Edge of Tomorrow (45 page)

“Si,
signorina
. I can handle things without
Teresa.”

Gina left for the kitchen by herself, though
she did want to hear what had happened in more detail. Hatch and
Carmelo went to the bar and fixed themselves drinks. While they
were adding ice cubes to their drinks, Hatch said, “We made some
progress, but I’d rather hear your story first. Something is
bothering Teresa big time.”

Teresa blurted, “Two men tried to force us
into their car! It was terrible!”

Hatch looked at Syd and raised an eyebrow.
Sara also looked at her, her face a question mark. Syd knew what
they were thinking.

“No, I didn’t slit their throats! I’m
not a friggin’ amateur! I’d have probably gone to jail while
the
polizia
sorted things
out, and I didn’t want that. It took a lot of self-control, though.
It would have been so easy. They scared the shit out of Teresa, and
it really pissed me off!” exclaimed Syd with a smile.

“Signorina
Syd
was so brave! She saved my life!” blurted Teresa. “That terrible
man had a gun!”

“Shh!
You’re
fine now. Let me tell them what happened,” said Syd
calmly.

Syd related what had happened, and told them
about the tattoo. She also told them about how she got some
information from the man, but could not vouch for its accuracy.

“I needed more time to make sure he was
telling the truth, but the police came too quickly,” finished
Syd.

Carmelo had watched the exchange of
looks between the three, and mulled over Syd’s response and her
story of the attempted abduction. He had assumed Syd was just a
woman Hatch was sleeping with, but now he was not sure
who
she was.

“So you threatened to cut off
his
coglione
, eh, Syd?”
laughed Carmelo. “He probably told the truth. I recognize the name
he gave you: Salvatore Bocca. He is a low-level
capo
in southern Rome.”

“It was so scary!” said Teresa.

“You were never in danger, Teresa. You
were with Dr. Z.! She makes
La Femme
Nikita
look like a Sunday school teacher! Those two
were lucky they didn’t try to grab you on a deserted street. They
both would be fucking shish-kabobs by now!” chortled
Sara.

“Sara! You’re giving these people a bad
impression of me!” exclaimed Syd. Then she added, “I would have
liked more time with him. I could have found out more.”

It was Carmelo’s turn to raise an
eyebrow as he thought,
I must ask Hatch
who she really is. If Sara thinks she is a dangerous woman, she
most definitely is!

“You did good, Syd! You got us a name and
address,” said Hatch. “Now, we have to figure out what to do with
that information.”

Syd replied, “One thing you have to do
right now is make sure no one leaves this castle without
bodyguards. They didn’t target Teresa and me, we just happened to
be the first ones out after they decided to grab someone to hold
over Carmelo’s head. It could have been
Signora
Gina, or anyone.”

“I’ll go take care of that right now. I’ll be
back shortly,” said Carmelo.

Gina returned with a young Italian girl. They
were carrying trays of finger food, which they put on the dining
room table.

“Eat! You must eat!” ordered Gina.
“
Finisci di
mangiare!
”

Syd wandered to the bar where Hatch was
standing and freshened her drink.

“Did you find out anything at SISDE, Hatch?”
she asked while she added ice to her drink.

“No. The very fact that they are being so
closed-mouth tells me something is up. Now we have the additional
complication that Alberto and Carmelo have a hit out on them, and
you’ve probably been added to the list. The one who got away got a
good look at you and what you did to his buddy,” replied Hatch. “Do
you expect the police to show up here for more questioning?”

“Not really. We had good witnesses.
Besides, with that guy being a
catenari
, this incident will probably disappear
into SISDE, too,” shrugged Syd.

“You’re probably right about that. Gina, we
were planning on going out to dinner tonight, but with this latest
development, I think it would be wise if we didn’t. Would it be too
much trouble if we ate here? It wouldn’t have to be elaborate,”
said Hatch.

“No problem,
Signore
Hatch! It would be my pleasure! Would
8:30 be all right?” beamed Gina.

“That would be fine, Gina. I thank you, and
we have all of this good food here to eat now.” He turned to Syd
and added, “We’ll formulate a plan then. This situation is getting
out of hand, and I intend to put a stop to it!”

He went over to Teresa and took her hand,
saying, “And you, young lady, are through for the day. Go to your
room and soak in a hot bath and relax. I am sorry you had to go
through such an experience. I’m just glad Syd was with you.”

She stood up and he hugged her small body,
patting her back.

“I am, too,
Signore
Hatch! She was truly
awesome!”

She went to Syd and hugged her, adding,
“Thank you, Syd!”

“You’re welcome, Teresa. Don’t forget your
presents when you go.”

“Grazie
,” said
Teresa as she took her shopping bags and left the room.

“Well, a bath sounds good to me, too. It was
hot out there today and I’m all sweaty. If you want to see what you
bought me today, Hatch, why don’t you come on up?” said Syd. “And
bring a plate of those goodies to munch on.”

After Syd left the room, Hatch began
preparing a plate of snacks. He was alone in the room with Sara
now.

“She’s one fucking amazing woman, Hatch. I
hope you realize that,” commented Sara.

“I certainly do, Sara. I suppose that’s your
way of saying you like her,” he laughed.

“Like a sister! Don’t mess with her heart,
Hatch. Keep things honest with her!”

“I think I have, so far. She’s very
strong-willed and has a mind of her own. As you know, she takes
care of herself very well.”

Sara sipped her drink, then said, “What
happens when she goes back to Miami and starts teaching again, and
you go off slaying dragons?”

Hatch thought for a long time before
answering.

“I don’t know, Sara. I’ve been trying to not
think about that. Do you have any suggestions?”

“You’ll have to answer that one by yourself.
Now, go up to her. She’s waiting for you,” she said, placing her
hand on his shoulder.

• • •

Syd was in the large tub soaking in a sea of
bubbles when Hatch arrived with the plate of food. He put it down
on a table in the living room and entered the bathroom. All he
could see of her was her beautiful face surrounded by a halo of
black hair, her head resting on the end of the tub, her eyes
closed. Her drink was sitting on the edge of the tub. He sat down
next to it. She opened her eyes and smiled at him.

“This feels
so
good! I haven’t been in a tub … I can’t
remember the last time,” she said.

He could remember when Kat had told him
something similar to that many years ago. He just gazed at her, a
distant look in his eyes, a wan smile on his lips.

“This tub is big enough for two if you want
to join me,” she smiled.

“I think I would like that. I think I
would like that
very
much,”
he whispered.

Il Castello di Bragno, Italy

Tuesday, August 14, 2001

8:30 P.M.

Hatch, Syd, Sara, Carmelo, and Alberto
assembled in the small dining room at 8:30 P.M. for dinner.
Carmelo’s wife, Angelina Cifelli, whom Syd met for the first time,
joined them for dinner. She was a stunning woman, 39 years old, and
was about Carmelo’s height in her heels. She reminded Syd, vaguely,
of Isabella Rossolini, the actress. Angelina assisted Gina in
placing the food on the table, since Teresa had been told to take
the night off and rest. The young Italian girl, Silvia, whom Syd
had seen earlier, was also helping. In addition to baskets of the
crusty bread and a large bowl of salad, two giant platters of
steaming food were placed on the table. One contained
Melanzane Florentine
, breaded egg
plant rolled with ricotta cheese, spinach, mozzarella cheese, and
covered in a tomato sauce. The other platter contained
Scampi Pesto
, jumbo butterflied
shrimp that had been cooked in olive oil, fresh basil, garlic, and
pinenuts. There was also the usual bowls of spaghetti and marinara
sauce. The mixed aromas made Syd’s mouth water.

Syd had dressed in one of the new outfits she
had bought in Rome: a multicolored knee-length skirt and an
off-the-shoulder white blouse. She thought she looked quite
Italian. She had enjoyed her leisurely bath with Hatch, and as a
result, was quite mellow and relaxed even before sampling her
wine.

She took one of the egg plants—a new
experience for her—and several shrimp after devouring a plate of
salad accompanied by hot, buttered bread.

“It would be hard to keep my weight under
control if I stayed here very long,” Syd laughed.

“You should go running with me in the
morning, Syd,” said Sara. “I’m only going to do a couple of miles
until my strength is back. You can do five if you want. Isn’t that
your usual?”

“Normally. Since I’ve been hanging out with
you guys, it’s been hard to keep up my regimen,” answered Syd as
she stuck her fork in another shrimp.

They chatted amiably while they ate. An
outsider would never have guessed that two of them—Carmelo and
Alberto—and possibly three—Syd—had been marked for death by
the
Catena di Morte
crime
organization.

As they were finishing their meals, Hatch
took a sip of his red wine and said, “Syd, I know I promised you a
wonderful vacation, but it seems you’ve been drawn into danger
again—into my problems, things which were not supposed to involve
you.”

“Well, if I remember correctly, you got
involved in
my
problems
first. The Wrath of Allah thing was all about
me
, not you. You didn’t back off from helping
me,” she pointed out, sipping her wine.

“True, I guess, but just in case
those
catenari
bastards have
you on a hit list now, I think it might be better if you went back
to Florida tomorrow,” he said.

“Hatch! I bought a whole bunch of new clothes
today—with your credit card, by the way—and I came here to have a
Roman holiday, as they say in the movies. Carmelo and Alberto can’t
run away, so why should I?” stated Syd calmly.

“They get paid to take risks, you don’t,”
Hatch replied.

“Whoa there! What about Iran? What about
Cuba? I wasn’t on the payroll on either of those little jaunts, and
I wouldn’t call them risk free!” she retorted.

Carmelo looked at the exchange between the
two with a question mark on his face, wondering what Syd was
talking about. He wondered again who Syd really was, and what her
relationship to Triple Eye was. Syd saw the look on Carmelo’s face,
and noticed that Angelina also looked confused.

Before Hatch could answer her last remark,
Syd decided to clear the air.

“Hatch, you obviously haven’t told the people
here who I am. I don’t want Carmelo to think that my insistence on
staying is giving him just another headache to worry about. You
know I can take care of myself as well as anyone in this room. In
fact, I may be of some help once you decide what to do about these
bastards, and you know it,” said Syd. “Help me here, Sara!”

“She’s right, Hatch. I’m not much help to you
right now. My left arm is still weak as shit. You may need a female
decoy before this thing is over,” said Sara, pleading Syd’s
case.

Hatch looked into Syd’s eyes, saw the
determination, and gave up on trying to talk her into leaving. He
had to admit that she knew how to take care of herself, and was, in
fact, the most deadly female agent he had ever known. He decided
that he had better brief Carmelo on her background.

“OK, I give up. Carmelo, I need to bring you
up to date on a couple of recent missions we carried out, and you
need to know what Syd’s involvement was, and who she really is,”
stated Hatch.

He spent ten minutes describing the two
missions, then explained Syd’s MOSSAD background. Carmelo and his
wife were rapt during this dissertation.

Hatch finished up by saying, “So, as you can
see, she’s in the club: I was CIA, you were SISDE, and she was
MOSSAD. The Spy Club, so to speak.”

“So that’s why Sara calls you Dr. Z.,” said
Carmelo with a small smile, relishing the story of how Syd marked
her victims.

“I told you that she was one fucking
dangerous broad,” added Sara. “And fucking smart, too!”

Angelina put her hand in front of her mouth
to hide a smile, still amazed at Sara’s language.

Hatch said, “We need to discuss what we’re
going to do about these guys. This situation is much different from
the one we had in Iran. We can’t get them all in a building and
blow them up. There are hundreds—probably thousands—of these people
spread out all over the place.”

“Actually,” interjected Carmelo, “there
are about 1500 of them according to our best guess intelligence.
They are city folks—unlike the rural
Sicilian Mafia
and
’Ndrangheta
, or
Calabrian Mafia—
and have key groups in Rome,
Naples, and Palermo, to name a few. Their natural enemies, besides
society in general, are most of the other crime groups here,
because they compete with them rather than cooperate. They do have
alliances with the Colombian drug lords, and some Russian and Asian
crime groups. They are into drugs, extortion, kidnapping, gun
smuggling, and murder for hire.”