ASCENSION (36 page)

Alfonzo’s
eye
s
w
ere
bruised
and swollen.
Several cuts traversed one side of his neck then disappeared beneath gauze wrapped around his chest and shoulder.
T
he
bandage on his head was tinged with speckles of blood. To Domingo he resembled a wounded soldier seen in those old war footage movies.

“
I signed myself out once I got sprung
,”
Alfonzo replied
stepping away from
the door.

Domingo
hurried
inside, “You still haven’t spoke
n
with Selange?”

“N
o
.
”

“I
got you
a direct flight out of JFK leaving at four. So hurry up!”

“Thanks,
gimme
a
sec
.”

Alfonzo donned the clothes Domingo brought then sat down to eat the still warm take-out. He reached inside the bag for the beer.
“Good looking out.”

“No sweat
, I figured you’d
need
it
.”

***

The drive
to the airport
was swift with Domingo at the wheel.
Alfonzo
found
himself
doz
ing as a result of the powerful pain medication and awakened at JFK.
Domingo
removed a pair of shades from the glove department
along with a
New York Yankee
baseball
cap
for Alfonzo to put on.
“Here, cover your face before you scare everybody.”

Alfonzo snickered and put them on.

Domingo assisted his cousin out of the car and helped
him to
checkin before leaving
. Alfonzo passed through screening in a medicated induced fog and sometime later boarded the plane making his way to first class then flopped down in his seat. He fell asleep blinking rapidly as he sunk into a da
rk endless pit.

Wind and fire blew around him
as he stood
on a high clif
f overlooking
a
barren
plain.
From the black empty landscape a smoky apparition
began to
form from nothingness.
Smoke swirled
like a slow moving tornado; it
spiraled
high
into
the
air
, drifting closer
and closer until final
ly
it surrounded him.
He swung
his arms wildly at the smoke and
it
became
a
solid form
o
f
flesh
.
The flesh suddenly multiplied into masses of bone and tissue.

H
e
inched away
in disgust as the
ghastly
forms began to twist, their deformed bodies b
listered torsos
and legs.
They
fell to his feet with
loud
sickening thud
s then slid along the scorched ground and
meld into
one form
.
I
t was Gina
.
It
screech
ed
with
l
aughter as
stood immobilized as fire raged from the molten earth. He was on fire…burning…incinerating and the laughter escalated
…a hand reached out to him…a light in the bowels of hell…a face of goodness…Selange.

He reached for her hand and the fire consumed it. He continued to burn and he watched as the hand that reached for him faded into nothingness!

“Sir, sir!”

Alfonzo sat forward abruptly, “What the…
fuck
?”
His body was on fire. Sweat poured from his scalp. He’d traveled from winter to summer in the span of hours.
He looked
into the face of a concerned stewardess. A
round
him
passengers
gathered their overhead luggage preparing to disembark. How long had he slept? What the hell did the dream mean?

“Sir we’ve landed. Are you okay?”

“
Yeah…yeah I’m good.”
He replied despite the queasiness in his stomach. He unbuckled the lap restraint and hurried from the plane.

CHAPTER TWENTY—
NINE

D
ominick
faced the old man
without fear
, b
old
er
since learning of the
old man’s
heart condition. Inevitably,
Frank Monticelli would
meet his demonic creator and Dominick could
steer
the organization on its proper course.

Frank ordered the bodyguards out and squared his shoulders
.
Dominick possessed a charm and leadership quality lacking in his
late
son Maximo.
However,
Frank was not fooled by Dominick’s cool
composure and saw
the
h
unger for power in the dark eyes. Waiting, hoping he’d croak
and soon.

“Why are you here
Dom?”

“Sinesi visited me
and left
his
calling card
.
He said he needs to
speak to you about
Maximo
.”

“
It’s a
ploy
to flush me out, did
you
think of that?”

“Of course, but unless he’s following me by chopper, I don’t think he’ll be banging
on your door any time soon.”

Dominick circled the room and stood by the open drapes to peer down at the courtyard
below.
“I want some answers. What connection did you have
to
Gina Palazzo?”

Frank scoffed, “
You have
come here to ask about
Luzo Palazzo’s whore-wife
?”

“And to hear from your old lips the truth about the Giacanti’s.”

Frank scowled, “Are you wired or something?” He jumped out of his
c
hair and
personally patted down his
niece’s husband.
Satisfied he was not wired, he
shov
ed
Dominick
against the wall
and pointed a finger in his face.
“You insolent bastard!”

Dominick straightened his clothes
,
“
Whew, I see you’re highly sensitive today. Is
everything
okay.
How’s the ticker?”

Frank waved a hand
to slap
his nephew-in-law
then reconsidered
, “Sit down and shut up
!”

Dominick claimed a seat and crossed his legs. He waited calmly for the elder man
to flop in his seat. The stress
became
evident
o
n the
old wrinkled
face. Secretly, Dominick smiled.

“Despite the rumors I had nothing to do with the murders of the Giacanti’s.
Sergio and I were once friends
;
that is until
he
…” Frank coughed then cleared his throat.

“You need some water?”

“No, I’m al
l
right.”

There was a knock on the door and the
grey hair
butler
stuck his
head
in
, “
Ah,
Mr. Monticelli sorry to interrupt but it’s
six
o’clock.”

“Thanks
Pietro
,
gimme
a sec.”

The door closed and Frank leaned back, “
Y
a
know I’m not always
gonna
’
be around.
You want to know
what happened
to t
he
Giacanti’s
?
Well, I’ll tell you. Sergio and I
were
friends until he seduced my first wife. I learned about the affair by chance
. She was pregnant
and sought an abortion. She died in
a back alley
butcher shop
attempting to rid her body of his spawn to keep their secret. Of course
I was
distraught
and
angry
. I resented
my old friend
and
cursed him but I did not seek
revenge by killing his
family,
that
is not my style.
Whomever
did such a thing used the
knowledge of our estrangement to their advantage.
The only pleasure I seek is taking from
the
Palazzo’s what t
hey love
most, money and power.
”
He pretended to
spit on the floor, “The
IBD
are
worse than fools
for banishing me from their ranks
. After the murders I was forced to flee Italy with my
family
and c
a
me to America. Many years later, I learned through
friends loyal to me
a
L
uzo Palazzo arrived in Florence
and I set about securing what I sought
.
It was no secret Luzo enjoyed the company of beautiful women so I gave him what he wanted.”

“Gina?”

“Yes, the daughter of an old friend.
Beautiful, charming but a whore nonetheless.
She was the bait and he took it.”

“But why, for what?”

“Why?” Frank laughed, “Influence young fo
ol. If Gina had not been barren and bore Luzo a son
our families would be
united
and Alfonzo would not have inherited
such power.
”

Dominick frowned.
He tried to follow the old man’s logic but found it faulty.
“What
does
Luzo Palazzo or his son have to do with the Giacanti’s?”

“
Aye, you are dense. Must I spell it out to you?
Luzo Palazzo’s birth name is Salvatore Giacanti. He is the son of my former friend, Sergio.
He was not present during the killings and went into exile only to resurface under an assumed name.
”

“I still don’t understand
. He is not responsible for the indiscretions of your adulterous wife or his father. Why make an enemy of him?
”

“
He holds a
ccess to wealth and secrets Sergio acquired
when we
aid
ed
the widow of a
very astute
banker
captured
during the war.
Half which is rightfully mine!
Sergio provided safe shelter and I the documents
needed for the widow’s
passage to America. In return
Sergio
and I
were to share in the wealth
but he cheated me and slept with
my wife
. My revenge for his crimes
were
snatched from my grasp by whomever murdered the Giacanti’s. Apparently, there is another who knows of the ledger’s
existence.”

“
How do we know the ledger still exists
?”

“
It exists.
The banker was a corrupt man
who
stole fortunes during wartime and scattered the money in various accounts. He also maintained a detailed
list of wrongdoings of his many clients.
Sons of sons who today sit in government and politics or heads of corporations
around the world
.
This young fool is how Luzo and
h
is son have
prevailed where we have not. As long as this knowledge and wealth is solely in their possession their family will remain untouchable.”

This latest information piqued Dominick’s interest, so this
i
s how Alfonzo
managed to curry favor within the international business community. The old man called him a fool but from where he sat it appeared otherwise. Luzo’s son was the key to these documents. Why waste time with the I.B.D?