Chapter 4

DAYS AFTER THE KIDNAPPING

- Evie -

"Mauro?" asked the woman in her mid-forties, who was the mother of the one named; Grace Wright. American woman who fell in love with a tycoon in Italy, according to rumors told by my best friend Lexi, who seemed like a sponge for soaking up information like a detective on a case. I'll never know how she knew and I was afraid to ask, "Evie, right?" she questioned approaching us with a smile, to give me a short hug. However, my boyfriend seemed mortified by the sudden arrival of his family, "From what I see, your relationship is stronger than last time.

"Mauro Di Marco Wright, what happened at my house while we were gone?" my boyfriend's father suddenly asked, his voice echoing around the surroundings of what didn't seem like a house, but more like a mansion.

The lady denied as if to start an unnecessary father-son talk and I was in the middle, not knowing how to react.

"To the office," he gestured toward the hallways and off the three of them went, the woman leaving me with a reassuring smile.

I folded my arms, sighing. I felt that hadn't been a good impression.

I felt a sudden touch on my waist in the middle of my dissociation, so I jumped a little in surprise. However, I calmed down when I saw Dante.

His imposing figure and height could not go unnoticed. He was the spitting image of correctness and formality, he left nothing to chance and he would surely be the one responsible for my reproach.

I had not met Dante with my boyfriend, in fact, he had been at my university several times before I met Mauro and he was the one who guided me on my first day, as I was lost in a new city and new people. A year and months later I met his younger brother, not knowing he was one until after I had gone to do work with him at his house.

"What were they doing here alone?" he questioned, looking over to where his brother had gone with his parents. He was wearing an impressive and most likely extremely expensive suit, with a black vest that went down to his knees and not-so-dark glasses, as I could see his eyes.

"We come here for lunch, we always do," I lied. It was obvious I wasn't going to confess to him that we stayed alone every day there.

"Alone," he commented and I bit my lips.

"We didn't do anything wrong, I swear," I raised a hand, like an oath and he just stared at me out of the corner of his eye, not moving. His black eyes were analyzing me.

"I hope so," he replied nonchalantly and I felt as if I had betrayed his trust, "How did it go for you solving the case of the missing girl who didn't turn out to be missing? Did you analyze what I told you?" he questioned and I nodded.

"Yes, it was complicated knowing that she didn't go missing, but that she did it herself, but her plans went wrong," I sighed, "It's hard to admit, but at least I'm still adjusting to knowing that horrible things can happen and finding out what happened.

"There are far worse things than a disappearance in this world, Evie," he tensed his jaw.

"I don't know what I'd do if I ever went through something like that.

"No," he sentenced and I looked at him quizzically, "You, no one can ever hurt you as long as I'm alive," he confessed seriously and I couldn't help but smile gratefully, even if that had sounded weird, but I understood that he saw me as part of his family since he knew me and after being with his brother, "I have something for you," he said and called his bodyguard, who brought him a briefcase and from it he pulled out a file folder stuffed in a bag, "I was hoping to give it to you when I saw you, but it was a coincidence that just as I arrived you were here and after you had made that difficult case, I brought you a more elaborate one. It's a recent copy of a case that was solved recently, straight from the police station," he handed me the bag and I opened my mouth in surprise.

"Really for me?

"Benefit from the fact that your brother-in-law has very important contacts. You tell me later what you found out, on my next trip," he finished saying and moved a few steps away from me, towards his bodyguard, "Take her to her house, I'll take care of her," he ordered, "Don't let her out of your sight and replace the other one," he said a little lower, but I managed to hear. I didn't understand anything at the time and didn't want to ask.

I said goodbye to the man who had driven me to the university at Dante's request, before walking towards the buildings where the residences of those who paid for housing, like me, were located.

My rommie, who had also become my best friend after months of living together, was still in class, so I was going to be alone until she left.

I bought myself a bottle of water at a store halfway, but I felt strange all of a sudden, as if something inside me sensed that someone was following me from the entrance.

I frowned and turned around to certify that my instincts were wrong, and they were; there was no one but students and shopkeepers, each of them in their own world.

However, I didn't dwell on the uncertainty, so I preferred to walk to my friend's faculty and wait for her outside her classroom.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw that the person who was teaching her class was my favorite professor. An adventurous archaeologist who had more stories to tell than the app where he wrote books anonymously. And his appearance left a lot to the imagination, with his dark blue-black hair and those honey eyes.

He was friends with Dante, my boyfriend's older brother; he had been the reason the black-haired guy was at my university the first time I met him.

Even though I didn't take any more classes from Professor Nicholas since the second semester, I still had a connection with him because I had been one of his best students.

After venturing to class, I ended up agreeing to take him to see his friend, who had not told him of his arrival, let alone where he lived.

That meant going back to the Di Marco mansion, where I least expected to return.