The engagement could turn into a funeral, and if Alexandra is not in the South Wing, I lose her forever. I swallow hard and drink more wine than necessary. I glance toward Graziela, who looks panicked, silently begging her to compose herself.
“Of course I couldn’t hide it,” my father laughs as though the matter is trivial, though I can hear the gears of the lie he prepared long ago for this moment. He is always prepared. “I received a notification, and clearly Officer Ginevra does not understand how things work in Palermo.”
“You should have come to me.”
“I know, and I failed. But the subject was disturbing…” He pretends to struggle with emotion, his eyes turning toward me, almost wet with tears, and I feel the blood drain from my face. “After all these years, he wants to investigate Gia
