As God Commands by Niccolo Ammaniti

Author:Niccolo Ammaniti
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2009-10-26T10:42:00+00:00

118

The river had broken its banks and flooded the fields and soon the narrow strip of asphalt along which Rino Zena's van was speeding would be swamped. The headlights of the Ducato slid over the water-covered fields.

The worn blades of the windshield wipers struggled to keep the front window clear, and on the inside the glass was misted.

Rino wiped it with his hand and kept wondering why on earth Quattro Formaggi had gone into the woods. And why was he crying like that? Was there really something to worry about? Or was this just another crazy idea produced by that rotten brain?

Trying to penetrate the contorted mechanisms of Quattro Formaggi's mind was a task Rino had long since given up. Getting electrocuted at the weir hadn't helped, but even before that he hadn't been in such wonderful shape. He hadn't had all those tics and he hadn't walked with a limp, but he was already as dumb as a brush.

He remembered him in the children's home. He would do crazy things like playing tennis for hours without a ball or a racket against an imaginary opponent called Aurelio.

He passed the pump of the deserted Agip gas station. From this point the road climbed up the hill, which was covered with trees.

The headlights made the teeming raindrops glisten, but couldn't cut through the foliage at the sides of the road.

On the phone Quattro Formaggi had whimpered that he was at a rest stop where there was an electricity hut.

Shortly before the uphill road began to bend Rino saw a long rest stop on the left. At the end, near the guardrail, was a concrete hut daubed with colored graffiti.

This is it.

Rino pulled in, turned off the engine, opened the glovebox, took out the flashlight with the headlamp and switched it on.

No sign of life. Maybe this wasn't the right hut. He was about to return to the van when something gleamed behind the cabin. He went over and saw the Boxer and a Scarabeo leaned up against each other.

Whose is the other scooter?

Then he understood.

Some bastard who had nothing better to do than fuck other people around must have met Quattro Formaggi on the road.

There had been times in the past when they had surrounded him, shoved him around, amused themselves by making him dance and sing. They picked on him because he didn't react.

"You bastards. If you've hurt him I'll kill you." Rino pulled his pistol out of his belt. He returned to the van, got out the bullets and loaded it, feeling the anger warming his blood.

He pointed the light toward the trees.

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