Page 3 of Unraveling Fate

Cadenza made to hoist a duffle bag out of the trunk but hesitated. “You sure I’m not going to be in the way here?”

“Wheesht!” Drostan banished the idea with a wave of his hand. “It’ll make it easier for the races if you’re here. And it’ll be lovely to have more company on the estate.”

Cadenza smiled to herself. She’d forgotten how he always referred to the automotive grounds as “the estate.”

“Besides.” He threw a glance at the covered car before hefting a box out of the back seat and trundling up the stairs. “We don’t use this garage anymore save for storage. This was one of the first buildings we put up back when we opened. The apartment used to be the staff lounge.” He indicated a window in the wall of the living room that overlooked the garage below. “But it should serve. We cleaned it up and kitted it out after booking you.”

Cadenza dropped her duffle bag on the couch. “We?”

“Aye, young Canon and myself. You’ll have met him on the way in. He works the sales floor. Could sell water to a drowning man, that lad. Has a fair voice as well. He’ll be singing in the commercial with you.”

“Great.” She faked a smile, not sure yet what she thought of Canon-the-salesman who-held-her-hand-too-long. But first impressions could be deceiving. If Drostan liked him, maybe he was a decent guy.

They clanged down the metal stairs for another load of Cadenza’s belongings, and the shape of the covered car caught her eye.

“What’s under here? It looks fast.” She ran a hand over the roof, appreciating the silhouette.

“Oh, that?” Drostan averted his eyes from the sheet-covered car and busied himself with a suitcase. “It’s just … something that doesn’t want to go anymore.” A buzz sounded from his pocket, and he checked his phone. “Caddie, dear, I’m wanted up front. I’ll let you finish getting settled. The keypad code is on the back of the garage door opener. Tomorrow we can head to the studio for the first commercial, alright?”

“Sounds good. Thanks, Drostan.” Cadenza leaned against the mystery car and watched him jog back up the road towards the showroom. Recording started tomorrow. Good. A month was not a long time.

She patted the covered car. “You don’t want to go, and I don’t want to stay. What a pair. Still …” She rubbed the keyring in her pocket. Radio commercials and amateur car races weren’t the trajectory she had envisioned for her singing career. But it did mean no more living out of her car or crashing on friends’ couches. No more lying to her agent that she was “just fine” for fear of being dropped as a client. She had a place of her own again. At least temporarily. Because living in Sonora again was … Definitely. Temporary.

One more trip up and down the stairs was all it took to cart the rest of her belongings up to the apartment. Sliding glass doors led from the living room to a balcony with a view of the grounds and old Highway 108 that ran through her hometown of Sonora, past the Norroway “estate,” and farther east. Beyond the highway rolled the foothills, on their way to becoming the Sierra Nevada.

Bedroom, bathroom, and kitchenette finished off the suite of staff-rooms-turned-apartment. A quick inspection of the kitchen revealed that Drostan had stocked the fridge and cupboards for her arrival. A package of turtle chocolates waited on the two-person breakfast table, and that feeling hit her again. Still rusty from disuse, but she recognized it faster this time.

Safety. Being cared for. Famiglia.

Shaky, she dropped into one of the kitchen chairs.Babbo, she sent the thought out to the sky, not really knowing if her father still existed in any form that could hear her.I miss you.

A breeze blew in from the open balcony, caressing her face with its melody. She didn’t push it away this time. The music she heard from the world had haunted her since childhood. Real or not, she was never sure, but she kept it on a short leash. Even now, as she began to sing sotto-voce, lullaby-like, and with no one else around, she didn’t allow the notes around her to push their way into her voice.

She slid a turtle from the package and wandered to the balcony, savoring the caramel and chocolate. The hills beyond the sales lot shone in the evening sun, baked gold in the August heat. She and her father used to spend hours driving the back highways to enjoy those hills. And to see how fast they could take the curves in whichever fantastic import he’d been working on for whichever wealthy owner had sought out his skills. He always said the hills reminded him of his native Toscana. He’d died before taking Cadenza to Italy, but now she had a chance to get herself thereandjumpstart her career.

She pulled up her mother’s email on her phone to read for the hundredth time.

Cara mia,(Cadenza had snorted at this the first time she’d read the email. Since when had she ever been “dear” to her mother?)

I have good news for you. A good chance. There will be a festival here in Venice this fall. I had the idea to speak to the direttore about you, and I have pulled some of the strings.(Another lie. Cadenza had found out later it had been her eldest sister Giulia’s idea for their mother to use her clout as a big-name guest artist on Cadenza’s behalf. But far be it from her mother to let others take the credit. Cadenza still wasn’t sure what Giulia was going to want in exchange for this favor.)If you can put together funds for your plane ticket, you will have a place in the chorus. And in Teatro la Fenice, cara! You can stay with me, it will be fun, like a party! But I need to know soon. You must have your ticket by the end of September, or they will give the part to someone else in time for rehearsals.

—Ilaria

Ilaria. Not Mamma. Not even, Your Mother. Just her name. Cadenza rolled her shoulders and sighed. If living with Ilaria was a party, it was a party where Cadenza was the one serving the drinks and cleaning up afterward. After this many years, the lack of maternal affection shouldn’t get under her skin. It wasn’t as if it were a surprise. And she had already told her mother she’d do it.

Never mind that she barely had the cash to make the minimum payment on her maxed-out credit card every month, let alone buy a plane ticket to Venice. But she still had time. She had just over a month to scrape together the money. She would make her dream happen.

Starting tomorrow.

The shrouded car caught her eye again through the window overlooking the garage. It wasn’t like Drostan to leave a vehicle unrepaired. His friendship with her father had started because Drostan’s passion led him to search out the best. What was he keeping down there?

Her curiosity sparked, she jogged down the stairs to check it out. Dust billowed in the air as she yanked off the sheet, and she waved it away, coughing. When the air cleared, her eyes widened in surprise.

Why was Drostan keeping aFerrari F12 Berlinettahidden away in storage?

Breath held in reverence, she traced the sleek sides with her fingertips. She circled the machine, taking in the efficient angles, the night-sky-black paint job. She could almost hear the growl of the engine, and she hummed a tune to match. She tried the handle on the driver’s side, and the door opened with a small snick.

“In storageandopen?” She shot a glance over her shoulder, but the garage door was shut. No one could see in. Guilt lost a lightning-fast battle with her appreciation for beautiful machinery, and she slid into the driver’s seat. The black leather interior matched the outside of the car, and a pattern was carved in bas-relief across the dashboard where the Ferrari logo should have been.