AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Niccolo would have done a spit take if he had been drinking something.
“Wait – WHAT?!” he shrieked. “NO, that’s even WORSE!”
Dario gave him a mischievous smile. “Be careful what you wish for, consigliere.”
178
After we talked Niccolo down off a ledge, we continued planning –
And then Massimo called at 4:15 AM.
I got him on the speaker phone. “I looked at a map of the island on the internet, and it’s not good. They’re going to be in the church – which means not only do we have to invade a fortress, but they’re going to have the high ground with the bell tower. If they have a good sniper, they can pick us off as we approach.”
“If Zollner stays after he delivers Lucia, they’re probably going to have an excellent sniper.”
“Great,” I said with a sigh. “This is going to be like storming the beaches at Normandy.”
“Yeah, but the Allies won on D-Day.”
“Yes… at the cost of 4400 men.”
“Cheer up,” Massimo said, his tone darkly humorous. “We don’t HAVE 4400 men, so it won’t be nearly that bad.”
I laughed darkly, then took down the address of where we would meet him. Then we said our goodbyes and hung up.
Rachel looked at Dario pleadingly. “Are you sure I can’t go?”
I could almost see the steam coming out of Niccolo’s ears as she asked it.
Dario repressed a smile as he answered Rachel. “It might start a civil war in my household. But thank you for the offer.”
Suddenly, the phone rang again – the same number Massimo had called from just moments before.
I answered the phone in alarm. “Did something happen?”
“Yeah, I got an idea. What do you think about me pulling a bulletproof door off one of our Mercedes and carrying it around like a shield? I could use duct tape to fasten it to my arm. That way, I can advance and not worry about getting shot by Zollner.”
I frowned. “That’s insane.”
But if there was going to be a world-class sniper on a bell tower shooting at him…
“Which is exactly why it might work,” I finished.
Rachel grinned as she stared at the map. “This is so much cooler than MI6.”
179
As soon as I hung up the second time, I leapt into action.
I chose 20 of my best foot soldiers and had them load six of the Mercedes with guns, bulletproof vests, and a sniper rifle for me, plus the tools Massimo would need to detach one of the doors. I told my men to double-time it and be ready to go in 20 minutes.
It was a four-and-a-half-hour drive to Treporti, the little town outside Venice where we would meet Massimo. But without any traffic this early in the morning, I figured we could drive faster and get there in less time.
“You’ll have the speed boats ready when we arrive?” I asked Niccolo.
“Yes, of course,” he snapped. “You focus on everything else and leave the boats to me.”
He still hadn’t forgiven me for bringing a would-be assassin into the house… but I figured he’d get over it. Eventually.
