I gasped and looked at Rodion. “No wonder that flower and his accent reminded me of you.” I laughed. “And there is this maid who gave me a necklace with a gemstone pendant. It remindedme of you, too.”
“I know.” Rodion winked before he turned to Pavel. “We need to move immediately.”
“Yes, boss.” Pavel gave a slight nod and signaled to a few men before heading out. But my attention wasn’t on them; everything made sense now. Something about Savina’s calmness and kindness to me started to make sense.
“Wait,” I said to Rodion, who was already on his phone. “You knew about the necklace? So you know Savina?”
“I know everyone in your life, Little Gem.”
Of course he did. Why was I even surprised? I slipped my hand free from his and walked toward Savina. Her eyes lit up the moment she saw me.
“Miss?”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
“Tell you what, miss?”
“Oh, please, don’t call me that.” I tried to laugh it off, though my chest was tight. “The necklace, and everything. You were genuinely nice to me, unlike everyone else.”
“I was hired to do the job, yes,” she said. “And I wasn’t supposed to say anything. Except that night when you were drunk. I had to blow that cover.”
My brows furrowed. “Drunk? Why, what happened?”
“The phone call,” she said, raising a brow as if testing my memory. “You don’t remember?”
“The phone call?”
She gasped. “Oh my God, you don’t remember,” she laughed. “Well, you were so drunk and lost it, so I had to call Rodion.”
The air caught in my throat. “That dream?” I whispered. “It was real? I talked to Rodion?”
“You did.” She turned to the lady in a blue dress, a proud smile curving her lips. “Oh, by the way, this is Beatrice, my mother.”
I turned to the lady I had only met briefly in the dressing room.Her poise made me straighten without meaning to. “Hi,” I said, a little embarrassed. “I’m sorry I didn’t greet you earlier. I’m Alessia.”
“I know.” She smiled and extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you finally. I’ve heard about you from Alonzo.”
“In a good way, I hope…” Her words caught me off guard. “Wait, Alonzo?”
She nodded and lifted her chin toward someone behind me. I expected to see Rodion and his men, but my eyes widened to find him standing with Alonzo.
The sight stunned me. “I didn’t know he was here.” I faced Beatrice and Savina again. “You know him?”
Savina spoke excitedly. “He’s my brother.”
I blinked, confused. “What?”
“I mean.” She shrugged. “We grew up together in a foster home. And Beatrice is like a mother to us.”
“Oh.” The word slipped out because I didn’t know what else to say. I looked at Alonzo again. “I once wished I could find him here, but I couldn’t go out to look for him.”
Savina’s eyes softened. “I understand you better than anyone.”
She did, because she knew what it meant to be under Leonid and his family. That thought pulled me right back to the mess. “I’m still confused. We came here with Vincenzo’s people, so what’s happening?”
Savina exchanged a glance with Beatrice before answering. “They’re on the fifth floor. There’s another wedding happening. Vincenzo married someone else. It was planned.”
“He planned this?” The disbelief scraped out of my throat.