Page 103 of Wicked Rivals

“I should have done a better job protecting her. Protecting you. This is not your fault. But now I need you to help me. Tell me everything that happened, so I can get her back. Who took her? Do you know who it was?”

Fresh tears streamed down his face.

“I don't know… we came in through the back. To pick up some clothes and some stuff Mama had hidden. Then we were going to leave. We were going to go somewhere safe.”

“Tell me what happened next,” I said, ignoring the sting of his words.

That pain would have to be dealt with later.

“I thought Mama would want a picture from downstairs. Her and Nonna and the café. So I ran down to get it, and… and I think he saw me. He figured out we were here.

“I ran back upstairs, then he broke in through the front door. We heard him smashing everything, screaming, calling Mama awful names. Then he… he came looking for us.”

His words muddled as he tried to get them all out at once.

“Breathe,” I reminded him. “You’re doing great, Enzo.”

He took a deep breath. I put his hand on my chest, so he could match his pacing to mine again. It took him a minute, but he calmed down enough to keep talking.

“Okay, what happened after he smashed up the café?”

“He came upstairs. We were hiding in the bathroom. She said whatever room he went in first, we would go out the other one and run downstairs to get away.

“But he… he knew. Like he could read her mind or something. He locked all the doors and trapped us in. So she put me in the wardrobe and said I had to wait for you to find me. Then you would help me get her back.”

“I will get her back,” I assured him.

He shook his head, his small body trembling.

“I don’t think she meant it. I think she just wanted me to hide, so the bad man would take her and not me.”

“Your mama is a strong woman,” I said. “And she would do anything to protect you. And I will do everything in my power to protect her, too. I willget her back. Do you believe me?”

Enzo craned his neck to gaze up at me, like he wanted to see through me, then he nodded.

“I believe you. But what if everything in your power isn’t enough?”

The lump in my throat thickened more tightly with his words, but at least he’d given me something I could handle. Doubt rarely visited me, but when it did, I made sure it didn’t stick around long. I couldn’t afford that.

I’d had plenty of practice assuring others about what would happen. I hadn’t gotten as far as I had in this life by falling short on my promises.

I nodded while holding his gaze, so he would know how serious I was.

“Let’s make sure it is enough. I need to know everything you can remember about this bad man. How he sounded. What he looked like. What he said specifically. What do you remember?”

Enzo’s stare grew vacant as he slowly tilted his head.

“His voice… It sounded like someone I know, but it was all wrong. Mama recognized him. I could tell. But she never said his name. I tried to remember that voice, but I just…”

More sobs wracked his small frame.

I pulled him back into my arms.

“It's okay,” I whispered. “You did real good. You stayed safe. Now we’ll find her.”

Tony stepped back into the room.

Only then did I realize he’d left in the first place, but I felt grateful he’d given Enzo and me some privacy.

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