mean, you did, but not that badly.”

My eyebrows crease. Why does Triss look rattled all of a sudden?

She lifts the ice pack off my stomach. “You know what’s good for bruising? Vinegar. It used to work for me all the time.”

I frown because I remember the bruises I saw on her skin. And what Ned told me about James Molder.

A former truck driver and construction worker who’s been in jail two times, both for charges of physical assault.

“I mean when I was a kid,” Triss adds as she puts the ice pack back on. “I was a clumsy kid and I kept on tripping and…”

“He was beating you, wasn’t he?” The words tumble out of my mouth.

For a moment, Triss just stares at me, eyes wide. Then she turns away. Her chin drops.

“How did you know?”

“I saw the scars,” I confess. “The bruises.”

Triss touches her arm. “Is that why you decided to take me in? Because you felt sorry for me and thought I needed saving?”

“No.”

I suppress a groan as I sit up. The ice pack falls on the bed. I ignore it.

“You know why I’m helping you.”

“Because you think we’re the same?” She shakes her head. “I don’t think that’s true.”

“You’re right,” I tell her. “You’re stronger than I am.”

Her eyebrows go up.

“You’re a fighter, Triss,” I go on. “That’s why I don’t understand why you’re running away from your husband.”

“He’s not my husband,” Triss tells me.

No? Somehow, I’m relieved.

“Whoever he is, he hurt you and he can go to jail for that. He should.”

“He won’t,” Triss answers with conviction.

“He will if you go to the police,” I tell her.

“Well, I’m not going to.”

“Because you’re afraid they might turn you in?”

Again, Triss gives me a puzzled look.

“I saw the article in the newspaper,” I explain to her. “Sally said you read it before you tried to escape. I’m guessing you were the one who stabbed him, probably because he was hurting you again, maybe because he tried to hurt Lara. That’s why you fled. You didn’t want to talk to the cops because you thought you killed him. But you didn’t.”

“Which is why he’ll come after me.”

“Then why isn’t there a warrant for your arrest?” I ask her. “Why did he say in the police report that someone broke into his house and attacked him?”

Triss’s eyes grow wide. “He did?”

I nod. “Ask Ned.”

“But why would he do that?”

I shrug. “Maybe he realized what he did to you is wrong. Maybe he’s setting you free.”

Triss shakes her head. “He’s not that kind of person.”

“Whatever his reason, he didn’t say you tried to kill him, which means you’re safe. You don’t have to leave Summerset. You don’t have to run away.”

“You don’t know that. He can still come after me and threaten to tell the cops the truth if I don’t go back with him.”

“Then let him. Let the truth come out. The whole truth, including the part where he tried to kill you several times.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Maybe, but you’re not alone anymore, Triss. I’ll help you.”

“You’re a doctor, Antonio, not a lawyer,” Triss points out. “And no offense, but you’re no match for him. He has money and friends. Powerful friends.”

And I have none. Damn it. Why do I feel so useless? Is there really nothing I can do to help Triss?