Page 119 of Vita Mia

“We can go in Eve’s room to talk, privately.”

Nico nodded.

Mirabella pointed to the room to his left and he went inside. They went inside and Mirabella closed the door. Nico walked around the room. He stopped at the sight of a doll that looked very similar to the one Cecilia gave Eve when she first joined the family. He picked up the doll and stared at it.

“How is Eve?” he asked.

“She’s doing better Nico. Considering everything. My little girl now has the soul of a thirty-year-old woman inside of her. She comforts me more than she should.”

“I thought about her when I was inside. We have to protect her. Make sure she has the best life. Cecilia would want that for all of the kids.”

“But Evie’s special to you. I know. You two have always had a very special bond, and I know you’ll protect her.”

“I couldn’t protect my friend.” Nico said and put the doll down.

“What happened to Renaldo?”

“Have a seat,” he told Mirabella. She did. Nico paced away. He went to the other side of the room and leaned against the wall with his arms folded.

“I’m ready. Tell me?”

“It was the warden. Aldo, an ally of Giovanni’s got a message to me and Renaldo. He told us that the warden took Giovanni into Room Zero.”

Mirabella tensed. “What is this Room Zero?”

Nico lifted his gaze from the floor to her. “It’s a torture room. Few men walk out of it. We all believed Giovanni like Licciardi and the rest of the Dons before him would be killed. This was before your visit.”

“I saw him. He looked bad but he was alive. He had rope burns around his neck Nico.”

Nico nodded. “Renaldo and I came up with a plan. With Aldo’s help we staged a rebellion. Enough to distract the warden from his sadistic game. It didn’t get far. We were put on lockdown and Renaldo and I were singled out as the troublemakers. I swear to you Mirabella I was ready to die. I can’t live in a world where I don’t have my Cecilia and my baby. I was ready to go. I was looking forward to it. The warden put us in isolation. You arrived and he brought Giovanni to see you. Then we were taken to Room Zero. I put up the biggest fight. I was the one that I wanted them to focus on. But Renaldo fought as well. After we were taken down, the warden returned to the prison that night and lined us up. I don’t know why he chose Renaldo. Maybe he saw the lust for death in my eyes. Maybe he wanted to break Giovanni. I don’t know why. But he... he killed him in front of us.”

Mirabella flinched.

“How?”

“I’ll never tell you how,” Nico said. “That’s something you don’t need to know.”

Mirabella dropped her head and wept. Nico let her mourn and kept a respectable space. She looked up and saw him staring.

“And Gio?”

“It was too much for him,” Nico said. “He could take anything, but that, the warden found the way to finally get to him.”

“How is this happening? I thought the Générale was the enemy. Where is the lunatic from? Why can’t anyone stop him?”

“Oh, we’ll stop him. I don’t give a fuck what it takes, we’ll stop him.”

“Nico? Where is Gio now? Is he in this room... Room Zero?”

“I got a message from Gio, through the Gypsy King. It made no sense. I had to come to you to see if it’s true.”

“What was the message?”

“He said Carlo is alive, and in America. Is that true?”

Mirabella wasn’t sure if she could trust the truth with Nico. Giovanni said not to trust anyone. But this was Nico. Who else could she turn too?

“Gio, wouldn’t say that.” Mirabella sniffed.

---