Page 111 of Lies like Rubies, Part Two (Savage Jewels)

I reached up to cup his face, but he gently pushed me toward Lorenzo, cutting me off before I could tell him how I felt.

Lorenzo smiled down at me and brushed his lips over my temple before pushing me toward the entrance to thelarge hall where my school would hold the ceremony. “See you on the other side, sunshine.”

The sun shined bright, incongruous with the turmoil in my heart and the stone in the pit of my stomach. The joy of the bustling crowd of soon-to-be-graduates and their families didn’t touch us as my family solemnly presented their tickets and took their seats. Each of my men kissed my forehead gently, reverently, one last time. Nick joined my father and sister while Dante and Lorenzo took up stations along with the armed soldiers from the other families around the room.

Everyone associated with the world of organized crime in Yorkfield here was on edge, particularly after the violence of the last several weeks—the violence that I’d sparked. Yet, we all pretended the violence didn’t exist, that it couldn’t touch us at the university.

Lies.It could touch us. My daughter was missing. My mother was missing. And I was going to do something about it.

I took my seat with my classmates, in neat rows by order of last name. The kids on either side of me were laughing and celebrating, and I had to refrain from ruining their fun. Instead, I smiled graciously and congratulated them, gripping my purse under my gown as if it were a lifeline.

Sergio

Right after the ceremony, meet me in the main hall.

Sofia

How do I know you’ll really let them go?

Sergio

I’ll free your mother as soon as I see you alone. And Lizzie as soon as I have you in my arms.

As the speeches droned on, I tried to focus on the fact that I’d see my daughter in an hour. When it was my turn to walk across the stage, I swept my gaze over the crowd where my family clapped politely, and love, so much fucking love, shined out of Nick’s eyes. “That’s my baby girl,” he shouted, and the crowd chuckled. “Fuck yes, Sofia!”

I smiled, my first real smile since last night. “Fuck yeah,” I whispered to myself. I’d graduated. And in another thirty minutes, I was going to save my daughter.

I held onto my fierce determination like a talisman and gathered my courage.

Too quickly, or not quickly enough, the administrator read the last name on the list and made a quick speech to close the ceremony. We tossed our caps into the air, and I steeled my resolve.

As we began filing out of the neat rows of chairs, I took a deep breath. My family was descending from their stadium seats, and I needed to move quickly. I clutched my purse, striding out through the main entrance of the arena, through the throngs of families, looking for my mother, for Lizzie, for Sergio.

“Sofia!” my mother gasped, stumbling toward me, her clothes bloody and disheveled. I embraced her in a swift hug.

“Is Lizzie okay?”

“Don’t do this, Sofia. Don’t trade yourself for Lizzie,” my mother pleaded. “We’ll find another way.”

The rest of the world faded to a faint buzz and my vision tunneled on Sergio’s grinning face, Lizzie in his arms. Iwalked up to him, aware we were surrounded by celebrating graduates, ignoring the noise around me and focusing on my daughter.

As I approached, Sergio set her down.

“Mamma!” Lizzie cried, running to me. I knelt down to sweep her up in my arms and cover her with kisses.

“Baby, are you okay?” I asked her, wiping the tears away from my eyes, overjoyed that she seemed all right.

“Mamma, I met my daddy!”

I pulled her tight to me, memorizing the feel of her lithe body against mine before setting her down. I looked over my shoulder, where Lorenzo was barreling through the crowd in an effort to get to me. “Sweetheart, do you see Uncle Nick? How fast do you think you can run to him?”

“Mamma?” Lizzie asked, wrapping her tiny little arms around my neck.

I knelt to the ground to set her down. “Sweetheart, I need you to run to Uncle Nico when I count to three. Can you do that?”

Solemnly, she nodded, as if she understood the weight of the moment.

“One,” I said, setting her down.

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