25

- Evie -

Mauro Di Marco disappeared from my presence for the rest of the day, as if time had taken him away, while my body was sheltered by Dante's warm and strong torso; we were going together in a helicopter to the villa, after having disappeared from the people present as well.

What life experience had left me with was that if you could not change your situation, the best option was to adapt until it was somehow resolved and that was within my next plans.

Not only was I going to make Mauro suffer, but I would also take advantage of the lived experience to blend in with the world he was used to. It was a battle between determination and reason, and definitely at that moment, I was not being entirely reasonable.

Who in my place could act normally?

Carrying the weight of pain and anger, plus an unseen obsession from someone so close to the one who caused me that suffering.

"Buonasera, sir. Was the trip well?" asked Alessandro as soon as we reached his height, near the house.

"That's right, is something wrong?" questioned Dante at once, also noticing the man's different face.

"Temo che abbiamo visite inaspettate (I'm afraid sir that we have unexpected visitors)," the man said in Italian and for obvious reasons I didn't understand what he said, but the sidelong glance Dante gave me told me everything.

Something was not right and he was immediately concerned.

"Take her to her room, through the garden, and make sure no one sees her," he warned and I looked at him in surprise.

"Who am I going to hide from?

"From anyone who can use you as blackmail to overthrow my power," he fixed his suit as if he was about to see someone important and walked away towards the main areas of the house, where he assumed this person or persons would be.

Worry invaded me and for the first time in those days I felt unsafe being outside, where there was not even a barricade to prevent the entrance of unwanted people, no matter how many guards were around at every hour of the day.

I could not be so sure how dangerous it was to live that way and in that situation.

Alessandro pushed me from behind to guide me to what would be my room, but my curiosity was also alive in my skin and I turned to look through the glass at the mysterious character; slender but thin legs peeked into my field of vision, with the long hair of what appeared to be a woman.

I frowned before disappearing towards my room; could a woman use me as a blackmail weapon?

Was that the real reason for the unexpected visit?

How did she know of his whereabouts?

Alessandro didn't seem concerned, as if it wasn't the first time she had appeared.

Minutes later, alone in my room, I risked looking for the cell phone I had thrown into the garden and found it in the middle of plants; fortunately it survived.

Nina had left me several messages and calls, clearly worried about my sudden disappearance, but I was going to leave it for later.

First I needed to get my mind off who this unknown woman was.

My room had been off since I had arrived in it, as I had hoped to pretend to everyone that I was sleeping and the pillows under the sheets proved it.

Being more comfortable and inconspicuous in black clothes, I went out as if I were a ninja, around the house in search of answers, no matter the risk.

I was no longer surprised by that sort of thing after everything that had happened to me.

I walked through the other room that was close to mine and threw my head to the floor when the lights in that room came on, giving Mauro's presence in it; he opened the curtains to look half asleep outside, confused, and went back to bed as if nothing had happened.

My heart started beating normally again and I headed towards the pool, which, thank God, was dark and could not be seen.

I stopped when I heard Dante's voice in the hallway and that woman's voice, which did not have an Italian accent like Di Marco's.

"Alessandro will arrange the meeting for tomorrow night, it is clear you will never learn manners," he commented and I frowned, "He will also show you to your room, I imagine you will stay.

"I love that you know me, darling," she said and I walked over to the window to look at her.

A beautiful woman, a little younger than him, with long gray hair and black eyes, who also wore a dress so small and too sexy for my taste, was on the arm of the man who had declared his love for me hours before.

My abdomen ached.

Was I feeling jealous?

"I was told you have a hidden surprise, is it for me?

"It's obvious that you lack experience in getting good informants. It's a disadvantage that you're a woman; they don't trust you and you're manipulable," Dante pointed out sincerely, and I was amazed at his ability to address others without telling a lie in between.

"As honest as ever," she rolled her eyes, "Anyway, it's never too late to surprise me, is it?" she said as she caressed his chest over his suit, with a flirtatious look.

I sighed, tensing my jaw.

Her presence endangered my plans, even if they weren't real, but I had an opponent who didn't seem to have any dignity, even if the man she intended made his position clear to her.

"Alessandro," Dante called.

"Sir?" came the aforementioned man to his side, and I did not finish listening to the conversation, as an unfamiliar presence settled in my living space.

"What are we looking at?" asked Mauro's raspy voice, suddenly appearing and I gave him a startled shove.

"What's wrong with you? You scared me half to death," I grumbled under my breath, why clearly the scream had been heard all the way to Venice.

I threw him away from the living room, to avoid being seen by anyone and came within an inch of hitting him in the head for scaring me; he was supposed to be sleeping on, not that he had appeared behind me like a ghost, to realize he was spying on his older brother.

"Why are you appearing like that?

"I wanted to make sure that the shadow I saw wasn't an enemy coming to assassinate me in my sleep, it's logical," he objected and I gave him a dirty look.

"Let's not talk about enemies," I looked at him sideways.

"Why didn't you tell him? He doesn't know," Mauro questioned, in the middle of the silence of the night and crossing my arms, I watched him with distrust.

I sighed, annoyed.

"I haven't found out what?" the low, raspy voice of Dante appeared like a ghost, and both Mauro and I went pale with surprise, "I make it clear that neither of you can escape me.