La Sposa (28 page)

His mouth parted to answer, and a woman
screamed.

Startled, Marietta’s head turned. Lorenzo
bolted. Quickly, she ran after him around the side of the church.
On the ground was one woman with her leg bent beneath her; and
standing at the top of the stone steps that led up to the church,
stood another with long dark hair and a strange expression on her
face. Lorenzo knelt next to the wounded woman. Marietta, however,
couldn’t look away from the other. Eventually, that woman took
notice of her as well. She started down the steps, never breaking
eye contact.

“
She fell.” The young woman said
with not a trace of concern in her voice. “We went in the church to
look for my bag and when we were leaving, she fell.”

“
Go get Nico, Rosetta!” Lorenzo
ordered the woman. “Now!”

The girl paused a minute, challenging Marietta
with her stare. She then turned and hurried off in the other
direction. Lorenzo touched the wounded woman’s ankle with concern
and the poor thing cried out in agony.

“
Can you stand,
Cecilia?”

“
No. No.”

“
Did you really fall?” Marietta
asked.

“
Of course she fell. You heard
Rosetta.” Lorenzo scooped her up in his arms and the woman wept.
She looked to Marietta and then away. Soon several men were running
toward them. The tallest and meanest looking one stepped up to
receive the girl in his arms.

“
Nico, take her to the
ospedale
. Renaldo, go with him.” Lorenzo ordered.

The man nodded and carried her away. Lorenzo
dusted his hands.

“
Who is she?” Marietta
asked.

“
She’s the girl we hired to look
after little Eve.”

Marietta glanced up to the steps. “And who was
the woman who pushed her?”

“
Pushed her? Rosetta is a cousin.
She didn’t push her. It was an accident.”

“
Right, an accident.” Marietta
said, shaking her head. “That poor girl is lucky she didn’t break
her neck.”

Mira laughed. Forced into a slow dance with
Rocco, all she could do was move side to side as he held tightly to
her, with his face pressed against her breast. Giovanni hit him in
the back of the head once or twice and Rocco would straighten his
posture, but soon slip back into holding her tighter. Mira managed
to keep his hands above her waist. When the music ended, Rocco
wouldn’t release her until Giovanni insisted. He pushed the old man
back and shot him a warning look. Mira blushed at the scene. “He
thinks I belong to him too.”

“
He better show respect!” Giovanni
tossed his hand at Rocco who shuffled off the dance
floor.

“
Gio!
Donna
!” Rosetta walked
over fast. “It’s Cecilia. She’s hurt.”

Mira immediately looked for Eve. She was
dancing with Dominic, holding both his hands as she jumped up and
down on her little feet.

“
What is this about Cecilia?”
Giovanni asked.

“
She fell. A really bad
fall.”

Giovanni left the dance floor immediately,
several men followed him. Word of the accident swept the dancers
and several stopped to question where the trouble was. Catalina
marched straight for them.

“
How did she fall?” Mira
asked.

“
We were leaving the chapel
and…”

“
Leaving the chapel? Why did you go
back to the church?” Catalina interjected.

Rosetta put her hand to her heart. She began
to cry. Mira pulled her close and hugged her. “It’s okay. Giovanni
and everyone will make sure she’s okay.”

“
Why were you in the church?”
Catalina asked. Mira let go of Rosetta so she could
respond.

“
I thought I left my purse. She
went with me. We were leaving and it’s getting dark outside. We
were talking. She missed a step. I tried to reach for her and she
went down. It was awful.”

“
Oh my Lord, I hope she’s okay.”
Mira looked again for her husband.

Catalina, however, stared at Rosetta. “That
makes no sense.”

“
It’s the truth!” Rosetta
shouted.

“
Of course it is,” Mira said.
“Don’t worry. Giovanni and the men will take care of
her.”

“
But what about Eve?” Rosetta
asked.

“
What about her?” Catalina
answered.

“
Who will take care of Eve while
you’re on vacation? If Cecilia’s hurt, she won’t be able to join
you on your honeymoon. I feel so awful. It’s my fault for going
back to the church.”

“
Let’s not worry about that. Excuse
me girls, let me find out what’s going on.”

“
Wait!” Rosetta grabbed Mira’s
hand. “I can do it for you, if you need me to. I can come with you
and help with Eve. I can be your assistant in anything you need. In
fact I want to, desperately.”

The offer, though generous, made Mira
uncomfortable. Catalina glared at Rosetta but didn’t intercede. So
Mira nodded. “That’s fine. We’ll talk about it.” She started
through the dance floor when a man stepped in front of her. He
bowed his head.

“
We are all so happy for Giovanni.
You have the been talk of the
Campania
.”

“
Grazie.”
Mira said.
“Mi
scusi…”

“
I’m Santo.” He took her hand
without permission and kissed it. His penetrating gaze remained
trained on her as he did so. “I’ve known Giovanni for a very long
time.”

Thanks to Zia and Catalina, Mira had learned
the ranks of men in Giovanni’s organization. In order to be a
gracious hostess for her husband, the importance of these men and
their contributions to the family had to be learned. Santo was the
one Catalina said spent years in prison. He had only been out in
the past year, and Giovanni considered him a valued earner and
trusted friend. However, Catalina said he was fresh and dangerous.
What he did for Giovanni wasn’t clear to any of them. Mira felt
insulted by the lust she saw in his dark irises. She pulled her
hand free.

Santo straightened from his lean and stared
down at her, crowding her with his unmovable presence. Mira was
careful not to show any weakness. She smiled up at him graciously
and nodded. “Thank you for coming,” Mira said, walking around him.
She started through the dance floor and felt a wave of relief when
she saw Giovanni walking towards her with his men following.
Cecilia was a really sweet kid and she hoped she was okay. The
church steps were pretty steep.

Giovanni captured her face and kissed her
forehead. “She’s okay. Nico is with her. They’ll send word but she
may have broken her ankle.” The band began to play music again.
Giovanni wrapped his arms around Mira and smiled. “Sorry for the
confusion.”

“
I want to make sure she’s alright.
Should we go to the
ospedale
?”

“
Trust me. She is.”

Mira forced a smile. “Can we go to our
honeymoon then?”

“
Now?”

“
I…” Mira shook off her anxiety.
She glanced back at Santo, who with other men at his table, watched
her like a lion crouching in the grass. Stalking, hunting, poised
to pounce, if she wasn’t careful. “I’m ready for a more private
celebration sweetheart.”

Giovanni glanced in the direction she looked.
Immediately, she grabbed his face to return his gaze to her. The
last thing she needed was him suspecting any of these men flirted
with her. “I’m being a bit selfish. Can’t wait to get you alone,
that’s all.”

He chuckled and squeezed her to him. “Let’s
eat and cut that six- foot- tall cake over there, and then we can
leave,” he whispered against her ear.

“
Mmm, good plan.”

“
Not so fast.” Catalina grabbed
Rosetta’s arm. “I want to hear more about this fall.”

“
Let me go. Ow! I told you what
happened.”

“
When I see Cecilia, she will tell
me the same story?”

Rosetta glared. Catalina knew it was pretty
crazy for her to accuse Rosetta of something so horrible, but still
it irked her how Rosetta seemed so eager to get closer to Mira.
Especially since she was leaving for America, and couldn’t keep an
eye on her. Dominic walked over and took her hand. “I’m ready for
you, beautiful.”

“
Now?”

“
Let’s say goodbye.”

Catalina turned to address her cousin, but she
had gone.

“
Something wrong?” asked
Dominic.

“
Is Cecilia okay?”

Dominic kissed Catalina’s hand. “She’ll be
fine. Come.” He pulled her through the crowds and led her to the
table where Giovanni and Mira now sat, feeding each other off their
plates of food.

“
It’s time for us to leave. We have
to catch our flight.”

Mira rose. Giovanni glanced up at them and
wiped the corner of his mouth with his napkin. Catalina never
looked away from her brother as she hugged Mira, and kissed her
cheeks.

“
Aren’t you going to say goodbye,
Gio? I’ll be gone for weeks,” Catalina said.

He tossed the napkin to the plate and rose.
Catalina smiled, hurrying around the table to him. “I’m so happy
for you, Gio.
Ti amo
.”

He kissed her cheek and hugged her. “
Ti
amo
,” he said in her ear. “Make me proud.”

“
I promise, I will.
Ciao
!”
She grinned, walking out with Dominic.

Giovanni watched his
ex-consigliere
lead his sister away with a dull ache in his heart. His natural
instinct was to protect them both from the outside world he kept
them shielded from. And here he was sending them thousands of miles
away. Though he knew Dominic would be capable of handling their
affairs, it made him uneasy. It would take some getting used to, to
see her grow into a woman, Dominic’s woman.

“
They will be fine.”

He glanced down at Mira. She patted the seat
next to her and he sat. “You think I’m worried?”

“
Of course you are. It’s in your
nature to worry. You’re more than a brother to Catalina; she’s like
your daughter. Dominic is a good man, a loyal man, and you
practically raised them both. He will take care of her. Just like I
plan to take care of you.”

Giovanni winked. “I’m a lucky man,” he said,
eating some of what she offered from her fork.

Later –

The night had gone on with sinful indulgence
in sweet wines, spicy cigars, and much celebrating. Every lit
lantern swayed in the ocean breeze, sweeping up and through the sea
cliff town. Several guests gave toasts to the newlyweds. Mira was
most impressed with Lorenzo’s. He stood before them, talking of his
lifelong friendship and love for his cousin. He spoke of their
shared destiny and how now he understood there were paths they’d
take differently. Marriage and happiness were two special rewards
in life his cousin deserved. Lorenzo toasted them, and wished them
everlasting love and many sons. Afterwards, she and Giovanni were
encouraged to return to the dance floor. Holding his hand and
following his lead, they stepped on a glass wrapped in a napkin.
The broken shards of glass, once counted, would indicate how many
years they would remain husband and wife. Mira laughed when
Giovanni insisted on crushing the glass under his shoe to dust. And
he did.

Once every goodbye was said, her husband
whisked her and Eve to a private car. Eve rested in his lap and she
under his arm, staring out at the lovely town that would forever be
part of her heart. Mira wanted desperately to end their night. The
dress fit so tightly to her after the food and cake she devoured,
she feared she’d come out of the seams.

“
I’m so tired,” she yawned. Eve
turned her head and looked up at her mother, curiously.

“
It won’t be long, Bella,” Giovanni
ran his hand up and down her arm. She half expected to be taken to
the airport for their next destination. One look out of her window
into the night, she knew differently. They were at a
marina.

“
What are we doing here?” Mira
asked.

“
It’s time,” he said, and turned
Eve on his lap to hold her as he exited the car. Mira slipped out
behind him. She looked over to see Rosetta easing out of the car
that followed them. She waved at Mira, grinning like a schoolgirl
on her first adventure.

Mira smiled at her. She then looked out to the
only water taxi parked at the pier. “We’re taking that?”

“
No.” Giovanni pointed to the very
sleek tri-deck motor yacht parked further down. There was a sundeck
to the top. Black tinted windows surrounded where the captain
navigated the machine. And those who wanted to lounge for a special
view, could gather and have drinks on the upper deck. And of course
a main deck, which she believed had a lounge area and cabins for
sleeping.

“
It’s ours. I named her Evelyn.
After my mother.”

Mira felt a bit queasy. She sucked in deep
breaths. A nighttime ride would be much easier than braving the sea
during the day. Together, they walked against the wind to the
waiting yacht; and he had to pass Eve to one of his men on the boat
before he could help her board. She took her daughter below to the
main deck. Rosetta and the others stayed topside or went to the
upper deck, but Giovanni joined her.