Enzo got in the front passenger seat, and they made their way out to the mountain road, using the remote to open the gate for them. It was astounding how much snow had fallen the night of the blizzard.
She couldn’t break down sobbing, but she wanted to. Instead, she looked inside the box at Fausto, who had no idea what was going on. He had to be anxious. “We’re taking you to a place where you’ll be safe and cared for, but I’m going to miss you.”
Enzo wanted to know all about him and directed his questions to her while Stefano maneuvered their car through so much snow she didn’t know how they would make it.
She gasped when they reached the avalanche area. It had been a massive slide. A dozen men and vehicles were working to clear the road completely. Once they got past everything, the snow wasn’t quite as deep and it only took them a half hour to drive on snow-packed roads to the main city of Umbriano, the same name as the country.
Stefano drove him to the city center and drew up in front of the bank where Enzo worked. He leaned over to press her hand. “My wife and I hope to see you soon.” Then he turned to Stefano and the two men hugged before he got out of the car. “Talk to you later.” He flashed them both a big smile and hurried inside the building.
Before Stefano pulled out into traffic, he looked over his shoulder at her. “I think we’ll drop off Fausto first. Then we can take all the time we want to eat.”
“Bene” was all she could get out at the moment.
Five minutes later he drove into the parking lot in front of a building attached to a spacious preserve on the edge of the woods. The sign said Rifugio Faunistico di Umbriano.
She felt a pain in the pit of her stomach as Stefano got out and opened the back door to get the box. His face was taut with emotion, mirroring her anxiety that the fox was going to face a whole new life. But her thoughts had gone far beyond Fausto. She was already in mourning that this precious time with Stefano was coming to an end. If only he knew how much she loved him...
Lanza slid out her side and held the door open for him so he could carry the box inside. The reception room had a long counter with a man in glasses and a lab coat working behind it. Stefano put the box down and explained why they’d come.
“Cute little fellow. Where did you find him?” So far the man hadn’t recognized them or he would have addressed Stefano as Your Highness. That was a good sign.
“On Monte Viso, above the area of the avalanche, right after the storm.”
“He was close to death,” Lanza asserted. “After we fed him and he recovered, we took him back to the exact place where we’d found him, but he refused to run away.”
“He got a taste of your food. That’s natural.”
“Can you introduce him back into the wild?”
The older man nodded. “That’s our job. We’ll do everything possible.”
Stefano slipped him some euros. “My wife and I will be interested to know how he does and make inquiries.”
“Of course.”
“His name is Fausto,” Lanza blurted. Just saying the name caused the fox to lift its head.
The worker laughed. “He has a name already?”
“My wife is very attached to him.”
“I can see that, but he wouldn’t make the most satisfactory pet. Not like a dog or a cat.”
“I know.”
“You brought him to the right place. We’ll do all we can.”
“Bless you,” she murmured before running outside to the car. In a few minutes Stefano followed in time to shut her door. By the time he’d gone around to the driver’s side, she’d broken down in tears. While her face was buried in her hands, she felt Stefano’s arm go around her and pull her against him.
He kissed the side of her face and hair. “I know exactly how you feel. As I told the man, we’ll call in a few days and find out how he’s getting on.”
“Thank you.” Shaken by his tenderness, she wiped the tears with the backs of her hands and moved out of his arms though she’d wanted to stay in his arms forever.
He started the car, but instead of taking them to a restaurant, he drove them to a farm. “Why are we coming here?”
“I thought you might enjoy a sleigh ride before we eat.”
“You’re kidding! How exciting!”