Page 67 of Forced Arrangement

I squeeze them back, and wince.

He grins. “See? I told you she’d be as good as new in no time if she can already use her fingers with no trouble. Rest up,” he says. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He waggles his fingers at us and leaves the room.

“Doc wanted to help with your surgery. I’m glad that the hospital agreed,” Angelo says.

“Didn’t they have lots of questions?” I whispered roughly, coughing again.

Angelo shakes his head. “No. We took you to a hospital that my father helped to fund. They don’t ask questions about…these kinds of things.”

I nod once, a small bob of my head, because doing anything else feels unreasonable due to the pain flaring through my body on and off when I’m not even moving around.

“Is she asleep?”

This is a new male voice, one that I don’t recognize. I squint, trying to force my tired eyes to focus and I see a smallish, slender man walking up to my bed.

“Rudy,” Angelo says fondly, grabbing his hand and shaking it before drawing him in for a back-slapping hug. I watch them for a moment, trying to place this newcomer and failing. “We wouldn’t have made it out of this one without you. I can’t repay you for your help…and for coming out of retirement.

The man who Angelo called Rudy just shakes his head and steps out of the hug. “It was nothing. It was the least I could do for a dear, childhood friend.”

Childhood friend?I frown, trying to figure out what on earth is going on. I stare at Rudy as he walks closer to me. As I meet his gaze, my sluggish brain tells me that he is familiar, but I just can’t figure out why.

“You probably don’t remember me well, Sophia,” Rudy says to me, “but we grew up together.”

I frown, reaching back into my memories. I suddenly recall a young boy with spiky, messy brown hair. We were playing with toys and he was telling me about how he wanted to take his mom’s computer apart, but she kept saying no to him.

“You’re that Rudy?” I say, remembering him for the first time in years.

He smiles, the expression softening his sharp features and making him far more approachable. “In the flesh,” he says, opening his arms a little. “I helped dig up the intel on Guiseppe that these guys needed to come rescue you.”

“Thank you,” I say. I barely remember this man, but he cared enough about me to help rescue me from Guiseppe. I keep being bowled over by signs of the care and love that my Italian family held for me, in spite of my mother taking us away and putting us into hiding. It feels good to realize that I am not alone, not even close to alone as it turns out.

“I hear that you need a right-hand man,” Rudy says. “I know I’m not the usual kind of big, tough-guy type that does these things, but I think we would make a good team.”

I smile at him. “We like to buck the trends around here,” I whisper.

He chuckles and nods. “Well, I’ll let you get some rest. We can talk about whether or not you want to have me stick around once you are out of here.”

I shake my head. “You’re hired. There’s a lot that needs to be done. Angelo can help you get started.”

He grins and nods. “Text me,” he tells Angelo, and then he leaves the room.

I sigh and close my eyes. My head feels like it weighs ten tons.

“You should rest,Tesoro mio,”Angelo tells me fondly.

“Angelo?” I say to him drowsily, holding up my hand a little. I feel him take my fingers in his. “I love you.”

He squeezes my fingers. “I love you more,Tesoro mio.”

“Thank you for bringing me home,” I say.

“It was easy,” he replies. “This is where you belong.

Epilogue

Sophia

I rub a hand over my pregnant belly. I’m just starting to really show, but I’m not that uncomfortable yet, thank God. We wouldn’t have been able to have fun on this trip if I was late in my pregnancy. You have to walkeverywherein Europe.

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