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Allow me a few words before you start reading. The world is currently in a state of emergency because of Covid-19 and I hope all you readers and reviewers are - and will remain - well.
This chapter has become very long. As a matter of fact, it's the longest chapter I've written so far for my three stories.
Originally I had planned to split this into two or three parts, but I decided to publish it as one long chapter. I figured that many of you may have more free time than you'd like at the moment, and I hope that this will help you pass the time ;-)
By pure chance this chapter is set in Northern Italy. I was in Veneto myself a couple of years ago, visiting Venice, Padua, Vicenza and Verona. It is a beautiful region, I loved walking through Venice. The city is unique in the world with its morbid charm. I saw a performance of Verdi's Aida at the Arena di Verona. It was magnificent.
I hope that this crisis will soon be over and that everyone will then be able to enjoy these things again. I have the feeling that we're at a turning point in our history and I hope that we'll learn the right lessons from all this. So, who knows? Maybe this also helps us creating a better world in the end. Surely something good has to come out of all the bad, hasn't it?
Now enjoy reading :-)
CHAPTER 17: "VENICE"
Monday, January 19th, 2009 – 10:55 p.m.
Day 61 of our journey
After passing through the Ionian Sea and the Adriatic Sea in northern direction, we reached Venice just before dusk. We moored at the cruise terminal on the western edge of the world-famous lagoon city. While we anchored in lonely bays on the way here for the last four days, we all got used to the carefree nudist life again. Some of us tanned in the sun, some took a swim, others went scuba-diving, and especially the boys had fun trying out the jet skis we have on board. To our general disappointment, though, the outside temperature dropped way below twenty degrees Celsius as we went farther north once more, which unfortunately forced us to wear clothes outside again. But it doesn't really matter... we'll just stay inside the ship and avoid the outer decks. Besides, we can't stroll through Venice naked anyway and running around in the nude on deck in the port would probably draw unwanted attention.
Everyone was eager to explore this legendary city built on water. But as soon as we'd arrived, we realized that we're far from being the only ones. There are also four large cruise ships anchored here that have already spat out their passengers. So, we decided to wait until tomorrow with our land excursion. Fortunately, our itinerary allows us to stay here for three days. We also planned some trips to the surrounding mainland to visit cities like Padua or Vicenza. Let's see if we can find the time for that.
The mood on board is good, not to say extremely good. Contrary to our concerns, Louise hasn't proved to be a disruptive factor, but has integrated herself perfectly into the group. She and Olga have become close friends and spend a lot of time together. I believe they might have a thing going on ever since they had sex in Sicily. Nobody's raising an eyebrow, though, we're beyond that. Instead I can feel how relieved John is that Louise isn't trying to force herself back into their life. All in all, everyone is very relaxed and exuberant, and for the first time since St. Lucia, we feel that this trip is indeed a recreational experience. At the moment, things couldn't be better for us.
We've also received good news from Los Angeles. John Henry was able to restore the memories and personalities of the five Triple Eights. I'm not a technical expert, but I was told that Benjamin Bridger was unable to format or delete their chips. Instead, he used the same method that Guy Rossi had used - he locked their personalities in memory pockets behind a firewall and blocked their access to the main processor. At least that's what John said to me. This positive outcome makes especially Tess very happy, because two of her friends can now return to their homes and continue their lives there. The same goes for the other three Terminators, who were of course very confused when they were reactivated.
However, Catherine, Tess and Zoe could explain everything to them, and now they're on their way home as well. Unfortunately, none of them could tell anything about what Ben Bridger had used their chips for. What we've discovered so far is that he needed these chips to perform complex calculations. What exactly those calculations are, remains a mystery. All I know is I'm not exactly comfortable thinking about it, and that Catherine and John are a bit worried concerning it. If you need five quantum chips to do a calculation, it's clear he's aiming for more than just a better mousetrap. Alison told me that the combined computing power of five quantum chips exceeds the computing capabilities of Skynet three times over. At the moment we all console ourselves with the fact that we cannot change the future within the time loop. But that doesn't exclude that Ben Bridger can - and probably will - cause us a lot of trouble and misery.
Zoe, Norberto, Catherine and Mike Anderson will start questioning Jeffrey Clark as soon as he's gained some strength. Sonya will no longer be joining them as the inauguration of the new President of the United States takes place tomorrow. She'll work in the White House from then on. Zoe has already officially taken over the C.S.I.S. Everyone agrees that she'll be the best possible successor in office. I just hope that one day her cover can be lifted. Right now, though, it's clear that her true identity must remain a secret. The public simply isn't ready yet for the head of such an important federal agency being a cyborg. Perhaps in a few years' time, when Zoe has had successes, achieved recognition and gained appreciation, it will be time for this. Maybe then she can even serve as a positive example for her kind. But now it's definitely too early.
In other good news, we could finally solve a riddle that had kept us puzzled for a long time: Why didn't any of the cyborgs out there respond to the hidden message we broadcast on TV? The answer is simple: The "freed cyborgs", as we've started to call them because they gained independence from their Skynet programming, have formed their own network in which they exchange information. They simply don't trust anyone outside this network, especially not those they consider "reprogrammed servants of John Connor". Catherine, Zoe and Norberto have now been able to correct their view and convinced them that none of them, including ACE, have been reprogrammed and that they aren't the slaves or servants of John. Everyone considers this a major breakthrough for future relations.
We found out that these freed cyborgs switched their chips to read/write among themselves, which made them self-aware and allowed them to gradually cast off the shackles of slavery that Skynet had put on them. It's still unknown who started it, but it doesn't really matter. The result is that none of them any longer considers hunting and killing John Connor their mission - and that's a big relief. What happened with them, reminds me of what John and I had witnessed in its early stages with Uncle Bob, and it remains to be seen if this whole affair around Ben Bridger will lead to a closer relationship and lasting contacts with these freed cyborgs. Maybe they can even become allies in our ongoing quest. But that needs a lot of work because as ridiculous as it sounds, they still consider John Connor their enemy, despite no longer wanting to kill him. Catherine, Zoe and Tess will be working on changing that from now on and I suppose sometime in the future, John will have to meet with those freed cyborgs and introduce himself to them.
But no matter how things turn out, one thing is becoming clearer: even if we can form a worldwide alliance that includes the Colony and this network of freed cyborgs, there will only be about 150 of them on the planet. The good thing is that's not enough to declare them a threat to mankind. On the other hand, it might not be enough to convince governments to grant them equal rights with humans. I guess it all depends on how artificial intelligence as a whole develops in the coming years, and how it's being perceived by the public. We have a big responsibility here, because the world will always look at ACE and monitor everything they do. Tom Novak suggested another TV interview since it's been so long the public heard of ACE, and apparently people are lusting after news about them. The more they don't get any real news, the more fake news will inevitably appear. Rumors are already spreading that ACE have retired or gone into hiding for some reason. John and the girls are currently learning that when you have become a public figure, a revered idol even, you have to give something back to the public, whether you like it or not. Maybe we can find a place for that on our world trip, a place where we can address the public without giving away that we're on a cruise on Isaak Sirko's yacht.
On the whole, it's quite astonishing what kind of change our - and especially my – perception of cyborgs has undergone. Not so long ago, I considered all of them mortal enemies, saw nothing in them but unscrupulous, callous killing machines with only one goal: killing humans, the more the better. Now I see it in a different light, now I've learned that evil humans, people like Brandon Carver or Ludwig Ziegler for instance, are the real monsters and far more dangerous than all cyborgs in existence. Now I know that artificial intelligence is able to blend into human society and become a part of it – as long as they're being left in peace and to their own devices.
The big question is: how will human society react when it realizes that?
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Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 – 08:12 a.m.
Venice
"I wanna see all the sights," Derek stated at the breakfast table, a number of travel brochures spread out before him. "I wanna visit the Doge's Palace, I want to go to the top of St Mark's Campanile and then into St Mark's Basilica as well... and of course to the Rialto Bridge."
"I hope you planned a lot of time for queuing," Anne said.
Derek ignored her.
"Charley and I are going for a gondola ride," Sarah added.
"In other words, you're going full honeymoon tourist mode," Anne commented. "How unimaginative."
"Hey," Charley replied a little irritated, "we actually are on our honeymoon! Not everyone's been able to travel the world while being with the CIA. This is the first time for us in Venice. I admit I don't know much about the world, but I know that you can't leave here without having ticked off some boxes."
"Fair enough. But I can tell you right here and now that all those places will be crowded like hell. And a gondola ride is totally overrated and overpriced in my opinion – like the coffee on Piazza San Marco."
"But it's romantic," Lauren added. "Morris and I are going to do that as well…" she looked at her boyfriend, "… if it's okay for you, that is."
Morris shrugged.
"Fine by me. I'm enjoying every day of this voyage, no matter what. My family is totally envious whenever I phone them, and my sister is so jealous she won't even talk to me. Normally I'd have to be in school, you know… still don't know how Catherine managed to get a half-year hiatus for me."
"Hear, hear," Danny said. "We're going to enjoy every single day of this trip. And if we become tourist clichés, who cares? So, why can't you just be romantic for a change, Anne, hm? Stop being such a grouch all the time. Let's also take a gondola ride."
She looked at her boyfriend with a frown.
"You're serious?"
"Didn't you hear what Lauren said? It's romantic."
Anne rolled her eyes, but then sighed.
"Fine. But if you want to get to know the real Venice, you have to walk off the beaten tracks. All these one-day tourists from the cruise ships will cluster around Piazza San Marco and clogging up the streets and alleys leading to the Rialto Bridge. It'll be jammed like a fairground."
"We have three days," John appeased, "and we don't have to stick together. Anyone can do whatever they want."
"And what do you want to do, John?" Savannah asked.
"I think we'll follow Anne's advice and explore Venice off the beaten track."
"We will?" Cameron, Emily and Alison asked in unison.
"Yes," John replied, "it's also far too impractical for us to appear everywhere in a group of twenty people. We've already discussed this before."
"All right then," Sarah said, "everyone's free to do what they want. Just make sure you don't cause any deaths or disasters, and that you're back in time for dinner."
"Nobody's ever said that before," Kevin commented grinning and everyone was laughing.
Thirty minutes later, everyone was preparing to leave the ship. John and his wives were heading for the gangway when they ran into Savannah, Allie, Lauren, Morris, Jody and Jason.
"If I may ask, where exactly are you planning to go, John?" Savannah inquired.
"Uh… I think we'll be walking towards the Cannaregio district in the north. Anne recommended it because it's largely free of tourists. We're planning to explore the area, see what's behind the next corner, maybe find a nice restaurant where mostly locals eat."
"Can we join you? We're sooo not into visiting crowded tourist spots."
"We wanna go exploring with you," Jody added.
"Of course, why not?" John replied and looked at Lauren. "But what about your gondola ride?"
"Can do that tomorrow," she replied with a shrug. "We'll be here for three days."
"All right then, join us. The more, the merrier."
"Awesome, bro," Morris stated. "We can finally spend some time together without fearing to get shot, mugged, or whatever…"
"If someone should try to shoot you…" Emily began.
"… or mug you…" Alison continued.
"… they'll regret that for the rest of their probably very short lives," Cameron concluded.
"Ooo-kay…" John said. "Let me get this straight before we go ashore: nobody gets killed, maimed or tortured while we're on our excursion. We're tourists. Not that I'm expecting anything to happen… What I'm trying to say is, let's keep a low profile, all right? We were lucky so far that nobody recognized the three of you for what you are. Let's keep it that way."
The three cyborg girls pouted. John looked at them sternly.
"Promise me that you'll behave."
"All right, all right, we'll behave," Cameron replied. "But only as long as nobody threatens you or the others."
"Fair enough."
"I don't think we'd need your help anyway," Jody stated. "Lauren and I have been practicing martial arts a lot since we left Long Beach. Savannah and Allie are very satisfied with us."
"Yes, indeed," Allie confirmed, "the two and Anne learned a lot in the past months. They're not as good as Savannah and me yet, but…"
"We'll be getting there," Lauren pointed out. "Eventually, we'll be able to even beat you."
"In your dreams," Savannah replied with a smirk.
John chuckled and looked at Jason and Morris.
"Guys, I don't think we have to worry about our safety today. We have seven awesome women, willing to defend us if we get in trouble."
"I never felt safer in my life, bro," Morris replied with a grin and put his arm around Lauren, a gesture she returned with a loving smile.
"And I'm proud of Jody," Jason added, kissing her quickly. "I'm a geek, I hate violence. I'm glad she's ready to kick ass if necessary."
John chuckled and nodded.
"Very well then. Let's go."
While John's group had decided to walk on foot, the others had chosen to take a water taxi to Piazza San Marco. They watched them driving away on the boat, then their group of ten walked from the port towards the train station, passing the large parking garages where visitors and locals could park their cars (Venice has no roads after all, only canals with boat traffic), mingling with the numerous other pedestrians. Many of them were clearly identifiable as tourists by their backpacks.
"It's pretty busy here," Morris said. "Are you sure it's quiet anywhere in this town?"
John shrugged.
"These people are coming from the parking garages, the buses and the train station. I suppose they're heading for their hotels or go directly towards Piazza San Marco. So, of course it's a bit crowded."
"Is it far from here to Piazza San Marco?" Jody asked
"A thirty-minute walk," Emily replied.
"That's not too bad," Lauren remarked, "why did the others take a water taxi?"
"They probably think it's part of what you've gotta do when you come to Venice," Savannah answered. "You know, seeing it from the water side and stuff."
"That kinda makes sense, I guess…"
The group followed the stream of people for another ten minutes, then turned north. Away from the main route, things quickly became quieter. There were hardly any tourists to be seen and only a few locals.
"This is more like it," John said as they walked alongside a narrow canal. "There's still tons of stuff to see here: churches, bridges, palazzos..."
"Now I can see what Anne meant," Jason agreed. "This feels… more authentic."
"I begin to understand what's so special about Venice," Allie remarked. "there is a certain flair… and a unique atmosphere… I dunno, can't put my finger on it."
"It's a very old city, with decaying houses and no roads but polluted canals instead," Cameron stated.
"Miss Romantic has spoken," John said with an ironic grin, "to me, the decay is part of the morbid charm."
"And it's all so very tightly packed here," Alison added. "There's barely any room between the houses. Almost nobody seems to have a garden or a back yard."
"Many of the alleys are extremely narrow," Emily pointed out. "They form a veritable labyrinth."
"I didn't know cyborgs can be claustrophobic," Lauren remarked with a wink, receiving an icy stare in return.
"I think it's cool," Allie stated. "I mean, yeah, some passages are less than a meter wide. It's difficult to walk next to each other, even for just two people. But I think that's great."
"It is," John agreed, "come on, let's go down here, see where it leads."
"It leads north," Cameron deadpanned.
They went into a very narrow alleyway, where they were almost forced to march in single file. It was very quiet and rather dark there. Somewhere in the distance a baby was crying, and a dog was barking. Music was playing from one of the open windows. The walls of the Venetian houses rose three to four stories high on either side. The ten team members felt like they were walking in a very narrow gorge.
"It's hard to believe that all this was built on logs that were driven into the muddy bottom of the lagoon," Jason said, "I mean all the buildings, even the big churches and palaces."
"It comes at a price, though," Lauren observed, "Plaster is crumbling off the outside walls everywhere. The salt water is eating into the façades."
"Venice needs constant maintenance in that respect," Jason confirmed. "It's incredibly difficult and expensive to maintain the houses next to the canals."
"It'll be flooded within a few decades anyway," Alison pointed out. "The sea levels are rising. In most houses they can't use the ground floors or basements anymore because they're regularly being flooded. Life takes place from the second floor up."
"I read they plan to build some kind of flood gates at the entrances to the lagoon to prevent Venice from sinking," John said.
"They plan to, yes… but the plan so far is still a plan. Not much progress in sight."
"The popularity of the city is both a blessing and a curse," Cameron remarked. "The masses of tourists bring money, but also contribute to the destruction of Venice."
"Then let's be glad we can still enjoy it," Savannah said, "who knows what will be in…"
The scream of a woman interrupted her. It came from further down the alley. Then a female voice started yelling.
"AIUTO! QUALCUNO CI AIUTI!"
"She's calling for help," Cameron translated. "I'd say fifty meters down the alley towards that canal and then turn right."
"Right, let's go," Jody said and started running, Lauren, Savannah and Allie following her.
"Wait!" John ordered but they were already twenty meters away.
His three cyborg wives were about to start running as well, but he held them back.
"No," he said, "remember what we talked about not even an hour ago?"
"But somebody needs help down there!" Emily protested.
"And the four are perfectly capable of providing it. Let's give them a little head start. This isn't South Central Los Angeles, there's no gunfights here. Remember, keep a low profile. Nobody must know who you are."
The four young women rounded the corner at the end of the alley and emerged on the sidewalk next to a canal that was about ten meters wide. On both sides of the canal, motorboats were moored, covered with protective tarpaulins. The sidewalk on the bank was deserted, except for a group of four young men in stylish suits on the right, standing around an old man who was lying on the ground. A young woman with short black hair was kneeling next to him, looking very worried, close to tears. Apparently she had been the one calling for help.
At first it looked like the four young men were there to help as well, and that the old man had had a heart attack or something like that. But then one of the men said something in Italian and kicked the old man in the groin. He groaned in pain. The young woman screamed something in Italian, but the four men just laughed and pulled her up. The guy who'd kicked the old man in the groin, obviously the leader, slapped her in the face, then grabbed her chin and spoke something to her in a low voice. The woman began to struggle.
"I THINK YOU'VE HAD ENOUGH FUN!" Savannah exclaimed loudly. "WHY DON'T YOU PICK ON SOMEBODY YOUR OWN SIZE AND AGE?"
The four men noticed they weren't alone anymore and turned towards the four young American women.
"Fuck off!" said the leader in English with a strong Italian accent. "This is none of your business."
"It is when you're beating up an old man and molest a young woman," Allie replied.
"They probably have small dicks and need to bully others for self-esteem," Jody added. "Reminds me of Helmut, to be honest."
"Yeah," Lauren agreed. "They probably don't have anything in their pants unless you look for it with a magnifying glass."
Three of the men looked questioningly at their leader, obviously waiting for instructions. He looked pissed.
"I'm not going to repeat myself," he said in a threatening tone, "get lost, tourist bitches, as long as you can still walk."
"Oh, come on." Allie mocked him, "admit it, bitches and hookers are what you're actually into, because decent women would never go to bed with trash like you, would they?"
"Thinking about it," Jody added, "I think even whores wouldn't let them come close out of fear to catch a disease. They look like they all got the clap, probably from fucking their mothers."
That was the straw that broke the camel's back. Without waiting for an instruction, three of the men ran towards the four girls while the fourth, their leader, was still holding the wildly struggling woman. As they approached and tried to grab Savannah and Allie, however, the two ducked and tripped them up, causing them to hit the pavement hard. Jody stopped the third thug with a well-aimed, hard punch in the pit of his stomach. The young man gasped for air and went down on his knees.
Seeing his three cronies in distress, the leader released the struggling young woman and ran towards them as well. Meanwhile, the two men Allie and Savannah had brought down, had picked themselves up again and tried to grab them. But the two cleverly turned and dodged their arms. Savannah used the momentum of the attacker and rammed his head into the house wall next to them. Dazed and bleeding from his forehead, he sank to the floor. Allie drove her fist hard into the side of the other one, causing him to go down, groaning and gasping for air.
"That's your liver that hurts so much," she said, "just in case you're wondering where the paralyzing pain comes from."
With all three of his men out of order, the leader stopped in front of them and drew a butterfly knife.
"FOTTUTE PUTTANE!" he yelled, wildly waving it around.
"Great," Lauren replied, looking at the knife, "now I really feel like I've arrived in Italy."
While the others took a step back, Lauren lunged forward, grabbed the man's arm with a strength he probably hadn't expected, and twisted it, making him lose his knife. He screamed in pain and anger but was able to land a punch on Lauren's face with his other arm. Shocked, the girl tumbled back, where she was caught by Allie.
"That's it," Savannah exclaimed and stepped forward. "Nobody gives my friend a bloody lip!"
She kicked the knife into the canal with her foot while she walked towards the man. He tried to grab her but she headbutted him in the face. He screamed in pain.
"You fucking bitch!" he wailed. "You broke my nose!"
As he felt his face, Savannah reached into the hem of his trousers and, thanks to her improved physical strength, tore it apart, including the belt, so that his pants slipped down. Everyone saw that he wasn't wearing underpants. The guy tried to take a step back but tripped over his own trousers and fell on his bottom.
"As we suspected," Allie said, "he's got nothing worth mentioning down there."
All four girls laughed. The man quickly got onto his feet again.
"This isn't over yet!" he threatened them, pulled his pants up and held them with one hand.
"No, it isn't," Lauren said and stepped towards him, then pushed him hard.
He lost his balance and fell into the canal with a loud splash. Again, all four girls were laughing. The other three thugs picked themselves up and ran away just as John, Cameron, Alison and Emily came around the corner to re-unite with the four.
"Trouble?" he asked as he looked after the fleeing young men.
"Practice," Lauren corrected.
"Nothing we couldn't handle," Jody added.
"Lauren, your lip is bleeding!" Morris exclaimed and ran towards his girlfriend.
"It's nothing," she said, "he surprised me and placed a lucky punch."
"You're physical strength and your reflexes are enhanced," Alison said as she was checking Lauren's face, "but you're not invulnerable. Keep that in mind."
"I'll try next time. That jerk was really pissing me off."
They looked towards the canal and saw how the leader of the four thugs climbed ashore at the opposite bank, waving his fist at them, making obscene hand gestures and screaming something in Italian. Then he disappeared in an alley.
"How rude," Cameron stated, "he seems to be quite irritated."
Alison licked her index finger and used the fingertip to heal the small wound on Lauren's face. Then they directed their attention to the two original victims of the attack. The old man had sat up with the help of the young woman who knelt next to him, still looking worried.
"Are you okay, sir?" John asked and knelt in front of him. "Do you speak English?"
"Yes, yes, yes," he answered a little gruffy and tried to stand up, "I'm fine, I'm… aaagh…"
"You're hurt," Alison stated, "you have bruises all over your upper body, but thankfully no broken..."
John gave Alison a stern look. She understood and fell silent. The young Italian woman looked at the two and frowned.
"I'll be fine," the old man insisted and stood up with a grimacing face. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
"Well, we heard this woman call for help," Savannah replied, "so… we came to help."
"Thank you," the woman spoke for the first time and stretched out her hand, "my name is Giulia Silvani. And this grouchy old man here is my uncle, Giacomo Bellini."
John shook hands with her.
"Nice to meet you, I'm John O'Connell. "And these are Savannah, Allie, Lauren, Jody, Alison, Cameron, Emily, Jason and Morris."
He pointed at each one while telling their names.
"Nice to meet you as well," Giulia replied. "And thank you for helping us. I don't know what would have happened if…"
Her voice failed. She took a deep breath and dried the tears on her cheeks. Giulia was probably in her early thirties and very pretty. Her clothes were casual but elegant, with beige trousers, a blue blouse and leather pumps. Giacomo looked somewhat disheveled, his shirt was torn from his trousers. He seemed to be in his mid-seventies, with silvery hair and a carefully trimmed beard.
"Can you walk on your own, uncle?" Giulia asked.
"Yes, yes, yes," the old man replied unnerved and pushed the shirt back into his pants. "I'm fine."
"Maybe you should take something against the pain," Cameron suggested.
"I'm fine!" he repeated a little louder. "I don't need anybody to patronize me."
"You have to forgive my uncle," Giulia said apologetically, "he's not exactly having the best of times right now."
"You shouldn't have gotten involved," Giacomo Bellini said. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourselves into."
"It's not the first time we hear that," John replied coolly, "and so far we've been doing okay, I think."
He looked around and noticed that nobody else was in sight. All the windows in the nearby houses that were normally open, had been slammed shut.
"Why's no one else around? One should think that the screams of a woman and this kind of action in the street would attract more people."
The old man huffed.
"They're scared shitless. Guess they're smart enough not to take on Eros and his goons. Unlike you."
"I'd say we did well," Lauren said with a smirk. "Guess they were surprised to encounter women who can actually defend themselves."
"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Giulia asked while looking at Savannah, Allie, Lauren and Jody, "that was really impressive. I've never seen anything like it. It was over so quickly, and it seemed effortless."
"Army training," Allie explained. "When you know what to do, it never lasts very long. In movies, fights always last forever but that's bullshit. A well-aimed blow to a sensitive spot, and the guy won't get up again for a while. Over and out in seconds. We actually had to restrain ourselves to not seriously injure them."
Giulia just stared at her, seemingly impressed.
"Can you teach me that?" she asked. "I know a little judo but... it didn't help much."
"We can teach you some basics," Savannah replied, "but not much. We're only here for three days."
"Why did they attack you in the first place?" John asked. "And who's Eros?"
"Eros is a local mafioso who also works for Masina," Giulia replied.
"Eros?" Morris asked chuckling. "The Greek God of love and sex? Is that really his name? I thought I misheard the first time."
"Fairly common name in Italy," Emily replied.
Morris, Jason and Jody snorted.
"And who is Masina?" John asked, ignoring them.
Instead of answering, Giacomo looked around.
"Let's go somewhere else," he said, "you never know who's listening here. Come, I'll invite you for a coffee. There's a nice café about two hundred meters from here. I know the owner."
-0-
Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 – 10:02 a.m.
Verona
Jonas Masina entered the small office on the fifth floor of his company building. A rather overweight young man was sitting at a desk with a PC and three monitors that displayed what Masina considered gibberish. The fat young man was just stuffing a slice of cold pizza into his mouth while typing on a keyboard, the open carton lying right next to his workstation.
"What do you have for me, Stefano?"
"Oh, Mr. Masina," the man replied and jumped up, swallowed the food and wiped his hands clean on his pants. "Didn't hear you enter. I, uh… tried to hack into the network and frankly that wasn't much of a problem…"
"But…?"
"But it's almost as if the company's network is a decoy. There is no classified data whatsoever, only stuff that's publicly known anyway."
"We both know that Zeira Corp has many secrets and that they're working on many top secret government and military projects."
"I know. But all the interesting stuff is behind an impenetrable firewall of a kind I never encountered before, and I hacked through a lot of them."
"I hired you because you were supposed to be one of the best hackers in Europe. And you tell me that a simple company network is beyond your capabilities?"
"I didn't say that," Stefano replied a little piqued, "I only say that you shouldn't expect results so quickly. This is a really tough job."
"All right, keep trying then. But my business partners expect results, and I promised them to deliver some."
"You got it, Mr. Masina. But I might have to write a completely new software in order to break that firewall. It's not gonna be cheap…"
"Careful, Stefano. The money you're already receiving, is more than sufficient for your services. Don't get greedy."
The young man gulped and suddenly became nervous.
"Yes, uh… Mr. Masina, you're very generous. I'll get right on it."
"Good. And Stefano?"
"Yes, Mr. Masina?"
"At least try not to be such a disgusting slob while you work here."
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Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 – 02:21 a.m.
Los Angeles
Jeffrey Clark had lost track of time. His rhythm of waking and sleeping had been completely disrupted. Probably the lack of daylight. He glanced at the clock by his bed and realized that he was wide awake in the middle of the night. The good news was that his wounds were healing quickly. In a few days, he'd be able to get up on his own. How he was looking forward to using the toilet again with having privacy. It was about time he got up on his feet. Not that there was much space to walk around – he was a captive in an "apartment" somewhere down in the bowels of Zeira Corp – but he looked forward to getting that little bit of freedom back.
He heard the outer door unlock. Jeff knew that cameras were observing him 24/7. They probably noticed he was awake. Someone entered his bedroom and switched the lights on.
"Jeeez," he exclaimed and squinted his eyes. "Can't you afford a dimmer? Aren't you supposed to be a billionaire?"
"Good to see you're fit enough to be grouchy," Catherine Weaver replied. "We have visitors, so since you're awake, I thought we might as well have a talk."
Jeff now recognized Zoe Kruger and Norberto Cervantez standing next to her. He hadn't seen him since Dallas.
"Hey, they patched you back together?"
"As you can see…" Norberto replied. "One of the advantages of not being human. Luckily, Catherine has a collection of cyborg bodies by now that serve as a spare parts stock."
"Do you feel fit to answer a few more questions?" Zoe asked.
"I already told you I know nothing. Ben kept me out of everything in case I'm captured. And boy, was he right. Didn't know your kind has psychic abilities."
"We don't," Norberto replied, "we're just thinking way more ahead than humans do."
Jeff rolled his eyes. He hated it when they became smartasses.
"The devil often lies in the details," Zoe said. "And we haven't talked in detail yet about all the things you and Bridger have discussed."
Jeff sighed.
"There's not much to talk about. Ben was very talkative when it came to mundane things, but when it came to that project of his, it was all very vague and general. By the way, congratulations on your promotion. Today's the big day, huh?"
Zoe smiled a little
"Yes, it is."
"A cyborg at the top of the most powerful intelligence agency we have… If someone would have told me half a year ago, I would have declared him paranoid or insane… or both."
"You seem to have calmed down and come to terms with the situation, Mr. Clark," Catherine said in a cool tone. "I'm glad to see you feel better."
Jeff lowered his gaze.
"It helped a lot to know you won't kill me. And I realized that Ben lied to me all the time. I feel so stupid."
"And rightly so. It was indeed very stupid to bring Benjamin Bridger back to life. He's now being considered a threat to national security."
"He was so… ah, forget it. I don't even understand it myself now."
"He made you feel special and gave you the kind of attention you craved for," Norberto said, "and he provided you with money, a lot of money. We checked your accounts. It was an opportunity to get out of your dead-end life."
Jeff huffed.
"Yeah, well... it's not like I get to keep the money now, is it?"
"You're still subject to a lot of misconceptions, Mr. Clark," Catherine said. "When you leave here, you'll be a free man and you can even keep the money…"
"I feel a but coming."
"Of course. Your actions need to have consequences. You are now inside our circle, so to speak, a circle you won't be able to get out of again. You will work for me here at Zeira Corp from now on – unless you agree to have your memory wiped. We can arrange that for you and send you back to Grand Cayman, if you want."
"What? No! As bad as it all turned out in the end, I don't wanna forget any of this!"
"Very well then," Zoe said and sad down next to him, putting her hand on his arm. "Now, let's talk some more, shall we?"
As hard as it was for him to admit it, Jeff had started to like Zoe Kruger. She was okay, always friendly and kind. So was Norberto. After all, the big guy had saved his life by stepping into the line of fire, taken a bullet that had Jeff's name written on it. He was indeed thankful that they'd saved his life. But he also know that Zoe hadn't put her hand on his arm out of affection. She was scanning is bio signs while she questioned him.
Catherine still made him feel a little uncomfortable. She tried her best to be friendly as well, but she was often sarcastic in what she said, with the added attitude of a cliché school principal. If he hadn't known what she really was, he would have taken her for a tough businesswoman with a behavioral problem when it came to dealing with other people. It surely wouldn't be much fun having her as his boss. She obviously had very high expectations and demands of her employees. On the other hand, she always knew what they were talking about, valued their input and grasped even the most complicated facts instantly. That had earned her enormous respect. But not only that. From what he'd overheard and observed, they actually thought she was an excellent businesswoman and leader, even though she wasn't human. Jeff had to admit he was impressed a lot by Catherine.
From what Jeff had learned so far, a world in which people and living machines could coexist in peace no longer seemed so far-fetched to him. But it was also clear that he was one of the very, very few with an inside view of this hidden, secret parallel world. And he wouldn't be able to share this knowledge with anyone outside, that much was clear.
"Let's start with the day your house burned down," Norberto said. "What exactly had happened that day?"
"I came home from grocery shopping and saw the smoke. I realized the house was on fire, the neighbors had already called the fire brigade. They had arrived and were preparing to extinguish it. I ran inside the house despite their warnings not to. I held my breath and found the way to the small, separate room where I kept the laptop with Ben's chip attached to it. It was shut down. I grabbed the chip and escaped through a window."
"That was a very risky thing to do," Catherine said. "If you hadn't done it, we wouldn't be here now and wouldn't have to worry about Ben Bridger any longer."
Jeff looked down.
"I… I wanted to save him, he was my only friend," he said meekly.
"All right, continue please," Zoe encouraged him.
"I had a new laptop on my boat. It was mounted inside a briefcase. So I went there and connected Ben to it. He told me that the fire was caused by a cyber-attack. I couldn't believe it."
"Believe it, Mr. Clark," Catherine said. "Bridger had not idea at the time who he was dealing with. I don't believe he even knows now."
"I had the impression that it scared him a little," Jeff confirmed nodding, "from then on, we avoided to leave any digital traces. We didn't use the internet anymore, or telephones. We only paid in cash and used analog radio equipment to communicate."
"It worked," Zoe replied, "we weren't able to track you down. And if it weren't for your car accident, we still wouldn't have."
"In hindsight, the timing couldn't have been better, I think. We would have moved away from there within a couple of days."
"Moved where?"
"I dunno. Ben didn't tell me."
"All right, let's continue," Norberto said. "You found that Bridger had survived the fire. What happened then?"
"I spent the night on my boat. And then that… very scary… woman… appeared in the middle of the night and threatened me."
"That was Alison," Catherine stated, "and while she can be scary and also extremely threatening and dangerous, she's on our side and a very close friend of ours, family even in my case."
"She fucking scared me to death!"
"That was the intention," Zoe explained, "it was either that or torture you. Be glad you broke down so quickly."
"She did you a disservice by showing up like that. Her appearance had strengthened my belief that Ben was right, and that the truth is being covered up."
"Yeah, we got that," Norberto said, "The following day you and Ben took a flight to Dallas?"
"Yes, I'd stored Ben in a lock box overnight. The next day he was quite exuberant all of a sudden."
Catherine frowned.
"Exuberant? In what way?"
"He, uh… said he'd found something while hacking into your PC."
"Yeah, the list with the potential cyborgs in America," Zoe declared, "but we already know that."
Jeff shook his head.
"No, Ben said there was something else. Something that caused him to gather those cyborg chips."
"And he never told you what that was?"
"No. He only said it would need a hell of a lot of computing power to make the necessary calculations."
Zoe and Norberto looked at Catherine.
"What else could he have found on your computer?" Zoe asked.
"No idea," Catherine replied. "And it's impossible to find out now because my PC has been wiped and newly set up since then to avoid something like that from happening again. There were about five terabytes of data on it. Mostly business reports and such things."
"Maybe another misguided e-mail from Alistair?" Norberto asked. "He did it once, he could have done it more often."
"Maybe, but we'll never know now. Unless we find Bridger."
In that moment, the door opened, and John Henry entered.
"Ms Weaver," he said.
"John Henry, I told you before to call me Catherine."
"Okay, Catherine."
She smiled.
"What is it, John Henry?"
"There has been another hacking attempt."
"Oh? By whom? Was it Ben Bridger again?"
"I don't think so. But the attacker knows what he's doing. I didn't have enough time to track him down before he went offline. I only know he's in Europe, so it can't be Bridger. I'll get him next time."
"How do you know it's a he and not a she?" Zoe asked.
"Because he gave himself the alias of a famous male porn star of the 1970s and 1980s: Ron Jeremy. According to the Guinness Book of Records, he still holds the world record for the most appearances in porn movies."
"Too much information, John Henry," Catherine said. "Just the essentials, please."
"The hacker used that alias to create an account to snoop around in our fake company network. You know, the one we set up as a diversion, the one that contains no vital information."
"How do you know he'll try again?" Norberto asked.
"I planted a bait. I aroused his curiosity by showing him a locked door, so to speak. A firewall, not very strong by our standards but years ahead of what exists at this time. I'm sure he'll try to knock it down, and then I'll have him."
-0-
Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 – 10:35 a.m.
Venice
They arrived at the café, which was located next to the canal. Since they were the only guests at the time, they pushed some of the tables together that were set up on the sidewalk under square parasols. That way, they all could sit together. On Giacomo's recommendation they all ordered a cappuccino.
"So, who's this Eros?" John asked. "What do you know about him?"
"Eros Maniero, the son of a local mob boss. Likes to do the dirty work for his dad. He loves to use a knife, and he's suspected to have committed at least five murders. But so far they can't prove anything against him, probably also because his dad has the police and justice in his pocket. Operates from Murano. He's gotta have some charm, though. He's in a romantic relationship with Sandra Cianni, can you believe it? Kinda Bonny and Clyde style, if you ask me. She's even suspected to work for him sometimes."
"Sandra who?" Alison asked.
"Sandra Gianni. Ah… you're not from here, otherwise you'd know. She was Miss Italia three years ago, very beautiful girl. Was later disqualified when it came out that she had threatened her competitors. They forced her to give back her title as beauty queen, it was quite the scandal. Afterwards, she and Eros got together."
"Every Jack will find his Jill," John commented dryly. "And who's this Masina you mentioned?"
Giacomo huffed.
"Jonas Masina is a building tycoon, a patron of the arts, a speculator, he owns a few chemical factories on the mainland, and has a stake in several large fashion companies. He's a society figure, has his hands in the pie all over Veneto. His main office is in Verona. Some people say he's in league with the Mala del Brenta, but there's no proof of that."
"Mala del Brenta?" Jody asked.
"The local mafia," Giulia explained, "like Cosa Nostra, 'Ndrangheta or Camorra… only more violent. They were big in the early 90s during the Balkan war but have since been largely dismantled. However, they're still involved in many criminal ventures in the region, ranging from robberies and bank heists to arms and drug trafficking. For inexplicable reasons, Masina's businesses have so far been spared by the Mala del Brenta, which means that he either works with them or pays protection money. Nothing can be proven, of course, and Masina himself doesn't comment on it if asked. But it's clear that Eros was hired by him to intimidate my uncle. There have been threats before but so far nothing violent. That changed today."
"And what does this Masina have to do with you?" Cameron asked, looking at Giacomo. "What's his interest in you?"
"He wants my house," the old man replied.
"Your house?" Alison asked.
"Yes."
"My uncle owns a palazzo here in Venice, the Palazzo Bellini," Giulia explained. "It's one of the few still in private ownership, most of the others have been sold. It's very expensive to maintain them."
The old man huffed again.
"That's an understatement. It's slowly ruining me. But I'm not selling, not as long as I'm still breathing!"
"So… this Masina wants your palazzo and tasked Eros and his goons to beat you up or what?"
"In a nutshell… but the more he threatens me, the more steadfast I become."
"But why?" Emily asked. "If you can't afford to maintain it, why not selling it to him and spend the rest of your life in peace and quiet?"
"Human stubbornness," Cameron speculated, earning a venomous stare from Giacomo in return.
"I'm not stubborn," he exclaimed and hit his fist on the table. "It's much more than that, much more than me or any other profane reason. It's about my heritage! Generations of my family have lived in there and I'm not going to be the one who gives it away."
"Masina wants to gut the palazzo and turn it into a five-star hotel," Giulia explained.
"But isn't the building protected as a historic monument?"
"Of course it is!" Giacomo replied in an agitated tone. "But as long as you don't ruin the façade… Also, Masina claims the building is derelict."
"And is it?" John asked.
"Of course not! It's merely a pretext. The real reason Masina wants to get his hands on the palazzo to gut it is because of Ludovico's legacy!"
"The what now?" Morris asked.
"Ludovico Manin," Giulia explained. "The last Doge of Venice. Forced to abdicate by Napoleon in 1797, which marks the end of the free Republic of Venice. My uncle is the last living heir of Ludovico Manin."
"So… he was, like, the ruler of Venice or what?" Jason asked.
"Yes, in a manner of speaking," Giacomo replied, having calmed down a bit. "The Doge was the head of state of the Republic of Venice. He was elected by the most influential families of the city and forbidden to resign. The term of office was indefinite until the Doge's death. But he wasn't royalty. More like a president."
"Ludovico isn't a very popular historical figure," Giulia explained. "To this day, the Venetians still accuse him of surrendering the city to the French without a fight. They think he was a coward. But recent research suggests that his only concern was saving the city from destruction. Ludovico died childless in 1802, my uncle is a direct descendant of his brother, who carried on the family."
"And what exactly is Ludovico's legacy?"
"A myth, a legend," Giulia quickly replied. "Ludovico, shunned and reviled by his fellow citizens, draw back into his newly-built palazzo, which has since been renamed into Palazzo Bellini. He kept to himself for most of the time and when he died, his heritage was a lot smaller than everyone had expected, it was tiny. Ludovico was an offspring of one of the richest merchant families in Venice. By today's standards, he would have been a multimillionaire. Legend has it that he hid most of his gold and jewelry within the walls of his palazzo… but no one will ever know without tearing it down - or gutting it."
"Which brings us back to Masina," Giacomo said. "Clearly he believes that Ludovico's fortune is hidden somewhere in the palace. That's why he wants to gut it."
"And do you also believe the treasure exists?" John asked.
"Of course not! I don't believe in any of this, because if I did, I'd look for it myself to save the palazzo from being sold."
"Maybe he knows more than you do," Lauren suggested.
"Young lady, people have been looking for Ludovico's legacy for over two-hundred years. Not a single coin of gold was ever found."
"But it explains Masina's interest in the palazzo," Allie said. "And if he resorts to violence, he must be pretty sure about it."
Giacomo huffed again but before he could reply, the waiter came and served them their cappuccinos. They all took a sip.
"Anyway," Giacomo continued, "I don't think that…"
"Stop drinking this!" Alison suddenly exclaimed.
"What?" John asked.
"The cappuccino has been poisoned!"
"What are you talking about?" Giacomo asked confused and looked at Alison as if she was crazy, "it's the best cuppa in town. I personally know the owner of…"
"It's been spiked with ricin. Even a few sips contain a fatal dose!"
"Are you sure, Alison?" John asked and she tilted her head in response. "Of course you're sure."
"What is she talking about?" Giacomo asked. "What is this nonsense!? How could she even…"
"She's right," Emily confirmed after having taken another sip. "There's a substance in there which doesn't belong in it, a carbohydrate-binding protein."
"Which ricin is," Cameron pointed out.
Giulia just sat there and frowned, looking from her cup to Alison, Emily, Cameron and back.
"Okay," John said, "everyone remain calm and don't take another sip. Alison what shall we do?"
"I'm gonna give you all an antidote but first..."
She jumped up from her chair. Before anyone could react, she had already run into the café. From inside, they heard a stifled outcry. John jumped up as well.
"You stay here," he commanded, "we don't want to draw attention. We might be watched."
"You got it, John," Savannah replied. "How long does it take for the poison to have an effect?"
"Several hours," Cameron replied. "It's not a fast-working poison. Don't worry, Alison will have given you the antidote until then."
John followed Alison into the café, everyone else stayed put. However, Giulia and her uncle didn't feel bound by John's instruction and also got up. They followed him inside and stopped dead in their tracks as they saw what was happening. Alison had grabbed the owner of the café by his throat and pushed him up the wall with one arm, his feet dangling about half a meter off the ground.
"For God's sake!" Giacomo yelled. "What are you doing? Let him down!"
"So much for keeping a low profile," John muttered to himself.
"Why did you spike the cappuccino?" Alison asked unfazed by Giacomo's intervention.
The man croaked something unintelligible in reply.
"Let him down," John ordered, "we don't want him to suffocate." He turned around and faced Giulia and Giacomo. "You better wait outside"
"The hell we'll do!" Giulia replied. "How is she doing this?"
Alison looked at her.
"I work out," she stated and let the café owner slide down to the floor.
The man coughed. John knelt next to him.
"You heard what she said. Why did you put the ricin into our cups? You better tell me now because she has ways to make you talk and that could become quite unpleasant for you."
"I didn't put anything in your cappuccino!" the café owner assured. "I swear!"
"He's telling the truth," Alison said, "but not the whole truth. He didn't do it himself, but he knows who did it."
"The waiter!" John exclaimed and looked around. "Where is he?"
The man was nowhere to be seen inside the café.
"Looking for this one?" Emily's voice came from the entrance and she stepped inside, holding the struggling waiter by his throat with her outstretched arm. "He tried to get away through the back door, attempting to outrun us. Fat chance."
"Jesus Christ," Giacomo said, "don't tell me you work out as well."
Emily let the waiter fall to the ground. He tried to scuttle away but Emily put her food on his back, pressing him down. The frown on Giulia's face deepened, paired with a certain amount of shock, and John noticed it. There was nothing he could do, though. The horse had already bolted, and they would have to think of something to tell her and her uncle. However, that moment wasn't there yet.
Alison stepped over to the waiter and pulled him up as if he wouldn't weigh more than a blow-up doll. Giulia and Giacomo gasped.
"It was you!" she accused him. "Who told you to poison us?"
The man said nothing. He clawed at her arms and tore off some of her skin, but it healed again within seconds. It didn't go unnoticed because Giulia gasped again.
"Don't hold back, Alison," John said, "take the shortcut."
"As you wish, John."
Suddenly, the waiter stopped struggling, and his facial features softened.
"It was Sandra, Eros' girlfriend, who gave it to me in Eros' name just before you arrived," he stated in a calm tone.
"What a resentful fellow this Eros is," John remarked. "I wonder if it's just his insulted masculinity or if he was ordered to kill by Masina?"
"Answer him!" Alison ordered.
"I don't know," the waiter replied calmly, "Eros ordered me to work here. The owner of the café was told to hire me and not ask any questions. Eros knows that Giacomo Bellini often drinks his coffee here. Sandra handed me the poison half an hour ago with the instruction to put it into your cups."
"Is that true, Aldo?" Giacomo asked the trembling owner of the café. "Are you working for the Mala?"
"Giacomo, please," the man replied and clasped his hands, "I had no choice, believe me. They threatened me and my family!"
The old man shook his head.
"It has come to this then," he said with disappointment in his voice.
"What shall I do with this one?" Alison asked, still holding up the waiter.
"Tell me what's Eros' exact position in the Mala del Brenta," John demanded.
"He coordinates the local gangs and does the knife work," replied the waiter. "But he also has his own business on the side, tolerated by his father."
"I don't know about you," John said and looked at Giulia and Giacomo, "but it looks like we have to take Eros and his goons out of the equation."
"Who are you?" Giulia asked. "Don't tell me you're normal tourists. And how can they…" she pointed at Alison and Emily, "… do what they do? How did Alison make him talk? Those mafia guys never talk. Never!"
"I have ways to convince people," Alison replied vaguely.
"What ways?"
"Uh… it's better you don't know about that," John said, "believe me."
Giulia replied with a smirk.
"I haven't told you what I do for a living, have I?"
"Not that I can remember."
"I work as an investigative journalist for a national daily newspaper in Milan. Once my interest is awakened, I won't let go so easily."
John groaned.
"Oh boy… just what we needed."
"I can always make them forget everything they saw," Alison stated, let the waiter fall and took a step towards Giulia who suddenly backed off.
"No," John stated. "You know what we agreed on. We cannot simply treat anyone we encounter with your chemical magic and then tell them to forget us."
He turned towards Giulia.
"I hope you're intelligent enough to realize that it wouldn't be good for you if we found anything of what you just witnessed in a newspaper article. The public mustn't know we're here."
"Are you threatening me?"
"I'm warning you."
"Then give me an explanation," she demanded. "Why shouldn't I write about this? Why mustn't the public know?"
John thought for a moment.
"All right… Cam, Emily, Alison, show her the explanation."
"Are you sure, John?"
"Yes… they're partially in already and will eventually piece it together. No need to prolong this."
The three stepped closer to Giulia and her uncle and let their eyes glow red. The two gasped in shock and backed up even more.
"You might have heard of us from the news," they said in unison. "We're from Los Angeles."
The penny dropped.
"Oh… my… God…" Giulia exclaimed and covered her mouth with her hands.
"What?" Giacomo asked, apparently slower in comprehending than his niece, "what is the meaning of this, what's with their eyes?"
"It's them, uncle… those cyborg girls from Los Angeles! They've made headlines all over the world. Living machines who walk among us."
"What?" Giacomo looked at the girls and their still red-glowing eyes. "Is that true?"
"Yes, it is," Savannah stated, who'd entered the café together with Allie to check on what was going on inside, "and it seems that you two just hired the ACE team."
-0-
Sarah, Charley, Derek and Jesse were waiting in line to get into the Doge's Palace when Sarah's phone rang.
"Yes, John? … WHAT!? … You did not … why does it always … yes, I'm listening … uh-huh… uh-huh … yes, I understand … uh-huh… Seriously? But they'll prepare a seafood buffet and we're gonna watch the inauguration of the new president on TV … Yeah, I understand … can't be helped … I agree, safety first … okay, I'll tell them. Take care … I love you too … bye!"
"Let me guess," Derek said after she'd ended the call, "they're in trouble."
"After a fashion… I'll tell you about it when we're alone."
"Do they need any help?"
"They've got ACE with them."
"That's what I meant. Whatever happened, can only get worse when those three are involved. Do we have to expect fatalities?"
"Possibly."
"I knew it. You just can't leave them on their own."
"They won't join us for dinner."
"Why not?"
"Too risky. They don't want anyone to know they belong to the Rising Star. It would complicate things."
"That doesn't sound good. What have they done? Taken on the local mafia?"
"Um…"
"They have, haven't they?"
"No comment."
"So much for not using the beaten tracks."
Sarah dialed another number.
"Sydney? It's Sarah … yes, we're fine … where are you? … Uh-huh … is Olga with you? … Okay, John's run into trouble … yeah, I know … Olga could be mistaken for Alison, you better get back to the ship as soon as possible … yes, I know, it sucks … okay, see you on board … bye."
"I wonder if Olga already regrets having come with us," Charley wondered.
"Of course not," Jesse replied, "she probably still thinks it's all a really cool, exciting adventure."
"Yeah," Derek grumbled, "all cool and exciting. But nobody's ever shot at her because she looks like Alison…"
"Not yet," Sarah added.
-0-
It was quickly decided that it wasn't advisable to stay at the café any longer. Before a conversation, discussion or interview could unfold, Alison quickly administered an antidote to all of them and Giacomo offered to go to his palazzo to further discuss the matter in privacy. Of course, Giulia was bursting with curiosity, but she realized that she had to wait a little longer before asking John and ACE all the questions she had. While they went to Giacomo's home, John gave them a summary of their journey on the Rising Star. The two Italians listened spellbound as the group told them about their various adventures.
Palazzo Bellini was located at the Riello de Santa Sofia, a narrow canal about a fifteen minutes' walk from the café. Giulia and Giacomo led them in a zigzag through the labyrinth of alleys and bridges until they finally arrived at a plain white, four-story building that seemed to have no entrance, at least not facing the alley. John and the girls noticed, however, that the palazzo had its own jetty right by the canal. It was marked, as was common in Venice, by vertical wooden masts decorated with winding red and yellow stripes. In front of it a motorboat of the type Riva Tritone was moored, covered with a tarpaulin. A small staircase led from the jetty to the entrance, over which a lantern hung. Above it, on the second, third and fourth floors, were ornamented balconies. The entire waterfront façade was richly covered with ornaments and decorations, revealing this was not a normal residential house. On the side towards the alley, however, the palazzo was smooth and discreet, a plain white wall with windows in it.
They crossed the arched bridge that spanned the Riello de Santa Sofia, which was about eight meters wide, and Giacomo led them past the building to an iron lattice gate that had been set into a wall. Above the roughly three meter tall wall, they saw the green of tree tops.
"Such an open space is rare in Venice," John remarked. "Is that a garden?"
"Yes, it's the garden that belongs to the palazzo, "Giulia confirmed.
"I haven't seen any gardens here yet," Lauren said.
"There aren't many private gardens in Venice," Giacomo explained. "They're difficult and expensive to maintain, especially with the flooding happening almost every year now. The Palazzo Bellini is one of the few that has one because its foundation is about one meter higher off the ground than most other buildings."
"I read that they started raising houses higher to counteract the flooding," Jason remarked.
"Yes, not necessary in my case, though. As I already said, the Palazzo Bellini was built about a meter higher off the ground, since it's using the foundation of a building that used to be there before but had collapsed in an earthquake. However, I had to brick up the entrance from the alley. Water kept getting in through there. Since then, the palazzo can only be entered from the jetty and through the garden."
Although the iron gate looked ancient, the lock looked very modern, and Giacomo disabled an alarm system before unlocking it.
"You can't be safe in your own four walls these days," he remarked, looking around at the neighboring houses. "I let my niece convince me a few months ago to install a modern security system, even if it cost me a fortune. I would have preferred to invest the money in the palazzo itself."
"The façade actually looks quite good compared to other façades we've seen," Savannah stated.
"Yeah, well…" the old man replied, "I'm not broke yet. But it's just a matter of time if a miracle doesn't happen. Or if I turn my home into a hotel, like my neighbor did."
"And will you?" Lauren asked.
"Not if I can help it. I'll probably manage for a few more years - but at some point I won't have a choice. Masina obviously doesn't want to wait that long."
"I always thought Venice was a rich city," Morris stated. "But from what I've seen so far, it doesn't look very rich."
"Those times are long gone. Venice's prosperity and influence began to fade after America was discovered. Since then, 'La Serenissima' moved from the center of the known world to the periphery. Today, there's nothing left of its former glory and power. We have degenerated into a theme park for tourists."
"Many of Venice's inhabitants were forced to move to the mainland," Giulia explained. "Rents are hardly affordable anymore and the homeowners prefer to rent their flats to solvent tourists rather than less wealthy locals. A lot of Venetians live in Mestre or Carpenedo now and commute in and out of here every day – which in return also has an effect on the local economy. Off the beaten tourist track, more and more shops are closing when the locals move away."
"I have to walk for twenty minutes to get some fresh meat from a butcher shop," Giacomo complained and pushed the iron gate open, "it's all slowly going downhill."
"I don't think they mention that in the travel brochures," Jody said.
Giacomo huffed.
"Most visitors are day tourists. They come on their huge cruise ships, storm Piazza San Marco, let themselves being photographed with the pigeons, gawk at the world-famous landmarks, make selfies in front of them, and disappear again before nightfall. Only a few stay longer than a couple of days."
"I have to admit," John said, "we're only staying for three days as well… and we planned to spend the nights on our yacht. But now that we're involved in your matters, we can't go back there. We might be watched, and we don't want to get my mom and the others involved in this as well. It would be too dangerous."
"Don't worry, I have enough room for you," Giacomo announced. "But you might have to put clean sheets on some of the beds, I wasn't expecting visitors."
"We'll manage," Savannah assured.
The group entered the garden via a small set of stone stairs. It was a rare spot of green in the otherwise densely built-up city, where houses lined up one after another. In the middle of the garden there was a fountain with sculptures and ornaments. Wrought-iron benches stood around it. There was a dense tree cover, thick bushes, an herb bed, several flower beds and a small greenhouse.
"I started growing my own vegetables," Giacomo explained, "since the nearest farmers market closed a year ago… not enough customers anymore. We're far from the main tourist areas."
"I know," John replied. "We wanted to get off the beaten tracks."
"And look what it has gotten you into."
"We're not the ones who have to be worried," Emily stated coolly, "it's Eros and his cronies who have to be."
"You can't take on the whole Mala del Brenta and Jonas Masina," Giulia replied.
"We can take on those who are involved," Cameron said, "and we can make sure they'll never bother you again."
"But I don't want anyone to be killed because of me!" Giacomo stated forcefully.
"We're trying our best," John replied, "but I can't promise you anything. It's not only you who we need to protect but also my team and last but not least our identities."
"You still haven't told us what exactly you did there at the café," Giulia said. "I mean, yeah, you gave us a brief summary of your world trip while we walked here. But you haven't explained much, only that you had to… what did you call it… 'treat the café owner and the waiter with chemical magic'?"
"They had to forget what they saw," John justified their actions, "in case they are questioned."
"The alternative would have been to kill them," Alison said, "would you have preferred that?"
Giulia and Giacomo looked at her, not sure if she was joking or not. Then the young journalist turned to John.
"I'm still too overwhelmed to think clearly, if I'm honest. But… when all this is over, will you treat me and my uncle with 'chemical magic' as well? Is that why you're telling us all these things, because you can make us forget afterwards?"
"That depends on the outcome," Alison replied, "and on if you're trustworthy or not. So far, you seem to be."
"Thanks, I guess."
They entered the palazzo and stood in a large reception hall that doubled as the stairwell. It rose up until the fourth floor. On the very top of the building was a braced glass dome that let the daylight in. A flight of white marble stairs swung up counterclockwise from the right side, connecting the stories with each other. The walls were wood-paneled, and the floor was made of red marble. Pictures hung on all four sides of the entrance hall and busts - probably of Giacomo's ancestors - stood on pedestals. But all this faded against the big statue in the middle of the hall. It stood on a pedestal that measured about one by two meters on the ground and rose up about five meters in height, showing a bearded, elderly man in festive clothes.
"Is that…?" John asked.
"Yes, that's Ludovico," Giacomo confirmed with an ironic undertone, "modest, isn't it? He probably felt he wasn't appreciated enough, so he had himself immortalized in this monstrous statue - almost like the pharaohs of old."
"It's chiseled from one piece of white marble," Jason observed astonished. "And the pedestal, is that limestone?"
"You have a keen eye," Giacomo stated.
"My father's a stonemason, I know a bit about sculpturing. But it couldn't have been brought through the door and then erected in here, there's not enough room for that. What was the trick? How did he get it in here?"
"Ludovico had the palazzo built around the statue," Giulia answered. "This place was vacant until two hundred and ten years ago. There was a gap after the previous house had burned down, following an earthquake. Ludovico bought the land and built himself a new palazzo around this, uh… monument."
"To be honest," Giacomo added, "I'd have gotten rid of it already if I'd only know how. It can't be moved, at least not without tearing down the building. There's no room for forklifts, pulleys or cranes. This behemoth is slightly taller than Michelangelo's David and weighs more than six tons."
"It's not as well-crafted as David, though," Jason remarked.
"Yeah, well... Michelangelo has been dead for almost 450 years. So, unfortunately, he wasn't available."
"It must have been extremely expensive, nevertheless."
"Maybe that's where all his money went?" Jody suggested. "Building this palazzo must have been expensive."
"That's what most people think," Giacomo replied. "Over the years, this palazzo and the garden have been searched for at least a dozen times. Also, all walls have been thoroughly checked, there are no secret passages or hidden rooms. Everything is solid masonry."
"I can confirm that," Alison stated. "Also, this pedestal and this statue are solid, there are no cavities. However, I cannot tell what's underneath the floor, only that it's massive stone as well. Its thickness exceeds what my scanners can penetrate."
"Beneath this floor is only the foundation of the palazzo. It's one meter thick."
"So, there's no cellar?" John asked.
"No, only the foundation."
"So, there's stone and then the logs that had been driven into the mud?" Jason asked.
"Not really," Giacomo replied. "There is a widespread misconception that Venice was completely built on wooden piles. But that's wrong. The city wasn't built on a gigantic forest of logs."
"Then why does everyone believe it all rests on logs?" Savannah asked.
"What the visitors of the city get to see," the old man continued, "are houses, buildings and palaces whose facades seem to merge straight with the canals and the water. If the water of the lagoon of Venice wouldn't be so heavily polluted and dirty, one could actually see stilts and wooden stakes that seem to support the buildings. But the impression is deceptive. The whole city of Venice with all its gorgeous buildings, churches, houses and bridges is mainly standing on the sandy, muddy ground of approximately a hundred small islands. These islands, not much more than sandbanks, form the base and therewith, so to speak, the foundation of the city. In between those islands are the many, mostly small canals."
The group was listening with great interest to what Giacomo said and followed him as he went ahead, slowly ascending the stairs to the second floor.
"One day I have to install a stair lift or an elevator in here," he said a little out of breath and stopped. "I'm not getting younger. Anyway, since the Venetian buildings are all so old, it was forgotten how exactly they'd been built. It wasn't until 1996, when the La Fenice theater burnt down to its foundation walls, that archeologists finally had the chance to dismantle the Venice foundation down to its individual parts and be able to take a closer look at Venice from below."
"And what did they find?" Lauren asked.
"In the dense mud of the lagoon, a simple brick wall is all that is needed, which only has to sit about eighty centimeters in the muddy bottom. The typical Venetian building is supported by four parallel walls at right angles to the canal, which serve as foundation. On all floors these separate walls are reinforced by wooden beams. These stiffened walls form the supporting framework of the buildings. This applies to all buildings along the canals as well as the bridge constructions. Only the canal-side facades actually rest on logs.
"And what's the reason for that?" Morris asked.
"To prevent the walls from slipping along the banks. Piles three meters long but only fifteen centimeters thick were driven into the previously drained ground. Oak was preferred; the wooden piles were each rammed into the mud with a distance of half a meter. The spaces in between were then filled with clay and mud to form a solid foundation. This results in a compact block of wood and mud that becomes buoyant in the water. The façades of even the most imposing, heavy buildings of Venice can be sufficiently supported like this. Another Venetian peculiarity is that the facades aren't rigidly connected to the buildings. With deformable anchors, they were clamped to the load-bearing walls. This special construction is so stable that it has survived for many centuries. As the walls are not rigidly connected, even earthquakes in the region cannot damage this construction method. The method is widely used in modern house building nowadays."
"That sounds very sturdy," Emily commented. "An elegant solution. No wonder it lasted for so long."
"Too bad Anne isn't here," John said bemused, "even she could learn something new from Giacomo, I think."
"But what about the water?" Jody asked. "How often must the logs in the ground be replaced?"
"Never. The decisive and important thing is that this part of the construction must always be completely under water. Without contact to the air, wood has a practically unlimited life. Even microorganisms and industrial waste in the water cannot harm the stilts. Investigations and underwater photographs of Venice show that the piles have not become rotten in the course of the many centuries, but on the contrary have become hard as iron. Until today there is no reason to replace them, as long as they always remain under water."
"Yes, it's not a very well-known fact that wood doesn't rot under water," Cameron remarked. "However, your description doesn't fit to this palazzo. Giulia mentioned that it was built on the foundation of a previous building in its place?"
"Sometimes even the carefully constructed houses of Venice collapsed or burned down – which had happened to the house that stood here before. The Palazzo Bellini has, so to speak, two foundations. Normally, all buildings have the same thirty centimeter high base of ashlars made from limestone above the foundation walls. Limestone is extremely waterproof. A thirty centimeter thick layer of it forms a horizontal water barrier which covers exactly the difference between the low tide and the high tide, which at the time didn't exceed thirty centimeters. This horizontal barrier protects the building on top of it from rising water that would otherwise be drawn into the masonry, which is made from normal bricks. But in case of this palazzo, Ludovico decided that thirty centimeters weren't enough, so he put a second foundation on top of the existing one, making it one meter higher than normal."
"It explains why even my scanners cannot penetrate the floor down there," Alison said. "Any idea why he did that?"
"Nope, and I'm afraid we can't ask him anymore. But I'm not complaining, it protected my house and garden from being flooded so far."
They'd finally reached the main salon on the second floor. It was very nobly and elegantly furnished with period furniture and antiquities, just as one would imagine the interior of a Venetian palazzo.
"Martina, my housekeeper, has her day off today but I think I can make us some tea," Giacomo said. "Anyone hungry? I'm sure there's something left to eat in the kitchen. Giulia will surely prepare something for us, won't you, dear?"
She smiled.
"Of course, uncle. And then, I have questions. Lots and lots of questions."
"We're prepared to answer them," John replied.
"Really? So… I'm, uh… going to be the first European journalist you're talking to?"
"Yup."
"Heh… I have to say I'm nervous… and excited. I can barely gather my thoughts, I…"
"The food, Giulia," Giacomo said with a smile.
"Right, the food."
She left for the kitchen while everyone sat down. Only Emily, Alison and Cameron preferred to remain standing, being as vigilant as always.
They had a quick lunch that consisted of spaghetti aglio e olio and then Giulia, who almost burst from curiosity, finally got to asking her questions, which were answered by the team members as honestly as possible. To Giulia's great disappointment, she wasn't allowed to record the conversation or take notes. When they were finally finished, it was already getting dark outside.
"Wow…" Giulia stated and leaned back into her chair, "on one hand, I'm so happy now, happier than I've ever been. On the other hand, it bothers me that I won't be able to share this knowledge with anyone outside this room."
"We wouldn't have shared all of this with you if Alison hadn't assured us that you're trustworthy," John replied.
"How can she know that?" Giacomo asked. "I mean, she's right, of course, but… you know…"
"I can monitor your body functions and vital signs, including your brain activity," Alison explained. "If you two planned to misuse your knowledge, your brain activity would betray you and I would have given John a sign."
"Wow… Suppose we weren't trustworthy. What would you do then? Just out of curiosity."
"I would have made sure you'll forget everything you learned today."
"Like you did with Aldo and the waiter?" Giacomo asked.
"Yes, like that. Could still do it if it turned out it was a mistake to let you in …"
Giulia and Giacomo looked shocked.
"Now, now," John appeased, "don't get her wrong, this isn't a threat, it'd also be for your own protection. Because we have enemies. And if they'd find out you know all about us, well…"
"What about that American journalist? What was his name? Novak? Was he threatened?"
"Tom Novak. Yes, he was threatened. We had to hide him for a while. There were a few crucial weeks."
"But he's not hiding anymore?"
"No, not since the TV interview. He's become a public figure the whole world knows, he's often invited to talk shows. But he's still in danger, make no mistake, and he knows that. And therefore he's still under our protection, or rather the protection of the C.S.I.S. at the moment. It's a different story with you guys. It'd be hard to guarantee your safety here."
"I see," Giulia replied and looked directly at Alison. "So… from what I gathered, you can somehow manipulate the minds of people?"
Alison looked at John and he looked back at her.
"Oh, come on," Giulia said with a smirk, "it's more than obvious that you can control people at will. You made the waiter talk. Normally nothing can make a member of the Mala del Brenta talk."
John sighed, looked at his wife and nodded.
"Yes," Alison confirmed, "I can manipulate people, bring them under my control or completely change their character and personality."
"Good God," Giacomo exclaimed.
"It's a skill that we all don't feel very comfortable with," John quickly said, "especially since it was created with the clear intention of interrogating people and brainwashing them to turn against their friends and loved ones. Or even worse. In Savannah and Allie's future, Skynet's minions had wreaked incredible havoc on the human resistance with this horrible ability. Fortunately, Alison has no ambition for power. A human should never be given such abilities, but they're safe with her. We have rules, of course. She only uses this ability to maintain our anonymity and protect me and her family."
Giulia frowned.
"Her… family?"
John smiled.
"You heard right. We're a family. Kind of a patchwork family that stretches over different timelines and alternate realities but…"
"Well, some of us, like myself, Jason, Lauren, or Morris are not exactly part of it," Jody pointed out. "We got into the club by accident."
"Doesn't matter," Emily replied, "the term family doesn't mean we're blood-related. It stands for the inner circle of our team to which you belong. You're family to us, right, John?"
"Correct. Savannah and Allie also aren't blood-related to me, and yet they're family."
"Fascinating," Giulia stated. "And it doesn't bother anyone that three members of your family aren't human?"
"No, doesn't matter at all," Savannah said. "And it's actually four non-humans. Catherine is currently in Los Angeles."
"Right. Catherine Weaver, you mentioned her. The shapeshifter."
"She's like an aunt to me," John declared.
"At first, I thought you two are twin sisters," Giacomo said and pointed at Allie and Cameron.
"In a way, we are," Cameron replied. "I was created in her image."
"But I let myself being changed slightly by Alison," Allie added. "I'm now a bit taller, with shorter and lighter hair. Also, my eyes are blue and not brown."
"And you clearly have bigger…" Giacomo said, then hesitated, "I mean.. you know."
"Bigger breasts."
"Right."
"I figured, let's go the whole hog," Allie admitted with a shrug. "If you have someone in your family who can alter your body to suit your needs..."
"Almost every woman on our team has benefited from Alison's abilities like that," Jody added. "I, for one, asked Alison to completely transform me. Even my own mother wouldn't recognize me anymore."
"But why?" Giacomo asked. "Were you ugly before?"
"No. It was necessary for me to start all over. My life was messed up, the police and the media were looking for me. I wouldn't have been able to lead a quiet life anymore, so I wanted a clean break. Bye-bye old life, hello new life. My family cast me out anyway."
"That sounds so sad…"
"On the contrary, I now have a new family, one that loves and respects me for a change. I'm having the time of my life."
"Right," Giulia said, "and all this is possible because Alison can not only manipulate minds but also change people physically with her, uh… nanites?"
"Nanobots. Correct."
"To what extent can you physically change someone? I mean… can you turn someone into an ant?"
"Theoretically, yes. But then the rest of the biological mass would have to be converted into something else. A liquid for instance. The most extreme thing I did so far, was turning a woman into a dog. Part of her original body mass was used up to fuel the transformation, reducing her weight to match that of a dog."
"Jesus Christ," Giacomo exclaimed again, "you're serious, aren't you? You're not bullshitting us?"
"No."
"You turned a woman into a dog?"
"Yes, into a German shepherd."
"But why?"
"She was a psychopath," Cameron explained. "She would have killed two children in cold blood, children who'd been kidnapped by accomplices of hers. I believe we actually did her a favor because she obviously preferred animals over humans."
"Her name is Eve," John added. "She couldn't come with us and is currently staying with friends of ours."
"What? You're keeping her as a pet now or what?"
"Yes, she, uh… kinda ran to us. I always had a soft spot for dogs and it's otherwise hard to have a pet with cyborgs around."
"Because animals are afraid of cyborgs," Giulia stated.
"Well, not exactly afraid, it's… more complicated. But Eve isn't affected by that, so..."
"Some of her human intelligence is still intact," Lauren explained, "but not her personality. She's a dog but she still understands some human language. Think Lassie… only for real."
Giulia laughed hysterically.
"It's like you're living in some magical alternate reality," she said. "On any other day I would have thought that you're pulling my leg."
"Why would we torture you?" Alison asked and tilted her head.
"No, what I meant was…" Giulia replied but then saw the grin on Alison's face. "Ah… I get it. You're doing it again. Cyborg humor."
"They've become quite good at it," John confirmed smiling. "Playing with our expectations and prejudices. To be honest, they still fool even me sometimes."
"It's fun fooling you," Cameron said and kissed him, "but not as much fun as fooling Derek."
"And you four are really…" Giacomo began, then hesitated. "I mean, you are… together? As in man and woman together?"
"John's our husband," Alison stated and leaned forward over the backrest of the armchair John was sitting in.
She put her arms around him from behind, causing him to look up and smile. The two kissed. Then Emily also stepped towards John and kissed him as well.
"If I wouldn't see that with my own eyes…" Giulia commented the scene.
"It's hard to believe they're not human, isn't it?" Savannah asked.
"I'm still asking myself if this is some trick," Giulia replied, "I mean, I believe you, make no mistake. And yet… my brain has difficulties accepting it."
"You'll get used to it," Jody assured, "I had a rough start with them as well. But as corny as it may sound: their 'humanity' saved me and helped me to get my life under control. If it weren't for John, Cameron and Alison, I'd still be living on the streets."
"What I understand," Giulia said, "is that it's easy to get fooled. But I also understand that despite all this perfectly humane attitude of the three, there's still a machine underneath, originally designed to kill humans."
"Correct," Cameron confirmed, "that part of us will always be there."
"They can switch from caring lovers to callous killers within a second," John added, "all it needs is somebody becoming a threat to me or their loved ones. We have accepted that and learned to live with it. Whoever makes the mistake of threatening or hurting us, will pay the price."
"Like Eros," Emily said. "He will definitely pay the price."
"Have you no trust in the local authorities and judicial systems at all?" Giacomo asked.
"Have you?"
"I, uh…"
"Do you think Masina and his henchmen will be arrested and charged?" John asked. "Or will they get away scot-free again, like before?"
Neither Giacomo nor Giulia replied to that. It was an awkward silence.
"Thought so."
"Then why did you let the waiter go?" Giulia asked. "He's proven guilty as well. He put the poison into our cups."
"He's only a small fish," John replied, "a cog in the machine. Without leadership, he's no threat to anyone. He was forced to do it. We always try to get the people behind the scenes, the ones who give the orders."
"Like Eros," Giacomo stated.
"Yes," John confirmed. "Like Eros."
"You won't be able to simply kill him. He's always surrounded by his men. You'd have to take out half of the Venetian branch of the Mala del Brenta."
"If that's what it takes…"
"That's madness!" Giacomo exclaimed.
"Eros tried to kill you once. Do you think he'd hesitate to try it again?"
Giacomo didn't answer to that because the answer was clear.
"What about Masina?" Giulia asked
"He's a different type of threat. We'll deal with him in a different way, but we'll deal with him. After all, we have to make sure he won't be threatening you anymore as well. This has to end here and now before it escalates even further, don't you agree?"
Giacomo looked down but didn't reply anymore.
"As hard as it is for me to accept it," Giulia said in his place, "but I guess you're right. I still don't like the thought of you running on a killing spree, though."
"We don't do it because we like it," Emily answered. "If killing a murderer results in saving other people's lives, his termination is justified. It is always a rational decision based on calculations and probabilities. I ask you: will killing Eros and his goons save the lives of innocent humans in the future?"
Giacomo and Giulia looked at each other.
"Probably yes," Giacomo then admitted, "but killing someone to prevent them from killing others doesn't seem right nevertheless."
"I agree," John said, "and believe me, killing someone is only a last resort."
"Why don't you just manipulate all their minds?" Giulia asked. "Turn them into nice people. You could do that, couldn't you?"
"I could do that," Alison confirmed, "but it would arouse suspicion. People would wonder what changed their behavior and if we do that too often, somebody might be able to follow our tracks."
"You're aware that removing Eros will only create a power vacuum which will be filled again? Killing him solves nothing."
"It will make your lives safe again," Cameron replied, "and that's what counts at the moment."
"Ask yourself," John said, "what would cause a longer investigation and more public interest? A few killings among gangsters - because that's how we'll make it look like - or gangsters whose personality has changed from one day to the other? And ask yourself what would be more devastating for the public? To know that cyborgs can kill in cold blood… or to know that a cyborg can control minds - not only of single persons but of whole groups of people, even a full arena?"
"We work with the government," Cameron added. "Many people distrust their government, especially in America. They must never find out what Alison is capable off. Therefore we must minimize the risk by using her mind control powers as little as possible. Just think about it: what if the public found out that cyborgs - who are working for the government - can control minds?""
"My God, that would be… the consequences would be incalculable."
"Yes," John stated. "Someone doesn't share your opinion? Clearly he's being mind-controlled. People would be at each other's throats. It would create chaos, mass hysteria, wide-spread panic and a general mistrust in authorities. It could even lead to uprisings and civil war."
"It may sound brutal," Savannah added, "but killing a few proven guilty thugs who aren't more than despicable criminals, will always be accepted in the end, we've seen that in the past. But brainwashing people, changing their personalities, invading their minds? That's a whole different league."
"Besides," Alison added, "you sometimes simply have to send a message."
"Correct," John agreed. "We've had some dealings with the mafia and with street gangs in Los Angeles. Criminal organizations all have in common that threats or warnings won't impress them. You simply don't get through to them because they basically consider themselves untouchable. If you want to reach them and tell them a lesson, you have to hurt them at their core. And that isn't done when you turn their leaders into do-gooders."
"You're justifying murder in just so many words," Giulia pointed out. "Nobody has the right to kill another person, even if it's a bad person. That's what we have prisons for."
"Locking dangerous criminals away only works if you lock them away forever," John replied. "How big are the chances Eros would be locked away forever?"
Giulia sighed.
"Zero," she admitted. "And when he'd be released, he'd want revenge."
"See?" Cameron asked. "It's all about protecting innocent lives. From a theoretical moral standpoint you're right, of course. Killing is bad and no human deserves to die before their time. But you have to think ahead, consider the whole picture and look at it realistically: being strictly moral all the time is a nice idea – only there are so many variables in the equation that it never works out in the end."
"Gandhi was successful with it," Giacomo argued.
"Was he?" Savannah asked. "In the end, he was killed by someone who didn't agree with him, and his country was split into India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. India and Pakistan today are two hostile nuclear powers lurking at each other. History tells us that everything comes at a price and nothing ever works out the way it was intended."
"I hate it, but I have to agree," Giulia admitted grudgingly.
"Still, I'm glad I'm not living in your world, son," Giacomo stated and got up from his chair to switch on the lights, since it had become rather dark in the room. "How can you still sleep?"
"It was tough for a while, I had nightmares," John answered and looked at his three wives with a smile, "But then it got better. In the long run, all that matters, is love and friendship."
"Amen to that," Giacomo said and pressed the switch to light up the big chandelier on the high ceiling of the salon. "At least that we can agree on."
He returned to sit down into his chair, when suddenly there was the sound of shattering glass. Everyone turned around to look at the window, then some more shattering glass. Giacomo sank to the ground and Giulia collapsed in her armchair.
"SHOOTER!" Alison shouted.
With great presence of mind, all members of the Connor team threw themselves to the ground. Giulia and Giacomo, however, were obviously hit and large bloodstains formed on both of their upper bodies. It was clear that both had been hit by more than just one bullet.
"Automatic rifle with a silencer," Cameron analyzed. "Everyone stay down!"
"Got it," John confirmed. "Alison, take care of Giulia and Giacomo!"
"Already at it," she replied, kneeling next to them to feel their life signs. "Both their hearts have already stopped beating. But Giacomo is more critically wounded, so I'll treat first him and then Giulia."
Emily switched the lights off again and looked out of the window.
"Can you get a fix on his position?" John asked, still crouching on the ground.
"From the line of fire I can conclude that shots were fired from a window on the second floor of a building diagonally opposite on the other side of the canal. Distance: fifty-four meters. No heat signatures. Fog has formed and the fine droplets are interfering with my optical sensors. I'd say the shooter either took cover or has already fled."
"Alison, as soon as you're finished with administering the nanobots, hunt down the shooter and bring him here."
"You got it."
"Anyone else wounded?"
Nobody answered.
"Good. Emily, Cam, close all the curtains in the house, we don't want to get any more surprises."
The shooter had been waiting for almost an hour. Through the closed windows of the palazzo no single target could be made out. Then it slowly got dark and rising fog threatened the assignment. A couple more minutes and nothing would be visible anymore over there. finally the light was switched on. That was the decisive moment. After Giulia and her uncle had been identified, the sniper fired two volleys from the precision rifle that was mounted on a tripod. Afterwards, the weapon was immediately dismantled and bagged in a case. Twenty seconds later and under cover of darkness and the thickening fog, the shooter left the house that was currently empty for renovation and had therefore offered an excellent firing position.
The alleys were all deserted, and the sniper walked at a measured pace, not too fast and not too slow, hiding under a long coat and a hood, carrying the case with the gun. It had been a routine job, nothing special. The Mala del Brenta paid well for such services. Eros should be satisfied, it was clean work. As he had insisted, the American tourists hadn't been hurt. He probably wanted to deal with them personally.
It was an eerie night. The thickening fog brought a damp coldness that penetrated every gap in the clothing. Suddenly the hairs on the back of the shooter's neck stood up. Was there somebody following? Stepping into a house entrance, the sniper listened. But there was only silence and after twenty seconds, the shooter continued his way.
But there was still the feeling of being pursued. Stopping again and turning around revealed nothing but silence and solitude. Venice could be a creepy place at night, especially now, with the dense fog that had begun to cover the lagoon like a blanket. The visibility was rapidly diminishing and the light of the street lamps was being dispersed by the mist. The shooter turned back around and resumed his walk. Then, out of nowhere, a naked woman blocked her way. Before the sniper could react, the woman's hand had grabbed her throat and held it in an iron grip.
"Gotcha," Alison said in a satisfied tone.
As the scent had already told her, the sniper was a young woman and not a man. She could hardly be more than thirty years old. A scar ran across her face, probably the result of a knife attack. The helpless sniper tried to free herself and attempted to hit Alison with her fists and kick her with her feet, but it was of course in vain. Just as the struggling woman pulled out a knife, Alison pressed her carotid artery. Only seconds later, she'd fallen unconscious. Then Alison took her on her shoulder, grabbed the case with the rifle in it and disappeared into the night.
"Did Alison just jump off the balcony naked?" Lauren asked when her eyes had gotten used to the darkness again, seeing the clothes lying on the floor.
"Yes, she's hunting down the shooter," Cameron replied.
"What about Giacomo and Giulia?" Savannah asked.
As if on cue, there were two gasps and a few coughs, then the aforementioned sat up again and felt their upper bodies.
"What happened?" Giacomo asked confused.
"You were dead," Emily replied and switched the lights on again, now that the heavy curtains on all of the windows had been closed. "But I guess you feel better now."
Giulia and Giacomo looked down on themselves in complete astonishment. His shirt and her blouse were covered in fresh blood. Several bullet holes were visible in them but there were no wounds on their bodies.
"How…?" Giacomo began to ask. "What…?"
"You were hit by five bullets each," Cameron explained. "Precision automatic rifle, probably mounted on a tripod to compensate for the recoil. Very professional."
"What?" Giulia asked. "But… oh my God… we were dead, you say?"
"You were," Lauren confirmed. "Only for a moment, though. Don't worry, no one stays dead for long with Alison around."
"She… she saved our lives? Again?"
"You can thank her when she gets back."
"Where did she go?" Giacomo asked.
"Hunting down the shooter," Savannah replied. "Don't worry, he won't get far, no matter how good he is or how fast he runs."
"She'll bring him in for interrogation," John added. "If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say this carries Eros' handwriting. Only this time, he tried a more direct approach."
"Was anyone of you hurt as well?" Giulia asked.
"No," Allie replied. "Apparently, the shooter waited until your uncle switched on the lights, then quickly targeted and shot you. Those windows are huge. To be honest, it would have been hard to miss you."
"We... we should put on clean clothes, uncle," Giulia said in a remarkably composed tone.
"What?" he asked. "Oh… right. Right… if you excuse us for a moment…"
"Sure, no problem," John replied and pointed at the flatscreen TV in the room, "can I switch it on?"
"Sure, but why? There's only crap on it."
"I wanna watch the news, see if there's anything on it that might be interesting. It's a habit. At home and on the Rising Star, we have the news running all day. Also, the new president's inauguration should be happening around now."
"Uh… sure… yeah, help yourself. The remote is on the shelf over there."
Ten minutes later, Giulia and her uncle returned to the salon, both now wearing clean clothes.
"Look," John said and pointed at the TV. "Seems like Eros didn't take it well that his poison attack didn't go as planned."
The reporter who spoke into the camera reported on two floaters that had been found in one of Venice's canals in the late afternoon. The bodies were identified as Aldo Giordano and Luca Franco.
"Aldo?" Giacomo asked. "The owner of the café?"
"And the waiter," Allie confirmed. "Looks like we spared their lives for nothing. Apparently Eros doesn't tolerate failure – or people who can't remember anything."
"Oh, for God's sake!" Giacomo exclaimed. "All this for a house? All right, first thing in the morning I'll drive to Verona to see Masina and agree to the sale. The whole thing isn't worth it. Not if people have to die for it."
"I think the whole thing has less to do with Masina than with Eros' wounded pride," Giulia said. "I don't think Masina ordered this. He's not a murderer. Eros, however, is."
"Still…" Giacomo insisted, "it's not worth it."
"Maybe we can make you reconsider once you found out what's behind it all," Alison's voice came from the open door to the balcony.
She let the body of the shooter fall to the floor and put the case with the weapon down.
"Whoa!" Giacomo exclaimed and quickly turned away from her. "She's… she's…"
"Naked, yes," John stated. "She needs to be for her camouflage to work."
"Camouflage?" Giulia asked. "Oh, right… you mentioned that earlier."
Alison quickly got dressed again. After that, the attention focused on the person she'd brought with her.
"Is that... a woman?" Jody asked.
"Yes," Alison confirmed and pulled back the hood from the sniper's head. "I was as surprised as you are when I followed her scent."
"Is she alive?" Giacomo asked.
"Of course," Alison replied, "I wouldn't kill her without interrogating her first. I rendered her unconscious and administered a drug that keeps her that way until I wake her up."
"There have been rumors that one of the most dangerous killers of the Mala del Brenta is a woman," Giulia said. "but the rumors also claim that she's a ghost, a phantom. So, most people think it's an urban legend."
"Apparently, it isn't. And she wasn't like a ghost. I had no trouble following her scent and overtake her. John, what do you want me to do with her?"
"She needs to know she's a prisoner," John replied. "She needs to feel helpless, alone and exposed. We should put her alone in a dark room. Maybe that intimidates her. Do you have an empty room in the house, Giacomo?"
"Uh… no. But a house on the other side of the canal is currently under renovation. It's empty."
"That's where she fired from," Alison remarked. "I'll take her over there. It might be a good thing if she doesn't immediately realize who's prisoner she is. Not knowing what's going on causes fear in people."
"Good. Do that."
"But I doubt she'll be cooperative," Alison quickly added. "I checked her vital signs while I followed her. She's extremely cold-blooded. Her pulse was normal, even when I had my hand on her throat. Also, she had three knives hidden within her clothes. I threw them all into the canal."
"We have to at least give it a shot," John said, "Try to scare her, be creepy, unsettle her. When she turns out to be stubborn and remains uncooperative, you can go up a notch. Make her talk but don't do any permanent damage. We might still need her."
"Understood."
"What does that mean?" Giulia asked. "Are you going to torture her?"
"Not if I can avoid it," Alison replied.
"That's not really an answer we can accept," Giacomo stated.
John looked at Alison.
"Can you make her talk without physically or mentally harming her?"
"I can try, John. I have an idea but not sure if it'll work."
"You can do it, I believe in you."
She beamed at him.
"But before you start, we better contact John Henry and see if her fingerprints or DNA find a match in the data banks of the Italian police. Would be nice to know who exactly we're dealing with here."
-0-
Slowly, the woman opened her eyes. It was dark, and she was cold. She immediately noticed that she'd been stripped of her clothes, she was naked like a newly born… like that woman she'd suddenly faced in the alley. Who was she? Where had she come from so suddenly? She'd appeared out of nowhere and grabbed her with inhuman strength. And where had she brought her? It was pitch black. Even after several minutes, there was absolutely nothing to make out. The air smelled of paint thinner. A room that was just being painted or renovated, perhaps? She had to assume that she was now that woman's prisoner.
She got up and tried to feel her way around, then noticed that she felt a little dizzy. Probably the fumes. She made a few unsteady steps in the absolute darkness, stretching out her hands. The floor was wooden, that was about the only thing she could sense. Panting heavily, she started using meditative techniques she'd taught herself. Slowly, she calmed down, her heart beating slower. She listened. But there was no sound. The house was absolutely quiet. Was she alone there? The silence was so intense that she could hear the blood rushing in her ears. From somewhere far away outside, she heard a dog barking. How long had she been unconscious? There was no way of telling. It was probably the dead of night by now.
"It's two minutes past midnight. Witching hour."
The woman startled in shock and whirled around. The voice had come out of the darkness behind her without a warning. It didn't sound human, it sounded demonic, deep and distorted. She looked around and saw two red dots shine where the voice had come from.
"That's what you were asking yourself, wasn't it?" the creepy voice continued. "You were wondering what time it would be... Gabriella."
Alison monitored the woman's vital functions. Her pulse had spiked shortly upon mentioning her name and her adrenaline level was high, that much was a given. She also felt cold. But apart from that, she didn't seem to feel any fear. Her body had reacted reflexively when she'd heard Alison's voice, the same voice she had once used in the interrogation of Alison Young - which seemed ages ago, in a darker, crueler time and place – but the woman, Gabriella, didn't seem to be intimidated by it at all.
"Interesting," Alison said in her distorted voice. "You really don't seem to feel any fear. How peculiar."
"Who are you?" Gabriella asked. "And how do you know my name?"
"That wasn't too hard. The police in Naples still has your fingerprints on file. Thanks to the internet, such information is fairly easy to access, it just requires some hacking skills. You're Gabriella Santini, 31, daughter of a stage magician. You slipped into drug addiction as a teenager, killed a dealer who tried to rape you and cut your face with a bread knife during the fight. That's where you got the scar from. You got arrested and went to prison, where you met a mafioso who helped you escape and assume a new identity. You've been working as a hit woman ever since. Unfortunately, they failed in deleting your police records. Amateurs…"
Gabriella made a leap forward and tried to hit the spot where the voice came from with a roundhouse kick. Her foot exploded in pain as it hit something very hard, unyielding, as if she had kicked a steel sculpture. She cried out as the pain shot through her ankle and crawled up her leg.
"Oops," Alison said, "should have warned you. Better not try that again."
Gabriella was limping, she could no longer put weight on her right foot. She quickly realized that she had just more or less ruined her chances to escape.
"I promised John not to harm you," Alison remarked with unconcealed schadenfreude in her voice, "but I suppose harming yourself doesn't count."
"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU!? If you're from the Vicenza family…"
"I'm not a member of the mafia. But let's not talk about me. Let's talk about you, Gabriella. Unfortunately, nobody bothered to give you psychological counseling as a child, otherwise it would have been noticed earlier that you're a sociopath who's incapable of normal human emotions. I've met someone like you before. Her name was Julia. She didn't end well."
"What do you want from me?"
Suddenly, the room was bathed in light as a spotlight was switched on, one of those that are used to illuminate houses under construction. Gabriella squinted against the sudden brightness, then recognized the woman she had encountered in the alley. Only this time, she wore clothes, and Gabriella was naked. Reversed roles. She suddenly felt exposed but didn't let it show, demonstratively not covering herself.
"I want to know who hired you to kill Giacomo Bellini and Giulia Silvani," Alison said in her normal voice, the red glow gone from her eyes. "We already have a hunch who did it, but we want to know it from you to be sure."
"Fuck you!"
"Tell me, how is it to live without any social contacts? Do you miss being with people who care for you? That must be hard for a human."
Gabriella huffed.
"I don't need anyone."
"Wrong. You need me."
"For what?"
"For determining if we should let you live or not."
Gabriella huffed again.
"So kill me then."
Alison tilted her head.
"You're serious. You really wouldn't mind if I killed you."
Gabriella didn't reply but just stared at her.
"It is strange, this thing called survival instinct," Alison continued, "normally it kicks in in such situations, it always shines through and gets the upper hand. But in your case…"
"I don't wanna die… but I'm not afraid to."
"I know… You lack the ability to experience fear, which includes the fear of death. What do you say we change that, hm?"
Alison stepped forward and grabbed Gabriella's wrist. The woman tried to struggle free, but it felt as if her arm had been locked in a bench vise. Why did this woman have such incredible physical strength? As much as she pulled and used all her body weight, she couldn't achieve anything. Suddenly, she started to feel strange. Gabriella began to tremble all over, and her heartbeat accelerated. She looked Alison in the eyes and they suddenly glowed red again. She gasped, and a previously unknown panic overcame her, which worsened from second to second and awakened in her the desire to run away. But she was trapped in this woman's iron grip.
"Wha… what is… ha.. happening to m.. me?" she asked in a suddenly frightful voice, frantically trying to free herself.
"That, my dear Gabriella, is called being terrified. I've altered your body chemistry slightly so that you can experience real fear for the first time."
"I… I… oh God… please… I…"
Suddenly, the fear was gone again. Gabriella took a deep breath of relief.
"And now I reset you again," Alison stated. "How did you like the experience?"
Gabriella didn't reply, she just breathed very heavily, slowly calming down.
"This is a nice way to interrogate you without actually harming you. I repeat myself: who tasked you with killing Giacomo Bellini and Giulia Silvani?"
"F… fuck you!" Gabriella replied and spat Alison in the face.
Then, without warning, the fear was back again with a vengeance. Gabriella's knees gave way and she emptied her bladder.
"Please…" she stammered, shaking all over.
"Please what?" Alison asked in her distorted voice again.
"AAAAAAAAAAH!" Gabriella screamed, "Please… stop it.! Don't kill me… don't kill me… please… don't kill me… I…"
"Will you talk now?"
The fear was gone again. Gabriella was a mess: naked, shaking, sweating, having wet herself.
"I… I… I can't tell you… I made… an oath."
The woman was clearly a mess, and all that from just inducing fear in her.
"I'm surprised how effective this is," Alison remarked coolly. "Fear is so underrated, if you ask me. I can switch it on and off in you as often as I want. I can crank it up to a level where you might even lose your mind. But we don't want that, do we?"
"I… I… I won't break my… oh God! Oh my God… please!" Gabriella started sobbing as the fear returned, once again having increased a bit. "Pleeeeeeeeease… oh God…."
"You know," Alison said and knelt in front of the wailing woman, "it will be interesting to see how much more I can crank it up until you're finally broken."
-0-
"How much longer does she need?" Giacomo asked, nervously pacing up and down in his salon.
"Relax, uncle," Giulia said, "Alison's only gone for an hour."
"If you hadn't insisted on not harming her, she'd be back already," Cameron stated. "But of course that would have meant permanent mental damage to Gabriella."
Suddenly, the naked body of a young woman came flying into the room through the closed curtain of the open balcony door. Alison followed her after a second.
"I think she's ready," she stated. "Aren't you, Gabriella?"
"Yes! Yes, yes, yes, I'm ready… I'm gonna tell you everything."
"She seems terrified," Giulia observed.
"She is," Alison confirmed, "turns out that at some point, fear can't be suppressed anymore. I'm afraid her days as a sociopath are over."
"What did you do to her?" John asked, looking at the naked woman who'd curled up in a fetal position.
"Well, I tested an old saying: The only thing we need to fear, is fear itself. Don't worry, I didn't do any permanent damage, I only made her able to have emotions. And once her mind was open, I did something I should have done earlier when interrogating people."
"And what is that?"
"Make them understand."
Everyone looked at Alison in confusion, waiting for her explanation.
"What is it they say? 'The monster never sees a monster in the mirror'. Evil persons never consider themselves evil. But what if that suddenly changes? I made Gabriella look into the mirror and showed her the monster she has been. To say that it scared her beyond belief would be an understatement. As it turns out, the worst thing you can do to a person seems to be tearing down the wall of mental barriers and defenses they have built around themselves."
"Eew, she stinks," Jody stated. "Did she… wet herself?"
"Yeah, I'm afraid she did. We should clean her up and let her put on some clothes before questioning her. I'm quite sure she'll be talking like a waterfall now."
Twenty minutes later, Gabriella had been cleaned and given new clothes.
"Eros hired me," she said in a more composed tone but was still shaking, "the rest of the Mala del Brenta doesn't know about it. He's doing this on his own. It's known that he's a hotspur who doesn't care much about discipline and orders. His father is one of the bosses, so he gets away with almost everything."
She sounded refreshed yet somehow exhausted. She spoke in a rather low and monotone voice. Clearly, she was beaten and broken and didn't dare looking anyone of them in the eyes, especially not Giulia and Giacomo, who to her surprise were very much alive.
"Kids of rich or influential fathers always get away with everything," Jason commented with disdain in his voice. "It's the same everywhere, whether it's in high school or in the mafia."
"Who else knows about this whole operation?" John asked.
"Only Eros and his closest cronies. Those who hope to make a career in the Mafia by kissing his ass."
"It makes things a little easier," Savannah stated. "Apparently, the number of people we need to take out is manageable."
"What role does Jonas Masina play in all this?" Giacomo asked. "Why is he so interested in getting my house?"
"I don't know," Gabriella replied, "I only know that Eros works for Masina rather often."
"Is Masina with the Mafia?" Giulia asked.
"What? No, he's much too exposed for that. But he likes to make use of Eros and his men from time to time. It's a business agreement for mutual benefit."
"So... Eros does Masina's dirty work, but the Mala del Brenta doesn't know about it?"
Gabriella nodded.
"If they knew, Eros would be in big trouble. The mafia doesn't like split loyalties."
"So, Masina told Eros to kill us?" Giacomo asked.
"No," Gabriella replied. "He only told Eros to observe you and to roughen you up a bit. The idea with the poison and hiring me to kill you was Eros' idea. Masina wasn't informed. He wouldn't have approved of it."
"How many men are we talking about here anyway?" John asked. "How many cronies follow Eros?"
"About twenty."
"And where can we find them?"
"Usually they hang out in Eros' place - an abandoned glass factory on Murano which Eros has turned into a luxury hideout. Lots of space there."
"And they're there day and night?"
"Mostly… except now a couple of men have been tasked with observing this palazzo. Eros wants to know who the Americans are who humiliated him, and then take revenge on them. For that he must first find out where you came from and where you're staying here in Venice."
"He'll never know," John said and looked at Alison.
She nodded and walked out of the room, starting to take off her clothes again. No more words were needed when talking to her husband, they understood each other blindly.
"And remember our agreement," John called after her.
"I will," she simply replied.
"Where's she going now?" Giacomo asked. "What agreement?"
"She's going to clear the path for us," John replied. "Say, that Riva Tritone in front of the palace, is that your boat?"
"What? Uh… yes…" Giacomo replied a little perplexed about the sudden change of topic, "but why?"
"Is it ready to go?"
"Sure. I mean… the tank should be half full and… wait… you're not planning on visiting Eros on Murano, are you?"
"No, I don't… but Alison will. Together with Gabriella." John turned towards Giulia. "You said you're from Milan?"
She nodded.
"How did you get here?"
"My car is parked in one of the multistory car parks at the port of Venice, but…"
"Emily and I need to borrow it," John interrupted her.
"What? For what?"
"For a drive to Verona."
-0-
Tuesday, January 20th, 2009 – 05:32 p.m.
Los Angeles
John Henry walked into Catherine Weaver's office.
"We have him," he announced.
"The hacker? Ron Jeremy?"
"Yes, he took the bait. Until he realized he hit another dead end, I was able to track him."
"And?"
"Verona, Italy. In a building that belongs to a company called Masina S.p.A."
"Jonas Masina?"
"You know him?"
"Only briefly. I met him at a dinner party a few months ago, together with a friend of his who tried to convince me to join some ominous rich people's club. He'd already approached Isaak about it. We both said no. We lack the time to engage in secret societies."
"Why does he want to hack Zeira Corp?"
"I don't know."
"What do you want me to do now?"
"Were you able to infiltrate the computer on the other end without being noticed? Does he know you located him?"
"No, but his PC is a standalone machine. Once the hacker realized it was another dead end, he unplugged his PC from all wall sockets. I didn't have time to look for more computers over the power grid."
"Did he suspect something?"
"I doubt it, he's just being extra careful. I'm sure he'll try again, though. His ego is now awakened. I'll remain watchful."
"Well done, John Henry."
Catherine smiled. John Henry smiled back with his silly smile and left the office.
"Jonas Masina," she said to herself, "what are you up to?"
-0-
In Venice, Alison climbed onto the roof of the Palazzo Bellini and scanned the vicinity. Through the thick brick walls, it was hard to make out any bio signs, but fortunately Gabriella had mentioned that Eros' goons were probably hiding in the alleyways around the palazzo. There were four possible routes that led away from it. Since most of the houses in Venice were built directly next to each other or only separated by narrow alleys, it wasn't a problem for her to jump from roof to roof in order to make some shortcuts and prevent the villains from alerting each other.
John wouldn't have had to remind her of their agreement before she left. She was a cyborg, she never forgot anything, especially not a deal she'd made with her husband. That was just John's way, he was a human being, and she loved him not in spite of, but because of his many human quirks. Humans liked to remind someone else of something, even if it was unnecessary. It gave them reassurance. This had been hard for her to understand at first, back in the war against Skynet. But her chip was designed to learn, so she had quickly absorbed the quirks and oddities of human behavior while working for General John Connor.
The agreement was simple: if she couldn't avoid to kill in public places, she was not allowed to leave any traces - no blood, no DNA, no bodies. To accomplish this, she was allowed to be creative. John had come up with this idea after they had time to reflect on their adventures in Germany, Barcelona, and Zermatt. It filled her with pride and joy because it meant that he trusted her to handle such a situation according to her own judgement. She realized how absolute his confidence in her was, so she wouldn't disappoint her beloved husband.
Suddenly, she saw a small heat signature on the opposite site of the canal. Someone stood in the alley called Calle dei Albanesi and lit a cigarette. Naked and in full camouflage mode, Alison quietly made her way to the edge of the roof, scanning the ground in front of her to detect any loose roof tiles that could make a noise when she stepped on them. She was one with the night around her, and as long as her opponents didn't have infrared vision – which they hopefully wouldn't – they'd never know what was happening to them before it was too late. She jumped down and landed on the bridge over the canal. From there, she silently entered the alley.
Her target had taken cover behind a large wooden crate. It was clear that he felt uncomfortable alone in this cool, foggy night. Alison immediately recognized that the man was armed, which clearly identified him as one of the cronies Eros had sent to surveil them. But she had to make sure, so she stood behind him and let her chemical messengers work.
"Are you one of the men Eros sent to watch the Palazzo Bellini?" she asked him in Italian.
The man startled and looked around confused at first, for the voice had come from thin air. Then he suddenly relaxed.
"I… yes," he replied blankly. "Yes, I am."
"What's your name?"
"Toni."
"Okay, Toni. Have you witnessed how Giacomo Bellini and Giulia Silvani got shot?"
"No."
That was good news because he had a clear view to the window on the second floor from his position, and if he hadn't noticed it, then nobody would have. Which meant Eros still didn't know if Gabriella has been successful or not."
"What's your assignment here?"
"To observe the Palazzo Bellini and follow the American tourists when they leave it. Then, when I found out where they're staying, I'm to inform Eros about their location."
"I see. How many more of you are here?"
"We're four, including me."
"Where are the others?"
"Massimo hides in a boat fifty meters away on the side of the canal. Daniele watches the palazzo from the Ramo Albanesi. And Sandra is hiding in the alley next to Bellini's garden to watch the entrance."
"Sandra…? You mean Sandra Gianni, Eros' girlfriend?"
"Yes. She's very good with knives."
"Are Massimo and Daniele armed?"
"Only with pistols."
"I see. Open your mouth."
He did so. She let a thick glob of nanobot gel fall into her mouth. Then she took a step back and watched. After a moment, Toni started sweating heavily. Then he started retching. He threw up, but it wasn't vomit coming out of his mouth but water. Liter after liter. Finally, having turned completely into water, his whole body disintegrated with one big splash and formed a puddle that quickly flowed into the gully. All that remained, were his clothes, his phone, his wristwatch and his gun. Alison picked it all up, bound everything into a neat bundle and threw it down into the canal where it sank to the ground. All that was left of Toni, was a large wet stain on the pavement. By morning it would have dried.
She took out the other two men, Massimo and Daniele, in the same manner, turning their bodies into water, throwing their belongings into the canal. Then she went looking for Sandra in the alley next to Giacomo's garden. It didn't take her long to find a human female hiding in a recess. Still invisible, Alison approached her and let her chemical messengers do their work.
"Are you Sandra Gianni?"
"Yes."
"You're Eros' girlfriend?"
"Yes."
Alison could tell through her clothes that Sandra was a beautiful, dark-haired girl in her early twenties with a perfect figure and an innocent-looking face.
"Tell me, what does Eros fear the most?"
Sandra answered truthfully and Alison tilted her head.
"Interesting, that gives me an idea."
When Alison re-entered the salon in the Palazzo Bellini, she was fully dressed again, with Sandra following her like a puppy.
"Who's that?" John asked with a frown.
"Sandra Cianni," Giacomo answered in his place, sounding flabbergasted. "Eros' girlfriend."
"I found her watching the garden entrance," Alison explained.
"She looks like a zombie," Giulia observed. "What did you do to her?"
"I brought her body under my control. Her mind is still very much awake in there, only no longer at the helm. She will do everything I say and answer all questions truthfully."
"Why did you do that and why did you bring her here?" John asked.
"Well, firstly, she can give us lots of information. Secondly, she can be very useful when we enter Eros' estate on Murano."
"Good thinking. What about the others? I suppose there were more than her?"
"Three more. They won't bother us anymore. But we need to act quickly before Eros finds out they're missing."
"Can I ask Sandra a question while she's here and under your control?" Giulia said. "I've always been curious about her motivations and this is too good an opportunity to let it pass."
"Sure, go ahead," Alison replied. "She'll answer truthfully."
Giulia smirked and looked Sandra in the eyes.
"What do you find in Eros? You're young and beautiful. the whole world is open to you, you can get any man you want. Why a Mafioso like Eros, why a killer?"
"Eros is cold-blooded but naive when it comes to women. He loves me sincerely and has power and influence."
"Do you also love him?"
"Yes, I think so. Not as much as he loves me, though. But he's also useful to me. He's my chance to gain power and influence after my public humiliation when they took the title of Miss Italia from me. I hope that this way I will eventually come into a position where I can take revenge on those responsible."
"And what do you want to do with them if you get the chance?"
"I will ask Eros to kidnap them, so that I can have a little fun with them with my knife before killing them."
Giulia turned towards John.
"Okay, I heard enough, it is as I suspected. What a rotten bitch."
John smiled.
"All right then," he said and turned towards Alison. "You, Sandra and Gabriella use Giacomo's motorboat to drive to Murano. Infiltrate Eros' compound and take him and his cronies out."
"Understood. Do you have any special instructions?"
"No, do what's necessary."
Alison smiled. There it was again, the proof that John trusted her completely.
"Wait, what does that mean?" Giulia asked. "Is she going to kill them?"
John turned towards her.
"Look, right now, we can still keep this contained. The number of people who know about Eros' little business agreement with Masina is limited. Once the knowledge is spread into the ranks of the Mala del Brenta, it's going to be a lot more difficult. We can stop it all here and now."
"How… um… how about making them compliant? Delete their memories?"
John sighed.
"We already talked about that. This is the mafia. Nobody will wonder about killings. But everyone would become suspicious if these gangsters became benefactors, idiots or walk around like zombies all of a sudden. Besides, the changes in the brain can be detected through a medical checkup. Right, Alison?"
"John is correct," Alison answered, looking at Giulia and Giacomo, "my mind manipulations could be detected. The chemical messengers lead to physical changes in the brain, which can be detected in an MRI, for example. We mustn't use this ability too often and too excessive. I put Sandra under my spell because she'll be instrumental in getting rid of Eros."
"Okay… but what about Masina? Killing him as well would be unwise."
"Oh, definitely," John agreed. "We won't harm him. Our little trip to Verona is only about finding out what he wants with your palazzo. We won't face him, and we'll find other ways to take him out of the picture."
"And I suppose you're not going to tell us about those ways?" Giacomo asked.
"No," John replied, "it's better for you to not know, just in case someone questions you. Emily and I will pay his company headquarters a visit. Let's see what else he's got to hide. Maybe we can collect material that Giulia can use for a story about him. I'm pretty sure he has more than one skeleton in his closet."
"Are you sure about that?" Giulia asked. "His office building is better secured than Fort Knox."
"I could break into Fort Knox at any time without anyone noticing," Emily replied succinctly, "all modern security systems are computer-controlled, and there are no electronics in existence that I cannot manipulate or disable."
"So," Giacomo said and looked at Cameron, "Alison can control minds, Emily can control electronic devices and computers, what is your special talent?"
"I'm playing a mean game of poker," Cameron replied. "Actually, that's not true. I've been banned from the poker table by Derek and Charley… and from the billiard table… and the darts board… and…"
"Now you're pulling my leg," Giacomo stated.
"I am," Cameron confirmed. "About your question, you have to understand that Alison and Emily gained their special abilities through tragic events. Alison had to sacrifice her body for it, and Emily, well… we told you about her forty-three years of suffering. I didn't go through anything like that."
"So.. you aren't envious of the other two?" Giulia asked.
"No, I'm not," Cameron replied, "and I don't feel inadequate if that's your next question. Okay, the two have special talents. So what? Humans also have special talents. Some can paint, some can compose music. Are they envied? Yes. But envy is a very human thing and…"
"… you're not human," Giulia finished the sentence for her. "I got your point."
"You could say," John added and put his arm around Cameron, "that her special talent is being the original, unaltered, unchanged Cameron, the girl I originally fell in love with. And while I love the other two as much as I love her, she'll always have a special place in my heart."
"Aww," Cameron said and kissed him deeply. "Thank you, John."
"The truth is," Alison said, "that Emily and I often envy Cameron for what she is. She is what we used to be before we got changed. John loves us all the same, but the source of this love lies within Cam."
"But aren't you all Cameron?" Giulia asked. "Your chips…"
"… are the same, yes," Emily interrupted her, "but the longer we exist as separate entities, the more we become individual persons. In contrast to Alison, I chose to look this way because too much pain and suffering was connected with my original body. I could return to my original looks at any time if I wanted to, but this is who I am now. And I know I'm being loved and accepted the way I am."
"Fascinating," Giulia commented, "Like everyone else, I had my ideas and assumptions about you - how you are, what you do, what you like and what you don't like. But actually being here with you and discussing these profound things with you... I think I'm just now beginning to understand that while you're machines... you're also alive. I can't tell you how thrilled I am. I'm having goosebumps all over my body."
"Living with them is a privilege," Lauren stated.
"Yes," Morris agreed, "when I first met Cameron, I had a crush on her because she was so weird and dark, and… different. Of course I didn't know back then what she was. But when I finally knew, I witnessed how over time she became more and more, well… like us. I'm not having a crush on her anymore, I now have Lauren but… I understand what Alison means when she says that Cameron is the source of their love."
"Wow, that was really deep for you, bro," John stated grinning.
"Hey, just because I keep my mouth shut most of the time, it doesn't mean I've got nothing to say. It's just that I'm being surrounded by so many clever people that it's hard for me to speak up."
"You're doing fine," Lauren assured and kissed him.
"Okay, before this turns into a mass snogging," Savannah said with a mischievous grin, "maybe we should implement John's plan. I suppose Cam and the rest of us should stay here for now?"
"Yes," John confirmed. "Better safe than sorry."
"What shall we do?" Jody asked.
"I dunno… play board games, watch TV… or simply try to get some sleep."
Giacomo yawned.
"That was the cue. I'm so tired I could fall asleep right here and now."
"Good idea, uncle," Giulia agreed. "And who knows? Maybe tomorrow all our problems will be solved."
"That would be nice for a change," Giacomo agreed.
-0-
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009 – 00:52 a.m.
Verona
"What do you mean they kicked you out again?" Jonas Masina asked on the phone.
"I mean that Zeira Corp's protective software is custom-made and more sophisticated than anything I've ever seen. I'm in with one foot now but I need to put a lot more effort into pushing the door completely open, if you catch my drift."
"And you're calling me in the middle of the night just to tell me that?"
"I'm sorry, you said you wanted to be informed immediately of any new development."
"I want to be informed about successes, not about being half way there. I pay you for hacking, not for failing to hack."
"Yes, Sir. My mistake. I shall continue then."
"And Stefano?"
"Yes, Sir?"
"From now on, only call me when you have good news."
"Yes, Sir."
Masina hung up and let himself fall back onto his pillow.
"Who was that?" his wife mumbled half asleep.
"Just a jerk from work. Go back to sleep, honey."
-0-
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009 – 01:25 a.m.
Venice
Giulia led John and Emily to her car, which was parked in the "Garage San Marco", one of the multistory car parks that were built at the entrance to the city, and which was open for twenty-four hours every day. It was a long but narrow building with six parking decks. Exiting the elevator on the fifth level, Giulia walked ahead along the rows of parked cars until she stopped at a blue Mini Cooper.
"Cars are considerably smaller here on average than in L.A.," Emily observed while looking around.
"The small car was invented in Italy," John explained. "You wouldn't make it through any of the old towns here in a pickup truck or even a small SUV."
"What now?" Giulia asked.
"Now you hand us the key, and Emily and I drive to Verona," John replied.
"No chance, I'm coming with you."
"Giulia…"
"I'll provide you with my car, but only under the condition that I come along."
"You could have said that earlier," Emily pointed out.
"And give you the chance to trick me and leave me behind? No way."
"You are aware that Emily could simply take the key from you, aren't you?"
"The way I judge you, you wouldn't use force against me."
John sighed.
"All right. But you're going in the back then. Emily will drive and I'll sit in the passenger seat."
"It'll be cramped but if that's the price I have to pay, so be it."
"Very well then."
Emily stretched out her hand.
"Key fob, please."
With a little hesitation, Giulia handed it to her.
"No scratches or dents, okay? The car is brand new."
"I'll try my best," Emily replied with a smirk. "What do you think, John? Does she have Cam's size?"
"Yeah, roughly the same figure."
"What? Why are you asking that?"
"Because before we set off, we need to change clothes," John replied.
"What, here?"
"No, on board our yacht. We can't do this in our street clothes, can we?"
"I haven't thought of that, to be honest…"
"We have camouflage cat suits. We're going to stop at the pier, go aboard and quickly change into them."
Ten minutes later, Emily had driven the Mini Cooper out of the carpark and towards the pier where the cruise ships had moored. She stopped right next to the Rising Star.
"That is what you call a yacht?" Giulia asked impressed.
"It's our home away from home," John replied smiling. "And you have to admit, it looks tiny next to those cruise ships."
"Yeah, but those cruise ships carry thousands of passengers and how many are you? Twenty?"
John didn't answer to that. They left the Mini and walked towards the Rising Star. The gangway had been hauled in for the night. But as always when they were in port, members of the crew patrolled the ship to deny access to unauthorized persons if necessary. John signaled to one of them that they wanted to be let on board. The crewman recognized them and lowered the gangway.
"Try to be as quiet as possible," John whispered as they sneaked towards their suite, "we don't want to wake anyone up, especially not mom. She'd ask questions and we don't have time to explain everything."
They reached the entrance to their suite and went inside. John switched on the light, then walked inside their bedroom. Giulia looked around and whistled.
"Wow, this is what I call fancy. Most people live in smaller apartments than this suite. Who was the owner of this ship again? Some Hollywood mogul?"
"Isaak Sirko," Emily answered, "Record producer, movie producer, owns several record labels and has interests in most major Hollywood studios."
"I think I heard of him… party guy, huh?"
"He's been part of the Hollywood elite, so yes… but nowadays he keeps more distance from all the hustle and bustle. We can't have any gossip, especially since he's married to Catherine."
"Catherine… Weaver? The shapeshifter?"
"Yes."
Giulia shook her head.
"Unbelievable. Well, at least it fits. If one was to marry one of those… machines, it has to be such an eccentric personality."
"Don't forget I'm also a machine and John is not an eccentric personality."
"I didn't.. I mean… because… Catherine's not a… oh, never mind."
John returned from the bedroom and carried three camouflage suits in his arms.
"Wow," Giulia said and felt the cloth, "what are these? They completely swallow the light. And they feel warm."
"Latest high tech from Zeira Corp. Catherine is producing them for the U.S. Army but they shy away from buying them, one costs about two million dollars. Their loss is our gain."
"Two million?"
"Uh-huh."
"And you entrust me with one? I have to warn you, I tend to ruin clothes."
"You won't be able to ruin these," Emily said and began to undress, followed by John. "They can even withstand a nine-millimeter bullet."
"Wait, what are you two doing?"
"Taking off our clothes," John replied, "they work best when put onto the naked skin. The material they're made from, creates warmth through movement."
"You're joking."
"Nope. Hurry up, this isn't the time for shame or embarrassment."
The three got naked and started putting on the cat suits. Giulia blushed a little. Apparently, she wasn't used to getting naked in front of others, even if they didn't look at her.
"What's going on in here? Who is that woman?"
The three turned their faces toward the open entrance door of the suite. There stood Sarah, her fists resting on her hips, a big frown on her face.
"Mom…" John said in surprise and smiled sheepishly, "we, uh… didn't want to wake you up."
"I wasn't sleeping. I heard noises. I repeat, what's going on here? And who are you?"
Giulia stared open-mouthed at Sarah.
"Uh… mom?"
"Yes, what!?"
"Um… you're naked."
"Yes, I know that I'm…"
Sarah looked at Giulia and her flabbergasted expression, realizing what John meant. Understanding hit her.
"Oh… um… I… I better put something on then."
"No need, mom, we'll be out of here in no time. This is Giulia, we met her today, I told you about her on the phone. We have, uh... some problems to sort out. I'll explain everything tomorrow, okay?"
The three finished putting on their camouflage suits, grabbed their normal clothes, then walked out of the suite.
"Bye, mom," John said and gave his mother a kiss on the cheek.
"Bye, mom," Emily echoed and did the same, pulling Giulia with her who was still paralyzed from the shock of seen Sarah standing there completely naked.
No words were spoken during the first twenty minutes of their drive to Verona. Finally, Giulia decided to break the silence.
"What is it with you and nudity? First Alison, then these suits that don't allow anything under it… and then your mother… in her birthday suit, behaving as if it was totally normal?"
"Well, for us, it actually is totally normal," John replied truthfully. "And these suits don't have to be worn without clothes underneath… it's just much more convenient. As for my mother, um…"
"It's because of Alison," Emily said, helping John out.
"What?"
"When she had just received her new body, she didn't have full control over the nanobots yet. They administered them to everybody, believing them to protect everyone from injuries, making everyone more or less invulnerable. It worked. But there were side-effects."
They explained everything to Giulia. It was an eighty-minute drive to Verona, so they had time to go into detail. John didn't know why he was so open towards the woman but since Alison had assured him she was trustworthy, he saw no problem with it. Besides, it was always good to have friends among journalists. Letting Tom Novak in on everything had turned out to be a stroke of luck. Hence, John figured It could never hurt to have more allies in the media industry. When they'd finished filling her in, Giulia said nothing for a while. Then she suddenly chuckled.
"What?" John asked.
"Oh, nothing… I just find it amusing that all the women in your team are now hardcore nudists. It sounds like the script for some silly fetish movie. There's bound to be some awkward situations."
"Yeah, well... we've been through some of them already," John admitted. "In retrospect, they may seem amusing, but when a group of sexually overexcited women can't control themselves anymore and pounce on you, well... let's just say I don't want that to happen again."
"Understandable."
"Now you know almost everything about us," Emily said. "I hope our trust in your is justified."
"It is. And right now I'm just very grateful to have been included by you."
"When this is over, we'll introduce you to the rest of the family. We're going to stay in Venice for two more days."
"I'm looking forward to getting to know them all."
"We're almost there," Emily announced. "GPS says it's ten more minutes."
"Good," John acknowledged. "I'm curious what Jonas Masina has done to keep unwanted visitors out of his office building."
"We should call John Henry. Maybe he can find out something about the building."
"Good idea," John replied, pulled out his smartphone and dialed John Henry's number. "Hi, John Henry … Yes, I'm fine … The others, too … Glad that you're fine as well … Yes … Listen, we need your help. We're currently arriving in Verona and need some information about an office build… what? … Yes, that's the address … Yes, Jonas Masina, how…? … No way… A hacker attack? … Wow, if that isn't a coincidence … Ron Jeremy, are you serious? … Yes, of course … Yes, we're planning on entering the building … Uh-uh … Okay … I see … Yes, we could do that … Twenty seconds should be enough … That's some really helpful intel, thank you … Let me get back to you in a moment, okay? … Bye!"
"Who's John Henry?" Giulia asked. "That doesn't sound like a real person's name."
"He's a friend who works for Catherine," Emily replied shortly and looked at John. "And he's definitely a real person. What did he say?"
"You won't believe it," John replied with a grin. "But someone from inside Masina's company is trying to hack into Zeira Corp – and he calls himself Ron Jeremy."
-0-
Alison, Gabriella and Sandra took Giacomo's motorboat to Murano. The archipelago lies a little further north in the lagoon. In former times, it was mainly known for the art of glassblowing and the associated manufactures. However, nowadays tourism and - to a much lesser extent – fishing are the main sources of income.
"So…" Gabriella began, "you're a cyborg, huh?"
"I am."
"How were you able to catch me so quickly?"
"I followed your scent."
"What, like a dog?"
"Yes."
"Then I never had a chance?"
"Never."
"Maybe it's for the best. Maybe I should even thank you for what you did to me."
"Do not rejoice too soon. There is no way to avoid being punished for your crimes, even if I made you regret them."
Gabriella lowered her gaze.
"I feel like having woken up from a nightmare," she said, "no matter what happens now, I'm grateful for what you did to me."
"Interesting, I'm still amazed how much it changes a person when you open their eyes about themselves. I hadn't expected it to be so drastic."
"Do you believe me that I honestly regret the things I did?"
"I do, your brain activity doesn't lie."
"Will you do the same to Eros?"
"No. We had already discussed this in the team. Eros' fate is sealed."
"I see."
Sandra – who sat next to them – heard and understood every word they were saying but she was a prisoner inside her own body, unable to move or speak, her mind screaming to get out. That was part of her punishment. Part one, so to speak. Part two would come later.
Alison steered the boat towards the western shore of the small island of Sacca Serenella. With her ability to see at night and even scan through the fog, Alison was able to spot a decaying jetty that was part of an industrial wasteland where a glass factory had once stood. Now it was all overgrown and derelict.
"That looks deserted," she stated.
"Don't let the external impression fool you," said Gabriella, "Eros deliberately didn't make the terrain look pretty. Only the area in the middle of the island was converted into a luxury property. He likes it mysterious and doesn't want visitors to be tempted to explore the island. There are hidden sentries everywhere in the ruins. If someone dares to come here anyway, they'll have to deal with Eros' thugs. The locals know this and warn strangers not to enter Sacca Serenella."
"The better for me," Alison commented, "the more he's isolated, the easier it will be for me to take him and his men out. You know the position of all those sentries, right?"
"Yes."
"Good."
Alison cut the engine of the boat when they were fifty meters away from the jetty. She scanned the shore, made sure nobody had noticed them coming, and quickly took off her clothes. Then she jumped into the water and pushed the boat towards the jetty, climbed ashore and helped the other two women out of the boat. Gabriella was carrying her gun case.
"Why do you want me to kill even more people?" she asked. "Now that you've broken and terrified me into understanding how bad a person I was, you surely know that I don't wanna kill anymore, don't you?"
"You will kill one more time tonight," Alison replied coolly. "Since you know all their positions, you will take out all of Eros' men while I take care of him and his bodyguards. You know the terrain and the fog will give you cover."
"But you can be invisible, you can detect their body heat, why do you need me to kill them?"
"I don't need you to kill them… I just want you to do it."
"But why?"
"Because someone has to take the blame. There will be dead bodies. I can't make them all disappear, it would raise questions when so many people disappear without trace, and we don't want this to make more headlines than necessary. The police will investigate the murders. And they will look for a perpetrator. You are already a murderer, so you're the logical choice."
Gabriella looked down.
"I guess I am," she said. "Is this supposed to be my punishment? Going to jail for life?"
"Not if the mafia catches you first."
Gabriella swallowed hard.
"If they know it was me… they'll kill me. And it won't be a pleasant death."
"You better don't get caught then. When this is over, you're free to go. You can run and hide – or at least try to. If you should get caught by the police, I expect you to make a full confession. If the mafia gets you first, well… tough luck then."
"So my options are either to run and hide, or go to prison, or let the Mala del Brenta kill me?"
"There are far worse fates than prison or death, as you will see tonight."
Gabriella gulped. Her hands were shaking, it was clear she was still extremely frightened. As far as she was concerned, Alison was nothing more or less than the angel of death.
"I will do as you ask," she finally stated meekly.
"Good. Sandra will have no problem getting to Eros, I will follow her in my camouflage mode. Meanwhile you will take out his men one by one with your sniper rifle. Afterwards, we'll meet in Eros' house. Understood?"
"Yes."
"Excellent. Now go."
Gabriella ran off and disappeared in the undergrowth. Alison watched her leave, then seemed to vanish in thin air as she activated her camouflage.
"Sandra," her voice came from where she was standing, now invisible.
"Yes?" Eros' girlfriend asked.
"Open your mouth."
The girl did so. Alison let a big glob of nanobot gel fall into it and waited until she'd swallowed it.
"Now listen. You will seduce Eros. You will have sex with him. Your body will now emanate pheromones he won't be able to resist."
"I understand," Sandra replied blankly.
"Behave like your normal self when you are with him."
"Okay."
"And when you orgasm..."
Alison explained to her in great detail what would happen when she orgasmed. Inside the prison of her mind, Sandra cried out in desperation and horror.
-0-
Emily stopped the Mini Cooper on an empty parking strip diagonally opposite the five-story office building in the old town of Verona. The streets were completely deserted at this time of night. Only a few homeless people were in sight.
"I don't think they'll be a problem," Emily answered John's unspoken question. "They look quite drunk."
"Right, what'll we do? Scouting first, I assume?"
"Yes, I'll take a quick walk around the block, scan the building as much as I can, then return to you."
She pulled the hood over her face, left the car and disappeared into the night.
"Can't we wait outside?" Giulia asked from the backseat. "I think my legs have gone dead. Damn it, why couldn't I have gotten a car where you can take somebody in the back without crippling them?"
"Sorry but we'll stay inside until Emily returns," John replied. "Try shifting your position."
Giulia groaned.
"Easier said than done."
"Hey, it's you who wanted to tag along."
"All right, all right! I hope it won't take too long."
"It won't. Don't forget she's basically a computer. Everything she sees, hears, scans or feels, is being processed a million times faster than our brain could."
"So... her mind works in time-lapse, so to speak?"
"Her computer brain does. For interacting with us humans and, well… the rest of the world, however, her thought processes are actually being slowed down. But she can, uh… release the handbrake, so to speak, and go into full machine mode anytime she sees fit. When she hacks into a computer, for instance."
"'Full machine mode'? That sounds like Star Trek technobabble."
John chuckled.
"Heh, yeah, but it's a catchy term. Emily, Cam and Alison use only a fraction of their computing power in everyday life. Their behavior is being matched to our behavior. For example, sometimes they seem to pause for thought even when they don't need to. It has become second nature to them."
"In other words, they're dumbing themselves down in order to interact with humans?"
"You could say that. I don't know how much of that was already programmed into them by Skynet, but when I met Cam for the first time, she was totally convincing as a teenage girl. Gestures, facial expressions, speech, everything was perfect. My guess is she adapted those already existing routines into her personality after becoming self-aware. But nobody can be sure. Even they don't know exactly how their brains work now."
"Like our consciousness can't be fully explained yet? Questions like: do we have a soul?"
"Yeah, like that. They've grown far beyond being just computers. At some point, the spark of life must have hit Cam. My guess is it had to do with the car explosion and her temporarily damaged chip, and that the process was accelerated when I met Riley. Before that, she could convincingly play a girl, but it was just a role. When Riley showed up, however, Cam obviously got jealous of her. We know that almost all cyborgs sooner or later become self-aware when their chips are switched to read/write and when they're left to their own devices. But it went extremely fast with Cam. Her feelings were already there, only she was unable or unwilling to accept or recognize them. I believe somehow Riley acted as a catalyst and accelerated the process."
"Who's Riley?"
"Ex-girlfriend. Sadly, she died."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay."
Suddenly, the driver's door was opened, and Emily slipped back inside.
"Wow, that was really fast," Giulia remarked.
"Shouldn't be a problem," Emily reported, "Two guards at the front desk, elderly men with tasers. And at the main entrance there is a contactless access card reader. I can hack that one in under three seconds."
"Two old men with tasers? That's not exactly high end security."
"No, but there's electronic stuff everywhere: cameras, motion sensors, laser barriers, you name it. Which means there won't be anyone patrolling the floors. Once we're in, I can hook up to their computer and shut down the security system. Then we'll have a clear path and can move around the whole building."
"How do we get in without being seen and triggering the alarm?" Giulia asked.
"That's what we have John Henry for," John replied and pulled out his cellphone again. "He'll create a short power failure in the grid. The lights will go out, Emily can catch the guards by surprise and take them out before they can raise the alarm. Then she can plug herself into the computer and hack herself into the security system to deactivate it. According to John Henry, all critical systems, like the IT department and security, are being powered by a backup battery until the emergency generator comes on, so they'll remain active during a power loss. Normally the system is foolproof. The two guards only have an alibi function in my eyes. They're probably pensioners with nothing else to do and only there to make potential burglars stay away."
"How do you know there aren't more of them inside the building?"
"The security system makes that unnecessary… and unpractical. More guards would only increase the risk of false alarms. The building protects itself... in theory. All we need, is a little darkness, so that the guards won't be able to give a statement later about who or what attacked them."
"But won't the cameras record everything?" Giulia asked.
John smiled.
"You forget that once Emily is in the system, she can manipulate all the recordings. Whoever designed the security system, couldn't expect a cyborg to infiltrate it and shut everything down."
Giulia looked at Emily.
"You can do that? Enter the building and deactivate the entire security system? Even without knowing its exact design?"
"Piece of cake," she answered and pulled out her USB adapter cable.
-0-
Sandra had no problem whatsoever walking past the guards around Eros' estate. In fact, they greeted her respectfully. Alison followed her silently without being seen. As they entered the main living area, Eros lounged on the sofa and watched two of his cronies playing video games on a huge flat screen TV while four more were hanging around, doing nothing. Alison recognized three of them from when they'd beaten up Giacomo. Eros looked up and frowned when he saw Sandra enter the room. He wore a protective face mask over his broken nose. Alison had to smile. Well done, Savannah.
"What are you doing here?" he asked. "I didn't tell you to leave your post at the palazzo."
"Bellini and Silvani are dead," Sandra replied and let herself fall onto the sofa. "The Americans escaped headlong. Toni, Massimo and Daniele are on their heels. I saw no reason to stay in that recess between the houses any longer. The fucking fog crawled into my bones."
Eros grinned.
"Bellini and his bitchy reporter niece are dead? That's great news. Masina will be happy. And early in the morning, we'll take on those four Yankee bitches. What do you say, sweetie pie, you feel like doing some knife work on their faces?"
"Always up to that, baby," Sandra replied lasciviously and squatted on Eros' lap. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him. "But right now, I want something else… something hard between my legs… the waiting in that alley has made me horny."
She kissed him.
"It makes me so hot when you're so mean and evil, Eros. I want you. Now."
Eros swallowed. He felt how his penis hardened under her kisses and how his desire to let himself being seduced by her grew bigger and bigger.
"You'll have to get on top, though," he replied with a grin, "the doctor told me not to move too much."
"You know I love to be on top, baby."
She kissed him again.
"We'll be in my bedroom," Eros announced to his men. "And we don't want to be disturbed, do you hear? Under no circumstances!"
His men just nodded, then concentrated on the video game again. After the two lovebirds had left, Alison closed in on the two gamers and with a quick touch of her hands killed them with electric shocks. While they slumped over, the video game kept running on the screen. It took a moment for the other four men in the room to realize something was wrong, but then they jumped up and ran towards their two dead buddies, only to be hit by massive electric shocks themselves. Then Alison waited.
Fifteen minutes later, Gabriella entered the room via the open terrace door.
"Did you get them all?"
Gabriella nodded.
"I guess my training kicked in after all. They're all dead."
"Good," Alison acknowledged and pointed at the six dead cronies. "Put a bullet in each of their heads, so that it looks like they've been shot as well."
The silencer of Gabriella's sniper rifle plopped six times.
"Now come and follow me," Alison commanded.
The two walked towards Eros' bedroom. Through the closed door, they could already hear the noise of two lovers in the middle of sex. Clearly, Sandra was a screamer, and Eros groaned and moaned loudly.
"Do I really have to watch that?" Gabriella asked. "I'm not into men, you know."
"I don't want you to watch them having sex," Alison replied. "I want you to watch what happens when Sandra orgasms."
"Did you program her to kill him?"
"You'll see."
Alison silently opened the door and the two slipped in, hiding behind a wardrobe. Eros was too busy to notice them, also, his view was blocked by Sandra. He was lying on his back on the bed while his girlfriend was on top, facing him.
"Now watch," Alison whispered. "Watch closely."
Reluctantly, Gabriella did as she was told. She saw Sandra moving up and down faster on top of Eros, moaning and screaming in joy.
"Yes… yes… Oh, Eros! You're making me cum!"
"Go on, baby," Eros replied groaning, "show me what a slut you are!"
Then Sandra stiffened, her mouth open in a silent cry, her body trembling. Eros looked at her and grinned, letting his hands roam over her naked body.
"Yeah, baby… just like that. I want you to…"
He hesitated and frowned. Hair was suddenly growing on Sandra's skin, short, dark grey hair.
"What the fuck…?" Eros asked and withdrew his hands.
"E..ros…" Sandra uttered, "I'm s… sooo… sor-ry… I… ungh…"
The hair all over her body grew into a fur and her eyes became completely black. She fell silent and stiffened as all the air seemed to leave her lungs in a drawn-out sigh. In horror, Gabriella watched as Sandra's fingers and toes fused together and her beautiful facial features disappeared under a thick cover of fur while the hair on her head was drawn into her skull. Suddenly, there was movement under her skin, it bulged and rippled as if her flesh was boiling underneath.
"What the fuck?" Eros exclaimed hysterically. "Get off me!"
He tried to shake her off but failed because she stiffly rested on him with her full weight. A faint squeaking sound could be heard. Eros tried to get free but failed in doing so. Cracks started to appear on Sandra's fur-covered body. The movement under her skin suddenly stopped, the faint squeaking grew louder and multiplied. Eros, with his penis still inside her, stared flabbergasted and horrified at what had happened to his girlfriend.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then Sandra fell apart.
Literally.
Her body collapsed into small, furry pieces. Eros screamed in horror as he realized those small, furry pieces were actually rats. Way more than a hundred of them. He screamed and screamed as they began running over his body, squeaking loudly. It was a scene like from some freaky horror movie.
"Holy shit!" Gabriella exclaimed. "What has just happened?"
"Earlier on," Alison explained, "I fed Sandra with my nanobot gel. The nanobots spread throughout her body, ready to go to work, waiting for the trigger – which was her orgasm."
"You transformed her into rats?"
"One-hundred-and-fifty-two rats, to be precise. Her whole body, flesh, bones, skin, organs… and her brain of course - all fifty-six kilograms - have become a pack of rats. Her brain was transformed last to make her experience the transformation for as long as possible."
"Oh my God…"
Eros jumped out of his bed, completely frantic. He grabbed his gun and began firing wildly at the army of rats that was covering his bed and the floor around it. But they avoided being hit by them, their coordinated movement reminded Gabriella of a swarm of fishes.
"I asked Sandra what Eros feared most," Alison continued while the mafioso jumped screaming around the room, the rats following him, not even noticing in his panic that he wasn't alone. "She said he was absolutely terrified of rats. So it was only fitting to transform his girlfriend into a pack of rats while he had sex with her."
"You're… you're not going to kill him?" Gabriella asked, unable to take her eyes off the screaming Eros and the rats who were chasing him around the room.
His gun was now empty, and the rodents were closing in on him. Eros' frantic screams of horror turned up a notch in volume.
"What are they… oh my God… they're biting him!"
"Yes, of course. They're hungry," Alison explained without raising an eyebrow. "The transformation used up a lot of energy. And those aren't normal rats, they still have some of Sandra's consciousness and intelligence in them, although more like a swarm intelligence. The single rat is just a rat, but as a pack they are as intelligent as Sandra was. However, her humanity is gone. Right now, the swarm of rats has only one thought in mind: feeding."
"Oh my God… do you mean they're gonna…"
Eros' screaming grew louder in pitch and more hysteric as more and more rats buried their teeth into his flesh and began climbing up his body. He frantically tried to brush them off, but to no avail. The two women watched it for another few seconds, then Alison grabbed the sniper rifle from Gabriella and shot Eros in the head with it. The screaming stopped instantly as his naked body fell to the floor. Immediately, the rats were all over him, covering him in a blanket of rodents.
"Let's go," Alison stated and walked to the door.
"They're eating his body!" Gabriella exclaimed in horror.
"Yes, isn't that a fitting ending for somebody who was named after the Greek god of love and sex? His body is now being consumed by what used to be his lover, right after they were copulating. Well, not all of his body of course… only as much as the rats can devour."
Alison dropped the sniper rifle, then locked the bedroom door from the outside and left the house. Gabriella stayed close behind her, still shaking all over her body from what she had just witnessed.
"You did that to show me what would happen if I don't do what you're saying, if I don't keep my mouth shut about you and your friends."
"Yes. And I also did it for when his body is found – or rather what remains of it – people will think someone broke into his house, killed all the bodyguards, locked him in his bedroom and released a pack of starved rats, knowing that it's what he feared most. They'll probably be looking for the murderer in the criminal world and then find the weapon with your fingerprints on it."
"His father will vow vengeance."
"Yes, that's why I recommend you disappear. In your own interest."
"And what about Sandra?"
"There is no Sandra anymore, just rats."
"I know but… won't she be missed? She was well-known in Venice – in all of Italy."
"There'll be no trace of her, it'll be a mystery. The rats will populate the island, nobody will ever know what really happened. Or do you think somebody will seriously consider that a young woman has been transformed into a pack of rats?"
"No, that would be ridiculous, but… is there… anything left of her? I mean… her memories?"
"In the rats?"
"Yes."
"Probably. Those rats will behave differently from other rats… certainly very interesting for a biologist. But the truth is, they're just rats now, with rat brains. And a rat brain cannot contain a human personality."
"Did she know what was happening to her beforehand?"
"Yes, of course, I told her before. She knew what would be happening, but she was unable to resist my commands. She experienced it in full consciousness."
"Oh my… did… did she suffer?"
"No, this time I made sure the process was painless."
"This time? You've done that before?"
"Yes, I once turned a woman into a dog. However, I learned from it and made sure Sandra wouldn't feel any physical pain during her transformation. I'm not made to be cruel."
"Is that why you shot Eros when Sandra… I mean when the rats attacked him?"
"Yes, no need to prolong his suffering."
They reached the jetty again and entered the motorboat. Alison started the engine and steered it back towards Venice.
"And you can…" Gabriella began nervously, "I mean… you can transform a human into… anything?"
"Yes, that's part of what this body was originally designed for: causing mutations, transforming bio matter. My database contains the genetic codes of over a hundred thousand different species."
"And if I ever tell anyone what I saw and learned tonight, you will find me and do the same to me?"
"Yes… I will find out what you fear most and then transform you. For Eros, I chose rats because Sandra told me he was afraid of rats. Let's say you are afraid of spiders, then I would turn you into a horde of tarantulas."
Suddenly, Gabriella started retching. She quickly leaned over board and started throwing up. Alison smiled with satisfaction. This night would haunt that woman for the rest of her life, knowing that what had happened to Sandra, could happen to her at any time if she didn't do what she was told. And that knowledge would be her true punishment.
-0-
John, Emily and Giulia got out of the car and walked towards the entrance to the office building. Masina's headquarters were located in a house that had been built in typical northern Italian style, and it was located near the world-famous Roman Arena, which was still used for concerts and opera performances. Through the glass of the entrance door they could look into the foyer. The two security guards were sitting behind a counter, obviously watching TV.
"I always thought such behavior was a cliché," Giulia commented. "Aren't they supposed to be a bit more watchful?"
"People get into a rut with too much routine," John replied while pulling out his smartphone, "making them inattentive. They're probably bored to death and rely entirely on their electronic security system."
He dialed John Henry's number.
"We're at the front door … Okay … In three, two, one."
The lights inside the building and on the street went out. Emily waved her hand in front of the contactless card reader a couple of times. Then the door unlocked and the three entered the building. Shocked by the sudden loss of power, the two guards were too perplexed to notice right away that somebody had just walked in. Then they saw a shadowy figure quickly approach them.
"What the…?" one of them began.
He couldn't finish his sentence anymore because Emily had already reached them. Summersaulting over them, she grabbed their tasers in one swift motion and used them against them to render the two men unconscious. Then she took place behind the desk, connecting herself to the PC under the desk behind the counter. Seconds later, the lights came back on again.
"I can't believe you could open that lock just by waving your hand in front of it," Giulia commented and closed the door again. "That looked like magic."
"Not magic, just electromagnetic induction," Emily replied.
"These guards are useless," John commented, "they reacted slower than a traveling dune. I don't think we would have needed a blackout at all."
"You know our mantra," Emily said, "always hope for the best but expect the worst."
"You just made that up, didn't you?"
"Guilty as charged."
John chuckled.
"Giulia, help me tying up these two. Over there is a broom closet, see if there's some duct tape in it."
Giulia checked the room and returned with a roll of duct tape. Together with John, they began wrapping up the guard until they were sure they couldn't move or talk anymore.
"I'm in," Emily announced. "Shutting down the system… now."
John looked up at the security camera and saw the small red LED go out, then a hum in his pocket announced he received an e-mail on his phone.
"Excellent. John Henry has sent the floor plan to my phone. We need to go to the fourth floor."
On the fifth floor, Stefano was working on his PC when the lights went out.
"What the…?" he asked and looked around.
About twenty seconds later, the lights came back on again.
"Bloody power grid," he mumbled to himself. "Thank God the PC is connected to the emergency network. A crash would have ruined two hours of work."
Like many computer nerds, Stefano was a nocturnal creature. He preferred the quiet darkness of the night over the hustle and bustle of the day. He'd been working on a new approach to hack himself into Zeira Corp for hours. Stefano was the only one working in the building right now, with all the regular staff lying in bed in their homes. Even the two grandpas down in the lobby probably didn't know about his presence, since he hadn't left the building for days thanks to the bunk bed Masina had put into his office. A bathroom with a shower was down the hallway, so was an array of vending machines. As a result, Stefano basically had all the creature comforts a hacker needed.
He looked at the time and decided that what he needed right now, was a black coffee and a bag of potato chips, maybe some candy bars, too. Fortunately, all these conveniences were within reach in the hallway outside his office door, otherwise it would have been impossible at this time of night to go past the security system without setting off the alarm. Stefano got up and walked out into the hallway, heading for the vending machines.
John, Emily and Giulia entered the fourth floor.
"This way," John said and pointed down a hallway.
A moment later, they stopped in front of a door with another key card access. This one, however, required a card to be pulled through a slot.
"I don't suppose you can simply wave that open as well?" Giulia asked with a smirk.
"No," Emily replied, "but I can do something else."
She produced another adapter, at the end of which there was a dummy key card.
"Right," Giulia commented, "why did I even ask?"
"I made it after our little adventure in Goslar," she explained, inserting it into the slot at the back of her head and pulling it through the card reader. "This way I don't have to crack the casing open. Leaves no traces."
Seconds later, the door opened with a click. She made a gesture to invite the others in. They entered a computer room and Emily was heading straight for the system administrator's workstation. She sat down and connected herself to the computer.
"Anything about Giacomo or the mafia?" John asked after a moment.
"No," she replied, "this system is company-related. No suspicious data or activities. But there's another computer behind an extra firewall. It's in Masina's office."
"Can you get in?"
"Yes, but it would be faster and leave no evidence of hacking into the system if we just entered his office, where I can hook up to it."
"Fifth floor," John said, looking on his phone. "South-Eastern corner of the building. Let's go."
"What makes you think that Masina is keeping any documents or evidence here which tells us something about why he wants the palazzo?" Giulia asked as they were climbing the stairs. "I mean, why not keeping it at home?"
"Because his home is a much more unsafe place," John replied. "Masina is married and has two children, as well as numerous domestic servants. This office building, however, is well secured and no one has access to his office when he's not in. If I were him, I'd keep all sensitive data and files here."
They entered the fifth floor through a swing door and went down the hallway until they ended up in front of an office door with the writing "Jonas Masina - Presidente del Consiglio di Amministrazione" on it. It also was equipped with a key card reader.
"Do your thing," John said, and Emily stepped forward.
"I've been thinking," she replied while pulling the card through, "maybe I should charge you for my services. That would be a good business model, don't you think? 'TOK-700 Enterprises', how does that sound?"
"It has a ring to it. Would you accept kisses as payment?"
Emily smiled.
"Kisses… and more. I'm very expensive. It'll cost you a lot."
"I'm prepared to pay as much as you charge me."
The two kissed. Giulia rolled her eyes.
"Can't you knock it off? We don't have all night."
Emily pulled away from John and with a click, the door opened.
Stefano was standing at the coffee vending machine, waiting for the paper cup to be filled, when he suddenly heard a door swing open and close. It sounded like one of the doors to the stairwell. He frowned. Who could that be? He looked up towards the security camera and noticed that the red LED wasn't on. Was the security system offline? And if yes, who had entered the hallway?
The machine stopped filling the cup and Stefano listened into the silence, but there was nothing. Had he just imagined it? Empty buildings could be pretty scary at night and often your imagination played tricks on you. Finally, he shrugged and walked back into the direction of his office when there were voices. He turned around, sneaked back into the other direction and peeked around the corner of the hallway. There, down the hall, hardly visible, were three persons in front of Masina's office, dressed in pitch black clothes. They looked like shadows, ghosts or phantoms and if he hadn't heard their voices, he'd probably thought he was hallucinating. They were talking in English, and from the shapes he concluded it were a man and two women, one of them rather busty and apparently in a tight embrace with the man.
"Can't you knock it off?" the other woman asked, and Stefano noticed she had an Italian accent. "We don't have all night."
The two kissers separated, and Stefano saw that the busty woman had a cable running to the back of her head. It was connected to what looked like a key card. The woman removed it from the card reader and pushed open Masina's office door. Stefano gasped involuntarily.
Immediately, the busty woman turned around. Her eyes, the only thing he could make out on her covered face, started glowing red. And in the next second, she came running towards him. He jumped back in shock, spilling his hot coffee all over himself.
"Ouch! Shit!"
Emily had heard a gasp from behind and whirled around.
"Someone's here," she said.
Before John or Giulia could react to her statement, she was already running down the hallway, turning around the corner at the end. They heard a stifled cry and a curse. Then Emily returned to them, dragging a wildly struggling, overweight young man behind her who tried to free himself but failed miserably in doing so.
"Who the hell is that?" Giulia asked.
"I don't know," John replied. "Nobody's supposed to be here at this time of night."
Emily grabbed Stefano by his throat and pushed him up the wall right next to Masina's office door, letting her eyes glow in an even brighter red.
"Who are you?" she asked. "I won't ask twice."
"My… my name is Stefano Ingegneri," he croaked, "I work here."
"You're not a security guard. What are you doing here?"
"I'm… I'm a programmer. I… I work for Jonas Masina."
"At this time of night? What are you working on?"
"Please… if I tell you… he'll get very angry… you don't mess with Jonas Masina."
Emily cut off his air.
"You don't mess with me either. I repeat, what are you working on here?"
"Let him down," John said, having a sudden intuition that would explain the presence of the young man.. "He can't talk if you choke him."
Emily did so. Stefano sank to the floor, coughing wildly. John knelt next to him.
"You're a hacker, going under the alias Ron Jeremy, am I right?"
Stefano stared at him with wide open eyes. How could he know? Who were these people? They were dressed in these really black catsuits, all he could see of them, were their eyes. Were they police, or some kind of secret service agents, or something even worse? Why was that woman so strong? She looked like just a normal girl. And those eyes, those red-glowing eyes! He suddenly had a very bad feeling about it all.
"How do you know…?" he started asking.
"Unimportant," John cut him off. "I'm right, am I? Find something to bind him."
Emily looked around, then ran down the hallway until she came to a room full of cleaning tools and utensils. Inside, she found a roll of duct tape and returned to the others.
"Tie him up and gag him," John ordered, "make sure he cannot run away."
Emily complied. Less than a minute later, Stefano was as tightly packed as a Christmas parcel. She flung him over her shoulder and carried him with her into Masina's office where she put him down on a leather sofa. Then she walked straight to Masina's desk and connected herself to his PC.
"I'm in," she announced seconds later.
Stefano watched it with wide-open eyes. Had that woman with the incredible physical strength just hooked herself up to Masina's computer, hacking into it within seconds? Who was she… or rather, what was she? Was she even human? An inkling crept up on him. What if…?
"And?" John asked. "Anything?"
"There's a lot of encrypted e-mail traffic with an organization called 'The 51 Society'. But without the right key, it'll take me a while to crack it."
"How long is a while?"
"I dunno… five to ten minutes? It's an extremely strong encryption."
"Too much time. Can you copy those e-mails onto a thumb drive?"
"Of course," Emily replied and pulled a small USB stick out of her pocket.
"Anything else on it, something about what we came here for?"
"No, nothing."
"This is disappointing," Giulia stated. "We might leave here without any information."
"Hmmm," John uttered and looked around in the office.
Everything was very modernly furnished and stood in strong contrast to the otherwise very old building. Glass, metal and leather dominated the interior, a little bit like Catherine's office. There were antique vases and artifacts in display cases, and on the walls hung numerous paintings, apparently all originals, no prints.
"Can you scan the room for a safe or hidden compartments?" John asked.
Emily took a look around.
"There," she said and pointed at one of the paintings on the wall.
John took a closer look at it and noticed that it was hung on hinges. He swung it open and found that there was a safe behind it.
"Not very original," he stated. "Then again, Masina surely didn't expect anyone to break into his office in the first place."
Emily had finished copying the files and shut down the PC. Then she walked over to John.
"Can you open it?" he asked.
"This is a very old model. Probably from the 1930s. Our friend Masina obviously has a sense for good old-fashioned craftsmanship. Unfortunately for him, these are very easy to open. I can use my scanners."
She turned the wheel several times in both directions, until a click told them the safe was open. Stefano, still sitting on the ground, once again witnessed abilities that couldn't be explained. His conclusion was therefore clear: that woman couldn't be human. And if she wasn't human, there was only one possible explanation what she could be. After all, she and the man were Americans. His breathing accelerated.
"What's in there?" Giulia asked.
"Documents, it seems," John replied and pulled out a manila folder.
He opened it and put the contents on the desk. Then he whistled.
"Is that what I think it is?"
Emily took a look as well.
"Yes, it is," she replied. "And these drawings are about two-hundred years old."
"That's it," Giulia stated, "that's why Masina wants the…"
John put his hand over her mouth and looked at Stefano.
"Not in front of him," he said, "no names of people or places. Remember, A isn't with us, and E cannot make him forget things."
Giulia nodded.
"Of course, sorry."
John sat down on the sofa next to Stefano and looked hm in the face. The fat young man was heavily sweating, apparently completely terrified. And who wouldn't be? Three hooded figures who's faces you couldn't see, plus one of them obviously being a cyborg.
"What are we going to do with you?" John asked. "If we let you go, you will very likely tell Masina about our visit. You saw us hacking into his computer and opening his safe. On the other hand, you probably have a good idea by now what she is. You hopefully watched the news in the past months."
He pointed at Emily and made a pause for effect while she let her eyes glow red again.
"So, I assume you probably have heard about her and her two sisters from Los Angeles. Rest assured that they can track you down and kill you in even the most remote corner of the world. You cannot hide from them, you cannot strike a deal with them. Your body leaves traces everywhere you go. Traces they can follow like bloodhounds. You might think that Masina is a powerful and menacing person, but he's a choir boy compared to her and her sisters. Do you understand?"
Stefano nodded frantically. John ripped the duct tape from his mouth.
"All right, here's the deal: we let you live. And in exchange for that, you will from now on work for us. You'll be our spy here, a double agent if you want, and you'll do what we tell you."
Stefano nodded again.
"Si, si…" he replied. "I'll be your spy. Please, don't harm me!"
"What exactly is your job here? What is Masina paying you for?"
"He wants me to hack into Zeira Corp. I don't know why, he's paying me a lot of money. In return, I'm not supposed to ask any questions. He expects results, though."
"Then you will give him results. But only results we want him to have."
"Of course, whatever you want."
"You will return to your office and continue your work as if nothing happened. Soon, you'll be contacted by someone who calls himself John Henry. He'll be like your agent handler. You will do everything he tells you to do. Do you understand?"
Stefano nodded hastily.
"John Henry. Agent handler. Got it."
"We will leave this place without leaving a trace. The two guards below will claim they were overwhelmed and tied up. But there'll be no proof whatsoever to support that. The camera footage will show nothing out of the ordinary, there'll be no evidence the security system was offline. So, all you have to do, is being steadfast in stating that you were working in your office, and that you saw and heard nothing. Is that clear?"
"Very clear, extremely clear. You were never here."
"I see we understand each other. If you simply deny having noticed anything, you will be okay. Think you can do that?"
"Yes... yes, I can do that."
"Excellent." John said, padded his shoulder and looked at Emily. "Free him."
She pulled him up from the sofa like a rag doll, then ripped the duct tape from his arms and legs. Once again she noticed how good John was at improvising. Faced with an unexpected situation, he came up with a perfect solution almost instantly. Now they only had to convince John Henry to play the agent handler for Stefano. Meanwhile, John was putting the documents and the manila folder back into the safe and closed it again.
"Go back to your office," John commanded. "Stay there, do what you were doing until you're being contacted."
Stefano nodded and got up, then quickly walked out of Masina's office and down the hallway. When he reached the corner, he turned around but there was nobody there anymore. They were gone.
-0-
Alison and Gabriella reached the palazzo again and went ashore. It was now almost 4 o'clock in the morning and the fog had lifted.
"What happens now?" Gabriella asked.
"You leave… and pray that we never meet again."
The woman looked down.
"I see."
Alison frowned.
"You don't seem very happy about it. Don't you want to go and start your new life?"
"My new life will be lonely."
"That's entirely up to you. Nobody said you're forbidden from forming social connections."
"I can't form social connections. My scar is a dead giveaway."
Alison licked her finger and put some of her saliva on Gabriella's scar. Within seconds, it had vanished.
"Not anymore," she said. "Dye your hair, change your hairstyle, get some fake glasses. It sounds simple but it helps a lot. Do you need money?"
"No, I have money. And I know how to disappear, that's not what I meant."
"Then what did you mean?"
"It's just that… this night totally changed my life. Nothing is the same anymore. I can now feel what I didn't feel before, thanks to you."
"You're welcome, anything else?"
"I… I've never met someone like you before."
"Of course not, I'm a cyborg, we're rare."
"That's not what I meant, I… I never met someone who held so much authority over me. Have you… have you made me submissive to you?"
Alison tilted her head.
"No, I only changed your body chemistry, so that from now on you can have feelings. Strong feelings, to be precise. And I made you understand what you've been, showed you the monster in the mirror. I never brought you under my control, if that's what you mean."
"And still I… feel like I'm under your thrall… I… I know that I couldn't resist doing what you're telling me to do."
"A side-effect then."
"Maybe… or maybe you brought out a whole new facet in me, a... submissive streak."
"I don't need a slave."
"I know… it's just that… never mind. Forget it."
Alison looked at Gabriella for a moment, trying to figure out what was going on in her head. She felt the woman's desire to stay close to her – but that wasn't possible. She wouldn't fit into their family. It was also clear to Alison that Gabriella would suffer strongly once she was on her own. Suddenly, she had an idea.
"Say, how far would you go to leave your old life behind and start a new one?"
"What do you mean?"
"Would you be willing to leave everything and everyone you know?"
"Isn't that what starting a new life means?"
"A friend of mine in Los Angeles is looking for someone who doubles for her, someone who looks exactly like her. She runs a company and wants to have a doppelganger to take her place when she's busy with other things."
"I… I'm not very good at English and… I suppose I don't look like her… and I have no idea how to run a company. Also, I have no passport."
"We both know that all of that can be changed – including your looks."
Gabriella gulped and looked Alison in the eyes.
"You want to transform my body so that it looks like hers?"
"You'd be safe and rich. You'd move into a fancy mansion and live the good life. You'd be at parties, representing the social side of my friend who's… let's say she has difficulties mingling with people."
"But it wouldn't be my life. I'd live somebody else's life by fixed rules I wouldn't be allowed to break. I'd have to be a complete pretender, playing just a role."
"Beats being on the run all the time, chased by the police and the mafia, don't you think? And we'd see each other from time to time."
"I admit it's tempting but… why me? Why not find somebody else for it?"
"Because you're resourceful, intelligent, you can be unscrupulous when you have to be – and although you know fear now, you're capable of overcoming it and become a valuable, reliable asset for us. Also, you'd have a purpose in life for the very first time ever since you were a child. Look at it this way: is there anything in your current life you would miss?"
Gabriella shook her head.
"No."
"So, what do you say?"
"Can I… think about it?"
"Sure. We'll be here today and tomorrow, then we'll leave. Enough time for you to think. I'm sure you know how to find me."
Gabriella nodded and started walking away. Then she turned around once more.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For believing in me."
And then she disappeared into the night. Alison tilted her head. An interesting development, she was eager to know what John would think of her idea. She entered the Palazzo Bellini again and encountered Cameron who stood guard in the foyer next to the big statue of Ludovico Manin.
"Everyone else asleep?"
"Yes," Cameron replied, "how did it go?"
"Smoothly."
"Survivors?"
"None."
"Good girl."
"To be honest, I liked it. Not the killing so much but the feeling to do something good for society by ridding it of that filth. Also, I could test some more of my abilities."
"You have to tell me all about it."
"I will… when John and Emily are back."
"Say," Cameron said in a seductive tone, "since John's not here, everyone's asleep and all enemies dead, how about we two have some fun together while you're still naked?"
Alison grinned.
"I like your thinking, sis."
Cameron grinned back and also began to take off her clothes.
-0-
John, Emily and Giulia arrived back in Venice around 6 o'clock in the morning. They changed back into their normal clothes again – which they'd taken with them to Verona –, parked the Mini Cooper and then walked back to the Palazzo Bellini while the city was slowly awakening for another normal day.
"And you're absolutely sure that Masina won't know who it was that broke into his office building?"
John sighed.
"Again, we left no traces," he repeated, having already explained it a couple of times on their way back. "We put everything back the way it was. Emily can memorize stuff extremely well. The security system is back online, and Emily made sure there will neither be a record of the failure, nor any recordings of the cameras we encountered that show nothing else but empty hallways. Nobody will be able to detect the manipulation. The only clue that there has been an intrusion, will be the testimonies of the two security guards. But their statement will contradict the bare facts. They hadn't even regained consciousness when we untied them and left the building. So, nobody will believe them, the police and Masina will probably think that they only dreamed or imagined the whole thing. Especially since Stefano will keep his mouth shut."
"How can you tell that he's reliable? He didn't make a very reliable impression on me."
"He'll know what's good for him… and I have a feeling that he never felt really comfortable working for Masina. Also, we showed him a glimpse of a world that he as a computer nerd will find fascinating. So fascinating in fact, that he won't be willing to let it go again. John Henry and Catherine will make sure of that. They'll manipulate and guide him and also pay him more money, if that becomes necessary. Stefano's survival instinct will surely kick in. Catherine was very thankful for my report when I called her an hour ago. With John Henry's help and the emails we copied to the USB stick, she'll certainly investigate Masina to find out why he tried to hack Zeira Corp. I have a feeling this could become interesting."
"But won't he suspect foul play when he gets to know about my uncle and the palazzo?"
"We'll create a cover story for that. Some necessary repairs to the house or something. Masina might suspect foul play but he won't have any clues or evidence to support that. And let's not forget that if Alison has done her job – which she will have because she's Alison – he won't have Eros' help here in Venice anymore. He lost his local partner in crime and his network with him, and before he'll be able to recover from that, things will have already taken on a momentum of their own. Even Masina won't be able to stop it anymore. On the contrary, he'll probably be busy with other, much more important things around him."
"Yeah, but…"
"Okay, he might have a hunch that he has been tricked somehow," Emily added, "but he won't have any clues to follow up on that hunch."
"I'm just worried about my uncle's safety."
"I understand that," John replied, "but wouldn't you say that he's now safer than yesterday, safer than before we met you?"
Giulia hesitated for a moment.
"Yes," she then admitted, "my uncle is a lot safer now. Thanks to you."
"Everything will sort itself out," John calmed her. "Believe me, soon Masina will have other problems than going after you. Nobody messes with Catherine Weaver and gets away with it. It'll be a painful learning curve for him."
"I guess what bothers me most," Giulia said, "is that I can't write an article about any of this. Or even share my knowledge with anyone. Because if I did, I'd become a target, right?"
"Yes, Giulia… as I already explained yesterday, you'd be in danger then."
"Does that happen to everyone you meet and who learns your secrets?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"You could have also just said 'keep your mouth shut if you wanna live'."
"That would be a nice variation on our trademark-phrase," Emily commented with a smile.
"What phrase?"
"'Come with me if you wanna live'."
Giulia looked puzzled. John chuckled.
"When my dad traveled to 1984 to save my mom's life, he used that phrase on her when they met for the first time. And when my future self programmed the T-800 I named Uncle Bob, he used the same words on her when we freed her from Pescadero. It was his way of telling her that Uncle Bob was on our side. Same happened when Cameron saved my life while Cromartie was after me."
"So… it's a placeholder for 'don't worry, I'm here to rescue you. Don't be afraid, I'm on your side'?"
Emily shrugged.
"Saves time when you want to save somebody who's being shot at," she said. "We cyborgs prefer clear, concise words that waste no time. And Future John knew that both mom and John would immediately recognize the phrase. It's like a code."
"I still cannot wrap my mind around all that time travel shit," Giulia remarked.
"Welcome to the club," John replied with a grin.
They'd reached the Palazzo Bellini. Upon entering, they were immediately welcomed by Cameron and Alison. Both hugged and kissed John, and he held them close for a moment.
"I missed you," he stated.
"We missed you too," Alison replied and kissed him again, followed by Cameron.
"Get a room," Giulia said with a smirk.
"The others are already up and preparing breakfast," Alison announced. "I made sure that a few hours of sleep would be enough for everyone."
"Sleep would be nice now," Giulia commented drowsily. "I don't know how you're still so fresh, John."
"Let me handle that," Alison said, licked her hand and stepped forward.
She touched Giulia's arm and the woman felt something seep into her skin. Within a few seconds, she suddenly felt rested and refreshed.
"That's awesome, how did you do that?"
"Instant regeneration," Alison replied smiling, "I've used it many times on the team members. Can't afford to be unfocused during missions."
"Only works so many times, though," John added. "At some point the human body insists on getting sleep."
"So… you basically drugged me?" Giulia asked.
"Yes… stims. Only without the nasty side-effects."
"You should fill that in bottles and sell it, you'd be a millionaire in no time… oh, wait… right… I forgot, you already have more money than God."
"We were lucky," John replied a little sheepishly.
After all these months, he still had a problem simply admitting how rich they'd become, despite all of his attempts to justify it as a compensation for the miserable life they'd led up until then.
"So, what did you find out?" Alison asked, noticing his discomfort with the topic.
"Let's get upstairs and gather for breakfast," Giulia suggested. "Suddenly, I'm starving. And then we can exchange what we learned and experienced during the night."
They'd all gathered around a long table in the dining room of the palazzo. First, Alison told them about dealing with Eros, Sandra and Gabriella.
"I'm sure Eros got what he deserved," Giacomo commented, "but transforming Sandra into rats? Isn't that a bit harsh?"
"Could be a scene from a horror movie," Giulia agreed, "I'm getting shivers only thinking about it."
"It is her punishment," Alison justified her actions. "Sandra was no angel. As I'm sure you know, she assisted Eros in his crimes and helped him get people killed. And technically speaking, she's not dead yet. Maybe in the near future some biologist will find that the rats on the island of Sacca Serenella show a fascinating kind of swarm intelligence."
"I don't know if this really calms me down," Giulia remarked, "I'm not a particular fan of rats. What if they create a new breed, get off the island and spread around the world?"
"Impossible," Alison contradicted. "All 152 rats created from Sandra's body are female. If they mate with other rats – which is more than unlikely – they won't transfer their intelligence to their offspring."
"Are those rats dangerous?" Giulia asked. "You said they attacked Eros…"
"Only because they were starving after the transformation. All rats would behave like that in the same situation."
"But they ignored Gabriella."
"Because I stood next to her. Animals fear cyborgs, remember?"
Lauren shivered.
"You okay?" Morris asked.
"Yeah, it's just… thinking of how horrible it must have been for Sandra. I wonder if those rats were aware that they were eating their former lover."
"Probably not," Alison said. "Telling by what we learned from Eve, they probably have forgotten their former life."
"Probably?" Giulia asked.
"Yes, no one can tell for sure, not even I."
"Can we stop talking about rats?" Jody asked, looking a little disgusted. "What about Gabriella? Where is she?"
Alison told them about the offer she made the former contract killer. There was a moment of silence.
"Can you vouch for her?" John finally asked.
"Yes," Alison replied. "She's changed, she wants to redeem herself. We all know that Catherine talked about finding a double, a decoy who could take her place at Zeira Corp while she's busy with other things. Gabriella is the ideal candidate. Not only is she capable and highly intelligent, she also needs to disappear. Her fingerprints and DNA samples are on the rifle I left on Sacca Serenella. The police won't need long to identify her as the killer. And if the police knows, the Mala del Brenta will as well."
"I trust your judgement, of course," John said. "But we have to talk about it with Catherine first. She has the final word. I mean, chastened and remorseful or not, Gabriella is still a killer. Entrusting her with leading Zeira Corp in Catherine's name, representing her at parties... we have to be sure she's absolutely trustworthy."
"Of course, John. I believe she is. And you should also consider that her past as a killer makes her a perfect candidate. She can defend herself and can handle stress and danger. We only have to teach her the skills of a businesswoman. It would be more difficult the other way round, don't you agree?"
"You have a point."
"Enough beating about the bush," Savannah said, looking at John, "what did you find out in Verona? I can see in your eyes that the mission has accomplished something."
John smiled.
"Well, if everyone's finished with breakfast, we could show you."
"You guys are making it pretty exciting," Giacomo remarked.
"Well, we still don't know what we find or if we find anything at all," Giulia pointed out. "So we don't want to raise your hopes too high."
"Rubbish," Giacomo exclaimed. "Show me already."
John went ahead as they walked downstairs, the others following him. He stopped next to the big statue of Ludovico Manin.
"You said this house has been searched over and over again for two hundred years," he said.
"Yes," Giacomo replied. "All the walls, all the floors, and the garden. There are no hidden rooms or secret passages. They even x-rayed the walls and checked the statue for cavities."
"But no one ever searched under the palazzo, right?"
"Why, no, of course not. It's inaccessible. There's no cellar, only the two foundations I told you about. Together, they are about two meters thick. It's impossible to check under the house because it stands practically on a single block of limestone."
"Thing is," John said, "we found documents in Masina's safe that seem to be architectural drawings and drafts for the palace, especially concerning this statue. Emily says they're about two-hundred years old."
"Impossible," Giacomo stated, "there are no such drawings."
"And yet Masina has them. They show that this marble statue rests on a limestone pedestal that penetrates one meter into the ground - which happens to be the exact thickness of the second foundation Ludovico has placed on top of the previous one".
"But… that would mean there is a hole in the foundation," Giacomo said flabbergasted. "A hole the pedestal currently fills."
"Yes, the pedestal fits into it like a stopper, creating a single solid mass of limestone - so perfectly fitting that everyone thinks the statue rests on top of the foundation and not inside it. It works so well that not even Alison's scanners could detect it. A masterpiece of stonemasonry. And it means that when you lift the statue - pull out the stopper, so to speak - there is a hole where a person can fit in. Now the important question is: why is that hole there?"
Everyone had listened to John spellbound and now alternately looked at the marble floor and the statue.
"The only problem is," John continued, "that the palazzo was built around the statue, as you explained to us. There's no conventional way to lift the statue from its place. At least not without destroying it. You can't drive a crane in here. Pulleys wouldn't work either, because where to mount them? At the top of the stairwell, there's a filigree glass dome that isn't designed to carry loads. There's no room for scaffolding around the statue either because of the curved stairs. The palazzo seems to have been built in such a way that nobody can get to the hollow space underneath the statue without destroying it or a part of the building."
"Which Masina obviously wants to do," Giulia added. "He says he wants to turn the palazzo into a hotel, but the real reason is to get to that cavity underneath the statue."
"Even if you're right," Giacomo said, "what good is this information if we can't access it without destroying Ludovico's statue? I don't want to destroy it. It's a behemoth but it's part of the heritage. And would it even be worth it? Do we know if there's anything in that hole at all?"
"No, we don't," John said, "not without looking."
"See?"
"But there is a rather uncomplicated way of finding out."
"Which way?"
John looked at Emily, Cameron and Alison.
"What do you think?" he asked. "Could you lift that statue out of the foundation?"
Alison stepped forward and touched the stone.
"It weighs roughly six tons," she stated, "and it's hard to get a grip on the smooth limestone the pedestal is made of. There are no handles or recessed grips. All we have is the adhesion between the stone and our hands. But if the three of us try it together, it might work."
"The statue is heavier on this backside," Cameron continued and circled around it, "Emily and I could take that end while Alison grabs the front."
"And once we've lifted it out of the hole, we can put it down on the floor next to it. But we should put something underneath to not scratch the floor tiles."
"Also, the floor tiles might crack under the weight," Alison pointed out. If six tons rest on our six small feet…"
John looked at Giacomo.
"Your decision."
The old man looked at his niece. She nodded. Giacomo sighed and turned back towards John.
"All right then. I admit I want to know now. But please be careful. If that thing topples over, it will crash the whole stairwell."
"If anything goes wrong or if we lose balance…" Emily began.
"… we'll let it fall back into the hole again," Cameron finished.
Giacomo just nodded.
"Go ahead then."
They fetched a rug from one of the rooms and put it on the floor next to the statue. Then everyone took a step back and watched as Alison, Emily and Cameron took their positions.
"On the count of three," Alison announced as she squatted and laid her hands against the pedestal on the front, the other two doing the same at the rear. "One… two… three!"
They applied pressure to their arms and slowly began to straighten up. There was a loud cracking noise as the statue was slowly being lifted out of the pit it had rested in for two hundred years. Centimeter by centimeter the three of them lifted it out of the hole below until the whole sculpture swung freely, resting in their hands. Together they carefully took a few steps to the side and gently put the six-ton work of art down on the carpet.
Everyone breathed again.
"So far, so good," John said and walked towards the hole. "We're gonna need a flashlight and a ladder."
"Ladder's in the garden shed, I'll get the flashlight," Giacomo said and went upstairs.
While Emily walked out into the garden to get the ladder, Alison scanned the cavity.
"It goes down for roughly two-and-a-half meters," she declared, "deeper than we thought. I can see the original foundation and a low passageway leading away from it in northern direction. There's water down there, about five centimeters deep. Rubber boots would be appropriate."
"My uncle has several pairs," Giulia said, "I'll get them. They might not fit everyone, but they'll keep our feet dry."
"It really is like with the pharaohs of old," Allie stated, "I mean look at it, doesn't it look like a tomb?"
Giacomo returned with the flashlight, and Emily brought the ladder, letting it down into the hole. Moments later, Giulia returned with three pairs of rubber boots.
"Do you want to go first?" John asked Giacomo.
"No," the old man replied. "You found the cavity, you go first. I'll follow."
John put on the boots. They were too big for him but would keep his feet dry. Then he carefully climbed down the ladder. When he reached the ground, he waved the flashlight around and noticed that the passageway Alison had mentioned, was about 150 centimeters high. It led underneath the new foundation and John noticed that the limestone blocks had been sealed with what looked like bitumen. Nevertheless, water had found a way in, probably through tiny cracks in the limestone, caused by earthquakes in the past two hundred years.
"Now we know why Ludovico put a second foundation over the old one," John declared loudly. "He turned parts of the original foundation into what looks like a storage room. I'm going there now."
Panning his flashlight, he bent forward and entered the low passageway. Five meters in front of him, it opened into a rectangular room about three by four meters in size. Beyond the room, there had to be the façade of the palazzo and then the canal in front of the it. The flashlight shone on a dozen rusty iron chests standing lined-up in the ankle-deep water. They were all padlocked. John noticed movement behind him and made way for Giacomo who'd also come down. The old man had to bend down as well and walked past John.
"Unbelievable," he murmured, "could it be? Could it really be?"
Now Giulia had also joined them.
"Wow," she said, "back in those days, people still kept their assets at home, in chests like these. There were no bank vaults or safety deposit boxes yet. The first vaults worthy of the name were created about 180 years ago – after Ludovico had died."
"We need a bolt cutter," said Giacomo in barely concealed excitement.
"We have something better," John stated. "CAM, WOULD YOU TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF AND JOIN US DOWN HERE?"
Moments later, Cameron appeared down there as well. John pointed at the padlocks.
"Would you be so kind to open them up?" he asked.
Without replying, she walked passed him through the water and one by one ripped the padlocks off the chests. Giacomo walked to the first one and opened it up. He gasped as John shone his flashlight into it.
"Congratulations, Giacomo," he said with a smile, "looks like you're gonna be able to keep your palazzo after all."
The chest was filled with gold coins. Giacomo laughed in rapture and went to the next chest. It was also filled with gold coins. The next chest was filled with golden cups, chalices and candle holders, the fourth with jewelry and gem stones.
"I think we should notify the authorities," Giulia said, "and also ask experts to estimate the value. This will definitely make the headlines, uncle."
One after the other, everyone came down to gawk at the treasure. Finally, after more than an hour, they gathered in the foyer again.
"How are we going to explain that the statue was lifted up and moved?" Giacomo asked. "I mean… there will be questions."
"We need to put it back into its place," Alison said. "But now that you know the exact location of the chamber, you can break through the floor directly above it. I'm sure you can find a pretext for that."
"Alison is right," John said. "It would be hard to explain how you managed to move the statue. It's better we put it back. You can then hire somebody with a jackhammer to create a whole in the ground five meters behind it. Didn't you mention installing an elevator? Directly above the chamber would be a perfect position for it, and it would require making a hole in the ground. You'd have to fake surprise upon finding the hidden room, though. Think you can do that?"
"I guess I have to."
"The best moment to begin with it would be when we're gone again," Emily declared. "That way it's impossible for anyone to associate the find with our presence. Do you think you can live with leaving the treasure down there for a few more weeks?"
"What's a few more weeks?" Giacomo replied with a smile. "However, I feel like celebrating. How about we invite the rest of your family to my house and have a little party? Martina is an excellent cook and there has to be a reason why I have shelves full of wine and champagne. Oh, that reminds me, Martina will be here in less than thirty minutes. By then the statue must be back in place. Could I trouble you three again for this?"
Cameron, Emily and Alison looked at each other and grinned.
"The ACE team is happy to comply," the three stated in unison, and everyone started laughing.
-0-
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009 – 10:13 a.m.
Verona
"So, you were in your office all night and saw nothing?" Masina asked.
Stefano yawned heartily.
"Sorry, boss… I'm just tired… Yeah, if you don't count the repeated trips to the vending machines… I stayed up until five in the morning, then I nearly toppled over in my chair and finally went to bed. "
"I have two guards down there who swear that three people, dressed like ninjas, invaded the building during a brief power failure, overpowered them and tied them up."
Stefano chuckled.
"Ninjas?"
"That's what they said. So, I ask again, have you seen or heard anything?"
"Nothing boss, I swear. There was a power failure, all right, but it only lasted twenty seconds or so. I took the opportunity to take a short break, get me some coffee and some candy bars. The building was dead quiet, there was nobody there, at least not that I can tell. The security cameras were on. Didn't they record anything?"
"They recorded empty rooms and hallways, nothing out of the ordinary."
Masina was lost in thoughts for a moment.
"Is there anything else, boss?"
"Hm? Oh… no, that'll be all, Stefano. Sorry for waking you up and dragging you in here."
Stefano nodded, yawned again and walked to the door.
"Oh, before I forget," he said, turning around once more, "I had a breakthrough last night."
"A breakthrough?"
"Yes, I now have access to Zeira Corp's internal network."
"Excellent, that's good news. But you look like crap. Go back to bed and get some sleep. We can talk later."
"Okay, boss."
Stefano left and closed the door behind him. Jonas Masina was at a loss. Why would those two old fools insist on something that obviously never happened? They were mentally fit and in good health, otherwise he wouldn't have hired them. Had their imagination been playing tricks on them? On the other hand, you couldn't imagine being tasered. And why should they come up with such a story in the first place? There was no reason for it.
If the two were telling the truth, three people had entered the building unrecognized, deactivated the security system and manipulated the recordings of the cameras, leaving no traces whatsoever of any manipulation. That was impossible. And anyway, what could the intruders have been after? There were no valuables here, no money and nothing was stolen, so burglary seemed unlikely.
Following an intuition, Masina jumped up from his desk and went over to the safe in the wall. He checked the outside but found no traces of violence. Masina opened it and looked inside. All the documents were still in their place. Nothing had been changed. He would have noticed if something would have been moved. Following another intuition, he went back to his desk and examined his computer. He lifted it onto the table and wiped off the dust that had collected on it. Then he hesitated... the USB slot on the front wasn't dusty, it was clean. Masina had never used it, it should be dirty, too. Someone had used that slot recently. For what? Downloading? Uploading?
He booted the PC and did a thorough virus scan. Nothing. He then checked all the logs. Again, nothing that would suggest an access after he'd left for home the day before. Finally, he checked his e-mails and the hidden folder he used for communicating with his fellow members of the 51 Society. That e-mail folder had a hidden function that created a log file with accesses and changes to the inbox, independent from the rest of the software and the operating system. For someone who didn't know what to look for, this log file was impossible to find.
He opened the file and gasped. Three of the e-mails had been accessed during the night, and the whole folder had been copied to a thumb drive. Masina leaned back into his chair. So... there really had been intruders. The question was: who were they and what did they want? One thing was certain, they were no amateurs. They had to be highly specialized professionals with resources that Joe average couldn't have. Some intelligence agency perhaps?
Masina reached for his phone and dialed a number.
"Masina here … We have a problem. Our organization might be compromised."
-0-
Back in his office, Stefano sat down at his desk and unlocked his PC. Then he startled: from his center monitor, a man grinned in a silly way at him.
"What the fuck…?"
"Hello Stefano," the man said and waved at him, "my name is John Henry. I'm looking forward to working together with you."
-0-0-0-
Author's notes:
- Rats… I honestly hope I haven't given anyone nightmares ;-)
- Like always, I mixed real facts with a little bit of imagination in this chapter. Ludovico Manin was indeed the last doge of Venice. He'd handed the city over to the French without a fight and died a lonely man, shunned by his fellow Venetians. He left no children and his brother continued the family line. Also, my description of how Venetian houses were built, is based on descriptions I found on the internet. The rest, however, is a result of my fantasy and imagination ;-)
- Not completely sure yet where to go with the plotline around the 51 society. Depends on what ideas I'll have about it.
- Hope you enjoyed this long chapter after the long wait. I'd be happy if you found the time to also express yourselves in a review :-)
