Canna brought her hands to Claudio’s face and watched him pant. “I love you, too,” she said.
Claudio slumped his weight against her and tried to catch his breath. He had just had one of the most heightened sexual experiences of his 40 years, and it was on a pool table in a stranger’s house. “You have no idea what you do to me, woman,” his deep voice uttered against her neck.
“I have a pretty good idea.”
Claudio lifted his head and looked at Canna, a sweet smile on her face again. “Do you?” He watched her nod a little. “I couldn’t bear to think that you don’t feel as strongly as I do.”
“I feel just the same way. You can’t buy what we have. Te quiero con toda mi alma.”
“When did you start to learn Spanish?” he asked.
“Since I fell in love with you.”
“I love you with all of my soul, too.”
~~~
Claudio watched Milan twinkle in the night as Canna drove them through the city for their evening out. He glanced down at the suit he wore; the black attire fit to perfection. The Milanese knew their style. His eyes drifted to Canna behind the wheel of the car. He hadn’t seen her drive before now. It was lucky that there was heavy traffic; if not, Canna would be tearing through the streets at high speed. “You have the same car as me,” he said.
“Yeah, well, I liked yours that day you took me to Daniel’s funeral, so I got one for the office.”
“You got a Mercedes… just like that…”
“The financial crisis doesn’t hurt the super-rich.”
“I guess that is you, part of the untouchable super-rich.”
Canna brought the car to a stop at the lights and looked at him. “Do you find it too hard to believe that your former assistant is a billionaire?”
“Yes.”
“Good. I consider myself a guardian of the Caraceni fortune, not the owner. I know this is fucked up. I’m just here until the finer details are sorted and the money has gone to its rightful owners. Of course, I expect a big slice of the cash for myself.”
“Are you sure you can’t just come and live with me?”
Canna chuckled as she moved the car forward again. “I will still have my boatbuilding company to run here in Milan once all this business with Giuseppe’s will is complete. While I was away from the place, it has gone to hell. Milan is my home and my life.”
“I know.” Claudio’s eyes ran over her body in a fire-red dress. It had a large amount of cleavage for Canna, who kept her body private. The dress was the perfect length to cover most of her leg scars, and just low cut enough to be feminine, but hide the chest scars she got from her lung surgery. It probably cost a fortune. It was short-sleeved, but she wore black leather gloves that covered her tattoos and needle scars all the way to her elbows. She had her hair tied in a bun at the nape of her neck, her makeup natural. Canna looked like a goddess, a well-behaved goddess – for a change.
“Are you okay?”
Claudio broke away from his daydream. “Yeah, why?”
“You look far away.”
Claudio shrugged. “Just thinking about how sexy you are.” She threw him a look. “It’s true. You seem right at home in Milan. It’s a beautiful place.”
“Sure is. Perhaps you need to do more performances at La Scala.”
“Like it’s that simple to get a place performing at La Scala.”
“You have before.”
“True. But I’m contracted to Virtuosi, so unless they secure a spot at Milan’s most famous opera house, I won’t be on the boards at La Scala.”
“You say that as if it’s a dreadful thing! Virtuosi has made you rich and famous. No more living from one show to the next.”
“Money isn’t everything.”
“You’re not happy being a member of Virtuosi?”
“I think we are suffering from ‘difficult second album’ syndrome. It’s a long story.”
“Maybe not best for right now, because we’re here.”
Claudio looked out the window at the grand building. He hadn’t even asked Canna where they were going. “An all-girls school?”
“Yes! Giancarlo’s girls, Chiara and Celestina, attend the school. They are in the school play tonight. That’s why Giancarlo isn’t driving us, he is inside with his wife, Perla.”
“Our night out is a school play?”
“Chiara is the lead, and Celestina is in the chorus. The girls are seven and five.”
Claudio blinked a few times. Canna attended school plays? Didn't see that coming. “What will we be listening to?”
“Les Miserables… without the violence and prostitution, as you would imagine.”
Claudio smirked. “That doesn’t leave much.”
“No, well, they are all between five and ten years old, so what can you do? Come on, it will be excellent practice for when your son grows up and performs, just like his Papá.” Canna parked the car, to find Claudio just looking at her. “What?”
“No one has called me Papá. I’m just the guy who got Veena Valadez pregnant.”
“Get used to it, she is your wife, and she is having your son, and if she thinks she can squeeze you out of his life, she has got years of fighting ahead of her.”
“You would help me with that?”
“If you wanted me to... he’s your kid. If you want to be a father, then all power to you, I say.”
Canna wouldn’t hold Claudio’s hand while they went into the school. She wouldn’t let him touch her while they sat in the auditorium. Everyone knew the Countess had come tonight, and the Countess was a widow who had just a companion. For a woman who professed love for him, Canna could be cold. She didn’t want anyone to know they were in a relationship, but Claudio couldn’t deny that the stance hurt him. Fuck, that sounded needy.
The music played out as expected, a bit fumbled, but endearing to see the children try and sing the momentous musical. At the half time, Canna and Perla went backstage to see the children, which left Claudio alone in his seat with Giancarlo. “Did you have a nice afternoon?” Giancarlo asked him after a long awkward silence.
“Fine. Thanks for getting my things from the hotel for me.”
“No problem.”
“Did you pay for the room? I should pay you…”
“No need. I used Canna’s expense account. You don’t need to worry about costs, Claudio. Canna is a generous lady.”
Claudio brushed his hand over his new suit. “She is.”
“She is my employer, but she is also my friend. I’ve known Canna for a long time now. She was quiet when I first met her.”
“Quiet?” Claudio scoffed.
“You wouldn’t know it, but… never mind…”
“No, what?”
“Nothing. I kept my job with Canna and Giuseppe because I can be discreet.”
Claudio looked around. All the other nearby parents had got up during the break. “Canna is a lady of surprises.”
“Yes. Like I say, Canna was quiet when we met. Canna didn’t like that I followed her for Giuseppe. She wasn’t aware of the danger she was in, though. When Perla gave birth to Chiara, Canna was around at our place with gifts. She has taken an interest in both my daughters their whole lives, and I’m grateful for that. She makes an excellent godmother.”
“Canna is their godmother?”
“Yes, she didn’t say?”
“No.”
Giancarlo leaned over the empty seat between them. “We can’t pretend we live normal lives. You know how crazy Canna’s life can be.”
“I do.”
“I won’t pretend that I haven’t done dodgy things for the Caraceni family. But it allowed me to keep my family in a well-cared for manner. I do what I need to do. My girls wouldn’t be in a private school if Canna hadn’t arranged and paid for it.”
“La bella figura.”
Giancarlo smiled. “Precisely, the beautiful image. But no matter what happens, Canna is good for my girls. She is a role model. I’m happ
y Canna is back here in Milan, because the year when we didn’t know where she was, Giuseppe was beside himself with panic. I know you thought it was weird that I was watching her in London, and then that night when you saw Canna and I in a bar…”
The night Claudio was picking up women behind his wife’s back, and Canna caught him out. Claudio also caught out that Canna was a drug user. A memorable night. “Let’s pretend that never happened.”
“Okay. Canna belongs here in Milan, she loves the city.”
“Giancarlo,” Claudio whispered, “I have to ask you something, but it may not be my place…”
“You can ask.”
“Are there really people out there who will hurt Canna?”
“I hope not. Once upon a time, yes. There were threats made against Canna, by people who wanted to hurt Giuseppe. No one ever hurt Canna, and she never knew about the threats, but I know she worried sometimes. The uncertainty of it all, I suppose, worried her.”
Shit. “But what about Giuseppe’s first wife?”
“Elene? Killed in a car accident at Costa Smeralda.”
“Accident?”
“So the records say.” Giancarlo smiled.
“Did you kill Elene so Giuseppe could marry Canna?”
Giancarlo scoffed. “How could you suggest that?” He threw Claudio a greedy smile that spoke of his guilt.
Claudio smiled. “Did you shoot Marino… that time in Rome? To scare Canna?” When Marino Bruni, Canna’s part-time French lover had been murdered when she and Virtuosi were in Rome, it had been Claudio’s first real look at the power of the Caraceni crime family.
Giancarlo shook his head. “No one can prove a thing. That death was ruled a suicide.”
“But was it a suicide?”
Giacomo smiled as he saw his wife arrive back to take her seat next to him. “Like I said, suicide.”
Claudio sat back in his seat and swallowed hard. The lights dimmed again, and Canna hadn’t returned from wherever she went. Being a childless guy at a school play was awkward enough, and now Canna had ditched him.
“Signore e signori,” the woman on the stage said. “Before the second half of the show, we have an announcement. Please welcome Contessa Catherine Savelli di Caraceni to the stage.”
Claudio sat up straight and watched Canna appear on the side of the stage, and walk into the centre in her high heels. He noticed Giancarlo glance over the empty seat between them, but Claudio ignored him. Canna took the microphone and spoke in quick fire Italian to the crowd, and Claudio couldn’t understand most of it. She sounded so proficient, so confident in the language and the role. It wasn’t like Canna to step into the limelight, she was more of a shadow-hugging girl. But he understood when she mentioned €100,000 and applause from the crowd. The name Savelli came up, too. The Countess must have been donating money on behalf of the Savelli di Caraceni arts trust.
“That amount of money will make sure my girls can do all the drama classes they like here,” Giancarlo said to Claudio over the applause as Canna left the stage.
Canna appeared in her seat a minute later, careful not to interrupt any of the parents watching their children. She gave Claudio a smile as she sat down again.
“You never told me about this,” he whispered. “You gave the school €100,000?”
“Not me, the Savelli Trust. It has nothing to do with me, I just hold the ability to influence the trust’s owner, Guillermo Savelli. He’s Giuseppe’s brother, remember?”
Claudio couldn’t help but wonder how she managed to influence Guillermo Savelli. He could imagine Canna schmoozing the old man the way she would have done to her husband. But for now she was a woman video-recording little girls singing show tunes, and that was a more comforting image than Canna and her Daddy issues with Italian billionaires.
chapter 3
MILAN
Canna opened her eyes and took another drag on her cigarette. She flicked a lamp on to light up the dark room as she sat naked on the armchair in Giuseppe’s bedroom. She rested her forehead in her palm, the cigarette just missing her hair while she yawned. It was the middle of the night, but she couldn’t sleep. Like always.
“Blinky?”
Canna glanced up and saw Claudio naked in the doorway. “Did I wake you?” she asked and put her cigarette down in the ashtray on the dresser.
Claudio shook his head and sat down on the floor in front of the armchair. “I woke up, and you weren’t there. Are you okay?”
Canna shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. I can’t sleep.”
“And now smoking.”
“Okay, you caught me this one time.”
Claudio glanced at the ashtray. It was full. “This is a regular smoke hideout, is it?”
“No,” she lied.
He took her hand but didn’t say anything.
“Giuseppe has been dead for three months… but sometimes I just expect him to walk in the door.”
“He isn’t coming back,” Claudio whispered. “He isn’t going to hurt you.”
“I know. Some things…” Canna sighed… “some things stay with you.” She watched Claudio nod. “He tried to kill me on a number of occasions.”
“But you killed him.”
“You’re the only person who knows I overdosed him on his deathbed.”
“Your secret is safe with me.”
“You’re a nice man.”
“I know.”
Canna cracked a smile. “I haven’t shown you a good time here.”
“The school play was an unusual night out. I never saw you as a godmother type, let alone one who goes to school plays.”
“We all need someone to care about, it’s human nature.”
“True.”
“I’m glad to see you, though.”
Claudio sighed. “Blinky, is it healthy for you to be here, in Giuseppe’s house? Or in his place of work?”
“Probably not, but I need to untangle myself from his life, and it’s taking longer than anticipated. I was sitting here thinking about work.”
“None of that needs to be worried about in the middle of the night.”
“Business decisions need to be made when I’m wearing clothes.”
Claudio smiled. “That’s the wise business sense that has got you so far in life.”
“What if… what if I’m like Giuseppe? What if I’m no better than him?”
“You’re not like him.”
“I’m evil.”
“Only to yourself.”
“Bullshit.”
“Canna, sweetheart, do you know how you’re different to Giuseppe? Your bedroom.”
“How does that work?”
“Giuseppe’s bedroom is an example. It’s like the rest of this house. Extravagant. Opulent. You have picked yourself the smallest bedroom in the apartment and have emptied out everything but the bed. Even the bedcovers are gone, nothing but sheets left…”
“They are 3000 count Egyptian cotton, thanks.”
“And they’re a privilege to lie on while I make love to you. Blinky, you could have chosen the best bits for yourself, and instead you chose the most basic room in the place. Giuseppe was some kind of insane megalomaniac who wanted to own and control everything. You don’t need that.”
“I’m like Giuseppe. I love being rich, popular, wanted. Everyone wants what I have.”
“No one else knows the price you paid for it.”
“And I can’t forget.”
“Catherine, what’s wrong?”
“I’m tired. I want to get drunk.”
“You can’t have alcohol, you know that.”
“I’m not an alcoholic. I went to drug rehab.”
“Alcohol is a poison, just like the morphine. You know all of this. Have you had anything to drink since you left me in Madrid?”
“No. But I want to drink.”
“Do you want to get high?”
“Yes.”
Claudio pursed his lips and took a deep breath. “You can’t.”
“I know.”
“If you went on a drug and alcohol bender, I would drag your ass back to rehab and make you detox the slow painful way. Let you endure what that feels like. No more coma-induced rapid detox.”
“That wasn’t easy. I had surgery, and I was alone, and…”
“I didn’t suggest that your last stint in rehab was easy, and I wish I had been able to help. If you needed rehab again, I would help you. But it wouldn’t be easy. You can’t go to rehab again.”
“Why?”
“Because I need you. I have troubles of my own, and I have no one else to turn to but you.”
Canna put a hand on Claudio’s shoulder and watched him smile just a fraction. “Like what? You never said anything.”
“I can’t trouble you. You have suffered enough this year.”
“Nonsense.” Canna’s voice sounded loud, in contrast to the gentle whispers that had been spoken. “I can solve any problem. Accept the challenge first, and deal with the details later. That’s my motto.”
“I’m going to be a father, in less than two months. I want to be a father. I didn’t realise how much I wanted the baby until he appeared.”
“How is that trouble? Is it Veena? Do we need Giancarlo to stuff her in a box and dispose of her?”
“No, I’m not asking for a hitman.”
“You sure? You have seen his work. He is good quality.”
Claudio swallowed. The time Giancarlo disposed of Marino’s body for Dane was one of the most shocking nights of his life. “When Casamiro is born, I want to be involved.”
“Did Veena say you couldn’t be involved? You’re still married to her, and you have rights.”
Violent Daylight Page 3