by Amy Rachiele
Alex comes in a little while later carrying his phone. He holds it out to me and leaves.
“Hello?” I say the greeting as a question.
“Megan, it’s me,” says Antonio. My mood immediately brightens of its own volition as I unfold myself out of the chair and head out to the hallway to have a private conversation.
“Where are you?” I ask.
“I’ll be there soon. Did you find anything out from that girl?” he asks. I am surprised...I thought we were in trouble for visiting her.
“Find out anything? I don’t even know what’s going on.” I say bewildered. “She said Demetrius killed her brother.”
“All right...Vito and I will be there soon. We had a late night last night.”
I stiffen at his words. Does he mean he had a late night with this girl?
“Who is she?” I demand.
“I don’t know. She was there last night while I was taking care of some business. That is all I can tell you over the phone. Hang tight, and I’ll see you in a little while,” he says. “Love you...”
I melt a little inside. “Love you too,” I return.
Alex is by the door, and I hand him his phone. “Thank you,” I tell him. “Antonio is on his way.”
I walk back into the room, and Clarissa immediately asks me, “Are you in trouble?”
“No,” I say emphatically.
“Whew! I didn’t want to get you guys in trouble,” Clarissa says relieved.
The girl gets up to use the bathroom. She shuts the door.
“Has she said her name...anything?” I ask.
Erin shakes her head no.
The bathroom door clicks open, and the zombie-like girl comes back to the bed to lie down. I’d find out information for Antonio if I knew what I was supposed to ask. I guess her name is a good start.
“I hope this isn’t a rude question, but what is your name?” I say, thinking that came out horrible.
“Lisa,” she says with effort.
“Where are you from?” I ask. I am trying to encourage easy conversation.
“I live here in Chicago.” Her monotonous voice and expressionless face is an indicator to me that she’s in a mild state of shock; Erin was exactly the same way. Lisa isn’t as bad off as Erin was, actually. “Demetrius killed my brother,” she repeats.
I nod, although she has already told us this. I guess she needed to say it again.
Doc Howie walks in carrying his medical bag. He absorbs the scene in the room, smiles warmly, and approaches Lisa, giving us all a general hello.
“I’d like to check your heart rate,” he says to Lisa. She nods, allowing him to do it. “How are you feeling?” he asks.
Lisa doesn’t respond, she just stares forward. He presses his hand against her forehead.
“I used to date him,” Lisa says out of the blue. “He gave my brother a job.” Demetrius?!
“Does anything hurt?” Doc Howie asks, methodically.
She shakes her head no and continues. “Drugs...he got my brother into drugs,” she says with no emotion. “I found out too late. My brother came to me. He said Demetrius threatened him.” Lisa stops, emotion overtaking her as a single tear courses down her cheek.
I hear voices out in the hallway...deep ones. It’s Antonio and Vito! My heart does a quick slam in my chest. It takes everything I have not to run into the hall, but I exit as quickly as possible. Antonio is entrenched in conversation with Alex and Vito. As soon as he sees me he breaks away. I step into his arms, and he kisses me, wrapping his arms around me...and pauses. The gun. He glances at me quizzically, and steps back from our embrace.
“My father wants me to carry it,” I explain.
Antonio doesn’t say anything. I see in his eyes that he wants me to carry it, too. He quickly kisses me again.
Someone’s phone is ringing. It’s Alex’s. He answers, and suddenly his face twists with fury. “Where!? Are you fucking kidding me?!” Alex yells into the phone. Anyone on this floor can surely hear him. Alex pulls the phone away from his ear and pointedly looks at Antonio.
“Someone downstairs says that Tutti is out on the street,” he rushes out urgently.
Antonio and Vito move quickly. They run to the stairwell at the end of the hall. Vito flings the door open and they’re gone. As though my legs have a mind of their own, I’m off running to catch up with them. Alex reaches out to grip my hand to stop me as I rush by, but I shrug it off and bolt through the door. I am cascading down the stairs neatly, allowing the railing to glide under my hand. I make it to the bottom floor in record time and burst into the casino.
The casino is busy, as it very often is. I rush past gamblers and wait staff carrying drinks. I make it to the front doors and see no one guarding them. Through the glass, I scan the street, but I can see nothing. I throw open the swinging door, looking to the left and then to the right. Where is Antonio? I take a step forward, looking all around me. This sky is cloudy. It is a dark winter day. I immediately feel the chill with the absence of a jacket. I step forward once again, putting myself on the sidewalk. That’s when I hear it.
Gunfire echoes in the air like thunder, in between two large city buildings. Knowing Antonio would want me to stay put, I dive back in to the casino, my face plastered to the glass as I struggle to see something...anything. Sirens sound in the distance, getting closer by the second. Nobody in the casino seems to register the gun shots. Everyone is in their own world, deafened by the sounds of the machines.
My heart pounds with worry. I stand on my tiptoes to see around the parked vehicles on the street and watch three cop cars skid to a stop. Their doors fly open and uniformed officers swarm into the alley across the street.
A hand grabs my arm and roughly pulls me to the side against the wall.
“It’s not safe to stand by the door.”
It’s Demetrius!
Horror grips me. My arm throbs where he clenches it, his fingers pushing into the flesh, bruising me. I wince. He touches my hair with his other hand in a creepy, affectionate gesture. The paradox of his hands, one brutal - one gentle, isn’t what startles me; it’s the psychotic cast in his eyes. He is capable of anything. I’m paralyzed as he stares me down.
Shouting makes us both turn to look. Casino security is racing towards the doors. Demetrius smiles down at me with a cold look, once again runs his fingers through my hair, and releases me. He disappears.
A deep crowd has formed around the commotion outside. People rubberneck over each other to see the scene. I slump against the wall, the paralysis leaving me. I try to calm myself, fear coming through in knowing that I did something very stupid.
Chapter 11
Underboss: Second in command
Antonio:
Something is off with the intel about Uncle Tutti. He is alone and wandering around aimlessly, seems out of it. The whole thing stinks of a set up.
Vito and I rush outside and sprint across the street, flanking the walls of the buildings attached to a mini-mart and a shoe store. I draw my weapon and hold it at the ready position. Vito does the same. Ahead of us, I see a man who could definitely be Uncle Tutti, but his back is to us. We inch closer, one step at a time.
The guy is talking under his breath, mumbling. He is moving around pointlessly always with his back to us. I don’t want to fire without being totally sure. Killing an innocent person is not on my list of things to do today. We creep slowly not to alert him. My focus is zeroed in to see if this is Uncle Tutti. I don’t see the sniper on the building to our left.
Shots are fired! Brick pieces fly and crumble bouncing off the asphalt as I duck and dive. I rip my jeans and scrape the shit out of my arm when I land. Vito crouches next to me and points his gun up, checking the roofs of the other buildings. My frustration is heightened when this fucker who could be Uncle Tutti doesn’t even turn around. He isn’t even fazed by the bullets flying by him.
Sirens whirl and whistle. Tires screech on the pavement. That’s our cue to get the he
ll out of there. We quickly snap open the back door of the mini-mart and shove our guns back in our pants, pretending to look around.
The police are going to be a long time investigating. I motion to Vito that we need to get out of here. I walk to the front of the store and watch as the police rush in to the alley. The clerk and shoppers are pressed against the doors trying to see what happened. Looks like the coast is clear, and we step out the front of the store and head directly for the side garage of the casino. We make it underground. We rest against a giant cement pillar, panting.
“What the fuck was that?” Vito spits.
“A setup,” I release in a frustrated sigh. Nothing adds up. My head is filled with questions and the answers right there in front of me, but I’m so blinded by my vendetta that I almost got taken out. The anger and rage is making me sloppy. I need to talk to that girl. Maybe she’ll have some answers for me about what is really going on.
Vito thinks for a minute, possibly replaying in his mind the details of the past few minutes.
“Not just a setup...a contract! That fucker was aiming at YOU!” His eyes flash with horror and something I rarely see from Vito...fear.
“I think Demetrius has a hit out on me,” I tell Vito. Anger pulses inside me. “I also think that he is the cleaner for the Furlotti family.”
Vito scrubs his hands down his face, taking it all in. “Okay, so what do we do now?” He asks me earnestly like I would already have a plan. I don’t.
Mob assassins like Demetrius and his associates don’t have a problem with public executions. It sends a warning to others and it gives them a sick empowerment on the same level with a serial killer. It’s a deranged form of exhibitionism.
I find it odd that Ennio has set us up with the Furlotti’s. Most mob families typically don’t like to draw attention. Public exterminations and drug dealing are huge flashing signs for organized crime. Bosses normally like to keep things quiet, like my Pop. Although, some families get delusions of grandeur and greedy, and think they’re untouchable. Flying low on the radar is what keeps many families afloat.
I didn’t realize the Furlotti family was like this. They have never been known to be such a high-profile family. Things just don’t make sense.
*****
Antonio:
Back upstairs, Alex is standing with Megan. His face is strained as he speaks with her. I quickly thaw when I see her.
“She’s gone,” Alex informs me as he sees Vito and is storming down the hall.
Dammit!
“What happened?”
“When you left, your girlfriend chased after you. I tried to grab her, but she took off.” Alex gives a steely gaze to Megan. “I sent Clarissa and Erin back upstairs because I didn’t know what was going down, and I went after Megan. When I came back upstairs, she was gone.”
I’m angry, and I flash my eyes at Megan. She knows better than to follow us like that. I don’t want to get into it with everyone standing around here. I’ll have to discuss it with her later.
“Do you think she just took off?” I ask attempting to stay calm.
“I’m not sure.” He flicks his eyes to Megan. “But Megan has something else she needs to tell you,” Alex says with a scolding tone.
She stares at the floor, then raises her gaze and looks at me sheepishly. This is getting better and better. I wait for her to respond.
“When I got downstairs, I went to the glass doors to try to see what was going on...and Demetrius grabbed me,” she says softly.
A monster so ugly and vicious erupts from deep within my soul. I want to crush the life out of Demetrius for putting his hands on Megan. I can’t handle this. What I want to do right now scares even me. I don’t trust myself so I walk away - seething in my own rage.
This is a game. A fucking screwed up game. Demetrius is in rare form, and it is all centered on me. I’d bet my bank account that Demetrius took her.
I take a deep breath with my back to Megan and Alex. We need to regroup. I hate this. I take out my phone and call my father.
“Hi, Pop,”
“Eh, Antonio. What’s going on?” he asks. Unfortunately, he doesn’t know how loaded the answer is to that question. I can’t tell him everything over the phone, that’s protocol. So I speak in innuendo.
“There may be some problems with our new friends. I’m looking into it. Stay alert.”
“Got it. You be careful,” he says.
“You too.” We hang up.
Letting my father know is important, they could be targeting him, too. This way he will take on some additional bodyguards. The simple solution would be to just call Don Furlotti, but things don’t work that way. To accuse him and his family of putting a contract out, or even not holding up their part of the alliance, is a major insult. Having all the facts is key, or you might as well start funeral arrangements.
I call Vito over. “We need to get our stuff out of the hotel. It’s too out in the open. We’ll stay here where it is guarded and we have what we need. I don’t know what Demetrius’ next move is. I think we should lay low and wait.”
“What about Tutti?”
“I have a feeling that, whichever way this is going, Tutti is gonna be at the end of it.” I’m going with my gut on this one. I don’t want to be blindsided again. I can be patient, when I need to be. “The celebration dinner is only a couple of days away. We need to be ready for anything.”
“And that girl?” he asks.
“We don’t know if she left on her own or was taken. I’ll have Carlo find two volunteers to go look for her. That’s the best I can do.”
“I’ll take Joey with me and clean out our stuff. I’ll be back later,” Vito says and leaves.
Alex and Megan are standing silently waiting.
“Take Megan upstairs. I’m going to find Ennio,” I order to Alex, not looking at Megan. They get in the elevator, and I take the stairs to the casino.
*****
Antonio:
I find Ennio at the bar opposite the casino from the restaurants and shops. He’s taking inventory of the liquor, holding a clipboard, and he doesn’t look up as I approach.
“You know I don’t like cops at my casino,” Ennio’s voice is unhappy.
“I understand. It won’t happen again,” I tell him. It doesn’t matter how many cops you have in your back pocket...whenever they show up, it is bad for business.
He puts the clipboard down on the granite bar. “What happened?” he speaks in a low tone.
“Alex got a call from one of your guys saying that they thought Tutti was in the alley across the street. We left to check it out, and there was a sniper on the top of the shoe store building. We took off when we heard the sirens. Somebody must have tipped off the cops.”
“Was it Tutti?”
“I don’t know. We never got a chance to find out.”
“What’s that look on your face for?” Ennio asks, sounding like the mob boss that he is.
“I just don’t know what to think. The whole thing is just wrong.”
“If it doesn’t feel right, keep your head down. You know that. I’ll do some checking around.”
I leave Ennio to finish his task and head straight to the family floor. I need to talk to Megan about taking off on Alex.
Chapter 12
Omerta: Code of silence
Megan:
When Antonio walks through the door, I don’t know whether to run to hug him or run to my room and lock the door. I know he’s mad...and for good reason. I know how foolish I was to follow them.
Antonio walks over to me, standing over me where I was lounging on the couch. Erin is in Clarissa’s suite. Lucky girl!
He takes my hand gently, hauling me up to a standing position, and leads me to my room.
My heart pumps wildly in trepidation, and my hand tingles where he’s touching me. Even though we’re alone, he closes the door. His eyes glass over with need.
“Lie down,” he orders me.
Unsure
, I climb on the bed and lay down with my head against the soft pillows. I wonder what he’s going to do. He stands at the end of the bed grabs my ankles and tugs me towards him. He takes off my sneakers and they thump to the floor. He kicks off his own shoes and kneels on the bed. He throws his leg over my hips and straddles me, pinning me to the bed lusciously.
My belly jumps at the contact, wanting more. I wait - each second killing me. I want to reach up and pull him down to me. I take my hand and slide it under his shirt across his meaty abs. He gathers my hand and holds it. He takes my other free hand then traps them both to my sides.
“Don’t. Ever. Follow. Us. Like. That. Again.” Antonio’s tone is intimidating. I nod my head because I can’t move my hands...and I’m afraid to open my mouth. Suddenly, he takes my hands and thrusts them over my head. He leans down and gives me a searing kiss. He kisses me feverishly like it’s life-or-death. “I wouldn’t be able to take it if anything happened to you,” he whispers, intensely staring into my eyes.
I can only continue to nod my head in agreement. Antonio has immobilized me, physically and mentally. After a brief and passionate staring contest, he lets me go. I feel bereft immediately.
“Sorry, you are right,” I say quietly, a little afraid to move even now. “It was stupid.”
I knew it was dangerous when I did it and ran after him. I felt so empowered, but my run-in with Demetrius was sobering. He could have dragged me out of the casino and down the street. No one would have known. What was he doing here anyway? Clarissa said he is not welcome.
Antonio strips off his shirt and lies down next to me on the bed. He draws me to him, spooning my body with his. I snuggle in deeper, breathing in his scent...suddenly feeling his comfort. As he holds me in silence, Antonio’s breathing becomes even and wispy. I close my eyes and sleep finds me.
