8.

TABBY

When the car stopped, I looked away from my daughter and out the window to our surroundings. Somehow, in my worry about Ember, I hadn't realized that we weren't at the nearby clinic or even the closest hospital but somewhere I didn't recognize at all.

"Where are we?" I asked as I reached for the door handle.

Ember was sleeping against Luca's chest now, it wasn't a restful sleep, but fitful with the occasional sniffle and sob. In a quiet voice so as not to disturb her, Luca said, "I have to tell you something important before we go in, Lou."

"What?"

"When we go in, people are going to treat me differently than you would expect."

"Why?"

"They know me here."

I scoffed before I asked, "Have you been hiding the fact that you're a doctor?"

"No. But I haven't been completely honest with you. I haven't exactly lied, but I haven't told you the whole truth."

"About what?"

"Me.You.How we met."

"I know how we met. You came into the bar."

"The most important thing right now is we get Ember taken care of. When we leave here you'll have an entirely different understanding about who I am and I hope you'll give me a chance to explain." When I narrowed my eyes at him he pulled his lips between his teeth and held them there as if he was trying not to say anything else, but then finally let out a puff of air before he said, "What I said earlier about us getting married? You thought I was joking, but I wasn't. I want you to keep that in mind."

"What is going on, Luca?"

Luca sighed and then said, "Just remember, Lou. You know me, just not all of me."

The door opened and I was shocked to see the man who had held the door open for us at the apartment standing there with his hand out, waiting to help me out of the car. I put my hand in his and he made sure I was steady on my feet before he looked behind me at Luca and nodded.

"E tutto chiaro, capo."

"English is fine, Paulie."

"Alright, Boss. They've got a room ready for you."

"And the doctor?"

"There's an orthopedic trauma doctor on his way. He should be here by the time they get her out of x-ray."

"Thanks, Paulie."

I hurried along beside Luca and realized that he seemed different somehow than he had just a few minutes ago when we were alone in the apartment. The laidback funny guy that I had come to know was gone, replaced by a man with an important air about him. Everything had changed on the car ride over. His facial expression was closed off and assessing as he looked around. His posture was straight, and when he turned his head to check on me, he looked like a stranger, one I'd be hesitant to speak to if I passed on the street.

"I'll slow down," Luca said when he realized I was almost out of breath from walking so fast.

"No, it's okay. I can keep up."

"The doctor isn't even here yet, Lou. We've got a minute."

"This is a hospital, Luca. There are plenty of doctors inside."

"The one I requested isn't, though," Luca explained, but that just brought up ten questions I didn't have enough breath to ask right now. "He'll be here in a minute and get Ember taken care of."

There were two men walking ahead of us, and when they paused inside the waiting room and looked around, Luca stopped walking and held his arm out to hold me next to him until the men started forward again. I turned to ask Luca what we were waiting for and realized that there were two other men behind us, and I recognized one of them from some of Luca's visits to The Cork.

The man I recognized nodded at me and I looked forward again, more confused than ever now.

It seemed like Luca's ‘friends' weren't friends at all. They were guards.

"What's going on, Luca?" I whispered as I got closer to him.

"Give me a chance to explain later, Lou. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Luca laughed but there was no mirth in it. It sounded bitter and angry, and so did his voice when he said, "I'll probably have to remind you of that."

"Mr. Russo," a nurse said as she hurried around the counter toward us. My step faltered but Luca held my arm tightly as he kept walking. "We have a room for you, sir."

"Thank you."

"May I ask what happened?"

"My daughter fell while she was riding her scooter." I couldn't stop the gasp that came out at the lie, but Luca and the nurse didn't seem to notice. "I didn't see it happen but she was on the carpet in the hallway."

"Yes sir. Has she been sleeping long? Do you know if she bumped her head?"

Luca winced before he said, "I don't know if she did or not."

"She cried herself to sleep on the ride over," I interrupted.

"Let's make her comfortable and then we'll do an assessment."

"Thank you," I whispered as Luca's hand slid down my arm and grabbed mine. When he squeezed it I looked up at him and he gave me a tight smile.

We followed the nurse down a long hallway with curtained exam areas on both sides. I guessed that she was going to lead us into one but instead she took us to a room at the back where two nurses were inside putting sheets on the gurney there. They smiled uncomfortably in our direction and then scurried out of the room as Luca laid Ember down on the bed. I brushed her hair out of her face and then looked at her chest to check her breathing like I'd been doing since the day she was born. Finally I caught sight of her arm and gasped.

It was already discolored, and there was a large knot in the middle of her forearm that had a dark purple line through it.

Luca must have seen it at the same time I did because he reached out to touch it and then jerked his hand back before he said, "I bet she landed on the edge of the scooter somehow."

"Mr. Russo," the nurse said from the doorway as she walked in. "I'd like to examine her head now, if you don't mind, just to rule out a head injury if I can."

Luca looked up at me and shrugged, so I said, "Yes. Would you like me to wake her up?"

"Actually, if we can keep her sleeping just a little bit longer, that would be great. It would be so much easier to x-ray her arm if she is still and quiet."

"Let's do that first then," Luca suggested.

"Yes, sir. I'll make sure they're ready," the nurse said as she walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

"Mr. Russo?" I whispered.

"Robono is my dad's last name. I was raised with that last name but a few years ago my brother and I changed our name to match our biological father's."

"So, that wasn't technically a lie?"

"Exactly."

"Why are they acting like you're their boss? You're not a doctor, are you?"

"No."

"But they're listening to you. We walked right into a private room in a busy hospital. I haven't filled out any paperwork or had to listen to them tell me that I owe previous medical bills and then ask me a million questions about how I'm going to pay for this visit. They haven't even asked me Ember's age or if she has allergies. I expected to get to the emergency room and have to wait for hours just for them to take her vitals but here we are and they're rushing her to x-ray . . . and you're bringing in a specialist?"

"He's not a pediatric specialist, but I can find one if you want me to."

"Where? Do they sell them at the drugstore now? How did I miss the new kiosk in the mall where you can order up a doctor?" Luca smiled and then bit it back before he shrugged. "And you have a driver? Are those other men who never sit with you, which I've always thought was weird but never questioned because . . . well, I don't know why, but they"re security, aren't they?"

"Some of them are. Some of them have other . . . yes. Their main concern is keeping me safe."

"Who are you?" I whispered.

Luca stuck his hand out and held it over Ember and I looked down at it before I put my hand in his. "My name is Luca Russo. And you are?"

"Lou."

"No, Lou. Cards on the table. Tell me your name."

"That is my name."

"All of your name."

"Lou Painter."

"All of your real name, Lou."

"That is my name, Luca."

"Are you going to marry me?"

"What?" I asked with an uncomfortable laugh. "You're crazy."

"Tabitha Lou Harbor," Luca said quietly as if there might be people listening outside the door. I felt my heart stop for a second before it started racing. I tried to pull my hand away but Luca held it tight as he said, "You have some really bad people looking for you, Tabby. There are some good ones too, but they don't know you like I do and I can't think of a way to protect you from either side except to make you my wife."

"How did you . . . what . . ." I looked down at Ember and then back at Luca as I tried to get my hand out of his. He wouldn't let go no matter how hard I pulled. My strength was no match for him. "I have to go."

"It's not safe for you out there, Lou. If we found you then that means they can find you, if they haven't already. I can't let you leave, but I want to make sure you're protected."

"And the only way to do that is to marry me?"

"Those babies you're carrying are heirs to the Campana fortune. My best friend is Zach Campana."

"Rebecca's . . ." Luca slowly nodded as my mind raced. Rebecca's boyfriend, and the man whose children I was carrying had the last name Campana. That meant what Simon said was right. "He's part of the mafia isn't he?"

Luca slowly nodded. "He's part of The Four Families."

"I don't know . . . I've heard of that but . . . why is that important?"

"You don't know anything about the four families do you?"

"No. Why does it matter who the four families or the nine families or whatever it is want? I can't let some mobster take these babies, Russian or otherwise."

"Zach's not that bad."

"He's in the mafia, Luca. Of course he's that bad! They're killers and thieves. They run drugs . . and smuggle . . and have shoot outs on the street. I don't want to be anywhere near them, I don't want Ember to be anywhere near them, and I don't want these poor innocent babies to be part of any of that."

"Is that really what you think of The Four Families?"

"I don't know who the fuck you're talking about, Luca!"

"Campana, Moretti, Romano, and Russo, Lou. Those are the four families."

"Russo?" I asked quietly as all the pieces clicked into place. Sweat broke out on my forehead, and my heart started to race. I could barely breathe and suddenly the room started to dim as I managed to choke out, "You're one of them?"