Not wanting to interrupt a meeting, I tiptoe toward Rex’s door, intent on just peeking my head in enough to hand him his phone. Only I don’t make it that far because what I hear him saying stops me cold.
“I found her.”
Rex sounds surprised and excited and—who could he possibly be talking about?
“Found who?” Dante asks.
I inch closer to the door, which is cracked open, only Dante’s broad back obstructs any sort of view.
“Bianca.”
I gasp, covering my mouth.
No. There’s no way I heard him right.
Why on Earth would Rex and Dante be talking about Bianca—about me?
It must be a mistake.
My vision goes dark around the edges as I hold my breath and wait for Rex to answer.
“What?” Dante takes a step forward, and so do I. “How? How did you find her? Where is she?”
“You mean who is she. It’s Shae. Shae is Bianca DiMarco.”
I try to suck in a breath, but my chest is too heavy, and my vision clouds even further. My legs go numb, and I reach for the wall to keep from falling over.
“What?” Dante laughs humorlessly, shaking his head. “No fucking way. What makes you think Shae is Bianca?”
“I know it seems like a long shot, but the pieces fit.”
Oh, God. What pieces, Rex? And why were you looking for me?
My head starts to spin with a million possibilities, but one sticks out above the rest.
Rex’s dad is a mafia boss. Is it possible he’s responsible for killing my father? Why else would Rex be looking for Bianca? My gut twists, and I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to regain some sort of composure as they continue talking.
“What fucking pieces?” Dante yells.
“Do you remember Dad telling us Luca’s wife died?”
“Yes.”
“Shae told me she lost her mom when she was seven and then her dad when she was nine.”
“So? That doesn’t mean shit.”
“Yes, it does. The ages match up, but that’s not all. She’s been having nightmares. A couple of times I swore I heard her yell out Cami’s name. At first I thought my ears were playing tricks on me, but it happened again last night, and I know I heard her right. I’m telling you, Dante, Shae is Bianca. I know it. I can feel it. You weren’t with me when I let her go that day. You didn’t see the fear in her eyes, but I did, and it has haunted my dreams. I saw that same fear this morning when she woke up from her nightmare.”
Oh, God, I can’t breathe.
The world around me shakes, there’s a sharp ringing in my ears, and the darkened edges of my vision close in until my world goes black, and I’m transported to a place and time I’ve been desperately trying to remember…
…Daddy’s fingers dig into my skin, his grip around my upper arm tightening as he drags Camilla and me through the house. It hurts bad, but I don’t make a sound. It’s a lesson I learned early on: whining will inevitably result in a butt whipping, and I hate having my butt whipped.
“Stay here,” he demands, shoving us into Cami’s room.
I stand frozen as Daddy rushes down the hall and disappears around the corner before returning several seconds later.