PROLOGUE

In the hospital

I'm running. I'm speeding down, like there is no tomorrow, with this damned car which doesn't want to exceed the 220 km/h. I must run, I must reach the hospital asap. My mobile continues to ring, but I haven't the least intention of answering. I know, I was advised, or rather, obliged to take the chauffeur with the escort, or to use the chopper, but I am not able to think right now. I know that I'm risking my life, but this isn't important. The troubles dimes my mind and the reason.

“Hello” I boom at the phone. I'm tired, this continuous ringing distracts me from the driving.

“Where are you?” my wife asks. “I came by your office and you weren't there, the secretary said that you had to travel.” She seems worried, but I know that she isn't. She is interested only in money and power. As her father and her brother.

“Yes, I have an urgent meeting in Birmingham” I inform her. I can’t absolutely tell her where I am going. She will create only problems.

“What? Have you taken the escort? When you come back? You know that we were supposed to go...”

“I know, I know, but...” I must immediately find an excuse, “I will be as quick as I can. It's an urgent business, I can't postpone. There is no need to disturb the escort.” So I believe.

“Okay, my darling. Call me as soon as you will be free.” and she put the phone down just in time.

Without a thought, I park in the first free place near the entrance. I don't care if I will get a ticket or if my car will be towed, I must run. Yes. But, where? Where I have to go? On what floor? Who do I ask?

“Here you are!” I hear a familiar voice. I turn back to find the person and there he is. “Are you alone? And the escort?”

“Where is she? How is she? Is she alive?”

“Calm down. Come with me. I will take you to her” he said, putting his arms round my shoulders. “You are risking your life. Let’s hope that nobody will recognize you”.

I don’t care.

We follow a corridor too long for my taste. Too long wait. Too long road separates me to see if she really feels good. My fingers are sweaty, the knees shake and the heart is racing at the thought of seeing her. For the first time, I feel inadequate.

I look in front of me waiting that this damned door will open. I swallow the lump. The doors open and my friend goes out while I remain still. I am not able to move, I am not able to step forward another corridor. I feel like dying.

“Hey, let's go!” he said to me.

My eyes are wet and the heart doesn’t want to slow down. I straighten the jacket and I follow him. This is my ritual that I do to calm down before a meeting with the big boss of other companies. But, it seems that it isn’t enough this time.

Two hundred, two hundred and one, two hundred and two, the nameplates on the doors show the room. Two hundred and nine, two hundred and ten. He stops in front of it. He turns towards me, and he puts his hand on the handle. “Are you ready?” he whispers. I look him, wondering how he can think that I'm ready to see the condition the girl is. I nod while my fingers torture the ring on the pinky. I'm worried. I can't explain how it is possible.

Slow, he opens the door, and he goes in. I look around and, bowing my head, I cautiously follow him. In the middle of the room, attached to some strange machines, the girl lies.

Do they keep her alive? Are they only helping her?

Her arms are bandaged. Her face is unrecognisable. I can't believe it.

My baby, what happened to you?

“How... How is she?” I slowly whisper.

I'm afraid to wake her. I'm afraid to shock her if only she could see me here. I haven't met her for years. We haven’t spoken for years, and maybe, she doesn’t even remember me.

“The doctor says well. But, until she will recover, he couldn't say if she has some brain damage. She has lost a lot of blood and...”.

“I want to know all” I say while I look her with severity. It is as if I expected it from her and not from my friend. I am not able to approach, I can't stroke her, I can't give her what she needs now.

Am I afraid of her?

It’s impossible that I am afraid of her.

“You must know all. After, we will ask her doctor. Now, enjoy these moments, approach and offer her all your comfort. She needs you.”

My breath is fast but regular. I move a step towards her and my heart breaks for her more and more.

I reduced her in these conditions. It is my fault if she is in these conditions. It is because of who I am and who she is, if she is here. I wasn't able to protect her to the best of my ability.

My trembling hand brushes her busted face. I tilt my head and I look her incredulous.

Who did this to you? You were so beautiful and now? Where are your blue eyes? Where is your beaming smile which illuminated every photo that I received?

“What is happening here?” a deep voice resounds in the room.

I slowly turn back and I see a man in his 40s with a white coat which is looking us incredulous, motionless on the door. He scrutinizes every little detail.

“Andreas, he is her father” my friend says. He turns towards me “He is the doctor Andreas. We can trust him.” he looks again at the good doctor “Andreas, he is...”.

“It isn't important” he declares, interrupting the introductions with an arrogant voice.

What a cheek!

I look the man who is scrutinizing me. He comes in the room without stopping to stare at me and, finally, he locks the door behind him.

What is he thinking? Does he know that I can kill him in a second?

He looks away from me, fixing his black eyes on the girl, and I feel him dwelling on the outlines of my tattoos, which make out over the sleeve of the jacket. Who doesn't see the letters on my knuckles, maybe only a blind person. Strangely, he doesn’t place much value on it, also if I know that he recognized me, otherwise, he would never dream of locking the door.

I turn my attention to the girl. “It seems that she has lost her memory” he says leafing through the case sheet, completely indifferent.

I slowly shake the head. I can’t believe it. How much does he know about her? How much interest does he have for her? “She doesn't remember what it has happened to her. The brain usually uses this strategy to defend itself. It forgets the trauma and the related things to...”

“Do you know something that it isn't written? Is there something that you know without read it?”

“Hey” my friend reprimands. He is the only one which can do it.

“No. You listen to me, two-bit good doctor. I can fire you when I want, if I will be mad. Now, let me know how she is” I growl, looking him in his dark eyes.

I don't care. She is my priority, even if it doesn't look like this, so it’s better that he doesn’t make fun of me.

“I understand. Well..." he quietly closes the case sheet, and he put it on the table behind him, he leans against the table, and he folds his arms "do you see that bag? She has had a new transfusion because she lost so much blood that she miraculously is alive. She had some serious respiratory attacks and other not so important, for this reason, she is attached to the respirator, not to tire her above and beyond. She is here for two weeks, and she didn't wake up until last night. She was vigilant for all day, but she didn’t recognize anybody in the room, not even the brother. Now, she is sedated because, on the contrary, she could have some uncontrollable reactions. We start again to feed her with the fluids because she refused every type of food. She is quite underweight for her age. Her brother is here, night and day and, before returning in the room to see how she is, I left him at the bar while he was drinking another coffee blaming himself for all, only because he is part of the clan. Except for the boy and him" indicating my friend "nobody came. I can't say for sure how she is, because I wasn't able to visit her when she was vigilant considering that, when they did it, I wasn’t there, and they reported to me that she removed all cables and the fluids, and she hid in the bathroom. Do you want to know more? Maybe, do you want to know what she hid under these bandages?”.

He seems cocky and this irritates me. I don't want to distract me. I want to think of her, that's all. I look her, I scrutinize her in every little detail to memorize it. I play with her skinny fingers, and I dwell on her forearms wisely bandaged with skill. I see her red hands.

“She was abused...” my friend whispers.

I look at his eyes and I can’t breathe. I close my eyes for the exasperation.

I'm sorry, baby girl. I'm sorry if you are paying the consequences of my choices, of my actions. I don't see a way out except for...

“Make sure that she will not remember what it is passed to her. Tell her... tell her that...”

“Nobody knows how things turned out. Her brother maintains that, before to attempt suicide, she got all these bruises. The dynamic isn’t clear” the doctor interrupts me.

"What? Is he joking? How can he believe a thing like that?" I exclaim, disbelieving, and I look at my friend. He nods as to confirm.

I breathe in slowly.

“You take care of it. Do everything you can to avoid that she will renter on it, or to avoid that they will discover who she is. You will change her registration name and you will move her.”.

“You know that...” he tries to say.

“Are your boys in the boys’ school, right? Also Sem, which is still there, is of yours, so, there, she will be safe. He perfectly knows the boys and all the situation. Inform him.” This is all that I have in my mind, in this moment. That boy is perfect ally. I never had a problem with him. He is with me since he entered, and he never dared to betray me.

“You know that...”

“I'm serious. I don't want that she never approaches to the Clan or that someone approaches to her, except for Sem or someone that he considers reliable. He knows what to do about this, and he knows her” I look at my friend and I want that he obeys me.

He hesitates to do it, maybe because we aren’t alone, but I don’t have time to waste with his indecision. “Call him, now”.

Sighing, he takes the mobile, and he calls the boy, which immediately answers.

“Sem, you must help me” his sighs get on my nerves “It’s about Danielle” my heart loses a beat. I never wanted to hear those words. “She will arrive in Birmingham, and she will study in your school. I need you, I need your loyalty to keep an eye on her and to group some boys, which can help you about this. She must not realize anything, she must not get in touch with the clan, and she must not even know its existence”. He looks away from me and he frowns. “Sem, she will not remember you”. The smile on his face becomes wide, it’s a sign that the boys accepted the task. “Perfect. I want a list of the trusted members, which will help you, and also a daily report about the situation”. I bend over the girl, kissing her on the forehead. “He accepted without problems”.

“I will protect you. Also, if I will not be near you, I will always be there. Don't bear a grudge if I will treat you badly or if I will try to send you away from me. I do it for you. You are an heiress, but you aren't ready for my world and my world isn't ready for you.”

I stand up and I turn towards the man with the white coat. I have a little word also for him. “Nothing must happen to her, otherwise I make you forget how you walk. For her medical expenses, you must speak with him. I will pay everything and I will spare no expense...”

“Hey...” my friend intervenes.

“She must have the best treatment that this damned hospital is able to offer. Follow her through and through without her knowing. I don’t know, you must become her medical adviser, tell her something, whatever you think, to keep an eye on her.”

“We will arrange for all. Don't worry. Your friend will tell you all, once you will be calm. Now, if you don't want to meet the killing spree of your son, you better go. I won't say nothing.”

I'm surprised and also reassured by this unexpected loyalty of the doctor. “Only her, she has my loyalty for what you did” he indicates the girl, “not you, because you knew, but you didn’t do anything”.

I look away, without understanding his words. Slow, I look at my friend and I frown.

“Breenly. He is the father...” I look at him, incredulous. A tear streams down my face. I look down and I torture the inside of my cheeks.

“I’m indebted to you” I whisper in an audible way. So I believe. “Ask for everything and I...”

“I am just satisfied that you feel like that”. I don’t look at him, I don’t fix on him and I don’t shake his hand to initial the pact, but, in any case, I hope that he will not change his mind. “Now, you better go.” I nod and, without thinking about it, I go out from this room, too oppressive. My little baby is on that bed and, the only one near her is her brother.

Annie doesn’t bother to see how our daughter is. Damned woman, she abandoned our little bird in the care of our sons, which are slightly adolescent. I don’t know what she has.

I follow the corridor until the lift where a group of people speak and I wait that the tin doors open. I have just enough time to sigh when someone goes out from the lift on the side. A boy with very short and blond hair, looking lost, and a consistent style. He is holding a coffee cup. I stare at him, entranced. He doesn't notice me and, maybe it is for the best. I sigh again and I go in the lift, resigned to have as the last image of my sons what I just saw. I open my eyes and I see him turn back and look towards me with quizzical eyes. A lady is in front of me, blocking out his view and preventing him from recognizing me.

“Son, really, it's for the best.”