Total pages in book: 52
Estimated words: 48585 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 243(@200wpm)___ 194(@250wpm)___ 162(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 48585 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 243(@200wpm)___ 194(@250wpm)___ 162(@300wpm)
“What information did you provide to him?” I ask, trying to get the answers that might help us find Valentina before deciding what to do with the maid.
“He asked me if she was pregnant, and I told him she was. I was the one who brought her the pregnancy test. He asked me whose child it was and if she was sure that the baby belonged to you.”
“What did you tell him?”
Maria shakes her head. “I told him honestly that I didn’t know that part. Then, he told me I needed to tell him everything that Valentina did and said, and everything I heard about during my shifts here at the hotel. We met at the sandwich shop down the street every night for me to report to him. He told me that if I was late or didn’t show up, my family would die within hours.”
For a second, Maria stops and looks around at all of us in the room. She wipes the tears from her eyes and straightens her posture a little in her chair. “I regret what I have done—truly. I have not slept a night since all of this started. I never meant to betray Valentina. In fact, I wanted to be her friend. I don’t have very many friends here, and I hoped that once this was all over, she and I could remain friends. I didn’t know that confirming her pregnancy to the Barone or telling him when she had her appointment would cause such consequences as her being kidnapped. I will never forgive myself for having done this.”
Alonzo interjects to fill us in on the “talk” he had with Maria on their ride here. He told her how Valentina went missing from her doctor’s appointment and how she is now in danger with our mortal enemies. It’s clear that Maria didn’t realize the level of impact her betrayal would have until she understood what happened. And as furious as I still am with her, I can’t help but think that Valentina would want me to spare her.
“Do you know where they took Valentina?” I ask.
Now that we know how Leonardo and Angelo found out when Valentina would be at the clinic, the important thing is to figure out where they are keeping her.
“I’m not sure,” she says. “But I heard them talking about a few strange things.”
“What kind of strange things?” Vincent asks.
“Well, Angelo received a call from a man named Leo while we were at the cafe. He hadn’t finished speaking with me, so I had to sit and wait while he took the call. I only heard his side of the conversation, and it sounded like he was speaking in code sometimes, but I could hear mention of a few things,” she continues. “He said that he would bring Valentina to him—this Leo man — and that they could figure out whose baby it was quickly.”
She pauses and looks worriedly at me. “Leo wanted the baby to belong to him, and if it didn’t, he would discard Valentina and the baby.”Fury and fear rush through me. If he harms Valentina or our child, I will dismember Leonardo Conti and everyone who has aided him, limb by limb—slowly and painfully.
“But there was also mention of something else,” she says, interrupting my momentary violent fantasy. “Something about how her father still owes him a lot of money and how he is going to make sure he gets paid.”
“What could that mean?” I ask, turning to Vincent to get his thoughts on that threat.
“If he thinks the child is his, then I’m guessing he will reclaim Valentina through the arranged, forced marriage promised to him and claim the child as his offspring,” Vincent says. “A wife and a child would be repayment of any debt that Giovanni Ricci has outstanding with the bastard.”
“And what about when he finds out that the child is mine?”
“That complicates things,” Vincent says. “He won’t want her then, and he definitely won’t want your child. He’ll likely try to get rid of her for a price, maybe sell her off to the highest bidder in order to recoup his funds. He’ll dispose of the baby, turn a profit off Valentina, and likely murder Giovanni so that the man doesn’t cause him any trouble over it. Time is of the essence here, Luciano.”
I have to find her before it’s too late.
“What do you want to do with her?” Alonzo asks, tipping his head toward Maria, who is still trembling in the chair.
She told us everything she knew and cooperated willingly once we confronted her. The details of the phone call she overheard between Leonardo and Angelo have provided at least enough critical information to give us a starting place for Valentina’s rescue, now that we know what Leonardo intends to do. I tap my fingers at the side of my hip where my gun is, knowing that I could pull it and kill Maria with a clean, quick shot to the head within seconds. But I also know that I could be merciful, and that it’s likely what Valentina would want me to do—if not just to spare Maria, but also to spare my soul from being stained with another sin.