Page 38 of Brazilian Revenge

“My hunch is she warned Clemonte, and he blamed her for letting us in and killed her. Maybe he went to his home next, but we were already gone.”

“C-couldn’t this just be a random act of violence?” she said, injecting in her voice the hopefulness she lacked inside. Harry. Even though it was warm, the little hairs at the back of her neck stood on end like some cold front had slapped her with no warning.

“I highly doubt it,” Leonardo said, rolling his eyes.

Addie shifted in her seat. “What do the police say?”

“They are treating this as a robbery. Remember they are overworked and underpaid. They don’t have the resources to go after a nanny who was at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“What are we going to do?” It was Bruno’s turn to ask.

Leonardo squared his shoulders. A powerful intensity flickered in his eyes. “I want to pursue this, but before I go back to Maranhão, you need to be taken care of. I will make sure you are settled and the baby is fine. A doctor should come by to see you.”

Her pulse hammered, and she wasn’t sure if it was because she was scared of the outcome or proud he wasn’t a quitter. “A doctor? Why?”

“Because you had a baby three months ago and fled the hospital. And you got hurt. He needs to make sure you’re okay.”

The man had a point. After she ran from the hospital, she had visited some low-income clinics so she could pay with cash and go unnoticed. They took her blood pressure, did a pelvic exam and checked her scar. Still, she and the baby could do with better care. “Fine.”

Addie, who sat next to her, reached out and tapped her back lightly. “I’m sorry…about all this.”

Me too.“Thanks.” What else was there to say?

…

“Is everything okay?” he asked the doctor when he left Satyanna’s room.

DoutorGomes, the longtime family physician, smiled. He had made enough house calls when Sergio, Leonardo’s father, had been diagnosed with brain cancer over a year ago. “She’s fine. She has recovered well after everything she went through. She’s a remarkable woman.”

Remarkable. Leonardo blinked at the adjective. A thrill of excitement surged through him, foolishly. Why did it matter what other people thought of Satyanna? Because you know a part of you deep down agrees with him. He coughed, willing those dangerous thoughts away. “And the baby?”

DoutorGomes fixed his glasses. “Baby’s good. Growth is up to speed. I’ve given her some referrals for pediatricians in town. She should make an appointment soon for a wellness check. But all is well,” he said, clapping his hands together.

“Good. Thanks for coming on such short notice,” Leonardo said, and was leading him to the exit, when Maria called him.

“Leonardo, I’m sorry to interrupt, but you have a phone call and the man said it’s urgent. He has a heavy accent, I couldn’t understand him well,” she said, handing him the cordless phone.

Leonardo’s pulse hammered. Who else could it be? “I’m sorry. I have to take this.”

“Off you go, son. I already know my way out. See you next time,” Doutor Gomes said.

Leonardo glanced around, as if to make sure no one could hear him. Satyanna had been in her bedroom with the baby the entire afternoon, and thankfully the doctor had visited them right after dinner. He looked at the big, full moon outside through the glass wall. “Hello.”

“I believe you have something that belongs to me. Two things,” said a man with a British accent.

“Clemonte,” he said.

“We never had the pleasure of meeting face to face, but I assume you’ve heard of me. According to my sources, you’ve been looking for me.”

His stomach contracted. “I’ll find you, you son of a bitch. And when I do I’ll make you pay for stealing my daughter, my sculpture, and killing Jacinta.”

A snicker. “You’re an ambitious young man, I will give you that. Tell you what. Because you’re so upset, I’ll offer you a bargain. Give me either Satyanna or little Valentina back, and I will disappear from your life.”

It was Leonardo’s turn to chuckle. “Are you fucking with me? Never. Satyanna doesn’t want to be within four feet of you, and you’re dying before you touch my daughter ever again.”

“Watch it, Leonardo. There will be other deaths if you confront me.”

“Yes. Yours.”

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