SUN #3
At breakfast, it’s just Mauro, Eliano, and Summer. The others are gone, thank Fate. I’m not in the mood to see them, especially not with this pounding in my skull.
It pulses hard behind my eyes. At times I even see these weird black spirals.
Around noon, I decide to step outside for some air, but only after confirming that Ragnar… sorry, the gardener … isn’t around.
I definitely need a breather. I’m hoping the headache eases up a bit.
I stretch out on a lounge chair by the pool, and that’s when I notice the overweight older guard, the one who usually sits in the booth, hanging around nearby.
He’s smoking, chatting with one of the soldiers.
They’re talking about random crap at first, so I stop paying attention. But with my hearing, it’s not exactly easy to tune things out.
Then a few words drift over that make the ground disappear beneath me.
"…hope he pulls through. Guy was a solid worker. Had the gardens looking perfect. Damn shame."
My heart slams in my chest. What the fuck? Did I mishear that?
Shit, I can’t just go over and start asking questions.
What am I supposed to do with that? Did something happen to Ragnar? Was he in an accident?
I get up, mind racing. The only person who comes to mind is Eliano.
It’s close to lunchtime, so he’s probably somewhere nearby. I wait for him in the hallway next to the wooden staircase.
The moment I spot him, I rush over.
"Eliano!" I blurt out, realizing too late that I haven’t really thought this through. But I try to do what I can to make it sound… casual.
"I need a favor. I overheard that guard, y’know, the chubby guy, he mentioned one of your workers, the gardener. Said something happened to him. That he hopes he’s okay. Do you know anything?"
Eliano’s eyes study my face, the same thoughtful look he had back in his room.
Then he lets out a quiet ‘hmm’, like it just slipped out.
"Why do you care what happens to the gardener?" he asks, watching me with baffling intensity.
Fair question.
"I talked to him a few times about spider mites. He seemed nice," I mutter, my face burning.
"Oh, I see. Yes, spider mites. Can’t let those take over. Very serious matter," he says with a faint smirk, squinting at me mockingly.
Nervously, I lick my lips as he tilts his head, his eyes pensive.
"Alright. Give me ten minutes. Meet me in my room."
He walks off, still wearing that weird mix of amusement and surprise on his face.
I curse under my breath and drag myself back to the patio, biting my lip so hard I nearly draw blood.
Why do I care? Seriously, why the hell do I care?! I press my hands to my face and rub it vigorously.
Fate, I’ve lost it.
To that guy, I’m a traitor, or at least a potential one. And here I am, worried something might’ve happened to him.
That’s not just messed up. That’s full-blown masochism.
Ten minutes later, I head to the part of the building where Eliano lives. It’s clearly separated from the rest, and everything looks more upscale. There are oil paintings on the walls and elegant carpets lining the hallway.
It doesn’t really feel like a guest wing. More like the private apartments of other Ferro family members.
As I pass one of the doors, I hear a voice: Rocco.
Fuck! I freeze, my heart skips a beat.
Did I forget I’m in a damn mafia mansion? Just strolling around like it’s no big deal, as if I’m not one wrong move away from getting caught by that psycho and raped for hours.
But someone’s in there too, arguing with Rocco.
Feeling a flicker of curiosity, I slow down and then stop to listen.
Reckless behavior, part two. Eavesdropping on mafiosos… didn’t I already learn my damn lesson?
But I can’t help it. The rational part of me just taps out.
To my surprise, it’s Luca there with Rocco.
And he says, "…times do I have to tell you this is a massive mistake? He’s not some random guy you can just shoot in the head without a word in the papers. This’ll be national news, hell, it could blow up globally!"
Are they talking about the 'attack' that is coming?
What am I even doing here, this is super risky! Move, Sun, move.
"What the fuck do you want me to do? I couldn’t care less about the little fucker either, but Anzo thinks it’s important, for image reasons, and ideological ones too. I’ve tried to talk him out of it over and over, but he’s dead set on doing it."
"For fuck’s sake! You’re the only one who has any influence over him.
Even Ennio tried and failed. If anything goes wrong, the FBI will be all over us.
This stunted little fuck is a big game. No one’s gonna let that slide.
None of our contacts can help if this blows up.
The mayor’s term is ending, Senate elections are this fall, and there’s no guarantee Ferguson’s gonna win.
We could lose key advantages. Plus, there are rumors about a new police chief coming in. This is a terrible time for this."
My heart is pounding like crazy, my hands are sweaty. This sounds so fucking big, serious!
"Then go tell that to Anzo yourself. He’s been wound up for years by the leech. All the donations went into smear campaigns against that little fucker, but for the leech it wasn’t enough. You think I can undo that in a few days?"
"Then do me one favor. Keep our involvement to an absolute minimum. If anything ever goes wrong, we need deniability."
Rocco huffs, annoyed.
"What do you think I’m doing? I haven’t gone to a single squad meeting, I don’t talk on the phone about it, I haven’t even hinted at the plan to anyone. That’s the only way we survive if this shit blows up."
Luca sighs. "Good. Keep it that way. Anzo’s playing a dangerous game. He could take the whole family down with him."
Rocco snorts. "You’re the one who should worry least. Your whole chunk of the business is clean.
You could walk away tomorrow and live like a normal businessman.
Also, Ennio could cut ties if he needed to.
Me and Vincenzo? Not so lucky. But it’s fine.
I’ll manage. I just need to stay the hell away from this fucking assassination. "
Like an idiot, I listen, still clueless about who they’re talking about.
I’d hoped they’d drop a name, but the only thing Rocco said was that the target’s a very public figure, someone short.
That narrows it down to about a hundred people.
The current president is an omega and barely above five feet tall.
So are a bunch of big-name politicians and party leaders.
Then I remember they mentioned someone they called ‘the leech’. The one who’s been winding Anzo up. Could it be… Dante? Maybe. But it could just as easily be any other mafia-sponsored lapdog.
I sense the conversation’s closing and quickly step away from the door, my pulse spiking from the flood of emotions.
But I have a specific reason to be here. Even more important, or at least my heart thinks so.
I rush away from the door and knock quietly on Eliano’s door.
He opens up immediately and lets me in.
We’re standing face to face, and I’m looking at him like he’s about to reveal the biggest news in the universe.
"Well?" I can’t take the suspense anymore. I catch myself nervously swaying from one foot to the other. Again, I see that strange mix of surprise and curiosity flash across his face at the way I’m acting.
"Well. Bonzo said the gardener’s dad called them.
Apparently, the guy got into a serious motorcycle accident.
Crashed into another car. He was in critical condition when they brought him to the hospital.
For a while, it seemed pretty bad, they didn’t know if he’d make it.
But this morning, he woke up! So maybe, it’s not that serious. "
It takes everything I have not to let my face show just how relieved I feel. But I am, fuck. Thank Fate.
"Oh… so maybe he’ll come back. You know, to handle the spider mite situation," I mutter.
"Looks like it. Spider mites are no joke. You never know which direction they’ll come from. Maybe the one you least expect," he says like it’s a joke, but something about it sounds oddly… pointed.
"Yeah." I take a step back and put my hand on the doorknob. "That’s a good point. I was worried they’d completely take over the yucca," I mumble, looking off to the side.
Eliano makes a vague gesture with his hand, like he’s shooing away windblown spider mites.
"Thanks…" I whisper and quickly step out, praying Luca and Rocco don’t suddenly show up in the hallway. I really don’t need more drama today.
But there is news to deliver, so I head straight to Summer's room.
I knock, then pause, listening to the sounds behind the door. There’s something kind of odd, like someone vigorously shaking out a blanket or something. Then silence.
A moment later, the door opens.
Summer stands in front of me, cheeks flushed, wearing just a T-shirt.
"Were you jerking off? Sorry if I interrupted."
He blushes deeper. "No, nothing like that. What’s going on?"
I sigh. "Okay, listen, don’t freak out. Eliano told me Ragnar had a motorcycle accident. It was serious, but he pulled through. I’m guessing it’s because he’s a purple alpha, those guys heal fast."
Summer stares at me with wide eyes, his lips trembling.
"A motorcycle accident… just yesterday?"
"Yeah, yesterday. He was unconscious, but he came to this morning. Your parents were the ones who called in and said he wouldn’t be coming to work. That’s what Eliano said, anyway."
"Oh… unconscious?" Summer hesitates, tilting his head and boring his eyes into my face, but then shakes it off, whatever it was, and clasps his hands over his chest.
"Whatever. Thank Fate he made it! Otherwise, we’d all be screwed," he whispers cryptically.
I press my lips together, the pain’s back. I only hear what I want to in his sentence.
"Speak for yourself. I’m screwed no matter if he’s alive or not."
The bitterness just wants to pour out, but I force myself to stay composed. I don't want it to touch him; Summer doesn't deserve it.
So, to spare him, I turn around and walk out of his room without another word. I don’t have the strength to deal with this right now.
But one thing is clear.
Whether I like it or not, this overwhelming sense of bliss and relief crashes over me too. He’s alive… and that’s good. So unbelievably good.
It looks like no matter how badly Ragnar hurt me, he didn’t manage to kill what I feel for him.
And the truth is, I’m terrified I feel way more than I should. Which just adds one more tragedy to the pile I’m already drowning in.