“An older woman. Did anyone find out?”
“No.” He took the washcloth and started running it between her toes.
“Was she beautiful?” She wiggled her toes and giggled. “I’m ticklish.”
“She was demanding. And I can see that.”
“Demanding?”
“She had many sexual requirements, and insisted on having repeated satisfaction before allowing me release. We continued to meet until I was twenty-four, when she moved away to Kiev.”
“That sounds difficult. Is that why you don’t come too quickly?”
“How do you know about premature men?”
“My friends complain about that…happening.”
“I had to have a lot of control with her.”
“Did you love her?”
“No. But we both needed the sex.”
She bit his shoulder. “With her demanding sexual appetite, maybe she was a widow because her husband died from all the physical effort.”
“That could be true. At times it was very hard work with her. After that, I have only had short encounters with women who have not interested me.”
“Did you break their hearts?”
“No. They were women who made it clear they only wanted to have sex with me, and I was honest that I only wanted sex from them.”
“And you didn’t see them again?”
“No. I never called any of them again. That would have been unfair.”
Giselle bent over to playfully lick clean water off his chest, and then stood up. “I don’t know why I feel jealous that those women got to have you, but also sorry for them.”
They climbed out of the tub and Markus remarked, “Let us find a new subject other than jealousy. It is a quality I find unattractive, I must tell you.”
She pulled him inside the towel with her and hugged him. “You’re right. It isn’t a good feeling at all.”
With his natural agility, he slipped back out of the towel and swept her off her feet. He carried her out to the main room, and as they climbed back into bed he asked in a dubious tone, “If you have not had sex before me, who taught you that trick you did with your hand? What you did when you first had your way with me.”
Embarrassed she hid her face under the covers. “Oh, no! Well, I’d never felt a man’s, um, parts before. And I was feeling what you had…down there.”
“And did you like what you discovered?”
She growled, “I sure did.”
He burrowed under the covers and spooned her. “I would like you to do that trick again to me for many years, please.” It was a contented murmur.
“You won’t break my heart, will you?” Her voice was small.
“No. I am yours forever, Giselle.”
Nestled together, they fell into a deep sleep.
CHAPTER
10
On the short drive to the airstrip, Vincenzo was in turmoil. Since marrying Giselle, he’d told himself that making her happy was the most important thing to in his life, but now he was confronted with the ugly truth. He was a hypocrite. As he and Petro climbed aboard the waiting plane, his mind was playing a repetitive loop of awful thoughts, and he was beginning to feel sick over Giselle. His new feelings of jealousy and betrayal were like a poison that made him nauseous, and he’d never experienced anything as personally humiliating as that confrontation with Markus. Now that she’d found fulfillment in a sexual relationship—something he couldn’t give her—how could he justify keeping her bound to him by marriage?
Upon landing in Venice, Vincenzo went straight home to share the news that Giselle and the Pope had apparently experienced a shared vision. He was walking through the main entry hall of the palazzo when his mother approached.
“Ah, I am glad you are home, dear.”
“Me too, Mama. Are father and Papa home?”
“They are in the library.”
“I’m going to show them the pictures I took of Star Fall. Would you like to come with me?”
“No, I am off to visit Rifugia della Dignità. One our residents just returned from the hospital.”
“Oh? Who?”
“Signor Cumulo. He had an emergency appendectomy while we were in France.”
“I’m sorry for that. Please give him my best.”
“I will. I am going to see Gina. She is making a small flower arrangement to lift his spirits.”
Juliette gave him a hug and a squeeze, leaving a fragrant trail of her hibiscus perfume. Vincenzo found his father and the Pope in the library and pulled up the photos on his phone. The Pope nodded in satisfaction.
“Sì, Juliette told us about Giselle’s sculpture. It is hard to see here in your photos, but that is the basic design that I dreamed.” As he traced his finger across the phone’s screen, he became more excited. “This part here was the door, and over here were windows that looked out over the canal. She even has the beautiful lights I saw in the dream.”
“Eh…well…Giselle has kept it a secret,” Vincenzo hedged, “but this weekend she told me the light source is the result of a chemical reaction. It’s caused by a rare element. I’d never heard of it, and it’s illegal to possess because…well, it’s lethal. She fuses glass vials containing hydrogen and this element, and then causes a tiny fracture in the fuse point, and when the contents mix it causes a glowing reaction.”
The men stared at him not comprehending.
“I know I’m not explaining this properly. I’m a banker, not a chemist.”
Gabrieli frowned. “What is this illegal element?”
“Something called irrodium. Apparently exposure to even a tiny amount leads to a quick and painful death.”
“How does she create the fracture?” The Pope’s jaw was tensing.
“I’m sorry to say…she taps it with her fingernail.” Vincenzo wrung his hands and felt as if he should be apologizing for her audacious behavior.
“For the love of God!” Gabrieli slapped his forehead. “We have to get a better handle on our girl! She has to stop using that irrodium.”
“She is the most stubborn girl I have met, but she will see to reason. We will put a stop to this illegal and dangerous work,” Papa agreed.
“Of course. But, the idea of a long-term clean energy source is so attractive.” Vincenzo turned to his father. “Can you get the consortium to look into coming up with a safe way to do that?”
“You have a good point. Sì, we’ll look into it.”
Vincenzo stretched and took a deep breath. “Now, I’ve got a ton of work to do, so please excuse me.”
“You work too much.” Papa sounded resigned. “I grow tired of lecturing you. You advise Giselle to get more rest, but then you work night and day yourself.”
“I’m sorry, Papa. But, I’ve got a video conference with a group in San Francisco, and there’s a nine hour time difference.” He took his phone off the table and headed to his bedroom suite.
After a quick shower he headed straight to the Verona offices, arriving only two minutes late for his meeting with the International Water Federation. That was followed by a long conference call with a Brazilian Nature Conservancy, and then another with the Somalia Water Coalition. With little sleep the night before, the stress of Giselle’s revelation, and working non-stop all day, he was exhausted when he finally left the office after midnight.
Vincenzo and Petro took one of the family’s private boats to Leonardo’s. After accompanying Vincenzo to the apartment door, Petro disappeared on his invisible routine of circling the property, monitoring the lobby, and inspecting the hallways. Vincenzo walked inside and into the living room. Looking into the open kitchen, he saw Leonardo standing by the stove wearing cotton pajama pants, sipping a cup of tea. He looked relieved.
“It’s about time you got here. What’s with all the cryptic messages?”
Vincenzo dropped his briefcase, loosened his tie, and took off his jacket.
“Giselle’s fallen in love with that Ukrainian artist.”
; “Really?” Leonardo came over to him, handed him the cup of tea, and took his coat. “The one from the Metro?” He went to hang it in the hall closet.
“Sì.” Dropping onto the sofa, Vincenzo croaked, “Him.”
“Seriously? Hey, we always knew this would happen one day.”
“Come sit with me.” Vincenzo dropped his head into his hands.
Leonardo hurried over. “So our little Gigi has finally become a woman?”
He looked up from between his fingers, and his anguish started to dissolve. “Well, when you say it like that, it sounds natural.” He let out a sigh that was part laugh.
“Well, it is. The fact that she’d never shown any carnal inclination before always made me uneasy.”
“Well,” Vincenzo quirked an eyebrow, “she’s carnal now.”
“Is he handsome?”
“Like you wouldn’t believe.” Vincenzo widened his eyes. “He’s solid lean perfection.”
“Really?” Leonardo’s eyes widened, too. “Good for her. Do tell?”
“Ultra-short blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, twelve pack abs. He looks like a martial artist, and moves like one, too.”
“I can’t wait to meet the lucky artist who deflowered our girl.”
“He was naked when I confronted him.”
“Wait. A naked confrontation?” Leonardo sat up straighter, grinning. “Sorry I missed it. Back up and tell me everything.”
After a full recitation of the events, Leonardo was shaking his head. “So everyone at the party thought Carolette was going to land Markus?”
“Correct.” Vincenzo nodded. “But Gigi secretly got him first.”
“I remember back when Carolette still thought my penis worked, she was very inventive in her romantic approaches.”
“Sì, thank heavens everyone still thinks your dick is a loss, or you wouldn’t be able to fight the ladies off.” He pulled off his shoes and lay back on the couch.
“You’re too tired to talk business tonight.” Rolling on top of him, Leo nuzzled his nose against Vincenzo’s ear and kissed it. “How about we go straight to bed, and I can show you how glad I am that you’re home?”
Vincenzo felt himself becoming aroused and looked up at Leo. “I’m too tired to leave this couch.”
Getting to his feet, Leo stood shirtless and beckoned, his eyes dark with interest. “Come to bed,” he said, and then headed to the bedroom, his pajama pants hanging low on his athletic hips. Watching those back muscles undulating smoothly as Leo walked, his beautiful lats and traps sculpted from endless hours of rowing, got Vincenzo up off the couch. He stripped off his clothes while following his lover down the hall.
In the bedroom, Leo grabbed a decorative pillow off their bed, tossed it onto the floor at Vincenzo’s feet, and dropped to his knees. Vincenzo naturally slid his hands onto his Leo’s shoulders and began to knead his muscles.
“I may be too tired to stand up, babe.”
Leo looked up, desire flashing in his eyes. “No, I don’t think you’re too tired.”
They stopped talking and eventually ended up in bed. After years of intimacy, they each knew exactly what the other needed, and how to give each other pleasure.
Woozy from their quick foreplay and powerful orgasms, they lay catching their breath. Vincenzo moaned, “Oh God, how I needed that! I’ve been so emotional, I’ve been on the verge of screaming or crying for hours now. Whew!”
“We’re always better after sex.”
“True, I certainly think more clearly.”
“What do you think now?”
“I think I just used up the last of my second wind. I’m going to sleep.”
“Well, after a quick rinse we’ll come straight back to bed.” Leo got up and headed to the bathroom.
Vincenzo loved showering with Leo and the simple comfort of standing under the warm spray washing each other. Holding Leo’s wet body in secret as the world outside hurried on, those were his most treasured moments.
Back in bed, they lay on their sides facing each other, warmed by the shower, their legs comfortably entwined. Vincenzo’s body edged toward sleep, but his mind still tried to spin in an anxious whirl.
“I’m scared, Leo. You know I want the best for her.”
“We both do.”
“I remember my first day of school in France, I knew she was special.”
“I remember I was jealous because you spent almost every waking minute with her while I was stuck here attending classes in Venice.”
“You know, I did wonder if I would develop a sexual taste for her and become hetero.”
“I know you two never had sex, but you never fooled around back then?”
“No. She treated me just like a brother, and I never developed any urge to engage in hetero-play…so…no…nothing.”
“I wonder if perhaps she had some sort of delayed feminine maturation…you know…hormonally.”
“You mean, why she didn’t try to get frisky with me?”
“Right. She never had any romantic inkling that I ever saw. I still remember that spring when we all took that weekend trip down to Cap d’Ail. When Giselle woke up and walked in on us undressed and kissing, I’d never been so terrified. But she was so understanding and it was such a relief to have her protect our secret.”
“Leo, we’re so guilty. We’re bad people to use her as our beard.”
“Hey, that’s not fair. We love her like a sister, and as our sister we’ve protected her, too.”
“I shouldn’t have married her.”
“It was her idea, and it saved her family home.”
“Agh, when we mentioned it to Mama the whole thing took on a life of its own with our lawyers charging in.”
“Let’s not talk anymore tonight. Get some rest.” Leo leaned over and gave him a long kiss. “I love you, and together we’ll figure out what Giselle’s sexual awakening means for us.”
With that, Vincenzo drifted off to sleep.
Alphonso sat in his tiny walk-up apartment with his cousin, preparing for their meeting at the Scortini palazzo. Zelph paid close attention as Alphonso recounted all of his discoveries in France.
“So, that’s what I’ve found.” Alphonso leaned back and spread his hands wide. “Bring me up-to-date on what you’ve been doing here.”
“I’ve been on this job one hundred percent while you were in France, Alphonso.”
“Thanks for working hard on this. What do you have on Vincenzo?”
“He spends a lot of time with his accountant.”
“Mmm-hmm. Leonardo Trentori’s also his best friend.”
“Yeah, well…more than that…I’m gonna go out on a limb and say they’re lovers.”
“What?”
“Yeah.”
“What the…”
“Hear me out. They spent the night together a few times while you were in France. And while everyone chalks it up to all-night banking marathons, that doesn’t sound like what they’re doing alone in apartment 307.”
“How could they have gotten away with it if Count Gabrieli is super Catholic? He’d have disowned Vincenzo.”
“Well that’s just the thing. I’ve spent a lot of time checking on the boys, and they’re both super Catholic, too.”
“Whoa, that’s a stretch, Zelph. You’re telling me they love the Church, and you think they’re gay?”
“Yeah, they’re real devout. But as far as the Catholic Church is concerned, they’re real deviant.”
“Nah, you’ve got to be off the mark. Vincenzo is the heartthrob husband…” He paused and thought a moment. “Well, that would explain why Giselle has a man on the side. She’s a beard for her closeted husband. But, how has nobody noticed his relationship with Leonardo?”
“A few reasons. One, I found out that Leonardo had an accident at Verdu Mer when he was a teenager. Fell through a floor onto some broken rebar, and fucked up his junk for a while. To this day it’s assumed he’s impotent, but it would be a convenient cover for the t
wo of them if Leonardo healed completely. Two, nobody’s been trying to keep track of this family before. They own planes. They have houses all over the world. The boys go wherever they want to meet each other. They work together on huge financial bail out packages for charity that would legitimately keep them working at all hours. I’ve talked to people who say they’re in Paris a lot, and here in Venice Vincenzo uses Leonardo’s place about as often as he’s at the family palazzo. I think the apartment that everyone thinks is Leonardo’s is actually their apartment. Three, Vincenzo always puts his hands or his lips on Giselle in photos to reinforce the illusion of romance. And four, no one knows what goes on behind closed doors.”
“What about his bodyguard? Does Petro know?”
“Probably not. As devout Catholics, they’d be very good at keeping their activities a secret. And Petro typically stays around the perimeter of wherever Vincenzo is, not in the same room. He never goes into the apartment. Not that he would ever tell. He appears to be a total pro.”
“Well, we have a job to do, and I’m not gonna let anything stand in the way of handing all this over to Scortini and getting our money.”
“Yeah, well, while you were away checking out Giselle, I’ve been able to get a vibe from the locals on Salvio Scortini. Old respected family or not, he’s a nasty piece of work, as you’ve discovered. I talked to a foreman in the Brotherhood of Iron Workers who told me Scortini is a patent thief. And there’s a rumor that he personally killed that big marble magnate’s kid. You know, the one who was attacked in an alley? Reynaldo Falconetti.”
“What? Scortini did?”
“Yeah. No one is saying much, but they found Reynaldo’s body immediately after a meeting Scortini had called.”
“Was Reynaldo at that meeting?”
“Yep. He practically ran out of the meeting after it ended, and that was the last time anyone saw him alive. They found him in an alley behind the warehouse where the meeting was held, so he didn’t make it far.”
“Why do they suspect Scortini?”
“Reynaldo had no enemies, and he told other people at the meeting that Scortini may not have the clout he’s pretending to have.”
Stealing Venice Page 19