Page 71 of Sworn to My Heart
I run back to Luca and place the small key in his hand.
“This is my memory of us here and my gift to you,” I say, knowing he watched every move I made with a smile. He tucks the key into his pocket and smile to himself when we head back to the car.
Graham sits in his SUV, guarding the villa’s entrance as if it’s hiding gold and diamonds. I still have no idea why Luca brought Graham here. I wonder if there’s still a danger he hasn’t told me about, but I trust that now we will face it together. I won’t let him risk himself alone anymore.
Alin
The view from the window on the drive back no longer interests me; my gaze is fixed on Luca’s face as he drives, so intensely focused on the road ahead. A call from Graham breaks the silence in the car, pulling Luca from his concentration. He looks at me, and I feel like I’ve been caught staring. I stick my tongue out playfully and remain quiet so he can catch up with Graham about who knows what.
“Everything’s secure at the apartment. I’m right behind you in the car. Abert sent Alin the file in French to translate,” Graham updates like the good soldier he is. Luca glances at me to check my phone. I see the notification immediately and confirm to Luca that I’ve received it.
I quickly open the messages window and see additional unread notifications from the morning. I really do forget that a whole world exists around me when I’m with Luca. I notice the earliest message is from Cora and open it while Luca finishes his call with Graham, asking me to translate the file.
I was worried sick yesterday. I only calmed down when Luca told me you were okay. At least that French bastard is out of this world. Call me when you wake up, I don’t want to wake you.
12:34 PM
I flinch slightly as I read the message, memories of yesterday hitting me again. Luca places a hand on my thigh; he probably reads me better than I read myself. I glance dismissively at him, not wanting to burden him with this again–he might go on another killing spree. I quickly open the second message, which came from an unknown number, right before calling Cora.
From the moment I saw you, I decided you would be mine. Now I know who you are and what you can do. If you want to see your dear friend again, come to the location I am attaching to this message, today at 10 PM.
If I see any sign of the Italians, she dies on the spot.
03:48 PM
I stare at the message, feeling the color drain from my face. What? Panic races through my mind as I try to understand which friend he’s referring to and how he knows about me. I don’t have any friends on land besides Cora, and she’s always safe with Mariano. If he knows my secret, maybe she’s not from land? A sharp dizziness hits me, but I know none of my merfriends would dare come near land unless their lives depended on it.
Cora is the most realistic option, but what does she have to do with my secret? There’s no way; Cora is with Mariano, I convince myself. Maybe it’s just a bad joke? Maybe the French are trying to lure me out after what Luca did to them?
Luca looks at me with concern, but I stay silent, realizing the smartest way to prevent more people around me from getting hurt is to lie to Luca. It seems I’m the constant target of all his enemies; even if I promised him we’d fight together, they’re coming for me. It’s better to keep him safe.
I take a deep breath and try to reassure him, “It’s nothing, Cora sent me a message earlier today, reminding me of what happened yesterday.” He looks at me, and his eyes soften. It’sbetter to steer the conversation in a different direction, to lower his suspicion.
Lying to him hurts, but it’s the only way to keep him from digging further. They’re after me—I can handle this alone. None of my close friends are within reach, and besides Cora, I don’t have anyone else here on land.
He takes my hand and kisses it. “I won’t let anyone hurt you. I promise you they’ll pay; my name carries weight for a reason,” he says, his expression serious. I can see the face of the boss everyone fears, and maybe I’m the only one in the world who looks at him with understanding.
“So, the file you sent me is related to your revenge on the French?” I ask quickly, and he nods in confirmation. I realize he truly intends to keep his word and involve me in his business this time.
I muster all my strength to fake a smile, feeling like I’m breaking my promise to him. I turn back to my phone and lean against the car door on my side, preventing Luca from seeing or interrogating me further.
I’m still unsure of what this is even about; it doesn’t make sense that it’s Cora, but who else do I have on land? I reopen Cora’s message and check the time. She hasn’t called or tried to contact me since. Now my fears are taking shape, anxiety rising as her number goes straight to voicemail when I call. I try to get information from Luca.
“Have you heard from Cora today?” I ask casually, trying to make it sound like light conversation, but my voice betrays me, revealing my anxiety.
“No, I know Mariano talked to her this morning before he left for some urgent matters. Why?” He looks at me again. Damn it. He’s not stupid. He reads me. His suspicious gaze burns into me like a laser.
“Just curious, never mind,” I say, wanting to kick myself for piquing his curiosity. Alin, you’ve opened Pandora’s box in front of the king of torture. But if it really is Cora, I can’t keep Luca out of this. Cora doesn’t stay silent for this long, especially not with Mariano.
My entire body is trembling, and Luca starts firing questions at me, not giving up this time. I avoid giving him answers, lost in piecing together the puzzle in my head. What’s happening?
As usual, Luca has no patience, and I can feel his piercing gaze continuing to burn into my skin even without looking at him. I silently beg for his forgiveness, but if this is really about Cora, how can he forgive me? How can I forgive myself if something happens to her? I live in a bubble, thinking life will be perfect here with Luca. But they never stop chasing us. How will I handle this? Whoever it is told me to come without the Italians.
If they have really captured Cora, I can’t risk bringing them along. Who knows my secret and how? The brothers will never betray me, and besides them, only my adoptive family knows about me. Unless... could it be the Russians? No, that can’t be. How could they possibly get to Cora? We arrive at the building’s parking lot, and Luca is still fuming, but I quickly distance myself from him. I open the car door even before it comes to a complete stop and dash to the elevator, not looking back.
With trembling hands, I punch in the code, and the doors close just before Luca catches up to me. The elevator doors open on the third floor, revealing the corridor that leads to Mariano and Cora’s apartment at the end. My heart aches as I pray this is just a bad joke. The guards at the entrance recognize me and let me pass as I pound on their door with all my strength. Mariano opens the door, his weapon aimed directly at me. He looks around, scanning the area, and relaxes when he sees it’s just me here. He exhales deeply and puts his gun back in his belt.
“Are you crazy? What are you banging on the door like that for? I thought you were in trouble; I could have killed you!” he says, and I refrain from pointing out that the chances of him actually killing me in that scenario were practically zero.
