Chapter 41: Venosa Ambush

Venosa Cafe – 5:00 AM

Marco was sitting relaxed in his usual corner, watching Franco and Salvo argue over who could drink the bitterest coffee without batting an eyelid.

Franco, savouring his coffee with difficulty: "This isn't just coffee… This is a chemical attack!"

Salvo, with a triumphant smile: "Ha! Weak, I drink it like water!"

Marco, raising an eyebrow: "You put six sugar cubes, genius."

Before Salvo could respond, two men rushed into the cafe, panting as if they were being chased by a monster. They were in a pitiful state, one with a head injury and the other barely standing.

Luca, who had been calmly holding his coffee cup, slowly placed it on the table and pulled out his gun. "If you're here to seek asylum, pick a better place than a small cafe."

One of the men, looking around in fear: "You're Marco, right? We need your help!"

Franco, surprised: "Who are you? And why do you look like you escaped from a low-budget action movie?"

Before the man can answer, a loud gunshot rings out, and one of the café's windows shatters. Everyone jumps for cover, while Lucino, the café owner, shouts from inside.

Lucino, angrily: "Again! Who's going to pay for this?!"

Salvo, hiding behind the table: "I'll add it to my overdue bill, okay?"

Shooting in Venosa

Marco pulls out his gun and glances through the broken glass. A group of armed men in black are advancing towards the café.

Marco mutters: "Oh, what a great start to the day!"

Franco, reloading his gun: "I was planning on having a quiet day, but it seems fate had other ideas."

Luca with a wicked smile: "And I needed some morning exercise!"

Heavy gunfire rang out, and everyone started to respond. Columbo, who didn't like fighting, tried to hide behind the counter, but he fired a random shot that almost hit Salvo.

Salvo shouted: "Colombo! Are you trying to kill us instead of them?!"

Columbo nervously looked at his gun: "I'm a programmer, not a hitman, okay?!"

Luca, who was enjoying every moment, jumped over the table and accurately shot two of the attackers, causing Franco to stare at him in surprise.

Franco clapped slowly: "Well, Luca, that was impressive. You want to be an action movie hero?"

Luca putting his gun back in his pocket: "I'm already an action movie hero... but without cameras."

The Great Escape

As the clash continued, Marco signaled everyone to move towards the back door. But when they tried to escape, a huge man appeared blocking the exit, holding a huge gun.

Franco sighed: "Of course, of course... We were missing the final boss!"

Salvo with a sarcastic smile: "Maybe we can negotiate?"

The huge man with a deep voice: "Maybe I can stomp on you like insects?"

Without thinking, Luca jumped up and elbowed the man in the face, but the huge man barely moved.

Franco clapped again: "Nice try, but it didn't work!"

But Salvo had a crazy idea. He pointed to Columbo and said: "Use your super hacking skills!"

Columbo confused: "How am I going to hack his face?!"

Marco shouted: "Forget hacking, just run!"

The moment the huge man was confused by the chaos, Luca pushed him hard towards the door, and everyone ran out into the back alley.

After the chaos

When they were safe, everyone stood catching their breath. Lucino walked out of the cafe looking at them with extreme anger.

Lucino waving his arms: "You guys destroy the place every time! Are you a gang or a hurricane?!"

Franco putting his hand on Lucino's shoulder: "Think of it as free advertising for the cafe."

Lucino almost exploding with anger: "If the ad has bullet holes, I reject it!"

Colombo, who was checking the laptop, said in a serious voice: "Carlo wasn't working alone... There's someone bigger controlling him."

An image of an unknown man appeared on the screen, sitting in a luxurious room wearing a mask.

Marco slowly: "It seems we've found the real enemy... And things are getting more serious."

End of chapter