Gino. Alexey Yrievich Komissarenko

it. You send us trials and we must pass them. But I don’t have the strength to fight anymore. I completely rely only on you. Let it be as you wish it to be. Please, Lord, help me!»

      As soon as he finished the last sentence, the phone rang in his pocket. Surprised and confused, he pulled it out, and saw that it was Elena. But the water on the screen didn’t let him pick up the phone.

      «Damn electronics!» he squeezed out angrily. He nervously ran his finger over the glass. At the same moment the phone slipped out of his hands and flew down. While trying to catch it, Gino, drunk as he was, lost his balance and stumbled off the cliff into the sea. Charlie jumped after him.

      He hit the surface of the water with his back and felt severe pain. As he surfaced, Gino began thrashing his arms around. But his shoes and wet clothes pulled him down to the bottom. He tore the buttons of his jacket and shirt off and threw them together with his shoes. Suddenly his legs cramped, and they stopped obeying to him. Realizing that he might drown, Gino lay on his back and continued paddling towards the shore with his hands. The current was so strong that the waves began to carry him further and further out to sea.

      «Help! Help! Somebody! Charlie, Charlie, where are you?!»

      A cry of despair burst from his chest.

      Senior lifeguard Alonso, seeing a man jumping off the cliff on the coastal camera monitor, raised the alarm.

      «There’s a suicide! The man jumped into the water. Red alarm. Get your diving gear! Everyone into the rescue boat!»

      When they boarded, Gino was already far from the shore. His back ached unbearably. His legs were completely numb from the cramps. He began to pray, saying goodbye to life. Paddling hard with his hands, trying to stay on the surface, he was still moving away from the land.

      «How come?! How come? I’m going to drown! Why God?!»

      Thoughts of imminent death began to attack his mind. He was seized with horror and panic.

      «God, I beg you, help me! God, help me!» he prayed to God, helplessly trying to get out of the clutches of the elements.

      The rescuers switched on the searchlights on board and started moving at low speeds. For a long time, they were carefully scanning the surface of the water. They almost lost the hope of finding him.

      «There he is! I see him! Turn that way!» shouted Alonso, seeing Gino’s head. About thirty meters away from them.

      The bright light of the flickering searchlights blinded Gino.

      «Thank you, Jesus!» he silently thanked God.

      But another wave came over his head. He was already completely out of strength and couldn’t move his arms.

      «Here…» he whispered. And, choking, he went down.

      In a moment the boat came very close to the place where Gino’s head disappeared, and Alonso and his assistant dived under the water.

      Thanks to the lighting equipment on the boat and the diving suits, they were able to see Gino. Still at a shallow depth. With incredible efforts, they swam up to him. Gino was no longer showing signs of life. Alonso put an oxygen mask on his face, but he remained motionless.

      When they surfaced, another part of the crew lifted him to the deck. Elisa, the lifeguard, felt for a pulse, shined a flashlight into his eyes and, after checking the pupil response, began CPR.

      «What is it?» came out of the radio the excited voice of Riccardo, the Coast Guard chief, who was waiting in the rescue building. «Did you get him aboard? Is he alive?!»

      «Yes, he’s on board,» reported Alonso through ragged breaths. «He’s still unconscious, but he’s got a pulse. We’re doing everything we can!»

      «I’m watching the video. Why didn’t you take action right away?!» screamed Riccardo. «Why didn’t anyone go earlier to ask him what he was doing over the cliff? Were you waiting for him to jump off?!»

      Without waiting for an answer, he angrily muted the radio, ending the connection.

      Chapter 2.

      A month earlier…

      Piercing gaze

      From a young age, Gino was involved in the family business of his father, Alberto Pensieri, who was once quite a successful restaurateur in Italy. But six months ago, after contracting a coronavirus and failing to survive a lung complication, Alberto died in St. Raphael’s Hospital in Milan. The elderly man’s body could not cope with the disease. It was disheartening for Gino, who was still saddened by the fact that his father was no longer with him.

      After his father’s death, he took full charge of the family business.

      Unfortunately, the pandemic in Italy not only took the life of the closest person, but also dealt a blow to the economy of Pensieri’s restaurant empire. The company was on the verge of bankruptcy at that time. In this regard, a board meeting was organized.

      A month before his tragic fall from the cliff, Gino came for a meeting to his office of the restaurant chain Antiche Tradizioni di Pensieri – «Ancient Traditions of Pensieri» – in the center of Milan. Self-contained on the outside, but very tense on the inside. He slowly walked into a huge hall with a round table where his business partners and subordinates were sitting. Everyone greeted him.

      He cast a piercing glance at those present, greeted them quietly in return and sat down at the table.

      Gino had a really expressive, intimidating look. When he was in a bad mood, people even at a great distance from him felt uncomfortable and wanted to turn away. During the dialog, he could stare intently at a person with eyes as dark as the abyss. From time to time it even caused a feeling of animal fear in some interlocutors.

      Gino was the main shareholder and owner of the inherited company. A luxury-loving dreamer, he indulged in pleasures. Traveling all over the world, he uncontrollably spent fortunes on entertainment and gambling, wanting to take everything from life at once.

      Renting a large yacht and sitting on its deck, he used to dream of the geometric progression of his restaurant business. However, he did not want to participate in business processes and interact professionally with his colleagues. Gino relied only on his own despotism towards top management and employees.

      Even during his father’s lifetime, the affairs of the Pensieri family began to deteriorate. But Gino, an impulsive lover of colorful life, did not want to delve into the intricacies of crisis management processes. And a pandemic, that was claiming thousands of lives, a sharp decline in Italian tourism and endless lockdown restrictions for public places, were bringing the company closer to ruin.

      Even his chair at the round table in the conference room testified to Gino’s high self-importance. It was made of red sandalwood, upholstered in black crocodile leather, and had an unnaturally high backrest. It looked more like an emperor’s throne than a negotiating chair.

      «Colleagues, we’ve been together all these years, this is our common business.»

      Gino began his speech quietly but confidently.

      «The future of the company will depend on the decision we come to today. Who wants to speak first?»

      Mario, the Deputy General Manager, was the first to start. He used to be and still was a trusted employee of the company and a loyal friend to Gino, despite the fact that the latter often shouted at Mario unfairly and humiliatingly during general meetings, in the presence of his colleagues. They had been friends since childhood, and Mario’s father had once worked for Gino’s father as well.

      A few years ago, Mario lost his small sewing business inherited from his uncle Gustavo, and Gino generously invited him to join his company.

      «Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, our restaurants are empty, we can’t wait any longer,» began