*Olivia*

I paced back and forth in front of the unlit fireplace in our living room-turned-war room. I paused, gnawing on my thumbnail, and looked at the troops we’d gathered.

Gabriele was bent over his cell phone, whispering rapid Italian along the line. At least, I thought it was Italian. With worry clouding my mind, the second language kept slipping through my fingers, and I couldn’t make out a word of his conversation.

Alessandro claimed a ...