Nico is quiet most of the way to the airport. He holds the box of letters and refuses to look at Marshall. As they pull out of the parking garage of the stadium, Marshall begins to explain the situation.
"I got a call early this morning, Natalia and Alexander were in a car accident and it's serious..."
"Alexander? A son, I have a son?" Nico turns to look at Marshall. "What's his whole name?"
Marshall glances over and nods. "You need to read those letters. I think she mentions his name in about the third or fourth..."
"No Marshall, tell me his name! Have you met him? Does he know about me? Does he know what happened? You never told me about this! How is it, that for 8 years you never told me? What the hell is wrong with you? I would have made sure you knew you had a child, I don't tell lies and I would've never kept that from you!"
"Nico, I couldn't tell you! I promised her and she needed that. She still loves you and hopes that one day you can get past what happened. She doesn't blame you at all. If you would've opened just one letter you would know that. She prays every day that you will come to your senses and just call. I know you and I know that you let guilt control your actions. I've done my best to help you, but I would never force you into something you're not ready for. You still blame yourself and until you get over that, you won't move on. One question, do you still love her?"
"Marshall, I almost killed her! How do you 'get over' that? If you hadn't shown up when you did, she wouldn't have made it. And now...you mean... at the time… she was pregnant? Pull over!"
Marshall stops the car just in time for Nico to open the door before he throws up inside the car. His breathing is labored and he is about to pass out. All of this is too much at once. Two hours ago his biggest problem was TK sending tweets about a locker room argument and now his wife and child were in a serious car accident. All of his self-control is gone. Marshall gets out of the car and walks around with a bottle of water. He hands it to his friend and places a hand on his shoulder. After a few minutes Nico finally gets control of himself and rinses his mouth out. Marshall knows Nico is hurt, angry, confused and so much more at this point. He quietly guides him back in the car so they can get to the airport.
When the car comes to a complete stop in front of Marshall's private hangar, Nico finally looks over, "Please, tell me his name."
"It's Alexander Valente Niccolo Careles, II."
"She named him after my grandfather?"
"Yeah, she said you mentioned something about it once. Seriously, she wrote all about it in the letters."
Nico looks down at the box and for the first time notices how much love and devotion must have gone into the letters. On the 24th of each month she mailed the letter. He noticed a few years ago that the postmark was always the same and on the back of the envelope across the seal was the same sentence on every letter: "Da qualcuno che ti ama oggi." Now he feels worse if that was even possible.
Nico is drawn from his thought by a beep from Marshall's phone, another text. Marshall moves to get out of the car and dials a number on the way to the plane. Nico follows behind trying to hear the conversation but he's not close enough. All he got was that they would be there in about three hours and to meet them at the airport with a car.
Back at the stadium, Dani is still sitting in Nico's office lost in thought when Xeno comes in with a folder to place on Nico's desk. He sees the doctor but doesn't say anything. He turns to leave when she looks up and sees him. She knows Nico trusts Xeno more than anyone else on his staff and if any personal issues come up that he can't handle, Nico will only call Xeno. He's almost to the door when she speaks. "Xeno, how long have you worked for Marshall Pitman?" He turns to look at her not really know why she asks that question. He thinks back, "about 10 years over all but not all at the same time. I have known Mr. Pitman for almost 20 years. We were in the Navy together. "
"How long have you known Nico?" She turns in her chair to get a better look at his face.
"I first met Nico about 16 years ago when Mr. Pitman purchased an Indy car team. I was hired for transport security. Nico was the team lead and he saw my potential. He taught me a lot about the business and when he decided to leave California, he recommended me as the team lead. I know Nico served with Mr. Pitman but was already out of the Navy by the time I met Mr. Pitman." This is the most she has ever heard this man speak at one time. "Do you know why he left the Navy?"
Now Xeno is getting a little uncomfortable about these questions. They are getting into a personal area and he's not sure if he should be disclosing this information without Nico's permission. He decides to keep it vague and end it shortly. "He was injured and something happened on their last mission. I'm not going into more details because I think Nico's the person you should be talking to. Are you waiting for him? He was here earlier and I can call him if you need him but I'm sure he'll be back soon."
Dani knows Xeno has said more than he wanted to, but she has one more question. "Do you know he's married?"
Xeno looks to the door wishing he would've never come inside. He looks back to her and remains quiet for a moment. He's thinking of the best way to approach this question because he knows where she's heading. "I do know about his wife but I'm not going into details nor answering any other questions about her. Not many people know about that and since he has trusted you with that knowledge, I'm sure he'd appreciate it if you kept it to yourself. It's a sensitive topic for him and not something he shares with people. I'm sorry but I really have to go now, is there anything else I can help you with before I leave?" "No, thanks for your time." She stands and gathers her coat and bag. She follows him out and decides to head home. She has a few appointments after lunch and needs to focus on something else.
Before they left, Nico said he'd call her later to talk. He could tell she was upset by the news and they were friends. He doesn't tell her much about himself but she knows more than most people. Over the past year, he's grown to respect, admire and trust her. Yes, he's married and over the past 8 years has never once even thought about being with another woman…. until he met Danielle Santino. She completely knocked him on his ass. She's beautiful, smart, sexy and compassionate. She challenges him like his wife did and reminds him of a different life that he misses every day. Over the past 8 years he hasn't let anyone get so close to him but Dani won't take no for an answer. It's been nice to talk to someone but he knows that after what happened with his wife, he'll never let anyone get that close again. After 8 years, he still doesn't trust himself.
Translation for the sentence is:
"Da qualcuno che ti ama oggi"
From someone who loves you today.
