The Lagotti Family Series

by Leopold Borstinski

  Frank lit a second cigarette off his first and stared at the stars. They looked pretty, twinkling away. Those miniature balls of light represented a tranquility Frank hadn‘t experienced on this planet, but he knew soon he would get the reward for his years of hard work and persistence.

  “Isaak, come over here.”

  “Sure thing.”

  “On the day of the peace conference, I have a job for you to do. This is a special mission and is a secret that no-one else must ever know about.”

  “Okay...”

  “You won't be in the meeting but will be located in a nearby building with a sniper rifle. Your target is Mary Lou Lagotti.”

  Beat. Frank wanted Isaak to soak in the news before uttering another word. When he saw Isaak blink, he knew the guy was processing his mission.

  “If my sister gets hit too, that‘s a bonus, but the primary target is the most important. Any questions?”

  “And I‘m doing this under your protection?”

  “Yes. Once the deed is done then I will show my gratitude. Until then, you speak of this to no-one. Understand?”

  “I do. What about Bobby?”

  “There is no need to take him out, but I will not be upset if he died in the crossfire.”

  “Who will protect you in the room?”

  “Don‘t worry about me. I can look after myself.”

  Frank chuckled and then checked himself because Isaak was staring at him stone-faced. He was seeing the enormity of the task he’d been given and had nothing to laugh about. They had conspired to murder the boss of the entire family and this was set to happen in a handful of days, not in some theoretical future but before the weekend. Frank dismissed Isaak, lay back and stared at the stars once more. He was on the cusp of victory.

  AT ONE IN the morning, Frank realized he hadn‘t moved and was cold, especially his fingers and toes. He hauled himself upright and slinked indoors, hands in his pockets. Through the conservatory and into the main body of the house. The living room sure was warmer but something was missing. There was a fire in his belly and he wanted companionship: either to share his hopes for the next few days or someone to fuck and he wasn't certain which he needed more. The answer was simple: Sammy.

  Frank found Isaak and got him to drive to the west side of town and an unremarkable condo which was one of the many real-estate assets owned by the Lagottis for use as safe houses and crash pads. As she wasn‘t part of the family, neither Bobby nor Mama were happy for Sammy to spend all her time at home, but Frank had insisted they protect her and that she was nearby for him.

  He‘d had the presence of mind to call before he drove over - it was the middle of the night - so when he popped the key in the lock, Sammy stood waiting for him in the hallway. She had a bottle of French champagne in one hand and two glasses in the other, wearing only a dirty smile and a red G-string.

  “Hi, baby. Figured you might fancy something with a bit of fizz.”

  “Sure do. Put those things down and we can get started.”

  SAMMY WOKE UP at four and wondered what the hell had happened. Her nose was next to someone's hairy shins and her crotch hurt and was bruised. She looked around, saw Frank and the recent past came rushing back into view. She‘d sashayed into the kitchen to put the champagne in the fridge and when she turned round, Frank stood there as naked as the day he was born wielding a semi between his legs.

  They licked, sucked and squeezed their way around each other‘s bodies until she sat on the counter and he‘d forced himself inside her. Something didn‘t feel right, but he ignored her and kept ramming it in, only stopping when he‘d come.

  Sammy pushed him off and limped to the bathroom to be apart from him for a short while. When she returned, he was sat in bed with two glasses of champagne poured, waiting.

  “You hurt me.”

  “Fuck-a-doodle-do. Sorry babe, I got carried away. Get under the sheets and I‘ll make it up to you.”

  Sammy did as she was bid and Frank kept his promise with his tongue, smothering every inch of her skin with his salivary caresses. By the time he reached her groin, Sammy had forgiven him despite her discomfort and even reciprocated in kind.

  The next thing she knew, it was four and she was lying the wrong way round in her bed. Rearranging herself took twenty seconds and after two sips of flat champagne, Sammy fell back to sleep.

  IN THE MORNING, Sammy woke first and felt much better about herself. Frank lay sprawled out like a starfish and Sammy reflected how cute he appeared when he was sleeping. He built up a gruff exterior for most people, but she enjoyed being alone with him because he didn‘t bother pretending with her.

  The sheets were on the floor. With goosebumps on her arms, she realized that was why she‘d woken up - and she cast an eye over his arms, torso and legs. She noticed his dick flop over to one side. With a finger and thumb, she propped it back to its earlier position, but it refused to obey her will.

  Sammy tried three further times and failed on three more occasions. Because of the movement, he got harder, so she bent over him and licked him until his helmet pointed upwards. Frank was half awake by this point and Sammy massaged herself until she sat on him. His eyes widened, but he lay still, letting her do all the work. An intense judder ran up and down her spine ending in an extreme pain-pleasure pulse deep in her groin. She got off him before an arc of spunk hurtled around his legs, her body, the bed and every available surface.

  “Good morning.”

  “Sure is.”

  “I‘ve missed you.”

  “That‘s why I came a-visiting. I wanted you.”

  “Glad you did. You able to stay long?”

  “Not really. Things still aren‘t safe but in a few days‘ time it will be different.”

  Frank let the idea hang in the air. He yearned to show off in front of his woman, but knew this was a mighty dangerous plan.

  “How so?”

  “We will sort out all the family business. And when that‘s done, I‘ll be on top of the world.”

  Sammy giggled and snuggled into Frank, the thought of wallowing in the shadow of his glory a major aphrodisiac. She ran a hand over his chest and dug her nails into his skin enough to feel him but not to cause him discomfort. She wriggled until her lips were touching an ear and whispered.

  “And I‘ll be on top of you as long as you want.”

  “It‘s going to be a great ride.”

  “You sure are.”

  They fooled around more until Frank got hungry and wanted to stop. Sammy hopped out of bed and prepared breakfast for both. Once he‘d emptied his plate and glugged back his coffee, Frank made an announcement.

  “Gotta go. Keep yourself hot and I‘ll be back as soon as I can.”

  He whipped out from under the sheets, threw on his clothes and hustled out the door and into Isaak‘s waiting car. Sammy lay there for fifteen minutes, then she showered, cleaned up the chaotic mess they‘d created and carried on with her day.

  41

  ALICE WOKE UP and had breakfast in the kitchen, pleased Frank was nowhere to be seen. They were getting on better these last few days than ever before in their lives, but Alice thought they were just on their best behavior due to the Markov trouble rushing toward them at high speed. Once that moment passed - if it did - chances are they‘d revert to past patterns. It‘s what people did.

  She crunched her wheat toast and sipped her orange juice in silence, the sounds of her munching echoing around her skull. Irma breezed through and offered to make her a coffee, but Alice declined: she‘d wait a little today.

  Breakfast downed and OJ slurped, Alice heard a dragging sound from outside: a terrible screeching of plastic or metal. She popped outside to investigate although she knew it was nothing serious: the sentries would have taken care of any external threat.

  Mama was hauling a sun lounger from one side of the pool to the other - for no real reason Alice could surmise.

  “Let me help you with that.”

  “Thank yo
u.”

  “Where do you want it?”

  Mary Lou pointed to a shady spot that already had a lounger only ten feet away. Alice smiled but felt ill at ease with the illogical decision Mama had made. She picked up the lounger - none of them were heavy - and brought it past the diving board and over to the other side of the pool.

  “There you go.”

  “Thank you.”

  Mary Lou shuffled over and placed her towel on the new seating, then she sat down and Alice watched as her body relaxed in the shade created by the summerhouse. Alice took advantage of the calm and rested next to her Mama using the lounger she‘d recently spotted. The two women remained silent for a spell until Alice broke the moment.

  “I‘m worried.”

  “What about?”

  “The Markov situation, of course.”

  “You don‘t need to be concerned, Cindy. Everything will be fine.”

  Alice froze and gripped the armrests of the sun lounger as she heard the name of the long-dead housekeeper: Mama had no idea who she was.

  ALICE UNCLAMPED HER hands after three deep breaths and turned her head to face her Mama. Mary Lou was scratching at her elbow, idling the morning away. Her skin was red with the attention it was receiving.

  “Don‘t scratch: it‘ll only make things worse.”

  Mary Lou acknowledged with a nod, but carried on gouging her nails into her flesh. Alice did her best to ignore it.

  “Do you think we‘ll be able to get a deal with Markov?”

  “Who?”

  “Nikolay Markov.”

  “Oh, you don‘t need to worry about him. He will be dead soon. You can be sure of that.”

  “We‘re not killing him, we are negotiating a peace with him.”

  “If you say so, dear. But he‘ll be in the morgue within a week.”

  Alice ignored this outburst because it made no sense. Even Frank had come round to the idea that they diffuse the Markov clan now and only attack when all the heat from New York was off. Wasn‘t ideal by a wide margin, but it was the most pragmatic solution and was the surest way to save Mama‘s life.

  Bobby walked past to get to the summerhouse and Alice looked up at him as he journeyed by. When she glanced back at Mama, a red river was trickling down her arm and she kept on scratching, regardless. Alice sprung up and rushed over, pushing Mama‘s hand out of the wound and holding the elbow up.

  “Oh, Mama. I told you not to keep doing that.”

  There was anger in her voice, partly aimed at her mom and some at herself for not taking care of her better. Of allowing Mary Lou to harm herself right in front of Alice‘s eyes. She ran to the kitchen to get a towel and instructed Irma to bring a plaster. Five minutes later and everything was calm again - on the surface at least.

  ALICE LEFT MAMA with Irma and returned to the house to find the number for the twenty-four-hour nurse. The time for talk was over. Her Mama needed to be cared for and watched over at all times. Since her reappearance at the Palace, all had seemed to settle down and they had become complacent. But no more.

  Even though they needed someone over immediately, Alice accepted they‘d have to wait three days before anyone reliable could be sent. This was not what she wanted to hear, but she knew she had to accept their fate. In the meantime, Naldo would stand guard around the clock. When he slept, one of the other fellas would take over. Alice would ensure Mama had the best care available and would stay safe.

  A quick walk along the outskirts of the grounds and Alice found Naldo to issue him his instructions as a trusted compatriot. Then she went back to the pool to check on Mama: all was good, so she spoke with Bobby in the summerhouse.

  BOBBY SAT AT the desk scribbling on a piece of paper and didn‘t appear to notice Alice was with him. Quarter of a page later, he looked up and nodded, then carried on writing.

  “Sorry, I‘ll be with you in a minute. If I don‘t write this down now, I‘ll forget it all.”

  “De nada.”

  Alice sprawled onto one of the armchairs, trying to remain as cool as ice, knowing she had terrible news to impart and had no idea what to say. Her lips were dry and her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. Bobby stopped, put his pen down and sauntered over to the couch, opposite Alice with a low table in between them. He picked up half a cigar from the ashtray in front of him and lit it for the millionth time that day. It had been a busy morning.

  “You look like you want to talk.”

  “Yep... How d‘you say Mama‘s been since we got back from the Palace?”

  Bobby sunk into the couch a few inches more, his positive disposition floated out under the crack in the door. He sighed and sat forward in his seat.

  “Between the Markovs and New York, I haven‘t given it too much of my attention.”

  “Me neither - until just now.”

  “And?”

  “She didn‘t recognize me and gouged a hole in her arm.”

  Beat.

  “Mama has dementia and we‘re not helping her by pretending it‘s not happening. I‘m talking about both of us: I am not blaming you for any of this.”

  Silence.

  “I called the nursing agency we found but they can‘t send anyone over for a couple of days, so Naldo will mind her until then.”

  Bobby cast his eyes downward and squeezed himself into the smallest space he could fit in. Alice moved over and sat next to him, placing a hand on a shoulder. Tears rolled down his cheeks and he rocked forward and back. A man in pain.

  ALICE WASN‘T TOO sure what to do. She wanted to offer Bobby solace, but she was experiencing the same agony as him. Where was his comforting hand on her shoulder? He was meant to be the adult and she was the child in their relationship. That had broken down with Mama, but it didn‘t have to be that way with Bobby. She let him cry his heart out from the mental loss of his wife of over twenty-five years.

  “It wasn‘t supposed to be like this.”

  “No, but she‘s alive and physically healthy. Our job is to make sure she survives past the weekend and lives a comfortable life. Some days she‘ll be with us and others... she‘ll have left the room.”

  Now Alice couldn‘t contain herself any longer - all the anguish flooded out in salty tears and Bobby held her in his arms until her crying subsided. Then she kissed him on the cheek and they sat back to collect themselves together.

  “You‘re a good man, Bobby Trevisan.”

  “That‘s what your mother used to say to me.”

  “Still true today.”

  “Kind of you, but I‘m not sure you‘re right.”

  “Take the compliments when they land.”

  “Thank you, then.”

  “WHEN YOU AND Frank were little, we used to go on picnics and you guys would be content to play with a ball. Your mom and I would lie around watching you two and simply enjoy being in each other‘s company.”

  “Happy days. I don‘t remember that. Earliest memory I have is of a trip Frank and I took to a factory. Some bad guys locked us in a cupboard and Mama rescued us. I didn‘t know if it was real or a nightmare.”

  “Was real. I‘d been out of the business two years and met your mom three or four months earlier than your cupboard nightmare, I think. Feels like it was a lifetime ago.”

  “For me it was.”

  Bobby laughed because Alice was right. She and Frank had only just learned to walk when they were kidnapped. All over a couple of pounds of heroin and a drug deal gone south. After that the Lagotti family made its mark once Mary Lou whacked Charlie Pentangelo. She had been one hell of a woman.

  42

  “ONCE WE‘VE MADE peace with Markov, we will need someone to lead this family.”

  “Do you have anyone in mind?”

  Bobby laughed.

  “You, me or Frank. Or a combination.”

  “Combination makes sense. If we work together, we make better decisions, wouldn‘t you say?”

  “Yeah. Can the three of us operate as a team?”

  Now it w
as Alice‘s turn to laugh. Bobby was asking leading questions, just so he wasn‘t the first one to nix Frank‘s name on the letterhead.

  “I really can‘t say. What d‘you reckon?”

  “It‘s not my place to stand between you two. Never has, but you guys have unresolved issues, so to speak.”

  “Been a long time since we agreed on anything. And he‘s too quick to temper: always looking for a fight. I mean, one minute we agree to negotiate a truce and before the words have left our lips, he runs off to San Francisco maiming, killing and setting up brothels. Those are not the actions of a team player.”

  “I hear you, but he gets shit done. He flew over to Boston then Atlantic City and created a quality revenue stream from nothing. Neither of us have done that.”

  “And what are the lottery cards? Chopped fucking liver?“

  “Sorry, that‘s something I haven‘t achieved - not for decades, anyway.”

  “Better. Sometimes I wonder if anything I accomplish gets noticed. The effort to get the Queen of Sheba up-and-running nearly killed me. Mama was more interested in bailing out her precious Frank. Again.”

  “We knew how hard you were working and how difficult it was. As you‘re so reliable, we got into the habit of leaving you alone because you don‘t generally need hand-holding. Frank has been tied to his mom‘s apron strings for far too long. It‘s only since Boston that he‘s stood on his own two feet.”

  “So you‘re saying Frank should run the show?”

  “DON‘T PUT WORDS in my mouth. I‘m just pointing out he‘s a lot more capable now than he used to be.”

  “So do you want him or not?”