10. Urgent meeting at Villa Ascolassi (9 pgs.)

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ACT II - CHAPTER 10

URGENT MEETING AT VILLA ASCOLASSI

Sunday July 29, 2018

Villa Ascolassi Italy

A week after the final, Francisca sent an encrypted message calling everyone to an emergency meeting at Villa Ascolassi. It was set for the following Sunday. She promised to communicate something important personally. At her and Alexandre’s insistence, Arturo and Ricardo agreed that Victoria would join the team to continue the book.

The good news: Armageddon had not struck during the World Cup final. The bad news: there had been no sign of Mr. Walker or Boris.

The Sunday of the meeting arrived. The sun shone, but the breeze was cool. They would have lunch on the terrace beside the long pool.

When Yellow arrived piloting the helicopter, he landed on the football field next to the mansion, not on the helipad. The villa was guarded by at least ten pairs of soldiers in combat uniforms. They carried bazookas and machine guns, patrolling the gardens. Three jeeps with rocket launchers and two military trucks were stationed nearby. When they descended, everyone hugged. Relief coursed through them, they were still alive.

“Francisca, what is so important?” Alexandre asked.

“Be patient. I’ll talk later,” she said, leading them toward the pool, shaded by a high white awning.

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“Victoria, I’m glad you’re with us,” Ricardo said. “You probably know these meetings are secret.”

“Yes, Alexandre and Francisca told me everything.” She glanced at the armed guards and thought, No wonder Alexandre kept things from me at first.

“So, you already know we face very sinister forces?” Ricardo asked.

“Yes. It looks like a war,” Victoria said, pointing at the soldiers.

“Do you know about The Family?”

“Yes.”

“They are at war with us to stop the book. We need to be ready for any type of attack,” Ricardo said, walking beside her, behind Arturo, Alexandre, and Francisca.

“The Family must have killed Ronald,” Victoria said.

“Most likely. Alexandre was nearly killed in Munich. Without the armoured car, he would be dead,” Ricardo said.

“I didn’t know that,” Victoria said, eyes wide.

“Sorry. I thought you knew. I would have preferred Alexandre tell you,” Ricardo replied.

“Don’t worry. I won’t tell him. He watches over me, you know?” Victoria said, noticing two heavily armed soldiers at a distance. “You were almost killed on the plane. I was nearly kidnapped in Venice. Does it matter Alexandre didn’t tell me? I hope to contribute to the book at this stage.”

“I’m sure you will,” Ricardo said. “Besides coaching, I’m an engineer. You’re an aeronautical engineer. Our professional training can enrich the book’s structure. I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m happy to help however I can,” Victoria said.

“Shall we sit?” Francisca asked, offering cocktails to invite them to lunch.

They sit at the same table they had made the first philosophical meeting. It was large black granite table. They ate garlic shrimp, roast duck with spices, assorted salads, and sipped white, rosé, and red wines. They chose desserts, drank Colombian coffee, and tasted various liquors.

When they finished, the table was cleared. Ricardo asked Francisca if he could place the same objects they had placed during the meetings on the table.

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“What objects are that?” she asked.

“A ball, a tetrahedron and Ronald’s picture,” he answered looking the diamond tetrahedron hanging from her neck.

She stayed still looking forward for some seconds.

“Yes, please,” she said, remaining still and staring straight ahead, sighing with teary eyes.

Ricardo placed the objects at the other corner of the table from they were sitting. Ronald’s picture at the middle, next to the ball and tetrahedron. The light in the room reflected in the polished surface of the black granite.

Alexandre looked at Ricardo, then bowed his head in thanks. Arturo did the same. Both knew what they meant.

Francisca called Yellow and whispered something. A minute later, he returned with five thick, hard-covered leather binders. Each contained a copy of the book draft so far.

The cover read ‘DRAFT’ with their names below. Letters were gold on coloured leather: Francisca, light green; Victoria, calypso; Ricardo, yellow; Alexandre, blue; Arturo, red. Next to them, Yellow placed matching colour pendrives.

Francisca called for attention.

“The reason for this meeting is to continue the book. These binders contain the draft and summaries of Alexandre’s philosophical meetings. Each filing cabinet holds a paper copy. Each pendrive has a text file. I stepped in for my father to give the same support he would have,” Francisca said, moving her notes.

“A week ago, when I called you, Alexandre told me about Boris. I never met him, but I think he probably saved the world. Unfortunately, there’s no news of him or my father,” she said.

“I know this book is yours, mainly Ronald’s, who wanted to write it before he was killed. I read the draft. In my opinion, it is not yet mature,” Francisca added.

“It is true that your father’s kidnapping and the nuclear threat in Moscow interrupted work. But in reality, we finished it at the last meeting in Athens. Ronald’s instructions guide the philosophical content, not the chapter order. He didn’t specify what goes first or second. He suggested the meeting order. Polishing, style, and editing were left to us,” Alexandre said, paused and continued.

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“We are glad Armageddon did not happen. But it could strike anytime. We must polish and publish urgently, before The Family extinguishes civilization. What is the point of publishing if there’s no one to read it?” Alexandre finished.

“What you say is true, but extinction will never be complete,” Francisca said, consulting her notes. “Many governments and people have underground shelters to survive a nuclear holocaust for years. There will always be survivors. The strongest will rebuild the world, for better or worse, using their ideas, values, premises, and paradigms, that is, their philosophy. The book must serve as a tool to guide reconstruction.

In the short term, waiting is risky. In the long term, I mean centuries, the risk of rushing may be greater, with catastrophic consequences. Make no mistake, I also feel urgency. Nuclear holocaust is always near. Today, the apocalypse clock shows two minutes to midnight, two minutes from total civilization extinction.”

“Those bastards from The Family want to destroy the world. How can it be! They are crazy!” Arturo exclaimed. Silence fell.

“You know what The Family is. Even weakened by scandals and coups, they will not give up,” Ricardo said. “This war is the war of the ages. We cannot act hastily on a book meant to last centuries, like the Iliad. I think the book is not yet mature. Humanity is also not ready to manage twelve thousand nuclear warheads. Organizations tried for years to eliminate them, with no success. Armageddon may be inevitable, judging by the news.

But removing nuclear weapons does not raise humans to their best potential. Reason is already under threat. Politics, finance, education, even art, reason is faltering. A mind without a body is impossible; a body without a mind is not human. The quality of a person depends on the quality of their reason, just as the body depends on the mind.

The book provides tools for each person to choose their best version. The moral duty of every human is to become the champion of themselves, to sculpt an exceptional mind. This should be the norm, the standard of a new renaissance. We should be inspired by Galileo, Leonardo da Vinci, Aristotle, and objective epistemology. Objective philosophy is urgent, especially in the era of specialization and division of labour.

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Forgive my long speech, but context matters,” Ricardo said. “We are not writing for ourselves or a bestseller. We are giving humanity a clue for a New Renaissance or a map to rebuild civilization if The Family destroys it. We aim to perfect reason, to help humans achieve an evolutionary leap, a centuries-long project. But every long road begins with a first step. Ronald understood this. The apocalypse clock was designed to instil fear, but fear destroys reason,” Ricardo finished. Silence followed.

“Ricardo, everything you said is real, but we must hurry. You are a coach and an engineer,” Arturo said. “I am just a football player, but you know in a match it is dangerous to lose momentum. We reacted quickly to Mr. Walker’s kidnapping and contributed twelve million euros to publish fast. We should hire experts to finish the book urgently.”

“Experts in what? Aren’t we the experts?” Ricardo asked.

“We held the philosophical meetings, but we are not literary experts, screenwriters, grammar doctors, or advertising writers. This must be organized fast. That is what your father, Francisca, was to help with. We planned to travel to Oslo to speak with him, but the plane never arrived and you and Yellow disappeared,” Arturo said.

“Arturo, my father was kidnapped. The police kept me busy with interrogations. I couldn’t call before,” Francisca said.

“Sorry, Francisca. We all share the pain of your father’s kidnapping. I didn’t mean to offend. Can I ask a question?” Arturo said.

“Of course.”

“What made you say the book was not mature? Why tell Ricardo on the phone? I don’t understand your change. Your father, badly injured by the bomb that almost killed us returning from Edinburgh, insisted we write and publish quickly. We all felt urgency. But that stopped after your father was kidnapped. What changed your sense of urgency?”

Francisca paused, taking notes. “I’ll tell you the most important reason. When I said the book was not mature, it was three days after my father’s kidnapping. I was emotionally devastated and cried a lot. Honestly, the words appeared before me and I just read them,” she said calmly.

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“Forgive me, Francisca, if I was rude. I didn’t understand. Thank you for explaining,” Arturo said.

“Don’t worry, Arturo. I know you care and I care for you too. How can we not love a genius on and off the court? Can I comment on your point about experts?” Francisca asked.

“Please! You flatter me. Of course!” Arturo said.

“You are right about the experts, but at this stage, adding more people would be imprudent,” Francisca said, consulting her notes. “They don’t know the philosophical content or scope of the book. You know the most. You held the meetings, even at sea during a storm. Alexandre prepared the meetings with Ronald’s notes, recorded them, and made summaries. He stayed up late, slept little, balancing the European Cup and World Cup preparation.”

“But don’t take credit from yourself, Francisca. You contributed greatly,” Arturo said.

“I don’t take credit. I did my part. The merit is yours, my father’s, who gave unconditional support,” Francisca said. She paused. “But the greatest merit belongs to Ronald. He led the process from beyond the grave. He is the first cause. We should ask what he would have wanted. At this stage, we polish the content first, then the form. Only then will we use the raised funds and my contribution to hire creative editors, literary reviewers, grammar experts, and graphic editors.”

“As a newcomer, can I give my opinion?” Victoria asked.

“Yes! Please!” Francisca answered.

“Thank you,” Victoria said. “As an aeronautical engineer, like Ricardo, also an engineer, I agree that structure is key. The meetings outline content, but from what Alexandre showed me in the draft, the design of the structure is weak. I knew Ronald, he was against rushing things.”

“But we can’t wait too long. Maybe The Family is plotting a disaster right now,” Arturo said.

“What you say is true. We must decide. We all agree we need to finish polishing, before publishing, right?” Francisca asked. She paused. “I vote for a year to polish. Who follows me?” She raised her hand.

“Too long,” Arturo intervened.

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“Francisca, why hurry to vote now? Let’s think calmly, swim at the pool, and vote in a couple of hours,” Alexandre suggested.

“Two hours is too long. I vote for one,” Francisca said. They opted for one hour.

“It’s ten to four. Shall we vote at five?” Francisca asked. They agreed. “After the vote, I have a surprise,” she added. Curiosity sparked among them.

The girls bathed. The boys played shots on the football field.

“Alexandre, you play goalkeeper like last time,” Arturo said and thought, I can’t believe everything we went through since then. I feel in another world!

“Okay,” Alexandre said, taking position.

“I’m nervous. What if The Family sets an atomic bomb next week?” Arturo asked, passing to Ricardo. “Shouldn’t you lead instead of Francisca?” He looked at Alexandre, who said nothing.

“Maybe The Family wants that,” Ricardo said, stopping the ball.

“What do you mean?” Arturo shouted.

“To live in fear. Fear blocks clear thought,” Ricardo shouted, kicking the ball for Arturo to head. “Their strategy is to keep people scared to inhibit reason.” Alexandre realized he was right. They had discussed this at lunch. The rulers behind the scenes kept the ruled in fear, through disasters, pandemics, wars, or tyrants.

In evolutionary terms, humans recently descended from trees. They discovered fire, created writing, mathematics, science, and nuclear bombs. If primitive rulers didn’t destroy the world, humans still had a long path to excellence. He remembered Ricardo’s words, Man is a rational animal; his moral duty is rational excellence. Rushing would play into the enemies’ trap. Ronald wanted the book to last millennia. Publishing hastily would risk future generations.

When they returned to the table, the vote was unanimous. They decided to take a year to polish the content.

“Before the surprise, let’s organize work and safety,” Francisca said, reviewing her notes. “We will use the file cabinet and pendrive in front of you. Focus on content structure. Form and style come later. Agreed?” The others nodded.

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“Now I’ll read the safety protocols. They are in the annex at the end of the paper file and on the pendrive. It is the first thing to read. There’s technical computing and communications detail, but I’ll summarize the basics.” She moved her papers.

“Keep the file cabinet and pendrive secure. Only you may access them. Work only on your computers; never plug the pendrive into others. Do not use phones.

“Important points: First, never copy the text file to another drive or pendrive. Second, never send by email. Third, do not save in any cloud. Fourth, disconnect Wi-Fi and modem when working. Fifth, work alone in a safe, quiet place. Door locked, no interruptions, no music, TV, people, children, or pets nearby. Sixth, The Family likely has hackers and spies. Check for hidden cameras or microphones. Seventh, use a VPN when researching online.

“It is crucial to read and follow these protocols before starting work. Do you agree?” Francisca asked. They nodded.

“Was that the surprise?” Arturo asked.

“No. Now it comes. First, I want to thank you for coming and tell you how much I appreciate you. We will be successful. Oh! One last thing,” Francisca said. “If you want to share work, do not send the text file by email. Do not write anything in emails or mobile networks. All of this is recorded somewhere on the Internet. Do not create chat groups to discuss the book. Act as if an army of hackers were watching, trying to break security,” she said.

She checked her notes. “The best way to leave no trace is to avoid the Internet entirely. Talk about the book only in person, in a place without microphones, not on your clothes, in your car, or anywhere that could be recorded remotely. Do not open paper notes except indoors. Today you can capture a coin’s high-resolution details from a satellite. The rest is in the security protocols. That’s it. Good luck with the work.”

“We want the surprise,” Arturo said.

“Before the surprise, I want to say something,” Alexandre said. Silence fell. “I want to thank Francisca, and on behalf of everyone, recognize her willingness to help from the beginning. I met you at Ronald’s funeral, but not your father. I want to toast Francisca, Mr. Walker, and Boris. Cheers!”

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“Cheers!” they replied.

“Cheers to Ronald!” Francisca said.

“Cheers!” they toasted.

“The surprise! The surprise! The surprise!” Arturo began singing, and everyone smiled.

“Okay, now for the surprise,” Francisca said. “Today is July 29, 2018. On June 23, 2019, almost a year from now, I will invite you to a secret place prepared for you. Bring only your pendrives, no phones, laptops, or Internet-connected devices. You will stay a week. Together, we will finish editing the book, enjoy the place, and experience the surprise. When the time comes, I will tell you where to travel, and Yellow will pick you up in my helicopter. I will also tell you what to wear.”

“Can I be sure everyone will go?” she asked. Some looked at their phones. “Can you escape for a week on that date?”

After a few seconds, everyone agreed. Francisca added, “There will be no more meetings until then. Follow safety protocols. I wish us the best of luck.”

A couple of hours later, the helicopter took off for Rome airport with all of them on board.

Ricardo was carrying Ronald’s picture, the ball and he tetrahedron.

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