by J. D. Griffo
Once they lured in their catch, the bad girls went to work. They pouted until the guy pulled out his credit card to buy her the trinket she would die without. They applied more lip gloss until the guy ditched his friends to write her paper that was due the next day. They whispered insults until the guy changed his ways to make himself more worthy in her eyes. The bad girls manipulated, teased, and belittled in order to get a guy to obey her every command and fulfill her every wish. Jinx had seen it dozens of times, and even if her brother was blind to his girlfriend’s machinations, she knew that was exactly the kind of hold Natalie had over Sergio.
It was time he learned the truth.
“I asked you a question,” Jinx said. “What do you want from my brother?”
Sergio answered for her. “She doesn’t want anything from me! She’s my girlfriend!”
“A girlfriend doesn’t tear her boyfriend away from his family, make him go on the run, and hide out in some hotel,” Jinx replied. “She’s using you and I want to know why.”
“I love your brother.”
Natalie’s statement was offered quietly, but it resonated as if a bomb went off in the room. It was not the response Jinx was expecting. For a moment it threw her, but she quickly reminded herself that guys weren’t the only ones who could succumb to the wiles of the bad girl—girls like Jinx were just as susceptible.
“Nice try, Nat,” Jinx said. “But you wouldn’t be interested in love if it was seventy percent off at Nordstrom. Girls like you don’t do love, they do ownership.”
“What do you think I am, Jinx?” Sergio asked. “Some kind of dog?”
“You don’t make a move without asking Natalie which direction, you don’t say a word unless Natalie has said you could speak,” Jinx replied. “I know it sounds harsh, but yeah, she’s turned you into her own trained poodle.”
“I swear to God, Jinx, I could strangle you sometimes!” Sergio shouted.
He raised his hands and opened them up like he was going to wrap them around Jinx’s neck. This was the second time in their lives that her brother had threatened her, both times when the subject they were discussing was Natalie. The first time it occurred Jinx was shocked, this time she was ticked off.
“If you’re gonna hit me, Serge, do it and get it over with!” Jinx cried. “Because the next time you threaten me, you’re going to be the one sprawled out on the floor!”
“Now I know where Sergio gets his temper from,” Natalie said. “Looks like it runs in the family.”
Sergio glared at Natalie, and Jinx could tell he wanted to direct his rage at her. But how could he do that? Natalie would leave him because that’s what the bad girls did. They dangled the threat of a breakup if their boyfriend acted improperly and didn’t follow the rules. To a guy in his twenties, who was head over heels in love, getting dumped was worse than death. Or hearing the truth.
“I know you’re using my brother, but I want to know why,” Jinx said. “What kind of trouble are you in, and why are you dragging my brother down with you?”
“Natalie isn’t using me!” Sergio yelled. “Get out of here and leave us alone!”
“I’m not going anywhere without you,” Jinx said.
“I’m not going anywhere without Natalie!” Sergio screamed.
Natalie knelt on the bed and grabbed Sergio’s arm, more like a gentle touch really, but the way Sergio reacted, it was like he was stabbed with a red-hot poker.
“Easy, Serge,” Natalie said. “Jinx is only doing what a big sister is supposed to do, taking care of her little brother. I can respect that.”
“Don’t flatter me, Vespa,” Jinx said. “Talk.”
And finally, Natalie did.
As Sergio sat on the floor in one corner of the room sulking, Jinx sat in the chair across from the bed and listened as Natalie, sitting on the edge of the bed, told her story. Or the highlights she chose to tell.
“I don’t come from a good family like yours,” Natalie started. “When I first met Sergio, he talked about his family and how great they were, how supportive, and it sounded like a fairy tale that I wanted to be a part of.”
“According to my parents, you didn’t even try to have a relationship with them,” Jinx said.
“I’m older than Serge and I do have a reputation—completely unwarranted, of course—but I knew your parents would never accept me, I’m not the type of girl parents would choose for their sons,” Natalie replied. “That’s why I broke up with Sergio.”
“Knowing that my brother wouldn’t take no for an answer,” Jinx said.
“No matter how many times I told him to leave me alone, he kept telling me that he loved me and wanted to build a life with me,” Natalie said. “No one had ever said anything like that to me before. Most guys didn’t even want to tell me their last names and your brother wanted to give me his.”
“Instead of marrying my brother, you left Florida for New York,” Jinx said.
“It was time for me to go,” Natalie said. “My business in Florida was done and an opportunity in New York came up, so I took it.”
“With Rudy?” Jinx asked.
“I heard your family snooped into my past,” Natalie said. “Rudy helped me network.”
“What exactly do you do?” Jinx asked.
“Consulting,” Natalie answered, and then quickly changed the subject. “I told your brother not to follow me, but he’s a stubborn one and a few days later he was in New York. Do I think I’m the right girl for your brother? No. But for now there’s nothing I’m going to do or say to convince him otherwise. And I do greatly enjoy his company.”
“You still haven’t answered my question,” Jinx said. “What kind of trouble are you in?”
Natalie stared at Jinx for a moment, maybe trying to gauge how honest she should be, how much information she should share, Jinx couldn’t tell. She got up and walked to the window and pulled the curtain away to look at the long patch of untouched snow in the back of the Arms and the small creek, its rushing water racing toward someplace better. She pulled her cardigan sweater tighter around her to ward off the draft that came through the window.
She turned to look at Sergio, and Jinx could see the tenderness in her profile. Maybe she really did love Sergio. But even if she did, she had no right to involve him in whatever mess she was trying to get out of.
“I got involved in a deal that turns out wasn’t entirely on the up-and-up,” Natalie said, still gazing out the window. “I’m working with the local authorities, but I need to lay low for a while until the trial. I told your brother to go back home where he belongs, but like a true gentleman he refused to leave my side. He wanted to protect all of you, which is why we hadn’t responded to any of your family’s calls or texts.”
All the pieces of Natalie’s story fit, they sounded plausible, and yet Jinx didn’t think she was hearing the truth. “I’m not sure how much my brother has told you, but my family is pretty tight with the local authorities,” Jinx said. “We work with them all the time, and my grandmother used to babysit the chief of police. What I’m trying to say is that we can help you.”
Natalie turned to face Jinx, and it looked like she was going to accept Jinx’s offer. She was wrong.
“This is local to New Jersey, but very high up, like Supreme Court high,” Natalie said. “No offense to your grandmother and Vinny, but he’s too low on the totem pole to help me.”
“Tell me more about this business partner of yours,” Jinx said. “I’m an investigative reporter, I dig for information, I get answers, it’s kind of what I do.”
Natalie smiled, but she wasn’t happy. “It really does run in your family.”
“What?” Jinx asked.
“Kindness,” Natalie said.
Jinx had never thought of her family as being particularly kind because she assumed that was a trait all families possessed. It was a naïve thought, but after everything she had seen these past few years, Jinx liked to cling to her naivete whenever possible.
> “You’re both coming with me,” Jinx announced.
“I’m not going to the police,” Natalie said, just as firmly.
“We’re not going to the police, we’re going to my grandmother’s,” Jinx said. “You’re staying with us until this thing blows over because, trust me, we can protect you better than anybody else in this town.”
By the time they arrived at Alberta’s the troops were there to greet them. It was a full-on family affair. The Maldonados and the Ferraras. Before she left the Arms with Natalie and Sergio, Jinx had texted Vinny to tell him that she’d found Natalie, but asked him to please stay away until they could find out more about what she was up to. Based on how she reacted in the park, Natalie, like Sergio, was clearly allergic to the police and would repeat her disappearing act if Vinny showed up on the scene. Vinny agreed and only asked that Jinx keep him posted if she learned more or if they tried to run again. In the past Jinx had been reluctant to cooperate with the police, but now she was convinced it was better to work with Vinny than against him.
When they arrived at Alberta’s, however, Jinx was convinced that her family might elicit a worse reaction from Natalie and Sergio than the police would have.
One by one they bombarded Natalie with questions. Lisa Marie wanted to know if she had committed a crime, Tommy wanted to know why she was keeping Sergio from them, Joyce asked the name of her business contact, Helen asked if she worked in the medical industry, and Alberta wanted to know where her family was.
“Stop it!” Sergio cried. “You don’t want to help Natalie, you want to crucify her! You’re all mad at me, but you don’t have the guts to say it, so you’re taking it out on her. I’m telling you right here and now, if you want us to stick around you treat Natalie with the respect that she deserves. She is my girlfriend and I love her, and I will not allow any of you to treat her like she’s some criminal!”
Sergio had done what he set out to do—he silenced his family. Although Alberta wasn’t sure Natalie was a criminal, she suspected the girl was far from innocent. Still she was proud of her grandson for sticking up for his girlfriend. That was what a man was supposed to do for the woman he loved. Even if that love might be a tad misguided.
She saw that Natalie was equally moved by Sergio’s words. The woman wiped the tears that fell from her eyes, and Alberta heard her words that were barely a whisper. “Breve orazione penetra.”
“What did you say?” Alberta asked.
Startled, Natalie wasn’t sure at first if Alberta was talking to her. She hadn’t realized she had spoken out loud.
“Something my mother used to tell us,” Natalie said. “Short prayers reach heaven.”
“I know the phrase,” Alberta said. “Pray for little things and they’ll come true.”
“Big prayers are for other people, she used to say,” Natalie said. “The rest of us can only hope that heaven hears our smaller prayers.”
“È la verità,” Alberta said. “Your mother’s a wise woman.”
“Was,” Natalie replied. “She’s dead.”
“Dio mio,” Alberta said. “I’m so sorry to hear that.”
“It was a long time ago,” Natalie replied.
There was a respectful pause after Natalie’s announcement. When Jinx thought it went on long enough, she turned the conversation back to more practical matters.
“Gram, I told Natalie that she could stay with you until the FBI sorts this all out,” Jinx said.
“The FBI?” Lisa Marie exclaimed.
“Natalie is working with the authorities to help them bring some criminals to justice,” Jinx said. “Until that happens, she needs a place to hide out.”
“No better place than an old lady’s guest room,” Alberta said.
It was the first time Natalie had smiled since she entered the house.
“I’ll stay with you,” Helen said. “Two old ladies are better than one.”
Tommy followed Natalie and Sergio out to Jinx’s car to get her luggage, which gave the ladies a few minutes to talk openly without being overheard.
“Do you believe Natalie is telling the truth?” Alberta asked.
“Not entirely,” Jinx said. “That’s why we need to keep an eye on her under your roof.”
“Helen, you don’t have to stay with me,” Alberta said.
“We don’t know what this Natalie is capable of,” Helen replied. “I’m not leaving you and Lola alone with her.”
“Thank you, Aunt Helen, I’ll feel better if you’re here,” Lisa Marie said.
“Maybe you could tap into your old social worker tactics and get her to open up more,” Jinx said.
“Also too, don’t you have a column to write?” Joyce asked.
“How do you know about that?” Helen demanded. “That’s supposed to be a secret.”
“Nothing’s a secret in this family,” Joyce said. “We all know you’re The Herald’s new Big Sister.”
“I’m so proud of you,” Alberta said. “This town needs to hear what you have to say.”
“If the amount of e-mails and letters I’m already receiving are any indication, they sure do,” Helen said.
“A lot of people are searching for answers,” Alberta said. “Especially at this time of year.”
Instinctively, the women grabbed hands and formed a circle. Three generations of women, connected by blood and memory, acknowledging they were not alone, but part of something much greater.
Alberta turned to her daughter. “I know what brought you here wasn’t a reason for celebration, but now that you’re here I’m so happy you’re going to stay for the Mistletoe Ball. It’ll give us a chance to relax and take a breath.”
Lisa Marie looked embarrassed, but equally thankful. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“Speaking of the Ball, I have to run,” Joyce said. “I’m meeting with Bambi to talk about the clinical trials they’re starting on some new cancer drugs.”
“Oh Gram, I forgot to tell you,” Jinx said. “Sloan’s doctor is in charge of the trials.”
“Dr. Manzini?” Alberta said.
“Kylie’s doing amazing work,” Joyce said. “She lost her mother to breast cancer, so the research is personal for her.”
“If she can save some poor women like she saved Sloan, the world will be a better place,” Alberta said.
It took some convincing, but Sergio finally relented and agreed to stay at Joyce’s with his parents. He didn’t want to leave Natalie, but she told him it wouldn’t be proper for them to stay together in his grandmother’s house and he didn’t need to sleep on a couch when Joyce had not one but two guest rooms at her home. After everyone had left the guest at Alberta’s quickly made herself at home.
Sitting on the couch, Natalie cuddled Lola, who was delighted to have a new playmate. Watching them from the kitchen, Alberta and Helen weren’t sure what to make of the scene. For all of her hard edges and brusque exterior, there was a softness to Natalie. It was like she was a child stuck in a grown-up’s body. They knew they couldn’t trust her entirely, they knew she wasn’t telling them the full truth about her circumstances, but they couldn’t help feeling that they needed to protect her. Just as Sergio did.
Alberta brought a tray of hot chocolate and some Zuc-carini from Vitalano’s Bakery. The rolled dough cookies with anisette frosting were Alberta’s favorite. She placed the tray on the cocktail table and sat next to Natalie while Helen sat opposite them in the easy chair. Lola maintained her position in Natalie’s lap.
The sisters kept the conversation light, discussing how nice it was to hear Christmas carols on the radio, how calming it was to stand still underneath the falling snow, and what they were going to wear to the Mistletoe Ball. Natalie said that she had heard about the event, and although it sounded like it would be a heavenly diversion from the reality of her life, she didn’t think it would be wise to attend such a public outing. Alberta mentioned that the entire family would be there, along with half of the Tranquility Police department,
so it couldn’t be safer, but Natalie wasn’t fully persuaded. She said she would have to sleep on it.
Slowly, Alberta moved away from small talk to ask more probing questions about Natalie’s past. “After your mother died I assume it must’ve been hard on your father.”
“I’m not sure he even noticed,” Natalie replied.
There wasn’t a trace of bitterness in her voice, but the harshness of her words couldn’t be ignored.
“He must have,” Alberta said. “I mean, she was his wife.”
“In name only, there was no love between them,” Natalie said. “I don’t expect you to understand that.”
Alberta did understand, only too well. “Marriages can be . . . complicated, isn’t that the word everyone likes to use when they don’t want to admit the truth?” she asked.
“Then let’s say my relationship with my entire family has always been complicated,” Natalie replied.
“What do you mean?” Helen asked.
Natalie took a sip of hot chocolate and seemed to savor the rich flavor. She looked at the photos on the wall, and Alberta was almost embarrassed. She knew the large array of photos conveyed a story of a family’s love, which filled her heart with joy. To someone like Natalie, however, who appeared to come from a less-than-loving family, that same story might instill jealousy, even sorrow.
“Your family looks happy,” Natalie noted.
“For the most part we are,” Alberta said. “Not all the time, hardly, but the only families that are always happy and never fight and never have any problems are created by people who know nothing about what family truly is.”
“I might qualify to write one of those really bad stories,” Natalie said.
“You seem like a realistic woman to me,” Helen said. “I’m sure you know what a real family is.”
Another wistful smile formed on Natalie’s face. She took a sip of hot chocolate and licked a drop of whipped cream from her lips before she spoke.
