Cristobal killed my brother. That, or he knows who did. Of that much I am certain.

And for that, he must pay.

Clicking my tongue, I urge the mare forward. She tosses her head, fighting the bit as if arguing with me.

A sharp breeze cuts through the urgency pumping through my veins that had kept me warm until now, propelling me forward with nary a backward glance.

Until now.

I don’t know what I’m doing. I am chasing ghosts. When Ana is trying to save a life.

Fool. You are a wretched fool.

I dig my left heel into the horse’s side. She whinnies, as if pleased with the decision I’ve made.

Together, we turn back around, her sure steps carrying me back toward the villa and Ana and whatever else lies in wait there.

Cristobal will wait.

Vengeance will wait.

Now, Ana needs me. Rosalita needs me. And I am failing them both.

Ana

I have never felt this way toward Kiki before. Have never entertained this simmering rage, this sense of betrayal.

She left you. She chose revenge—not even revenge, just a chance at it—over you. Over Rosalita. She chose vengeance for the dead over saving the living.

Watching her ride off into the night was like being run through with a sword. A rusty one will a dull edge and a serrated blade.

She will always follow her heart. But her heart will not always lead to you.

“Oh, shut the hell up,” I tell my own traitorous brain. I don’t have time for this. Rosalita doesn’t have time for this.

She could be hurt. She could be scared or worse. And you’re here nursing old wounds and tearing open new ones.

I didn’t find anything about her in Cristobal’s study, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t anything to find. If he’s involved with her, maybe he’s hiding his secrets deeper in the belly of his home than that. Maybe he’s hiding things where no one would dare to look.

Gathering up my skirts, I leave the stables the way we came, tiptoeing as quietly as I dare—and as quietly as this gown will allow.

I should have worn my breeches and coat. It was a masked ball, for God’s sake. I could have worn anything and it wouldn’t have mattered, but no, I had to wear the damn gown, and I had to relish the way Kiki looked at me in it and—

Stop it.

My steps lead me away from the stables and into a dark corner of the villa.

The air is cool but dry. Beneath my feet, wooden slats creak softly. The faint smell of oak drifts to my nose.

I know that smell.