Chapter 19: The Short Month Of February.
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Sleep was restless for Tammy, like it has been for the past several nights. The search at the hospital turns out to be empty, with release forms being signed, "Social Work Agency Worker" and a scribble that could not be made out into the name's component letters, as if it was deliberately done that way. There was no address listed other than "Roma, Italia."
With net access at 'home', she is able to do her searches longer, saving pages and printing them twice on the girls' printer as long as she replaces the ink cartridges. On the 'net there were several entries for the Social Work Agency, but the one that caught her eye was the medical division. If Bink's medical needs were to be taken cared off, it would be done there.
But she has to plan for her stay when she arrives in Rome. That means getting a new room and board in a new city, and knowledge of the city and its services. At least the American Embassy is there for her to go in when needed. Twenty-eight days went by fast with studying of the city, reserving services and making plans.
One of the problems she finds is the areas she searches is blurred on Google Maps. On the SWA Website, the front entrance is photographed from far away and blurred just a bit to remove details from it. But Tammy believes that she has enough to get what she needs: access to the place and to her sister Bink.
Julietta arrives every few days, most of the time with compiled data from the phone calls from her TV Station about information of Bink's last whereabouts. But once in a while she arrives to remove Tammy from the house when she has locked herself in her room for days. Its as if Tammy's search for Bink has become an obsession. And getting her out of her room can be a hassle at times. The only good thing for Tammy, and Glenda, is that her mating cycle ended a couple of weeks ago and is more able to focus on her search; perhaps that is the problem.
It takes longer than necessary to get Tammy ready and dressed to go out. It takes just as long to explain the new set of data and compare it with what she has, which for most of the time only verifies that which she already has and knows.
Tammy walks into her room half dressed in her bra, t-shirt, and panties as Julietta looks over the notes and gathered information in comparison of the two. Tammy goes through her backpack and takes her best shirt and skirt she wore before. Lastly she puts on her ankle sox and flat shoes.
"You going out like that?", Julietta asks.
"Why not? We're not meeting anyone today. You're just taking me out so I don't stay in my room all week.", Tammy answers.
"But you need to look as good as I am when we're out together.", Julietta tells her.
"Then wait down stairs so I can change.", Tammy tells her.
"Have it your way, but you better wear everything I gave you. Don't make me inspect what you are wearing like a military drill sergeant. You better be down in five minutes.", Julietta explains to her. She then gets up and walks out the room.
Tammy starts to take off her clothes in frustration, throwing them on the bed. She puts on everything except for the suit jacket, carrying it and her purse with down stairs. Julietta was waiting for her downstairs in the living room.
"You got everything on?", Julietta asks her.
"Yes. You want to check?", Tammy tells her.
"Don't tempt me.", Julietta tells her. She gets up out of the chair and signals Tammy to follow her. Together they leave the house and walk to a larger Mercedes 950SEL that was parked in front of the house.
"What's wrong with the little car?", Tammy asks.
"Its on the shop getting its oil and filters changed.", Julietta answers as she presses a button on the car's key and the doors unlock, "Get in the front."
Tammy gets into the front passenger door of the car as Julietta goes to the driver's side and gets in. The key goes into the ignition, and they drive away.
Tammy does not know where they are leaving, thus she asks when they get on the highway, "Where are we going?"
"Away from Milan for a while.", Julietta answers as she drives, heading north. In less than an hour they were on a mountain road. In a few minutes they were driving up to a large house at the end of the mountain road. It over hangs from the mountain from the backside where it is not seen from the front. Julietta pulls the car to the front of the house.
"Where are we?, Tammy asks.
"This is a private villa the family owns, just a mile from the Swiss border.", Julietta answers as she enters the house. A couple of staff members arrive to greet her, as she greets them and asks for a large lunch.
"I see. So why are we here?", Tammy asks.
"To get you out of your rut you got yourself into.", Julietta tells her as she leads her to a balcony on the back of the house on the main floor.
"What rut?", Tammy asks.
"The one where you lock yourself into your room all week long." Julietta tells her in an annoyed tone.
"I'm busy tracking Bink and I may have found her in Rome's SWA Medical Center.", Tammy tries to explain.
"I'm going to tell you, you are not going to get far with them.", Julietta tells her, opening the balcony door and stepping outside.
Tammy follows her onto the balcony and asks, "What makes you think that?"
"That medical center is a government secret that no one knows about. Children walk in there with various conditions and they do not come out. But yet there are government child assassins that look like these children out killing political dissidents like members of our family. Furthermore if it is a medical center, why is it not listed as one of Rome's health facility centers?", Julietta explains and asks.
"I don't know.", Tammy answers unsure herself.
"America has a few million conspiracies and people hunting the truth about them. Italy, is maybe the larger than one of the US's medium sized states, has much more government conspiracies than does the USA. One of them being the use of little girls in assassination squads, if it were not for Bink's condition of not having legs or an arm, I would think that is where the government has her, as one of their killer children squads.", Julietta explains.
"But, that would be despicable of them if they do that!", Tammy says.
"Never put a government to do things against its people even though they say that they are protecting them. That is what is going on here.", Julietta replies.
"And how does this involve Bink?", Tammy asks.
"Don't know. She is too much of an invalid for her to be worth anything to them, but I would not be surprise if they have her in some lab as a test rat for experiments.", Julietta answers.
"They better not...", Tammy says as she clenches her fists.
"Or else what?", Julietta asks.
"I don't know what I would do. I really don't.", Tammy relaxes in defeat.
A rat in a suit knocks on the side of the door's frame to get their attention. They both turn around to see him as he says, "Lunch is ready, madam."
"Thank you, Renaldo.", Julietta tells him, "We'll both be there in a couple of minutes."
"I'll alert the staff then.", Renaldo replies before walking away.
Julietta waits for a moment as she counts his footsteps, then she tells Tammy, "I'm afraid that we are targets to those little assassins. As you know our brothers were killed, except for Johan and Romeo. I'm pretty sure that they are next, along with us women." Julietta walks up to Tammy, Tammy backing up until she is up against the wall by the door. Julietta leans over to her and takes her by the neck and lower jaw, then plants her lips against Tammy, at the some time slips a USB Flash drive between the buttons of her blouse and her breasts. She pulls back away from her, "Sorry I had to do that to you but you'll understand why." Julietta then walks into the house.
Tammy leans against the wall. She reaches into her blouse and finds the USB Flash Drive. She nods as to now she realizes why Julietta did what she did. She lets out a sigh, putting the flash drive back between her breasts, making it more secure and comfortable for her before walking into the house. Listening for activity, she finds her way to the dining room there where was a long table with Julietta sitting at one of the ends. She points to the other end for Tammy to sit. Tammy nods and sits at the seat at the far end.
Renaldo walks up from behind Tammy and puts a laptop in front of her already opened and the screen on to several video feeds. In one was Julietta's kiss to Tammy from behind at a distance. Another was the side of the cliff she had seen from outside on the balcony, the bushes were rustling against the wind. A head pops up from the bushes, but it's drawn down into the leaves by a grabbing hand and another head pops up momentarily and back into the bush where the leaves rustle more violently. She looks up at Julietta who was examining a camera with a lens longer than the length from her elbow to her fingertips.
"Where you got that camera from?", Tammy asks.
"From the paparazzi on the video feed you just seen.", Julietta answers.
"How, why?", Tammy asks.
"How is simple; I am an actress even though I have my own TV Show and studio. I'm also a Polancco, so the paparazzi want to take pictures of me in compromising positions to sell them to the tabloids and the government. The government buys the pictures at a higher price than the tabloids so they get to pick and choose first. Why? This is private property, from here to the next five miles around and into Switzerland and he was trespassing. And the Swiss will protect their borders. Only we can cross the border because we own the land there.", Julietta explains.
"So where's the photographer?", Tammy asks.
"He's at the bottom of the ravine on the Swiss side. He'll be found dead in a few days when the border patrol comes to find him.", Julietta explains.
"You're joking, right?", Tammy asks.
"I don't joke. And with the safety of our family, such extremes are necessary to protect us. I must ask, would you like to be found dead and plastered on all the newspapers and tabloids? I do not, and that is why it has to be done. Even with the ant-paparazzi-stalking laws, the Italian government would not help out. The Swiss will and that photographer will be a tiny article in his own tabloids.", Julietta explains.
"Isn't that murder?", Tammy asks.
"Taking pictures of my activities and sending them to the government and me being found dead by mysterious circumstances, is murder. Me trying to prevent that from happening is self defense.", Julietta tells her.
"But...", Tammy wanted to say something.
"No buts. If the government had gotten those pictures, you would be a target and forget tying to find Bink, you would be running for your own life.", Julietta tells her.
"Why am I not believing this?", Tammy asks herself.
"I'm not forcing you to believe or not to believe. That is for you to decide. But I'm telling what is going on, our struggle against the government and its prime minister wanting to control all the country's media outlets. Things here are not like in America. We maybe rich but we are fighting for our lives. Now that USB Drive, watch it at home. But do not scream at what you see happening. It's from the security cameras of the house. I downloaded before the police could get it. It shows who did it, and it shows something interesting.", Julietta explains.
"What?", Tammy asks.
"Someone was in the house trying to save your mother. Don't know who he is, he wore an Italian EMT Jacket. It looks like he as shot as well, but I do not know if he made it out alive or not. I searched all of Italy's EMT bases and no one could identify him. Nor did I find him at a hospital to tend to his injuries. I doubt you will ever find out who it is. But one more thing.", Julietta answers.
"What?", Tammy asks, wiping a tear from her eye.
"We, at least I, know who it is who murdered the family. It's a family friend turned government informant. The drive also has the security video of the murder of our brothers was done by little girls with guns. Men in trench coats came in and surveyed the scene before calling the police. Since the police cooperated with them, it proves what I say and have known for a long time, that the government wants my family dead.", Julietta tells her. She then signals the staff to start the noon meal.
Salad is served with several breads and cheeses, as is slices of roast beef with a macaroni and cheese with vegetables, heavy on the fluffy scrambled eggs. Julietta makes a sandwich out of hers, Tammy just piles it on the plate and picks and chooses what to bite next. Wine was served with the meal, despite Tammy's objection, but she drinks it to wash down her meal. After their meal they walk back to the balcony again.
"Is anyone going to get killed again?", Tammy asks.
"If the Swiss border patrol finds another, but from the looks of it- no.", Julietta tells her.
"Why don't they pick up the body now?", Tammy asks.
"The Swiss knows that they are crossing into our property, and furthermore could cross the border into Italy. So they ask for our permission to climb down on our property to get the body. That takes a few days to do.", Julietta answers.
"You're joking, right?", Tammy asks.
"That is how it's done officially. But they will get the body out before nightfall and drag it to one of their facilities and then release the information of death to the tabloids days later. Look, he could have been a sniper trying to kill me, my staff, or even you. They have caught a few trying to set up a sniper's nest with loaded arms in the past. So, anyone who dare cross the border is fair game. I just own the land and allow their actions on my property because in protecting their homeland, it protects me as well. That is how it works.", Julietta explains.
"So...", Tammy begins to say.
"You want to be a target?", Julietta asks.
"No.", Tammy answers.
"It might be too late but you need to know that as a Polancco, things can be easy and hard at the same time. It depends on where you stand on our politics. As an American I do not expect you to understand but that's how things are in Italy. You just have to be aware of these things so you don't get caught up in them. In Italy, things are run with an iron fist and a knife in the other hand. If the iron fist does not control you, the knife in the other hand will be found in your gut. Right now that knife has been put into our family's gut, and we are sure to be next. Watch yourself out there, Tammy. Watch yourself. Bink will no longer be important when you have to run for your life. I'm not saying to give up your search for her, but when the shit hits the fan, you better be out of that room or in your case – you better be in America where it will be safe for you.", Julietta explains.
Tammy lets out a defeated sigh, "I see."
"Now if you came to the same conclusion as I have, your next stop is Rome. Is it not?", Julietta says and asks.
"It is.", Tammy answers.
"When are you leaving?", Julietta asks.
"I don't know yet. But soon.", Tammy answers.
"Let me know so I can safely fly you there myself in the family jet.", Julietta replies.
"Alright. I'll let you know.", Tammy responds, thought not wanting too and perhaps lying to protect herself and her future whereabouts.
Between the talking and the thinking, Tammy could not eat much. But the look from the staff and Julietta makes her take half the glass of wine. As soon as she places the glass down, it gets refilled. As with anything involving alcohol, Tammy gets the bravery to start eating again. Another half hour passes before the midday meal is finished.
With almost three glasses of wine in her belly, Tammy had started to feel the alcohol hitting her system half way into the second glass. Unlike most Eurpoeans who do have wine with their meals, they can handle the surge alcohol from a meal as Americans do not have that luxury and prefer sugary drinks to wine with food. Thus the alcohol hits Tammy harder than Julietta expected.
Tammy does not make it to the balcony, instead plopping herself onto one of the large sofas in the room.
"Cant handle a couple of drinks with your meal?", Julietta asks.
"I-ssh'm Fiiine...", Tammy tells her.
"Then you better take a nap and sleep it off.", Julietta tells her.
"No.", Tammy begins with a heavy breath, "I-ss want to geght those who have Bink and gize them a piece of my mind.", Tammy replies.
"Alright. You do that. But first you better rest up and get your strength back.", Julietta tells her.
"Alls-right. Ifs you says so.", Tammy answers. After taking a deep breath, she lays back against the seat. In a couple of minutes she is snoring.
"Look at that. A couple of drinks with her meal and she's passed out. My kids can drink more than she did.", Julietta tells her.
"She's probably a virgin.", one of her staff members says.
"Her sex life is not our business unless she makes it our business by involving us in it.", Julietta
"Shall I take her upstairs in one of the beds?", Renaldo asks.
"That should be unnecessary. She can sleep it off here. There are no guests coming over, right?", Julietta says and asks.
"I don't believe so, madam.", Renaldo answers.
"Good. Now no one disturbs her. Everyone to your post.", Julietta almost orders. The staff goes to their posts, doing their appointed tasks.