Chapter 50.

NORA CARUSO Renata’s grip on my hand was tight, her excitement vibrating through her skin as she dragged me down the familiar hallway toward her bedroom. "You are going to die when you see the new wallpaper," she was saying, breathless as we moved. "Dad threw a fit about the cost, but honestly, the floral print he picked out before was a crime against humanity. I told him, 'Daddy, do you want me to live in a funeral home?' and he finally caved." I managed a small smile, letting her pull me along. Being back in this hallway, smelling the familiar scent was disorienting. For years, this house had been my entire world and now I was only a visitor. Renata threw open her bedroom door with a flourish. "Ta-da!" I stepped inside, expecting a sanctuary of pink silk and privacy where we could finally talk without the men downstairs, I stopped dead in my tracks. The room wasn't empty. Lounging on Renata’s massive, four-poster bed were two figures I knew well… too well. My cousins, who hardly come