57. The End

"Hey, I just got word that Eston did a judgment for Matteo. Is that true, Diego?" Diego, who had been reclining in the wooden shelter on the rooftop of the Ludovicci Mansion for a while, curved a smile. The direction of his eyes did not move from the view of the stars scattered across the night sky. For some reason Diego felt that the natural atmosphere was very supportive of his contentment. The image of Matteo's judgment being carried out did not stop ringing in Diego's brain. Diego could not describe how satisfied he felt right now, because Matteo had already received bad judgment from all members of the Pavnozzi clan. That meant that not only Eston's trust in Matteo had diminished, but that of the other clan members as well. Diego really wanted to take out his frustration on Matteo. This plan was not entirely satisfactory. But at least it would be a good enough start for Matteo to be judged as not being able to perform his job responsibilities properly. "Diego!" Rivaldo, who had been waiting for his cousin's response, called out. He tapped Diego hard on the right shoulder. "Why are you smiling? I asked you a question!" Diego watched Rivaldo with an expression of surprise and a grimace of pain. He stroked the shoulder that Rivaldo had tapped hard, then grimaced in annoyance. "Why did you hit me like that?" Diego asked in an exasperated tone. Rivaldo just grunted and set down a flat plate containing several pieces of raw meat. With a curious and annoyed look on his face, Rivaldo sat down next to Diego and folded his legs into an X. "Answer my question, fool. Is it true that Matteo has received Eston's judgment?" Rivaldo repeated, this time with emphasis in his tone. Diego changed his position to sit down. He glanced briefly at the roast he had been waiting for. "It's about to be cooked," Diego said before taking the claw tool and flipping a piece of meat. Rivaldo was dumbfounded to see Diego completely ignoring his question. But because he was too lazy to get angry again, he only picked up one half-cooked piece of meat. As a result, Diego stopped the movement of grabbing the piece of meat to turn it over. Diego was wide-eyed with surprise. "Hey! That's the meat I grilled!" Diego reprimanded Rivaldo. Unfortunately, Rivaldo only responded by shaking his head repeatedly. His eyes were closed as he savored a bite of his half-cooked piece of meat. Rivaldo couldn't stop chewing as if he didn't care about Diego's glare. "Alright, take it. I'm in a good mood tonight," Diego said later, before continuing to flip each piece of meat. Rivaldo opened his eyes, looking at Diego in astonishment. As he chewed, for a few seconds, Rivaldo watched Diego's face as it lit up. Rivaldo realized that Diego, who had been showing a troubled, anxious, and disheveled face, now looked relieved. "You look like someone who's managed to unburden his mind," Rivaldo replied after wondering what had happened to Diego. "What's going on? Is it true that Matteo received judgment from Eston?" "If you guessed it, then it's true," Diego replied as he put down the claw tool and adjusted his seat. Diego gave a serious look to Rivaldo, who smiled sarcastically. "I'm so relieved, Rivaldo. You know how my face has only shown kinks over the past few days," Diego said once again. This time his smile was really wide. Rivaldo was still watching Diego through his grin. "Ah, so you managed to ruin Matteo's reputation with the fake painting incident?" he asked. Excitedly, Diego snapped his fingers and nodded briefly. "That's right! I had expected Eston to take me at my word. If it wasn't for the fact that I didn't bring a painting expert to Eston's presence, this plan might not have worked." Hearing Diego's long-winded words caused Rivaldo to curl the corners of his lips downward. His head nodded in understanding as he picked up a piece of cooked roast and placed it on a plate. "No wonder you invited me to the rooftop roast tonight," Rivaldo said as he set down another piece of raw meat. "Yes, I want to thank you at the same time, Rivaldo. You being a reliable hacker really helped me out a lot." Diego also placed the cooked piece of meat onto his plate. Rivaldo was still casually eating each piece of meat. Meanwhile, Diego continued his conversation. "I can't imagine that you didn't help me," Diego continued, "you worked so hard hacking into the websites in Bolivia that you ended up with the fake painting information." As he munched on his roast, Rivaldo recalled how hard he had found it to penetrate the security of some websites. In the end, Rivaldo was forced to resort to methods he had never tried before because he was afraid of the repercussions. All of this was done because Rivaldo realized how frustrated Diego was about his position within the Pavnozzi clan. "You didn't see firsthand how I had trouble hacking into some Bolivian websites," Rivaldo retorted after swallowing his chew. Rivaldo paused for a moment while Diego remained silent, waiting for the rest of his sentence. "If you were frustrated at the thought of your position being jeopardized if Matteo managed to do Eston's bidding perfectly, I was frustrated at not eating and sleeping while figuring out how to hack those difficult sites," Rivaldo continued his delayed speech. Diego chuckled. "Actually, without you telling me, I can already imagine," he replied. As he moved his chopsticks to point at Diego, Rivaldo said, "If you don't succeed in your plan, I'll be even more frustrated. Just imagine if my struggle fails." Diego had similar worries. There would be many repercussions if he didn't succeed in inciting and convincing Eston about the fake painting. The biggest possibility was that Diego's plan would backfire on himself. If that happened, Rivaldo would also be implicated because he was a hidden hacker. His identity was so important that it had to be kept secret. "I didn't expect your hacker skills. Rivaldo, you even got the information that the painting was sold three times and to who," Diego said in a passionate tone. The twinkle in his eye showed obvious admiration. Rivaldo couldn't help but smile. He didn't give any response. But Diego's words flattered him. "Because you've worked so hard and your contribution is so important, I'm going to reward you with a lot of money," Diego said at the end of the conversation. In Diego's presence, Rivaldo stopped moving because he was so surprised. Rivaldo watched Diego with a look of disbelief in his eyes for a few moments. "What did you just say?" Rivaldo pointed his right ear, as if to make sure it was clear. Diego knew what Rivaldo's gesture meant. Even so, Diego just sighed heavily and said it again. "I'll put more than ten million dollars into your account!" Diego's voice was a little louder than before. Rivaldo, on the other hand, backed away from his seat, which had been leaning toward Diego. Rivaldo arched a meaningful smile, instantly brightened by the amount of money Diego was offering. "You promise?" Rivaldo looked at Diego with a serious gaze. "Have I ever broken one?" Diego asked Rivaldo back. Rivaldo nodded in understanding as he ate one more piece of grilled meat. "Well, I don't doubt you because you have so much money, Diego." Rivaldo's joking tone made Diego burst out laughing. Diego immediately grabbed a fresh roast that was already cooked on the mini grill. For some reason, his hunger hormones had increased dramatically this evening compared to usual. "Besides, you deserve that much," Diego replied with his mouth full of meat. "I don't make a big deal about money with anyone." "Yes, as long as they give you a big advantage," Rivaldo said, further clarifying Diego's point. Diego only chuckled in response. "So, what about Matteo's punishment?" Rivaldo had changed his sitting position to look more intensely at Diego. Rivaldo's curious gesture provoked Diego to recall Matteo's judgment hearing. Diego's heart skipped a beat as his adrenaline kicked in. Diego suddenly wanted to tell him about Matteo's judgment hearing. "So, he was sentenced to find out the origin of the fake paintings and who among the curators was the one who forged the paintings." Rivaldo frowned. "How did Matteo get that information?" Diego shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "I don't know, but Matteo certainly has his ways." "Of course," Rivaldo said, then let out a rough breath. "A man like Matteo will not give up on his goals." "But I don't think he'll find out about it for long," Diego said, offering his opinion. He had a very serious look on his face. "He has extensive connections. It's also likely that he'll go to Bolivia once again." "What?" Rivaldo was surprised. "In just a few hours? Is that possible?" "Of course." "He just got back from Bolivia. What about his other work?" "I don't know." Diego ended his words with a harsh sigh. "After Eston's stern reprimand, there is no way Matteo is still delaying his departure. He will definitely leave tonight. Because if Matteo left tomorrow, he would be taking Eston's reprimand lightly. And, in the few hours until tomorrow, he could have discovered important information." "Very ambitious, just like you, Diego," Rivaldo commented. Diego laughed wryly. "I'm ambitious for a good cause, also because of my high position." Rivaldo smiled mischievously after hearing Diego's tone as if he'd taken offense. "Well, I don't blame you for that attitude either." "Oh, then if Matteo manages to find the information he wants, what will you do?" "Huh?" Diego was confused after hearing Rivaldo's question. Rivaldo paused, and Diego also paused to think about the answer to his cousin's question. "What's my next plan?" Diego murmured, wondering, but his voice was still ringing in Rivaldo's ears. "I haven't thought about that yet. Anyway, at least for now, I can delay my position from being jeopardized and giving Matteo a bad image." Rivaldo nodded his understanding again. "Yes, if Matteo already has a bad image, then if he does hard work, the clan members will still remember his mistake." Diego pointed at Rivaldo and nodded firmly as if confirming his cousin's words. As he ate another piece of meat, Diego began to think about something. "I have a feeling he'll be able to find the mastermind of this fake painting, and Eston will probably give him an award," Diego said of his sudden thought. Rivaldo, on the other hand, immediately stopped chewing. He watched Diego with astonishment. "Why do you look so calm?" Rivaldo asked. "Because I've had some success tonight. I'll think about what to do next," Diego replied with a casual laugh and a wave of his hand. Rivaldo sighed heavily and didn't argue. They continued to grill the raw pieces of meat and talk about a few things. Tonight Diego and Rivaldo were so relaxed in their conversation, as if all the baggage they had been carrying around for the past few days had disappeared. Until an hour later, Diego clapped his hands once as he remembered something. "Hey, why don't you bring your brother here?" Diego suggested. Rivaldo had just remembered something. Juno, his sister, would love to come along to celebrate Diego's victory. Rivaldo had just remembered something. Juno, his younger brother, would love to join Diego in celebrating Diego's victory. "Right! Oh, my God. How could I forget about that damn sister," Rivaldo muttered, only joking. "Quick, quick, call him. We have to celebrate this together," said Diego, impatiently coaxing Rivaldo. "Wait! How about we come to your private bar?" "Tonight?" Rivaldo looked at Diego uncertainly. Diego nodded his head. "Yes, tonight. With Juno. Tell her to come and join us." Rivaldo didn't say anything in response, as he quickly picked up his cell phone. He moved hurriedly to find Juno's contact number before the call finally connected. That night Diego thought about nothing but getting his fill tonight. After cleaning up the grilling equipment, Diego and Rivaldo headed to Ludovicci's private bar. It turned out that Juno had arrived at Ludovicci's private bar first. Juno deliberately chose a seat in the area near the live music stage. Not only did she choose the right seat, but she had also ordered a package of alcoholic drinks. "Gosh, Juno, you really understand our needs," complimented Rivaldo upon his arrival. With a proud look on her face, Juno rose from her seat and approached Rivaldo and Diego. "Come, let the honored guests sit down and enjoy the alcoholic beverages at this table." Juno deliberately spread out one hand, displaying the demeanor of a barmaid hired by the bar. In fact, her gesture was so much like that of a special servant that Rivaldo and Diego couldn't help but laugh. "Let's have some fun tonight!" Rivaldo said with great enthusiasm. As a result, that night, Diego couldn't get enough of one bottle of alcohol, so he downed three. Rivaldo and Juno could only last until the second bottle - and even then it was only half full. They repeatedly stopped Diego from continuing to drink, as he was already staggering. "Give me one more glass!" Diego said in his scratchy voice. His eyes were wide as he raised one hand, as if calling out to the waiter. "Woah, tonight was so much fun! Why haven't I had this much satisfaction on previous nights?!" Rivaldo and Juno grimaced as they watched Diego go wild. No matter how much they tried to restrain Diego from touching one more glass of alcohol, they failed. Diego still ended up pushing away Rivaldo and Juno's hands that were trying to restrain him.