The first thing I did was go looking for a telephone.
Dario had confiscated my cell phone, so I was without any way to contact the outside world – but my father still had a landline in the café. If I could find a telephone in the mansion, I figured I could call Papa to make sure he was alright.
I could have asked Niccolo, but I was almost certain he would have said ‘no.’
As long as I didn’t ask, I could plead ignorance. After all, they hadn’t explicitly told me I couldn’t call anyone.
Better to ask forgiveness rather than permission.
I poked around until I found an open study with a telephone on the desk. I was a bit intimidated by all the buttons and lights on the console, but I picked up the phone and listened.
There was dead silence.
I pushed a button on the console, hoping that would work –
When suddenly a woman’s voice spoke in my ear.
“Hello, how may I direct your call?”
Heart thudding in my chest, I slammed down the receiver.
After that, I didn’t feel safe staying inside the mansion.
And whether it was Filomena’s warning or just not wanting to bother her while she worked, I thought I should leave Caterina alone.
I had nothing else to do, so I began to walk the grounds.
They were enormous.
There was an old horse stable made of stone set apart from the house, and it had been turned into a twelve-car garage. Inside were numerous black and silver Mercedes, a couple of Range Rovers, and several sports cars, including a midnight blue Bugatti.
The swimming pool was beautiful and pristine, with a marvelous tile mosaic under the crystal-clear waters – but the temperature was a bit cool for swimming.
Plus I didn’t have a swimsuit. I was sure one would have magically materialized if I’d asked… but I shuddered to think what a bunch of mafiosos would give me. Probably tiny scraps of cloth that barely covered anything.
The gardens were amazing, with bushes and shrubs cut into all sorts of interesting shapes. There were also gorgeous patches of flowers in a dozen different colors.
Everywhere I went, there were young men in their 20s keeping guard. All of them had guns slung over their shoulders – either shotguns or some sort of military-looking rifle.
All of them were polite and greeted me with “Ciao, signorina.” There were a few lingering stares but nothing more.
I guess Dario’s instructions that I not be touched had filtered down to the foot soldiers.
But their presence made me nervous, so I went off to a field where no one was around.
As I walked, I looked for a route to make my escape. I didn’t like being jailed here, no matter how luxurious the cell.
Being the Rosolinis’ prisoner – especially Dario’s – filled me with anger and dread. I desperately wanted to get back home to my father, so I began to study the grounds and see if there was a way to leave undetected.
As I was walking, movement on the ground suddenly caught my eye.
I looked down and my heart stopped.
Coiled on the ground not four feet away was a viper.
There are only two poisonous snakes in Tuscany, but the aspic viper is by far the most common – and the most dangerous.
People could die from their bites. It didn’t happen often, but it did happen.
I was standing there, terrified, frozen in place –
When suddenly I heard a distant CRACK –
And the snake’s head exploded.
I shrieked and stumbled backwards, then looked behind me.
At first I didn’t see where the gunshot could have come from – there was no one in the field –
And then I looked at the mansion, which was over 600 feet away.
Someone waved to me from one of the balconies on the third floor.
I couldn’t tell much about his face – but I could see the sun glinting off his golden hair.
Lars.
I saw him motioning me towards the house with a big motion of his arm.
I dutifully walked back. I was a bit glum that my every move was apparently being tracked…
But on the other hand, I didn’t care to stumble across any more poisonous snakes.
Lars met me halfway, in the middle of the field near the swimming pool. There was a curving set of stairs directly from the third floor to the ground level, which is how he reached me so quickly. There was a massive sniper rifle slung over his shoulder.
“You have to be careful out here,” he said with a smile. His Italian was excellent, though he still had an indistinct European accent that stood out from everyone else’s. He didn’t sound Swedish, but he definitely didn’t sound local.
“You shouldn’t stray so far from the house,” he continued in a friendly tone.
“Or what, you’ll shoot me?” I snapped.
Ordinarily I would have gone out of my way not to anger him – but I was still afraid from the viper, and adrenaline was coursing through me. That’s probably why I was so bold.
He just chuckled. “No, I’d have to sling you over my shoulder and carry you back, and you might not like that so much.”
I looked at Lars warily. Of all the people I had encountered, he was the one I feared the most – because of what I had seen him do in my father’s café.
The others were frightening in their own right. Adriano had a terrible temper, and Niccolo concealed a sinister side beneath his friendly chatter –
Actually, I take that back.
I feared Dario the most.
He was like a silent wolf, always watching me like he might devour me at any second.
However, I also had other feelings for Dario that partly offset my fear.
When he was close to me, my body reacted in ways I had no control over.
Lars was very handsome, yes, but I felt nothing for him. And every time I looked at him, all I could picture was him killing the man in the café.
He seemed to know exactly what I was thinking, because he said, “You have nothing to fear from me.”
“Riiiight. I have nothing to fear from the man tracking me with a gun.”
“I was ordered to keep you safe. Which, you must admit, I just did.”
“Yes, but the snake’s not the only thing I’ve seen you shoot.”
“The man last night was a snake, as well. Just a different type.”
“Let me guess – you were protecting me last night, too,” I said sarcastically.
“No. I was protecting the family.” He meant the Rosolinis. “Although, one could argue that I protected you by walking out of the café after it was over.”
I trembled slightly. It was true – he could have killed me easily. And it probably would have been in his best interest to do so.
The thought made my blood run cold.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” I asked quietly.
“I thought the snake was a bigger threat,” he joked.
“You know what I meant. Why didn’t you shoot me last night?”
“Why would I?”
“I was the only witness – and you looked right at me. I could have identified you to the police.”
“I don’t kill women or children. Ever.”
“What if they ordered you to?” I asked, gesturing with my head towards the house.
“They wouldn’t.”
“That’s a first,” I muttered. “Mafiosos not willing to kill someone.”
“They’re different than you think.”
“How so?”
“You should ask Niccolo or Dario. It’s not my place to talk about the family’s business. But let’s just say that they aren’t your ordinary, everyday mafiosos,” he said, gently mocking my choice of what to call them.
“Hm,” I said as I walked with him back towards the house. “Are you Swedish?”
“I am.”
“Niccolo said you saved Dario’s life twice in prison.”
“I did.”
“And that’s why they trust you?”
“It is.”
“Were you in the military, too? In Sweden?”
“I was.”
“That’s why you’re such a good shot?”
“Partly.”
“You’re talkative, aren’t you?”
He smiled again. “I would talk more, Alessandra, if I knew my secrets were safe with you.”
“What secrets?”
“Who I am. What I’ve done. Who I work for.”
“I already know those things.”
“And I see no need for you to know more.”
“Then why bring me here?”
“It wasn’t my choice.”
I remembered how Niccolo had complained to Dario last night about him bringing me back to the house.
I also knew that Niccolo was the only one who dared contradict his brother.
No one else would cross Dario…
But Lars had just revealed that not everyone else agreed with Dario’s choice.
Probably none of them did.
“Why did he bring me back here?” I asked.
Lars shrugged. “Dario does what he wants. But I think you know the risk he’s taking by bringing you here. You’ve seen a great deal. You could say the wrong things to the wrong people.”
“And then you would shoot me.”
Lars shook his head. “Not me.”
“Who, then?”
He looked at me silently, and I knew the awful answer:
Dario.
Dario would be the one to end my life if I stepped out of line.
He really was a monster.
I was suddenly more terrified than any point since the murder last night. Even the snake had not filled me with such fear.
Lars saw my reaction and tried to backpedal.
“Just stick to the house and the nearby grounds, Alessandra,” he said quietly. “Do what you’re told, and you’ll get to go home soon enough.”
“When?”
“I don’t know. Just be careful,” he said, and this time he didn’t smile. “There are vipers everywhere.”
I knew he wasn’t just talking about animals in the grass.
With that, he climbed the stairs to take up his post again…
…and I went back inside, too afraid to do anything else.
