41
MSara, Adam, Oliver, Josh, and I are sitting in the living room in my primary residence, with only coffee in the middle of my living room table.
And the note right next to it.
“The Silent Python was the most feared assassin when my father was at the helm of the organization. He didn’t belong to any organized group, he worked independently,” I tell them without taking my eyes off the note.
“Have you ever met him?” Adam asks me.
“Only one time, briefly. We were both invited to a wedding of a mutual acquaintance.”
“How did he seem?” Sara inquires.
“He was tall, great build, almost black hair, brown eyes, and he exuded confidence.”
“When was this? And he didn’t say anything to you?” Sara continues.
“This was about five or six years ago. He didn’t say anything out of the ordinary, but something did strike me as odd.” I light up a cigarette. “He told me that I should watch out for my dad and that he would pray for me. And he left quickly after that. That was also the last time anybody saw him.”
“Fuck.” Oliver is right,fuck.
“After that, my father’s organization quickly disintegrated.”
“Now, why was he so dangerous?” Sara asks me. I look at Adam, and he slightly nods his head—a silent communication between us. Adam has been with me for a long time, since the start of my father’s organization.
“Adam?” Sara redirects her attention toward the love of her life.
“The Silent Python had a fake name, as we all do, but everybody knew him. He was the one you went to if you had a lot of fucking money and if you wanted to make a statement.” Adam looks at me with a quizzical look. I nod at him to continue.
“His call-off sign was to saw off the hands of the hit and to nail them to a wall, in a praying motion.”
“If he was that silent, how could anybody know how he killed?” That’s a great question from Josh, and he is right. But…
“Nobody knew that, only we did.” Adam holds up his hand because he knows what Josh’s next question would be. “Only we knew who he was because he warned M at the wedding.”
“Or we alluded to the fact that it could be him. Now I’m terribly confused.” Over these past years, I have never been scared or anxious, but now those are the only emotions that I am going through. Because he threatened Lana, he talked aboutmylittle hummingbird.
“It all makes sense, but at the same time it doesn’t,” I tell the group. Sara clicks her tongue.
“You told us that Lana’s dad was in prison, right?” I nod at Sara.
“Yes, he is. And before you ask, he is still in prison,” I answer her. She shakes her head while furrowing her eyebrows.
“How can a man who is in prison do all these things? And are you even sure if it’s Lana’s dad?”
“Sara, I wish I could give you an answer, but I can’t. We are all speculating way too much.”
“Maybe we should—” Josh starts, but Oliver cuts him off.
“Why don’t you just ask Lana?” he asks so casually. All heads turn toward Oliver, and we are looking at our friend like he has lost his mind.
“Are you fucking insane?” Josh asks him.
“The notes that were left at the burned-down car dealerships have the same writing as the one we found at Marco’s. Lana’s name was written on the last note. Your flashbacks to that fucking wedding. The call-off sign.” When Oliver lays it out like that, it sounds logical and straightforward. There is only one thing left that’s quite a mystery.
“The Silent Python didn’t have any kids,” Adam states.
“Why else would anybody want to target Lana?” I glare at Oliver. “I didn’t mean it like that, M. It’s just that Lana has nothing in her background that could tie her to this man.”
