Toast
“If anyone else tries to breakdown that door they will.” Dante said worryingly. He examined the splintered wood barely supporting the chain.
“What do we do with the body?” Nastassia’s mom sighed.
“I don’t think that’s our main priority Sandra.” Lorenzo spoke up. “We can dispose of it in the morning.”
Dante’s phone rang. He pulled it out from his jeans.
“Hello.”
“Speakerphone please.” David said calmly, as David pressed a button and placed the mobile device on the table.
“We’ve traced your call.” A male voice said in a Russian accent.
“Tell them we’ll be there in five minutes!” A female voice yelled in the background.
“Lindsay?” Dante replied loudly.
Lorenzo and Sandra exchanged quick glances at each other.
“You brought Lindsay!?” Dante continued.
“She was with Diana at the time.” Anton’s voice replied. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah… great. Almost got speared by a crazy mufloni carrying a death threat.” Dante answered looking at his brother briefly.
“Always having adventures. Is David with you?”
“I’m here Anton.” David stepped in, folding his arms in anxiety.
“Okay, we’re exiting the forest right now.” The phone disconnected.
“What are you waiting for let’s go!” Dante exclaimed loudly, as he grabbed his leather jacket from the chair.
“What!” Sandra cried in astonishment.
“He’s right Mrs. Peckleton.” David said, as he followed his brother. “The chance is very small that someone will try to attack us if we have support coming.”
“But do they know that?” She pled.
“Thank you for your kindness. It’s time we left.” David took out his wallet and handed a card to Lorenzo. “This will be the number you can reach us at.”
“Come on!” Dante said, standing impatiently in front of the damaged door.
David quickly joined his brother, who had now unlocked the door. The chain fell to the floor.
“We’ll send someone to fix this.” David promised as he cautiously opened the door and stepped outside.
Like a deer in headlights, he froze as Diana’s 2003 Ferrari Enzo Rosso Dino raced towards him.
“I see someone got bought themselves a new birthday gift…” He heard Dante joke beside him.
The rest of the Peckletons stepped outside cautiously, as the car’s headlights flooded them in an aura of white light. Diana drove to the left and braked with precision in front of the group standing outside the wooden cabin.
“Is there room in that car for is both?” Dante wondered out loud as the side doors swung open. Anton and a female with long luxurious dark blonde hair observed the two brothers as they moved closer.
“Nice custom.” David said appreciatively, as he and Dante ducked to enter the car’s extended interior. “How did you swing this one?”
Diana smiled as her foot lured over the gas pedal. “Let’s say Hollywood rewarded the talented newcomer with the cutom Ferrari Enzo Rossi Dino from her first feature film.” She pressed a button on the car’s smart computer monitor and the wallpaper of her smiling with a well-known Hollywood actor illuminated the faces of David and Dante.
“You got stuck with that guy?” Anton said looking the film poster.
“You mean that cute guy.” Lindsay corrected, as she reached into the black purse on her right shoulder. “Gum anyone?” She offered as she placed a strip into her mouth.
“Don’t let the lipstick ruin the flavour.” Dante said warningly.
Anton laughed as she picked up her purse and attempted to smack Dante on the head as he raised his hands to deflect the blows.
“Real funny.” She said.
“Don’t forget to say goodbye.” Diana reminded the two brothers. David, who was sitting next to the open door smiled towards the Peckletons. “Thank you for your invitation, I’ll make sure I call you once we’ve arrived.”
“Speaking of arriving to places.” Anton interrupted, grooming his short red beard with his fingers. “Where are we going?”
The car door gently lowered and locked into the car’s frame.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Dante exclaimed. “Party at David’s!”
“Woooo!” Lindsay screamed, as Anton plugged his ears with his fingers. David rolled his eyes at the thought.
“You are a loud one!” He said with a smile as he moved his backpack under the seat using his legs.
“What’s in here?” Dante asked. He reached down and pulled the backpack from the floor to his lap.
David glanced out the window, as the cabin disappeared in an instant.
“That’s just some supplies I brought as I wasn’t sure how long I would be staying with you guys.” Anton quickly answered.
“Is a week fine?” Dante turned to David.
“Yeah a week’s good.” David replied, maintaining his focus on the shifting landscape.
The shifting fields slowly came to a halt, as the recognizable view of his mansion filled the window.
“Looks like the construction team did a good job.” Anton said with a hint of admiration.
“What kind of supplies did you pack Anton?” Lindsay asked, as the doors on both sides proceeded to lift upwards.
Anton remained silent as Dante returned his backpack, and carefully exited the vehicle, checking his watch.
“Hmm…” He said, carefully observing the analog display.
“What time is it?” Lindsay asked, as she followed suit and exited the vehicle with Anton.
“Can’t tell.” Dante replied. The battery’s died.
“It’s ten to midnight,” David interrupted displaying his digital watch’s backlight as he left the exotic car.
“Show off….” Dante whispered to Lindsay who immediately giggled, as the group waited for Diana to exit.
“Coming out Diana?” Dante asked?
The doors started to lower again.
“Sorry guys, I have an urgent message from my sister. She’s in labour and I didn’t even know she was dating someone! I hope you don’t mind me having to leave early.”
Dante pretended to wipe tears from his eyes, as Anton gave him a look of surprise.
“You okay dude.”
Dante pretended to sob. “What will I ever due without your custom vehicle.” He then looked up at the sky, before looking at his Bugatti Veyron. “Guess that will have to do.” He said in his normal voice.
“At least his sense of humour is normal, even if the situation isn’t.” Diana said to David, who was closest to the vehicle.
“Tell your sister I send my blessings on a successful childbirth.” He said to her as she altered the GPS coordinates before returning a smile.
“You sure you two will be okay?” She said in a worried tone.
“We’ll be fine.” David comforted her, before turning to rejoin the group.
The red custom sped accelerated towards the forest and disappeared in what seemed like seconds.
“I hope she remembered to get insurance on that thing.” Dante confided to Lindsay.
“It’s a custom…” She replied, looking at him oddly with those blue eyes of hers.
“They have insurance for customs….” Dante countered, as the group proceeded to enter the mansion.
David led the group to the front door. Anton followed closely behind with Dante and Lindsay behind.
It was dark, but the starlight illuminated the keyhole for David to unlock.
They entered the three-storey establishment.
“Lights on.” David commanded, locking the door.
Anton and Lindsay smiled as the voice-activated lights turned on.
“You should see our hot tub?” Dante remarked to Anton.
“You had a hot tub installed?” He remarked, still following David throughout the house.
“Dante… you have the map for this place?” David interrupted.
“No….” Dante replied, as if asked a question he had no business answering. “Besides, this is officially your house, you should know your way around.”
“It’s probably where you knocked me out.” David concluded.
“You knocked David out!” Lindsay said, struggling to withhold laughter.
“Don’t get too imaginative.” Dante answered, “I used a sedative only after he did the same to me.”
Lindsay jokingly gasped. None of this was new to her. She had first met Dante when she was making regular earnings as a nurse. She could still remember seeing this man wheeled in on a stretcher after suffering internal paralysis.
The Doctors had been unable to find a solution and even contemplated taking him off life support until she suggested that the conflict could have been cause by the inhalation of poison gas. She supervised his recovery after a detoxification program used a liquid solution to draw the poison out. Organs slowly started showing signs of life again as the liquid cleanser moved through his body. While the procedure was relatively simple, she decided to leave the messy cleanup to the other nurses when the liquid was due to exit the body.
Ever since that incident, both of the brothers have been carrying antidote pills containing a small sample of the liquid solution.
David led the group back to the sofas. He had been unable to counter the sedative since he made the decision to remove his shirt earlier. He affectionately looked at the top button on the shirt. It slightly stood out from the others but had a similar shape and colour. The coating, however, was not plastic but gelatin that would melt if swallowed. The liquid would then be in his system and would be mostly absorbed in his upper body.
“Do you have the Peckletons number?” David asked his brother. He protruded his cell phone as Dante handed him a piece of paper with the number written in pencil.
David spent five minutes explaining how they had made it home and how the body would be disposed of under their supervision later, of which a certain date could not be provided.
“We can always just bury it.” Lorenzo offered, his voice coming through the mobile phone crystal clear.
“I’m grateful for your assistance but I believe it is best if we take it say later in the week. We’ve only just come home.”
“Understood.” Lorenzo confirmed as David said goodbye and ended the call.
“Dante…” Anton stepped in, as David stopped in reflection.
“I think it’s time you told us what happened earlier.
The group sat down as Dante began recounting what happened after he was sedated.
“…Next thing I knew, I had left David exposed with a sheep tied down by an acting anchor next to him.”
“Thanks for that by the way.” David said, getting up to examine the mini-fridge that lay across from his seat. “Drink anyone?” He offered, returning with five translucent bottles of Italian beer.
“I wouldn’t have left you there if I knew I was still being followed. Alright!” Dante responded accepting a beer, as he protruded a pocketknife with a beer opener attachment.
“Ooh I love this beer.” Anton said, as he bumped bottles with the group in a silent toast. “After the wall came down this was all I imported for a while before leaving the country.”
First thing!