We Have All The Time In The World-Chapter One

It was one of those April days in Venice where the weather was a mix between the winter and the spring. Not too cold to where a person would need a heavy jacket to keep warm, but not too warm to where one would need to wear shorter clothing in preparation for the summer. No, this was just the right type of weather to really enjoy the day. Which was why there were more people in the Piazza San Marco (or St Mark’s Square) than usual today. It was not surprising to find the tourists wanting to come to this historic part of the city.
 
            Every day this area bustled with life as tourists were snapping photos of the sights of this historical landmark which had been around since the Renaissance and still continued to stand as a symbol of that elegant era. Some people were among the crowds, mainly romantic lovers who wanted to enjoy the romantic aura that this city had to offer. Others were starving artists who were trying to make a name among the Italian and European art community.
 
            However, there were still symbols of modern culture that filled this historic landmark. One could not escape the tourist trappings of a Best Western for those tourists who were on a budget or even the Hotel Cipriani for those who preferred the finer things in life. There was even a McDonald’s for those American’s who were really craving the taste of a Big Mac rather than go out of their way to try something that was not familiar to them.
 
            To Tommy Xiao Li, sitting quietly at one of the tables in the center of the square, sunglasses over his eyes to keep the brightness from bothering him …it just felt very commercial. It was funny of him to think that given he was from Southern California, home to Disneyland, Hollywood and the stereotypical image of surfers and bikinis. He had always wanted to come here from the moment he saw Sean Connery kissing Daniela Bianchi at the end of ‘From Russia with Love’ to the music of Matt Munro serenading them. He mused to himself at the thought of some Italian tourist going around Los Angeles expecting to find movie stars around the corner. (Hey look over there Bella, I see Dustin Hoffman coming out of the grocery store!)
 
            It wasn’t like he was expecting to see this place like it was back in the 1960’s. He did however get the impression that he did when he watched that movie so long ago. He just hated that he had to deal with the modern trappings of Chicken McNuggets, Coca Cola and Sony Walkman. He managed to shove all those thoughts of commercialism aside and focus on the present rather than his failed expectations.  Today he needed to be on his guard more than anything else, because today he was here to protect someone. It wasn’t from something supernatural or anything that he had faced in the past. No, today Tommy Xiao Li was here to protect a woman.
           
            He looked up for a moment noticing that the sun was now right above him and the clock bell at the Basilica started to ring. He scanned the area as he noticed the pigeons and doves beginning to scatter at the giant GONG of the bell ringing the time. He moved his head back down to the people moving around the square. He had noticed a group of Japanese students looking around, the girls dressed in their fukus and the boys in shirt and tie along with their trousers. They weren’t too far from his table to where he could hear the students talking amongst themselves about where they would like to go next. Li smiled as he recognized their accents as Kanto specifically from his old stomping grounds of Tokyo. Part of him wanted to start a conversation with them see if they were from one of the schools near his Japanese alma mater.
 
            Not too far away from the group were two women talking amongst themselves. The first woman had a slender figure, but her bust and waist looked a little too big for her body. Li mused to himself on the fact that this woman definitely had some kind of cosmetic surgery done to try to make her look more attractive to men. Her long brown hair flowed gently as she continued to walk on with her friend who was attractive in her own right. Voluptuous and no real need for any kind of augmentation, but she was more submissive to her friend.  Apparently, they were getting ready to go on some kind of shopping excursion.
 
            He continued to scan the area and that was when he found her, a few hundred yards away from him, dressed in the woman he was here to protect. She walked out of one of the nearby bistros towards one of the tables in front of it. A tall ebony woman, at least 5’8” in height maybe a little taller, he totally wasn’t sure given that she was wearing heels. Her full figure was not something that could be over looked as she wore a black Rafaela Curiel dress that was painted onto her body rather than just something she needed to wear. Li had seen others in dresses made by that particular designer, but he thought that she wore it best. Though he personally thought it stopped a little too high. Maybe that was what she wanted. (It only made him a little more curious to see what was beyond that point)
 
            Her long raven colored hair flowed down her back and swayed with her as she moved showing the brown streaks that shined in the sunlight. She continued towards her table gliding almost melodically like she was aware of how attractive she was and wanted the world to know it. It was enough to make Li want to smirk by how much confidence the woman liked to convey to everyone, but he sensed that it might just be nothing more than a façade. (Part of him wanted to say to her, “You’re trying too hard!”)  
 
She stopped near the edge of the bistro where the tables met with the mall. It was still close enough for Li to keep an eye on her, but at the same time it was far enough to keep him unnoticed. Not even a few seconds after she sat down, a waiter walked out towards her table and asked for her order. She replied in kind and a few short moments later the gentleman had returned with a bottle of Bollinger RD ’65. (Apparently this woman had some good taste in champagne). While Li just drank a bottle of Perrier that he ordered a few minutes prior just to keep him a little hydrated.
 
Li just kept watch, while she continued to enjoy her champagne. She started by taking small sips at first, allowing herself to enjoy the unique taste. Her face flushed in delight at the drink, but then he noticed that the delight had changed to a small hint of sadness like there was weight about her. Maybe he was over reading the emotion, but it did give him a little pause.
His eyes scanned towards the left and noticed a few hundred yards away from the bistro were two men dressed in plain, white looking buttoned up collared shirts. The type you would see worn on Sundays at church or at work. Both men were African and they just silently watched the woman with complete interest. Something did not sit right with Li as he noticed them. Neither man had a drink on their table or anything to show that they were there as tourists, just watching her like they were waiting for a chance to grab her. What surprised him was that they did not have a glimpse of him at all. Maybe that was a good thing.
 
He scanned towards the right and noticed two more men, also African sitting almost equidistant to the ones on the left. Also watching her drink the Bollinger, but one of them had noticed Li immediately. That did not make him feel good at all, apparently these men were already prepared for him. It just meant that he would have to work fast to make sure that he could get to the woman and then work on an escape plan to get them out of the Piazza and towards the train station or even the airport. He had a contingency plan for something like this, but he didn’t want to use it unless it was a last resort. Yet like all things in life you have to prepare for the unexpected.