Red's Redemption ✔

Chapter 24 - What A Beach

As soon as we arrived and Vinchenzo parked I hopped out of the car feeling quite excited. I had not been to the beach in a while. 

"You know what would be crazy?" I whispered to Francesca.

She shrugged, "What?"

"If Eliza and Sergio were in love and he lied about killing her." I laughed.

Francesca looked rather taken aback, "Now why would he do that?" 

I shrugged, "Intrusive thought." 

Francesca just laughed and rolled her eyes as we began to set up. I spread my towel on the warm sand and reapplied sunscreen on my face. I was very susceptible to sunburn and let me tell you - that pain was not worth the few minutes it takes to reapply sunscreen. The only thing that ever so slightly soothes the pain is aloe vera and mint, although that relief doesn't last long.

The beach trip was very fun and I enjoyed my time. Nothing of note happened. We simply spent the day swimming around in the ocean, laughing, and having food. Things however got very interesting on the drive home later in the evening.

Vinchenzo was driving, Dante was seated next to him and Francesca, Sienna and I were all in the back. I was sipping my water as I looked out the window when Vinchenzo's phone rang.

"Borgati." He answered as he overtook a car.

Vinchenzo went silent for a few minutes as the person on the other end of the line spoke. Where I was seated, I could not hear a word.

"We will be there soon." He said before ending the call.

The tension in the car was thick as I saw Vinchenzo's angry face reflected in the rearview mirror.

"What's happened?" Francesca said, daring to speak.

"War." He muttered, "We are at war with everyone."

As soon as he said that he accelerated and I hung onto the arm rest of the door for dear life as he swerved through all of the cars.

"As soon as we get to the house we are all packing up quickly and going back home." He commanded.

I stayed silent as I watched the scenery blur past. No one else spoke.

As soon as Vinchenzo drove up to the entrance of the large house, we all jumped out of the car and headed in. I ran up the stairs and began throwing things into my bag. I packed as many clothes as I could fit along with my bathroom items. After thirty minutes had passed by Vinchenzo called everyone and once again we were piled in the car headed to the airport so that we could take the Vitali private jet and head home.

I scratched my head and sighed. I had been given no time to shower and hated how rough my hair was to the touch. I was itching to take a shower and that was when I was grateful to remember that the jet had a bathroom with a shower onboard. Never in my life had I ever been more thankful to fly privately.

The airport wasn't too far away from the house. Francesca had opted to stay behind whilst Sienna and Dante joined us on the urgent trip back. As soon as we boarded and I was cleared to take a shower, I did so. The cool water falling down on me felt nice and refreshing after the boiling hot weather.

When I finished I got dressed and walked out only to find Vinchenzo standing over a pile of documents that were strewn about on the king-sized bed.

"What's going on?" I asked gently.

He sighed, "Donfrio, Stalias and whatever is left of the Domano family have all joined forces and are launching an attack on us soon."

"Is that what Borgati said on the phone?"

He nodded, "Yes."

"What strategy are you going with?"

He shrugged, "I am trying to figure out the numbers that will be attacking us and then I will determine if we should lure them into a trap or go after them."

I nodded, "Okay."

I didn't want to annoy him with all of my questions, so I sat to the side as I watched him fiddle around before he began drawing diagrams and frowning. I watched Vinchenzo silently as he pondered the grim situation before us. It was a pivotal moment, and I couldn't just stand by without offering my assistance. After all, my entire career had immersed me in the world of organized crime, and I had picked up a few strategic skills along the way.

"Vinchenzo," I began, my voice unwavering, "I have an idea that might give us an edge."

He looked up from his scattered documents, curiosity lighting up his eyes. "Go on," he urged. This made me feel more confident in what I was about to say.

"First, we need to understand their motives," I explained. "Why would Donfrio, Stalias, and the remnants of the Domano family unite against us?"

Vinchenzo nodded, acknowledging the importance of comprehending our enemies' intentions. "It likely boils down to power and territory," he replied.

I concurred. "Yes, and if they're willing to risk an all-out war, they must believe they have a strong chance of victory. So, we need to make them doubt their strategy."

Vinchenzo raised an inquisitive eyebrow, intrigued by my approach. "How do you propose we achieve that?"

"We must exploit their vulnerabilities and sow discord among their ranks," I suggested. "First, we gather intelligence on their leadership hierarchy, supply lines, and alliances. We need to find their weak spots."

Vinchenzo agreed. "That's a sensible approach. Knowing their weaknesses will allow us to strike strategically."

"Exactly," I continued. "Then, we initiate a disinformation campaign. We feed them false information about our defenses, resources, and even our intentions. We want them to believe we're weaker than we truly are, making them question their own plans."

Vinchenzo's eyes gleamed with understanding. "That could make them overconfident and take reckless actions."

I smiled, satisfied that he was following my line of thought. "And that's when we strike. We set traps along the routes they're likely to take, using our knowledge of their leadership and supply lines. When they take the bait, we hit them hard, disrupting their plans and sowing chaos."

Vinchenzo leaned back, contemplating my proposal. "It's a risky strategy, but it might just work. We'll need to ensure our false information is convincing enough to make them doubt themselves."

I nodded. "We'll need skilled informants and hackers to disseminate the disinformation, but I have contacts who can help with that."

Vinchenzo's expression softened as he regarded me with admiration. "You have quite the strategic mind, Arianna."

I moved closer to him, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "We're a team, Vinchenzo. We'll face this together and come out stronger." 

He agreed with a determined nod. "Let's get to work, then. We have a war to win."

"Together." I smiled.

"Together." He nodded in agreement.

Hey Reddies!

It truly has been a while since I have been on here. I have had a hectic time at university so I haven't really had the time to get the creativity flowing... but today I was like I'm going to sit down and write at least one chapter for you guys!

Anywho, let me know what you think of the chapter! Leave your thoughts in the comment section and if you enjoyed it consider voting!

Let the war begin!

I'll see you in the next update!

XOXO

Perla