Elementary Virtue: The Prophecy (7 page)

"That would be great for you to do Mom because Gabe gives me the creeps," shortly after her words had died away through the front door, and right on cue, he appeared. He had someone in tow. Ana and her mother remained both speechless for a short time, but her mom recollected quickly, "Oh, hi there Carmine, what a surprise! I didn’t expect you, and I would like to say that you look good. As you already know, I don’t tell lies, unlike you."

What an embarrassing situation! Ana would have given anything to beam herself into another universe. She hadn’t seen her father for at least fifteen years. Last time she saw him was when he left her mother. He had never bothered to contact her in all these years, not even for her birthdays. She didn’t feel like talking to him ever again. Nevertheless, Gabe contacted her mother some time ago, after she started to have some success with her first book. Gabe indicated that he had no contact with his father. That had been the only reason her mom thought it would be a good idea that she got to know her step-brother. They didn’t have many family contacts. Her beloved grandparents had passed away, and she had no siblings. It was understandable that her mom was upset. Perhaps they had been tricked, and she would never have agreed to meet her father, as things were now. Carmine Grande put on a radiant apologetic smile. He bared a row of obviously false dazzling white teeth. He ran his fingers in an uncertain gesture through his still mostly dark hair with some silver threads in it and looked as if he felt uncomfortable almost vulnerable.

Ana had to admit that he had an incredible charisma and still looked good for his age. He had that certain something women usually fell for. His tanned face looked friendly if you missed that vicious line around his mouth that didn’t entirely disappear even with his charming smile. He looked at them with his pale green eyes, «My dear, don’t tell me that you are still angry after all these years? Do you still feel sorry about our time together?" Certain arrogance spoke from his words, looked like he couldn’t keep up his innocence for a long time. It was quite obvious that her mom would outburst in rage within seconds. Ana darted over to her and put a reassuring hand on her arm. "Don’t let yourself get provoked, Mom, let’s get out of here." Her mom nodded, and they headed for the door. "It was nice to have met you, Gabe." Ana waved at him, and they left the classy apartment without looking back.

"I am sorry muffin, what did I think when I brought you here? Gaby and your father are apparently in cahoots together on this," hectically she pressed the button for the elevator. Gabe came running out of the apartment out of breath. "Please don’t go," his moss-green eyes had a pleading, almost desperate expression, "give him a chance, I know he's not a real charmer and diplomacy is a foreign word for him. At first, I didn’t want to deal with him, and my mother felt the same way. He kept on looking imploringly at Ana's mother, "But he seems seriously changed. He has grown older and is suffering because he doesn’t know his children. He says he wants to make it up to us. Please come back and listen at least to what he has to say. If you still want to leave after that, he will understand. You and Ana are the only family I have left except him, and my mother died last year, “Gabe could be very convincing if he wanted to. Ana and her mom looked at each other, "Ok, I can’t believe I'm saying this, but we’ll give the old selfish moron a chance!"

Gabe's eyes widened in astonishment at what she said. "Don’t look at me like that Gabe, this man brings out the worst in me, even in my vocabulary. Unfortunately, there are no good feelings when I think about him, rather some unbridled lust to murder him, if I may say so." She put her hand on his arm, "What happened to your mother?"

"She died in an accident."

"Oh, sorry to hear that." Gabe shrugged, "It was a difficult time." Ana and her mom followed him back into the apartment, where Carmine meanwhile struggled with the coffee maker, which snorted and squealed, "Hey Dad, I told you that you have to descale the thing. Otherwise, it will explode sometime soon. It would be nice if you listened sometimes." Gabe looked amused at Carmine, “As a matter of fact I have brought back your daughter and her angry mother, what about that? So, please behave and don’t screw it up this time around." Carmine Grande looked up, and his pale green eyes sparkled. For the first time in her life, Ana understood why her mom had fallen for him. If he felt like it, he could be charming as hell. He came towards her reaching out for her, and her mom stepped immediately aside. He hugged Ana then he held her at arm’s length. "Let' me look at you! At last, I have waited a very long time for this moment. It is unforgivable that I have neglected you and your half-brother for so long.

I was an ambitious idiot who only thought about work and I suppressed my feelings. Now I want to make it up to the two of you. After all, what is more, important than family in life?" Ana’s Mom cleared her throat, "I am sorry to disturb this touching scene that takes place around fifteen years later than expected. You didn’t even pay for her pacifier or any child support. I guess the show, for the father of the year, is postponed until tomorrow. Ana and I have to get ready for the awards tonight. So, if you will excuse us for now. I am sure you will understand that, won't you my dear? You always have been such an understanding and nice kind of guy".

Her voice dripped with sarcasm. Winking at him, she pushed the now clueless feeling Ana for the second time out of the apartment door. They left Carmine Grande speechless and Gabe gleefully grinning behind. It served the manipulative old geezer right, finally challenged by someone for once.

Leyla tried to sneak unobtrusively into the house when she returned from her shopping trip with Ana. Only the thought of confrontation with Shannon and Franco made her feel sick and provoked slight nausea. When Ana asked her why she was grounded. Leyla had told her, that she would do everything in an exact manner if she had to. Leyla didn’t regret anything for one second that had been the truth. She would do it again. But, it also reminded her of how damn lonely she felt and that she hadn’t heard anything of Gregory since he left.

She hoped that he arrived safely in Sicily and that he hadn’t jumped out from the frying pan into the fire. She tiptoed cautiously up the stairs to her room. Downstairs from the parlor, she heard voices. It sounded as if there was a fierce debate going on. The voices grew louder, and she heard someone sob, Leyla was sure that it was her aunt, Shannon. Sure thing, it was terrible for her not knowing where Gregory was. On top of everything, Shannon didn’t have a clue what was going on with the legend and all that other unreal stuff. She couldn’t admit or believe in the idea of him having abilities that were, let us say, out of normal. It was certainly easier not to deal with it at all.

Leyla sighed and closed carefully the door behind her. She wanted to get some rest before she had to deal with her family, get a little private time, and stall the inevitable discussions. She lay on her bed tangled away in daydreaming. She imagined how she would flee with Ana to Switzerland and enjoy the bright blue sky and the cool mountain air in a beautiful mountain setting. That would really clear her head. Maybe all she needed was some change of sceneries. She could almost feel the cool air physically. When between the mountains of a clear turquoise lake Gregory’s face appeared in her daydream right in front of her. His eyes sparkled in so many shades of blue that she could not help but to stare at him hypnotized. He took her hand pulling her towards him when all of a sudden the lake became an erupting volcano. They both were in a sea of lava, and the fall into the crater seemed inevitable. Leyla awoke with a start she must have dozed off. Her phone was vibrating on the pillow beside her. It was Aiden, "Hey, how's it going?" Leyla sighed, "Real bad that much I can tell you. Gregory's step-parents have shown up, and I would do anything not having to talk to them. Getting out of their way for as long as possible, because I have no answer to their questions. Believe me. I am in deep shit."

"Well then, in this case, I am sure that you like my plan. Brooklyn, Mila, and I have decided that you have soaked long enough in your misery and that it is time for you to get out among people. Besides, Shane is in town." Leyla laughed, but it sounded anything but happy, "Great and how do you think I will get out of here? Did it cross your mind, that I'm grounded?"

"No problem, we have figured it all out. You did empty your bank account right? So I think your parents would appreciate it you had a job earning some money to stock up your empty account again." Leyla was suddenly wide-awake, "And what job will it be that makes me earn that much money on the fly?"

"Did I say a word about making money on the fly? No, the job will take until the fall break, and we would all join in. There is this new Club where new bands get their chance to play, and they hire high school kids as waiters to keep up bartending service. Coincidentally, the owner is, what a surprise, a friend of my father's new wife. Yes, you heard it right, he married Jacqueline, and she is almost my age, but he married her anyway."

"But I thought you hated your dad and his new girlfriend, I mean wife?"

"I still do Leyla, with all of my heart. But, we can't let slip such an opportunity through our fingers. Jacqueline is doing everything possible to make my dad and me get closer again. She's determined to improve our relationship so that we can all be a happy family again," his voice dripped with irony. "Which speaks for her, you have to admit it," Leyla said. Aiden growled, "Yes, I know, but I still think that this marriage sucks, and my old man sucks too. That will never change. I'll never forgive him, even if Jacqueline may not be the gold digger I thought at first."

"I get it, so tell me what are you up to?"

"Mila, Brooklyn, the Akandos and even your admirer from the opposite side Greyson, have volunteered, to wait tables at the Crowd. Giving away their pay for your little problem, which would result in you not being grounded any longer"

Leyla remained speechless for a moment, "I'm touched, but why Greyson? Isn't he a member of the Vultures anymore?"

"Well, you know that he likes you. Don’t you? Besides, he thinks that it was all Gregory's fault. On top of it, he took off with your money. Angel doesn’t understand why he likes you that much. She also doesn’t share his opinion about Gregory at all. Sometimes I even reckon that she is somehow into Greyson in a weird kind of way. But apparently he doesn't give a shit about her opinion. He is an odd bird that Greyson".

"Oh, and another thing that is strange, Gabe is almost friendly lately. I heard him say, that you probably were a victim of circumstances. Yes, it is true I heard it with my own ears when he said it, to Greyson. Besides, do you know what else I heard him say?"
She shook her head, "What?"

"He said that Gregory was a criminal, and the only reason he disappeared was because he stole your money and took off.” Leyla raised a brow, "You got to be kidding me!" It seemed high time to mingle once again. She would for sure find out what the hell was going on, "he is a moron, so what? Now tell me, how you are going to convince my parents?"

“I thought you’d ’never ask. Bye".

The idiot had actually hung up on her, Leyla thought slightly pissed, when the doorbell rang. After some time, she heard her mom's slightly hysterical voice, "Leyla hasn’t come home yet, at least, I don't think so." There was a murmur of voices downstairs, and she couldn’t understand exactly what they said. Then again she heard her mother's nervous voice, "Leyla could you please come down for a minute?" Leyla opened the door and walked slowly out of her room. She got to the banister looking down. What was going on? It came as a shock to see the group of people standing on the doorstep. Shane was one of them, she couldn’t exactly make out who else was with him, but there was a bunch of them. Her mother looked at her questioningly, "Can you please tell me what all these people are doing here? You are still grounded. I think you know." She shrugged, "Maybe they want to negotiate."

"Negotiate, about what?" "I don't know; why don't you ask them?"

Meanwhile, her dad, Shannon, and Franco got to the stairs. Everyone looked up at Leyla. She raised her hands, "Don't look at me like that. I have nothing to do with it." Shannon had a pleading look on her face as if she expected answers from her. Leyla couldn’t stand this inquiring glance any longer. She turned around and went back into her room. They could negotiate all they wanted with her parents. She couldn’t deal with this; it was all too much for her. She had no strength left for any further crisis management. She lay down on her bed burying her head in her pillow. After some time had passed, she heard a vague knock on her door. She looked up, straight into her aunt's compassionate green eyes. Leyla buried her head back into the pillow muttering in despair, "Go away! I don’t know where he is." Shannon sat down on the bed beside her, stroking her back soothingly, "Shhh, don't get upset, I know. Aiden has told us." Leyla sat up in surprise, "Did he?"

"Yes, we had no idea, or maybe we knew but just tried to ignore the signs. If I'm honest about it, I knew a long time ago that something was wrong with Gregory."

When she saw Leyla's accusing look, she shook her head, "No, I didn’t mean it that way, don't get me wrong. I love him as much as if he were my flesh and blood, but he isn't. These special talents, even though I didn’t want to admit it for a long time putting my head in the sand. I thought that everything would just turn out fine. Now that I know about it for sure, I am worried a lot more about him. I am usually a worried mother. You don’t have any idea how fearful I can be. When it came to him, I have always been frantic, that something might happen to him. When he spent most of his time on trees as a little boy, I’ve almost become insane," she looked at Leyla with a guilty expression on her face shrugging, "what can I say, I was always an overly cautious mother and not knowing where he is, simply drives me crazy. I am close to having a nervous breakdown. That is why I am begging you to tell me where he is, or if you can’t tell me, tell me at least that he is safe."

To Shannon's surprise, Leyla started to cry and put her hands over her face. Shannon was stunned, she had never seen Leyla cry. On the contrary, she had always been a tough little thing as a kid. The kind that didn't shed a tear even with a bloody knee. Well, she thought a bloody knee was probably a lot easier to handle than an aching heart. Patiently she waited until Leyla stopped sobbing, blowing her nose loudly, "If I knew where he is, I would have followed him already." Shannon handed her another tissue, "I know sweetie, but don't you have any idea where he could be?" Leyla hesitated she didn’t want to give too much away. "I know that he is somewhere in Italy in search of his ancestors to find out more about the prophecy. But he promised to contact me after his arrival. Now in almost two weeks, I haven't heard anything from him." The tears started rolling down her cheeks again, "I'm afraid that something terrible has happened to him." Shannon nodded sadly, "Exactly, that's why we have to find him." Leyla shook her head, "No, there is no we in this matter. You will keep yourself out of it. If I knew, where he was. Only people of the Akando clan could take care of the matter, as they are familiar with the tribal issue, and the legend. It's much too dangerous, do not trifle with the Vultures. They are like the Mafia believe me."

Her aunt sighed; Leyla would never tell her anything it was hopeless, «Your friends are downstairs and seem to have a bomb proof idea how to put an end to your house arrest."
"They do?" Leyla asked. "Yes, so come on down and listen to the agreement they have reached with your parents. Luca is certainly easy to persuade, but your mother is a tough nut to crack." Leyla got up, and she felt a bit shaky, stroking over her tousled hair she followed her aunt to the stairs. It looked as if everyone had left. There was nobody downstairs until suddenly Brooklyn and Mila came strolling along from the parlor. Both of them carried a plate with a large piece of cake in their hands, "There you are, finally! Man that took some time," Mila said, with her mouth full, "we have sent away the guys we thought you were into Girl Power. And I have to say that your Aunt bakes incredible heavenly cakes," she put another big piece of it in her mouth. Leyla's heart softened when she saw both of her friends standing in front of her. Brooklyn smiled at her holding out a plate with a piece of chocolate cake towards her, "Here, have some cake and never forget that chocolate cake never asks questions. Chocolate cake understands you." Leyla grinned and hugged her, ignoring the plate, "Hey," Brooklyn said, "be careful, we don't want this incredible cake to fall to the floor. Do we, ever?"
"That would be a shame," Leyla giggled letting her go "guess nobody wants that." She took the plate gratefully.

"So tell me what happened, did my parents go for Aiden's proposal? Or am I still grounded?" Mila nodded and stopped briefly stuffing cake in her mouth, "Well, since there's this new club in the neighborhood of the Scarborough high called Crowd, with live bands and stuff. Aiden was able to get us a deal to wait tables and be paid neatly. We would all take part in it, which means you, of course, are going to be there also this Saturday. It will help to fill up your bank account again. Leyla was speechless, this meant what Aiden mentioned on the phone previously was true. "Would you really do that for me? Man, I am just blown away." Brooklyn nodded, "What a question? Not just the two of us all the Akandos and even Greyson will help you. Your parents just couldn’t say no." "Wow," Leyla looked surprised, "Really?" The two nodded enthusiastically. "Great, this is really something I didn't expect." Leyla's eyes filled with tears.

Her phone started to vibrate in her pocket and at the same time, her ringtone an Up-tempo rich Bollywood melody was heard. Brooklyn and Mila danced to the beat of the music through the corridor, "Let it ring, the sound really gets to my legs and makes me wanna dance," Mila said, wiggling her hips. Leyla didn’t know the number it seemed a foreign prefix. She took the call. It was probably someone having dialed the wrong number.

“Hello?" she heard a distant hissing noise, "hello, is someone there?" She wanted to hang up when she heard a voice through the noise. Although the connection was bad, she would have recognized that voice anywhere and in any situation. "Gregory?" she asked in disbelief. Mila and Brooklyn stared at her suddenly quiet and stunned.