Trafika Europe 14 - Italian Piazza

Irene Chias

the Vergine Maria neighborhood. (I don’t remember and it ’s not important.) But having escaped death or some other rough encounter with the poor bovine, I felt bound to alert the authorities that there was a cow emergency on the lungomare. Yet whi le I was on hold, I had to look at the dial pad several times to punch in the right code to select the correct option for the emergency I was reporting and I risked my l ife at least two other times before arriving at my aunt ’s house. Final ly, I cal led the vigi l i urbani because it fel l under their jurisdiction. Anyway, this time, 113 puts me on hold for a few minutes or maybe only a few endless seconds… In the meantime, I do what I can to create distractions without confronting the three of them directly. I blow the horn but whi le turned away so I don’t have to watch them. Then I yel l something vague but convincing into the phone: “Yes operator, send squad cars to Corso Lodi.” And by the time someone sounding vaguely human responds, the three have already pul led away in the Porsche, leaving the guy on the ground, with a bloody face. I tel l the voice that there’s a man injured on Corso Lodi. Whi le I wait, I get out of the car and approach the guy, asking him how he is. I tel l him to stay calm and that medical personnel are arriving. “Please, please no!” He tries to get up but doesn’t make it. He bursts into tears, explaining in broken Ital ian, “No document.”

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