Giovanni De Rege

Chapter 20

The family of four sat in the living room on a day off. Donatella snatched the remote and changed the channel as her favourite Italian soap was about to air.

''Mamma! Football! They were just about to get a goal in!'' Sergio threw his hands up in protest.

''And now I'm watching my soap,'' Donatella retorted.

''Put it back on the previous channel, Amore mio,'' Alberto said to Donatella. ''Just this one time?''

''Let Mamma watch her show. The match was a rerun of last week's match. You can still watch the game online anyway.'' Isabella shrugged.

''Exactly.'' Donatella backed her daughter up.

Isabella leaned closer to her mother so the others couldn't eavesdrop. ''Haven't you seen this episode already?''

''They don't have to know that.'' Donatella winked at her daughter making her laugh.

The bell went off and so Isabella stood up to get it. She opened the front door, expecting to see a person but there was nobody. Creases between her black eyebrows appeared in confusion. She began closing it again until she noticed a bouquet of lilac flowers on the doorstep. Isabella picked it up and retreated inside.

Who sent it? Giovanni?

Curious, she read the small note attached to it. The words on it written neatly in black ink.

'Isabella,

You are kind-hearted and innocent. For that reason alone I'm warning you to not delve into something you're unfamiliar with. You are smart but you don't seem to know whom you should and shouldn't associate with. Don't make the same mistake I made.

I hope you like the flowers.'

The message pushed Isabella's mind in a state of puzzlement. She did not know what to make out of the vague meaning behind the words. Nonetheless, there wasn't a hint of doubt the flowers weren't from Giovanni.

''Who was at the door?'' Donatella shouted from the couch.

''Nobody,'' Isabella answered truthfully.

Nimbly, the tiny card was grasped in between Isabella's fingers. She turned it over, looking to see if there was anything written on the back. A plain white colour stared back.

After the white flowers were put in a vase, Isabella's steps led her to the balcony. A moment alone with her thoughts, brainstorming on who could have possibly sent the note to her. Hands laid folded on her lap as she rocked back and forth on the chair.

The message on the card was read for the second time.

Despite it sounding concerned about her well-being, Isabella couldn't bring herself to trust the words of a faceless stranger. There was an overwhelming sense inside her that the message came with an underlying threat.

Isabella thought of people who could have sent her the flowers. So far, only Theo had made it onto her list of suspects.

''I saw the flowers Giovanni sent you.''

The voice of her father spiked Isabella's alarm senses. She clenched her hand shut, hiding the piece of paper in her fist. Isabella was not entirely sure why she acted on the impulse to hide the note from her father.

Alberto took up the seat on the left of his daughter and stared out in front of him.

Isabella didn't correct her father's statement as she couldn't come up with a clever lie to explain the pretty flower bouquet away. Green eyes flitted between Alberto and her fist. They stopped moving as her father spoke again.