When Thomas and Devon woke up around 8 AM, Thomas called Archbishop Ignastius to tell him that their work was done. The Archbishop immediately went into the Pope’s quarters, where he was enjoying a quiet breakfast, and told him the news. The Pope nodded that he understood. He asked the Archbishop if he could contact his brother so that they could arrange a meeting as soon as possible. “I have a lot to tell my poor brother Lorenzo.”

Lorenzo Matteo Chiesa had been in exclusion since he had talked to his brother, the Pope. He frankly had been contemplating taking his own life. Two things, however, deterred him; the main one was his blood lust. He wanted to live long enough to see that his son’s death had been avenged. The second one, and to a much lesser extent, was that he was a catholic, and killing yourself was considered a mortal sin. That is, if you believe in that sort of thing. Since the death of his son Marco, he was no longer that strong a believer. Without his son and his wife, life held no meaning. While, it is true that he had a sister and a brother. They both had their own lives. His sister Isabella had her own family, and besides, they were never that close. His older brother, well…, he was the Pope. He had room for only two things in his life: his love for God and the Roman Catholic Church.

When Lorenzo received a call from his brother’s secretary, Archbishop Ignastius, requesting a meeting, he knew that the one overriding cause for him to remain among the living was taken care of. Even though he knew there was no reason for a meeting with his brother, he knew that his brother Angelo really wanted to talk to him, so he called back the Archbishop to set up a meeting time. Because he loved his brother and was the Pope, he deserved respect, so he dressed in his finest clothes. The Pope instructed Archbishop Ignastius that, except for his daily mass, he would cancel any appointment to make room for his brother. So, the Archbishop canceled his 10:30 AM and 11:00 AM appointments to open up the Pope’s schedule for his brother, Lorenzo.

Lorenzo, knowing how important his brother’s time was, arrived at the Vatican a full 30 minutes early, so that he would have enough time to walk to his brother’s private quarters by 10:30. He was escorted to the Poe’s quarters by one of the Gendarmerie who had been waiting for him at the front entrance of the Vatican. The meeting with his brother went much as he expected. He listened patiently as Angelo relayed to him all the details of the work that Thomas, Devon, and Andres had done for him. He could now rest more easily knowing that the ones responsible for taking his beautiful Marco from him had all paid the ultimate price, right down to the surgeon who had performed the surgery removing his organs. As Angelo spoke to him, tears continued to run down his face. Angelo did not even see the tears on his brother’s face, but he was so engrossed in his narrative. That single-minded devotion to achieving his goals had been one of his key strengths, yet at the same time, one of his most significant weaknesses. Only when he finished did Angelo see the deplorable state his brother was in; only then did he allow his humanity to emerge. He immediately went over and hugged his distraught brother.

As Angelo hugged Lorenzo, the only thing his brother could manage to say was Thank you. When Lorenzo was finally able to get a hold of himself, Angelo kissed him on his forehead. That display of tenderness towards his brother would be his last. Angelo did not realize at the time that the meeting he had with his brother would be the last time he saw him alive. Lorenzo was escorted to the front entrance by the same Gendarmerie guard. Lorenzo did not feel like driving, so he left his car in the Vatican parking lot and took a cab home. After all, what did earthly possessions matter to him now? When he was dropped off at his apartment, he immediately went to his bathroom and took out the prescription bottles for his antidepressants, pain meds, and sleeping pills. When he arrived back from the Philippines, he had not been to sleep, so he went to his Internist, who instantly realized that his patient was suffering from an acute case of depression. So he did what any well-meaning doctor would do, and that was to prescribe a boatload of heavily addictive medications. Lorenzo still had over half of a bottle of each of these medications. While the oxyCODONE prescription was only for 30 days, and no refill, the Ambien, the Valium, and the Librium prescriptions were for 90 days. He brought all the bottles along with a carafe and a large glass of water to wash all of the pills down to his reclining chair in the living room, where he sat down and made himself comfortable. He turned on his TV and put it on a soothing music channel. It took him several minutes to wash all the pills down. Finally, his task was done. He had already written a letter for his brother, Angelo, and left it on the coffee table in his living room. He was already starting to feel groggy. The last thought he had was of his son Marco as everything went black.

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After Andres had called and told Thomas of his plans to marry Samiya, he went into the kitchen to help his fiancée prepare their lunch. He tenderly kissed her on the cheek as she sliced cucumbers for their garden salad. He asked Samiya if she would like to go to Rome for a vacation and possibly get married there. He said that he had it on good authority that Pope Pius XIII might even be willing to marry them in the Vatican. He chuckled as he added, “He kind of owes me a favor.” I am sure we could even stay at Devon’s Villa; he, after all, has a ton of room, and I do have a standing invitation to stay there anytime I am in Rome. Samiya stopped what she was doing and jumped into his arms, starting to kiss him passionately. One thing led to another, and their lunch ended up being delayed for a bit longer.

After Andres and Samiya finished enjoying their afternoon delight and lunch, Andres booked a flight from Manila to Rome for the two of them. Once he had the scheduled flight times and numbers, he called up Devon and told him that he and Samiya would be in Rome for a week. As expected, Devon invited them to stay at his villa. Andres thanked him profusely. They both knew how the game was played, but they were too polite to mention it. Devon knew that Andres was expecting to stay at his villa, even though he had not mentioned it. Devon, of course, remembered their conversation that they had and his open invitation, even though he was only being polite and never expected that Andres would take him up on it. Besides, Thomas was Andres’ long-time friend, not Devon. If Andres were not expecting to stay at his house, why else would he be calling Devon? He would have called Thomas. Andres also knows that Thomas lives in a small apartment and has no room for a couple to stay with him. Oh well, now he has to tell Jennie that two strangers will be staying with them for a week. All for a moment of largesse on his part. Maybe he was bragging a little bit. But regardless, sometimes it doesn’t pay to be nice. Even though he liked Andres, he was still a little miffed about the whole situation. Andres even told them the flight number, so he is expecting Devon to pick them up. Hopefully, Jennie and Samiya will hit it off; he really didn’t know much about her, just that she almost lost her life to the organ harvesting ring in the Philippines.

The next couple of weeks went by without anything significant taking place, unless you don’t count the Pope’s brother committing suicide as anything untoward. Needless to say, the Pope was in mourning for most of this time. Apparently, he had overdosed on his prescription drugs. He was found by his landlord when Lorenzo’s neighbors complained of noxious odors emanating from his apartment. Finally, the time arrived for Devon and Jennie to pick up their guests at the Rome Fiumicino International Airport (FCO) in their Ford Bronco EcoBoost SUV.

When Devon and Jennie picked up Andres and Samiya, Jennie had to admit that they made a handsome couple, if he was a little old for her. But who was she to say, as long as they were happy? When she observed how they interacted with each other, they seemed deeply in love with each other. Based on what little Devon had said about them, they both had led tough lives. She had to admit that when Devon told her about them essentially inviting themselves into her house she was seriously pissed off. But over the last two weeks, she had come to grips with them staying at their house. Who knows, they would be fun to hang out with. It would be nice to have a female friend, even if that friend lived in the Philippines. The internet, after all, had changed the world; now people from disparate backgrounds and countries could carry on meaningful relationships. The funny thing was that Andres seemed to have more luggage than did Samiya. Since he had received a big payday from his last assignment, he could afford to buy some nice clothes for his fiancée, so at their first opportunity, she would take Samiya out shopping. Besides, it had been a while since she had bought any clothes herself, and she knew Devon could afford it.

As Devon drove them back to their villa, the two couples chatted pleasantly. To facilitate their getting acquainted or, in Devon and Andres’ case, reacquainted, he sat in the front seat so he could talk with Devon as he drove, and Jennie and Samiya sat in the back seat. While Devon didn’t want to discuss any other gory details about Thomas and his mission in Germany, he did touch on some of the highlights. While, Jennie and Samiya discussed how they each met their partners. Jennie had to admit, even though Devon had touched on the subject some, hearing it retold by someone who came so close to death was something else entirely. Samiya was not abashed in the least about telling of her near-death experiences and how her captors mistreated her. She talked about her recovery and the counseling that she had received, and how Andres had been there for her every step of the way. She never felt any pressure from him. It took a while before she even felt comfortable with him touching her or holding her. Eventually, they were able to share some intimate moments. She was amazed by his tenderness and compassion. She, of course, knew of his violent history. She, after all, had witnessed it firsthand as he killed her captors without the slightest hesitation or compunction. She had to admit it was difficult for her to reconcile that he had two such different sides. Jennie said that she had the same problems with Devon, although she had never witnessed him in action, and she hoped she never had to.

When they arrived at Devon and Jennie’s villa, Samiya was amazed she had never seen a private residence so palatial. Even Andres, with his more cosmopolitan lifestyle and experiences, was measurably impressed. Devon helped them carry their luggage up to their rooms. Devon wasn’t sure if they would want one or two rooms. When he asked them, they said that two rooms were fine. However, Devon shouldn’t be surprised if they ended up sharing one of the rooms, mainly because Samiya was still experiencing nightmares from her experiences with her captors in the Philippines. Andres and Samiya quickly settled in with their new accommodations. And after a few days, there was even talk of them staying a little longer. Devon had to admit that he enjoyed Andres’ companionship. The difference between Thomas and him was remarkable. While Thomas was more reserved and, in some cases, even seemed a little socially awkward, Andres was outgoing, enjoyed laughing, and loved telling funny stories. Jennie was also enjoying the time she spent with Samiya. Dante and Spot both seemed to enjoy the added attention they were getting from Samiya. She later admitted that having Dante around made her feel safe somehow. Jennie told her that she was not surprised because he was trained for protection.