Page 49 of The Sicilian Brotherhood I

We’d gone out with Franco sometimes, or with other friends like Elise, or like Lynn. I closed my eyes again and remembered when our lives had been that much easier. This had been before Franco set his eyes on marrying me, before he’d stolen from the Sicilian Brotherhood, and before Millie had been born.

“Giacomo won’t let anything happen to her,” I whispered.

“To who?”

“To Millie.”

“Oh.”

My nose wrinkled, finding it strange that Skye’s sole preoccupation hadn’t been with her daughter.

“I’m not worried,” Skye whispered, “I know she’ll be safe. Millie’s a smart girl.”

My chest tightened. Smart girl or not, Millie had been in the accident too. There was no guarantee she’d survived. There was no guarantee Giacomo had survived either. I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember. And I couldn’t keep my cool the same way Skye could.

I also couldn't tell Skye about the accident. If she knew what kind of danger Millie was in and that I'd been there...

My chest tightened.

“How can you be so calm?” I asked her.

“Why are you judging me? What good does worrying do?”

“I’m not judging you. I’m just… tired.”

She lifted her head off my shoulder and then gripped my hand.

“Don’t worry, Dahlia. I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

How could she be so sure? I took my turn and leaned against Skye’s shoulders this time. She began humming to me, an old Billie Holiday song to which I didn’t know the words. Summertime. That might have been the one. I drifted off into a deep sleep before she finished the song and by the time I woke up, the food Mari dropped off was lukewarm.

Skye apologized.

“I didn’t want to wake you.”

“It’s fine.”

My stomach flipped and growled as it moved, desperate for sustenance. I grabbed the bowl of plain pasta with cheese and butter and wolfed it down with the exuberance of eating a five-course meal at a five-star restaurant. By the time I finished the bowl, I licked up every drop of melted butter and scraped the cheese from the bottom of the bowl.

“Hungry?” Skye asked.

My stomach rumbled again as if in response and we laughed. The door opened again and Mari poked her head in. Her black eyes stared coldly at me and then Skye.

“Is she done?”

Skye nodded.

“Good. Come.”

Mari reached for Skye’s hand and I gazed at them confused.

“Where are you taking her?”

“Quiet,” Mari hissed.

“Skye!”

“Don’t worry, Dahlia. Everything’s going to be alright.”

---