DOUBLE LOSS
Morning came too soon. I am hollowed out.
I woke on a couch in Ghost's safe house. Fully clothed. Weapon still holstered. Body aching from everything.
But that wasn't what hurt.
What hurt was the loop playing in my mind. Over and over.
Matteo standing on that pier. Alive. After seven years of thinking he was dead. Seven years of grief and guilt and believing I was the only Moretti left.
And then hours later watching him die because of my selfish choice. This time he really died. This time with no hope of resurrection.
I had him back for..what? Hours? A minute? Not enough time. Not nearly enough time to...
To process. To reconnect. To understand how he'd survived. Where he'd been. What he'd..
Gone. Before I could ask the questions. Before I could...connect.
"Mama?"
I
