A fraudulent venture in post-communist Albania becomes a journey through displacement, dementia, historical memory, and forced migration.
Story Structure — 4 Plot Phases
A Scheme in New Albania
Gino and Fiore arrive after the fall of communism and plan to exploit state contributions through a shell corporation. Their scheme requires a suitable Albanian figurehead.
Key Events
Post-Communist Albania — After communism falls, Gino and Fiore travel to Albania for a fraudulent business venture. Characters: Gino, FioreLocation: Albania
The Shell Corporation Plan — The Italian scam artists plan to pocket state contributions through a shell corporation. Characters: Gino, FioreLocation: Albania
A Figurehead Problem — They discover that the corporation's Albanian figurehead is related to their go-between. Characters: Gino, FioreLocation: Albania
Spiro Becomes Figurehead — Gino and Fiore replace the original figurehead with Spiro, an old man taken from a hospice. Characters: Gino, Fiore, SpiroLocation: Albania
The Figurehead's Buried Past
The scammers replace the original figurehead with Spiro, an old man taken from a hospice. His hidden identity and senile memories complicate the fraudulent arrangement.
Key Events
The Hospice — Spiro is taken from a hospice and placed into the corporation's scheme. Characters: Gino, Fiore, SpiroLocation: Hospice
The Fraudulent Enterprise — Spiro serves as the public figurehead while Gino and Fiore pursue state contributions. Characters: Gino, Fiore, SpiroLocation: Albania
The Hidden Identity — It is discovered that Spiro is actually a former Italian colonist hiding since the Second World War. Characters: Gino, Fiore, SpiroLocation: Albania
A Lost Former Colonist — In his senile state, Spiro believes he is still a twenty-year-old recruit. Characters: SpiroLocation: Albania
Fraud and Flight
Spiro wanders away while Gino follows him, and the shell corporation is exposed. Gino is arrested in Tirana and released only after losing his passport.
The Corporation Exposed — The shell corporation is exposed, ending the fraudulent venture. Characters: Gino, FioreLocation: Albania
Gino Arrested — Gino is arrested in Tirana after the shell corporation is exposed. Characters: GinoLocation: Tirana
Release Without Passport — Gino is released, but authorities confiscate his passport. Characters: GinoLocation: Tirana
The Refugee Crossing
Unable to leave normally, Gino boards a crowded ship bound for Italy. He finds Spiro aboard, where dementia turns the voyage into an imagined journey to America.
Key Events
Forced Toward Italy — Without his passport, Gino is forced to board a ship bound for Italy. Characters: GinoLocation: Albania
The Refugee Ship — Gino boards a ship overflowing with Albanian refugees. Characters: GinoLocation: Ship bound for Italy
Spiro on the Ship — Gino finds Spiro aboard the ship carrying Albanian refugees toward Italy. Characters: Gino, SpiroLocation: Ship bound for Italy
The Imagined Destination — In a state of dementia, Spiro believes the ship is heading to America. Characters: Gino, SpiroLocation: Ship bound for Italy
Spiro's Lost Family Memory — Spiro longs to see his son, whom he still imagines as a child. Characters: SpiroLocation: Ship bound for Italy
A Journey of Displacement — Gino and the disoriented Spiro remain together amid the refugee passage toward Italy. Characters: Gino, SpiroLocation: Ship bound for Italy
Italy Ahead — The ship continues toward Italy while Spiro maintains his mistaken belief that America is the destination. Characters: Gino, SpiroLocation: Ship bound for Italy
The Unresolved Crossing — The refugee voyage closes the story with Gino and Spiro caught between historical memory and displacement. Characters: Gino, SpiroLocation: Ship bound for Italy
Story Breakdown
Post-Communist Opportunity — Gino and Fiore enter Albania after communism's fall and identify state contributions as the target of their scheme.
Arrival in Albania — Gino and Fiore travel to Albania to pursue a new financial opportunity.
State Contribution Scheme — They plan to establish a shell corporation and pocket state contributions.
Figurehead Replacement — The scammers discover a problem with their Albanian representative and replace her with Spiro.
Relative Revealed — The original figurehead is discovered to be related to the go-between.
Spiro Installed — Spiro is taken from a hospice and made the corporation's figurehead.
Spiro's Buried Identity — Spiro's apparent role conceals the history of a former Italian colonist living in hiding since the Second World War.
Former Colonist — Spiro is revealed to have a concealed Italian colonial past.
Recruit's Memory — His senility makes him believe he is still a twenty-year-old recruit.
The Scheme Collapses — Spiro's wandering and the exposure of the corporation separate the human journey from the original fraud.
Spiro Wanders — Spiro leaves, and Gino follows him through Albania.
Tirana Arrest — Gino is arrested after the shell corporation is exposed.
Passportless Departure — Gino is released but loses his passport, leaving him no ordinary route out of Albania.
Release in Tirana — Gino is released from arrest after the corporation's exposure.
Forced Boarding — With his passport confiscated, Gino boards a ship bound for Italy.
The Imagined America — The crowded refugee ship brings Gino and Spiro together again, while Spiro mistakes Italy for a voyage to America.
Refugee Ship — Gino travels among Albanian refugees on a ship heading toward Italy.
Demented Destination — Spiro believes the ship is heading to America and longs to see his son as a child.
Fiore, an Italian conman, arrives in post Communist Albania with Gino, his young apprentice, to set up a shoe factory that will never open. The con requires a native Albanian, so they designate Spiro, an impoverished and confused former political prisoner as chairman of the board. When Fiore returns to Italy to get government funds for the project, Spiro unexpectedly disappears and Gino sets out on a journey to find him. The search leads him to discover Spiro's tragic personal history and witness Albanian poverty firsthand.
