Wild Horses

The Italian crossover we deserve

Lira opened her eyes to see a boat dock and the Venizian sunset. She had been awakened by some kind of commotion - the guys were on the dock having a lively conversation. Mista was jumping up and down about something. "Lira, you awake?" Narancia asked from the seat beside her, where he was ordered to stay and guard Lira. He was cradling Aerosmith in his lap.

"Mmhmm," she hummed. "Are we there?"

"Yea, we're taking a boat to some abandoned castle or something!" Narancia beamed. "It's gonna be totally cool and haunted!"

Bucciarati knocked on the window before opening the door from the outside. "Feeling better, cara?" he asked with a gentle smile.

"Yes, a lot. How long was I asleep?"

"Over six hours," Bucciarati said and helped her out of the van. "I hope you're up for a boat ride. It's going to be a bit choppy."

Lira let out a low hum and raked a hand through her hair as they approached the rest of the gang. "What about this haunted mansion?" she asked.

"I have intel that there's an island off the coast that's been abandoned since World War II," Fugo stated. "We could stay there for the night. It's the perfect hide out. We're taking that fishing boat," Fugo thumbed towards a small boat with a motor bobbing in the water. "Let's go."

Lira stared into the vastness of the sea as the six of them crossed the water while crammed together in the tiny boat. Bucciarati manned the motor and steering. He was at home with one hand on the tiller and the wind blowing his hair. Lira thought she even saw a smile through the darkness. She was feeling almost normal now; there was no way she would have been able to get on a boat this morning. She was enjoying the seaspray and the sounds of choppy waves mixed with the whirring motor noise.

"Someone's home," Abbacchio announced when they had gotten closer to the island. "There's a light on."

"Narancia," Bucciarati said, giving him orders without actually saying anything. Lira was amazed at the gang's ability to know what Bucciarati wanted from them. The crew functioned together like a well-oiled machine, each of them knowing what their job was at all times. She wondered what her place was in all of that.

Aerosmith flew towards the island, which was still several hundred yards away. "It's only one person," Narancia said as he looked through his scouter. "Maybe not even human... the breathing is abnormally steady and slow. I'm hardly picking it up."

"One shrimpy guy? We can take 'em," Mista said as he pulled his gun from his boot.

"That's probably not necessary, but stay alert anyways," Bucciarati ordered before having Narancia bring his stand back. 10 more minutes passed with the boat heading towards the island. Or, at least they thought.

"We're not getting any closer!" Fugo said. "It feels like we're moving, but the current keeps pushing us back! Hasn't anyone else noticed that the castle isn't getting any bigger?!"

Bucciarati cut the engine. "You're right, we're the same distance we were when Narancia sent Aerosmith to check things out." He nodded to Narancia, who sent his stand off once again.

"This could be the work of an enemy stand," Abbacchio said, causing the vibe on the boat to get tense.

"What kind of stand would keep a boat still in the water?" Lira asked.

"It's still just the one steady breathing," Narancia reported, "and maybe a stove is on, too. There's a cloudiness that I usually see with flames."

Mista's stomach let out a loud grumble. "I'm so hungryyy!!" the gunman whined.