Page 28 of Inferno
‘Oh, so you yell atmeabout everything that happened!’ heshouted after me. ‘But you meet him in your garden like some pathetic reincarnation ofRomeo and Juliet!’
Iswatted his words over my head as I marched away from him.
‘In case you didn’t realize, Sophie, that play was asatire! You’re not meant to aspire to it!’
‘The way you’re talking right now, you’re aspiring to my fist in your face!’ I yelled over my shoulder. I reached the door but he was there in a flash, sliding in front of me. He was so tall. So broad. So immovable. ‘Move,’ I hissed. ‘Or I swear to every god and planetary system I will hit you in your smug face.’
‘Sophie,’ he said. His voice was deceptively controlled, but his blazing eyes told a different story. ‘You saved my life. You threw your body on top of mine to stop Jack from killing me. So don’t think I’m not grateful or appreciative of what you did when I tell you that you are acting like a completemoron.’
He caught my wrist before my hand connected with his cheek.
‘Don’t,’ he growled.
‘Let go of me,’ I huffed.
He released me, and my arm fell to my side with a dull thud. I took a gasping breath.
Luca’s gaze was hard and shining. I felt like it was crushing me. Whatever he was about to say, I sure as hell didn’t want to hear it. I pushed past him and heaved the door open, bounding down the steps.
Millie was lying on the grass by the lake, taking a selfie. ‘Well,finally,’she groaned, clambering to her feet. ‘What the hell took you so— Holy crap, Soph. Watch out! Luca Falcone isbehind you!’
‘I know.’
‘Oh.’ She started circling us. ‘Wait a second… What’s going on here? What were you two doing in there for so long?’
I led the way through the trees. Millie trailed after me.
Luca followed us. ‘I don’t know how many times I have to say it to you before you get it through your skull!’ he pressed. ‘He’s not good for you, Sophie!’
‘Whoa, whoa, whoa!’ Millie jumped in front of me. I halted, and behind me Luca skidded to a stop. ‘Is there some kind of…jealousygoing on here?’
Luca rolled his eyes. ‘Per l’amor di Dio. Don’t be ridiculous.’
I started marching again. ‘Maybe it’s OK to care about someone and to have them care about you,’ I snapped. ‘Maybe the world won’t end. Not that you’d know, of course, because you don’t need anyone when you have your precious, arrogant self!’
‘Yeah, that must be it. I’m bitter and alone and I don’t know what love is. And you’re living in your little world of denial and it’s going to end up putting you in the ground because I guarantee no matter how long you hang around him, when the chips are down, he’ll choose his family over you.’
‘Holy Moses.’ Millie was huffing beside me. ‘What the hell happened between you two?’
Luca’s string of Italian curses filtered into hurried English. ‘My brother’s idiocy has, once again, rubbed off on your best friend.’ He wasn’t even panting, unlike me and Millie, who were marching so fast I was fighting the urge to clutch my ribs and double over. ‘Or maybe it’s the other way around.’
‘OK, that’s it!’ I skidded to a halt and closed the distancebetween us. I prodded him in the chest. ‘Luca Falcone, if you say another word about me—’
‘What?’ He swatted my finger away. ‘What are you going to do to me?’
All the anger bubbling inside me collided. I squashed it, speaking calculatedly and slowly as I stared at the shards of turquoise in his eyes. So I was stupid, naïve, moronic – he had told me a thousand times already – but at least my conscience was clear, and he had no right to judge me whenhiswasn’t. ‘I’m not a fool, Luca,’ I said, my lip curling. ‘Don’t treat me like one. If you had let me finish instead of flying off the handle, you would know that I sent your brother away when he came to see me. No matter what I feel about him or ever felt, he looks at the world and sees murder and bloodshed, and I deserve a life with love and peace. I’ve been throughenough. I’ve seenenough.’ I could feel my voice cracking, so I pushed harder, so he wouldn’t hear it. ‘The truth is, he’s broken,’ I said. ‘You all are.’
Luca faltered backwards. It reminded me, for one horrifying instant, of the moment he had been shot in the warehouse. His shoulders slumped, his arms went slack and he just stared at me. I had wiped the sneer off his face, and still my throat was wobbling. Water was pooling in the backs of my eyes.
Millie tiptoed into the space between us. ‘Oookay,’ she said. ‘For reasons unclear to me, that got a bit heated. Let’s just take it down a notch, and discuss this like adults.’
I didn’t notice how hard I was panting until I tried to catch my breath.
‘Forget it,’ said Luca, turning from us. ‘I’m done. You’re onyour own, Gracewell.’
‘Fine. Good.’
He disappeared through the break in the trees.
