by Jamie Zakian
“You fucked her,” Otis said, stepping beside Sasha to join in the ogling.
Carmen climbed into the passenger seat of the van, and both Sasha and Otis held their breath as the magical pants somehow clung to the woman’s ass even tighter. The passenger door slammed shut, tires squealed as the van sped off, and the air burst from Sasha’s lungs. “Jealous?” She peeked over at Otis, finding a slight grin.
“Shit yeah.” Otis patted Sasha on the arm, knocked her to the side a bit. “Come on, let’s go carve some answers out of your prick of a father.”
“Awesome.” Sasha followed Otis down the red plush carpet that led to Fat Tonys, a tiny skip returning to her step.
***
Vinny and Kev had taken Dante to the backroom. Just like in the movies, they sat the man in a wooden chair that centered the wide-open office. All they needed was a harsh light to swing overhead, casting eerie shadows, and they’d be set. Thankfully, the hood still covered Dante’s head. Sasha wanted to be the one to yank that cloth from Dante’s face so he could see her wicked smile first.
A jitter trembled Sasha’s fingers as she stepped closer to the man in the chair. Kev hurried forward, ripped the hood off Dante’s head, then grinned at Sasha.
“Dude,” she yelled, her glare hardening on Kev.
“What?” Kev shrank down, backed away from Sasha. “I was helping.”
Sasha pulled the long knife from the sheath on Kev’s belt, then pointed its sharp tip at his face. “Don’t help.” At least Dante still had a strip of masking tape over his lips she could tear off.
“Listen,” Vinny said in a hush, leaning close to Sasha. “If you start with deep cuts, there’s really no place to go from there except a sledgehammer to the face.”
“Fuck, man.” Sasha crossed her arms, the knife’s cool blade pressing against her skin. “I know how to torture someone.”
Vinny snorted, his face twisting in doubt. “You didn’t get anything out of the last guy.”
“I got the letter,” she said, waving her knife Vinny’s way.
“I got the letter.” Vinny raised his brow, a smug look on his face.
“Oh. Okay.” Sasha flipped the knife in her grasp, offered its handle to Vinny. “Would you like to do the honors?”
Dante sat quietly, his stare bouncing between Sasha and Vinny, and Kev inched behind Otis.
“I’ll do it,” Vinny said, sounding much like a child in a schoolyard dare. “But you’re gonna be sorry, ‘cause I get answers without cutting.”
Sasha twirled the knife, its handle thumping back into her palm. “By all means,” she said, backing away from Dante. “Go right ahead.”
Vinny wobbled in place, a hint of shock lighting his electric-blue eyes. Otis snickered, and Vinny’s stare turned hard. He stomped toward Dante and ripped the tape from the man’s mouth.
“No,” Dante said, staring up at Vinny. “I’ll never tell. And nothing any of you do will be worse than what was done to me in that Mancini house.”
A shiver ran though Sasha. That she knew was true. She didn’t see what was done to Dante while they were being held captive by those insane inbreds, but his body was just as wrecked as hers had been when they escaped together.
“I’ll take her there,” Dante said, nodding at Sasha. “Only her.”
“Fuck that,” Otis said. He pushed past Sasha and slammed his fist against Dante’s cheek.
Dante toppled over, taking the chair with him. His side crashed to the floor, and a stream of blood flew from his mouth followed by a chuckle.
“Damn, cuz,” Dante said, spitting out a wad of blood. “You still got a mean fucking right hook.”
Otis grabbed Dante by the shirt, lifted the man to his feet. “And you’re still a goddamn liar.” Otis bashed his forehead against Dante’s nose, which dropped Dante straight to his ass.
“I know that was Ellen’s body,” Otis shouted, thrusting his finger in Dante’s blood-streaked face. “I held her in my arms. I know it was her.”
“That bitch was a dead ringer,” Dante said between groans as he tugged against the ropes that bound his arms behind his back. “Tits, ass, tight little waist, but the face was like a brick wall. That’s why Ellen put buckshot in it.”
“No!” Otis drew back his leg. The tip of Otis’s boot aimed at Dante’s chin, and Sasha pulled him away.
“He’s not the one you want to hit,” Sasha said, clutching onto Otis tight.
“She wouldn’t do that to us.” Otis shoved Sasha off of him. “Not with the coma, and Tyler.”
“I told Ellen the kid died,” Dante said, wiping his already bruised nose on his shoulder. “So she’d stay gone.”
“Why?” Vinny asked, stepping between Otis and Dante.
Sadness took Dante’s gaze down. Sasha knew that look well. It was the eternal hollowness that consumed one’s soul in Ellen’s absence.
“He was trying to keep her locked down,” Sasha said, which pulled Dante’s stare off the floor and to her face. “But she bailed on him anyway.”
Vinny shook his head as he glared at Dante. “This fucker doesn’t know where Ellen is.”
“She’s alive,” Otis muttered, backing toward the door. “Dirty cunt played me.”
Otis yanked the office door open. Its brass knob banged against the wall, cracked the plaster as he stormed out of the room.
“I know how you feel, cousin,” Dante called out, smirking.
Sasha brought the edge of her blade to Dante’s neck, pressed the knife against his flesh. “Don’t move, daddy.” She dragged the blade, lightly, leaving a thin cut on his tan skin. “Don’t even wag that evil tongue of yours.”
Dante sunk down, leaned against the wall, and Sasha handed the knife to Vinny on her way out the room. She jogged down the hallway, chasing the sound of Otis’s heavy stomps. Just as she ran into the lobby, Otis reached for the front door.
“Dude,” she yelled as Otis opened the frosted glass door.
“I’m out,” Otis said without a glance back.
“Otis.” The word came out in a weak, pathetic voice Sasha hardly recognized, and Otis stopped mid-step. His body grew stiff, and his hand trembled against the door’s handle.
“I can’t…” Otis slammed the restaurant’s door shut, spun to face Sasha. “I can’t believe she left me.”
Tears welled in his eyes, and an icy grip clutched Sasha’s heart. She pulled Otis into a tight hug. His strong arms wrapped around her body, and she damn near collapsed against his chest. It had been a long time since she’d mopped up her mother’s shit, and it felt goddamn amazing.
“She left me too,” Sasha said, clinging to Otis as if he were the last joint on Earth. “Bitch pushed me in the cellar, left me to rot in a coma.”
“Why?” Otis pulled back from Sasha’s grasp, holding onto the sides of her arms. “Why bring her back? She’ll just keep hurting us, over and over again.”
It was a question Sasha hadn’t even considered. Ellen-damage-control was her specialty. If her mother came back, her life could have purpose again.
“She’s family,” Sasha said, and Otis sagged down. “I miss the shit out of her.” If Otis said no one more time, she didn’t know how her body would react. She definitely wasn’t above stomping her feet and yelling I want my mommy!
“Fuck, Sasha.” Otis steeped back from Sasha’s pleading eyes, then locked the deadbolt on the front door. “You have no idea how much I miss her.”
Sasha’s smile came too quick for her to stop. “I’m gonna bring her back. She’s gonna have a black eye, but I’m gonna bring her back.”
***
Vinny
To stand in a room with the Devil incarnate while holding a knife and not spray the walls in red was probably the hardest thing Vinny ever had to do. Hate was strong, enduring, and goddamn exhausting. There weren’t many things Vinny hated. In fact, he could only think of one. Dante.
His fingers drummed the handle of the knife in his grasp. Kev kept a lit joint going,
passing it quick. The dude was probably hoping Vinny would get too stoned to start slashing. Fat fucking chance. It would take a hell of a lot more than weed to dull his fury.
“How come you ain’t cutting me?” Dante asked, glaring up at Vinny from the floor. “I know you want to.”
Vinny moved from the open doorway, crept toward Dante, and Kev stood up straight.
“You just let my little girl drag you around by the balls, don’t you?” Dante smiled in a come-stab-me-in-the-face way, and Vinny took another step closer.
“Don’t worry, motherfucker. There’ll be plenty of cutting.” Vinny lifted the long, serrated knife while staring down at Dante. “I’m gonna use this here knife to shred Ellen’s face, the way she shredded my heart. And I’m gonna make you watch.”
A growl erupted from Dante’s mouth, which put a grin on Vinny’s lips. It wasn’t true. Vinny could never take a blade to Ellen’s face, but Dante didn’t know that.
“All right,” Sasha said, walking into the room. When spotting Vinny in the middle of the room, flaunting a knife, and Dante frozen mid-climb off the floor, she crossed her arms. “Am I interrupting?” She took a step back while glaring at them both. “Y’all wanna fight?”
Sasha untied the rope from Dante’s wrists then leaned back against the wall, between a rather amused Otis and a jittery Kev. “Go on then, start brawlin’. But I don’t think either of you are gonna walk away. It’s gonna fuck up my plans, but whatever.”
Dante slumped back onto the floor, and Vinny lowered the knife.
“Well damn,” Otis said, walking to the small desk tucked into the far corner. “I would’ve paid good money to see that one.” He sat behind the desk, grabbed a rolodex, and slid the phone close. “Where should I book the flight to?” he asked, glancing at Dante.
“I can’t do no airplane,” Dante said. “Ellen had me put on some watchlist so I couldn’t chase her. We’ll have to drive, just me and my little girl.”
“No fucking way,” Vinny damn near growled. Otis might as well take out his checkbook. The fight was back on, because the only way Sasha was leaving with Dante would be over his dead body.
“Fine,” Sasha said, and Otis groaned.
“No.” Vinny grabbed Sasha by the arm, pulled her into the hall. “He’s fucking lying.”
“My mom’s still alive, I can feel it.”
Vinny’s grip tightened, though not by choice. His clutch on Sasha’s arms was the only thing stopping the shake of his fingers. “I have no doubt Ellen’s alive, but that fucker doesn’t know where to find her or he’d be with her. It’s just a ploy to get you alone so he can take you out.”
“He had me alone.” Sasha broke from Vinny’s clutch. Her hands landed on his chest as she leaned into him. “In that house, he could’ve pumped me full of bullets. He didn’t. He brought me back here, back to you.”
Vinny wrapped his arms around Sasha. He didn’t want to let go. It was so hard to get her in his grasp, even harder to keep her there. “I’m going with you.”
“You can’t.” Sasha’s palms glided up his chest, tickled the sides of his neck, caressed his cheeks. “The people who roll with me always end up dead. I don’t give a fuck if Dante dies.” Her lips brushed against his mouth, trembling. “But I can’t lose you. I love you too much.”
Chills ran through Vinny’s body, so cold they left a burn. He kissed Sasha, drove her back against the wall. No matter how hard he pressed, he could never get close enough to really feel her body. All the stupid fucking clothes covering them both wasn’t helping. Sasha’s tongue slipped into his mouth, and he grabbed onto her hips.
A throat cleared beside them, loudly, but Vinny wasn’t about to part with Sasha’s sweet kiss.
“Y’all are gonna have to take this somewhere else,” Otis said.
Sasha pushed Vinny away, looking at Otis. “What? You’re not willing to pay big money to see this shit?”
“No,” Otis said, cringing. “I’m not.”
“The old International is parked in the loading bay,” Vinny said, winking at Sasha.
A sinful smirk lit Sasha eyes. It was a look Vinny hadn’t seen in years, one he never thought he’d see again, and it drove his mind wild. He almost ripped Sasha’s clothes off right there. Otis be damned.
“Fuck yeah.” Sasha took Vinny by the hand. She peeked her head into the backroom, glared at Dante. “You got one hour to eat, shit, and wash the stink off your ass before we hit the road.”
A smile lit Dante’s battered face, and Sasha’s stare hardened. Vinny knew that look on Sasha’s face too well. It always seemed to appear right before some dumbass who thought they were getting their way marched to their death. The second Sasha had an address, she’d feed Dante a bullet.
“Dumb bastard,” she said in a grumble, backing away from the office. Dante’s smile faded once a devious grin popped onto Sasha’s lips. She turned from the office, tightened her grip on Vinny’s hand, and led him down the dark hallway.
Chapter Twelve
Dez
Dez stared at the phone on the kitchen wall. It was strange. Enzo usually called by now, twice, and Otis at least three times. Here it was, ten p.m., and not one call. The conversations had gotten shorter since the incident with Sasha. Otis sounded broken when he talked about how wasted she looked, how he just left her strung-out in a hot house, in Harlem, with dirty street thugs. Sasha was probably dead, that’s why they didn’t call. They could all be dead.
“Shit.” Dez grabbed the phone just as Tyler ran into the room. “What are you doing out of bed?” he asked, returning the receiver to its hook.
“There you are.”
Dez jumped at the sound of Jeri’s voice. He still wasn’t used to having a woman around, but he was starting to love the view. Jeri bent in front of Tyler, a smirk breaking her poor attempt at a tough-guy glower. “You little rascal,” she said, tickling Tyler’s stomach. Her ass looked great in those tight jeans, and the blonde curls tumbling over her shoulder glistened like sunshine. Yeah, it was nice to have a woman around.
“I don’t like you,” Tyler yelled, slapping Jeri’s hand away. He crossed his arms, tapping his bare foot on the kitchen floor. “I’m ready to go back to New York now.”
Dez held in a snicker. It was pretty damn cute to see his son so confident—fucking annoying as hell but still cute. “You can’t go to New York. You have school tomorrow.”
“My mama’s gonna come for me.” Tyler thrust his hands to his sides, his little fingers balling into fists. “She’s gonna beat up Jeri and take me back to my family.”
“Your mama’s not coming,” Dez said, rubbing his forehead.
“Yes, she is. She’s coming, and y’all are gonna be sorry.” Tyler ran from the room, his stomps echoing through the house.
Jeri wrapped her arms around herself, which propped up her cleavage so well. “Maybe I should leave.”
“No.” Dez grabbed onto Jeri’s hips. Her tight arms unraveled, and he pulled her close. “Just give me a few minutes to settle him down.” He dragged his lips along Jeri’s neck, pulling a giggle from her mouth. “Then I’ll come back here and get you all worked up.”
“You already are, baby.” Jeri reached for Dez as he pulled away.
“Five minutes,” he said, backing out of the room.
***
Sasha
The strangest mix of belonging and sadness washed over Sasha. Curled under Vinny’s arm, in the sleeper cab of her favorite rig, was the best feeling in the world. They didn’t even have sex; there was no need. Just the two of them, snuggled in a semi’s cab, and a handful of joints generated more heat, more intimacy than pressing their naked bodies together ever could. It had been so long since they sat in silence, enjoying each other’s company. For all she knew, it could be the last time. Her mother might finish her off at first sight, and she’d let the woman. It was sad to know this was most likely the last time Vinny’s arms would hold her tight.
“Where do you think Ellen�
�s been all this time?” Vinny asked, his breath rustling Sasha’s hair.
“Beats me. She had friends everywhere. Fuck, she had a whole family I didn’t know about.” A shiver cut through Sasha. Now that the heroin haze had faded, the old woman’s eyes could haunt her.
The cozy sleeper cab didn’t seem so cozy anymore. In fact, the tiny space had become stifling. She had to tell herself, twice, that this wasn’t a cell. Her insane grandmother wasn’t dosing her on LSD and holding her captive. She could get up and walk away from the truck’s tiny cab, which seemed to be closing in around her.
“You’re trembling.” Vinny lifted his arm off Sasha’s shoulder, turned to stare into her eyes. “It’s only been two days since the cramps and vomiting stopped. You don’t have to do this right away. We can keep Dante on lockdown for a week, or ten.”
“No. I have to get this over with so I can head to Kentucky.”
Vinny’s hands fell from Sasha’s body, and he scooted far from grasp. “You’re going back to get your husband?” he asked softly, his gaze low.
Every day was just another day Sasha missed Dez. His large hands didn’t caress her skin any longer. They flinched from it. Dez was gone to her. He may have never belonged to her in the first place, but Vinny did. Vinny had always been a part of her soul, even before she met him. She knew that the very first time they had sex, in her messy room above a garage as a party raged outside the window. That intense connection scared the shit out of her before, but now she was more afraid to lose it than to become consumed by it.
“I’m going back to get our son,” she said, drawing Vinny’s gaze. “I miss that little bastard, and I got a lot of mom duties to make up for.”
A smile lit Vinny’s icy blue eyes, which jacked up the pound of Sasha’s heart.
