by Tony Farraj
“What do you want me to do, just name it?” Vincent asked.
“I want to find out who tried to kill me. I want Michael and Carlo taken out. I want to take over their operations and turn them over to you. I want guys that I can truly trust, guys that aren’t afraid of getting their hands dirty. That’s why I came to you.” Anthony paused to catch his breath. “There’s one more thing, I think you really need to know. You probably heard that Sal Giganti was found murdered last month by a would be bugler, that was me.”
Vincent looked up in shock. “You did that? Anthony that might be a big problem, how many people know you took out Sal?”
“Besides you? Carlo.” Anthony could see the worry in Mr. Spinelli’s face. “If that information ever leaked out, I know I’d be a dead man.”
“You know what you have to do? You have to eliminate any chance of that. Are you willing to do that?” Mr. Spinelli asked concerned.
“You have my word, I’ll take care of that problem soon.” He knew Vincent was taking a big chance having him around.
“Well then, you did the right thing by coming to me. Let me talk to my associates about your problems. The good news is; I have a guy who is part of the commish. We’re old friends from the old neighborhood. I’ll talk to him and I’ll get back with you later on this evening. I’ll set up a meeting with my people and you can explain the situation to them.”
“What about the Sal situation?” Anthony asked.
“That will never come from my mouth.” Vincent assured Anthony.
“Mr. Spinelli, I knew I could count on your help. Thank you.” Anthony stood up and shook hands with Vincent. “I’ll see you tonight.” Anthony walked out of the office and back towards the show room. About the same time Tina was walking to Mr. Spinelli’s office. They both ran into each other. A handful of papers went flying across the mirrored floor. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you standing there. Are you alright?”
“It’s my fault.” Tina said apologetically. “I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
Anthony glanced into her beautiful blue eyes. He hadn’t noticed how striking she was, when he first saw her. Tina’s tight black dress showed off her shapely figure. Her long blonde hair shimmered in the afternoon sun. Anthony leaned back and took a closer look. He started at her feet and worked his way up, when something caught his eye. Tina wasn’t wearing any panties. Her shapely legs where spread wide enough that Anthony noticed she was a natural blonde.
“Is there something wrong?” Tina asked, breaking Anthony deviate glance.
“No, nothing is wrong.” Anthony could feel his face flush with embarrassment. “Will you excuse me?” He rushed out of the showroom and stood in the afternoon sun. Anthony quickly walked to his car and turned on the air condition. The cold moist air-cooled his hot skin. All the way home, Anthony couldn’t get Tina out of his thoughts. As he turned the corner of his street, he could see Helen’s car parked out front. He pulled into the driveway and stepped inside.
Helen greeted him with a loving kiss. “Hey baby, I missed you.” She walked him to the kitchen table and sat down.
Anthony’s mom was already seated. “I would like to talk to you too about getting married.” Mrs. Sakakini spoke softly. “I thought about this for a while now and I think it would be a good idea.”
Anthony was stunned. He stared at his mother and then Helen. “What made you change your mind?”
“It doesn’t matter what made me change my mind. The important thing is, you two make a good couple. The important thing is, you two can save this family.”
Anthony didn’t know how he felt. This is what he wanted, just the other day, but for some strange reason he was extremely attracted to Tina. He hadn’t known her for more than an hour, but he felt a deep connection towards her. He wanted to grab her and feel her soft skin next to his.
“Is there something wrong?” Helen asked. “You don’t look happy. It’s like you don’t want to marry me all of a sudden.”
“It’s not that. I’m not sure if it’s safe, last night…” Anthony paused. He wanted to tell Helen about the big blow up, but stopped short. “You know what, let’s do it.” Anthony walked to the drawer by the refrigerator and pulled out the ring. He bent down next to Helen and placed the ring on her finger. “Helen, will you marry me?”
“I thought this day would never come, again. Yes I’ll marry you!” Helen said. She threw her arms around Anthony and squeezed him with all her might. “There’s so much that needs to be done. I need to reserve the church; I need to call the florist. I need to get a cater!”
“Helen, aren’t you forgettin somethin?” Anthony struggled to catch his breath. “You’re making all these plans and you’re forgettin the most important thing; when is this blessed day?”
“I think the sooner the better.” Helen responded.
“I have to agree with her Anthony. The sooner the better.” Mrs. Sakakini was getting caught up in the frenzy.
“I can see I’m going to be out numbered, if I said let’s wait a month.” Anthony wished he had never made that commit. The minute it left his mouth, he knew he was in deep trouble.
“A month? That’s to long. I was thinking in two weeks.” Helen reached into her purse and pulled out a date planner. Two weeks from this Saturday will be the 28th of April. There’s so much to do before then! Mrs. Sakakini, I’ll pick you up tomorrow, then you, me and my mom can began to make all the arrangements.” Helen finally released Anthony from her grip and headed home to tell her mom the good news.
When Helen stormed out of the house, Anthony sat down at the kitchen table. Mrs. Sakakini could tell her son wasn’t as excited as he was a day ago.
“Is everything alright?”
“Ma, I’m not sure about this wedding. You heard what happened last night. Michael isn’t going to be to happy about this engagement.” Anthony was looking for some guidance from his mother. He was hoping she might have some kind of wisdom for him to follow. “I went and saw Mr. Spinelli today. I told him all about the trouble I’m having with Michael and Carlo.”
“You’re a good boy Anthony. You have a good head on those shoulders. I know you can handle Michael and don Carlo. The question you have to ask yourself is; do you love Helen?”
“I care a lot about her. She sat by my side, when I was in the hospital.”
Mrs. Sakakini stared at her son. “You did not answer my question. Do you love Helen?”
“I’m not sure. I think I do, it just, today I met someone who stole my heart, the minute I saw her. Ma, do you believe in love at first sight?” Anthony asked sincerely.
“Who is this woman, that stole your heart?” Mrs. Sakakini asked curiously.
“Her name is Tina. I think she’s Mr. Spinelli’s secretary.”
“What are you going to do Anthony?”
“I don’t know ma… I don’t know.”
Meanwhile, back at Mr. Mazellie’s house. Helen was breaking the good news to her mother. She ran in the house and found her sitting in the living room, writing thank you card to all the people that came to the funeral.
“Mother, I have something to show you!” Helen cried out with excitement. She stuck her hand in her mother’s face.
Mrs. Mazellie gazed at the diamond ring on her daughter’s finger. A large smile formed on her worn face. “Oh honey, that’s fantastic! This will be good for our family. We need a happy occasion to left up our spirits around here! When is the big day?”
“In two weeks!” Helen responded.
“What’s in two weeks?” Michael asked as he walked in and leaned up against the massive fireplace and waited for a response.
“Your sister is getting married.” Mrs. Mazellie said.
Michael stared in his little sister’s loving eyes. He could see how happy she was. “Is that right?” He paused. “I didn’t know you and Chris where dating again. He’s a great guy, but I don’t want him as a brother in law.” Michael stood tall. He was the head of this family and Chri
s hadn’t even asked him for his blessing. Michael considered that an insult.
“For your information, it’s not Chris. It’s Anthony!” Helen said proudly.
“Anthony!” Michael yelled. “Hell no! That motherfucker is not going to marry into this family! Not after what he did last night! No fucken way!” Michael screamed at the top of his voice.
“If dad was here, he would have been happy for me!” Helen ran out of the room in hysterics.
“Why did you have to ruin the good news Michael?” Mrs. Mazellie ran after her daughter.
Michael stood a lone in the empty room. The words of his mother still fresh on his mind. The pain, the hurt was more than he could take. Everything he tried to do for his family was always the wrong choice. This was the final straw. Anthony was becoming too much of a problem. He needed to be eliminated and it needed to be done right away, before this unholy matrimony brought down the whole Mazellie family.
The setting sun painted shades of pink and yellow across the evening sky, as Anthony slipped on his silk suit and walked into the kitchen to tell his mother good bye.
“You look very handsome. Are you taking Helen to dinner?” Mrs. Sakakini asked.
“No, I have to go and see Mr. Spinelli.” Anthony answered.
“I see… I am sure don Spinelli will appreciate the fact you wore your best suit to see him.”
“Alright, you caught me.” Anthony admitted embarrassingly. “I was secretly hoping that I might run into Tina.”
Mrs. Sakakini stared at her son. His innocent smile gave him away, as it always did. Even when he was young, Mrs. Sakakini knew of that smile. Ever time Anthony did something wrong and she would confront him; he would smile that cheap smile and look away.
“What?”
“Anthony, I hope you know what you’re doing. Helen is a beautiful girl and she loves you very much. Please don’t do anything to hurt her. Don’t use her to get to Michael.”
“Ma, what kind of guy do you think I am? I can get to Michael anytime I want.” Anthony felt insulted by his mother’s words. “Besides, Sonny is happy about me marrying his sister.” He gave his mom another kiss and stepped out the back door.
Meanwhile, special agent Edward Hill was looking over the surveillance photos one last time, before heading home, when his private line rang in the office.
“It’s me, I have information for you and Shepherd.”
“Hold on, I’ll have to find him.” Agent Hill jumped out of his chair and ran into the adjoining office, where he found his partner cat napping. “John…? John!” Agent Hill shouted a little louder. “Wake up, it’s our C.I., he wants to talk.”
Agent Shepherd wiped the sleep from his eyes and stretched. “What’s the matter, is he here?”
“No, he’s on the phone.” Agent Hill answered.
Agent Shepherd walked to the phone and picked up the receiver. “What’s going on?”
“I have information about last nights meeting.” The C.I. whispered.
“I’m listening.” Agent Shepherd said.
“Anthony Sakakini is going to try and form his own crew…” The C.I. stopped and took a deep breath, before continuing. “Michael and Anthony had a falling out. Carlo sided with Michael and Anthony was left holding his dick in his hand. If I was you, I’d keep an eye on Anthony. He may make some big moves.”
“Who would be his alliance?” Agent Shepherd asked inquisitively.
“It may be Lee Hong. He stayed around after everyone left. It maybe someone from Anthony’s pasted, I’m not sure yet. When I find out, I’ll let you know.” The C.I. quickly hung up the phone, before agent Shepherd had a chance to ask another question.
At that very moment, Anthony parked the car and walked to the front door. The show room was still and quiet. The mirrored floor that was polished and shined was now dull and dirty. Anthony gently pulled on the handle of the double doors, but they where locked. He gently knocked on the glass with his car key.
An elderly man stepped out of one of the offices and walked to the front door. “Sorry, we’re closed. You’ll have to come back tomorrow.”
“I’m not here to buy a car. I’m here to see Mr. Spinelli.” Anthony shouted from the other side.
“Is he expecting you?” The elderly man asked suspiciously.
“Yes. My name is Anthony Sakakini.”
The elderly man’s face turned red. He began to franticly search for the key to unlock the front door. “Give me a second.” The elderly man began to walk back to the office were he emerged.
“Hey buddy, there hanging out of your back pocket.” Anthony again shouted from the other side of the door.
The elderly man reached around and felt his keys. He smiled with embarrassment and unlocked the door. “I’m really sorry I left you out there.”
“Fuggettaboutit.” Anthony’s soft tone seemed to comfort the elderly man.
“I believe their waiting for you in Mr. Spinelli’s office.” The elderly man locked the doors and led Anthony to Mr. Spinelli’s office. The door of the office was closed, but Anthony could hear people talking on the other side. The elderly man gently knocked.
“Come in.” Mr. Spinelli said from the other side.
The elderly man stuck his head in. “Anthony is here to see you.”
“Show him in Donnie.”
Anthony walked in and stood by the doorway. The office was filled with a strong cloud of smoke from the cigars everyone was puffing on. Anthony glanced around the office. There where six other men seated in the room.
“Is there anything else I can do for you Mr. Spinelli?” Donnie asked softly.
“No thanks. That’ll be all.” Mr. Spinelli excused the elderly man. He then got up from his desk and walked around the other side and put his arm around Anthony. “Let me introduce you to the fellas.” He led Anthony around the room. “I’d like you to meet Joey Carbello. Joey, this is the kid I was telling you about, Anthony Sakakini. Joey runs a gentlemen’s club on the west side of town.”
“Anthony, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Joey was a short stocky guy, who was built like an ancient warrior. He was well developed. He had short black hair and a shirt that looked like it was painted on.
“The pleasure is all mine.” Anthony returned the warm greeting.
The next man Mr. Spinelli introduced was Al Barrette. Al was a short fragile man, with thick black-rimmed glasses and a rough and scratchy voice. He leaned on his can as he stood up to greet Anthony. As they approached the next man seated, he stood up and shook hands with Anthony.
“This is William O’Malley, we call him the gentle giant.”
O’Malley was a very large man, standing around six foot seven. His red hair and freckles made him stand out from the rest of the men in the room. Anthony found it interesting, that for a larger than life kind of fellow, O’Malley had a soft-spoken voice, almost like a whisper.
“Anthony, this handsome devil is Paul Scarvetti, also known as lady killer.” Mr. Spinelli said.
Anthony recognized Paul from the weekly poker game at Carlo’s. He always showed up with a gorgeous women strapped to his arm. They where never formally introduced.
“Nice to see you again Anthony.” Paul said firmly.
“And last, but not least. This is Carmine Giovanni. This is the guy I was telling you about. He wants to come and work for us…”
“With your permission.” Anthony didn’t mean to interrupt, but he felt like Mr. Giovanni was going to make the final decision. “Sorry about that.”
“He also wants to know who tried to shoot him. He thinks it might have been Carlo Sabbetini. He was very close to don Mazellie.” Mr. Spinelli moved out of the way and nudged Anthony closer to don Giovanni.
“Don Giovanni, it’s an honor and a pleasure to meet you. I hope you can help me with my problem. I really appreciate you taking time to meet me. I’m sorry if I seem to be nervous, but you remind me a lot of Victor Mazellie.”
“Victor was a good man, a man of honor, a
man of respect.” Don Giovanni’s voice was strong and commanded respect. Even from the other side of the tinny office, people seemed to lower their voice, when they heard don Giovanni speak. “ For you to mention my name in the same breath, I do not deserve that kind of gratitude. As for Carlo, I never liked the prick, but out of respect for Victor, I had to honor him. So, you want to come and work for us? This is a big decision, let’s hear what you have to say and if we all agree, maybe we can help you.” Don Giovanni’s eyes seemed to look deep into Anthony’s core.
“Don Giovanni, that’s all I ask.” Anthony turned and faced everyone in the room. “I want everyone in this room to know that if you stand by me, I will never let you down. I will never stab anyone of you in the back. I just want someone I can truly trust. Someone who will help me find the answers to my questions.” Anthony could feel his mouth drying up. He stopped to take a gulp of water. “I want people I can trust, people that won’t hug me in the morning and try to stick a knife in my back at night. What I want is someone who is as loyal to me, as I am to them.”
“We have never had a problem with Carlo or Victor. Why should we get involved in your mess?” Paul Scarvetti asked.
“Prior to my blow up with Mr. Sabbetini, the New York family brought a guy in to solve our internal problems, you all know him, Salvatore Giganti. One of Sal’s goals was to muscle in on your operations. Carlo needs to prove to the commission that he is still a good under boss and what better way then to move in on your territory. Mr. Scarvetti, you asked me what you would get out of this unity? I’ll take care of Carlo and Michael Mazellie, so that way you can keep your operations going without any hassle.” Anthony could feel his confidence rising with very word that came out of his mouth.
“Are you will to back up your statement with action?” Carmine asked.
“If you want to test my loyalty, just name it and I’ll do what ever it takes to prove to you I’m on the up and up.” Anthony knew he would have to earn their trust. They weren’t going to hand it to him on a silver platter.
“No questions asked?” Don Giovanni said.
“None.” Anthony answered.
