After we say goodbye, I sit on the side of the bathtub for a while, rubbing my chin nervously, thinking. I’ve already posted two entries about Beta Activation. Maybe I should diversify, postabout other topics, and draw attention away from my interest in the project.
As I brood, I already make drafts of unrelated posts in my head.
???
When I head back to the living room, my thoughts are buzzing, but the moment I step through the door, I sense a shift in the atmosphere.
Salt is sitting on the couch. There’s a vertical crease between his brows, and something about him feels different. More determined.
"Everything okay with your brother?" he asks.
"Yes." I give him a brief rundown of Mauro’s news, but Salt seems distracted.
The only reaction he has comes when I mention that Rocco was looking for me on the plots we inherited from Dad. He sighs and mutters something about the obsession with revenge in the mafia, but we don’t go any further on the topic, because I can tell his mind is elsewhere.
I’m also pretty sure that, since he doesn’t know Rocco, he isn’t affected by the fear factor the way I am. For many people, the mafia equals handsome mobsters, fast cars, cigars, and shootouts on street corners in junkie neighborhoods. It’s probably hard for Salt to translate that into our situation.
He’s fidgeting with a fine-tip pen, the one he usually uses for sketches, rolling it absently between his fingers.
I move closer to him.
Salt’s eyes slowly trace my face, thoughtful.
"Listen, Eliano," he says, taking a breath. "There’s something that’s been hanging between us for a long time, andI want to finally resolve it. Strangely enough, now might be the best moment."
I sit down beside him slowly. I have a strange sense of where this conversation is headed, but I want to hear him out.
"I told you Senu’s story," he begins. "As you know, my brother’s murderer, the eldest of the Tanners, is still free and never faced any punishment. He got away with it. The police never found Senu’s body." He takes a deep breath. "Now it’s time for the truth, because you deserve it."
I stay silent, looking at him calmly.
"I joined the BA program for one reason only, Eliano. Unlike state prison, it gave me a chance, even if a slim one, to escape and put my plan of vengeance for Senu into motion."
I keep quiet, watching Salt, waiting for his conclusion.
He looks back at me, uncertain, then continues.
"At first I didn’t want to tell you. I tried to keep my distance, for both our sakes. But the rules on this island, you know how they are, make that pretty hard, and everything between us started to…" he gestures vaguely, "get more intense. In the end, it was a good thing. I got to know you better, and I know you’re… decent, someone I can trust. You don’t deserve me just disappearing one day without a word."
I’m still waiting for his conclusion, because in some way I already figured out the part he’s shared so far on my own.
Salt takes a few deeper breaths, like he’s bracing himself before jumping into deep water, and finally he says it.
"If there’s chaos now because of everything with Drax, maybe this is the perfect moment to run. According to what Fred said, the ferry comes tomorrow. Do you really think anyone will bother keeping track of us with all this mess going on? I seriously doubt it."
Salt clenches his hands, then lifts them and folds them across his chest in a slightly awkward gesture.
"I want you to run away with me, Eliano. On my own, I’m not sure I could take out Daniel Tanner without too much risk, but with you, I know it would go smoothly. We could survive it, escape, and start a life somewhere else where no one would ever find us."
Damn it. So he said it.
His eyes are fixed on me, full of hope and something painfully vulnerable. I know exactly what he’s feeling right now. He put everything on the line, trusted me completely. I doubt that’s something he does often. It must have cost him a lot.
But unfortunately, I’m about to crush that hope. Still, it breaks my heart, as I firmly believe the path he’s chosen isn’t the right one.
I close my eyes for a moment, gathering the strength to be thebadguy here.
"Salt… thank you for telling me this. It really means a lot to me that you trusted me with it. Though I’d already guessed parts of it, the fact that you said it out loud is proof that something real happened between us."
