I will walk through fire for you.
  ~unkown~

      Silvio

Early morning came as a surprise. Watching the sign of daybreak brought me to another day of realization that I was hiding, binding my time until such a time that I would be able to attack. But if I was honest, I didn't want to risk my one chance of getting that woman. I wanted her from the day I saw her image, both dolled up and bared; she was mine from the beginning, way before Bellucci decided to be her Messiah.

I laid on the small bed for a couple of minutes, listening to birds chirping and early morning creatures sounding like they were fighting over breakfast. I didn't sleep much; I haven't had a goodnight's sleep for years. If I had scruples or a conscious, I would conclude my sins kept me awake, or regrets kept me from finding much-needed rest. I did not regret my life, not the way I lived, but I had a few regrets about my children; although not the way normal parents had regrets about their children, mine were solely based on how inadequate I must have been not to produce children who weren't as strong, and as ruthless as I was.

I might not like Bellucci, but I admired him. I wished Freddie was like that. That was one of the reasons I wanted that woman; the other was I wanted to fuck her; she was hot. I bet I wasn't the only one who wanted to anyway. She was my second chance of having additional children. Freddie was a weakling; he did not have the balls to lead. Luciano would probably have been a better heir than Freddie ever could, I thought, remembering him as a nine-year only arguing and fighting with his fifteen-year-old brother.

Lifting my head, I placed it on the couch's arm, turning my face towards the window, watching as dawn started to break. It seemed like I was always watching the sunrise forcing the dark out of the way. I imagined most people cursed it with the first sound of their alarm as much as I welcomed it.

The first beam slid through the old curtain, hitting my face with a warm touch. I wouldn't say I liked daybreak, per ser, but I preferred it to the loneliness that came with the night. I pulled myself out of the couch, walking to the bathroom to find the toilet clogged and water everywhere, the stench itself could have killed a man with a lesser disposition.

My life was a mess.

I was living in such desolate circumstances just because I was cowardly.

I wondered if fear came with age. There was a time I was fearless. People feared me instead. I cussed, hitting the drainage hard with a plunger, all while still cursing Bellucci for reminding me I was mortal, and getting older. I couldn't remember the last time I did something like this. It brought memories of my childhood, of my alcoholic father's poverty-stricken life who never had the money for food but found plenty to buy his cheap liquor. When the water was overly drained, I stood by the door, leaning on the wooden bathroom door, tired and regretfully wondering if it was safe to venture outside, I decided it was.

I walked through the beach in a blue beanie, concealing who I was without trying to draw too much attention to myself. The weather was good, I thought, as my feet dug deep into the sand, it felt good to be out for once, breathing in the fresh air without worrying that Bellucci might come at me. I felt excited and nervous at the same time, dancing on the precipice of the unknown. I felt like only God and I knew my whereabouts.

Romano

If the word were to end at that time, I would have been okay with it. Mia's breathing on my ear, her legs tightly around my waist, and her arms around my neck. Like every time I held her, I felt like I was holding my world in my arms. "That was hot," she whispered, dropping down over the kitchen island and dragging me with her using the legs that still held tightly around my waist. Leaning over her, my hands planted firmly on the island; I looked at the smile on her face showing a cunning side. Like she knew a secret, one she wasn't willing to share or scheming something naughty. "What are you plotting, Bella Mia?"

She shook her head, her eyes beaming at me with her hair spreading around the surface. I knew she was a few minutes from dozing off because I could see her eyelids drooping. I was yet to understand why she always fell asleep each time we had sex.

"Come one, Bella, let's take you to bed." Scooping her up, I went around to switch off the oven while whatever it was she had been cooking still inside before heading to the bedroom.

My phone chimed, notifying me of an incoming message when I was midway to the bedroom. She fit so perfectly in my arms, I thought for a million time as I looked down into her face, her face peaceful and content.

Laying her on her side of the bed, knowing she would eventually  roll over to my side, seeking me out, I leaned in, kissed her on the forehead before I could read the message.

It was from Manuel. Stefano had been spotted in the rural area of Florence.

son of a bitch hadn't even left Italy

Giving Mia one last glance, I walked out, leaving the house through the secret exit to avoid Bruno. I didn't want him to come with me; he needed to sleep. Something was bothering him, and although he hadn't told either Raph or I about it, we knew it was huge.

This time, I met Manuel in Pulse since there was no longer a need to hide. He sat on a leather couch in our private quarters, overlooking the dancehall, drinking brandy and smoking a cigar. We could see everything happening from that vantage point. People dancing, couples making out on the dance floor to those arguing with the intention of starting a fight.

"I thought you only smoked weed?" I joked, sitting on the couch directly opposite him, taking one for myself. He laughed loudly, swallowing a mouthful of his drink as he threw me an impish look. He was in black from head to toe, complete with a Nike cap. "I have my moments," he said while looking down at the tip of the cigar like she was evaluating it or wondering what exactly those moments were.

I lit mine, comfortably leaning down on my seat, crossing the right leg across the kneel of the other. We sat there in silence for a few minutes. I wasn't sure what Manuel was thinking about, but I was thinking about Mia, something I seem to do a lot these days.

"Rumor has it you're holding Stefano's daughter against her will." There was a little amusement in Manuel's voice when he said it, maybe because it was as ridiculous as it sounded. I smirked, narrowing my eyes at him with the cigar slipped at the corner of my mount. "Stefano said that?" I managed to ask. It reeked of desperation. Stefano, it seemed, had reached the point of hopelessness. The fact that he couldn't get to Mia must be killing him.

How apt, that cancer and desperation were both eating him alive. Manuel shrugged like he wasn't sure about it. "How did you hear it, then?"

"My guys went down to a local tavern back home, and heard a few interesting stories." I nodded, somehow I knew I was the bad guy in all those stories.

"How did you find Silvio?" I didn't want to hear the rumors Stefano was spreading; I knew they would find me again somehow. "I have my eyes everywhere," He bragged, taking another sip of his brandy. "The crazy part is how he's living. My sources tell me he is living in what seemed to be an abandoned cabin."

"I have never met the man, but from what I gather, he is a paranoid son of a bitch." Following my gaze around the dance hall, I saw Matteo laughing with a girl in a skimpy dress, a beer in his hands. Sometimes I forget he was twenty now. "

He also doesn't sleep." Manuel's said, as if it was a real important piece of information.

"Most people I know don't sleep either," I mumbled, taking a dram of my whiskey while still staring at Matteo. I couldn't believe he was sixteen years a few years ago, although judging from his life and experiences, he was almost thirty.

"Yeah, not like this one. Silvio doesn't sleep at all, not for a few hours, minutes, or seconds. He is awake 24/7. I jerked my head, turning to look at Manuel, he had a superior look about him, as if he'd finally gotten the reaction he was hoping for, I guess I did look surprised. How could someone survive without a little sleep? Raph had insomnia before Soph, but even he slept for a few hours in a night.

"How the hell is he still alive."

"He gets sleeping pills from his doctor, but they no longer work."

"He must hate the night, then," I concluded, thinking about how fucked up it must be to be awake each day, every day. I wasn't an expert, but I knew the bastard must have done something worse than most of us did not to be able to sleep. But then again, that implied he possessed a conscious which I knew he did not.

"I think he's waiting for something to happen so he can come back." I heard Manuel say. I agreed with him, "Probably for Stefano to die," I speculated, throwing an uncertain look at him." He shook his head vigorously, not that. "He's sent Stefano the money already."

"What, when?" I was shooked, surprised, and suddenly nervous, not to mention scared. I thought I could predict these two old sons of bitches, but apparently, they had another plan I didn't know about. Something was about to happen; I was as sure of it as I was sure the day was different from the night. I could feel my heart thudding as if a lorry was passing through a cabro paved driveway. I realized, for the first time, I was terrified, like trembling, hands sweating, with my stomach feeling like it was filled with live creatures kind of scared.

"Stefano had received the money when I met him?" My voice sounded foreign to my ears; I loathed the apprehension I felt creeping through my entire being. For a moment, I was tempted to get up, go home and pick up Mia, and run into hiding with her. But that would be cowardly, and I have never been a coward.

"Do you happen to know their plan?" I might be a little scared that they might jump from the shadows when I least expect it, but I will be damned if I will let any of those bastards have my Bella.

"Not really, but I will you this much, they can't get to your house. I think that is why Stefano is spreading the rumors so you can be ordered to present her in front of a hearing or council or some shit like that. "

"Of course they wouldn't. The house is impenetrable." I agreed, throwing the cigar on top of the table in desperation. "But do they think I would comply? Do they actually think I would bring her to them just because of an order?" I got up, walked to the rail, leaning forward with my hands firmly planted on it, watching dancers without seeing anyone. My mind muddled with thoughts of the anguish of what to do next. "Want my advice?" Manuel's voice penetrated through my addled brain felt like he was offering me a hand from drowning. "Take her out. Let her be visible to them." I started shaking my head, thinking that was the worst advice ever.

"Hear me out." He insisted. "Let them think you're not keeping her locked up for her safety, or cooked up in that castle" I wanted to laugh at the word castle, but I did not. "Let them think that you intend to let her out once in a while. Give them hope that it is possible to kidnap her."

"And then what?" I asked, coming back to sit down on the same seat I had vacated early. "What happens after that."

"Let them kidnap her." If my eyes could kill, they would have killed Manuel on the spot.

"What?"