by Jim Wygand
“I’ll listen carefully Mr. Rizzo and if I do have questions, I promise to ask. But Gina is the woman I want to marry. If we have to move to Canada or Seattle or Nebraska, I’ll do it to be with her. It’s that simple.”
“Now, Charlie, listen close to me. You and Gina should not make this relationship known to the world when you walk out of here. You are going to need time to make some plans. You don’t want to be run out of your job. You should leave on your own terms if that becomes necessary, and it probably will.” Gina sat with Charlie and listened.
Carlo continued, “You don’t strike me as the kind of guy that would live on his wife’s income, Charlie. If your life suddenly goes to hell, you won’t find work so easily. Every time you get a job, the feds will show up and talk to your employer. Some of your friends will back away from you and you will be disappointed. My suggestion is that you get things ready for change. I wouldn’t want my bambina far away, but if she is happy, that’s all I care about. I love her Sunday visits, but I would rather know she is happy in Winnipeg than lonely in Philly.”
Charlie noticed that Gina’s eyes were brimmed with tears. Carlo Rizzo was making the kind of sacrifice he was not accustomed to making. He was dealing from the heart. Charlie knew it must have been difficult for him.
“Mr. Rizzo, I have to say that I have not seen many gestures as unselfish as the one you just made. I promise you, I will think this whole thing through. I will build a plan with Gina and will consult with you as we go. I would not take your daughter from you except to be my wife. I would not deny her the pleasure of visiting you. And I am really not one for letting people tell me how to run my life. But, you’re right. We need to think this thing through. I don’t want Gina hurt and I don’t want to be taking guff from anybody. I have always run my own life and that’s not going to change.”
“Good”, said Carlo, “but don’t have any illusions about how different it will be. You don’t know Sicily. It’s a tough country. It’s mean. It’s dry. Water is a scarce commodity and people have to pay a lot for it. Politicians exploit water to hold the people down and get themselves elected. It was ravaged by war more than once in its history.”
“You’re right, Mr. Rizzo, but I do know something about how immigrants were treated in this country. The Irish didn’t have it so easy either. I told Gina about my grandfather working in the anthracite mines when he was nine. I told her about his older brother who became a communist while working in the mines and how the feds pestered him all his life.”
Carlo smiled and laughed a little, “Yeah, Charlie I know about the Irish. I had a few run-ins with them myself when I was growing up and in business. You guys are tough, that’s for sure. And you have the memory of Sicilians for a wrong done to you. The idea that this country is a melting pot is great for school civics classes. The fact is it’s a mosaic. It’s a bunch of different people trying to hang on to the remnants of the cultures that made them miserable and forced them to leave their homes while having to fight with other people from other countries for the same jobs in America. Like everywhere else, the big shots and the politicians pitted each of us against the other for their own gain. Some of us refused to bow and we fought back. We held on to our pride and refused to fight each other. We banded together like wolves and snarled back. They knew we were desperate so they gave us what we demanded. You know the saying ‘never fight an enemy whose back is to the sea’. When there is no way out, Charlie, a man will fight twenty times harder to stay alive.”
“Well, Mr. Rizzo, I take it that Gina and I have your blessing?”
“You do, and I’m telling you now that you can count on my help if you need it. I want both of you to be happy and I want some little bambini running around in my yard.”
Gina smiled through the tears that were spilling from her eyes. “Uncle Carlo, it’s a little soon to be talking bambini don’t you think? I mean from start to finish it’s a full nine months for each one. We’re still working on letting the world know we’re in love! Thank you for your blessing.” And the tears rolled down Gina’s face.
Carlo laughed. “Yeah, I know, I just want to make sure Charlie understands my priorities.”
“How many you want, Mr. Rizzo? I’m glad to oblige.”
They all broke out laughing and the mood turned lighter.
The afternoon sun was setting. Carlo Rizzo kissed his daughter on the cheek and hugged her tight. “I love you my little girl. You have my blessing with this good man you’ve found. He’s got guts and brains. Help him to use both! You’re both going to need all the resources you can muster. But I am sure it will all be worth it. You are a beautiful couple.”
Charlie was dumbstruck. All he could say was “Thank you Mr. Rizzo, thank you.”
Carlo Rizzo surprised him with a back slapping hug. “Always take care of my little girl, Charlie. And come by here whenever you feel like it.”
Charlie stepped back and offered his hand to Carlo Rizzo. “We shake on it Mr. Rizzo.” Charlie could see that Carlo Rizzo was actually holding back tears.
Charlie and Gina said good night to Carlo. Gina gave him a warm hug and started crying again. Charlie looked on and gave a slight nod to Carlo. He thanked Carlo for the lunch and the couple walked to the kitchen. Gina kissed Charlie and then said, “OK, Mullins put on your costume – cap and glasses please. We are going back out into the world now.”
Charlie put on the cap and glasses while Frankie stepped outside to look around and then said, “OK, Miss Gina, you can get into your car.” He held the driver side door for her.
“Thank you Frankie, say hi to the missus and the kids.”
“Thanks, will do, Miss Gina.”
As they drove back out of Carlo’s property the same suits were there and one of them was dutifully photographing the car again. Charlie was irritated by the intrusion. “Gina, they can’t get anything except dark windows. Why do they bother?”
“It’s just to remind us they are watching, Charlie. I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t even have any film in the camera. They just do it to keep the pressure on. I’ve gotten used to it. They leave me alone at home now because they have figured out that I am not involved in my uncle’s business affairs. I guess I was more ‘dangerous’ when I was nine than I am now!”
They drove back to Gina’s place and sat down to talk.
“Didn’t I tell you, Charlie? I told you Uncle Carlo would like you.”
“Gina, he is a fascinating guy. He could easily have been the CEO of some large company. I mean he is nothing like the way the press describes him.”
“Don’t underestimate him, Charlie. He is tough. He had to be. What do you do if you loan money to some guy or a business that can’t get credit from banks and then the guy refuses to pay you? You’re not going to discuss the matter in court. What do you do when the guy tells you that he owes you nothing because the deal was not legal? I don’t condone some of the things my uncle has done, but I do understand why he did them. Do you have any idea how many otherwise upstanding and outstanding members of society come to him for help? I mean, how would a person with a reputation like my uncle’s be able to open a bank account? You think the bankers don’t know who he is? They know and they like his money. They just don’t want people to know that they deal with him. So, it’s hypocritical but that’s just the way it is. In some ways my uncle is a CEO. He tried and still tries to stay out of the ugly stuff like drugs, prostitution, and porn. But we know it is all out there and would be anyway if my uncle was not around. He at least keeps it under control by making sure he has control over the money. That’s what it’s all for anyway. He can’t get rid of it, the government can’t get rid of it. I don’t think anybody can get rid of it. I wouldn’t say he is a benefactor of society by any means, but I’m not sure who really is in this world.”
“I was sure surprised to learn that old Phillip Shaw got started with a loan arranged by your uncle!”
“A Sicilian ‘loan arranger’” Gina giggled,
“even the pronunciation is right!” and she broke out in a laugh.
“Oh my God, Gina, how bad is that joke?!”
“Charlie Mullins, you would be surprised at the people who have come to my uncle for help! Unfortunately, because of the feds, he doesn’t exactly keep open records, you know?”
“Changing the subject, Gina, we are going to have to work out a plan for our life. Everything you and your uncle have told me has registered. Today, with the picture taking I got an initial taste of what things could be like. The minute our situation becomes official I will be out of Shaw in a New York minute. Fred Perkins will do the honors with gusto. I will not let that happen.”
“I have to admit”, Charlie continued “that my conversation with your uncle certainly messed around with my view of life. I was raised to think in a certain way. Work hard, do the right thing, and you will move ahead in life. My father died on the job. I have to ask myself what he really got for 30 years of hard work. A good conscience? Maybe that’s worth something, maybe it’s not. Was he happy? I think he probably was. Did he have power and control over his own life? Not really. He was what people would call a ‘good man’ but he will never see his grandchildren. I wonder how some of the things your uncle has done are markedly different from the things Fred Perkins did. And old Phillip Shaw selling to both sides of a war in which Americans are getting killed! How does that figure into my value system? I’m confused, Gina.”
“I had and still have the same kinds of doubts, Charlie. I see a lot of people in my volunteer work who get involved in public projects just to pad the bills and screw the city. They don’t care about the work itself. They just see an opportunity to make some money the easy way and get a citation from the city for doing it. They hang the award on the walls of their offices for all to see what great public-minded citizens they are and then go to my uncle to set up off-shore companies to evade taxes. Having been raised by my uncle’s ‘human side’, I always saw him as a man, not as a figure or an icon. He never hit me, even as a child and I don’t remember him ever raising his voice to me. He was a loving father. How do I reconcile things? I don’t. I just don’t judge. Could his life have been different than it was? How do I know? He survived and actually prospered. That’s all I am able to say.”
“You know, Gina, the Shaw Corporation would let me go without the slightest twinge of conscience. They wouldn’t and probably couldn’t afford to keep me around if I lost my security clearance. They would lose their government contracts. I would be a grain of sand in their gears and I would have to be removed. It’s just the way the game has to be played. I never had thought about it because I never had reason to. I had a nice boring and stable life. I just thought I was in control. I bought an illusion that was fed by my ‘acceptable behavior’ for one of ‘my station’. That could all be taken away because I broke the ‘rules’ and fell in love with someone who has the ‘wrong’ background.”
“Careful, Charlie,” Gina whispered to him, “You are angry. Don’t walk out on the ice before you know how thick it is. I agree with you about your vulnerability, but we can’t defy the system with impunity. You know that.”
“You’re right, Gina. I want to think this whole thing through. The one thing I am sure of right now is that I love you above everything else. I will not back away from a chance to be happy with a beautiful person.”
Gina’s eyes brimmed with tears again, “God, I’m a faucet today, Charlie. So much has happened in such a short time. My life has changed too. I never really expected to find someone like you. You are so special to me. What a day!” and she laughed lightly through her tears.
Charlie broke the mood, “Boy that was some lunch your uncle put on. I don’t remember ever eating such delicious food and in such quantity. I’m surprised he’s not 300 pounds!”
Gina laughed, “He doesn’t eat that way every day, Charlie. If he did he would be 300 pounds. Today was special for him too. Did you see that he was holding back tears as we were saying goodbye?”
“Yeah, he looked a bit emotional.”
“He accomplished the one truly personal goal he had worked for all his life, Charlie. He saw his daughter happy and in love. I think everything he ever did was to make that moment possible for me.”
Charlie pulled Gina to him and kissed her. She responded with passion and fire. They said nothing and moved toward the bedroom without breaking apart. They fell into bed and made love even more passionately than ever before. Exhausted physically and emotionally, they fell asleep in each others arms.
XX
Charlie awoke Monday morning to hear Gina already moving around in the kitchen. She was preparing breakfast. He padded out to the kitchen in his navy blue silk boxer shorts to see Gina putting coffee into the filter of the coffee maker. He came up behind her and hugged her tight. “Good morning beautiful, what are you doing up so early?”
“I’ve been up for about an hour, Charlie, I couldn’t sleep any more and I sat here thinking for a while. I’m so happy and so worried all at the same time.”
“Worried?”
“Of course, Charlie, you’ve got some tough choices to make and I want to be there for you. You will need my help and my love. I want it all to be sufficient to ease whatever pain you are going to experience.”
“Gina, don’t worry too much. Like you, I’m resilient. I’ve been thinking about this since you told me who your uncle really is. I confess that I still don’t have a firm plan, but I have prepared myself mentally for any contingency.”
“One thing is certain, Charlie you have to make sure that no one in Shoreville is able to find out who I am. That would be the biggest news ever to hit that town. Eligible bachelor links up with mafia princess! That would be the news of the century in that town and it would quickly spread around the Shaw Corporation. You are going to have to make sure those nosy women stay out of our lives. They are probably more dangerous even than the Feds.”
“For sure, Gina. They are certainly as aggressive or even more so. And they don’t know what they are looking for so if they find something out they will make more noise than a flock of parrots. I’ll go by Shoreville after work tonight, drive around a bit and then come back here. I’ll try to make sure some people see me. The company has an art show scheduled for next week and I will go to that too. I suppose I will have to try to maintain a semblance of my regular life to keep those broads mollified.”
“That’s the first priority, Charlie. We can talk about the other alternatives later. Now get yourself dressed, have some breakfast, and be off with you. You’ve got a lot of work to do!”
Charlie showered and shaved, being careful to avoid his Armani cologne. He didn’t want to give off any signals that he had changed in any way or changed any of his habits. “This is already starting to get complicated!” he thought as he shaved. Thus began Charlie Mullins’ clandestine life.
The first day at the office in Charlie’s new life was a busy one. Several department heads called to thank him for his comments on their draft budget proposals and quarterly reviews. Some of them had worked over the weekend and were sending back their revisions for comment. They all wanted to schedule a meeting with Charlie before having to confront Perkins.
XXI
At the end of the business portion of the first day of his new and potentially complicated life, Charlie drove to Shoreville from Wilmington.
He left the office at five as usual and drove over to Shoreville. He saw the familiar crowd of cars driving out of the Shaw laboratory parking lot on the Jersey side and he hoped that some of their drivers would see his car heading for home. He pulled up to his garage, parked his car inside, and entered the house. He had been in the house for only a few minutes when one of the timers turned on his living room lights. He sat down on the sofa and worked out a plan to be seen. He decided to go down to Rexall’s and buy himself some Aqua Velva and then pass by the Acme supermarket to pick up some groceries. He would take the groceries to Gina’s place in the trunk of
his car when he left later. That would take care of Monday night. He would show up at the bowling alley on Wednesday, drive around town after work on Thursday – maybe have a drink at Jimmy Balsamo’s place or the Royal Bar, and then sneak out to Philly later while everyone in Shoreville was having dinner. Since he often disappeared on Friday nights anyway, that was not a night he would have to cover. He would come back to the house, turn off the timers, and then set them again on Saturday after softball practice. Charlie figured if he stuck to this routine for a couple of weeks, he would be able to see if it was working as desired. If he got the wrong kind of feedback from any of the guys at the bowling alley or at softball practice, he could compensate accordingly.
He also had to find out when he was due for another security clearance at the company. Ideally it would either be immediately or a year from now. He was sure, however, that it was not the former because he was usually advised of the renewal and he had not heard anything in recent weeks. He would have to check with Laura. He was sure she would not tell Perkins. Fred was paranoid about anyone asking any questions about what happens in his area and he would want to know why Charlie had asked about his clearance. If the clearance was to occur soon, he could count on another year before his connection to Gina would become a “matter of national security”. He laughed to himself at the concept of Gina as a threat to national security.
