The sound of a shutting door awoke Alfonso from his sleep, but it wasn’t from his room. It might be Carlo, because he knew Carlo’s bedroom was next to his bedroom. It was five in the morning. He could not shut his eyes anymore, though he didn’t sleep well last night. Maybe it was because of too many things swirling in his head. He began to put the pieces together. Siena finally met her father. And her father came from an important family. It seemed like the challenge to win Siena’s heart was getting more complicated. “The more the challenge, the more interested I get,” he mumbled, smiling at himself. He got up from his bed and walked into the bathroom to take a hot shower. Next, it would be time to find out what kind of challenges he would have to overcome. “Good morning, Carlo,” Alfonso greeted Carlo who was standing on the edge of a swim

  In their journey to Safe Haven Orphanage, Siena told Alfonso briefly about everything happened last night, started from how she was ‘kidnapped’ and ended with her talk with Stefano and Carlo.   “Mafia family?” Alfonso repeated in astonishment, when Siena told him about the past background of De Martini family.   “Well, they are not doing mafia thing anymore. They don’t commit crime,” Siena added quickly.   “Yeah, but obviously your father’s family is a very prominent one in this city. I should have guessed it from the start. No wonder your father has so many guards in his house, and they all have pistols.”   “That’s why you should always think before you act. Promise me, you won’t do anything reckless anymore, like what you did last night. If they are real mafia, you’re in big trouble,” Siena warned.   “But it seems like I’m already in trouble. Your step brother do

  Siena saw Stefano sitting in a long brown sofa located in a gazebo. The gazebo was located in the backyard next to the swimming pool. Winter night breeze blew gently, the sky was clear without stars. When Siena was nearing him, Stefano turned his gaze on her quickly.   “Come, Siena…,” he greeted, his right hand patting the seat next to him.   As she sat beside him, Siena had just realized Stefano was holding an album of photograph on his lap.   “These are my nostalgia pictures with Sakura. I always keep them, because they are the only things that can console me whenever I miss her,” Stefano started to talk in a soft voice.   Stefano showed her the album. Siena recognized her mother’s face. Sakura was still young in the pictures, looking so beautiful, enthusiastic, and cheerful. Her shoulder-length black hair fell elegantly cupping her gorgeous oval face. Her bright smile and her sparkl

 Deep silence surrounded them for a moment. It was not clear whether they were dazed by Adalfo’s voice, or they were still trying to digest the meaning of the short text read by Adalfo. Finally Guido made a sound by clearing his throat. “To be honest, this is only the message to find the place where the fifth clue is hidden. It doesn’t show the location of Mister Adalfo’s asset.” “What??” Alfonso and Siena exclaimed at the same time. Siena felt her limbs freeze in place. It was another two-part code from Adalfo! “Geez, Grandpa…. Why did you make it more difficult? It’s only one more asset left,” Siena complained in a low voice. Alfonso turned at her with a smile on his face. “It doesn’t matter, Cherry…. As Mister Moretti said, we should enjoy our time here while we try to solve the

 Alfonso and Siena looked wide-eyed at each other. The next second, as if moved by the same thoughts, they spontaneously held each other hand, and rushed toward the stairs going down to the bottom of the fort. “Genius, Cherry! Going to the library does help after all!” Alfonso exclaimed, as he kept running down the stairs. Siena couldn’t help laughing out loud. She recalled almost the same moment when they were in Palma. Back in the day, they solved the riddle on the tower of Castell de Belver. Then they rushed down from the tower, but yelling at each other. But now? They were holding hands! How different! “Why do you laugh?” Alfonso looked at her, apparently confused. “Oh, nothing…. I’m just…,” Siena kept laughing in between. “It feels like a déjà vu, but something is totally different….”