“You look like Tom. You have his prints. What I need right now is an explanation. How are you still alive? And where have you been?” Nina asked with her temper slowly rising. Tom could hear her heart pumping faster. He didn’t reply. All possible responses would have led to more questions that would lead to the revelation of where he had spent the last seven years of his life.
“So it’s confirmed. You faked your death. But who helped you? It certainly wasn’t any of your family members.”
“They cried their eyes out at your funeral,” she added as she sat on the chair right next to Tom. Tom was distracted by her beauty for a second. The shape of her lips was mesmerizing. If she knew him that much, how could he forget her? How could he forget her perfection? He cleared his throat to regain attention.
“I know it sounds stupid or dumb. All I can say is I don’t remember anything before the plane crash. I know my family. I know where they stay and what they do, but I can’t remember anything. Nothing at all. Not even my sisters,” Tom began. Nina watched his eyes to see if he was telling the truth.
“See, I came here for a reason. Right now, I think you’re the only key in recovering my memory. I need to regain every single inch of myself and my lifestyle before the plane crash. It’s not enough for someone to tell me about me. I want to remember. I need your help,” Tom added earnestly. He tried not to move too close to her. He could tell she was feeling emotional.
“I’m suffering from post-traumatic amnesia. Do you know anything or anyone that could help me regain my memories?” Tom asked. Nina fought to hold back her tears. She stood up, uncomfortable and upset. She paced around the room for about twenty seconds.
“Your mother is in Miami at the moment,” Nina finally replied. “Which one of them?” Tom asked. “Catherine – your biological mother,” Nina replied. Tom flinched. He wasn’t accustomed to the idea of meeting another person he couldn’t remember.
“Maybe just maybe you need to see your family. It might trigger your memory,” Nina replied in a concerned tone. Tom stood up then turned towards Nina. Nina froze. He moved closer and closer. Her heart pumped faster than drums in a Chinese festival. She looked up at Tom who was inches away from her chest. His demeanor was intimidating, yet alluring.
“Thank you, but I don’t think it’s a good idea for the dead to rise. I just want to remember. Seeing my family isn’t my priority. First, I must recover my memories. This might sound ridiculous, but I was sent to you. I doubt it’s a coincidence that I was hit by your car at exactly 6pm. It has to be you. You’re the one who will help me get it back. It’s not my family…it’s you!” Tom said in a low voice. She could smell his nice breath. His voice was soothing. She gazed at his lips. The level of attraction she had for Tom was off the roof. Every inch of her body wanted him. She composed herself.
“I – I…” the words couldn’t come out of her mouth. His presence was a complete distraction to her. Her brain felt fuzzy and coherent at the same time. Finally, she stepped away from Tom, took a deep breath and smiled uncomfortably.
“There’s one more thing I need to find out,” She said as she reached for her desk and picked up a picture of her damaged car. She showed it to him. Tom barely looked at it. His eyes were fixated on her.
“So – can you explain how hitting you with my car could cause this much damage?” She asked. Tom didn’t reply.
“What are you? Superman? Iron man? What!?” She added, trying to clarify the main question on her mind. “Reports said I hit a pole before hitting you, but I remember hitting only you. there’s the blood to prove it, yet you have no scars or injuries. It’s….it’s a very peculiar situation…if you know what I mean,”
“There – there – that could be anything but me – there can be other explanations,” Tom lied. Nina scoffed then turned away from Tom. Her arms were folded in front of her like a two year old upset about not getting candy.
“You’re lying to me,”
“How?” Tom asked.
“Because I know you, Tom,” Nina replied confidently. Tom turned his back on her then faced her again.
“Look, I can’t explain it. It happened. Can we please just leave it as it is?” Tom asked. Nina sighed. She dropped the picture on her desk with frustration, folded her arms again then gazed at the floor, thinking.
Tom gazed at her, trying to figure out what she was thinking about.
“Let’s make a deal,” She finally blurted out. “You are very unpredictable. Who knows? You might disappear for another eight years, after this meeting,”
“Actually seven years and eight months,” Tom corrected.
“Whatever! – I’ve gotten close to Catherine, your mother. Thanks to you,” She paused then stared straight into his eyes. “All she ever wanted was to spend time with you. That’s possible again. She finally gets a second chance with her son,” she said. Tom shook his head.
“You come with me to see Catherine and I promise to do everything in my power to make you remember,” Nina said, ignoring Tom’s gestures. He looked frustrated. He looked unsure. Tom paused for a minute.
“I can’t do that – I mean, I Shouldn’t. It’s not a good idea. It will only hurt her more,” Tom replied.
“Well, no deal then,” Nina replied, half upset.
“Look you’re the only one that can help – not my mother and not my family. If they could help, I could have gone to meet them,” Tom replied.
“What! What do you want me to do? Kiss you? And suddenly all your memories come back like some fairytale fantasy?” Nina yelled sarcastically. Tom looked away. He was upset. Disappointed. She cooled down.
“Okay!” Tom said. She was surprised.
“Okay what?” she asked.
“Okay. I’ll meet my mother,” Tom replied. Nina smiled.
“Then you’ll have to kiss me so I can remember,” Tom added with a cunning smile. Nina blushed. “Uhm…no, Tom. In case you haven’t noticed, I have moved on,”
“Fine! Then no deal,” Tom replied with a little bit of humor and a little bit of seriousness. Nina thought about the smile Tom’s presence would bring on Catherine’s face. It’d be the perfect payback for the financial help Catherine gave her for law school.
“Urgh!! Fine!” Nina replied.
Tom gave a wide grin.
“One kiss! Just one! This going on right now, might just be a dream. I’m sure I’ll wake up soon, anyways. And wipe that smirk off your face!” Nina added.
Don Daniel Olivetti, chairman of the board of directors of Olivetti Corporations and Olivetti family patriarch, was seated in a board meeting in his company. Walter Olivetti, Tom’s father, Olivetti Corporation’s Chief Financial officer was seated on the right. A young executive announced the quarterly profit margins to the board of directors. It had been a long day. Don Olivetti was impatiently waited for the prolonged board meeting.
“Sir, you have an important Phone call,” a beautiful secretary in a red dress whispered in Don Olivetti’s ears. Walter and Daniel gazed at each other. The executive paused. Everyone shifted their gaze towards Daniel Olivetti.
“Carry on,” Don Olivetti said as he excused himself from the meeting.
He walked to his office with his beautiful secretary. His blue suit, red tie and blue shirt made him look presidential and his carefully polished black shoes glowed with each stride.
“You know who it is?” Don Olivetti asked.
“He wouldn’t say and didn’t want to leave a message,” she replied. He didn’t reply. Thoughts flowed through his head, wondering who it could be.
“It’ll be on line one sir,” she said as she walked to her booth. Don Olivetti walked into his office. He shut the door behind him then raced to the phone. His office was incredibly big. Its windows exposed the beautiful city of New York. The floor had black tiles and black carpeting. To the right was a small lounge with three sofas, a center table and a sixty inch LED TV. To the left was his mini bar and mini office golf course. His desk was made purely of gl
ass and had a computer and few papers on it.
“Daniel on the line,” He said as he picked up the phone.
“Sir, I just wanted to inform you that a young lawyer by the name of Nina Owen has been snooping into private files of your late nephew, Tom Olivetti, from the FBI and DA database,” the voice on the phone said.
“When did this occur?” Don Olivetti replied without asking who was speaking on the phone.
“A couple of days ago,” the voice replied. Don Olivetti’s mind was encapsulated with awe. Could it be?
“One more thing, she had a finger print match test done,” the voice on the phone added. Finger print? From where? How could it be? Was it someone trying to play tricks on her mind? He had always kept an eye on Nina as an obligation to Tom.
“Thank you,” Don Olivetti said then hung up. He froze. It was impossible. “Why is she snooping around? What is she doing?”
He picked up the phone and dialed a number. He waited for a moment.
“I want you to put a tail on Nina Owen. Find out what she is up to,”
Fisher Island, Florida. Nina drove up to the ferry in her new Range Rover with Tom on the passenger seat. He was nervous. Not nervous about meeting his mother. Nervous because he hoped he was doing the right thing. Any mistake could change the course of history. He gazed outside the window at the beautiful scenery; the waters, the ships, the buildings. The ferry ride was brief. Minutes later, the ferry arrived at the island. They drove off the ferry and made their way to a large apartment complex. She parked her car in a guest parking lot. She and Tom made their way towards the building’s elevator.
“Nervous?” She asked.
“No,” Tom replied.
“Liar,” she joked. They both laughed. Finally, the elevator arrived on the sixth floor. Tom was half amazed by the architecture of the building. It was neat and the environment was extremely quiet, unlike the streets of Rome. They made their way to a door. Nina knocked on it twice. Tom could hear everything going on in every apartment in the building. He tried to focus on one – his mother’s apartment.
“Ah Senorita Nina,” a Hispanic maid said as she opened the door. Nina hugged the maid. The maid, an older woman in her sixties gazed at Tom.
“Is this your amigo – boyfriend?” the maid asked.
Nina laughed.
“No abuela,” Nina replied. Tom didn’t say anything. He nodded awkwardly. There were two guards in the house. They saw a familiar and an unfamiliar face, but were at ease when Nina introduced Tom. They were new to the family. They had no idea who Tom really was.
“Ah okay! You should hold him tight! He is very handsome! I may steal him,” the maid joked.
“She is down the hall, painting,” the maid added as she made her way to the kitchen. Tom followed Nina into a reclusive room in the five bedroom apartment. The apartment was large and had brown polished wooden floors. Nina walked into the room first then Tom followed. At the corner of the room, Catherine was painting on a canvas. Tom stared at his beautiful mother who didn’t notice him in the room at first.
“Oh hi, Nina!” Catherine said without looking. Her eyes and arms were fixated on her painting.
“How did you know it was me?” Nina asked as she walked closer to Catherine.
“I’m an old woman, I have little to no friends,” Catherine joked as she stood up to hug Nina. Then she saw him—her son’s ghost. She shivered, but didn’t say anything. She thought she was hallucinating. In the past couple of years, there were times she felt like she was losing her mind. Sometimes, she would see Tom’s ghost and sometimes she’d see her dead husband’s ghost killing Tom’s ghost.
“Catherine this is Tom,” Nina said as she turned towards Tom.
“You see him too?” Catherine asked, confused. The thought of she and Nina’s shared illusions didn’t elude her mind.
“Hey Mom! I mean, mother,” Tom said in his deep voice. Catherine, who was wearing a white silk dress, couldn’t move or speak. Tom could read her mind. He saw how confused she was and could see the effect of the sudden shock. He saw all the painful memories she had ever had. There was too much pain and too much sorrow. Behind all that, he could see the grace, love and hope she had struggled to keep despite her sad past.
Catherine had her hands on her mouth, in shock. She was scared and happy at the same time. She looked at Nina again to confirm that she wasn’t delusional.
Tom could feel all her emotions. He briskly walked up to his trembling mother and hugged her to prove to her skeptical mind that he was real
“What!?” she was more shocked. He was real. He wasn’t dead. He wasn’t lying in a coffin underground. She felt his warmth as he hugged her tightly.
“What’s going on?” She said, holding him tightly. She sobbed, still confused.
“I’m here! I’m not going anywhere. This isn’t a dream,” Tom replied. Catherine was still in disbelief. Nina cried tears of joy and sadness at the same time.
Catherine smiled. They all smiled.
“Tom?” Catherine said, finally letting go.
“Yes, mother,” Tom replied. Catherine was filled with joy. Am I dead? Is this a dream? It had to be the afterlife—a stage of closure she had to go through before seeing the light. She was wrong. It was all real—as real as air and if it was a dream, she didn’t want to wake up.
“You weren’t on that plane crash? Where have you been all these years? What happened? Who were you with? Why did you hide? Why didn’t you tell us or give us some sign that you were still alive? Did the cartels hide you?” she started, blurting out questions as reality struck her. She looked into his eyes. It was definitely her son. They both had the same hazel blue eyes.
Tom smiled.
“It’s a long story,” Tom whispered.
“Does your father know? Who else knows?” Catherine asked, confused.
“No one knows,” Nina replied.
“Just us! And we intend to keep it that way,” Tom added.
“He came to you first? How did you find him?” Catherine asked.
“Well, she ran over me with her car,” Tom joked. Nina laughed. They were all overwhelmed with emotion.
Catherine grabbed her cell phone. “Well, this is great news! I have to tell your father! He will be ecstatic,” Catherine said.
“No! No! Not yet” Tom begged.
“What? Why? Do you have any idea how happy this will make us?” Catherine asked.
“Us?” Tom glanced at her left finger. There was a diamond ring on it. He then read her thoughts – she was now married to his father.
“You guys are married now?” Tom asked. Catherine managed to sit down. Nina smiled uncomfortably.
“Yes,” Catherine replied. “What about…”
“Many things changed after you died. I mean, after we verified that you were dead through multiple forensic and DNA experts, your father constantly held on to your memory by revisiting investigations over and over again. He wouldn’t stop. It affected his relationship between himself and Beatrice. We seemed to find better solace with your death, whenever we were together. Months later, they divorced,” Catherine replied. Nina stood behind, quietly observing the conversation between mother and son.
Tom sighed then paced around the room. Catherine’s eyes lingered everywhere he walked. She still had a hint of disbelief and hoped she wasn’t still dreaming. On the corner of the room, a wedding picture of Walter and Catherine was hanging on the wall.
“He’s happy now, although, he is still living with the guilt of your death,” Catherine said, knowing her son had multiple questions. Tom paused. He remembered his seven year training.
“Obey your instincts,” kept echoing in his brain.
“Someone has been following us,” Tom suddenly said.
“What! Who?” Nina asked, terrified.
“Someone with a gun. The – the – finger prints you asked for left a trail. Whoever is coming upstairs now has been trailing us for a while,” Tom said as he ran towards the fron
t door. Catherine was terrified. Nina was alarmed. The two guards were suddenly suspicious of Tom. Just then, the doorbell rang. Everyone froze.
Tom could hear the thoughts of the person at the door. The person seemed to be more interested in silencing Nina. It was only one person with one gun. “I can take him down easily,”
Tom opened the door. With one look at Tom, the man at the entrance passed out. “What! What the hell is going on?” one of Catherine’s guards said.
Catherine and Nina simultaneously walked to the front door were the body of the man who passed out was.
“Dean?” Catherine said. Nina became calm.
“Who?” Tom asked confused. “That’s Dean, your most trusted bodyguard,” Nina replied with a smile.
15
December 8, 1964
State of New York Vs. Frederick Olivetti. It was a cold winter in New York. The media was frantic. Notorious members of the mafia seemed to be a gold mine to all news network reporters. Outside the court house, representatives from different magazines, news networks and newspapers camped outside the cold, waiting for the Jury’s verdict.
Frederick Olivetti was seated in the court room, calmly. His lawyers seemed to be more nervous than he was. His two sons and their Nanny were present. Don Cruccifixo wasn’t present, but sent a non-mafia representative. It was part of a Jury swaying tactic by the defendant’s lawyers. Several people for and against members of the mafia were in the audience.
The District Attorney and police department had decided to bring up charges for the murder of Don Patricelli, Don Morretti, the man at his garden, Clara and more than a dozen members of the mafia. Everyone, including Senator William, who initially assisted in his first custody release, seemed to back away from helping him. The only person who strived to help him get out was Don Cruccifixo.
The judge, a mean old man with a smug look and rough face waited impatiently for the representative of the Jury to read the verdict. Frederick’s lawyers were sweating. They had been paid half a million dollars each to create false witnesses. If they didn’t win the case, they would have to pay it back to the mob families, with interest.
Olivetti: Illumination Page 11