“I know, Lucia,” Nicoletta answered immediately. “I already think of you and Amo as my home, you’ve been so kind to me.”

Listening to her voice, there was no mistaking that she meant every word, and deep inside, Ricco breathed a sigh of relief. Lucia and Amo were magic. The epitome of a loving couple going through life together. They were the perfect couple for a lost teen like Nicoletta.

“I still need an answer, tesoro. That you want to pull your weight with your family is admirable, but it doesn’t tell me how you plan to keep up with your education.” He was firm. Insistent. Nicoletta needed care, and gentle handling, but she also had to get an education. She needed her high school diploma and she had to catch up. She’d always feel inferior to others if she didn’t, and she had enough trauma to contend with.

Nicoletta toed the crack in the sidewalk, staring down at it as though it might give her answers. “I’m doing four hours with a tutor in the morning before work,” she said in a low voice. “After work, another two hours. Amo said he’d help me as well.”

“Were the tutors vetted before they were hired?”

“Your family is doing that now,” she mumbled.

He heard the resentment in her voice. He couldn’t blame her. She couldn’t turn around without stumbling over a member of his family. They guarded her carefully, knowing she truly was tesoro – treasure.

“It’s to keep you safe,” he said gently. When she didn’t respond he used a soft, commanding tone. “Nicoletta. Look at me.”

She raised her gaze to his reluctantly.

“It’s for your safety. Yours, Amo’s and Lucia’s. You understand that, don’t you?”

She nodded, color sweeping up her flawless complexion. She had Italian skin. A beautiful girl, one he knew would give his family trouble.

“What is it then?”

She opened her mouth twice, glanced at Mariko and Lucia, who were talking in low tones, clearly trying not to look as if they were eavesdropping.

“Nicoletta, you have to be able to talk to us. We’re the ones that keep all of you safe. We need to know what’s going on.”

She shrugged. “Do you think the Demons are still looking for me?”

He refused to lie to her. “I know they are. We’re watching them. They have no idea how you disappeared or how your step-uncles were killed. Unfortunately, you caught the eye of Benito Valdez, their president, and he’s determined to find out what happened to you. They’ve reached out to all the various clubs saying they’ll owe a favor for information leading to your whereabouts.”

She swallowed hard. “He’s the worst of them.”

“I know. You’re safe here. No member of the gangs or clubs come into our territory. They’re in New York. You’re here in Chicago. They have no idea.”

“I don’t want to take a chance with Amo or Lucia. They’re… wonderful.” She blinked rapidly and looked away from him.

“We would never take a chance with them. We consider them family.”

She moistened her lips. “I don’t know how your brothers saved me. I don’t remember very much.”

She never talked about the night her step-uncles died, not to anyone, not even her counselor. They knew, because Emmanuelle had been assigned to stay in the shadows just to make certain Nicoletta didn’t make the mistake of revealing to anyone how she had been rescued. The girl was young, an unknown, and traumatized at that. They’d taken a huge risk rescuing and giving her to nonfamily members, but she needed constant care and love. Lucia and Amo were the two people the Ferraro family could trust to do right by the girl.

Nicoletta may have been born capable of riding shadows, but if she wasn’t properly trained, her body would be torn apart by the energy field they entered. Riders were trained from the time they were infants. A few had learned later in life, but they were never fast at it. Ricco’s father didn’t take jobs unless Eloisa went with him; mostly he used the shadows to visit his mistresses. Still, Nicoletta could produce children capable of riding the shadows, and very few could do that. Nicoletta was truly the treasure Ricco called her.

There was no sound. Nothing at all to warn him. Instinct had him looking up to see a truck barreling straight at them. Someone screamed as he pushed Mariko into Lucia and caught Nicoletta around the waist. He took several steps to try to get them out of the path of the truck but it moved with them, engine roaring, coming so fast he was certain they wouldn’t make it. Still running, he tossed Nicoletta away from him, uncertain if she was the target or if he was, but he had to get her clear.

Something hit the windshield with deadly accuracy, hitting the driver’s side, head high. Ricco was so close he could see the glass spider-webbing. Without Nicoletta to hinder him, he leapt onto the hood to keep from being run over and to keep the driver’s focus on him. It was impossible to tell if the man was trying to kill the teen or him, but it wasn’t a random accident.

The driver spun the wheel, intending to send him flying. The truck barely missed Nicoletta. Emilio dragged her away from the tires as the truck lurched back onto the street. Ricco hung on grimly as the truck pitched violently from side to side, jumped the curb again, swiped two trees planted on the sidewalk and bounced into the street again.

He was about to leap off when he glimpsed a gun through the cracks in the windshield. The driver seemed to be trying to shove it out the side window, but again, Ricco couldn’t tell if he was aiming for Nicoletta or for him. He slammed his fist repeatedly into the windshield in order to keep the driver’s attention centered on him and away from the teenager.

Cars had pulled over seeing the truck so out of control, but one, directly in its path, was hit, spinning it around. The impact jolted Ricco’s body. The force felt as if someone had hit him in the head with a sledgehammer.

“Gun, gun,” Enzo shouted as he ran along the sidewalk, trying to get a clear shot at the driver. “Everybody down. Get down.”

Instinctively, Ricco rolled across the hood and landed hard in the street. Emilio was on him in moments, covering his body with his own, both bodyguards returning fire. Blood spattered the windows and the seat as the driver was hit. The truck lurched to a slow roll. Emilio leapt off Ricco and ran to the truck just as Enzo tore open the door to steer it to the curb.

Ricco was slower sitting up than he’d like. He’d hit hard, and his body was still healing. His head hurt the worst, every movement sending what felt like shards of glass piercing his skull. It took every single bit of discipline he had to set his teeth and just sit there in the street without keeling over. Sweat beaded on his forehead and trickled down his chest.

It took him a few moments to orient himself and understand what had happened. He’d managed to shove Mariko into Lucia and both had gone flying, but they were safe. He could only send up a short prayer that Lucia hadn’t broken a hip or done worse when she hit the ground. He knew he’d gotten Nicoletta clear, but the driver had fired off several shots before one of his cousins had stopped him. He had no idea if anyone had been hit.