Chapter 49 Plan for the Ricci
It's Tuesday, and it's finally my time to go and stay at the Ricci's house. The sky is gloomy without the sun in sight. Dante, Carlo, my father, and I are now standing close to each other next to the car I'll be riding to the Ricci's house. The wind breezes past me, making me shiver even more. If I stand out here any longer, I feel like I'm gonna freeze to death. I miss summertime already. It's still autumn at this time of the year, and I dread how cold the winter going to be, considering how it's already this cold now.
The risk of staying there may be high, considering the possibility of their true intentions, but we don't have many options. Now that Fabio is aware of my father's suspicion towards him and his family, he will only repeat the same lies and keep the truth from us. So, other than relying on Dante's guys, our only way to find more information about the Ricci is by staying at their house and trying to snoop around the place.
"You don't have to go. This is dangerous. We can wait for Dante's informants to give us the information about them," my father says.
Yes, we can absolutely do that. However, isn't it better to get the information straight from the source rather than a middleman? Besides, even if we can wait for them for the much-needed information, it might take them a long time to gather all the information about the Ricci. So, it's better to rely on ourselves for those infos. We need them quickly so we can take the next step in defeating the Ricci and the Romanos.
"I'll be fine. Seriously. I don't think they'll do anything just yet. Besides, after what you did on Saturday, I need to do something to gain their trust back. I won't do anything crazy. I promise. I'll only hang out with Valeria for a few days, and that's it," I say.
My task is not that difficult. I just have to hang out with Valeria and the rest of her family while I'm staying there. No heavy-duty stuff. Dante and Carlo will handle the tough part. I only need to distract the family while Dante and Carlo do their job. As simple as that.
"Alright then. Remember, always have Dante or Carlo close to you," my father says.
"Okay," I say.
My father turns to Dante and Carlo. His once worried face turns strict as he stares right into their eyes. His gaze is clear enough to let them know the severity of their punishment if I don't come back from the Ricci's house unscathed. Hopefully, everything will go well for us. I don't want any of them to get punished, especially Dante. He has gone through so much because of me.
"Never leave Alessandra out of your sight," my father says.
"Yes, boss," Dante and Carlo say in unison.
Dante, Carlo, and I get into the car. Dante takes the front seat, and Carlo is our driver for today. As usual, I'm just the passenger sitting in the backseat. According to the GPS, our ETA is three hours until we reach our final destination, the Ricci's house. Their house is in another town, so it's no wonder it'll take us hours to arrive there.
As the car moves through the road, I can only stare at the sky. The cloud is getting thicker, and the sky is turning darker. The rain will probably pour over us in a few minutes. As much as I hate how cold the autumn season can be, I still like the rain. The pitter-patter of it against the car's roof can sound quite peaceful.
My anxiety heightens as dark thoughts occupy my mind. Despite how hard my heart pounds against my chest, I keep my face straight. I try to ignore my anxiety, but my actions only make it worse. With nothing else to do, I can only take in a deep breath and do controlled breathing. It's just anxiety. Nothing will happen to us. We'll be okay.
"How about we go over our plan again?" I ask. Talking with Dante and Carlo is my only way to distract myself from my mind. So, it's better if I ask them something like that. I need to keep a conversation with them just so I won't drown in my own thoughts.
"Sure," Dante says. Carlo only nods as he continues to drive. His eyes are locked on the road ahead of us.
"Alright. So, we'll stay there for three days and two nights. At night, you will be my guard, stationed right outside my room, while you, Carlo, get your so-called rest. In the daytime, Carlo will be my bodyguard while you gather information from around the house. As for me, I'll be engaging with the Ricci, especially Valeria and Antonio. That's it, right? Or does any of you want to add something else?" I ask.
Deep in my heart, I wish one of them had a plan B if everything goes sideways for us while we're there. I need them to say their plan right here, right now. I need them to say their plan so I can calm the fuck down. As much as I want to bring the Ricci and the Romanos down for messing with my family and kill my mother and brothers, I'm still afraid of losing my own life as well as causing the deaths of Dante and Carlo. Considering I'm dealing with the most dangerous people in this country, their method would not be just as simple as a bullet to the head. It'll be much worse than that.
"Stay alert when you're around them. You might have Carlo or me close to you, but we'll still be in enemy territory. If something happens with us there, all you need to do is one thing: run and don't look back. Don't bother trying to save Carlo or me. What matters is your own safety," Dante says.
"How could I run away if there are many of them?" I ask. Shit. This is only making my anxiety worse. I should've talked to them about random shit on the internet or something along those lines. If something happens, I don't want to leave them on their own. I don't want them to face the same fate as my mother. I can't let it happen to Dante and Carlo.
"Well, after all your attempts, you should be good at running away already, aren't you?" Carlo says.
"How am I good at it? I always got caught by the guards, including you, dumbass," I say.
"Well, just think of them as practice. You're a good runner. I'm sure you can escape easily. Other than that, you're also good at hiding. Remember that day when no one could find you for almost half a day? Yeah, that caused us a good beating from your father that day," Carlo says.
It was a year ago. The day was only getting started, and it was the time when the guards were changing shifts. I used that time as leverage to get myself out of the house. After minutes of walking on my tiptoes and watching over my shoulders for anyone who could foil my escape plan, I finally managed to leave the building. However, by the time I got out through the back door, the guards were already in their places. I decided to hide behind the bush near the kitchen and somehow ended up falling asleep there.
By the time I woke up, it was already three in the afternoon. There was a van close to me. I saw the staff unloading the groceries from the vehicle into the kitchen. Without further thought, I got into the van once they were finished with taking out the groceries. Little did I know, they didn't move the car away from that exact spot for hours, and I was stuck in it with nowhere to go. In the end, I got caught by one of the guards while I was sitting there in the dark.
"I'm sorry about that. I really caused so many troubles for all of you," I say, frowning at him through the rearview mirror. Carlo only chuckles at me.
"It's fine. It was our fault anyway for not doing our job well enough," Carlo says.
"Yeah, but it's still my fault, too. If I didn't try to leave, none of you would get punished," I say.
I've only now realised how much of a nuisance I've been in the past. I can't lie, but I'll be glad if I actually succeed in escaping my father. However, I never succeeded once after hundreds of attempts, and that caused others so much pain. If I actually succeeded in my first attempt, then they won't be punished hundreds of times and only got punished once instead, but that's not the case. The guards may be tough, but a punishment is still a punishment, and no matter how high their pain tolerance is, it's still painful for them.
"Don't worry. It's already in the past. Just don't try to run away again," Carlo says.
"I won't," I say. If I really want to run away, I need a solid plan and not just run like a headless chicken, clueless about what's going on around me. If I want to leave, then I have to do it correctly, and I must succeed on the first try. Once I leave, then there's no going back. Then again, I don't think I can leave just like that. If I really run away, then Dante will be the one who faces the consequences, and I don't want that to happen to him.
"I'm just joking. I understand why you want to run away. Just do it right next time. My back hurts from all the whipping," Carlo says. What did he just say? Did Carlo just say my father punished everyone by whipping their backs? Fucking hell. This is crazier than I thought.
"What? My father whipped you as a punishment?" I ask.
"I'm joking again. He only beats us up. That's it," Carlo says. I'm glad my father didn't whip anyone, but still, a beating still hurts.
"But it's still-"
"Shh. Don't talk about it. Let's focus on our plan," Carlo says.
"Alright. What else do any of you want to add?" I say.
"Just be careful when you're around the Ricci. Be aware of what you're saying and what they're saying. Who knows they might have a tongue slip and tell you a bit about their next plan is for our family," Carlo says.
"Okay. I'll keep that in mind," I say.
We stay silent again. Only the sound of old song from the radio fills the car. I can only stare at the road again, watching the cars that we pass. After a while, I hear Dante clearing his throat. The sound snaps me out of my trance.
"Why don't you take a nap? We still have two hours and forty minutes until we get there," Dante says. That's a good suggestion. I'll take it. It's not like I have anything else to do in this car.
"Okay."
After closing my eyes, everything goes dark and quiet. As I stay there in the void of a dreamless nap, I can only wish nothing bad will happen to any of us. I hope we'll come back from the Ricci's house well and alive.