“Sì, it was, because while I was in London, Mylos was here at Valentini.”
“What happened?”
“On my last day there, he came home. We had only one wonderful night together. We talked all night long, kissing and laughing until the next morning when he had to take me to the airport.”
“Is that the last time you saw him?”
“Oh no. Another two years passed, and we met again. It was then that Mylos and I finally made love. The time we had together was so brief, but if there had been any doubt in my mind that I loved him, after we were together, I knew it like I know my own hands.” She held them out in front of her, turning her palms up and down. “When Mylos left, he was sent to Iraq, and there, the tank he was driving in hit an IED. You know what that is, sì?”
I put my hand in front of my mouth. “I do, and I’m so very sorry, Pia.”
“Mylos did not die, Catarina, but he was very badly burned. His sister, Lily, contacted me and asked me to come to Germany to the burn hospital. When I did, he turned me away. Didn’t want to see me.”
The story she was telling me was so tragic, I was truly at a loss for words. I brushed the tear from the corner of my eye. “You nev
er saw him again?”
“No, I did. Only once more. I cannot say that either of us ran away, Catarina, but we didn’t run to each other either. Do you understand?”
“How long has it been?”
“One year.”
“I’m sure—”
She held up her hand. “I need you to listen to me, Catarina. Learn from my heartbreak. Do not run away when love is within your reach.”
I sat back in my chair. “Love? Don’t be ridiculous, Pia. We hardly know each other.”
“You are wrong. The heart knows when it finds its match. You and Ben are a match.”
Based on what? He’d been hired to find me and now was looking for my father, a fugitive. If I knew where my father was, I wouldn’t tell Knox. In fact, I’d do everything in my power to help my father stay hidden forever. He wasn’t a bad man. He’d gotten himself involved in things I still knew very little about. What I did know, though, was that it was bad enough that he felt he’d had to run. Not just him, me too.
Knox and I still hadn’t talked about him, and I knew that conversation was coming. I also knew that when it did, it would drive us further apart.
I turned to Pia, who was studying me.
“I think you should try to see Mylos again,” I said.
“I don’t know. When we were last together, we spent several days in each other’s arms, making love, not seeing anyone but room service when they delivered our food.”
“How did you leave things between you?”
“The injuries Mylos suffered were terribly painful, as you can imagine. During our time together, I discovered he was abusing his medication. He asked me to help him, and I did. The last time I saw him, was outside of a rehab center in London.”
“A year ago?”
“Sì.”
“Do you know if he’s doing any better?”
“I think so. He’s written a couple of letters, and I talk to Lily, that’s his sister.”
“I remember.”
“I thought, after, that he’d come.”
“Here?”