Chapter 21: The Collateral

Vincenzo led Matteo to the room he kept Marco. At the room entrance were two hefty men, obviously to keep watch of the man. They bowed slightly as Vincenzo and Matteo approached the door and allowed them to go in.

Matteo looked around, taking in the environment where what might be their most prized possession was being hosted. It was a large room with a bathroom and barely any furnishing: just a large bed and a table stand.

The captive was looking out the window when they came in. Not even the sound of footsteps approaching was enough to get his attention.

"Well, that's him," Vincenzo pointed to the tall skinny man. Matteo wished he would turn around to get a better view of him.

Unfortunately, the man looked adamant about remaining in that position. "He's not much of a talker or a looker, I guess," Matteo replied

Dryly, Vincenzo shrugged, short of words. "Why did you take me?" A strange voice suddenly asked. It took the duo a while to notice it was coming from Marco.

Weird, Vincenzo thought. Somehow, he didn't imagine Marco would ever be this little person. It wasn't about his size but rather his personality. It was so tiny, downright bothering the line of non-existent. He looked defeated and shrank.

This was the first time since the restaurant that he would utter a word. "I said it before, and your sister owes me. You're just, unfortunately, collateral," he replied, totally dismissive of the man's plight.

Frankly, he didn't care. Maria had pushed him to the wall, and he wanted her to punish her almost as much as he needed to breathe.

"I don't have a sister," the slender man said and suddenly turned. Matteo inhaled deeply.

The poor guy had a nasty scar on his chest. He was shirtless, so everything was out on display. The spot looked like something that, if adequately tended to, could heal.

However, he gauged the man meticulously and figured out that he probably didn't have enough money to have it taken care Of it.

"But you do," Vincenzo replied, getting bored of the constant need to repeat himself.

Matteo took note of Vincenzo's frustration. He sighed, knowing it only meant that if Marco kept this up, it would be to his detriment.

"You just don't remember" Marco shook his head and began to reply when the trio was distracted by a slight tap on the door.

"Come in," Vincenzo ordered, and one of the guards came in with a phone.

Vincenzo recognized it as his. He remembered he had left it at the hut house where he conversed with Matteo. The guard handed it over to him and left. Just then, Matteo's phone rang.

On its screen, "unknown number" was highlighted. He raised it at Vincenzo, who urged him to pick it up.

"Hello, this is Matteo"

"Can you kindly put this call on speaker if you're with Vincenzo?" the voice at the end of the line said. It was a woman's voice which he was sure he had heard before but couldn't place where.

Vincenzo looked at him curiously as he put the phone on the loudspeaker.

"I'm guessing I am on speaker now. That is to say, you are with Vincenzo," the voice said, and Vincenzo froze. He could tell who that voice belonged to even if representatives were like bags of rice, and he was asked to select that voice.

"Maria," he called.

"Oh, hello to you too, Vincenzo," everyone stood at attention. Even Marco, who could not for his life tell what was going on, opened his ears.

"Why the silence? I thought we liked games here," she drawled mockingly.

"You seem to be having a lot of fun toying with my company," Vincenzo replied dryly. He fixed his eyes on Marco, more inclined to use him now than ever.

Maria had called to rub her latest escapade in his face, and he wouldn't have it.

"Indeed, I am Mr. Santoro. However, you seem to not. Is it because every news channel in Milan talks about the alleged drug smugglers? I even saw some replies on social media saying you're guilty of whatever you're being accused of.

You're a grade one douche bag," she replied.

You could feel the glee of triumph emanating from her voice. Vincenzo, on the other hand, seethed. Meanwhile, Matteo cursed silently. Maria's information only meant that Priscilla had failed in her job to keep whatever drama they were passing through far away from the press. He could only imagine how the internet was eating it up.

Everybody loves an excellent mess, especially when it's coming from one of the biggest businesses in Milan. Marco, on the other hand, didn't need the genius to tell him that the woman on the line was the same woman that claimed to be his sister. He still could not fathom what all that was about.

The only family he had was his old grandmother. He was sad at the thought of her looking helplessly for him. He wished they could pause even for a moment to consider that they might have made a mistake. He wondered if this would be the end of his life because something told him Vincenzo would not sit back and allow Maria to keep stressing him. He would retaliate, and the only pawn he saw in this game was himself.

"There's another person who is not as happy as I am. We may even say he is a tad bit disappointed. You made all that fuss at the restaurant, only for you to forget your brother in such a short time. It's quite a pity," he spat, pleased with himself.

He felt Maria stiffen, reveling in the long, stretched silence. She was an intelligent woman, and she knew when she had been cornered.

"I thought about it," she finally said, picking her words carefully, "And concluded that you won't be hurting him. You wouldn't do that to an innocent man, especially when he used to be your best friend," she said shakily.

"You overrate the importance of you and everyone you consider family in my eyes. What you speak of was over twenty years ago. You're a damn adult still holding on to the past. What? You think I'll spare your brother simply because we used to eat lunch and kick balls together. Now Maria, listen and listen carefully. You will undo whatever you're doing to my company, or else the next message you'll be getting from me is chopped parts of your brother's body until there's nothing left of him. And if you think I'm bluffing, I can send you a video of me torturing him. I hope we're clear?" He threatened.

"You bastard!" Maria cussed. The turmoil in her voice was visible. Matteo almost felt pity for her. She had a damn good plan. She had everything at her disposal to succeed. However, fate was such an attractive force.

What odds were that her brother presumed dead at the crash would suddenly reappear, thereby putting a dent in all her plans. It was truly tragic.

"Bastard? Only one of us doesn't have a father," Vincenzo said, and everywhere grew silent.

Matteo was extremely shocked. He knew Vincenzo was angry at Maria and how she had been toying with him, but the Vincenzo he knew would instead retort with actions than cheap words. Maria got under his skin, even if he would never admit it.

"And you do?" Maria began with a premise to hurt. "A father who you've known all your life to love another woman. What makes you think that he never loved your mother? He can love anything that is a product of hers. Study case, you"

Matteo's mouth opened. Vincenzo had shocked him, but Maria's response took the icing. They were bickering like two kids, and it was exhausting to watch. Vincenzo's face contorted in pain. Maria had hit below the belt. The devilish woman just knew how to push his buttons.

"We would never know. But I'm glad they're alive. Now I'll give you time to undo the mess you've done," Vincenzo finalized and stormed out of the room in a rage.

Taking it as a sign that the conversation was over, Matteo ended the call. He sighed tiredly, and his eyes rested on the clueless man battling amnesia.

"Are they old lovers?" He asked, surprisingly amused.

"Errmm, more like generational enemies," he replied and took a seat on the bed. "He's not going to hurt you though" Marco looked at him. "Despite my advice for him too, he won't. You may not remember it, but the both of you used to be best friends, and he used to have this massive crush on your sister," Marco only nodded, still not convinced. The rage he saw in the man's eyes could turn any man to dust.

"I'm Antonio," he suddenly said. This time around, Matteo was the one that nodded, understanding how strange this must all be for him.