Fast and Furious: Future (editing and adding to)

Chapter 7: A World Away

Closingmy eyes, I tried to remember the point where I was forced out of mycar and laid my eyes on the four men who confronted me. 'There wasone, I remember the most. The three that tracked you to my place thattime. The third one, who just stood there. He was the one thatknocked me out.'

'Justthe one?' He looked awfully confused.

'Wellobviously not. The main man... he had black hair and wore a suit. Hewasn't much older than you. I don't remember the other two.' Ibarely even looked at them whilst I was being, what I would havecalled, interrogated.

Thelook Jack now portrayed worried me more than it should have. He wasjust about to take another bite from his slice of toast; instead, hestopped and lowered it slowly. His eyelids tightened but barelynarrowed. His chest still rose and fell as he breathed though hisnostrils showed no sign of him inhaling or exhaling. It was hard forme to tell whether he was worried or angry. 'Jack.'

Hesaid one word. One name. 'Nico.'

'Who?'

Hestood up and walked towards the breakfast trolley. Grabbing an apple,he turned back to face me. 'He's my cousin.' My eyes widenedand he corrected himself. 'Sort of.' His eyes watched me whilethe apple got rotated in his right hand. 'Do you remember thepictures I showed you? At my uncle's?' I nodded my head. 'Thepicture of my uncle's old team, Vince...' He hesitated. 'Nicois his son. He was born in Rio and grew up there. I've only met hima few times and that was when we were really young.'

'Andwhy is he after you?'

Jackshrugged his shoulders before coming to sit on the arm of my chair.'Try asking him that. Envy, jealousy. He never knew his dad and yetI know mine.' He was merely throwing out assumptions. Slipping hisarm across my shoulders, he leant back into the chair, I placed myhand over his leg. 'Like I don't blame him but he grew up in adeep set mafia neighbourhood. So you can imagine...' He stopped andI had no idea what he meant by that last sentence.

*****

Jackchecked out as I made my way to the lobby. The bright sunshine warmedmy skin and for a moment I couldn't see anything. Someone took myhand and began leading me out into the open; knowing it was Jack, Imerely walked along closing my hand my fingers around his. We passedthrough the car park and continued down the street. I read one of thestreet signs and realised we were nowhere near home, San Bernadino orSanta Monica.

'Jack,where are we?' I asked.

Beforehe replied, he placed his hand around me and rested it on my waist.'Somewhere new. I hope you don't mind.' The smile he gave me was oneof apology and simplicity.

Mimickinghis gesture, I put my arm round him too. 'I suppose I should get usedto you randomly kidnapping me. So, go on, where are we?' I askedagain, hoping this time he would answer me.

'It'snot exactly kidnap if it means you're safer here. If Nico is after methen it's better to be somewhere he doesn't know very well.'

'Herebeing where?' I tried for the third time.

'Thisis sort of home away from home to me.' We passed a few market stallsas we headed past a beautiful water fountain. Jack turned to theelderly lady on the other side, spoke something to her and theyexchanged items and money. Returning back to me, Jack had a bag inhis hand and offered me to take some of what was in it. Taking a fewinto my hand, I realised they were cashew nuts. I then decided to payattention to the language that was being spoken among the rest of thestalls.

'Italy!'I exclaimed. 'You brought me all the way to Italy?'

Hechewed a few more nuts and nodded. 'Milan to be exact.' I gave him asceptical pout, ate my cashews and followed him about on the streets.He took me down pretty alleyways, along a river embankment, aroundthe city square and then took me to a small café.

Iordered myself some pasta and a coffee whilst Jack ordered some sortof pizza. We sat down outside and as we waited for our food, Icontinued out conversation. 'So how did you manage to drag me out allthis way? I mean you couldn't have done on a plane.'

'Ican if it's private. Trust me, we are safer here than back home. Nicowon't dare cross my uncle or my dad, he's not stupid enough to dothat. But if he thinks I owe him something then he won't give upchasing me.'

'Yousound like he will know where you've gone.' My coffee had a hint ofcaramel to it but it was still too hot to even sip. 'I guess yourfamily won't know where you've disappeared to.'

Witha shake of his head, he leaned forward. 'No, but they will know thatif I need them then I will get a message to them somehow. Tej hasways of finding things out.'

Ourfood arrived just then and I set about trying to eat SpaghettiCarbonara the proper way whilst Jack simply used his hands with hisown. It was really creamy and the mushrooms were delicious. 'Jack?'

'Yeh.'

'WhyItaly? I mean, of all the places we could be, why here?'

Hetook a moment. 'I like it here. Plus it feels like home, somehow. Andthere's one other reason...' By now we had finished and were headingback across the city, in a taxi, to Chinatown. We pulled up outsideone of the long terraces and paid the driver in Euros. I waited onthe pavement, looking up and down the street. A small group ofchildren passed by on the other side; they waved and giggled at meand I waved back politely. Jack had knocked on one of the many reddoors.

Itopened to a woman standing in a pair of long shorts and a denimjacket. Her long wavy blond hair didn't really match the tone of herskin. 'Jack, what are you doing here?' she asked.

'Hi,sis. You still got that spare room.' I felt rather agitated but whenthey both began to laugh and hug each other, I let my breath out;that was when she spotted me. 'Oh, Ella. This is my sister.'

Shegave me a shifty look though more in the sense that she seemedworried rather than annoyed. 'Nice to meet you. You'd best come in.'Jack waited for me to enter first and then he followed. 'Excuse themess, guys. I had a few friends over last night.' What mess she meantexactly was beyond me. Apart from a few wine bottles near the sinkand a few blankets in a pile on a sofa then there wasn't reallyanything I would associate with the word 'mess'. Though by theneatness of everything else and the sparkling granite worktops in thekitchen, the turquoise and cream living room then I could tell sheliked her comforts and order. 'You're not in any trouble are you?'And then her shifty look from before made a whole lot of sense.

'Oh...no, no. Nothing like that,' I replied with a giggle and a flush of mycheeks. Jack bit his lip and seemed to stiffen. 'Jack's in troublenot me.'

'Ella,my brother is always in some kind of trouble. It is a trait that runson our family.' Putting the kettle on and taking three mugs out aglass fronted cupboard, she set about making some tea. 'What kind oftrouble are you in now?' she asked without even looking at herbrother.

Oneword seemed to do the trick. 'Nico.'

'Oh,'was all she said for a moment. 'Why? I thought he was in Chile.' OnceI had my had my tea, I went to sit down on the leather two-seater. Idecided not to listen to them talking and focus on the fact that Iwas half way round the world without anything but the clothes I waswearing and Jack as company. Everything considered, I wasn'tpanicking; I most probably should have been screaming at him andmaking my way to the nearest airport but I wasn't and that did scareme a little. Was it that I trusted Jack, I had no idea.

Justthen, Jack came and sat beside me with a strange grin plastered onhis lips. I scowled at him and then continued to sip my tea. 'What?'I remained quiet. 'We can stay here as long as we need,' he stated.

'I'mnot worried about where we're staying. I'm more worried about whatyou're going to do about your cousin.'

Drapinghis arm across my shoulders, he gave me his funny bemused look thatnormally made me giggle. 'So you're telling me that you're notworried about being in Italy? You really don't make sense to me a lotof the time but the times that you do make sense, I really like you.'

Thatwas when I giggled and also when he touched his forehead to mine.'You don't ever make sense.' I waited a moment until he pulled away.'So, since we are in Milan, do we have any plans?'

'Ihave many plans, which one to take is the problem.'