Part
32.
The Padrone was worried. As time went on, the sight of
Ugo, whom he had seen that day from the shop window in the city, gave him no
peace.
"That man with the dangerous eyes and Ugo.
From where? How?
Perhaps it wasn't Ugo at all?
And why is Dada so afraid of that man with the
dangerous eyes?
Maybe she is not afraid, but cannot stand him!
Maybe she just doesn't like him, and his visits don't
please her, and does that mean she is afraid? Of course not! Naturally, she
doesn't like him; he is not exactly handsome, and it is no surprise that the
visits of such an unpleasant-looking man would not bring joy to a young
girl."
The Padrone had always been distinguished by his insight
and was even proud of it, but now it had become very difficult. He could not
find an explanation for anything. Why would that man with the dangerous eyes
hire Ugo to kill him?
What was the need for so much ceremony?
He could have ambushed him somewhere in the city, or
blown up his car on the road, or a thousand other things, but...
Establishing himself on the estate, pretending to be a
miserable old man, and for so long, too.
The Padrone's head was splitting from thinking. He could
not understand what connection these two different types of scoundrels could
have with each other.
Sleep would not come to the Padrone, although nothing was
disturbing him. Absolute silence reigned all around. At some point, it seemed
to him that this silence resembled an ominous stillness more than anything
else.
Everything around him was so tangled that he could find
neither the beginning nor the end to untie the knot.
"No, I must talk to Dada! That's it! My head is
bursting from all this thinking! Why is she so afraid of this man? Maybe I can
find out somehow, what if she refuses? I will force her anyway! And if, in the
end, I still cannot find out anything, then...
Then I will truly have to use her diary!"
He dozed off in his thoughts, then it was as if some
sound woke him up. He sat up on the bed, and the coat of arms drawn in pencil
in Dada's diary appeared before his eyes more vividly, in color, and he
suddenly discovered that this coat of arms...
Dada's coat of arms!
Indeed, he had seen it in the house of the man with the
dangerous eyes, who proudly boasted of his own lineage.
The Padrone jumped out of bed like a madman.
Now everything became clear to him. Ugo was sent to kill
not the Padrone, but Dada.
"And that stupid boy fell in love with this
stupid girl! My God! That's why he ran away and left, but how did that
disgusting and dangerous man find out that Dada was not my daughter? Could he
have contacted someone from the old camp?"
The people expelled from the camp back in the day had
threatened him, saying they wouldn't let it slide, but...
"Although, who knows? Perhaps he released those
very people to get rid of Ugo, because he received a refusal to carry out the
assignment."
The Padrone was now more convinced, everything had become
clear to him; that was exactly why the attempt to kill the Gardener resembled
Zeki's signature style so much. After all, they had gone through the same
"school."
He had to do something; the Padrone was certain this
matter would not end so easily. It was time for Zeki to know everything and be
much more vigilant.
It is true that at first, he would be hurt as to why they
had hidden it from him for so long, but the Padrone had great hope in him; no
matter what happened and no matter how enraged Zeki might get, he was still a
member of the family and would always stand by his side.
Once again, some noise startled the Padrone out of his
thoughts; he could not tell where it was coming from or what it was.
Stepping onto the balcony, he caught the smell of smoke,
and the yard became even noisier. Before the Padrone could ask anything, a
servant called up from below:
"The fruit orchard is on fire, sir, and the wind
has carried the fire towards the vineyards too!"
He wanted to say something else, but another servant ran
out screaming:
"The whole stable and the animal sheds are also
on fire!"
This was already a clear attack. The Padrone immediately
ordered Zeki to be woken up, while he armed himself and ran towards Dada's
room.
In Dada's bedroom, a man with his throat slit lay in a
pool of blood. Dada was nowhere to be seen. The dresser drawer was open. And
the open box was empty. The gold-plated Walther pistol that the Padrone had
gifted her had disappeared along with Dada.
The horrified Padrone then rushed to the gallery. No one
was there either, and the secret staircase door was open...
LEX. Sunday, March 20, 2016.
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