BELLA'S POV
I heard the car before I saw it.
The particular crunch of the estate's gravel driveway had a different quality depending on the vehicle, Gio's SUV had a heavier, more deliberate sound, like something that knew its own weight. The car that pulled up at eleven-fifteen on Saturday morning was lighter, faster, the sound of something arriving with energy rather than authority.
Mum.
I was in the library. I'd been in the library since nine, which was two hours longer than I'd intended to spend in the library, because my original plan had been to come down, get coffee, go back to my room, and spend the morning in the reliable safety of my own four walls. But the kitchen had not been empty at nine. He'd been at the table with his documents and his coffee and his perfectly composed a
