Page 159 of Phantom Mine

“Matteo sent it.” I point to the toiletries I laid out on the kitchen counter. “He also sent a bunch of self-care things.”

Aurora stares blankly back at me. “I know I must be in shock because I can’t bring myself to react to the fact that theDonof the Italian Mafia—my boss’s boss’s boss’s boss—sent me sushi and face masks. And I know normal me would find that absolutely fucking crazy.”

“Don’t forget the cannoli,” I say, picking them up and bringing them to the coffee table. I sit next to her on the couch, tucking my feet under my butt. “Stupid question, but how are you?”

Aurora lifts empty eyes to mine. “I don’t know,” she says. “I honestly have no idea. Everything is a tangled mess inside me.” She reaches over and grabs my hand. “All I know is how thankful I am. Some obese, fifty-year-old Russian bought me. They were taking me to him when you found me. Who knows what would have happened to me if you hadn’t.” She shudders. “You want to know the worst part?” The corners of her mouth suddenly start to wobble and she looks away. “He bought me for twenty thousand pounds. That’s how little my life is worth apparently. Isn’t that sad?”

Alternating waves of disgust and anger surge inside me. I swing violently between the two emotions.

Anger apparently wins.

“Aurora.” The undertone of fury in my voice has her looking quickly back at me. “Those men are the foulest, most revolting creatures on Earth. Absolutely nothing about your life should be measured against their opinions,” I seethe. “If you want to know how much your life is worth, it should only be measured by the number of sexual abusers I’m willing to kill for you, and let me tell you, that number is fuckinginfinity. Those monsters don’t deserve to breathe the same air as you, let alone to make you think any differently about yourself.”

A tremulous smile lifts the corners of her lips even as tears continue to shine in her eyes. “What you did—”

I wave her away. “You would have done the same for me.”

Aurora gapes at me. “Um, no, I couldn’t have. You were like Catwoman back there.”

I laugh and she grins. Her smile lights a warm flame that heats the center of my chest.

“Can I ask you a difficult question?”

“Of course,” she answers.

“It’s about that place. I don’t want to make your trauma worse, but—”

“Ask me,” Aurora interjects.

“I came toFirenzebecause I was looking for someone.” I pull up a picture of Adri and I on my phone. “This is my sister, Adriana. Like you, she was kidnapped nearly two years ago now, and I believe sold toFemina Fortis, the place we found you in.” Aurora’s eyes grow sad and sympathetic. She takes the phone from me and stares at the photo as I keep talking. “This is a long shot, but did you see her when you were there? She might have looked different—maybe she had longer hair or was skinnier?”

My breathing slows, stagnating in my chest as Aurora keeps looking at the photo. Then, she lifts her eyes and hands it back to me.

“No, I’m sorry, she wasn’t there.” Equal parts disappointment and relief cave my chest. “That doesn’t mean she hasn’t been through the house though. They moved dozens of girls a day the three days I was there. Most of them didn’t go to auction in that house. I don’t know where they were taken, but there has to be a larger network.”

I grip the phone tightly in my fist, the hard edges digging into my palm deeply enough to bruise. Aurora sees it and taps my fingers, quietly and gently urging me to relax my hand.

“I’m sorry. I wish I had a different answer for you.”

“Don’t be,” I say, exhaling a shaky breath and pasting on an even shakier smile. “I’ll find her.”

“I know you will. You found me.” Aurora looks down then whispers quietly, “I don’t know how I’m going to go back toFirenze. Whoever that Serbian man was, something tells me he’ll make sure we’ll never see Amadeo again, but Guido…”

“You’ll never see Guido again either, Aurora,” I vow. “Matteo will find him and deal with him.” I open the banking app on my phone and tap away for a few seconds. “As forFirenze, you’re not going back there either.”

Her phone pings and she frowns at me. Picking it up, she gasps when she looks at the notification on her screen.

Her head whips back to me. “What did you do?”

“That money isn’t mine, it was given to me. I don’t need it, I have my inheritance. That part’s a longer story,” I add. “Anyway, it’s for you. For a fresh start.”

Aurora gives me an incredulous look. “Who gave you this much money, Valentina?”

I blush, my cheeks going red. “Matteo.”

The whites of her eyes grow even wider. “Why?”

“Back when I was dancing, he paid for a lap dance. I told him he couldn’t touch me unless he paid extra.”

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