CHAPTER 74
INCREASING FEAR
MATTEO
I watched Santiago pace like a caged animal long after the argument burned itself out. He did that when he was trying not to explode…tight turns, clipped steps, hands opening and closing like he was measuring the distance between restraint and violence. The kitchen felt smaller with him in it, walls pressing inward, air thick with everything we weren’t saying. I leaned back against the counter and stayed still. Someone had to.
“You’re going to wear a hole in the floor,” I said eventually.
He shot me a look sharp enough to cut. “You got jokes now?”
“No,” I replied evenly. “I’ve got nerves. Different thing.”
Sienna had retreated to the couch, legs tucked under her, eyes unfocused. She was listening to something none of us could hear. The bond, the ech
