Page 37 of Ciao Bella

“Information?” frowned Ian. “What were you looking for?”

“Oh, I wanted to research something that I was interested in writing about as it related to the gladiators,” lied Faith. She’d never intentionally lied to her husband, but they didn’t want the men to know they were working on something. It was odd they couldn’t see the boys, but they would have said something if they had.

“Are you interested in gladiators?” asked Ghost.

“I’m interested in their tactics of fighting and war,” she said. It was partially the truth. She was curious as to the details of the equipment they used, how they fought against beasts like lions, tigers, rhinos, and more. She and Grace walked away with Enzo, out of earshot of the men.

“What did he find?” asked Grace.

“It’s all very curious,” said Enzo. “As I’ve mentioned before, the Colosseum has undergone many renovations, restorations, and attempts to fix its crumbling architecture. After the boys died, someone in the Colosseum said that the steps in the area where they fell were loose and should be removed, repaired, or replaced. It was never mentioned anywhere what happened to them.

“Uncle Aldo spoke with the museum director at the Colosseum, and he said that part of the steps were removed and placed in the national museum because they were made of a rare pink granite, the only section left of the original build.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” said Grace.

“I am not kidding. Uncle Aldo said that the steps, nine in total, are in their original state in the museum, left untouched. Tomorrow, we have permission to go to the museum and look at the steps to see if anything was left written or scratched on them.”

“This is just crazy,” said Faith, shaking her head. “We can’t bring the men. They’ll know that something is up.”

“Leave it to me,” said Grace. They walked back to the tables, and Ghost stared at his wife.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes, it’s wonderful. Enzo’s uncle has gotten special permission for us to view a strange exhibit at the national museum. It focuses on the history of women’s fashion and how the female reproductive system was seen over the centuries. We’re going to view that while Faith looks at the exhibit piece of the gladiators.”

“The female reproductive system?” frowned Luc. “I know this is a couples’ vacation, but can I take a hard pass on that one?”

“Same,” said Nine. “I love your body, but I don’t want to know the history and details of reproduction, menstruation, or anything else.”

“I could show you the Ferrari Museum,” smiled Enzo. Erin looked at the young man and wanted to kiss him. “It’s a wonderful place to visit, and my friend, Antonio, works there. He will give us a tour, and then you could test drive a car on their track.”

“Oh, man. I am so in,” laughed Antoine.

“Easy for you to say,” frowned Alec. “I can’t even fit in one of those damn cars.”

“We will find something that you can fit into,” laughed Enzo. Erin mouthed ‘thank you’ to the young man, and he only smiled.

“It would have been very helpful if those boys saw what they put in, behind, or near those stairs,” whispered Suzette to Sophia. She nodded, smiling as if they were having girl chat.

“I couldn’t agree more. We have no idea what we’re looking for. What did Hitler and Mussolini discuss?”

“I might know something,” said Adele. “Hitler and Mussolini signed a ‘friendship treaty’ in 1936. It later became known as the Axis Powers. Now, that was five years after the boys were killed, but what if they were hoping to do it before 1936? Also, we know that they were both very spiteful men and often had the same enemies, finding ways to rid themselves of them. What if they were planning something against a common enemy?”

“You mean like England, the United States, France, Russia, and the entire Jewish population?” frowned Alexandra.

“Maybe,” shrugged Adele. “I don’t know. I do know that they were very close and shared a lot of things.”

“Well, I can tell you this,” said Alexandra, “I am not leaving here until we find out what’s keeping those boys here and how we get them home where they belong.”

“I agree,” said Erin.

“Agree to what, babe?” asked Nine, standing from the table. She took his hand, kissing him sweetly.

“That the food here has been some of the best we’ve ever had. I’m definitely going to take home some new recipes. Right, Sara?”

“Hmm? Oh, yes. I’m taking home some new recipes, and we’re going to do Italian nights at the café and cafeterias.”

“I’m totally in on that,” smirked Wilson. “We should have thought of this ages ago. Maybe next year, we tour Asia and start doing Asian cuisine nights.”

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