CHAPTER 242
ROMEO POV
The corridor stayed empty long after they disappeared around the corner.
That was the first thing I noticed not the silence itself, but how it lingered, like the house was waiting for something that wasn't coming back.
I didn't move right away. I stood where I was, hands loose at my sides, posture neutral, the way I'd trained myself to stand when everything inside me was anything but.
Years of discipline didn't vanish just because something had gone wrong. They just went quiet.
Nonna's room.
Of all the places in this house, she'd chosen that one.
Not her own room. Not the garden. Not outside. Somewhere safe, yes but also somewhere away from me.
I told myself that meant nothing. Or rather, I told myself it meant exactly what it should: that Nonna was familiar, maternal, uncomplicated.
A place without sharp edges or expectations. A place that didn't ask her to be strong. That explanation fit neatly.
Too neatly.
