Page 248 of Niccolo

Roberto continued to argue with me, but I finally laid down the law. “If there’s ANY sign of danger, GET OUT. That’s a direct order from Dario.”

“But only if there are clear signs of danger… correct?”

“I can already hear you trying to exploit the fine print,” I said with a smile.

“Don’t make me come home unless it’s absolutely necessary,”he begged.“Not until I’ve either succeeded, or it’s clear I would fail no matter what I do.”

I could hear how important it was to him by the tone of his voice.

“…alright,” I relented. “Just as long as you come home in one piece.”

101

The next day was when the rollercoaster truly began.

Around 10AM, I got a call – and stared at the name on the screen:

LARS

I hastily answered. “Where have you BEEN?!”

“Locked inside an MI6 black site for the last two weeks.”

“…WHAT?!”

“It’s a long story. I’ll tell you when I see you. Is Dario okay?”

“Yes, he’s fine – although…” I gathered up my courage and said the words I feared the most. “We’re afraid we might have lost Massimo.”

I filled him in on the situation. Despite the dire details, Lars refused to believe my brother was dead.

“No. Massimo’s a tough motherfucker – he’s fine.”

I asked about the assassin Lars had gone to London to chase down, but he seemed oddly cagey about it.

“I’ll tell you all about it when I get there. But I can’t really talk right now, if you get my drift.”

I told him briefly about Roberto and Valentino, then asked when was the earliest he could be home.

He assured me he could fly into Florence and arrive at the house by 2AM.

“I’m glad you’re alright,” I said. “It’s good to hear from you – we were afraid something had happened.”

“Thanks. And don’t worry about Massimo – he’s going to come through. I know it.”

As we hung up, I didn’t allow myself to believe him.

I was afraid I would be crushed when we found out the truth.

But Lars was right.

Just two hours later, I got a call from an unknown number in Padola –

The last number Massimo had called me from.

When I answered, I kept silent. It was protocol in case of entrapment by law enforcement – but my heart was in my throat the entire time…

Until I heard Massimo’s deep voice say,“It’s me, and things are outstanding.”

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