Italia

14.

Coarse rubbed softly against my palm, it didn't produce a wince from my lips, no, it was further from that. I spread my fingers apart and pass it across the wall of the corridor that was painted white, the soft glow of the sunbeam, slanted on my forearm and walk towards my wrist as my eyes motioned towards the artistic frame that was situated just above and fitted firmly on the surface.

An unusual salient mixture of oranges, brunette and blues, twirls and dash into something so casual but the meaning behind said casualty lies a story which was depicted by the creator behind it. My grandmother, Keiko. Granny as I would have referred. She was my father's mother, the woman who cared for me when nobody else would. The woman who saw the best in me when I was toss into a basket and was left on her restaurant door step, in wails and agony as lightning strikes across the dark skies, twenty-three years ago.

My parents didn't want me. They made it clear when they did this. And I could just imagine, the terror that masked over my granny's face when she saw my soaked one-month old frame, without blanket, without proper clothing, wailing over the thunder and rain.

She said I was worth keeping. A little black baby, tossed aside into the hands of some stranger.

I could see it now. I could hear her words through the artistic motion within the three mirrored dimensional painting. It told a story of that night, she gave this to me when I was eighteen and I...closing my eyes right now in the moment, a soft smile of nostalgia rained and thundered in my thoughts as I thought about that morning when she presented it to me.

I remembered the tears. The government it ruled as with a soft light of gratitude, I listened as she wished me happy birthday. I was not knowledgeable back then but when she gave this gift to me the first time, I could literally see and felt everything about it. It was simply beautiful.

Softly, I traced the outline of the piece and took a step backwards. I felt a surge of excitement, it plunges deep into my heart and with an inside work, it spread warmth inwardly then escapes on the outward appearance as I grin. I couldn't wait to see her earlier today.

Last night I didn't get to see much around the safe house because of the tiredness that I felt but now I wanted to do right. To feel something other than sadness, I decided to checked up on her when I was through with talking with my father.

Knocking on the surface of the office door, I smiled softly as the door opened up to reveal my father and he beckoned me in to which I slid into the area and connected my eyes with a few of my father's men as well as Rueben who was sitting on Sam's lap.

"Good morning." I greeted and they returned with a respected response.

"Okay. Now that everyone is here." My father rounded his large desk and sat down into his seat. I leaned my back beside the book shelve, a leg propped up behind me as I folded my arms across my chest.

"I'll begin. We lost one of our men during the police raiding last night which is unfortunate because even now I am still confused as to how the heck they even know that we were there."

"Tokyo Kato was my main operation for transacting business and the sparrow's know this. They know every damn mafia organization in the underworld, down to our names and family. They know what everyone do for a living and what not and the fact that we don't know shit about them and their ruling don make everything fucking worst." My father was pissed and although he didn't show it on his face, the blunt on his pursed lips along with the three half-finished ones that were currently steaming on the ashtray, told an entirely different level.

As far as my memories could take me, Riku loved cooking, not to mention the part where he loved mixing up different dishes from his culture to please his comfort.

When we were younger, Sam and I would always wake up early in the morning towards the strong aroma of his spices as he cooked us something from scratch.

Gaining the inheritance from his mother, Keiko, my father re-modelled the restaurant- Tokyo Kato, to what it is today which currently makes it one of Milan's top most recommended eatery to delved into.

It wasn't about the hype that made my father's food immaculate but it was because of his down to earth attitude that my grandmother had drilled into him. It was simply beautiful. Unfortunately, though, I didn't get the art of cooking from them much to my granny tries and my descriptive mind about my father's meals whenever I was hungry or when I was far away from home did not fail to remind me of this.

"We have a rat." Rueben mumbled as she ran her fingers through Sam's reddish brown hair.

"We have a rat among us father, I've been saying this to you over the past six months since they've took grandma's life and you've done nothing about it."

This drew my attention sharply towards my father. "What the actually heck do you mean they took grandma's life?" I asked in disbelief.

His silence was threating and sharp. I drew in a piercing breath; it penetrates my lungs until it squeezes it and compresses the muscle to multiple thudding beats that I could feel on my eyelid. We locked eyes. I dared him to shift them. I dared him to.

"Ital-" A severe stare, drifted towards Sam who decided to speak up. His men could feel it, Rueben had her head tilted down as they knew. They all fucking knew. Sam knew how much this woman meant to me hence he had no say in this mother fucking matter.

"Dad..." It started out soft. It started out in disbelief.

He didn't say anything.

"What the heck did he meant by that."

"Why didn't you told me." My voice crack as I pleaded with him.

"Why..."

Closing his eyes, I could see the guilt written on the pale skin of his closed eyelids. He knew just how much my grandmother, Keiko, his mother meant to me. That woman was the main reason why I was here.

And he was selfish enough to keep this information away from me...

"We need to focus." He cleared his throat, his eye contact dimmed like a single candle within the wind. He went around my questioned and said.

"And construct a plan to take down the black sparrows for what they did to my mother, Keiko and to my grandson." He clenched his jaw tightly and tilted his sadden gaze into mine. It held my breath as once again, the happiness that I finally tried to grasp unto like the night, dusted away into the wind of the morning.

I guess I wasn't suppose to be happy, after all.