6
Verena patted her sister's hand gently, her gaze flickering to Marcello, who kept his eyes firmly on the road.
But there was something dark in his gaze, something unreadable. He knew exactly what Verena needed from him, and he would never turn her down—not when it involved his cousin.
"We wanted to surprise everyone," Verena began, her voice low, tinged with regret. "It was my idea… I thought it would be a good way to make up for everything."
She paused, looking down at her hands, as though the weight of her words was too much. "Louis went out to buy something, and… in his absence, someone kidnapped me."
Aurora's breath hitched. "What happened? What do you mean?"
"I… I don't remember exactly what happened after that. But when I woke up, I was tied up… and to my surprise, Ariana Vandeleur was there too."
Aurora's face twisted in anger. "Did she kidnap you?" Her voice shook with fury.
