Tied Down

by Vanessa Waltz

“Have you set a date?”

  I resist the urge to glance at Johnny. “Not yet.”

  “Well, I can’t wait. Lovely to meet you!”

  My head spins as the next person sidles into view, her teeth nearly cracking from her fake smile. “It’s such an honor.”

  An honor? I’m only here because we didn’t use a condom.

  “Thanks for coming.”

  Then the next one comes along, and the next. They treat me as though I’m a goddamn queen, but I’m just waiting for my dad to show up and cause a huge scene. I stand at Johnny’s side like a prop as a line of guests greet him one by one, sucking up to the don.

  “Hey, there he is!”

  Here we go again. Another one.

  One of his captains wraps his arms around Johnny and gives him a kiss on both cheeks.

  “Congratulations, Johnny,” he says, giving me an admiring look. “You’re a lucky guy.”

  “Thanks,” he says, beaming.

  “So what’s the plan after this? You’re going to get married right away?”

  “That’s what I’d like, but I’d prefer to get her old man’s approval.”

  Never going to happen.

  “Isn’t he here?”

  “Not yet.”

  He turns his head, looking at the small group of people, and then I recognize him as François, the man who hit on me in the bar right before Johnny cock-blocked him. François shrugs and turns back toward his boss.

  “Do we have time to talk a little business?”

  “What do you have for me?”

  François bends his head, his grin splitting his face into two. “Really fucking good news. We’ve got the keys. We’re going to be fuckin’ rich.”

  The boss’ face remains impassive at the news. “Good.”

  “We got one of the girls to fuck him upstairs while Tommy and I took his keys and made a copy. He won’t have any idea.”

  “Keep your fucking voice down.”

  What the hell are they talking about?

  “Right, this isn’t the time.”

  Whatever it is, it’s got my fiancé on edge. I don’t know much about his work, other than what everyone else already knows: construction scams, extortion, the ubiquitous money-laundering Salerno cheese, etc.

  “No sign of my future in-laws so far.”

  He should be glad they aren’t here.

  It’s a peaceful, quiet party. Pristine white dishes sit on the rustic tables, the waiters slowly gathering them as I sit in one of the wooden chairs of the outdoor garden of Le Zinc. I’m possessed by a sleepy lull brought on by a full stomach, and darkness slowly descends over the party. Soft lights in the trees illuminate the tables.

  A tall man with rugged good looks walks into the courtyard, a baby in his arms. Johnny’s small circle breaks to greet him, “Tony!” A small woman, who I’m assuming is Tony’s wife, gives Johnny a scathing look and heads for my table, ignoring him completely. She looks unhappy to be here.

  She’s my new favorite person.

  The men crowd around the baby, and a huge grin lights up Johnny’s face when it reaches out and grabs his finger.

  “She has a strong grip.”

  Smiling, I turn back to the woman, who watches her baby anxiously. She notices me and smiles reluctantly.

  “Hi, sorry, I’m Elena.”

  “I’m Maya.”

  We shake hands and she falls back into her chair, looking at me curiously.

  “I’m the one who got knocked up.”

  “O—oh!”

  My face heats up. “Sorry. It’s been a long day.”

  Elena’s anxious face breaks into a smile. “No, it’s okay. Are you—ah—excited?”

  Everyone keeps asking that, and I don’t know how to feign excitement. I am nervous about it, but everyone expects me to scream about how lucky I am to marry Johnny Cravotta, the boss of the family. The king of Montreal.

  “I don’t know.”

  Elena’s voice lowers so that I can barely hear her. “You don’t have to marry him.”

  Well, that’s a first.

  My skin crawls and I look around for Johnny, but he’s still playing with the baby. No one is within earshot.

  “I don’t have much of a choice,” I say in an undertone.

  But I find it bothers me less than it did a couple weeks ago. He’s not a horrible man. I’ll be treated well, far better than any of the guys in the MC would have treated me. It’s just not every girl’s dream, you know? Marrying the guy who knocks you up—who dreams about that?

  “You don’t have to be with him if you don’t want to.”

  I look at her, wondering who this woman is and why she has the courage to say such things to me. Johnny would go nuts if he knew one of the guests at his engagement party was trying to convince me not to marry him.

  “Maya, I know you don’t know me, but you don’t know him.”

  “You do?”

  She drags her arms across the table and raps on the wood with her fingers, debating whether to tell me or not.

  “My husband used to work for Johnny. He almost got both of us killed. He’s a self-righteous, arrogant, cold bas—person,” she amends quickly, turning a brief shade of red.

  Cold bastard. Even I’ve called him that.

  My heart rattles against my chest, and my gaze flickers toward him. “He’s been okay to me so far.”

  Her deep-brown eyes bore into mine. “You barely know him.”

  “Yeah, but—”

  “You have to get out of this Mafia shit. It won’t end well for you or your baby.”

  My heart thuds against my chest. I don’t want to hear this kind of crap—not now, when I’m already in too deep.

  “Ladies, having fun?”

  The scream catches in my throat as Johnny’s voice cuts through the tension. He leans with one hand on the table, clutching the edge as his eyes smolder with an indeterminate amount of cool rage.

  “We’re fine,” Elena says, standing up without speaking to him and walking back to her husband.

  Johnny watches her leave. “Bitch.”

  What just fucking happened?

  The bench creaks as Johnny sits down beside me and lays his hand on my leg. “What did she say to you?”

  I don’t know why I’m so unnerved by that woman, who is already hanging by her husband’s side.

  “She doesn’t like you very much.”

  He sneers in her direction and gives her a little wave. Elena tugs her husband’s arm, giving him a frightened glance.

  Jesus.

  “What the fuck is that all about?”

  Johnny gives my concern a dismissive gesture.

  “She’s just trying to start trouble because she hates me.”

  “Why does she hate you?”

  “I made a mistake and put her husband’s life at risk. It’s a long story.”

  Well, that explains her hostility, but it still doesn’t explain why she was practically begging me to get away from him.

  His eyes follow the direction of my gaze. “She’s not the first person you’ll come across who won’t care for me.”

  “Well, Jesus.”

  “People don’t like the man in charge. You should know that better than anyone.”

  My mouth twists. “I don’t like him because he’s a bastard, not because he’s in charge.”

  He looks around the small courtyard, at the men milling with drinks in their hands and guns strapped to their waists. “I don’t care if they don’t like me. They just need to respect me.”

  “What about me?”

  A heart-stopping smirk reappears at his mouth and he grabs my chin between his fingers. “You like me.”

  “Yeah, but what if I didn’t?”

  His head turns suddenly so that he whispers right into my ear. “I can live with you hating me so long as I have your pussy available to me whenever I want.”

  A violent shudder runs through my body when his lips kiss the shell of my ear.

&
nbsp; “Carlos!”

  “Get out of my way, asshole.”

  Oh shit.

  The blood drains from my upper limbs as Johnny pulls away from me, his head perking up with the air of a hound scenting a rabbit. A small group stands at the entrance of the courtyard, their dirty leather cuts at odds with everyone else. I recognize Tanner and Blaze standing next to my dad, who pushes aside an older woman with raven-black hair—Mom!

  They’re actually here.

  Oh God, this is about to get ugly.

  Through his grizzled mane of hair, he spots me sitting down at the table, Johnny at my side. Hair swinging wildly, my dad walks across the courtyard, making a beeline straight toward me.

  François heads off my dad before he can take a couple steps, placing both palms on his chest as the rest of Johnny’s men frisk my dad’s entourage. They back away, finding nothing, and Johnny slowly rises to his feet.

  “Stay here, Maya.”

  My legs lock together as he walks away to meet Dad, but I just can’t get over this impending sense of doom. Shit is going to get bad, really fast.

  It takes seconds for me to jog up to Johnny’s side, and he gives me a stern look that I ignore. Whatever. He doesn’t know how to handle my dad. I do.

  “Carlos, I’m glad you could come.”

  Dad looks as though he hasn’t shaved in about a week and his eyes have a permanent red tinge. My ball-busting mom stands behind him, looking wrecked. Her hair’s a mess and her makeup is half made up, as though she forgot about it halfway through applying her mascara. Her pale lips tremble when she sees me, and suddenly I can’t hold back the dam.

  What has he fucking done to her?

  “Maya!”

  Suddenly what I want most in the world right now is just to feel Mom’s arms around me. Am I fucking crying? I take a step toward her, but a cold, clammy grip holds me in place. Johnny’s hand curls around my elbow, his face grim.

  “Let me go!”

  “I need to talk to my daughter alone.”

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  Johnny speaks in a polite tone, but Dad reacts by spitting on the ground, dangerously close to Johnny’s feet.

  “I don’t take orders from you anymore, John.”

  “Our business arrangement still stands.”

  “You fucked over our alliance when you decided to stick your dick in my daughter.”

  A small crowd gathered nearby erupts into scandalized gasps, and Johnny glares at me, jerking his head.

  No, I’m not fucking leaving!

  Johnny steps in Dad’s space, their faces inches from each other as rage ripples off my father’s body. “Shut your fucking mouth.”

  “I told you, I don’t take orders from pieces of shit like you.”

  Jesus Christ.

  “I let you run your fucking mouth at that meeting—I won’t let you do it here at my fucking engagement party.”

  In slow motion, I watch as Dad lifts his hands and shoves the boss’ chest. Johnny stumbles back, which seems to be just what his soldiers were waiting for.

  Everyone knows that you don’t get physical with the boss. You don’t touch him.

  They draw their guns, and Mom and Dad are right in the line of fire.

  “Do you have a fucking death wish?” one of them screams.

  “STOP! That’s my mom!”

  I shove one of them aside and sprint into the thick of that circle, ignoring Johnny’s outrage. “Maya!”

  She wraps her arms around me, and I squeeze her middle, breathing in the smell of her clothes—smoke and gunpowder. God, I missed her.

  “Back off!”

  Over my mom’s shoulder, I watch as they lower their guns. Blood pounds through the veins in my head. I hear the roar almost drowning out Johnny’s voice.

  “Let’s go somewhere private to talk.”

  Johnny motions with his head and two of his soldiers follow Dad as I trail behind with Mom. We walk inside the empty restaurant and Johnny sits behind his usual table. It’s pleasantly cool inside, but dark. Mom sits beside me.

  “Are you okay, baby?”

  “I-I’m fine. I missed you.”

  “I missed you, too.”

  God, having her here makes me realize that there are a lot of people back home who I care about.

  “What happened to Chuck? Is he all right?”

  Mom’s eyes lower and she gives me an almost imperceptible shake of her head. Then I feel a gaping void in my chest. That poor man was just about the only decent guy in that place. The only fucking man who stood up for me is dead.

  Suddenly I hate everything about my father, from his grizzled face all the way down to his shitty, steel-toed boots. All he ever did was wear me down and make me feel less than human, and now he’s a murderer.

  “You killed him.”

  Johnny’s hand finds my knee under the table and squeezes it. Shut up.

  I won’t shut up.

  “He never did anything wrong, how could you?”

  His voice explodes as his fist smashes into the table. “How could you let one of them touch you?”

  “I wanted him, and he wanted me. It’s that simple.”

  “They’re the enemy.” He points his finger at Johnny’s face. “This guy doesn’t give a shit about you. The moment you have his kid, he’ll throw you aside like garbage.”

  Blaze puts his hand on Dad’s shoulder as Tanner winces at his comments.

  God, even they think he’s fucking nuts.

  “I’m going to ask you to shut the fuck up one last time, and if another insult comes out of your fucking mouth, I’ll cut your fucking hand off.” Johnny squeezes me so hard that I can’t feel my circulation. “Put your anger behind you.”

  My father’s face turns a nasty shade of puce. “You destroyed my only child.”

  Johnny releases my hand and folds his arms, looking indifferent, but I can see the vein pulsing in his neck. He’s a lit fuse, about to explode.

  “You insulted the club by seducing my daughter and getting her pregnant, but I’m willing to let things slide if you meet my terms.”

  Oh Jesus.

  “Which are?”

  “We want a thirty-percent reduction on your wholesale prices, and we want to regain our territory.”

  Johnny’s teeth look like they’re about to crack. “And?”

  “And my daughter gets an abortion—immediately.”

  The air stills as my father’s voice rings across the restaurant. I don’t dare look at Johnny’s face, but Mom clenches my fingers in my lap. I don’t dare breathe.

  “I will kill you if you suggest that again.”

  “Johnny!”

  I’ve never seen him like this. It’s scary. His lips are white and shaking, like a wolf curling its lips over its fangs.

  “She is mine. Our child is mine. I will not let anyone come between us.”

  “Then we’re going to have a problem.”

  Flecks of spit fly from Johnny’s mouth as he yells across the table. “You’re the one with the fucking problem. I want the Devils and the family to continue our business arrangement. We’re running a fucking business, not a pissing contest.”

  “You fucking Italians think you can do whatever the hell you want—”

  “Dad!”

  He leans over the table, staring at Johnny’s whitened face. “Go ahead, fuck my daughter. Do whatever the hell you want with her. Salute. Is that what you want me to say?”

  “Carlos, shut up!” Mom tries to grab his arm, but he rips it out of her reach.

  “You fucking animals nearly tore us apart in the ’90s—”

  “Without the support of the family, you wouldn’t even be president. I own you and your fucking club.”

  “Not anymore! We’re fucking done taking orders from—!”

  “From what?” Johnny stands up, his screams stabbing my ears as one of his soldiers holds him back. “From what, you fucking coward? Say it!”

  Horrified, I glance at m
y father, who remains tight lipped. He can’t—he’ll be killed for sure. Beside me, my mother moans. “Please, don’t!”

  “Say it so I can blow your fucking head off, right here. Right now.”

  “If you do, you’re dumber than your father.”

  Johnny’s arm moves and then two deafening shots explode in my ears. Something wet showers over my face and I look at a fine sprinkling of little red drops, all over my hand. Tanner and Blaze crash over the table, blood spilling from their heads like two cracked eggshells.

  “Oh my God!”

  Mom screams as we both stand from the table as blood creeps over the wood. My heart seizes in my chest as I watch Johnny calmly stand up, the silence ringing in my ears as he grabs the scruff of Blaze’s shirt and yanks him from the chair. His body makes a meaty slapping sound as it hits the tiles, and then I see the back of his head, blown open and black, with chunks of pink in his hair. His brains are all over the floor.

  The color faintly reminds me of the charcuterie we had as an appetizer, and the rich meal I ate suddenly rises in my throat. I turn away from the carnage and slap my hands over my mouth, swallowing it down.

  Johnny sits on the chair vacated by Blaze, his suit ruined, and aims his gun right into my father’s stunned face.

  “Johnny, what are you doing?” One of his older men speaks up behind him.

  “Getting rid of this asshole.”

  “NO!” The scream rips from my mother’s throat and Johnny’s head turns toward us as if sensing our presence for the first time.

  “Get them out of here!”

  “DON’T KILL MY HUSBAND! NO!”

  They grab my arms, and I’m still shaking when I’m outside. Mom fights tooth and nail, screaming.

  “Mom!”

  “He’s going to kill him!”

  I know that. It sinks into my head as she grabs both of my shoulders and shakes me.

  “Do something!”

  Why should I?

  A second later I feel sickened with myself. It’s not enough that my mom obviously would be devastated if he died?

  “He’s your father.”

  I search within myself for a scrap of pity for him. He shot at me. Killed Chuck. He ground my nose against the dirt to the point of desperation.

  “He’s all I have!”

  Even she would be better off without him.

  Mom’s face falls, and then she goes in for the attack. “What about the people at the club? Don’t you care? This is going to start a war. People will die! Your cousins will get hurt.”