Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

asked it casually, idly, as if it didn't matter at all and he was simply making conversation. But Nicoletta wasn't fooled. His black eyes were on her face, sharp like a Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    hawk's.
    She felt the breath explode out of her as if he had hit her with his fist. Unexpectedly she was struggling not to cry. Sorrow welled up out of nowhere, so deep that her throat closed, and tears burned behind her eyes. It had been her mother's favorite song. Nicoletta still held those precious memories, of her mother's soft, beautiful voice, the warmth of her arms. Her mother had worked at the palazzo, and twelve years earlier they had brought her body home from this place of death. Involuntarily Nicoletta averted her face, once again attempting to draw her leg away from the don.
    His fingers tightened like a shackle around her ankle. "Be still."
    Nicoletta was feeling desperate. She did her best to look doltish. Under the circumstances, it wasn't that difficult. She was feeling entirely off balance. She mumbled something unintelligible, knowing instinctively he would have no patience for evasion, and covered her face as best she could. Alas, the don had sharp eyes and likely had missed nothing at all. Something in his voice, something nameless, something undefined, gave Nicoletta the uneasy impression that he no longer regarded her as an ageless, nameless, nondescript servant. He spoke as if he were talking to a young maiden or frightened child. He had even called her piccola —little one.
    "Send for the servants," he ordered Maria Pia, confirming Nicoletta's suspicions that he no longer thought of her as a servant. The older woman had returned silently, but he was aware of her presence immediately. "Your apprentice cannot remain in this room this night."
    Sophie was struggling to gain her freedom, wrenching her hand free of Maria Pia to run to Nicoletta and crawl into her lap. Nicoletta gratefully wrapped her arms around the child, unashamedly hiding behind the little girl.
    Maria Pia hastily tugged the bell pull and hovered anxiously close to Nicoletta. "She is invaluable to me, don." Love and concern etched deep lines into her face, naked, transparent, and easy for someone as sharp as Don Scarletti to read.
    "The wound is deep, but I have cleansed and bandaged it. Where are her shoes?" He stood abruptly, easily, flowing power and coordination combined, lifting Nicoletta and Sophie into his arms in one smooth motion. "I do not want further injuries caused by bare feet on the debris. Gather her things, and we will go to the nursery."
    Where the child should have been all along! Why had Sophie been in that monstrous room?
    Nicoletta bit back the questions clamoring inside her. It seemed that no one paid much attention to Sophie. If anything, the child appeared to be in the way. Had the soup been intentionally poisoned? Or had it, perhaps, been intended for the don? Pud darsi. He had numerous enemies. Although his people were loyal to him—they were well fed, protected, and cared for—they also feared him, and fear was often a dangerous emotion. It was known, too, that the King of Spain had made an uneasy treaty with the don. The king had conquered other cities and states but had been unsuccessful in taking over Don Scarletti's lands. Could there be a traitor at the palazzo? Few would dare challenge the don outright, but perhaps they sought other ways to defeat him.
    She couldn't believe the selfsame don was holding her so close to him, almost protectively, cradling her in his arms, against his wide chest. Much like a frightened rabbit, she dared not move or speak. In any case, she knew with certainty that struggling wouldn't do her any good. Don Scarletti was a man who got his way.

    Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    The manservant who had shown them in arrived a little out of breath. His clothes were a trifle disheveled, as if he had dressed on the run. His eyes widened at the sight of Nicoletta and Sophie in his master's arms, but he was discreet enough not to comment.
    "See to the debris, Gostanz," Don Scarletti ordered, moving past the man without so much as looking at him.
    Nicoletta held her breath, still not daring to move or speak. The don's body was hard and hot and unspeakably male. As he carried her and Sophie through the massive halls, she noted ribbed archways and domes, automatically attempting to