Adult-FanFiction.org : Television / Streaming

Mistaken Identity	By : Kanashii Category: S through Z > The Sopranos Views: 1825 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own The Sopranos, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
Charlene spent most
of the day in bed, confused and hurting both physically and emotionally. She
could hear the voice of her caretaker/guard
making dozens of calls, in nearly all of them but a few he spoke in his native
tongue of Italian, but the one call he did speak in his broken English in, she
heard him put his house up for sale with a realtor. Occasionally he would pace
around and walk back to the bedroom to
make sure she was behaving herself and not trying to escape, but Charlene knew
even if she were to escape (nearly impossible with her torn knee ligaments and
busted up face) she had no idea where to go to, or where she was or anything.
Hell, she didn�t even know the name of this strange Italian man who was
guarding her.
The few times he
walked in to bring her a glass of water, Tylenol or some soup while still
talking on the phone and she would discreetly study him. The steel grey eyes
that could be almost gentle or as deadly as a storm depending on his mood, the
shoulder length hair he kept in a tight ponytail and his tall but well muscled
form. Her husband was around 5�10 and this man was most definitely taller than
him, and was broad chested with a narrow toned waist. His face was clean shaven
and pleasant enough yet it had a very hard edge to it; this Italian was just
one big enigma and mystery to her.
Finally as evening began falling he walked
back into the bedroom and started hurriedly throwing his belongings in a duffle
bag. �We go now, under cover of darkness.�
�Wait, wait.� She
hoarsely croaked. �I don�t even know your name, where are we going?�
He paused just long
enough to fix her with his steely gaze. �Furio,� he said calmly, �My name is
Furio Giunta. I going to drop you off at some friends of mine who will help fix
you injuries and get you ready until we fly to Napoli.� He then turned back to
his packing throwing in his personal hygiene items. Time was of the essence
here, and he had so much to do in the next three days.
�Napoli?� she tried to digest this
information. �Napoli, Napoli!� he
growled a bit impatiently, �You know, how you say, Naples. In a Italy.�
Her mouth just kind
of hung open, stunned. He was taking her to Italy?!? �Furio, wait�� she spoke
his strange name trying to get some information out of him, �I don�t want to go
to Italy.�
Suddenly with
lightening fast reflexes he pulled that gun out from his waistband and pointed
it at her again. �You want stay here?� Furio growled angrily, �Then you stay
here dead and buried. Otherwise silencio,
tenere la bocca chiusa! You going to Napoli and you better behave, no give
a me trouble or I stop being nice to you!�
Charlene cowered in
a small ball back against the pillows, she had no want of his temper or anger
and she could see he was in a busy almost frantic mode now. �Good.� Furio slid
the gun back into his waistband, �I glad we understand one another, eh?�
She didn�t dare interrupt him anymore as he hastily packed
up, threw his two duffle bags in his small car and then came back inside to
dress her back in her jeans. He tried being as gentle as he could but she still
groaned in pain as her injured knee was stretched out full length as he slid
her pants back on. Wrapping a blanket around her to keep her warm he carefully carried
her out to his idling car and securely seat belted her into the passenger seat.
Once he slid into the drivers� seat he pulled out that bottle of Tylenol and
fed her another 3 tablets and gave her some bottled water to wash it down with.
For the first 15
minutes he said nothing to her as they sped down the highway following the
signs for New York City, then once he was more comfortable he began speaking to
her again in that low soothing voice of his. �Look, I know this hard for you.
Right now both of us in a lot of trouble. If people find you they will kill
you, because they thought they had got someone else.� Charlene wasn�t quite following this but she
merely sat there silent and let him finally talk, it was the most she had
gotten out of him since she had first woken up at the hands of this strange
man.
�It was big kidnap
plot,� Furio continued again as he turned onto the exit he wanted continuing
north into the city, �You were supposed to be Sarah Harrison, but obviously you
not. Paulie and the others they fuck up, grab you instead.� He glanced at her
briefly and then turned his attention back to the road. It was pitch black out
there now, �I come here to America from Italy three years ago, but I get myself
in trouble too, eh? If a certain woman opens her mouth to anyone, then my boss
will be looking to kill me. Especially since that woman is the boss�s wife.�
Charlene was
slightly amused by this info; Furio had gotten himself in trouble with his
boss�s wife? Charlene was fairly certain all these people including Furio were
some kind of mobsters or Mafia just by the vague references he made. After all
who went around kidnapping people? Who went around killing people and speaking
of it so casually and carrying guns on their person? Furio glanced at her again
and she just silently nodded hoping it would be seen as sympathetic and
encouraging to him.
�Good, good.� He
mumbled briefly seemingly placated at her nodding at his explanation and not
questioning him. �Now, I going to drop you off with fellow countrymen who live
in the city eh? People even my boss not know about, other people also from
Italy. They going to clean you up heal you injuries and get you ready for when
I pick you up in a few days. I got to get lots of shit done, you know, fake passports
and such. I need to get money for travel, have things I need to do. I can�t
have you constantly with me until I ready to leave once and for all. Eventually
once you heal better and can keep you silence I let you return back here to you
home, Ok?� Not that Furio had any intention of any such thing, but he needed
her cooperative, and those last words seemed to settle her immensely.
Both were silent for another 15 minutes
especially as they were nearing New York City now, the huge lit skyline and increased
traffic casting flickering shadows and bright lights over the two people in the
car. Finally Furio spoke up again, �These people I put you with, they not speak
English, and if you smart, you just shut you mouth and not say nothing to them.
Let them help you and you be respectful and nice to them.� Furio paused a
moment, �And be forewarned,� he turned to her and glanced hard at her. Even in
the dim and flickering night Charlene could sense the piercing gaze of him at
her. �These people are very loyal to me. You give them no shit, no problems, or
you and I going to have very big problems.�
Charlene nodded
again, but Furio�s strong voice cut through the silence. �No! You say it aloud
to me, you say you understand! You give me you promise!� he growled. Charlene turned towards him and spoke as
clearly as she could through her swollen mouth. �I promise Furio, I
understand.� She felt an icy chill go through her.
Furio relaxed some
at her words, loosening his death grip on the steering wheel. �Good, very good.�
He said again in a normal tone. �See, things going to work out just fine.�
Furio drove them down to a run down section in the city and
Charlene noticed that several men nodded at Furio�s car as he drove past,
almost as if they were silent sentinels on the street watching for outsiders. �By
the way, you not use that name Charlene anymore.� He said thoughtfully a
moment. �Now you name is Aria, get used to it.�
They pulled up near
a tenement building and two women came out to greet Furio carrying on in
Italian. Furio spoke to them as he got out of the car walked over to Charlene�s
side and then picked her up in his strong arms and carried her inside, the two
women chatting with him amiably the whole time. Her caretaker placed her gently
down on a fold up cot which had been freshly made up with sheets and pillows in
the living room, then still talking to the two women he handed them a large wad
of cash.
�Listen to me,�
Furio finally turned back to Charlene after nearly 10 minutes of talking with
the women. �Those two ladies, the older one is Sophia and the younger one
Marie. This is they house; they have an older son named Enzo who lives here
too. They have a doctor going to come out tomorrow to fix you.� Furio glanced
around to make sure Sophia and Marie had left back to the kitchen. �You
remember you promise to me, you behave. Enzo he have a gun too, you not behave
he not be nice. I be back in 3 days to get you, it be best if you just keep you
mouth shut, eh? I tell these two that you are my fianc�e so you better act like
it.� Furio waved a warning finger at her and then said no more.
�Furio...� She
barely mouthed, still scared, still confused. She didn�t know what to think,
her heart ached that he was calling her his fianc�e and yet she knew that he
had saved her from something very dark and deadly and even worse that he had
the power to revoke that privilege and take her life himself if he so desired.
�Enough! Is better
for me with INS and to get paperwork if it looks like we married or engaged,
got it? Now no more talk Aria, shhh.� He gently touched her lips and then with
surprising kindness ran his fingers over her uninjured cheek. Unconsciously she
felt herself calming under his touch no matter how she tried to fight it with
her heart and soul. �You will be Ok now. You safe now.� He turned and then
after talking to the two women a moment who both gave him strong hugs and a
kiss on the cheek he stalked out back into the night.
Charlene could only
lay there with tears running down her cheeks, her body was in pain, her mind
was in pain and her heart was in pain and full of fear. Sophia and Marie came
out and it was obvious that they spoke no English at all and Charlene certainly
didn�t understand a word of Italian. Charlene wondered what �story� Furio had
told them about her, and her condition. The two women must have been thinking
that Charlene was missing her �fianc� Furio, if only they knew the awful
truth. However both women could tell she was in terrible physical pain, and
they both went about trying to clean her up and help bind her wounds until the
doctor would come tomorrow. As they were cleaning her up a small but powerful
man walked into the house, a gun at his waistband, his dark eyes glancing
briefly at Charlene. This must be Enzo she figured.
He spoke briefly with his mother and aunt and
then leaned over glancing at Charlene. �I speak very little bit English, eh?�
he said in an accent even thicker than Furio�s. �Not lot. But little.� Then
with a nod that all was Ok he just stalked off to his room.
The truth was Charlene was so tired that she
was ready to sleep. Once Enzo was in his room both Marie and Sophia gently but
efficiently undressed Charlene and then dressed her in comfy pajamas. They had
used gauze and linen strips to bind her head wound and also wrapped her knee
tightly to reduce the swelling. They then hand fed her a thick minestrone soup
and some wine along with some aspirin and finally tucked her in and dimmed the
lights letting her sleep. She was out and dead to the world in a matter of
minutes, her mind filled with fitful dreams of Furio Giunta killing her husband
and son while laughing the whole time.
She awoke the next morning to the wonderful
smells of strong coffee and warm breakfasts that reminded her of her
grandmother. She also had to pee like a race horse. The younger woman Marie
helped her limp off to the bathroom and also helped her with her morning hygiene.
After Charlene/Aria had eaten breakfast, Sophia ran the bath and both women
with surprising strength and efficiency bathed her and gently washed all the
dried blood out of her hair and cleaned her up, careful not to get water into
her wounds. Obviously these two old-world women were a lot more knowledgeable
and practical about treating injuries, and acted like they saw this kind of
stuff all the time. After they dried her off they wrapped fresh linens around
her wounds and again around her injured knee to stabilize it. Several times
they consulted among themselves with stern or worried looks on their faces or
spoke soothingly to Aria, but they seemed to know also she couldn�t understand
them.
Later that morning
a doctor came, but Aria�s heart sank. Obviously he was a doctor used to
treating illegal immigrants or other people wishing to stay out of hospitals or
under the radar of the law. He too spoke no English and while he was very
efficient with her, he seemed a bit rough with her as though she was simply a
piece of meat. Thankfully Enzo was here when the doctor came around so he was
able to help translate the best he could.
�Doctor says a you
have broken bone here�� Enzo pointed to his forehead, �and torn legamento.� He pointed to his knee. �No
very much he can do for you. He give you medicina,
and do best he can, eh?� The doctor handed several prescription scripts to Enzo
and spoke to him again. Enzo turned back to Aria, �He say maybe when you go to
Napoli, they can do operation there. Not much he can do here without �� Enzo
struggled a bit for the word, �Hospital.�
Aria just sighed and
worked her hardest to remain stoic while the doctor used butterfly bandages to
clean and close the wound on her head and then gave instructions to Enzo,
Sophia and Marie.
Enzo went out to the drugstore to get the
medicines and also a strong metal knee brace to stabilize her injured leg, as
well as a sturdy cane for her. Already Aria had a slight fever and was
exhausted and still in pain. The medicines were antibiotics, painkillers and an
anti-inflammatory, once she had some of the medicines in her and they began to
kick in she finally was able to rest deeply and fully.
While she had slept for nearly 9 hours, Marie
must have went out and gotten some clothing in her size as well as some
personal items for her such as a toothbrush, deodorant and other such things.
They also had gotten a small suitcase for her. Marie and Sophia�s taste in
clothing for her obviously ran to conservative and what respectable, engaged
women in Italy probably wore, long dresses and sensible shoes and other such
things. Aria was touched but also felt a hollowness in her. They were doing
exactly what Furio had wanted, molding her into what he wanted; a woman to be
his. She glanced again at the finger that used to wear the wedding band from
her husband for ten years, and she felt a dull ache in her heart that had
nothing to do with any of her physical injuries. Was Furio actually going to
claim her as a wife and fuck her as a husband would? Would he impregnate her
with his children? She felt light headed and sick to her stomach but dare not
show any emotion to anyone.
If she could have
escaped she would have tried, she honestly would have. But in as much pain as
she was in, as tired as she was and as weak as a newborn babe she wouldn�t even
make it out the front door. Instead her mind just shut down and she allowed her
body to do what it wanted to and that was to sleep and try and heal the best it
could. By day three Sophia and Marie woke her up and helped her do her hygiene
and dress, as well as style her hair a bit to try and hide the awful injuries
to her forehead. Aria�s memory was as bad as ever and even worse now she
discovered that the right side of her body was weak, her right arm not even
able to hold a glass or grip anything. Her swollen left eye had finally opened
enough and she could see that the pupil inside was dilated and �fixed� meaning
she had bled in her brain or still was bleeding inside her brain. It began to
dawn on her with a cruel certainty that while she had been severely injured she
was not going to get any kind of proper medical care, only her own strength of
will and powers of healing were going to do the best they could. With all the
illegal stuff going on there was no way Furio was going to take her to any
proper hospital here or in Naples. A part of her was afraid, wondering if she
was to much a �burden� if this Furio Giunta was not just going to kill her
anyway so as not to be saddled with her.
By the time the two women were done getting
her ready and packed up the stuff they had bought for her in the small suitcase
they went about making lunch for everyone, when Furio returned. The first thing the man did upon entering was
walk over to her and look her up and down, his fingers once again running
lightly over her face. �You looking much better, Aria. You look nice in that
dress, Sophia and Marie, they do good job with you.�
Furio went and talked to Marie, Sophia and
Enzo, who gave him her medications and spoke to him in Italian again for
several long minutes, probably telling him what the doctor had said. Furio gave
them all another thick envelope of cash and then began gathering Aria�s
suitcase to carry to the car. She could tell he was in a hurry, like the other
night, his mind only concentrating on what needed to be done. When Furio came
back in, he slid his 9mm out of his waistband and handed it to Enzo as a gift,
hugged Enzo warmly and the two women and then scooped Aria up in his arms and
carried her out to the small rental car. �We not have time to linger.� He said
as he closed the seatbelt over her, �Our flight to Napoli leaves in 3 hours.�
As he slid behind the wheel of the car he placed a bunch of paperwork on Aria�s
lap, tickets, a passport and other official looking documents. She glanced down
at one of them and saw the name Aria Rosa-Giunta on it. Her heart slammed
against her chest even deeper in sorrow, but she dare not show it to Furio.
�We married now,�
Furio slid a small box out of his leather jacket. He flipped it open, inside
was a fairly nice wedding band with a fairly expensive diamond in it. �For the
paperwork, it was easier this way. Now you wear my ring, you Mrs. Giunta now,
you understand?� the grey eyes half glared at her almost daring her to disagree
or argue with him. He slid the ring onto her left hand where the ring from Rick
had sat on her finger for nearly 10 years. A soft sigh escaped her and she just
looked out the window, she could have sworn she heard a soft deep chuckle from
the dark Italian�s lips.
As they turned in the rental car Furio fed
her about 4 of her prescription pain pills hoping that the narcotics would make
her tired, sleepy and compliant. In as much pain as Aria was she didn�t
complain when he handed her the pills and water bottle and glared at her
ordering her �You take all four. Make you able to fly and get sleep, no argue
with me.� In fact each time she complied with his wishes or kept her mouth shut
it only worked as a balm to keep him more calm and soothed. �Yes, good.� He
reached over and stroked her face, �You see. In time you will grow to like me,
eh? I see to it. But in the airport, you better be a good girl, yes? No give a
me any problems. I not need any gun to keep you in line, trust me, and I can
still change my mind and dump you dead body in a bathroom you cause me to much
problems.�
Aria wasn�t going to argue or fight with him.
At this point she figured she had better lull him into a sense of security and
trust. She could always try and get away from him once she was in Italy, maybe
get to the authorities or consulate there. But for now, she was going to be as
behaved as she could, she knew Furio was walking a stretched line and was
overly wound up and stressed. He obviously really wanted out of the states and
now, and nothing was going to stand in his way or slow him down.
Whatever illegal
paperwork he got passed all inspections and they got through all the lines and
onto the Air-Italia flight to Naples. Aria had a window seat and Furio was next
to her, she watched as the plane took off and the city below them got smaller
and smaller as the plane climbed up and over the wide expanse of the Atlantic.
Once they were airborne an almost drastic change came over Furio�s features. He
seemed calmer and more serene as though his worries were disappearing along
with the rapidly receding U.S coastline. Furio had personally gotten the
stewardess to bring Aria a blanket and pillow and almost like a doting husband
or lover he worked hard to make Aria as comfortable as he could.
�Now we get to know each other a bit, eh?� he
turned so he was facing her, the grey eyes studying her face and looking into
her green ones. He was not repulsed by her injuries instead he often touched
them gently or spoke low words in Italian under his breath. �I want to know
about you. What you like, what you love.�
Aria didn�t know
really what to say, what did Furio want from her? They were both facing each
other in the airline seats and she did have to admit he was a handsome man if
not a bit intimidating looking. His large hand was now holding her left one,
his finger idly touching the wedding band around her finger he had placed
there. Aria longed to know what deep thoughts were running through this
Neapolitan�s brain.
�What hobbies you
like?� Furio tried again, to make things easy for her.
�I like fishing.�
She hesitantly spoke, �Camping, the outdoors, nature, animals�� she weakly
said.
It must have been
an answer he approved of because his own eyes seemed to smile with an inner
light. �Me too, where I grew up, there is wonderful scenery and is near the
oceans, lots of fishing there, I used to work for a fisherman there. You like
the ocean?�
�Yes.� She
whispered and briefly closed her eyes, she did love the ocean, loved it dearly.
�The ocean is special to me, so very pretty.� She spoke and then opened her
eyes.
Furio nodded at her, �Yes it is. You will
look lovely on the beach.� He nodded and caressed her hand again. �You ever
been to a Italy?� he asked her. �You speak any other languages or just
English?�
She shook her head twice, �No, and no.� she
said, she was beginning to feel the narcotic painkillers taking effect and so
she was able to move her jaws a bit better, the pain not so sharp and biting.
�I teach you,�
Furio said offhandedly, �Italian easy language to learn.� His eyes pierced her
a bit harder now, more intently, �You remember anything else about Rick or you
family?�
She knew it would be a mistake to lie to him,
especially if she was trying to lull him into a sense of trust and security.
�Yes,� she sighed almost softly. �Next week was to have been our 11^th
anniversary.�
The dark look in his eyes surprised her and
even chilled her blood a bit. �Well now it our anniversary.� He said levelly
with a firm control in his voice. �Now next week is first anniversary of Furio
and Aria Giunta.� Almost weakly she tried to pull her hand away from the strong
grip of Furio, but his eyes just twinkled with a determined amusement as he
held on tighter. �Ah, ah.� He chided,
�No run-away bride for you. Now,� he paused used his other hand to once again turn
her face towards him in a gentle but firm manner.
�Still so much I want to know about you��
And so that is how
her flight was, she was either sleeping or being given the inquisition by Furio
over every little thing she liked or disliked. Apparently most of her answers
made him even more calm and happy as he often nodded his head with a pleased
expression. He told very little of himself to her except when recalling his
earlier times in Italy where he grew up, or describing the scenery, but he
discussed nothing of his job, the people he worked for, or anything else that
gave her any deep clues into who he was and what made him tick.
When dinner was
bought around he helped feed her with a kindness and efficiency that truly
surprised her. He seemed a bit worried about the loss of the use of her right
side, but then just grunted at her softly, �Paulie is vecchio schifoso, is his fault not yours. You tough like I said, we
work through this, eh? You just need nice surroundings, you heal just fine over
time.� He leaned in even closer so as not to be overheard by anyone. �I know
man once, he shot here�� Furio pointed at his head, �2 times, deep, you know?
He healed up Ok, was blind in one eye, limp a bit, but he still was a strong
man, and lived a long life. He died naturally of old age at 78.�
Aria quirked an
eyebrow at him, wanting to know more, but not daring to ask; Furio looked
intently at her again, and in his own brief sharing of trust spoke quietly, �The
man I speak of was mi Padre, my
father, Vincenzo. He was Don Zio Vittorio�s brother.� Furio leaned back, �Now
enough of this kind of talk, you rest. We be home in 3 more hours.�
She slept the rest
of the way until the flight crew announced their arrival and landing procedures
into Naples, she fought the sleepiness to look out of the small window onto the
cramped and run down looking city of Naples below. It was both dark looking but
yet so very historically compelling as well. She and Furio were the last ones
off the plane, and since she had that metal knee brace she was able to use her
cane and Furio�s strong body to limp slowly off the plane under her own power.
This bought an even stronger look of pride in his steely eyes. �Tough, just
like Vincenzo.� He smiled and held her firmly.
A small wiry man with tight curly hair and
obvious southern Italian features was waiting for the two of them when they
came off the plane. He had an airport wheelchair with him and when he saw Furio
his eyes lit up like two onyx stones. �Mi
amico, bentornato!� he grabbed Furio and the two embraced heartily clapping
one another on the backs.
�Malco!� Furio
grabbed the smaller man by the shoulders and playfully messed up his hair for a
moment. Both men�s faces held the look of two souls who had known another a
long time for good or bad and who had always stood solidly behind the other.
�This my best friend, like brother to me, Malco.� Furio glanced briefly at Aria,
a wide smile still on his face. �Now I really am home, eh? You are sight for
weary eyes my friend.� He spoke in Italian several minutes to Malco as both men
helped ease her into the wheelchair, finally switching to English Furio said,
�Malco, this is Aria, she is mia moglie.�
�Moglie?� Malco looked shocked a moment
at Furio but then smiled widely, �Ah, Aria! E` un piacere incontrarti.� He warmly
shook her hand, and then said something in Italian with a wink to Furio.
�He says he glad to meet you.� Furio only
half translated as he pushed her in the chair, Malco happily chatting away the
whole time like an over exuberant Labrador retriever. It was clear to Aria that
Malco spoke no English, and of course she had absolutely zero understanding of
Italian, it made her that much more painfully aware of how reliable on Furio
she was, and even gave her a strong respect for him in that he was intelligent
enough to have learned English. He had told her on the plane that he learned it
late in life, when he was 28, and had mentioned it was the hardest language he
had learned. He also spoke Spanish as well, since Spanish and Italian were so
similar.
Malco
had obviously hooked up Furio with a car, for after grabbing Furio�s duffle bag
and Aria�s small suitcase; Malco led them to a small green older Alfa Romeo. He
also briefly pointed under the passenger seat and made a quick sign with his
hand that looked like a gun. Once Furio had put Aria in the car, she just tiredly
watched as the two men continued chatting away for almost a half hour,
occasionally they would flash discreet finger signs to one another that Aria
was certain must have meant something in �underworld code�. However they knew
one another she could tell trust and loyalty flowed deep between them. Finally
after embracing one another warmly again, Furio slid into the drivers seat as
Malco walked off still waving to the two of them.
�Malco, he my best friend.� Furio said as he
briefly waved and then pulled the car out into traffic, �Ever since we were
boys, we both grew up in same apartment building on east side of Napoli.�
�He seems a really nice guy.� Aria said
sincerely.
�Oh he is, only one I trust. Only living
soul I trust, he one of the only people who know I now back in Italy. He even
got house set up for us outside Mondragone up north.� Furio fixed her with his
serious gaze as the tiny car began flowing into the thick traffic of Naples.
�Pay attention here Aria, we need talk seriously now.� She swung her gaze around from sightseeing
back to Furio giving him her full attention. �Even here in my old homeland I
not 100% safe, I did disrespect to Tony�s crew by just leaving, and also now
that Don Zio Vittorio is dead, I may not have 100% protection here either. His strega puttana of a daughter, Annalisa
could very well turn my location over to Tony Soprano for the right price, so I,
we�� he emphasized the word, �We, have to go deep in hiding for awhile. This is
good too since you need time to heal, to get well. Malco he is trustable, but
anyone else,� Furio made a rather half assed gesture of wariness that even Aria
understood. �Anyone else is not trustable. At least for now, until I know who
my real friends are and who are my nemico�s.�
Aria
just nodded still looking at him, like that one night when they had first fled
this seemed the most information about himself and his circumstances he had opened
up about, so she was indeed curious to know, perhaps hoping it could help her
someday escape in the future.
�Right
now, you and I are all we have in the world.� Furio swung the car through some
busy areas with roads that were almost as narrow as sidewalks, every once in
awhile he would beep the small horn angrily or shout some curses in Italian out
the window moving pedestrians out of his way. As historic as Naples was, Aria
thought it a dark and ugly city, filled with a hidden and foreboding undercurrent
as well as dirty and polluted.
Furio
had reached under Aria�s seat at one point and pulled out a wicked looking
Beretta pistol that looked even more intimidating that the other gun he had
before. As he got near one run down section, he waved the gun briefly out the
window and barked cruelly in Italian scattering people as he hurried along his
way.
�Right now,� he spoke again as they got out
of the congested part of Naples onto a highway running to the north, �All you
have in the world is me.� He placed the gun inside the breast pocket of his
short leather jacket and readjusted the leather tie around his ponytail. �You
no speak the language, you no can barely take care of you self. Right now I am
you everything; caretaker, protector, guardian, nurse and husband.� He turned
and briefly those grey eyes of his pierced her soul as cruelly as any sharpened
stiletto. �You not forget that I did you favor in sparing you life. I could
have just �� he paused and took his hand forming it like a gun and placed his
large forefinger between her eyes. ��Pow!� he said softly. �Left you dead in
that hunting shack in New Jersey. But I took huge risk and spend much extra
money to bring you here to Italy with me.�
�Why, Furio?� Aria dared to finally ask the
question she had worked so long the last 4 days to wrap her brain around, �Why
did you do this?�
For
the longest time Aria thought he was not going to answer her at all, he just
stared straight ahead, shifting the car through its gears along the winding
curves that followed the beach front, signs pointing them to the villiage of
Mondragone. �Because,� he finally spoke, his voice low and only barely audible.
He turned towards her and again her eyes felt locked into his steely gaze that
seemed so penetrating, �I like you, and I tired of being alone.� This time Aria
thought she saw something flash in his eyes she had never seen before in him, a
haunted look, one of love and of love lost a deep longing of simply wanting to
be truly loved and needed by someone. But then the wall slammed down and his
eyes grew hard again and he simply concentrated on the road ahead. �Now, silenzio and enjoy the view.� He quietly
commanded.
All the traveling around by plane and
driving was taking its toll on the still healing woman. She was exhausted and
her head was pounding in painful throbbing with the thrum of the Alfa Romeo�s
engine. She finally just let her head loll to the side and tried to sleep.
After awhile the shutting down of the car engine awoke her from her painfully
cramped position in the small car, but now she could smell the salt air of the
ocean, and the constant but peaceful roar of the nearby Mediterranean Sea. Furio said nothing to her but picked her up
and carried her inside a small little sea shanty. It was even smaller than the
tiny hunting shack they had stayed in back in the New Jersey woods; in fact
this tiny place looked even more battered and worn. �We home now,� Furio spoke
as he carried her inside. �See, Malco already stocked us up with supplies.�
Aria wanted to stay awake and look around to
imprint the sights and sounds on her brain but she was too tired and too weak,
she was dimly aware of Furio speaking to her in Italian as he placed her on a
bed and then went about a few minutes later undressing her and putting her into
some comfortable pajamas. �Now you sleep and heal, Aria, Ok?� he soothed her as
he drew the light cotton blanket around her. �Everything taken care of now.� He
assured her, and she did exactly that. Her eyes closed and her mind filled with
the steady but soothing sounds of the distant ocean.
- 1
- 2
- 3
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Mistaken Identity