60. Daniela

Three days after we arrive at Quinta Rosa do Vale, I wake up to a picture of my husband and Sonia leaving the theatre. The photo includes the caption: Trouble in Paradise?

Antonio is pressing his lips to Sonia’s forehead. It’s intimate. If I didn’t know better, I’d vomit all over the laptop.

Maybe I don’t know better. Maybe that day in his office was all a lie to cover up their relationship. No.I don’t see it. While Antonio’s capable of anything, Sonia couldn’t possibly be that good of an actress. Could she?

The truth is, I don’t know what to believe these days.

After stewing about Sonia’s sexual identity for much too long, I borrow Alma’s phone to call Cristiano. It’s been days since he’s answered a call from my phone.

“M?e,” Cristiano answers with a smile in his voice, thinking it’s his mother.

“It’s Daniela,” I say quietly.

“Daniela,” he repeats, clearly taken aback. “Antonio isn’t—”

“Maybe he is, maybe he isn’t, but I didn’t call to speak to my husband. You don’t need to lie to cover for him.”

“What can I do for you?” He’s all business now.

“You can tell me why Antonio and Sonia have decided to embarrass me in such a public way. It’s bad enough they would do that to me, but what about Valentina? Those pictures are everywhere. It’s as though he made no attempt to keep them out of the media. What in God’s name is going on?”

“I’m not in a position to discuss Antonio’s personal life. You’ll need to speak directly to him about your marriage. I’ll let him know you called.”

“I expected better from you, Cristiano.” My voice wavers, and I want to kick myself for it, but I manage to say my piece. “Your behavior is almost as much of a knife in my back as Antonio’s. I deserve to be treated better than this—by both of you.”

He’s quiet on the other end. At first, I think he ended the call, but I hear him breathing.

“Maybe more than anyone,” he says with an apologetic gentleness, “you know the heart of the man you married. If you allow yourself to think about this with an open mind, you’ll find that none of it should come as any surprise.”

“You’re saying that I shouldn’t be surprised he betrayed me?”

“I’m not saying that at all. That’s a fool’s interpretation. You’re smarter than that.”

It’s an obtuse response typical of Cristiano: respond to the question, but provide no clear answer.

But it’s all I’m getting, because he ends the call before I can ask anything more.