Chapter 194: Italy, Im Here! (2/2)
”I don't think I'll be able to relax while on duty with you.”
Quinn smiled before asking, ”The Abates; my mother's family. What do you know about them, Mr. Thorn?”
”A very old family — one older than the Wests,” started Aksel as the two started walking, ”they have been residing in Rome ever since the inception of the Roman empire, and despite the ups-and-downs of this region, they have remained a constant. You can say that they are one of the oldest organizations in this country.”
”Oh? That sounds interesting.”
”You're aware of your parents' story, correct?”
Quinn nodded.
”Then you must know that Abate didn't like their relationship much. It was because while Wests are highly, highly influential, they are a comparatively young family — and in their eyes.. .. upstarts.”
”Upstarts.. .. us?” said Quinn in disbelief.
”To a family which has survived the rise and fall of nations, change of political boundaries, major restructure of cultures, West does seem like upstarts.” The family had been around much before the Secrecy Laws were founded and implemented; the Abates had been involved in various historical events through the ages.
”That.. .. is one way to see it, but Wests are much bigger than Abates.”
”It's all about prestige and history for people like them,” said Aksel.
”Sounds boring,” shrugged Quinn.
The two went through a series of cobblestone alleys, staying away from the crowds until they came to a stop in front of a door that was sloppily slathered with white paint, causing drip lines and uneven clumps; there was even paint on the golden doorknob.
Quinn looked at the building in cold cream tan from top to down. ”This is the building?”
”No, it's not,” said Aksel as he took out an ornate skeleton key — a type of key that was meant to open multiple locks rather than one.
”Then shouldn't we apparating?”
Aksel looked around before inserting it into the keyhole. He glanced at Quinn and faintly smiled, ”The Wests might be more influential than the Abates but.. .” he turned the key and starting from the doorknob, a royal red rippled out taking the place of the white, and the design on the door shimmered in beautiful gold, ”.. . in Italy, there's nothing bigger than Abate.”
Quinn watched as Aksel opened the door, and instead of finding the inside of the building, what he saw was a marvelous work of Italian Renaissance architecture in the form of a stunning manor at a distance. The grounds around the mansion were covered in beautifully and meticulously maintained gardens and greens.
Aksel retrieved the key, gestured for Quinn to step inside and outside of the door before following after him and closing the door behind him, and with the click, the red was sucked back into the doorknob, leaving the sloppily painted white door.
”What was that?” asked Quinn, looking back at yet another white door, a part of a small stone flat-roofed storeroom on the ground.
”Being residents of this country for so long, the Abates have created an extensive personal network of these doors that are connected with each other.” He raised the golden key, ”these special keys are the triggers for the magic to activate — without them, the doors are just as ordinary as any other. If I was to make a comparison, it would be similar to a personal floo network just for the Abates and their associates.”
”Without all the dust and gyration and flames,” added Quinn.
Aksel nodded.
”Where are we?”
”Palazzo Abate,” answered Aksel.
”Abate palace,” said Quinn in translation.
”It's the Abate ancestral home. They have been living here since the early fourteenth century. Generations upon generation Abate have maintained this palace.”
”Yeah, I can see that the building is in excellent condition, though it's not a tough deed with magic.”
”Ready to meet them?” asked Aksel.
”Yeah, let's meet with the people disliked by Lia.”
Aksel glanced at Quinn and realized that the meeting wouldn't be the familial connection that one would expect.
.. .
As Quinn and Aksel started to walk towards the mansion, people were waiting for them; a party of five men — three middle-aged and two young men. Of course, appearances were never an accurate indicator of age when it came to non-magicals. Out of them, one middle-aged and one young man were standing at the front — the older man was dressed in luxurious and exuberant clothing while the young man was dressed in unadorned yet high-grade clothing while the other three men were dressed in uniforms.
One of the uniformed middle-aged men stepped forward and whispered something into the ear of the young man.
The luxuriously dressed man glanced to his side, ”What is it?”
”Thorn has arrived with Quinn West. They are about to reach us,” said the simply-dressed young man.
”Are you sure this is going to work,” said the middle-aged man, his voice tinged with nervousness.
”I'm very sure,” said the handsome young man, a confident smile on his face, ”I've planned for everything. By the end of the boy's vacation, we will have the key to everything we would ever need.”
”Can you at least tell me what you're planning?! Anything would do, anything to give me peace of mind.”
”You know, how I operate. The less you know, the better.”
The middle-aged man sighed in anxious resignation. ”If this pays off, it will be absolutely big.. .. but if we fail—”
”I don't fail,” the young man cut the sentence.
”Let's hope you don't this time as well.”
It was about then when they saw Quinn and Thorn enter their sight. For the first time ever, they set their eyes on Quinn West, who was actively looking at the gardens around, occasionally stopping to admire things closely.
”Look at him,” said the young man with a smile, ”so carefree, so innocent.. . .”
Seeing Quinn West in front of him did put the middle-aged at ease. It might not be that hard, he thought.
But when Quinn and Thorn entered their earshot, the young man's eyes widened, but there were no other changes in his expression.
”Hurry, face me and start talking to me,” he said, ordering, ”laugh some and then immediately leave!”
”Eh, why?” asked the middle-aged man in confusion.
The young man stared at Quinn West with a straight expression. His previous impression of Quinn West had outright drained.
”West can use Legilimency,” said the young man.
The middle-aged man froze for a second and then hurriedly obeyed the instructions. He turned towards the young man, talked as if telling a joke. Both laughed before the middle-aged man bowed and left.
The young man severely stared at the middle-aged man because of the piss poor performance. But it was fine; it was enough for now.
Aksel and Quinn finally reached the young man.
Aksel turned towards the young man and started, ”I present to you Quinn West,” then he turned to Quinn and introduced, ”this is Dolion Abate, the youngest son of the current patriarch.”
”You can call me Dolion,” said the young man in English.
Quinn noticed something and commented, ”Your accent, that sounds American.”
The young man's smile widened, ”I completed my studies in Salem.”
”Ah, that's why. Well then, you can call me Quinn,” said Quinn. ”Dolion, was it? If I'm right, that's Greek.. .. and it means deceitful.”
The young man laughed, ”What can I say? My father liked how it sounded.. .. and Quinn, that's Irish.. .. isn't that a girl's name.”
”It's unisex,” smiled Quinn.
The teenager and young man then laughed together.
.
-*-*-*-*-*-
.
Quinn West - MC - Looking forward to saying ”Mamma Mia” a lot.
Albus Dumbledore - Headmaster - Got his funding.
George West - Head of Wests - I will help, but.. . .
Aksel Thorn - Limax Group - Bodyguard, once again.
Dolion Abate - Abate family - Youngest son.
FictionOnlyReader - Author - It took me time, but this was a fun chapter to write.
.
-*-*-*-*-*-
.
If you have any ideas regarding the magic you want to see in this fiction or want to offer some ideas regarding the progression. Move onto the DISCORD Server and blast those ideas.
The link is in the synopsis!