Dani the Hero - 11. Chapter 11

It was like some strange reflection of their first ride together just over a month ago. Back then, it had been a sunny afternoon and they had been strangers. Now, Daniele was riding through the night with his best friend on his back. Giacomo’s hands clung loosely to his waist and he was resting his head against Daniele’s shoulder, injured and exhausted once again, but relaxed and protected.

Daniele knew he shouldn’t be feeling so happy but, for the moment, he couldn’t seem to quell the feeling.

They climbed out of the Sambuco valley, riding easily through the darkness. Daniele knew that it wasn’t over, that they would need to make a plan in the morning, but for the moment Giacomo was safe and that was all that really mattered.

They crested the hill at the main road and began the gentle descent back into town. Down at the coast, far below, the lights of Minori twinkled white, blue and gold in the warm summer night. It was the latest Daniele had ever been out on his own, but he didn’t feel at all sleepy; instead, he felt wired, more awake than he had felt in weeks.

They reached the centre of town where, even at this late hour, the gentle buzz of cheerful voices drifted through the tunnel from the square, then they turned down the zig-zagging street that led home. Daniele freewheeled, only slowing down at the hairpin bends to avoid upsetting his passenger.

Daniele brought the bike to a gentle halt outside his front gate, and they disembarked together. Daniele glanced up at the house; from the look of the lights that glowed warmly behind the slatted shutters in the upstairs windows, his parents had also retired to their bedroom for the night. So much the better.

Daniele pushed the metal gate open as slowly and quietly as he could, then Giacomo wheeled the mountain bike onto the terrace. Once Daniele had pushed the gate gently home in its frame, he took the bike from his friend and leaned it against the wall in the usual place. He beckoned the other boy to follow him around the end of the house and they clambered quietly in through the window.

Daniele fumbled around in the dark until he found the bedside lamp. Once he had turned it on, he closed the bedroom window quietly and pushed the shutters closed. For a moment, the two boys stared silently at each other in the gloom, then Giacomo sank down onto the edge of the bed and kicked his shoes off, running his hands through his hair in a tired sort of way.

“I’ll get you some water,” Daniele whispered; the other boy nodded gratefully.

Pausing to pull off the warm grey hoodie and dump it on a chair at the side of the room, Daniele shook off his own shoes, then crept through to the kitchen and drew two glasses of water as quietly as he could. On impulse, he stopped off at the bathroom on the way back and wetted a face flannel with cool water, returning to the bedroom with the glasses of water in his hands and the flannel slung over his arm.

Giacomo drank deeply from his glass of water. When Daniele offered him the damp flannel, he took it at once, wiping his face and neck down thoroughly before handing it back. Daniele dumped it on the bedside table.

Keeping their voices as low as they could, the two boys conversed softly.

“Are you okay?” Daniele asked.

Giacomo nodded and almost smiled. “Thanks to you,” he said. “He whacked me really hard in the ribs, though.”

As if to illustrate the point, he clutched at the same spot on his chest once again.

“Can I see?” Daniele asked.

“Yeah, okay.”

Giacomo shrugged off his jacket; Daniele took it and chucked it onto the chair with the grey hoodie. By the time he had sat down next to the other boy on the side of the bed, Giacomo was pulling off his fitted t-shirt as well. He handed it to Daniele, looking at him with total trust, bare-chested and vulnerable. Daniele was forced to look away, flushing furiously, and struggled for a moment to get a hold of himself. He balled up the t-shirt and tossed it across the room, landing it perfectly on the top of the jacket on the chair. When Daniele dragged his eyes back to meet the other boy’s gaze, Giacomo was looking at him strangely. Daniele froze for a moment, trying to work out what the look meant.

“What do you think?” Giacomo asked, breaking the spell and glancing down at his chest.

Daniele slid down onto his knees and inspected the injury from the floor. A large purple bruise was forming against the ribs on Giacomo’s left side. Daniele reached out and touched it gently with the knuckle of one finger; the other boy winced, but only slightly.

“Is it really painful?” he asked.

Giacomo shrugged. “A bit… I dunno… I don’t think anything’s broken.”

Daniele grabbed the damp flannel and pressed it gently against the injury. “Try this,” he suggested.

“Thanks,” Giacomo mumbled, taking the flannel from him. Their fingers brushed together, and part of Daniele wanted to linger there, but he made himself withdraw his hand, and returned to his spot next to Giacomo on the bed.

“Antonio shouldn’t have done this to you,” Daniele said.

“I didn’t betray anyone,” Giacomo said in a small voice, and then he burst into silent tears.

Tentatively, Daniele placed his arms around the other boy’s bare shoulders and pulled him closer. It felt very strange, but Giacomo reached up with his free hand and grabbed Daniele’s nearest one. Apparently, his embrace was welcome and needed.

There was silence while Giacomo cried himself out. Daniele didn’t know what to say. He rested his head against the other boy’s, trying his best to comfort him without words.

“I think maybe it’s my fault,” Daniele said, once the hitching of his friend’s chest had slowed. “A few weeks ago, before the attack on Salvatore’s, I… talked to Toto and Michele. I didn’t tell any adults, like you said, but I… I needed to talk to someone. Now they’re all working together to fight back.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Giacomo mumbled. “I guess it’ll all be over soon anyway.”

“Will you be okay, without the extra money?” Daniele asked.

Giacomo shook himself gently free of Daniele’s arms and turned to look at him, his eyes still glistening, catching small traces of light in the gloom. “That’s not why I was doing it,” he said. “Not really.”

Now Daniele was completely lost. “Then why…?”

“Mamma had gone out to collect some supplies,” Giacomo explained. “I was looking after the shop when Filippo came by and started making his threats.”

“And…?” Daniele asked.

Giacomo lowered the damp flannel and looked miserably at his hands. “I couldn’t let him do that to Mamma… you’ve seen how she gets.”

“So, you…”

Giacomo nodded. “I made a deal with Filippo. I agreed to work for them if they promised to leave Mamma alone.”

Daniele stared at the other boy, a quiet eruption of feeling taking place in his chest. Suddenly, everything he had seen over the last few weeks made sense, and he felt a click of total empathy. His composure failed, and now it was Daniele’s turn to burst into tears.

“I get it…” he managed. “If it had happened to me… I’d totally have done the same thing.”

Now the tears had started, he couldn’t get them to stop. It was as if all the doubt and confusion he had been bottling up over the last few weeks had boiled over, and now it was pouring out of him in a jumbled torrent.

Rubbing his eyes blindly, he felt Giacomo reach for him. They put their foreheads together, eyes closed.

“It’s okay, Dani,” Giacomo whispered. “Let it out. You’ve earned it.”

Daniele did. And when he’d finished, he felt better.

He glanced at his wristwatch. It was well past eleven o’clock.

“We should get some sleep,” he said.

Giacomo nodded. “I’m done in.”

They glanced at the double bed together.

“We’ll have to share,” Daniele said.

Giacomo gave him a weary smile. “At least there’s room.”

They picked their sides of the bed and then Daniele prised off his colourful t-shirt, shorts and socks, donning the vest top he usually slept in. Giacomo simply shrugged off his shorts and socks, climbing into the bed in his underpants. They lay facing each other for a moment, and then Giacomo giggled softly.

“What’s so funny?” Daniele asked.

“This,” Giacomo replied. “I never thought you’d be the first person I slept with.”

Daniele smiled, slightly embarrassed. After a moment, Giacomo frowned slightly and then he was looking at him strangely again.

“Dani…” he said hesitantly.

“Yes?” Daniele asked.

“Do you… like me, or something?” Giacomo whispered.

Daniele blinked back at him, unsure how to answer. After a while, he nodded slightly. “A bit.”

Giacomo twisted his mouth thoughtfully. “That’s okay, I guess,” he replied after a while. “You’re still the best friend I’ve ever had.”

“Thanks, Giaco,” Daniele whispered.

“G’night, Dani,” Giacomo said.

“G’night,” Daniele replied. He reached out and turned off the light.

* * *

Daniele slept heavily that night. He awoke slowly the next morning, brought gradually back to consciousness by the thin strips of summer sunlight that were already streaming in through the slits in his shutters.

In the bright light of the morning, the events of last night felt like a dream. Sleepily, he turned over in his bed and almost yelped aloud at the sudden sight of Giacomo, who was still slumbering next to him. The other boy had worked his way out of the covers during the night, and lay facing Daniele, almost completely uncovered, his dark hair tousled.

Daniele lay there and watched him for a while, lost in the peaceful way his bare chest rose and fell as he slept. However, it wasn’t long before he became uncomfortably aware of a pressing urge to urinate, and he decided it was time to wake the other boy up.

Daniele decided to approach the matter gently. He got quietly out of bed and slowly pulled back the shutters on the nearest window, allowing the June sunlight to stream in. It shone back off the row of cupboards, bathing Giacomo in a soft reflected glow. He stirred slowly, his dark eyes fluttering open. Caught in the clarity of the moment, Daniele was fascinated by how long and beautiful his eyelashes were.

“Dani…?” Giacomo mumbled sleepily. Daniele put a finger to his lips and climbed back onto the bed.

“I think my parents are awake,” he whispered. He was sure he had heard movement from the kitchen a moment ago.

“I really need to pee,” Giacomo whispered.

“Me too,” Daniele replied, “but we can’t both go. They’ll notice.”

Giacomo snickered. “We’ll have to go together.”

“Ah, c’mon…” Daniele protested, but Giacomo was insistent. He climbed out of bed and crept towards the door in his underpants.

“Check if the coast is clear,” Giacomo whispered.

Daniele opened the door quietly and put his head around it. The door to the kitchen diner was safely closed, so he gestured to the other boy and they tiptoed to the bathroom together.

“You go first,” Daniele whispered once he had locked the door.

“All right, but no peeking,” Giacomo replied.

Daniele turned to face the door and waited as his friend used the toilet. The steady trickling sound gave him a desperate urge to giggle, and he stuffed a fist into his mouth to suppress it. Giacomo washed his hands quietly, and then they swapped places. When he was done, he flushed the toilet, washed his own hands and they crept back to his bedroom.

There wasn’t a lot of time, now. His parents would have heard him using the bathroom, and they might come to investigate if he didn’t put in an appearance soon. The two boys held a whispered conference on the bed.

“I’m going to have to go through to breakfast,” Daniele told the other boy. “You’ll have to hide in here.”

“For how long?” Giacomo asked. “I’m starving.”

“They’ll both have left for work by ten,” Daniele replied. “I’ll fix you something after that.”

“Ten o’clock?” Giacomo echoed in dismay. “I’ll have faded away to nothing by then.”

“Really?” Daniele asked. “In that case, I guess I don’t need to save anything for you. I can eat it all myself.”

Giacomo scowled and pounced on him. There was a brief wrestling match on the bed, with much suppressed giggling, but then Daniele freed himself and backed away to a safe distance.

“Stop it!” he whispered. “They’ll get suspicious.”

Daniele moved round to his wardrobe to grab some fresh clothes. Automatically, he reached for one of his favourite t-shirts, the lavender one, then prepared to undress.

“You won’t look, will you?” Daniele asked suspiciously.

Giacomo rolled his eyes. “Oh, yeah,” he replied, “like I’d want to see that.”

Satisfied, Daniele hastily whipped off his dirty underwear and put on the fresh clothes. Once he’d shoved his feet into a clean pair of socks, he was ready to go.

“I’ll see you in a bit,” he whispered.

Giacomo nodded. “Can I borrow something to wear?” he asked.

“Sure,” Daniele replied. “Help yourself.”

Daniele opened the second pair of shutters and cracked the window open to air the room, then left, shutting the bedroom door carefully behind him. He opened the next door and stepped through into the kitchen diner, where Patrizia was setting out the breakfast things. Paolo was just arriving down the stairs.

“Morning, champ,” Paolo said, walking over to Daniele for a quick hug.

“Ciao, Papà,” Daniele replied.

“Ciao, tesoro,” Patrizia smiled. “Are you feeling better this morning?”

Daniele nodded. “Much better, thanks. I’m sorry about yesterday.”

Patrizia and Paolo exchanged a satisfied glance, as if this confirmed what they had speculated yesterday – that Daniele’s low mood had been a temporary result of a short-lived argument, and that things would look better in the morning. For the moment, Daniele was happy to let them remain under that misapprehension.

“I’m just glad you’re feeling happier today,” Patrizia replied. “Come and have something to eat.”

Daniele wandered over to the table and sat down. She offered him a plate of lemon croissants and poured him a measure from a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice. Daniele took one of the croissants and tucked into the breakfast gratefully, imagining how jealous Giacomo would be if he could see him now.

“What are you going to do today?” Patrizia asked.

Daniele weighed the question up for a moment. “Giacomo and I are going to get together and make plans,” he answered, truthfully enough.

“That’s nice, caro,” she replied. “I feel so much better about leaving you on your own all day now that you have friends your own age you can spend the time with.”

Daniele nodded. “And I can always work on my stories,” he said.

Paolo smiled. “Now you have that computer, there’ll be no stopping you,” he said.

They ate together quietly, the mood between them light. All the same, Daniele was glad when he could make his excuses and return to his bedroom. It was already nine o’clock, so there was less than an hour to go until Giacomo could come out of hiding.

The dark-eyed boy looked up quickly as Daniele entered, but relaxed visibly as he saw who it was. He had been flicking through one of Daniele’s stories (thankfully not Foul Filippo and the Swifts), but returned it to the desk as Daniele approached.

Daniele smiled at his friend’s attire. Giacomo had picked one of Daniele’s tie-dye t-shirts, but one of the least ostentatious ones, in different shades of pale blue. He had combined it with a pair of navy blue shorts. Overall, Daniele thought, he looked pretty good.

“It won’t be much longer,” Daniele whispered.

“I like your stories, Dani,” Giacomo said quietly. “You should write more.”

Daniele shrugged. After the real horrors the two of them had been through, the idea of casting himself in superhero stories suddenly seemed childish and frivolous. “I don’t know… don’t you think they’re kinda dumb?”

Giacomo grinned. “Maybe you could rely less on superpowers. You’re pretty cool even without them.”

Daniele flushed and sat down next to him on the bed. “Thanks,” he mumbled.

They chatted very quietly until Daniele heard his parents getting ready to leave. First, he heard his father setting off.

“See you later, champ,” Paolo called through the closed bedroom door as he departed.

“Ciao, Papà,” Daniele called back.

Then when he heard his mother gathering her things in the hallway, he slipped out of the bedroom and saw her to the front door.

“Have a good day at work, Mamma,” he chirped.

Dressed in her hotel uniform, Patrizia swooped down on him and planted a kiss on each cheek. “See you later, caro,” she smiled.

Daniele watched her go until she had crossed the street and set off up the steps. He retreated into the house and closed the door, then returned to the bedroom.

“It’s okay, they’re gone,” he told the other boy.

Giacomo flopped back onto the bed, spreading his arms and legs, and exhaled slowly.

“I can’t believe we got away with that!” he laughed, then he sat up. “Can I have some breakfast now?” he added hopefully.

Daniele grinned and gestured for his friend to follow him through to the kitchen diner. Sitting Giacomo down at the table, he got the jug of orange juice out of the fridge and poured his friend a glass, then he unwrapped the plate of lemon croissants, which he had watched his mother place carefully in the cupboard, and offered one to the other boy.

Giacomo took the croissant and made short work of it, licking the crumbs off his fingers hungrily and washing it all down with the juice.

“Thanks, Dani,” he said. “That was great.”

Daniele took the other boy’s plate and glass and washed them up, adding them to the rack of breakfast dishes that were draining beside the sink, then returned to the table and sat down.

“We need to work out what to do now, I guess,” he said, although he had no real idea of where to start.

Giacomo nodded. “I guess so,” he said. “I…”

But they were interrupted at that moment by a knock at the front door. The two boys exchanged a frightened glance.

“Get ready to hide,” Daniele whispered.

Cautiously, Daniele padded across the cool ceramic tiles and returned to the hall, opening the front door a crack to see who was there.

It was Emilia, and she was alone, dressed once again in jeans, a white blouse and a denim jacket. Daniele breathed a sigh of relief.

“Ciao, Emilia,” Daniele said, loud enough for the other boy to hear.

“Ciao, Daniele,” Emilia replied. She looked a little anxious. “Have you seen Giacomo? I went to his place this morning and there was no sign of either him or his mother. I… oh!”

Her face took on a comical look of surprise as Giacomo joined Daniele at the entrance, pulling the door wider so she could see them both. She glanced uncertainly from one boy to the other, undoubtedly noticing the similarity of their attire.

“Did you spend the night here?” she asked. Giacomo nodded, fixing her with an amused smile.

“Come in, Emilia,” Daniele said. He stood aside and ushered her in, closing the door behind her, and the three of them returned to the kitchen diner.

“Nice house,” she said, glancing around the bright white room as they sat back down at the dining table. “Now would someone please tell me what’s going on?”

* * *

Between them, Daniele and Giacomo told Emilia the tale of the previous night. Emilia listened, open-mouthed, her eyes horrified, as they described Antonio’s attack on Giacomo. When they had finished, Giacomo lifted up his t-shirt to show her the bruise on his chest. She winced at the sight of it.

“And now we’re trying to decide what to do next,” Daniele supplied.

“You have to tell someone,” Emilia replied at once.

“If we tell our parents, they’ll just panic and it won’t get us anywhere,” Giacomo replied. “The police aren’t interested, remember?”

Emilia frowned. “Yeah, but what can we really do on our own?”

Daniele noticed her use of the word ‘we’ and was grateful for it.

“Maybe we could talk to Toto and Michele,” he suggested. “I’m not sure, but… I think they’re involved in the counter-attacks somehow.”

Giacomo and Emilia exchanged a glance, then they both nodded.

“All right,” Giacomo said, “I don’t see any harm in that.”

Daniele glanced over at the large windows, contemplating the crystal blue sky. “Let’s get out for a bit,” he said. “I don’t want to hide in here all day. We can try to find the others.”

Giacomo and Emilia seemed to like the idea, so they set out into the sunny street together. Daniele had suggested that they call at Michele’s house in the hope of tracking down the two older boys, so they climbed the steps across the street and made their way in through the maze of courtyards. Daniele knocked on Michele’s front door while Giacomo and Emilia hung back uncertainly.

After a few moments, Michele’s mother Chiara answered the door. A pleasant-looking woman in her early forties who worked as a waitress at a bar down in Amalfi, she was already dressed for work, and her long wavy hair was tied back in a ponytail. She looked surprised when her eyes fell upon her unexpected visitors.

“Ciao, Daniele,” she smiled. “I’m sorry, but Michele and Toto left together a few minutes ago. Where you expecting to meet up with them today?”

Daniele shook his head. “No,” he said, “but… please, I really need to talk to them. It’s kinda urgent.”

Chiara looked startled. “Is there something wrong?” she asked.

Daniele bit his lip anxiously. “We just really need their help with something.”

Apparently, Chiara was starting to realise that he didn’t want to explain any further. “I could call Michele,” she offered. “But what should I tell him?”

“I think he’ll know what it’s about. Please could you tell him we’re going to the olive grove?”

“All right, caro, I’ll try,” she said. She frowned. “Are you sure everything’s all right?”

Daniele backed away. “Thanks, signora,” he replied. “Sorry, we have to go now.”

Daniele rejoined his friends and they made their way back down to the quiet road. Daniele led them up the gentle climb to the turning for San Cosma and the footpath to the olive groves.

“Do you think they’ll come?” Emilia asked.

“I reckon they will,” Daniele replied. “I trust them.”

“Let’s give them half an hour,” Giacomo suggested.

Daniele nodded. “Okay.”

They made their way out along the winding concrete path that hugged the base of the cliff. The summer was now in its full colourful display. At one point, cascades of morning glory tumbled down the rockface, their navy blue trumpets turning towards the sun. A little further along, a garden below the path was overrun with bougainvillea in full bloom, creating a carpet of fiery reds and magentas against the backdrop of the coast. Among the scattered olive trees above and below the path, the cicadas scraped away steadily.

Before long they had arrived in the olive grove proper, and they took shelter from the sun among the silvery foliage. Sitting down on the dry grass and earth, they propped themselves up against the grey tree trunks.

“I’m sorry, guys,” Giacomo said moodily.

“What for?” Daniele asked.

Reality seemed to be setting in for Giacomo now they were trying to come up with a plan. He tugged distractedly at some of the dry grass, pulling it out by the roots. “I never meant for anyone else to get dragged into this.”

Daniele reached across and grabbed his hand for a second. “I don’t mind, Giaco,” he said.

“We’re your friends,” Emilia added earnestly. “We want to help.”

“But it’s like I can’t win,” Giacomo said. “If I go back again, they think I’m betraying them, so Antonio comes after me. But if I run away, Antonio comes after me anyway because I know too much.”

Daniele shuffled over to the other boy and scrunched down next to him. “We’ll think of something to get him off your back,” he said.

“I’m worried about Mamma, too,” Giacomo went on. “What happens when she gets home and I’m not there?”

Emilia shuffled over too, placing herself on Giacomo’s other side. “It’s all right, Giacomo,” she said. “This is Ravello. He’s not going to be allowed to keep coming for you forever without anyone trying to stop him. There’ll be an answer. We can find it, if we have some help.”

They scrunched in tighter. Giacomo glanced at each of them for a moment, but then he smiled slightly. “Thanks, guys.”

They hung quietly around the olive grove while they waited to see if Toto and Michele would come. Giacomo shinned idly up an olive tree, while Daniele poked around in the leaf litter and dry grass, looking for insects. Emilia lay back and stared up at the sky through the silvery leaves, waving her hand slowly back and forth in front of her eyes in a passable imitation of a royal wave.

They didn’t have to wait too long before they heard the scrunching of feet on the leaf-strewn concrete and Toto and Michele appeared from round the corner. Daniele and Emilia sat up at once, while Giacomo plopped down out of the tree and sat between them.

The two older boys came to a halt, staring at them in surprise.

“All three of you?” Toto asked.

Daniele nodded. “We’re all in this together now.”

“What’s this about, Dani?” Michele asked. “Why did you need to see us so urgently?”

Giacomo pulled up his t-shirt once again. Toto and Michele glanced at him, startled, as he showed them the ugly purple bruise.

“Antonio did this to me last night,” he said.

The two older boys shook their heads in disbelief.

“He had a knife, guys,” Daniele said. “If I hadn’t been there…”

“Dani was a hero,” Giacomo said, placing an arm around Daniele’s shoulders. “You should have seen him. He totally leapt on that stronzo.”

Toto and Michele glanced questioningly at Daniele, who shrugged in slight embarrassment.

“We need to get Antonio off Giacomo’s back for good,” Daniele said. “We’re all worried that he might come after Giaco again.”

“Why, though?” Michele asked. “Why did he attack you, Giacomo?”

“They think I’m selling them out because of all the counter-attacks,” Giacomo replied. “I’m not, though, I swear!”

Toto and Michele exchanged an awkward glance.

“No, we know you’re not,” Toto replied.

Daniele could tell there were things the two older boys didn’t want to reveal. “What do you know about all this, guys?” he asked.

“We know what’s really going on,” Toto said evasively. “Listen, we’re working on something… I mean the two of us, plus some of the people whose businesses have been threatened or attacked, and one or two other… interested parties. But we need a few more days to figure it all out.”

“What do you mean?” Daniele pressed.

Michele took up the story. “We’ve been thinking about how the Carabinieri aren’t doing anything, and how you said Ettore Neri has some kind of hold over their chief, that Leggero guy.”

Daniele nodded. “Go on.”

“We figured that it’s too easy for them to take no action when it’s all at a distance. But if we can serve it all up to the police in a way that’s right in their face, then they’ll have to do something.”

“But we can’t just give them Ettore on his own,” Toto said. “Ettore’s too smart for that, he’s kept his hands clean. If we only get Ettore, Filippo and Antonio could just melt away, and then nothing will stick. So we need to set some kind of trap that will get them both. That’s the part we’re still working on.”

“The best thing you guys can do is probably to keep your heads down for a few days until we’ve dealt with it,” Michele said. “It really won’t be much longer now.”

“But… Giacomo’s in danger now,” Emilia demanded.

“Filippo knows where I live,” Giacomo added, his brow furrowed in concern. “Mamma’s coming back this afternoon. She doesn’t know about any of this.”

“I don’t think they’d dare to attack you at home,” Toto said, “but we can try to keep an eye on your place all the same. We’re just not ready to jump into action yet. If we try to do something before we’re fully prepared, the whole plan could fall apart.”

Daniele, Giacomo and Emilia exchanged discontented glances. Michele watched them with concern evident in the set of his brown eyes.

“I know it’s tough,” he said, “but you’re going to have to wait it out. We’ve got this. Don’t do anything stupid, guys.”

Toto checked his wristwatch. “We’ve got to go,” he said. “We’re meeting some of the others. Hopefully, soon, we’ll all be able to go and enjoy the summer. Maybe we can do something together. Stay cool.”

Daniele forced a smile. “That’d be great, guys. Thanks for talking to us.”

The two older boys left again, trudging back the way they had come. Daniele, Giacomo and Emilia watched them go.

“It isn’t enough,” Daniele said once they were out of earshot. “They think Antonio wouldn’t attack you at home, but they weren’t there last night. They didn’t see how crazy he is.”

Giacomo nodded. “Totally. Who knows what he could do if he has a few more days?”

“Can we stall him somehow?” Emilia asked. “Put him off the scent. If we can just stop him going for Giacomo for a little while, that might be all the time Toto, Michele and the others need to put an end to all this.”

“Like how?” Giacomo asked. “I can’t hide in Dani’s bedroom forever, and I don’t think talking to Antonio is going to help.”

Daniele tugged thoughtfully at the dry grass. He had an idea, and he didn’t think the others would like it, but it might work just well enough to give them the time they needed.

“I could try talking to Ettore,” he ventured.

Giacomo stared at him. “What?”

“At the moment, none of them know I’m involved. They’ve got no reason to attack me. If I went to see him, spoke up for you…”

Giacomo shook his head. “You’re pazzo, Dani. I can’t let you do that for me. It’d be like walking straight into the lions’ den!”

“But Antonio will listen to him. If I can convince Ettore…”

Giacomo frowned. “Pazzo,” he repeated quietly, but Daniele thought he saw the first wavering of doubt in his eyes.

“What do you think, Emilia?” Daniele asked.

Emilia looked anxious. “I don’t know… I suppose it might work.”

“What would you say to him?” Giacomo asked.

At present, Daniele didn’t have an answer for that.

“I don’t know yet…” he replied. “I’m kinda making this up as I go along. But I’d tell him that you’re not a snitch.”

“And what about me? What would my part in this be?” Giacomo asked.

“You’d have to stay at my place until I was done,” Daniele replied uncomfortably.

Giacomo uttered a curse. “This bites, Dani. You’re telling me to hide like a coward while you go in all on your own?”

Emilia closed the distance between them and took hold of Daniele’s arm. “He wouldn’t be on his own. I’d go in with him.”

Daniele glanced at her in surprise. Her jaw was set in determination and her eyes were burning. “Thanks, Emilia,” he replied.

“No,” Giacomo replied, but Daniele could tell from the quick movements of his eyes that he was thinking the idea through, despite his objections. “Don’t just go in together. Emilia, you could do something even more important. You could go for help if Dani gets into trouble.”

Daniele and Emilia exchanged a glance; a flash of agreement passed between them, and Daniele nodded. “Yes. Emilia could hide outside the house and watch through the window while I went inside. If it goes wrong, she could run for help right away.”

They left the exact meaning of ‘trouble’ undefined. Daniele didn’t really want to dwell on it, but to the extent that he considered it at all, he thought ‘trouble’ didn’t have to mean an immediate danger to life.

Giacomo sighed and clenched his knuckles in frustration. “I still don’t like this, but I’m worried about Mamma, too. If you do this, there’s just one thing I want you to agree to: you’ve got to do it during the day.”

“I think we should do it now,” Daniele said quietly. “I’m not sure I could still do it if I try to wait.”

Giacomo looked startled and Emilia went a little pale, but nobody objected.

“If we get through this, Dani, I think you should write it into one of your stories,” Giacomo said hollowly. “I’d buy it.” He moved forwards and pulled them both into an embrace. “Thanks, guys.”