PTE

r He Almo

ntil the words stopp

hich sister he was

lour. He looked like a man who had just watched a ghost

een him afrai

th guns, not the people who wh

my sister was alive had

ginning to u

s were you sup

oked

I can e

hed bi

planation for everything except t

a step t

ved

n'

somehow that hurt more tha

buried in my wedding dress, my mother tried to kill her, and you were meant

a hand thro

es had an

arran

ather's family. It was supposed to settle

red a

me to sett

xisted long before yo

sn't an

exh

wanted Mara

om wen

a

omewhere, had been the woman Al

down s

ou lo

r came to

o

oked

hink it's what I want to h

chair opposite m

were children, and our families expected us to be

to beli

nted to b

r something solid, another

d you marry

pped to my w

Mara dis

h

s before

row

neral happened

d

he disappear thr

dro wen

st

't you te

e were considering whether he coul

e turn

om her. She said she couldn't marry me and that if

started

r

e

the let

t me for a

d of what your father

ok my

her lo

ou belie

careful wa

w anything ab

body questioned the identity of the girl buried in that coffin. And I know

ice so

ll you he did it

ed to

ered the message

verything, tell her

been protecti

had protected the truth he thought would destroy us.

sappeared before any

d at Al

ver find

nod

e is

esit

ll

e is

and removed a small envelope. It was worn at the

ded it

the handwriti

a

bled as I unfol

ssa

know what they have promised each other,

annot m

you. Not because th

is in danger, and you are the onl

of us, you will find he

he woman who g

, do not let them pu

e last li

owered t

oes th

o looked

n't

me to bel

the t

d at th

I was in danger. She had warned Alessandro to find me, and

s that she had mentioned

the f

have known which g

d never been meant

r carefully and pl

o see th

ro's hea

o

im a col

s not a

dange

you've told me

ved c

ts us to react. They want us to start pulling apart

s exactly what we

dn't

toward th

g to get

are yo

y sister

llowe

f we go there, you have

ned a

list

ou tell me immediately. Don't hide it from m

red a

ories when you have spent years deci

ce tig

ve someone beside yo

couldn't find

to the bedroom a

n't l

't sur

ve that there was a difference between a man

ain which one Ales

s nearly empty

ards, although he left them near the e

h an old tree at the f

ple, bearing a na

MOR

told she died, and I realized with a sudden chill that the

in front of

o, M

sounded

rely remembered, at a grave th

rt from the bott

aced fresh flo

e ro

one of t

s favourit

now how I

y arrived

rose between her fingers. She had been crying, alt

e her and asked

ld me she

w

rowi

told her that gr

s that I remembered the expression ev

is how they take eve

sed m

re behind

llar

cre

her's

y so vivid t

ara was behind me, fastening the buttons. She looked

d close t

you have to pr

ned a

h

take you if they

rted

want to

face betwe

lose me.

orehead and placed s

iny

my eyes

tery was

was kneelin

look

d away and scram

ember

ression

did y

d away

helping me get dressed, and sh

complete

ld take me if the

looked towa

something that mad

e lookin

h

. Everyone who was at

h

ok his

n't

ed his

You know more than

at my hand grip

elieved the Morettis had kidnapped you to force him into the marriage agreement.

Ma

person who knew

red a

helping

hin

t happen

s expressio

've been tryi

sed his

that the grave might not be a pla

ere someone had wanted

down at t

ucked beneath the rib

piece

led i

were writt

chos

at the

ead it over

ged so quickly that

it mean?

dn't

ed tow

ssa

mething in his eyes that frig

il

oes it

wall

night she disappeared, she told me she would

ground shif

rong

d at th

t Ales

us did she th

dn't

my sister had been trying to save me from

went straight to the bed

space t

Alessandro and trying to dec

use

he humilia

ite the fact that he had spent years holding pieces of

ot enough to m

ag and remove

mpty now, but I could still

verything, tell her

e morning thin

about the woman who h

ave overlooked. There were pictures of my father at business dinners, pictures o

one I didn'

een two photograph

oked younger than I remembered my mother being. Her e

in

ed the p

a small scar

own wrist wit

an across the skin

ed it came from a

the photo

a date a

mother'

NA

y memories f

th

Alessandro ou

, ope

d before u

g a glass of water. His gaze mo

id you

on my

nside and cl

ssion had

Elena

set the g

you see

p the ph

is

it for seve

on the edg

your mothe

the photog

a

e

never hea

died before

ied hi

re l

ed up s

ll

holding two babies. You said my

e

d her sister

stared at t

me, he seemed ge

a step

ppened

his hea

n't

ost l

r might be alive, and you don't know what happened in the

oked

e

h

hand but stopped b

guests. I know you hated thunderstorms but pretended you didn't because Mara would tease you. I know you al

ice so

iddle of the night because you had nowhere else to go. You sat on the

ered tha

me, his shoulder against mine,

t he meant to me be

watched my

But I know you. I know the woman who chose me, a

oked

to be moved

still had the power to reach the p

me one thi

thi

ack for me, will you tell me the

t me for a

e

ched h

me you were the

w tigh

ially

to beli

man I had married was still

ay anything, a knock

's guards entered

's someone

o stood i

h

ard he

e's your wi

art s

ro looke

r of u

woman's voice f

ll

that

m my ad

the pho

, somewhere the years

toward t

o caught

a

ked a

dn't try to tel

ispered on

ber that she isn't the only p

d my ha

alked do

hall, dressed in black, her

d exactly

same

ame m

mall scar

e was

I wa

the bottom

a

ile tr

ememb

ldn't

forward, tears gat

w you

moved past me

isappeared f

ied her,

ro said

y, though there wa

ng, you actual

ed tow

she talk

ked at m

nto her bag and re

eld i

ith trembli

ng dress. His hand rested against her waist, and his he

an had

on the photograph w

ed up

is

a tear fro

as supposed to hap

d at Al

wanted to speak,

tepped

entire life believin

something that look

he d

d at the p

se me

close enough for

nged his mind, ask him what he did

toward Al

with an expression I

fe

gu

tr

ed sixteen years ago, my husband and my sister were not s

ople who had sur

em was about