Andrès' POV:
I was in the middle of reading my fathers report about the new security features implanted around Lilliana's Orphanage, when my phone rang. I highlighted where I stopped then reached into my breast pocket to retrieve my phone.
"Hello?"
"Good afternoon Mr. Vito, this is Marco Treviño calling you from the police department in Franciaco Mall. I have information that I think would be of utmost importance to you."
While the man's first and last name didn't ring a bell, I encouraged him to go on. Because the only way for him to have gotten my direct phone line was to have been hired directly through my main family members; meaning that this man could be trusted.
"Earlier today, three members of the FBI arrived at the mall to my department. They were heavily invested with a woman caught on our camera feed whom they claim had gone missing from her country."
My eyes widened.
They were here already for Lizanna?! How did did they fucking trace her location so fast, we made sure to cover our tracks!
"She was seen on camera with two of your female subordinates, but before the FBI personnel could see them, I had their faces blurred to the best of my ability. However, it seems that with me having done that I've placed them under their radars. Forgive me, sir."
"No, there's no need to apologize Officer Treviño, you did a wonderful job. Thank you for updating me on their abrupt prescence here in Milan."
"Of course, sir."
"Before I let you go, I'll need you to send me your camera feed on those FBI members so that we can open up an investigation of our own. I'll also need you to disclose any confidential information you received from them to me as well."
"I'll be right on it, sir. Expect it to be sent within the next ten minutes." Click
I placed my phone to the side of my paperwork and fumed. In all honesty, I wasn't so naïve to believe that there wouldn't be authority figures looking into Lizanna's disappearance case. I knew that that would happen eventually. My issue with this was how extremely fast they were able to track her down, pinpointing her exact location here...and they were getting closer and closer to finding her.
Shit, this was not good.
I picked up my fathers report and briefly skimmed through it while waiting for Marco's email to come through. From what I read, the orphanage was finished getting the new security installments placed. The compound would be equipped with up-to-date hitech cameras, bulletproof windows, and professionally trained bodyguards stationed all around the premises. Even with all that in place, we decided to add in an extra precautionary installment in the event that an enemy miraculously managed to bypass all of that.
Finishing the report, I returned it inside a manila folder and threw it inside my desk drawer. When I heard a familiar ding from my cellphone, I didn't hesitate to turn on my computer then scroll through my phone to read Marco's brief message.
"Sent, sir."
My fingers were a blur against the keyboards as I tried to access my email and pull up the information. I clicked on the first of two emails sent by Marco that unveiled the FBI agents photos and background information.
"So we have Drew Hawethorne, Light Fujiwara, and Bell Bernadotte chasing Lizanna's fucking ass across the goddamn world," I mumbled irrately as I scanned over their enlarged photos.
I didn't even have to read into their background information to guess that this Hawethorne guy was their leader. His eyes alone radiated profound intelligence and experience in comparison to his two partners. And when I scrolled down, my suspicions were confirmed alright.
I leaned back in my seat and sighed heavily. "As if trying to snuff out and kill Ivan's bloodthirsty group wasn't enough, now we have the fucking FBI hunting us down. We don't fucking need this right now!" The second email was nothing more than confirmation of their country of origin. We had nothing tangible to work with in deterring their investigation elsewhere to, at the very least, buy us some time.
If only we knew where they were hiding out, we could keep an eye on them; making the possibility of Lizanna and the FBI crossing paths virtually impossible. I mean I do have their identities in my possession, it'll only take making a few calls here in there to locate where they're staying and even what fucking car they drive.
But in the long run, it wouldn't work. Fuck, that was just me being hopeful and unrealistic. Keeping a distance between them wouldn't solve the underlying issue of their prescence in this city, the FBI team would only continue to search and eventually expand their numbers- and we couldn't have that happen. Somehow, someway, those bastards found strong evidence to believe Lizanna was being held somewhere in this city...and no amount of separation would deter their search efforts.
So what could I do? If they found her, interrogation would commence almost immediately. Even though I'm not familiar with the FBI's interrogation methods, I know that they could be quite brutal—especially when a crime in their country has been committed by a foreign organized crime group. Now that she knew about us, I couldn't put Lizanna in a position to undergo their
interrogation. Not on my fucking watch!
To put it simply, Lizanna was innocent in all of this. Since her association with us she's been kidnapped, injured from conflicts between Hernandez, Feliciana, Nicoletta, and Cielo's men. She's been held at gunpoint by Diamonte, almost blown to smithereens by a fucking pie, and unknowingly came in contact with members of Ivan's psychotic group.
Despite the list of undeserving things brought onto her, she's chosen to stay and help us, even going so far as to save our lives. In the smallest amount of time, she's gained the respect and trust of the people working beside her. Even mine.
She was a woman of her word when she pledged she'd work with us. So the thought of her ratting us out if she were ever retrieved by the FBI didn't worry me in the least because I knew she wouldn't—even though we would truly deserve it after all the shit we've done. I certainly wouldn't blame her, but if we could avoid that from happening something had to be done. Quickly.
Leaning forward in my chair, I drew in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Reaching for my phone, I scrolled through my contacts and searched for the list of people I would be contacting.
There was no better time to take action than right now; it was my turn to protect her.
***********
Lizanna's POV
I think I understand why many people feared Beatrix Vito.
"Nice to see that everyone's in attendance." Beatrix voiced as she strutted confidently inside the covert warehouse where about one hundred men and women stood at attention. With her hands beside her and her eyes gazing straight ahead, Beatrix catwalked down the line that led her to an elevated platform. "Good afternoon ladies..."
"Good afternoon, capitana!" The women shouted as they simultaneously clasped their hands behind their backs in military fashion. The women held there heads up high with their legs equally spaced as they bestowed upon Beatrix every ounce of their attention and respect. It was surreal to say the least.
Once at the center of the room, she placed one hand on her hip and acknowledged the women with a nod of her head. Then with a subtle smile she said, "Good afternoon gentlemen."
"Good afternoon capitana!" The men greeted as they too mimicked the stance of their female counterparts. Dressed in nothing but casual clothing, they all managed to still look so badass as they respectfully recognized their leader.
A brief silence coated the warehouse as Beatrix scanned the people in the room piercingly, eyeing us all as if trying to find a fault in each and every single one of us. When she noticed me, her eyes widened in the briefest expression of surprise before hardening slightly. Once she felt satisfied with what she observed, she began to speak.
"Thank you everyone, I'll be keeping this short. As you know, our beloved city is changing. From the inside of our bustling city to the outskirts of the city limits, our home is moving toward a progressive and safer place for us all... and for a very long time, I'd like to keep it that way." Her voice hardened.
She then outstretched her arms. "Hence the reason for your prescence."
"Every one of you here today, unbeknownst to you, have been handpicked and recommeneded by your faction leaders. Meaning that at some time during your service for my family, you have exhibited a praise worthy work ethic that landed you serving in this assignment today. I thank you all for your astounding hard work."
Hearing this, the men and women in the crowd seemed to puff up their chests and straighten their posture in elation by her words. "Moving on with today's assignment..." Beatrix started as she began to explain the inner workings of our tasks.
In a nutshell, we were to be divided into twenty teams of five to cover a large portion of the underground transit system. Appointed to each team was a leader designated by Beatrix herself, whose responsibilies lied in coordinating the team's movements, serving as a communication line when relaying information, and issuing new orders. The frontline members were to immediately report suspicious activity prior to taking action—the only exception being when placed in a situation where the benefits outweighed the risks. In other words, if taking immediate action meant protecting the lives of the majority, we had full clearance to move in.
Once Beatrix finished, she allowed the leaders to take over. Donna, my team's leader, was a middle-aged women who primarily worked under Andrès' father. She was built like a godamn bodybuilder judging from the way her shirt stuck to her like a second skin, making her biceps and triceps bulge. Damn.
"Before we proceed any further, take the time now to introduce yourselves please," Donna ordered as her piercing brown eyes peered at the four of us.
"Julio."
"Stefano."
"Victoria."
"Lizanna."
Donna nodded then motioned her hand to follow as she made herself out of the warehouse. I acknowledged the rest of my team with a small smile, to which they returned, before following behind Donna. "According to Lady Beatrix's orders, we are to be patrolling the Green Line—it is the second rapid transit line in Milan that connects some of the important touristic areas of the city. Due to this line being the most populous, we will be providing extra reinforcement to the police officers already stationed there. We're all dressed in casual clothing for a strategic reason; we make keeping an eye out on suspicious activity easier without revealing our true identities."
Once out of the warehouse, we quickly walked around back to see a few sleek vehicles parked. "We will be driving to the station since it is further in walking distance," she continued as she retrieved a key from her pocket and unlocked the car for us to get in. I took the passengers side, while the other three sat in the back. Donna started the car, dug inside the glove box, and retrieved a manila envelope. "Inside are wireless earpieces we will use to communicate. Please make sure to examine them for any defaults before placing them in your ear. These pieces not only serve as a pathway for communication, but they also serve as a tracking device in the instance you need backup; we will know exactly where to find you. That being said, I'm sure I do not have to tell you to wear them at all times."
Donna dug into the envelope, retrieved her earpiece and passed the envelope around. As instructed we examined our transparent earpieces before inserting it in our ears. "I will activate our pieces now, you should hear a brief static sound for a second."
I flinched at the sound, but we all confirmed that the ear piece was working. Donna nodded, gripped the steering wheel, and drove off the warehouse compound.
*************
Lights POV:
With the little amount of Italian I knew, I struggled ordering Hawthorne's customized pizza. Thankfully, the lady taking my order saved me from further humiliation by stepping away to find someone who spoke English. Judging from the loud grunts of exasperation and impatience, the line behind me was not too happy about the delay, but fuck them and their damn pizza!
Once the pizza was ordered and prepared, I walked out of the busy establishment and retraced my steps back to the underground train station. The streets were packed with people, most of who were tourists, which made getting to the station twice as long as it should have. "Hawthorne you bastard, you so owe me one after this," I grunted as I tried to squeeze through the sea of people while fiercely protecting the pizza in my grasp.
Once at the kiosk, I ordered my ticket and waited at the appropriate platform for a total of ten minutes before my train arrived. Luckily this passenger car was not so congested with many people, so I managed to find a seat near the back end of the car where the seats faced forward to give me a complete view of everyone on board.
People of all shapes and sizes trickled inside the train car at a lazy pace. The families with kids allowed their rugrats to run, jump, and play as they took their seats. My eyes continued to wander around the car with extreme boredom; I had the honor of watching one of those rugrats pick at his nose, examine his finger--which held a solid chunk of green shit--then mischievously wipe it on his mother's shoulder. I shuddered and quickly averted my eyes from the horror just in time to see a familiar face board the train.
Unmarred, clean, and most importantly free was the woman who clouded my mind for quite some time. Besides the few stray hairs that came away from her bun and the light sheen of sweat on her forehead, the woman was immaculately dressed from head to toe. She looked a little frantic by the way she was looking around the train car as if she was looking for someone, but I completely overlooked that detail as I stood up from my seat and made a beeline toward her.
"Thank you for riding the Green Line Route," voiced a female automated recording. "The next stop will be..."
I grabbed her arm. "Lizanna?!"
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Thanks for reading!