Eyewitness News

by Aiden Vaughan

  With everyone in agreement, it was decided to set up a meeting with Jonathan next Monday before the band’s regularly scheduled rehearsal.

  Chapter 3

  A New Neighbor

  (Tuesday)

  The past weekend was the start of an important transition in Nick Feraducci’s life. After recovering from his ordeal at the hands of the two men who kidnapped him and were planning to torture and kill him to get revenge against his grandfather, mob boss, Enrico Feraducci, Nick had a new clarity and vision about what was important in his life. He told his mother, Caterina, that they needed to make some major changes in their lives.

  “I want to move away from San Matthias and relocate in the neighborhood where Jason, Daniel, and Eric live. These guys are my new friends now, and Jason saved my life! I want to be able to spend more time with them, and become a permanent member of Daniel’s band.” Nick stated this to his mother with a newfound authority and presence, qualities that began to emerge after his rescue. After experiencing a close brush with near death, Nick now was very assertive and direct about what the new priorities in his life should be.

  Those recent events were also life changing for Caterina. When Nick was cruelly taken away from her by Salvatore Butera and Angelo Ciurro, she was in total shock and despair. Caterina was forever grateful for the selfless sacrifice that Jason showed in going undercover to rescue Nick. She now knew that Jason, Daniel and the other members of their circle were true friends for Nick and that it was important for those friendships to be maintained and nurtured. Their bonds of friendship would be lifelong due to their life and death experiences together. Caterina was in total agreement with her son that moving to the Silicon Valley and living close by to Jason and his other friends would be a good thing for their lives, and she wanted to support Nick however she could.

  Additionally, Caterina realized that it was a good thing for Nicolo to have more of a social life. Ever since the death of Nicolo’s father at the hands of rival mobsters when Nicolo was only five, she had kept him in a protective shell of music lessons and nearly complete separation from the Feraducci family. She was only in her thirties when she became a widow with a young son to raise on her own. By moving to San Matthias, keeping Nicolo’s grandparents away from him, sending him to exclusive private schools, and immersing him in piano lessons with an outstanding but demanding teacher, she had accomplished what she felt was needed in those very distressing times. Now Nicolo wanted to break free of that shell, take a more direct hand in his life, and reach out to other people.

  Caterina had raised Nicolo by herself for the past seven years. Her father, Sophos Poulos, passed away only a few years after the death of Gilberto Feraducci, Nicolo’s father. Her mother had moved back to Greece where she could spend the rest of her days with her large extended family there. Her father had provided her and Nicolo with a large trust fund, which she used to raise him but also set up a thriving real estate brokerage firm which provided them with a comfortable income. It was a relatively simple task for her to locate and acquire the new house that they had just moved into. Pulling some strings and with her intimate knowledge of the whole process, Caterina had located a perfect house for their needs about two blocks away from Jason’s house, fast-tracked the escrow process, and had completed the purchase yesterday.

  What pleased Caterina the most lately was the positive demeanor Nicolo was showing. She had never seen her son happier than he was now. Nicolo was bubbling with energy and enthusiasm. Almost daily he was coming up with new musical ideas for Daniel’s band. Even though he still had some nightmares and emotional issues to deal with from the horrible experience of his kidnapping, Nicolo had rebounded very fast due to the support of his friends and Jason’s foundation, which was covering the costs of his counseling sessions with Dr. Agoura. Nicolo was playing the piano again with all of the intensity, style and technique that he had before, but now he was also composing and writing down his own musical ideas and compositions. Jason’s Whatever Foundation also gave him a grant to purchase new electronic keyboards. Nick had some of the equipment at home and some at the rehearsal studio at Tim’s house. Nicolo was working hard to master them and take advantage of their sound banks and special effects.

  Monday morning, the movers packed boxes at Nick and Caterina’s former house in San Matthias. Monday afternoon, all of those boxes and their furniture were loaded into a large moving van. Nick and Caterina spent Monday night at a motel, and were present Tuesday when the moving van arrived at their new house, a little after nine o’clock. All morning and into the early afternoon, the movers unloaded the van, and brought their possessions inside their new home.

  About one o’clock, the doorbell rang. Nick was close by so he went to the front door. Jason was at the door with a bag in his hand.

  “I thought you guys could probably use some lunch about now. I have a bag of sandwiches here from my favorite sandwich shop.”

  “Jason!” Nick responded with enthusiasm. “What a pleasant surprise. Come on into our big mess!” Nick then called out to his mom, who was in her bedroom, starting to unpack some boxes of her personal things. “Mom! Come to the kitchen! Jason is here and he brought us some sandwiches!” The two boys then cleared a space on the kitchen table and started to look through the bag of food.

  A minute later, Caterina came into the kitchen. “Hello, Jason,” she said with a big smile. “It’s good to see you again. You didn’t have to bring us lunch!”

  “Oh, yes I did.” Jason replied. “I wanted to make sure that the two of you get a proper welcome to our neighborhood! Now eat up! You must be hungry from all of the moving and unpacking you have been doing.”

  “You can say that again,” Nick said as he was wolfing down a roast beef sandwich. “I just realized that I was starving!”

  Caterina picked out a chicken salad sandwich and unwrapped it. “I guess I could use a break, too.”

  “Now you two don’t worry about a thing. Extra help is on the way later this afternoon! Eric and his Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Jorge are coming over around 4:30 or five, and my parents will come over after work. Daniel’s parents have an appointment, but Daniel will be coming over later this afternoon also. And don’t worry about dinner. That is all taken care of!”

  “That is so nice of you, Jason. We don’t want to be a burden or anything,” Caterina replied.

  “Burden!” Jason exclaimed with a little rise in his voice. “I don’t think so. We are all excited that you chose to become our neighbors. As so as your new neighbors, we want to be neighborly. And I know you could use some help. You know, ‘many hands make work light’ as the saying goes.”

  After lunch, Jason went with Nick to his new bedroom, and helped him to unpack and put his stuff away. “This bedroom is really nice, Nick, and you have a lot of closet space.”

  “Not only is this room great, but I also am getting a second room for an office/music room kind of combination. I will have a desk for writing and school work, and also will keep my electronic keyboards in there, to interface with my computer. I know I will be getting a lot of good work done in that room! The main grand piano will be downstairs, of course. There will be a lot of good music happening in this house, Jason!”

  “That sounds great, Nick. And then you have this nice bedroom to get away from it all when you just want to relax.”

  “Yeah, and Mom says that I have to keep it cleaned up, or else!”

  A little after three, Daniel came over. After Nick showed him around the house, they went to the music room to start getting things unpacked and set up. “This new music room set up will be outstanding, Nick!” Daniel exclaimed. “I can just imagine tons of music floating out of here!”

  “I feel more creative about music every day now, Daniel, and it is exciting. I am constantly getting new ideas for the band!” Already Nick had been writing new songs and arrangements for the band. He had decided to tailor his arrangements and compositions to each of the other band members, by spending indivi
dual time with each of them while working on things. Daniel and Eric were especially pleased about this, because already the band was developing some sophisticated original materials.

  After Daniel and Nick got involved in setting up the music room, Jason left to go back to his house. He had promised his mom that he would be there to help her bring over food and some housewarming gifts when she got off work.

  Both of Jason’s parents were able to get home early from work, and so the three Hunters arrived at Nick’s home around five o’clock. Caterina answered the door, and there were hugs and greetings all around. It wasn’t more than five minutes later that Eric arrived with his aunt and uncle.

  After everyone said hello to Eric and the Ferreiras, Eric and Jason went to join Daniel and Nick. Bill Hunter and Jorge Ferreira got to work setting up the dining room area and getting the media center working in the living room. Edith Hunter and Marilyn Ferreira assisted Caterina putting things away in the kitchen cupboard and drawers, and then getting the food ready for dinner.

  About an hour later, it was time to take a break and have dinner. Edith Hunter had brought along a small honey baked ham, two loaves of fresh sour dough bread, and a fruit salad. Marilyn Ferreira had made a potato salad, fresh sliced tomatoes and other vegetables from her garden, and had baked a beautiful chocolate cake. On top she had decorated the cake with a little piano and had spelled out “Welcome Nick and Caterina.”

  Everyone ate heartily from the buffet of food, and the atmosphere was very happy. After the dinner, Edith announced, “We have a few housewarming gifts for you, some little trinkets that you might find useful!”

  Marilyn began by handing Caterina a medium sized box. Inside were a variety of spray cleaners, and a couple of bags of fresh rags. “You may have some of this stuff already, Caterina, but you know you can never have enough cleaning materials. This will help you keep the place spotless!”

  “Thank you so much, Marilyn. I will do the best I can, with a teenaged son in tow! Thank you for your thoughtfulness.”

  Marilyn had also brought over a tray of seedlings that were just starting to sprout. “After you are settled in for a while, these little guys will be ready to transplant into your garden spaces.”“What a thoughtful idea!” Caterina replied. “There is a nice bed for annual flowers in the front of the house. Looks like I am set for this year.”

  Then Edith had Jason bring over the bag of gifts that she had picked out. There was a box that contained a scrubbing brush and scouring sponges for the kitchen. “I use these all the time in my kitchen,” Edith said, “They are really great to have by your sink.” There was a glass vase with some fresh cut flowers. “It’s always nice to have fresh cut flowers around, even the day you move in!”

  Finally, there was a wrapped square package. When Caterina opened it, it contained a framed picture of Nick performing with Daniel’s band at their very first gig, a garden party catered by Diana Miglione’s mom. Jason had stopped by with his camera, and this was one of the best shots he had taken.

  “No house is complete without personal touches like photos,” Edith said. “This is a great shot of Nick!”

  “Thank you for all of your thoughtful gifts! Your generosity in helping us move in and providing us with this great dinner and housewarming gifts makes us feel right at home already! I know I can speak for Nick when I say how pleased we are to now be living near such wonderful people! You really have made our day!”

  “Thank you, Daniel, Eric, and Jason for your help and friendship!” Nick added. “I am so happy to now actually be your neighbor! And thank you Mr. and Mrs. Holmes and Mr. and Mrs. Ferreira for coming over and helping us out, too.” Nick then raised his glass. “Here’s to many more parties and special times together!”

  Everyone raised their glasses to toast Nick. There would be good times ahead.

  Chapter 4

  Eric and Ben

  (Wednesday)

  One of the most touching things that Jason had ever received as a result of his detective work was a letter of thanks from Ben Kessler, the thirteen-year-old boy who had been kidnapped and held prisoner by Salvatore Butera and Angelo Ciurro. His rescue was a fortunate bonus from when Jason went undercover to try and find Nick. During his captivity, Ben had been horribly abused. Thanks to Jason’s foundation, he was receiving excellent counseling from Dr. Agoura, and all of his medical bills were paid for. [The story of Ben’s ordeal and rescue is contained in the previous Hunter & Holmes mystery Family Matters.]

  It took Ben a couple of weeks before he could even gather his thoughts together to write to Jason, and Dr. Agoura helped him to get everything he wanted to express in his letter written down. Jason was very moved by what was said in the letter, and he showed it to Eric Acosta, who had been through a similar experience [chronicled in the Hunter & Holmes mystery Double Fugue.] Reading the letter literally brought tears to Eric’s eyes, and immediately his reaction was that he wanted Jason to bring him along when he went to visit Ben.

  A visit with Ben was quickly arranged through Dr. Agoura. Ben was very pleased and flattered that both Jason and Eric wanted to spend some time with him. Ben came from a very close-knit family. He and his parents and older sister lived on a small farm just outside San Matthias. Living away from the town meant that Ben was somewhat isolated from other kids his age. Although he had a number of friends at school, most of them lived in town, and so he didn’t socialize with them much outside of school and school activities. After his ordeal at the hands of the two predators who had kidnapped him, Ben was having a very tough time just dealing with day-to-day activities at home. Although the Kesslers were rich in their home life, and were able to live off the land of their ten acre spread, money was tight when it came to other things. They lived very simply and frugally. Ben didn’t have much in the way of clothing. He was dressed very simply in a plain light blue tee shirt, faded jeans, and well-worn white Nike sneakers.

  Their first meeting was very emotional. Ben tried to be very cool and brave about things, but when he actually saw Jason walking into his house, tears came to his eyes, and he had a very emotional reaction. Jason just pulled Ben into a hug, and said, “Ben, you have been through a hell that most people couldn’t survive—yet you did! Those horrible people tried to take your very soul away! To me, the greatest bonus of that undercover operation, where I was subjected to the same hell as you were until Nick and I could escape, was the fact that we were able to find you and rescue you! I know that your mind has been playing all kinds of tricks on you, Ben, but the reality is, you survived, you are a hero, and you are my friend for life!”

  Jason’s words caused Ben to continue shedding tears for a few moments, but Jason held on to Ben until he was able to get his emotions under control again. Ben’s mom brought him a handkerchief so he could wipe his tears away, and after doing so, Ben looked up and smiled at Jason. “That’s the spirit, Ben! You have had a very tough time, but the worst of it is over! You will recover from all of the bad things that were done to you, and soon you will be able to live your normal life again! Why do I know this? It’s because of my friend Eric here, who went through a similar experience.”

  Jason then introduced Eric to Ben. “As soon as Eric heard about what had happened to you, he wanted to come and provide you with some moral support. I don’t know a nicer person than Eric. He is talented, athletic, and the most pleasant person you could be around. Yet, just like you, he was horribly abused when he was younger. As soon as he read your letter, he insisted on coming down here and meeting you, because he wanted to be of assistance to you. And he really can help you because he survived a similar ordeal at the hands of his abusive stepfather.”

  Ben went to shake hands with Eric. “Sorry I am all emotional, Eric. I am pleased to meet you.”

  “Don’t worry about a thing, Ben,” Eric replied. “I understand what you are going through and how hard it is especially for a young teenaged boy to deal with the actions of a predator! But trust me, Ben, you will get thr
ough this and you will get your life back! And just like Jason, I want to do everything I can to help you!”

  Then Jason used his special people skills to lighten things up, and get Ben to open up in a way that he would feel comfortable with. “I know we have all of these earthshaking things we could talk about, but that really isn’t necessary right now. You have Dr. Agoura for that. Let’s talk about fun things for a while. Maybe you could show us around the farm. Do you have any special animals or crops that you are involved with?”

  That approach was exactly what Ben needed. Everything in his life lately had been so life and death oriented, or focused on dealing with the guilt and shame he felt over what had happened to him. Today he was being treated like one of the guys—and he had two great guys to hang with, Jason and Eric.

  Ben started by showing Jason and Eric his room. Then he took them on a tour of the farm, showing what crops they had, their hen house, some of the farm animals in the barn, and the outside corrals. Jason and Eric were having a great time seeing the animals and the crops. They were especially pleased that Ben was acting like a normal country kid, showing off his house and farm.

  About a half hour later, the boys were called back into the house for lunch. Ben’s mom Ariel, and older sister, Paula, had put together an incredible feast, much more than you would expect at a simple luncheon. Ariel wanted to repay Jason in some way for what his foundation had done for their family. They had prepared a variety of sandwiches, home made potato salad, fresh sliced tomatoes with basil and parsley, and there were cold vegetable pieces and fresh lemonade.

  “This spread is awesome!” Jason exclaimed. “Ben, I don’t understand why you aren’t 200 pounds with all of this great food to eat!”

  “I think that this is a special occasion!” Ben said blushing a little.