Chapter 20 Fon
Fon
Allegra cut over the water, throwing up a seam in their wake as they sped down the coast. Dante hadn’t needed telling twice when Fon had relayed what Gina Crespi’s mother had told him at the beach; they both understood the risk. Territory, once gained, could never be ceded.
The sea was busy. Summer was in full swing now, and the locals were out today as well as the visitors.
Sundays were always crowded with small rowing boats and fishing craft hugging the creviced coastline, but Allegra didn’t count as a local boat.
Her size, speed and glossy blue hull drew admiring glances from those idling on the sailing yachts as the two brothers flew past, bare-chested with the wind in their faces.
Dante looked over and grinned, as if Fon’s thoughts were bubbles he could catch.
They had grown closer this summer than Fon had ever thought possible.
Against all odds, he was catching him up, and his decision to join Dante in his contraband enterprise appeared to be the right one; their father had come up to him last night, after the latest envelope had been handed over, and clapped his shoulder proudly.
No words – but Fon knew that he knew. He approved.
Ahead lay the small inlet, its high, stepped cliffs leading back to a small sandy beach, some sea caves on the approach. There was talk of building a bridge to span the cove, but at the height required – forty metres high and a narrow road – it was an engineering riddle.
From the road, the approach down was via a narrow, steep, winding dirt track flanked by drystone walls, but by sea they could simply curl in as easily as Rafaella tossing her long hair.
Dante pulled a wide arc into the cove, sending up spray in a rooster’s tail behind them as Fon’s eyes scanned for her, finding her quickly on the rocks.
He recognized her by the pale blue bikini she wore, which always made her skin look so tanned – the one with little bows on the hips.
Her hair was slicked back, dripping down her shoulders, and she was clambering up, her long legs at full stretch, laughing and calling out to Fede as he prepared for a dive.
A few metres higher up, Gina lay on a towel beside Romola, the two of them eating peaches, talking and watching the others.
Fon tensed. In his haste, he had forgotten Romola might be here; the last time he had seen her, he’d been inside her …
She was wearing an orange, pink and yellow swirled bikini, the top pushing her breasts up provocatively, the briefs extra low-slung on her hips.
She was flaunting her body, wanting attention, even though no one there was watching.
Certainly not him.
But Romola wasn’t his main problem. Clearly, Rafaella had forgiven her now too, and that meant the Franchettis were no longer personae non gratae. If Fede and Romola were here, then …
He scanned the cove for Cosimo, knowing he had to be here too, and found him seconds later in the water, swimming in and calling something up to his brother. Rafaella joined in too, saying something that made Fede laugh. His arms dropped down onto his thighs, the sound echoing around the bay.
Fon felt his jealousy curdle at the sight of their close friendship, those old familiar feelings of being an outsider roused again, that prickling sense of inadequacy needling him.
They all looked like great friends once more, the way they’d always been over the years: so tight, so intimate, never letting anyone else in.
All his life, Fon had watched from the sidelines, seeing how everyone came alive in their company as the rich kids threw open their gates and hosted parties and carelessly told stories about a world he would never see, much less be able to offer.
He remembered a time, many years ago now, when he’d tried to find an opening into the group.
They had all been playing bat and ball on the beach and someone had mishit, sending the ball far out into the sea.
Fon, lying on the promenade with Luigi and Gino and watching from a distance, had taken his chance and called out that he would get it for them, diving in.
But by the time he’d swum back with it, they had gone – the game abandoned, the lost ball forgotten as they went back to the plush villa in search of other distractions.
The boys had torn him up over it, laughing at his pathetic eagerness to be their friend, and he had taken a step back then, cutting off the Franchettis at any opportunity.
They only ever extended cool manners to him anyway, but he saw the reserve grow in Cosimo’s eyes as the slights mounted up and an unspoken enmity began to breed.
This summer, it was coming to a slow boil.
His moment of madness with Romola had thrown him into the heart of their dynamic, upsetting the fragile balance of their ecosystem.
Suddenly he was a central character, whether Cosimo liked it or not, and Fon wasn’t going to give up his advantage now.
Especially when Rafaella was his girlfriend.
He watched, still unnoticed by them, as the boat glided in. How long had they been here, he wondered, before he’d caught wind of their plans? An hour? More?
Dante cut the engines and threw the anchor out.
It landed with a heavy splash, and finally Cosimo and the others turned.
Gina sat straighter, recognizing Dante at once, her body taut with excitement even at this distance.
Romola didn’t stir, though she stared back at Fon like a cat on a wall.
Fede hadn’t noticed them yet and he executed a perfect dive into the water.
But Rafaella … she had fallen still on the rocks and was shading her eyes, trying to see Fon better, as if trying to believe he was really here.
Fede resurfaced, blinking the water from his eyes as Fon jumped onto the front of the boat. ‘Ciao!’ he called, waving his arm widely.
No one replied. Did they not recognize him, perhaps?
‘Do you want to join us on board? We’ve brought drinks!’ he called again, but no one replied to the offer, and he felt suddenly awkward. He felt himself grow small … He was being iced out. They didn’t want him here. He’d overstepped.
‘Hey!’
He looked down to find Fede treading water beside the boat and smiling up at him warmly. Saving him from public humiliation. ‘Ciao, Fede.’
‘Ciao, Fon. Fancy seeing you here.’
‘We needed to give the boat a run. We’re testing the engines; the inlet manifold sounds a bit loose.’
‘Ah.’ Fede nodded.
‘You?’
‘We’re just swimming, brought a picnic. Thought we’d make a day of it …’ Fede looked over and saw Dante standing at the helm with an expectant look. ‘Why don’t you both join us? There’s plenty of food.’
Fon hesitated, turning towards his brother, who looked less than pleased by the lukewarm reaction to their arrival. Only Gina had seemed glad to see them.
‘Ciao, Fede,’ Dante said, before calling over to where Cosimo now stood on the rocks. ‘… Ciao, Cosi!’
Cosimo shifted his weight as if startled by the casual greeting, clearly remembering their last, unfriendly meeting when they’d fought in the sand. Fon saw him glance quickly towards Rafaella as if checking for something before replying. ‘… Ciao, Dante.’
Dante smiled, seeming satisfied that a fragile peace had been brokered. ‘Sure, why not?’ he said, taking Fede up on his invitation. After all, it hardly needed to be pointed out that the brothers were dating two of the three girls in their group.
He dived overboard with no preamble and popped up a moment later, flicking his hair back, no hands. ‘Come on, Fon,’ he said casually, holding onto the anchor chain and bobbing with the movement of the boat before letting go and heading for the rocks.
Fon dived in after him, surprised to find Fede waiting for him as he surfaced. ‘The water’s lovely, isn’t it?’ Fede asked. ‘Always so clear here.’
Fon nodded dumbly. He wasn’t used to social conversation. In his house, the men didn’t speak unless something needed saying – the nets need mending; fetch the eggs. They didn’t discuss the clarity of the water.
They swam in together and began climbing the cliffs.
The rocks were sharp underfoot but easy to grab, and they were soon up with the others.
Rafaella was sitting on the towel with the girls by the time they reached the ledge, beads of water still drying on her skin.
She looked nervous, like a doe caught in an open meadow, as she patted her hair dry.
This was their first time all together as a group, the various factions socializing as one, and Fon knew it was up to him to prove to her that only she mattered to him, and not Romola.
‘Ciao, Rafa,’ he said, going over and kissing her on the mouth. He felt the weight of everyone’s gaze upon him as he claimed what was his – and by distinction, discarded what was not. ‘… Ciao, Romola,’ he said, nodding briefly in her direction. ‘Gina.’
‘Well, what a coincidence this is,’ Cosimo said stiffly. He was standing astride the rocks like a young god, trying his best to look nonchalant, but Fon could see he was rattled by their unexpected appearance.
‘Not really. We ran into your mother,’ Dante said, turning to Gina, ‘and she told us your plans.’ He shrugged. ‘What can I say? I was missing you.’
‘I find that hard to believe, given you’ve not called me in days,’ Gina replied with her usual arch tone, but the look in her eyes was giving her away as he sat himself by her feet.
‘I’ve been very busy …’ he murmured as he began lightly stroking the arch of her right foot with his thumb while maintaining eye contact.
‘But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking of you every single minute …
You’ve cast some kind of wicked spell on me, Signorina Crespi.
’ He winked, and Gina looked as if she might slide off the rock.
Fon could have sworn his brother had tied a string around her heart and was slowly pulling it towards him, hand over hand.