Mean Little People

by Dearth, Paige

  Tony listened to Salvatore as the waitress placed his food in front of him. He was shocked and relieved to hear that Big Paulie and Mr. Morano had been gang members and had turned their lives around. It gave him hope that someday, he too, could leave the Slayers. There was nothing he wanted more in the world than to leave gang life behind and be free to love Kate.

  Chapter Seventy-Four

  Salvatore arrived at the bakery shortly after eight o’clock that evening. When Kate saw the Bentley from the bedroom window, she hurried down the steps and out the side door. She approached the car quickly, and Vincent stepped out of the passenger side and opened the back door for her. Kate smiled at Vincent, her nose wrinkled, and she slipped into the backseat. Once Vincent was in the car, he turned back to Kate.

  “Tony said we gotta treat ya good. Ya know, act like we’re gentlemen.”

  “Correction,” Salvatore butted in. “He said you need to act like a gentleman; I already am one.” Salvatore leaned over the front seat, and Kate leaned forward, and they pecked each other on the cheek. “How are you doing, Kate? Things working out for you here?” he said, pointing at the bakery.

  “Yeah, things are fine. I mean, so far—it’s only been a couple days. Donata and Ruth are great, but I feel like I’m taking up space that they barely have for themselves.” The volume of Kate’s voice lowered, and the boys strained to hear her. “I miss my mom,” she murmured.

  Salvatore put the car in drive and looked into the rearview mirror at Kate. “We’re going to a party tonight. One of the girls that I’m dating is having a bunch of people over. Tony is meeting us there.”

  Kate shut her eyes and relaxed into the soft leather of the car seat for the remainder of the ride. When Kate walked into the party, Tony rushed over to her.

  “See, I told ya that Salvatore would help us.”

  Vincent forced an aggressive cough. “Yeah, Vincent too,” Tony added.

  Vincent leaned in. “That’s what friends do for each other. I’m just hopin’ Johnny will let ya work wit’ us one day.”

  “All I know is I gotta do somethin’ different. The Slayers got me off the street when I was younger. I was just too stupid to know that once I was in, I can’t just walk away. Ain’t what I thought it was, and I gotta figure a way out,” Tony replied.

  That night, Tony and Kate found a quiet room to be alone. At first, the girl Salvatore was dating told them they couldn’t be in her father’s study, but Salvatore pulled her aside. Salvatore was over six feet tall, handsome and muscular. The glow of his honey-colored eyes easily made his dates confuse desire for love, and this made it easy for Salvatore to convince girls to do things they normally wouldn’t.

  Tony and Kate snuggled on the sofa. “Kate, I’m gonna get outta the gang. I don’t know how, and I don’t know when, but I’ll make it happen. Ya just gotta trust me. Then you and me can be together.”

  “I hope so. I love Donata, but I can’t live there forever. I feel like a burden to them. Besides, with you being a Slayer, we are putting them in danger. I feel guilty about not letting Donata know. What if someone from the gang does something to them? I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. Could you?”

  “No, I couldn’t, but ain’t nothin’ gonna happen to them. The gang will come after me, not them,” he assured her.

  In his heart, Tony knew the Slayers didn’t care who they hurt or even killed if it meant finding their own justice. Kate’s words played over in his mind. He was so caught up in his own need to be with Kate that he hadn’t thought about Donata or Ruth. Tony’s guilt bubbled over, and his arms and legs got stiff as his muscles flexed. As he looked around the large study, his eyes saw objects, but his mind couldn’t register them.

  “Let’s go out and find Salvatore. I gotta get movin’. I got some work wit’ the Slayers tonight,” Tony huffed.

  Kate clung to his arm, trying to keep him on the sofa next to her. “No, Tony. Let’s stay a little longer.”

  “Look, Kate. I got shit I gotta do.”

  Kate smacked back against the sofa, as though his words were striking her in the face.

  “Fine,” Kate said and stood. “Let’s go then.”

  Kate walked toward the study door. Tony grabbed her arm and turned Kate to face him.

  “I’m sorry, Kate. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I just got a lot of shit I’m worried about. Ya forgive me?”

  Kate’s scowl softened. “I guess so,” she purred, “but I want to help you. You’re not all alone.”

  Tony kissed her forehead. “I know. We’ll figure somethin’ out together.”

  Before Salvatore left with Kate that evening, Tony pulled him off to the side. “I need ya to do me a favor. Ya gotta keep an eye on Donata and Ruth. They’re my family. I haven’t seen my mother in years, and they opened up to me and helped me when I had nowhere else to go. Now, they’re helping Kate too.”

  Salvatore raised his eyebrows. “You don’t have to worry about them. They’ll be protected. Vincent and I will take care of it. We’ll keep watch over them.”

  “How ya gonna do that?” Tony asked. He wanted more than just words; he wanted specifics.

  Salvatore rested his hand on Tony’s shoulder. “I can’t explain right now. However, I want you to remember who my father is. Vincent and I have been working for him, and with that comes a security that you can’t find in other places.”

  This information gave Tony enough peace to put his worry to rest for now. Tony gave Salvatore a hug, and he felt the gun in the back of Salvatore’s jeans. Tony patted it. “Is that what I think it is?”

  “What? You think that you are the only one who carries a gun? Like I said, Vincent and I work for my father. That means we are potential targets. The only difference between your gang and the business my father runs is that we don’t have fucked-up rules about who we can date, and we run a real business. Sure, there are people who get in the way, and, like the Slayers, we need to handle them, but it isn’t our primary business.”

  Tony ran his fingers through his thick hair. “Maybe someday I can work wit’ ya and Vincent. For now, I just gotta keep doin’ what I’m doin’ wit’ the Slayers. Until I can get outta there wit’out gettin’ myself killed.”

  As Tony headed back to North Philadelphia, his hands shook and his eyes darted around, taking in the people and activity of the city. He wanted to turn back time, to do things differently. He would have rather been homeless than held hostage by a group of guys he had never fully believed in. Tony wanted his freedom more than anything.

  Chapter Seventy-Five

  Over the weeks that followed, Tony continued to live two lives: one where he fought other gangs over drugs and threats to the Slayers and another where he worked at the bakery as if he was the most normal person in the world. He and Kate stole moments in the back of the bakery, kissing and touching each other. Donata knew what was going on in the kitchen, but she left them to it, remembering how she and her husband would do anything to spend precious loving moments in private.

  It was a warm, sunny day in April. Tony had overslept, and when he woke at noon, he rushed to dress and get into the city. Donata would be pissed that he was so late. When he arrived at the bakery just after two o’clock, he found the door locked.

  Tony banged on the bakery door. “Donata,” he yelled, “open up.”

  He saw Kate peek her head out from the back. She hurried toward the door, and without a word, she unlocked it and scurried into the kitchen. Tony followed; something was wrong. He leaned over, grabbed his gun from his ankle holster, and shoved it into the back of his jeans as he followed Kate.

  “What the fuck is goin’ on?”

  “Oh, Tony,” Kate cried. “Ruth was working up front this morning when two guys walked in and asked for a couple loaves of bread. When she turned around, they jumped over the counter and grabbed her from behind. Donata and I were still upstairs.”

  Kate put her face in her hands and wept.

  Tony gently pulled h
er hands away. “What happened to Ruth?”

  “Oh God, Tony, they pulled off her fake leg and beat her with it. They beat her until she blacked out. She’s in the hospital. Donata called right before you got here; the doctors said those guys hurt her real bad.”

  “Who the fuck were they?” Tony asked, rage overflowing.

  “I don’t know. Donata told me to stay here and wait for you. She needs you to go to the hospital. Ruth woke up once and asked for you.”

  Tony took Kate by the shoulders. “You stay here. Keep the door locked. If anyone asks, I wasn’t here. You got me?”

  Kate nodded. “I’m scared, Tony. What if they come back?”

  Tony scribbled a number on a piece of paper. “Call Salvatore. Tell him to come over and stay wit’ cha. He and Vincent will keep ya safe.”

  When Tony got to Children’s Hospital, he quickly found Ruth’s room number and took the escalator steps two at a time. He burst through the door of Ruth’s room and found Donata sitting in a chair with rosary beads laced between her fingers.

  “Tony, where have ya been? Oh Tony, how could this happen to us?” she cried.

  Tony held Donata for a few moments before he went over to the bed. Ruth’s cheeks were colorless, a shade paler than the white sheet tucked under her chin. Her bruises stood out like a full moon in a starless, black sky. One eye was swollen to the size of an egg. She had bruises on the sides of her face. The doctors had shaved one side of her head to stitch the open gash on the side of her skull.

  “Who did this, Donata?”

  The older woman shook her head. “I don’t know. I wasn’t there,” she wailed. “I let her open the bakery and then took my time getting downstairs. This is all my fault—I didn’t protect her.”

  Tony watched Donata melt into a mound of flesh on the chair as she cried. His mind raced. He was worried that it was the Slayers. Had Razor found out about Kate?

  Tony stood over Ruth for close to an hour. Finally, her good eye fluttered open. “Tony,” she whispered in a soft voice.

  “Yeah, Ruth, I’m here. Ain’t nothin’ bad gonna happen to ya ever again.”

  Ruth gave him a tiny smile. Tears dribbled from the sides of her eyes. “I’m scared,” she managed.

  “Don’t be scared. You’re safe. Do you know who did this?”

  Ruth nodded, ever so slightly.

  “Tell me.” Tony leaned down to put his ear next to Ruth’s busted lips.

  “The Walsh brothers,” she breathed.

  Tony’s nostrils flared. “Brian and Kenny?”

  Ruth gave a small nod.

  Tony’s feet were spread out, his elbows pointed in opposite directions as though they were wings, and his chest was thrust forward.

  Ruth groaned.

  “What’s wrong?” Donata shrieked, jumping from the chair.

  “It hurts. My head hurts,” Ruth muttered.

  Tony strode out to the nurses’ station. His body was rigid and commanding attention. “Ruth,” he said pointing to her room. “She’s in pain. She needs somethin’.”

  “In a moment,” the nurse responded.

  “No. Not in a moment. Right now,” he growled, banging his fists against his thighs.

  The nurse, startled, bolted out of her chair, shoved a bottle into her pocket, and headed into the room. Tony stayed with Ruth until she was sleeping soundly.

  Tony turned to Donata. The skin around her eyes was bunched up, and her blank stare was a window into the pain she was feeling for her granddaughter. “I gotta go, Donata. I’ll be back later. You stay here wit’ Ruth.”

  Donata stood and hugged him. She clutched at his shirt, grabbing and releasing a handful of fabric.

  “She’s all right. Ruth’s gonna be fine,” he assured her.

  Donata released Tony and sat back in the chair and prayed. Tony took one last look at the two people he loved. His anger was intense, and his desire for revenge burned inside of him.

  Tony left the hospital and took a cab into North Philadelphia. He didn’t have time to take the bus.

  He opened the door of the Slayers’ house. Smoke looked up as the door banged against the battered wall, and he lowered the bong from his mouth. Tony stood in the doorway, stiff as a board, his mouth down turned. Smoke turned to the girl sitting next to him.

  “Get out,” Smoke told her. The girl quickly scurried upstairs. Smoke stood and walked over to Tony. “What’s got you all jacked up, man?”

  Tony snorted. “That bakery where I work. The little girl, Ruth, got fucked up today.”

  Smoke took Tony by the arm. “Let’s step outside.”

  The two walked for several blocks before Smoke stopped and turned to face Tony. “Tell me what happened.”

  Tony quickly repeated the events that had occurred at the bakery.

  Smoke rubbed his forehead. “Goddamn, that’s some fucked-up shit.” He paused, looking at the ground and then back up at Tony. “So what cha wanna do?”

  “I need someone to drive me. I have a plan, but I need a car.”

  Smoke looked up and down the street, trying to decide what to do. Helping another Slayer deal with something unrelated to gang business was deeply frowned upon. He knew there would be repercussions if the other members found out. But underneath Smoke’s tattooed, bearded exterior was a man with a big heart. He’d lost his whole family when he was young, and after many failed attempts at living in foster care, he’d found the Slayers.

  “All right, I’m in.”

  Tony’s eyes widened. “You serious? Ya know what will happen if that asshole Razor finds out.”

  Smoke grunted. “That pussy ain’t gonna find out shit.”

  “I’m gonna see if Blast will help,” Tony said.

  Smoke pursed his lips.

  “What?” Tony said, his voice heavy. “He knows about protectin’ people. Didn’t we fuck up those maggots for screwin’ around wit’ his old love, Arlene?”

  Smoke pulled on the waistband of his jeans. “Yeah, you’re right. Let’s go talk to him.”

  At first, Blast was hesitant, but Tony was convincing. “We helped you wit’ Arlene. Smoke and me know ya still love her. Wouldn’t ya kill somebody who ever hurt her again?”

  “Yeah, I would.”

  “Well. These are people I love. Helped me when I didn’t have nothin’ to eat. Ya know I still work there ’cause they’re like family to me.”

  “OK. I’m in. When?”

  Tony cocked his head to the right. His eyes bulged from their sockets. With his teeth clenched, Tony said, “Tonight.”

  Chapter Seventy-Six

  Later that night, after waiting outside a neighborhood pub in South Philadelphia, where the Walsh brothers were drinking, Tony and Blast took the brothers at gunpoint. Smoke drove them to an abandoned factory on the outskirts of the city. They forced the brothers into an old, unused factory and tied their hands behind their backs. They were side by side, on their knees, watching the other boys intently.

  Tony’s gun was dangling from his hand as he circled them. “I remember when you two idiots tormented the shit outta me. Slappin’ me in the head when ya walked by, kicking me in the ass when ya snuck up behind me. Tellin’ me I was a loser and that I should kill myself.” Tony scratched at his temple with his free hand. “Yeah, I was little then, an easy target. I see that ya still like to go after the easy targets; that’s ’cause ya ain’t nothin’. You’re nothin’ but two little bitches.” Tony lifted his gun and waved it in front of their faces. “This time ya fucked wit’ the wrong people.”

  “We don’t know what you’re talkin’ ’bout, Bruno,” Brian Walsh snapped.

  “Oh, ya don’t? OK, well, let me explain it to ya. Ya know that little girl, Ruth, the one who lives wit’ her grandmother at the bakery? You two beat her so bad she’s layin’ in a fuckin’ hospital bed as we speak. That’s what I’m talkin’ ’bout.”

  “Come on, now. We didn’t mean nothin’. We just got carried away. We’ll do whatever ya want. I swear,”
Kenny Walsh pleaded.

  Tony glared at Brian. “You see, Brian, you fucked wit’ my family, and I don’t take that lightly. Ruth is in the hospital because of what you did to her. Lucky for her she doesn’t have permanent brain damage. I bet you thought it was real funny when you yanked her fake leg off and beat her wit’ it. Right?”

  “Well, I wouldn’t say funny, but ya gotta admit it’s a little amusin’,” Kenny Walsh, the younger brother said.

  Tony couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. “Sure, Kenny, I understand. Tell me, how funny do you think this is?”

  Tony grabbed Kenny’s ankle, forcing him to drop to his side. Tony pulled the knife that Erikson had given him years prior from under his pant leg. He held the blade right below Kenny’s knee. Putting his weight behind the knife, Tony began to saw through Kenny’s leg with the serrated blade.

  A few minutes later, Kenny’s screams stopped as he faded into unconsciousness. His brother, Brian, watched Tony with a panicked expression. Brian began to twitch. A valve seemed to have opened on his forehead, and his grim face was covered with sweat.

  “See,” Tony said, seething and looking at Brian. “Take a good look at your smartass brother. I bet he don’t think it’s so funny now, huh?”

  “No, you’re right. It ain’t funny, Tony. Please just let us go. We ain’t never gonna do stupid shit like that again,” Brian begged, watching his brother bleed to death.

  “You’re right. You will never do anything like this again.”

  Tony stepped over Kenny’s limp body and picked up his newly amputated leg. He raised the long stump high into the air and beat Brian over the head with it. Tony didn’t stop pounding him with the leg until Brian was covered in blood and bruises.

  Tony leered at Brian; his heartbeat filled his ears with a steady rhythm, so loud he could no longer hear anything else around him. Images of Tony’s childhood raced through his mind. He remembered walking home from the bus stop and a group of boys surrounding him. Brian had grabbed him by the shirt and was punching and slapping him. He’d tried to escape Brian’s hold, but he hadn’t been strong enough. When Tony had fallen to the ground, the boys had taken turns kicking him. Then they ripped his jeans from his body and walked away with them. Tony had to walk the rest of the way home in his T-shirt and underwear. His mother was in shock when she saw him. Tony’s father had heard about the incident at the bar and beat Tony with his belt that night for being such an embarrassment to him.