CHAPTER 15
By Isabella.
I let out a huge sigh. A sharp pain shot through my knee and arm again. I often suffered from what my doctors called psychological pain—the trauma from the accident had left me with the aches I felt that day. My legs, my arm... Sometimes in my stomach. But I wasn't thinking about that. I couldn't think about it. It broke my heart. I lost my boyfriend, my baby. I lost everything.
I heard a cough behind me. I wiped away my tears and turned around. There was Matt, standing beside the door.
"Hey," I blurted out, surprised.
"Valentino told me what happened, and I wanted to come see you."
"That wasn't necessary, Matt. I'm fine. I won't do anything foolish."
"Come here," he said, motioning to the bed. I sat where he indicated, and he knelt before me.
"I miss him too. I miss him a lot. You have no idea. But I love Valentino. We've always been good friends, and I... I should've told you, Issi, but I wanted to protect you. I didn't want to make you suffer more. Especially after you started working at the company."
"Don't worry about it. You know... I... I feel good, despite everything. I'm glad to be surrounded by his memory. And Valentino, he treats me well."
"Of course, Issi. The Marshalls are good people. And I won't leave you either, friend. I adore you, Issi. You know how much."
"You're always there for me and I appreciate that."
"Issi... I didn't come just for that. I know this isn’t the right time but... I broke up with Julia. I know she's your friend and I'll understand if you take her side, but I want you to know that the relationship wasn't going anywhere."
"I'm really sorry, Mati. But calm down, I'm not angry with you. I want to see you happy. I know my friend can be a little difficult… You can tell me anything. You know that, right?"
Matias nodded. Then he smiled at me and hugged me. At that moment, Valentino entered the room, coughing—a fake cough one uses when faced with an awkward situation.
"Valentino, good that you're here," I exclaimed.
"Are you really glad?" he asked seriously.
I looked at him, confused. Was that jealousy I detected in his voice?
"I... I should go. I'll explain another time, okay?"
"Sure. Thanks for coming to see me," I exclaimed.
Matias said goodbye to Valentino and left. Then Valentino approached me.
"Is something wrong?" he asked.
"No. Just... remembering some things."
"Issi, there are things I want to tell you about my brother. But I need to know if you're willing to take a trip."
"A trip? Where to?"
"We're going back to California. To the vineyards."
"When do we leave?"
"Tonight," Valentino declared.
I nodded and followed Valentino out. I went to pack my bags, and a few hours later, I waited for him in the living room. He was coming down with his suitcase.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Sure, but... We don't have tickets."
Valentino laughed.
"We'll take the private jet. They're waiting for us," he said.
After a few hours, we were on the jet. We hadn’t spoken until the plane reached cruising altitude.
"Valentino... I need to tell you something important."
"Issi... You don't have to explain what’s going on with Matias to me."
"What? No, nothing's going on with him. We're friends, and he was telling me he's separated from Julia. That’s why you saw us hugging."
Valentino nodded, and I noticed a certain sparkle in his eyes.
"So, what did you want to talk about?"
"I have to tell you something about Ezekiel and me. About the day of the accident."
Valentino leaned forward and took my hands.
"Tell me, Issi. Don't scare me."
"That day we went to celebrate our anniversary and Ezekiel proposed marriage, but... he was so nervous he forgot the ring in the car..." I laughed, remembering his forgetfulness. He was always so dreamy. "And that day I had some news for him."
"What... what news?"
"I was two months pregnant," I exclaimed through tears.
"You... I have a nephew, Issi? I have a nephew and you didn’t say anything? Issi... Didn’t it occur to you that maybe Ezekiel's family would have liked to meet that baby? Where is he? What's his name? How old is he now? A little over a year?"
"No, no, Valentino. There's no child. There's no child because he left with his father."
Valentino stood up and then sat next to me, hugging me tightly.
"God, Issi. If only I had known. If only I had been there that day, I swear I wouldn’t have let you go through all this alone."
"It would have been of no use... I... had a hemorrhage. I was so bad, I suppose I caused it myself."
"I'm so sorry, lovely."
"Thank you, Valentino. Thank you for not leaving me alone now."
Valentino rested his forehead against mine and then kissed the crown of my head. We fell asleep that way, leaning on each other. Hours later, we landed in California. As we disembarked, one of the vineyard's workers was there to greet us. He was driving a truck. He was friendly as he welcomed us. His name was Antonio. I hadn't seen him during my first visit, as we hadn't spent much time here. We loaded our luggage onto the truck and headed to the house.
"There are so many things I want to show you. If he were here now, he would undoubtedly be happy to see us together," he exclaimed. "He loved this place."
"Valentino... However, there's something else I want to ask you."
"Sure. Anything," he exclaimed.
"You also have a sister. But why didn’t your father ever mention her?"
Valentino sighed. Clearly, he hadn't expected this question.
"I'll tell you some other time... I'm sorry, it's just that I don't like talking about her."
"That's okay. I understand."
When we arrived at the estate, we went to what would be our rooms. Once again, we took the same ones as before. After settling our luggage, Valentino invited me to the living room. He brought with him a box, placing it on the coffee table before sitting down. He then asked Micaela, the house maid, to prepare some coffee.
She nodded with apparent reluctance. Her attitude towards her boss struck me as odd. She's a young girl, perhaps younger than me. I didn't understand the situation until Valentino spoke:
"She may seem odd at first, but you'll like her. She's the niece of Marcela, the housekeeper here. You'll like meeting her. She's a kind woman."
I just nodded back, offering a smile.
"So, tell me. What do you have there in your hands?"
"Here... There are 27 years of beautiful memories," he exclaimed. "Well, 25. Since Ezekiel died two years and six months ago, I haven't made any new ones."
I nodded, understanding his pain. I was glad to have someone to share all of this with, especially talking about Ezekiel. The great love of my life. I couldn't talk about him with anyone other than my therapist because my friends would worry too much. I feel that somehow, getting to know the Marshalls was Ezekiel's doing. It was he who wanted me to find them. And for that, I am grateful.
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