Trigger Page 4

  Anna was telling them about our day. Marcello seemed more than a little concerned as Anna described what had happened with Spiky. To my relief, she didn’t go into great detail about Chase. She mentioned that an American had helped us, but she did not tell them we had spent the rest of the afternoon with him.

  “You seem to attract trouble, don’t you?” Marcello was trying for teasing, but didn’t quite get there.

  “It seems like there is an abundance of strange men in Rome,” I scoffed.

  “Who was this guy who helped you again?” Marcello asked.

  “Just some tourist.” I was blasé. “I didn’t really need his help.”

  The appetizers, including bruschetta, giant shrimp and a variety of cheeses arrived, and the conversation shifted.

  “Do you have any big cases right now?” Anna asked.

  The Italians exchanged a quick look.

  “I probably shouldn’t have asked.” Anna was apologetic.

  “It is ok to speak in generalities.” Marcello said slowly. “We cannot divulge names or specific details.”

  “Of course not,” she replied.

  “There often isn’t anything exciting to tell. A lot of cases take months or even years of investigative work. There is a lot of research first and then planning,” Marcello explained. “When we finally do get to move forward with an operation, there are usually hours of waiting around, then a few minutes of chaos followed by a lot of cleanup and paperwork.”

  “That doesn’t sound so fantastic,” I said. Anna nodded in agreement.

  “There is one case we have been working on for a while that is starting to get interesting,” Francesco began, earning a sharp look from Marcello. “I am not going to share names or anything,” he promised.

  “What is it about?” Anna asked excitedly as the waiters swooped in to clear empty plates and take the orders for several pasta dishes from Marcello.

  Francesco waited until the waiters were gone before saying in a hushed voice, “It involves a secretive international organization that is involved in numerous illegal activities including money laundering, assassinations, espionage, and trafficking. Basically, these are very bad men who do very bad things and have lots and lots of money. Our sources have told us that some of their operatives are here in Roma right now.”

  “Are you making this up?” I was skeptical.

  “Unfortunately, he is not,” Marcello said, giving Francesco a stern look. “We’ve been looking into a particular company for a while now and the investigation is finally going somewhere.”

  “We have learned their operatives are here in Roma for a very important assignment. What it is, we don’t know, but we will find out.” Francesco was confident.

  With the arrival of the pasta dishes, the conversation turned to the food. There were plates of pasta primavera, chicken scampi and pesto rigatoni. Each bite was a piece of heaven melting in my mouth. From her frequent squawks of delight, I could tell Anna found the food as delicious as I did. The pastas were followed by courses of fish and meat, then fresh salad and finally dessert. Throughout the rest of dinner, when the topic of their work came up, Marcello would gently steer the discussion in another direction.

  As the evening dwindled, we sipped on little cups of dark espresso.

  “I really don’t think I could eat any more if you paid me,” Anna stated, patting her belly in a satisfied manner.

  “A walk will help,” Marcello suggested.

  He signaled to the server who appeared with the bill, which he paid despite my protests.

  I do not like owing anyone anything; it makes me feel like they have the upper hand. I prefer to have things on even ground or tilted in my favor. Marcello wouldn’t even let me leave the tip, so I was slightly disgruntled as we walked through the now-deserted patio to the street. Francesco suggested a walk, so the four of us followed the river until we reached a bridge. Marcello strolled to the middle then stopped to lean on the thick stone railing. The rest of us joined him and took a minute to enjoy the beautiful view.

  “What are you doing tomorrow?” Marcello asked.

  “I believe we are heading north tomorrow,” I said slowly.

  “You cannot leave tomorrow, you have barely seen Rome!” exclaimed Francesco.

  “We saw the main things we wanted to see and we’re really excited to get to the Cinque Terre,” Anna explained.

  “When do you leave?” Marcello asked. His voiced sounded forlorn.

  “Eight-thirty in the morning,” Anna said.

  They continued to protest our departure.

  “We can trade e-mails. Who knows? Maybe we will cross paths again,” Anna added.

  “We could take you to the station in the morning,” Marcello offered.

  “We’ll be fine with a taxi,” I said.

  “We will be going to work anyway, a short detour will not be a problem,” Marcello insisted.

  I looked at Anna who lifted one shoulder slightly to indicate it wasn’t worth arguing over.

  “That would be very nice, thank you,” I said.

  “We should probably get back to the hotel. Early morning and all,” Anna said.

  On the walk back, Marcello took my hand, interlacing our fingers. The contact sent waves of warmth up my arm. I didn’t mind this gesture, but I couldn’t stop myself from wondering what it would feel like if the hand belonged to Chase. Something told me it would be more of an electric shock pulsating under my skin rather than the subtle heat at the moment.

  A gentle breeze wafted down the eerily quiet street. Now that I realized that we were the only people in the area, it made me edgy. I glanced around because I was getting the feeling I was being watched again. Marcello noticed my uneasiness and pulled on my hand to get my attention.

  “You seem nervous. Are you alright?”

  “I feel…twitchy.”

  “Twitchy?” He frowned.

  “I have a funny feeling, like we are being watched or something.” I felt silly saying it out loud. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”

  As I spoke, Marcello’s head snapped up and he started checking in every direction, paying particular attention to the windows and rooftops.

  “Whoa! What’s the problem?” Francesco asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Marcello said, his eyes searching everywhere.

  Francesco started scanning the area as well. Anna looked confused.

  “It was probably just too much Chianti,” I said, not wanting to cause a commotion.

  Looking unnerved, our dates hustled us to the car. As we drove quickly through the streets, they were both agitated and kept checking to see if we were being followed.

  “What’s going on?” Anna asked.

  “I know I said I had a weird feeling, but I think you are taking it a little too seriously,” I said.

  Marcello and Francesco exchanged grim looks.

  “Sometimes we cross paths with very bad people. It is probably nothing. On the off chance that it was something, I do not want to risk anything happening to you,” Marcello said.

  Back at the hotel, the Italians walked us to the door where they kept the good-night short.

  “We will be here by 8:00 a.m. Ciao.” Marcello squeezed my hand before walking back to his car.

  “Ciao,” I said as I turned to see Francesco planting a big kiss on Anna.

  “Ciao, bella,” he said before jogging to the car.

  “See you tomorrow,” she said.

  “This day just got more random as it went on, didn’t it?” I observed as we entered the hotel.

  “Strange indeed,” Anna said.

  The two of us went upstairs to our room. I set everything out I would need in the morning and packed the rest so we could be out the door quickly. Anna did the same and we both flopped onto our beds.

  “They definitely didn’t want us to leave,” Anna said with a big yawn.

  “I know but I think it’s better that we are. We don’t want to get stuck in some weird dating scenario.”<
br />
  “Weird dating scenarios are definitely not on the agenda at the moment. What was that earlier when you thought we were being followed and they got all paranoid?”

  “I had a funny feeling, like we were being watched, and Marcello went completely overboard.”

  “You have been really on edge lately. What’s going on? Why’d you think we were being watched?”

  “Just a creepy feeling under my skin I don’t know why, but I have had it a couple times recently.”

  “Bizarre.” Her voice was muffled by her pillow.

  “Yes, it is.”

  Just before I fell asleep, I thought about how Marcello and Francesco had not doubted me when I had said I felt like we were being watched. They had acted as though it was a valid concern. I found that to be the strangest thing about the evening.

  Sunlight was filling the room when I opened my eyes. We dressed quickly and went downstairs to settle the hotel bill. Right at 8:00 a.m., a car pulled up outside. Shouldering my bag, I headed out into the bright morning sun with Anna a few steps behind me. Marcello and Francesco both hurried over to help us get the backpacks into the Audi.

  Francesco flirted with Anna while he helped her into the back seat. Marcello was a little reserved as he held the front passenger door open for me. The ride to the train station was brief. I felt bad that they had taken the trouble to drive us. Marcello parked the car and they got out and carried the packs into the station for us.

  Our train was fairly empty, but the platform was packed with people trying to board the one on the neighboring track. In front of the doorway of an unoccupied railcar, I turned to get my pack and say goodbye. Francesco already had Anna in a bear hug that I was pretty sure involved some inappropriate groping due to her laughter. Marcello smiled sadly as he set my pack at my feet so he could hug me.

  “Buona fortuna, Jordan,” he whispered in my ear.

  The embrace lasted longer than I expected. When he finally pulled back, he paused with his face inches from mine. Thinking he was about to kiss me, I looked down at my feet. His lips lightly pecked each cheek before he stepped back.

  “You have my mobile number,” he reminded me.

  “You have my number, too.”

  Nothing left to say, I shouldered my pack and climbed up onto the rail car. In the vestibule, I paused to wave. To make room for Anna, I had to back up till my pack hit a wall. At that moment, the crush of people on the platform parted to reveal Chase standing less than twenty feet away, looking right at me.

  Inhaling sharply, I dropped my pack which snagged on something as it fell. A loud whooshing noise accompanied by an explosion of white powder enveloped me. Stunned, I blinked to clear the fine particles from my eyes. Anna and I both coughed as the chalky substance filled our lungs. Squinting through the white haze, I located the source of the mess. My pack falling had triggered a fire extinguisher. A fine white dust now coated everything in the entryway to the rail car, including the two of us.

  Still coughing, Anna noticed Chase in the crowd and, putting two and two together, shot me a wicked grin. “Aren’t you supposed to actually light yourself on fire before you use the fire extinguisher?”

  “You are just hilarious,” I said acidly.

  On the platform, Francesco was averting his face and Marcello was doing a poor job of holding back laughter. Chase’s expression was unreadable. Somehow, that was worst of all.

  I deliberately turned away from Chase and walked into the railcar trailing white powder behind me. I dropped my pack onto a seat and looked down in dismay at my now gray pack. Anna sat down across from me with a big smile on her smudged face.

  “That was great! If you are going to be this amazing whenever he is around, he really needs to travel with us full-time.”

  “Apparently my new fun game is to make a complete fool of myself every time I see him.”

  “You are totally winning that game! What do you think he is doing here?”

  “Either he is catching a train somewhere or he’s on a secret mission to watch me humiliate myself,” I said bitterly. Sulking, I watched the crowd of people on the platform, all the while pretending that I was not searching for him.

  “Does he really get you so hot you need a fire extinguisher?” she asked innocently.

  I shot her venomous look. “You are really on a roll aren’t you?”

  “Put away the death glare, I am done teasing.”

  As the train pulled out of the station I put my earphones in and cranked up the music. Recognizing that I needed some space, Anna left me alone. To keep my brain occupied, I read up on the five villages the make up the Cinque Terre and the popular hiking trail that connected them. While reading, I wrote down the number of a couple of hotels that should suit us. Not that I needed to write them down to remember them, but Anna liked being the one to call, so they were for her. After phoning several of them, she ended up reserving a room for us in the largest village, Monterrosso al Mare. Our accommodation booked, she settled down for a nap. When I was done reading, I stared out at the ever-changing yet always breathtaking scenery.

  When the train passed through Pisa, we made a quick stopover to have lunch and see the Leaning Tower before jumping back on a train to La Spezia. In La Spezia we had to switch to a smaller, local train. In the late afternoon, we reached the five villages that made up the Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, and Vernazza. Each one sprawled over the rugged hills, conforming to the landscape like a collection of brightly colored jewels overlooking the ocean. The buildings were slightly washed out from exposure to the elements, but the various shades of ochre, orange, pink and cream were still vibrant. They were all unique and striking in their own way.

  Our stop was the final village of Monterosso al Mare. Its narrow streets zigzagged up the hillside and the rows of charming houses were stacked tightly together. Brilliantly colored flowers were abundant and everything was very clean.

  The community consisted of two main areas connected by a short tunnel that cut through a hill. The train station was located in the northern section of the town while the hotel where Anna had reserved a room was in the southern part.

  Emerging from the tunnel into the southern section, we approached a large plaza with a clock tower bisected by elevated rail tracks. On the town side of the tracks were several restaurants and businesses. On the ocean side was a raised boardwalk with benches and tables. The beach itself was separated from the road and sidewalk by a low fence.

  Our hotel was down a narrow side street off of the main cobblestone road that led up from the beach. After checking in, we dropped the packs in the room and left to find dinner. Anna chose a table at a busy restaurant with a good view where we both ordered ravioli. We sat in companionable silence people-watching until the food arrived.

  “Do you think we will ever see Marcello and Francesco again?” Anna asked.

  “Probably not, but stranger things could happen.”

  “What about Chase? Do you think there is any chance he was heading to the Cinque Terre?” she asked.

  “Doubtful, which is a good thing because I don’t want to injure myself or any innocent bystanders,” I mumbled around my food.

  “What is your deal with him anyway?”

  “There is something about him…like…gravity…pulling me in and at the same time something is pushing me away,” I mused, staring off into space.

  “Reeeeally,” Anna drew the word out. “You don’t think that what pulled you in were his…?”

  “Stop!” I interrupted her before she could continue. “Can we not dwell on the hotness that we won’t be seeing again?”

  “Are you ever going to let someone break through that shell of yours?” Her tone had a sudden, hard edge.

  I stared at my food, not wanting to meet her gaze.

  When I didn’t respond her voice softened, was soothing even. “When it is the right person, even you won’t be able to stop it.”

  I did not want to discuss this with her agai
n. She couldn’t really understand because I couldn’t let people in as easily as she did. I was so used to keeping my dirty little secret concealed that I found it difficult to be really open with people about anything.

  “What should we do tomorrow?” I asked to change the subject.

  “Why not hike in the morning and then collapse on the beach for the rest of the day?” Anna suggested, content to move on to a new topic as well.

  “Sounds like a plan. The hike is only 11 kilometers so we will have plenty of beach time.”

  As we ate, a very good-looking man sidled up to the table. I eyed him warily when he sat down without asking permission.

  “Ciao, bellas.” His Italian accent was silky smooth. “Tell me, beautiful ladies, where you are from?”

  Anna smiled at him and said, “We’re from the States.”

  “American, wonderful; my name is Enzo. You must make big party with us Saturday night in the main plaza.” His voice and manner made the invitation intimate, seductive, and to my ear, a little sleazy.

  He seemed harmless enough, so I relaxed a little.

  “What is the party for?” I asked. My question earned me a flick of the eyes before he turned his megawatt smile back on Anna. I was not surprised he was mesmerized by her petite blondness; it seemed to be quite intoxicating to most swarthy Italian men.

  “Several businesses in the area are putting it together, including my bar. There will be many people here from all the towns. We will have fireworks, food, drinking and dancing. You must come!”

  “I guess we will have to be there then,” Anna smiled up at him.

  “You must promise me one thing.” Enzo’s voice went from playful to sultry in an instant.

  “What is that?” Now it was Anna’s turn to be suspicious.

  “You must save at least one dance for me!”

  Anna giggled. “Won’t you be working?”

  “For you, bella, I will make time for a dance.” He took her hand in his own as he stood up smoothly, kissing it before heading toward another table of women.