Chapter 64: A Name in the Dark

Location: Marco's Gang's Secret Hideout - The Basement of the "Venosa" Café

Everyone sat around the unconscious man, their faces filled with tension. This person was about to reveal a dangerous name, but he lost consciousness at the crucial moment.

Franco (shaking the man violently): "Hey! Wake up! Who's Val... Who?! Valtri? Valtino? Valverde? Don't leave us like this!"

Salvo (sighs as he puts his hand to his head): "I think he lost consciousness because of the bleeding... or because of the way you're shaking him, Franco!"

Marco (looking at Luca Ferri): "Can you do something?"

Luca Ferri (crossing his arms): "Do I look like a doctor to you?"

Marco: "Since you're an arms dealer, I expected you to be familiar with treating the injured..."

Luca (beating his chest proudly): "I don't treat the injured, I infect them!"

Luchini (raising an eyebrow as he puts on his medical gloves): "Well, since I'm the only doctor here, let me handle this."

Luchini pulls out a first aid kit, and begins to clean the man's wounds.

Rocco (watching the procedure): "Ah, it's been a long time since I saw a real doctor... I thought the only treatment here was a bottle of whiskey and some bandages!"

Colombo (tapping away at his laptop): "While Luchini treats our new friend, I'm going to try to find anyone named Val... anything that could be connected to Zacrota."

Lucino (putting his hand to his chin): "Val... Valentino Rossi? No, that's a motorcyclist... Valcio? Vladimir?"

Franco (fake seriousness): "Florentino Perez?! The president of Real Madrid?!"

Salvo (bursts out laughing): "Yes, a global conspiracy led by the president of a football club! Why not?!"

Marco (looking at them with annoyance): "Can you stop joking? We need a real answer!"

A few minutes later, the man opened his eyes with difficulty, and looked at everyone wearily. Then he muttered in a weak voice:

"Valdiano… His name is Valdiano."

A heavy silence fell in the room.

Franco (closing his eyes and trying to remember the name): "Valdiano… Valdiano… No, I've never heard of him before."

Salvo (looking at Colombo): "Did you find anything?"

Colombo (with a grim face): "Just a moment…" He began to type quickly on the keyboard, then his hands stopped moving.

He looked at the screen in surprise, then turned to Marco and the others.

"Valdiano… He's not just a person… He's a legend in the underworld."

Marco (narrowing his eyes): "What do you mean?"

Colombo: "There's no picture of him, no official record, no evidence of his existence… but he's mentioned in some old files as a major financier of big gangs. He's said to be the mastermind behind the collapse of many mafias that stood in his way."

Rocco (laughing sarcastically): "Great! So we're not just fighting Zacrota, but someone even more dangerous than him? Great day, huh?!"

Luca Ferri (in a low voice): "I've heard that name before… but I thought it was just a myth."

Marco: "Well, if that's true, then Zacrota is just a puppet in this guy's hands."

Injured Man (whispers): "Zaccrota… he's not the real boss… he's just an enforcer… Valdiano is the one who owns everything…"

Everyone stares at each other, anxiety filling the air. If Zacrota is just a tool, then the war they've started is bigger than they thought.

Franco (laughing nervously): "Marco… I think we're in trouble!"

Marco (lighting his cigarette): "We've always been in trouble… but this time, we'll play until the end."

End of chapter.