The Shadow (The Florentine 2)

“You’re lying. You know that if you send me away, we’ll never see one another again. It would be too dangerous for me to return and it’s possible the Curia will kill you for outsmarting them.”

He sighed his resignation. “I am already dead. The human I was died years ago and this body took its place. I’ve lived a long life, long enough to hold hope in my arms.”

William caught a lock of Raven’s hair and tenderly wound it around his finger. His expression grew anguished. “But you, Cassita, you have your whole life ahead of you. If you stay, you could be killed.”

Her green eyes flashed defiantly. “Then we die together.”

“It’s suicide. You can’t—”

Raven interrupted him. “What would my life be like, knowing you were still alive but that we couldn’t be together? Worrying every day that they could be hunting you or torturing you. Worrying that they were going to kill you. I’d rather spend whatever time we have left with you, than to be safe somewhere across an ocean, suffering because I’ve lost half my heart.”

She gripped his biceps tightly. “You’re the other half of me, William. Please don’t send me away.”

William lifted his head to the heavens and closed his eyes. He clenched his fists and recited a litany of curses.

“I’m too weak to send you away. The night I found you, I saw a vision of what the world would be like without you. That was before I knew and loved you. Now that I do—it would be impossible.”

She buried her face in his chest. “I would go to the Curia to save your life.”

“I know.” He kissed the top of her head. “Defensa. But it’s possible they’d destroy me anyway. And what kind of life would I have without you? Without light? Without hope?”

Her lower lip trembled. “I was so afraid you would send me away.”

“No,” he whispered, enveloping her in his tight embrace. “I may as well walk into fire and let the flames annihilate me. That fate would be preferable.”

She shivered in his arms. “What are we going to do?”

He hesitated. “We can hope your priest has little influence on those in power. We can hope the Curia will direct its attention to a different principality.”

“Is that likely?”

William sighed. “I don’t know. I tried to organize a distraction but it seems to have failed.”

“I can try to delay Father Kavanaugh. I can say that I’m thinking about it.”

“I wouldn’t antagonize him, Cassita. That might hasten their arrival.”

“It’s so unfair,” she whispered, fighting back tears. “I waited my whole life to find you, and now that I have, I’m going to lose you.”

“Do not give up hope. I couldn’t bear it if the light of your hope was extinguished.” He held her tightly and she clung to him as if she were falling.

Chapter Forty-two

In the aftermath of their shared decision, William and Raven’s lovemaking took on a new dimension. William spent the evening hours slowly adoring Raven’s body, and in her turn, she did the same for him. They lay awake in each other’s arms almost until dawn, when Raven finally succumbed to sleep.

William spooned Raven, his eyes drawn to Botticelli’s depiction of Allegra while his mind whirred with preparations for war and for the protection of his beloved.

The following morning, Raven was seated on the balcony, drinking coffee and sunning herself, when her cell phone chirped with an incoming text.

I’m in Rome. Dan and I flew in last night. We’re staying with Fr. Jack. Come and see me and we’ll talk.

Raven nearly dropped her phone.

She stared at Cara’s message, reading and rereading it, a feeling of dread falling over her. She wanted to see her sister and reconcile with her. But not in Rome. Not now.

Could it be that Father Jack is using Cara to get me away from William?

The answer to her own question was clear.

She hadn’t expected this. She hadn’t expected any of this. And she had no idea what to do.

“I scent anxiety.” William spoke from the doorway, his nose wrinkled. He was dressed all in black, as was his custom, and his hair was still damp from the shower.

Raven looked up at him sadly. “Read this.” She handed him her phone.

He scanned the words. “And so it begins.” He returned the phone to her.

She looked down at the screen. “I can’t believe he’d use her like this.”

William didn’t comment.

Raven looked up at him. “What should I do?”

“I think it best to leave all talk of the Curia and of me out of it. Perhaps you could reply, saying that you’re just finishing up your project and you can’t get to Rome. Invite her to come here.”

“If Father is pulling the strings she’ll see through my excuses.”

William leaned over and kissed her forehead.

“And if Cara is anything like her sister, she’ll stubbornly insist on deciding for herself what to think.”

“That’s true,” Raven admitted.

She typed out a quick response and showed it to William.

Hi, Cara. Glad you and Dan are here. I can’t leave work this week. Could you come to Florence? Love, Rave.

He nodded tersely. She sent the text and placed her phone aside, turning back to her breakfast.

William’s hand rested on her neck. “How are you this morning?”

“I’m tired,” she confessed.

His thumb traced the patch of skin around the place where he’d fed from her. “I’ve taken too much. I’ll instruct Lucia to bring you an iron supplement.”

She shook her head. “It isn’t that kind of tired. I’m just anxious because of everything and—and I’d like to make peace with my sister before . . .” She couldn’t bring herself to speak the words.

William nodded his sympathy. “I am sorry.”

“I know.” She leaned into his touch. Just then, her cell phone chimed. Her worried eyes met William’s. She picked up the phone.

I’m sorry about what I said to you. I flew across an ocean to get here. Why can’t you take a couple of hours to see me in Rome? You don’t have to stay all night.

William read over her shoulder.

“I’d offer to bring her here, but that would only exacerbate things.”

“I have to persuade her to leave Rome.”

Raven quickly typed out a response.

I can’t. It’s a couple of hours by train each way and I have to work early tomorrow.

She was lying and Cara probably knew it. The conclusion of the restoration project had been international news, especially on the heels of the robbery at the Uffizi.

Ev

en if Cara hadn’t seen the news, no doubt Father Kavanaugh would have told her.

Raven sent her lie quickly and within a few minutes, she received a reply.

Right. Work is more important than me. Why the hell did I bother coming. . . .

Raven resisted the urge to throw her phone from the balcony into the rose garden below. She tossed the offending item on a vacant chair instead.

William pulled up a chair beside her. “This may not be what you want to hear, but Cara might still be in America.”

“You think Father Kavanaugh stole her phone and texted me? The texts are coming from her number.”

“I think he wants you in Rome and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get you there.”

“I’m going to call her landline in Florida.” Raven pressed buttons on her phone and held the device to her ear. It rang a few times and shifted to voice mail. She ended the call and dialed Dan’s cell phone number. The same thing happened.

Taking a deep breath, she called her mother’s house. The telephone rang and rang and then she heard a sleepy voice. “Hello?”

“Mom.”

There was a long pause and then the sound of movement and footsteps. “Jane? Is that you?”

Raven gritted her teeth. “It’s Raven. Where’s Cara?”

“What do you mean?”

“I called her house. She isn’t home and Dan isn’t answering his cell.”

“That’s because she’s in Italy. Isn’t she with you?”

“We had a fight. What makes you think she’s coming to see me?” Raven tried her best to sound convincing.

“She wanted to talk to you. I thought she told you she was coming.”

“So she’s on a plane?”

“She left last night.” There were inchoate, muffled sounds and the sharp click of what could have been a light switch. “It’s five o’clock in the morning here. According to the itinerary she gave me, they would have arrived in Rome a couple of hours ago.”

“Really.” Raven sat back in her chair.

“Ja— Raven, what’s going on?”

“Nothing, Mom. Go back to bed.”

“Wait! Don’t hang up.” Her mother sounded panicked. “I want to talk to you.”

Raven screwed her eyes shut. “I can’t talk now. I have to find Cara.”