Page 48 of The Hitman's Secret Baby
The echo of our heels on the marble draws attention.
The silence snaps.
A door swings open at the far end of the corridor, and Mama appears.
Her voice starts rising before she even fully sees me.
"Aria Maria Lombardi, do you know what time it is? Two nights—two full nights, and no word? Your father is ready to send men to the Salvatores, thinking you've been buried under their estate."
I step forward, blocking her line of sight for just a second too long.
Then Valentina moves.
A single step out from behind me.
That is all it takes.
Mama goes utterly still.
The fight drains from her body with astonishing speed.
She blinks once.
Then again.
The silence that follows is full of unspoken calculation.
Her eyes rake over Valentina from head to toe, and what I see in them is not outrage.
It is understanding.
And then, barely concealed approval.
I speak before she can find her voice again.
"She needs to rest," I say softly. "Somewhere no one will think to look."
Mama nods, slowly.
"Put her in the east wing. Third-floor guest room. I'll send up food and warm towels."
Her voice is cool now, composed.
The heat from before is gone entirely.
Valentina follows the maid without a word.
I do not know what she is thinking, only that she trusts me enough not to look back.
The moment she disappears down the corridor, Mama turns to me, eyes sharp as glass.
"You brought her here," she says, not as a question.
I do not lie.
"She was trying to run. I found her in the halls. Luca is losing control of her, and she was ready to jump from the walls if she had to. I gave her the other option."
Mama says nothing at first.
