Chapter 2

It was just 7am and the sun had risen in Noto. Rays of sunlight had managed to escape into Lorenzo's fully furnished bedroom, softly pressing against the pores of his skin. His eyes flinched immediately. He raised his palm to intercept its light but his attempts proved futile, he was awake already. He stared at his window blinds, he had absolutely forgotten to draw the blinds the previous night- anyways, it was too late to draw them now, he thought.

Lorenzo stood up from bed with a stretch. He had no memory whatsoever of what had happened the previous night except that he had drank so much wine. His head still hurt from the hangover, but he was used to it already. He took one more step forward and felt something warm under his feet. looking down, he realized he had trampled upon the shirt he wore the previous day. He racked his brain trying to figure out what it was doing on the floor in the first place. 

It must have been so hot last night. He thought as he picked it up and hanged it around his chest. He needed some fresh air he thought, so, he walked towards his balconette and opened the big windows. Ever since he had travelled down to Noto for a mission, he had made it a tradition to take a peep at Noto's street every morning. The sight was so beautiful, it had a way of preparing him for the day. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Noto Sicily had always been beautiful place. He opened his eyes. The sight of old baroque buildings and churches along the street was more appealing. It was quite early but the shops and restaurants had already placed their Welcome signs boldly on their entrances. The streets were filled with people of different races, busy with their everyday lives. It was more beautiful looking at them up from a storey building- the one Lorenzo lived in.  

Lorenzo closed the windows and turned back. He was satisfied with the comfort and simplicity of his bedroom. He took further steps into his large closet that had an automatic light switch. He gave a satisfactory smile. In retrospect, he was not going to sell the building, not yet. It was just one of the many buildings he owned across italy, but this one in particular was his favorite. He had bought it 6 years back when he moved back to Noto on the orders of the Mafia boss. The building had been his refuge during mafian gang wars and fights. He smiled at the rememberance - How he rose up to the position of the Caporegime and headed his mafian family gang in Sicily in the last few years. If he were to be asked, he would say he had done a great job. He reached for one of the drawers and opened it, revealing a number of guns, neatly arranged. He smiled at the sight of one- the first gun he had ever held.

"To not kill is to be killed "- he muttered silently. That line was his life principle. He had a strong survival instinct which made him very fierce with a touch of dangerous. He hardly ever hesitated to shoot when he wanted to, neither did he ever defy any of the orders he had been given from up above. He was always ready to prove his loyalty to the mafia any day and anytime. The mafia was all he had- his life, as he would usually say. They found him in an abandoned village when he was just 10 years old and took him in.

He returned the semiautomatic handgun back into its place and closed the drawer. He looked around the closet, he had not noticed earlier but it was a large one. He was going to miss it, he was going to miss the whole of Sicily. The boss had called for his presence in Turin a few weeks earlier for the purpose of another mission. He had little idea about what this mission was about but he knew he would be far away from sicily for a while. 

Lorenzo took heavy steps towards his right- where he had hanged his shirts and pondered on which to wear that day. He was a pure Italian man with high fashion tastes. All the clothes neatly arranged there were highly tailored without a single flaw. His flight to Turin was In a few hours and he couldn't be late. Also, even though he was not yet legally a son of the family, He had to dress like one atleast

His eyes glanced over a blue Brioni suit piece. "Aha!" He muttered with a big smile afterwards. He brought out a brown Rimowa luggage bag and stacked it up with a few of his favorite books and clothes. He checked the time, an hour had passed already. He needed to get ready, but first, he needed a shower. 

* * * *

Lorenzo highlighted from the airplane exit door. It felt good to be back in Turin. He adjusted his tie. Even though it was a first class flight and it lasted only for two hours, it felt like it would never end. He walked out of the airport to a line of taxis waiting for passengers or tourists to guide and transport. 

"Hello!" A tall dark man called out to him with a bright smile. He stood beside a black Car that looked very familiar. Lorenzo's eyes scurried around the body of the car in search for the brand name until he saw the silver "DV" engrafted in a circle around the bonnet of the car. He smiled, knowing fully well that it was a DeVille Car. The boss must have sent him, he thought. 

The man, dressed in a black tuxedo quickly ran towards him. 

"Sir Lorenzo?" He asked with an Italian accent. Lorenzo looked at him for a few seconds and cleared his throat before nodding his head. The man's smile widened and he opened the back seat door. With hand gestures, he said, "please enter, I was sent to pick you up." His eyes bulged with excitement. It was either the man was just in a good mood that day or he loved his job so much, Lorenzo thought. Before he made any further move, the man hastily collected his luggage and carried it inside the car. Lorenzo entered the car and the man closed the door behind him. He took speedy steps to the driver's seat and entered too. 

"Do you need anything sir?" He asked, Before turning the ignition key. 

"No, thank you," Lorenzo said as he watched the man abruptly start the engine.

The Black DV Car drove into the Extra large independent Villa of the DeVille Family. It was his home, as they said, but it had never felt like home. He could hear the sound of trickling water on a bed of rocks, the car drove past the large water fountain that faced the north direction of the main building. It still looked the same as it did 16 years ago when he got adopted into the DeVille Family. They never felt like family but he knew he owed them his life, also his loyalty. He took a deep breath. Turin had always smelt like Turin; Sweet homemade chocolate scent -He hated Chocolates. 

Lorenzo highlighted from the car and stared at the main apartment. It was a large storey building with architectural designs. It was one of those old buildings that seemed to be able to stand tall in centuries to come. It was properly built. 

"Lorenzo!" a female voice called out. It sounded familiar, he could hear the excitement in her voice. His eyes wabbled in search for the owner of the voice until it found her. It was Viviana, the only daughter of Antonio DeVille. She was a medium height frail lady with short dark brown hair that bounced into curls, resting slightly beyond her shoulders. She had brown eyes that matched perfectly with her hair color and her eyebrows were thinly curved. She was dressed in a white sleeveless knee length gown that accentuated her waist line. 

Lorenzo squinted his eyes. Viviana looked different from the one he used to know 6 years back, she was now all womanly and it felt awkward seeing her that way. She was standing at the car park on her silver wedge, smiling excessively. He walked towards her with his briefcase in his right hand and stopped when he got in front of her. Suddenly, she hugged him with a kiss on his cheek. Lorenzo was startled when the 5,5 ft lady's head touched his chest. He didn't see that coming. The wedge had only increased her height by a few inches but he was 6.2ft tall- tall enough for her to understand that she would never succeed at giving him a proper hug. 

"Fratello, (brother)..." She said with her palms on his arms ".... mi sei mancato (I missed you)" she continued. 

He gave an uncomfortable smile, putting his hands over hers. "It's been a while, Viviana!" 

"Yes! You're all grown now" she complimented, seductively.

"You didn't have to come all the way here to escort me" He reverted, letting go of her hands.

"I wanted to be the first to see you. Lorenzo.." She said adjusting his tie,

With a huff, Lorenzo held her hand in a bid to stop her from going further. 

"Thanks for your concern, it's not too tight!" He gave a fake smile and watched Her smile disappear almost immediately. 

"Really, I thought it was,..." She said as she quickly took her hands off. "..Let's go, Papa and everyone is waiting" she said as she walked out of the park, Lorenzo, following her behind. 

Soon, they strolled past the garden. Lorenzo put a halt to the motion of his steps when he noticed Viviana stopped moving too. She was staring at the green land. 

"Do you remember?.." she said with eyes that seemed lost in the sight of the garden. Lorenzo moved his gaze along hers in confusion. He had no idea what she was talking about and he was sure he didn't want to know. 

"... Do you remember when we were children, this used to be our favorite spot. We would plant tomatoes and sweet basils during the summer. It was so beautiful back then, wasn't it?" She asked, turning her face to meet his.

Lorenzo pondered on the perfect reply but it wasn't coming. This was because the memory wasn't one he loved to remember or planned on keeping. He had only planted those tomatoes with her because she wouldn't stop crying if he didn't. 

"Lorenzo?" She called out, noticing he was not paying attention to her words.

"I don't know. It wasn't one of my favorite memories" He quickly retorted as they resumed their steps. 

"She frowned. "You're still the same, Lorenzo, difficult to converse with. "

"Thank you Viviana, I've changed a bit though" he replied. Her face dampened with a frown. He didn't even get the message she was trying to pass across.

"Yes, you've gotten more annoying." She said with a fuss and she walked out angrily. 

He cleared his throat. Did I say something wrong, he thought. He wasn't sure. He thought ladies loved honest men. Anyways. It didn't matter to him, nothing did except the Mafia. He quickened his steps to catch up with her.