HIDDEN

Chapter Two

“ The 25th birthday party of Mia Conti was abruptly canceled when an unknown gunman shot her in front of her parents at their residence in Milan. Family members had informed the media that Mia Conti is fine, but some witnesses are saying otherwise. The witnesses reportedly told our news station that most of them don’t remember exactly what had happened as they were gassed with a substance that is being presumed to be chloroform. Now, who could have wanted to kill Mia Conti and the big question is why? Our journalist Angela Miles is outside the mansion of the Conti’s …..”,

Elena lowered the volume on the television, she walked towards the windows and pulled the curtain back slightly just to take a quick look outside. She put a hand to her head as she felt the dizziness again, it was surely the side effect of the chloroform. Elena was glad that she was lucid and well oriented, obviously, the person who attacked their home tonight wanted to hurt them by shooting Mia otherwise he or she could have killed the whole family. That person clearly wanted to see them on their knees, they wanted to hit them where it hurts the most, their daughter. Everyone knew that Mia meant the world to them. She put a hand to chest, she felt like her heart had been broken into million tiny little pieces, she wanted to cry but the tears wouldn’t come. Elena wasn’t thinking straight, she wasn’t thinking like “ the lady” at that moment all that she wanted to know was, what happened to Mia and she was praying that the bullet didn’t kill her, that she was still around the house or somewhere close by. All she wanted was to see her baby girl again and alive.

Elena closed her eyes as the images flashed back through her mind like an old silent movie reel. When she had woken up from the effects of the chloroform, she had crawled towards the table which had fallen over and her daughter’s birthday cake which she didn’t get the chance to cut had splashed all over the floor. She couldn’t even call out her daughter’s name, her throat was too dry for her to even speak and she could barely breathe. She crawled towards the spot where her daughter had fallen to the ground, there was only a large puddle of blood, and Mia was nowhere to be found.

Elena took in a deep breath and she coughed as she exhaled, she closed her eyes trying to switch off those images which kept running through her mind. Journalists and cops had swarmed her property, she had asked the journalists to leave her property as she didn’t want the media to publicize their misfortune. She heard the sounds of footsteps approaching the living room, Elena stepped away from the windows and turned her attention towards the main door to the sitting room. Her husband walked in, she noticed that he was still a bit weak as well as he was walking with the help of one of their bodyguards. He glanced at her and the look in his eyes told her that they didn’t find Mia’s body and she felt herself falling. She held on to the edge of the wall and took in a deep breath, she wanted to scream but her vocal chord was paralyzed.

Who? Who could have done this to me!? Who is that wretched bastard who did this to me! My Mia, my beautiful daughter is gone, she said to herself as she leaned her head against the wall and this time tears rolled down her cheeks dripping to the floor. Marcos walked over to his wife and helped her to take a sit on the couch, a maid handed her a glass of water which she only took a few sips. Two police officers took a seat on the couch opposite them, they took out their statement form and was ready to record their testimony. Elena didn’t feel like answering anyone’s questions, not tonight. She whispered to her husband that she didn’t intend to speak with the police and ask them to come back tomorrow afternoon. Right now she had other things to think about, like her lists of enemies and maybe even her supposedly friends who could have murdered her daughter. It was hard for her not to even think of that word, but without a body and after what everyone had witnessed at the party, that the only word she could think of. Her daughter was murdered and to make it more painful they stole her dead body. She asked her husband to take her to her room.

Sitting in bed, Elena drank the two pills that their family Doctor had prescribed to help her sleep. It was as if she was floating on a cloud, nothing felt real, she wasn’t ready to accept that her daughter had been murdered and she couldn’t accept that tomorrow morning she wouldn’t see her beautiful smile at the breakfast table, greeting her like a beautiful ray of sun.

“ Whoever did this will pay! They don’t call me “The lady” for nothing! I will hunt them down like a dog and I will destroy everything and everyone!”, Elena muttered under her breath as she clenched her fists in anger.

She started to feel that her eyelids could no longer remain open, the sleeping pills were starting to kick in. Elena closed her eyes as she laid her head on her pillow, she needed to sleep, she needed to have her strength and courage to face the next morning and the days to come. All hell will surely break loose, no stones will be left unturned. When “ The lady” wanted to find something or someone, she will surely get it no matter how or where you try to hide.

In the sitting room, Marcos and Alfred sat there drinking whiskey and talking. Marcos ran a hand over his face as he placed his glass on the coffee table. He couldn’t think straight anymore, he had wondered if maybe it was karma that was catching up on them, but then he wasn’t a man who believes in karma. He didn’t believe in some kind of law that people have invented so that they can use to curse others. This karma has a name and he will find out who he or she is. If they had wanted to hurt him or Elena they should have shot one of them, he thought that it was a cowardly act by that person who shot his daughter.

If they are playing that game then, two can play that game and it is going to be very messy!, Marcos said to himself as he angrily downed his drink, he could feel the burning fluid going down his throat and he scrunched his face. He grabbed the bottle and poured himself another one.

“ My old friend you want some more?”, Marcos asked Alfred and he shook his head indicating “no”, as he drank the last drop in his glass.

“ I think I better head home. Daria must be worried. I’ll talk to you in the morning my friend… give my regards to Elena. I know it’s tough but we have to get to the bottom of this so you need to be strong”, Alfred said getting up from the couch.

“ I know my friend , I know…”, Marcos said as he walked his friend to the door.

Alfred walked out with a heavy heart, it wasn’t because his friends were going through the worst experience of their life, it was because all of his hopes has also been destroyed. The death of Mia means no marriage and no uniting his family with the Ricci’s bank accounts. He sighed as he got inside his car and waved goodbye to Marcos who was standing in the doorway looking at him.

Marcos took a glance outside his home , the police officials we’re still present at their residence and he didn’t really like their presence on his property. They had their own way of dealing with certain situations and they couldn’t do anything until those journalists and police officers had left their residence . They had to call in an urgent meeting with their allies and their bodyguards. He couldn’t understand how someone could find his way inside their residence when there are bodyguards stationed in all points of entry to their home ,unless there is a traitor among them. Marcos tightened his grip on his glass, tomorrow they will have to review all footage of the surveillance videos and if there was a mole among them, then tomorrow it will be the last day that he will see the sunlight. He downed his drink and made his way towards the stairs to his bedroom with a heavy heart. Tonight he will not hear his daughter shouting goodnight papa or catching her trying to creep out to go see her friends in the middle of the night. He held on tightly to the handrail as he reached the end of the staircase, his eyes focusing in the direction of Mia’s bedroom. He slowly walked towards the door of his daughter’s bedroom and placed his hand on the doorknob , he took in a deep breath before turning the knob and pushed open the door.

“Papa you came to bid me goodnight”.This is what his daughter will usually say when he will come in at night to check up on her, especially if he comes in late at night.

He sat there on the edge of Mia’s bed and held his head in his palms . His tears came voluntarily, it was not only tears of sadness and grief but also of anger. Marcos was angry at himself that he couldn’t protect his only child against their enemies. He lifted his head and looked towards the photo of his daughter on the bedside table. He stood up and picked up the picture frame, he sat down on the edge of the bed again. Marcos ran his finger on the face of his daughter then hugged the photo frame, as he sat there crying uncontrollably.