She clutched his neck. “Why did it have to be us?”

“Who else could it be? This is the secret that brought us together, Tesoro mio. Some things have to happen—”

“Exactly as they do.”

“Yes.”

She only held him tighter, feeling his hands stroke her back. He hummed a song in her ear and she closed her eyes and took a calming breath. “You better come back to me, Giovanni Vecchio.”

“I told you already. Ubi amo; ibi patria. Wherever you go, I will find you.”

Giovanni watched her from the dock as Ziri grasped her hand and took off into the clear, dark night. They would have enough time to get back to the safety of the house in Rome before dawn. He felt Carwyn stand behind him.

“She’ll be fine.”

“That’s not your wife flying off to go play politics in the viper’s nest.”

“No, you managed to fool her into thinking that you were the better choice. How did that happen?”

Giovanni smiled. “Natural charm, I guess.”

“Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better, Sparky. I’m still betting you used amnis on her.”

He couldn’t stop the low chuckle that came to his throat. “Did you bring me any clothes that fit, by the way? I’ve been wearing Gavin’s miniature wardrobe for the past few days.”

“Don’t lie. You haven’t been wearing clothes at all.”

They started toward the house. “I have a feeling you might not like that wardrobe option as much as Beatrice did.”

“Good thing I brought you some clothes then.”

“Hawaiian shirts?”

“Of course. We’re being men of mystery.”

“How are we going to find two vampires who are supposed to have been dead for centuries, Father?” Carwyn burst into laughter, and Giovanni turned to him, confused. “Did I miss the joke?”

“Oh…” Carwyn tried to calm his features, but couldn’t seem to help himself. He was bent over, laughing and wiping tears from his eyes. “I suppose you have been gone for a while, haven’t you?”

Giovanni shook his head, still confused. “What the hell are you laughing about?”

“It’s a good thing we’re taking a road trip. We need to catch up.”

“I’ve been a bit busy.”

“As have I, my friend, as have I. The joke, as you say, is on… well, everyone.” Carwyn slapped him on the back and pulled open the door. “You see, strictly speaking, I’m not exactly a Father anymore.”

Giovanni stopped in his tracks and his eyes widened. Carwyn was still chuckling.

“Come on. We’ll talk in the car. Might as well get going; it’s a long drive to Bulgaria.”

Chapter Nineteen

Residenza di Spada

July 2012

“You need to let him stab you.”

“I’m not letting him stab me.”

“He needs to learn.”

“Forget it, you mad vampire. It’s not going to be me.”

“He has been raised to have too many manners. He won’t stab a woman. Even me.”

Ben’s eyes darted between Tenzin and an angry Gavin. “For the record, I really don’t want to stab anyone.”

Tenzin’s eyes swung toward him. “Too bad. We’re practicing hand-to-hand combat with knives. That’s what you need to do.” Gavin just huffed and leaned against a wall in the basement.

“I’m not stabbing any of you guys. Forget it. We’ll practice with…”

Tenzin crossed her arms. “What?”

“I don’t know, but I’m not stabbing anyone!”

She rolled her eyes. “It’s not like you can kill us.”

“I agree with the boy,” Gavin said. “Just pretend.”

Tenzin said, “You have obviously never trained anyone to fight before.”

Gavin looked indignant. “Yes, I have.”

“Are they still alive?”

The two started bickering again and Ben sighed. For the past few weeks, ever since Gavin, Deirdre, and Jean had showed up in Rome, everyone had been stuck in Giovanni’s house, trying to be inconspicuous. Deirdre spent most of the time on her phone or visiting with Dez and Angela. Jean was either talking on the phone or meeting with an assistant who ran errands for him. Gavin, Ben had decided, was the most fun to hang out with. And he let Ben drink. Well, he did until Beatrice caught them in the library and went ballistic.

The rest of the time, Gavin helped Tenzin with Ben’s training. Matt had given him a handgun to carry, but Tenzin still insisted that knives were often more reliable and better because of their silence.

‘Remember, boy. A knife never runs out of bullets. You can use it anywhere. And it doesn’t announce its presence.’

Ben touched the grip of the hunting knife he carried. He had a simple sheath tucked into the inside of his waistband that made it invisible, even under summer clothes. It definitely beat the rusty old steak knife he’d carried with him on the streets when he was a kid. That one he’d found behind a restaurant in the Bowery when he was eight, but it had come in handy more than once.

Gavin and Tenzin were still arguing, so Ben spoke up. “Listen, both of you, I really don’t think I need to stab either of you. I know you may find this hard to believe—”

Ben felt the cold slip of a hand at his neck a moment before the barrel of a gun hit the small of his back. In a heartbeat, Ben leaned back into his attacker, ducking down and to the left as he twisted his body under the arm that was reaching around his neck. In one smooth movement, he drew the hunting knife from his waist and turned so that he came behind his assailant. His arm reached around, slicing up the front of the man’s shirt until it was poised at the neck.