Mobster's Vendetta (9 page)

“I don’t know nothing!” he yells.

Vito pulls back his arm, clenches his fist,
and punches the guy directly in the face to shut him up.

“Don’t knock him out,” I say, but I’m too
late. The guy goes slack, his legs giving out, and Vito is holding
him up by only the front of his white t-shirt.

“Mannegia
! What did you do that for?”
I huff.

“I didn’t hit him that hard. The fucking guy
is a chooch!” Vito says remorsefully.

“Come on,” I say, a little disgusted, and
move back down the alley towards the SUV. Vito drags this Zee guy
along by his shirt behind me.

I pop open the back, and Vito shoves the guy
in. He binds his hands and feet with duct tape and shoves a rag in
his mouth. I call Carlo.

“We got him. Be there in fifteen. Have the
room ready,” I instruct.

I drive us right past the casino main
entrance to a small underground garage entryway at the back of the
building. Carlo is waiting there. He moves a sawhorse out of the
way, and I steer past him into the basement of the casino.

The bluish-tinted lights are bright in the
hollow expanse of underground. Noises and voices echo in the
cavernous space. I was going to interrogate this guy in the alley,
but Vito knocked him out, changing my plans.

I push the button for the back door to the
SUV. Vito hoists Zee out and throws him over his shoulder, still
unconscious. Across the private garage is a room specifically made
for this kind of thing, similar to a police interrogation
room...except this room includes many forms of, um, illegal
components to physically extract information. A two-way mirror,
metal table, and chairs are probably the only things in the room
that are not made for hurting someone.

Alex meets us there. The four of us have
some work to do. No one likes doing this kind of shit, but it is
necessary and part of the code to keep people in line. Finding
Uncle Tutti is my primary concern right now, and this fucker is
supposed to have answers for me.

My adrenaline starts to pump and flow. Vito
carries the guy into the room. Against the wall are shackles, and
Alex helps Vito by binding the traitor to the wall. The guy’s head
hangs to his chest, and his arms and legs are spread eagle.

I walk behind the two-way mirror. Carlo is
arranging the equipment we need. He slips a clip out of a pistol,
checks it, and clicks it back in. On a shelf in the room is a
bottle of smelling-salts.

“You ready,” he asks me.

“Ready when you are,” I tell him.

I try to suppress my monster. It is
seething, gearing up for what it knows is coming. My thoughts
antagonize my body, getting it set.

This guy defected from his family, is
helping my uncle...an uncle that attempted to strangle the life out
of my girlfriend, a man who wants to see my father taken down. My
loathing and hatred grows with every thought.

In the other room, Vito and Alex wait. Carlo
and I come in, and I stand in the back while Carlo waves the
smelling-salts underneath the nose of the defector. He rouses
slowly, his unconsciousness battling the harsh aroma. Whatever this
guy shot up or took before we found him is probably wearing off.
Carlo waves the small bottle again. The second time is more
effective and a small moan escapes his mouth. His pasty, greasy
skin is more evident as he slowly awakens.

“Wake up, Zee!” Carlo says loudly.

Unintelligible rumbles sound from the guy’s
chest. Carlo raises his hand and slaps him. Zee groans with the
harsh contact. His limbs shake and sweat pours down his face. He’s
obviously going through withdrawal. A hint of recognition forms in
his eyes. Carlo slaps him again on the other cheek, a whimper
escapes his lips.

“Where is Tutti?!” Carlo yells at him.

“I don’t know anythin’!” Zee cries out.

“Don’t bullshit me, you fuck!” Carlo is
pissed. He rears back his fist and punches the guy square in the
stomach. Agony is clearly written on the traitor’s face. It is
going to be a long day if this asshole keeps it up.

“Let him hang there for a while,” Vito says.
“When his hands and feet go numb, he’ll talk.”

I nod my head. I agree. If we just let this
guy hang here, he’ll talk eventually. We all leave the room and go
to stand behind the mirror. My phone buzzes, I pull it out. It’s
Patrick.

“Hello.”

“When you get what you need from Zee, call
me,” Patrick says.

He hangs up. Hasn’t Patrick ever heard of
small talk? I think sarcastically.

Carlo calls upstairs to the casino kitchen
to order lunch for us.

He hangs up grinning wickedly. “How about a
little blackjack while we wait?”

“Dude, you are so fucking lame at blackjack!
Why do you torture yourself? I don’t mind taking your money, but
I’m also your friend. You suck!” Alex exclaims.

Personally, sitting down and playing
blackjack while my girlfriend is upstairs does not interest me
anyway. I have the urge to head to the top floor to see Megan.

“I’m going upstairs. If anything happens or
you think this ass smartens up, call me, and I’ll come back down.”
I tell them.

“No problem, Tonio,” Alex says, grabbing a
deck of cards. “We’ll take care of it for you.”

I pass through the door out to the garage
towards the elevators. I feel a presence behind me. It’s Vito
following me upstairs. I press the elevator button and tap in the
code. My heart rate accelerates wanting to be close to Megan.

“Aren’t you going stay with the guys?” I ask
while we wait.

“Nah, I’ll come upstairs.”

Erin’s upstairs. The thought clicks like a
light switch. I’m not sure what I think of his interest. Alessandra
is thoroughly convinced that Vito is in love with Erin, but,
seriously, he’s too old for her...too rough. Erin needs a nice
quiet guy. Someone who is not involved in all this shit.

The elevator doors open and Joey steps
out.

“I heard you have someone down here. How is
it going?” he asks.

“He needs to hang around a bit before he
spills what he’s got.” I tell him. Vito laughs at my stupid
pun.

“We’ll catch you later,” I say as Vito and I
enter the elevator.

*****

Megan:

I am shocked when Antonio and Vito stepped
through the suite door. I hadn’t expected to see him again for a
long time. My body had a mind of its own when I raced across the
room and threw myself at him. He picks me up, and I wrap my legs
around his body. He squeezes me tight and laughs into my hair.

“Well, hello to you too,” he says
chuckling.

“What are you doing here?” I ask
breathlessly.

“I have some business here, but it can wait
until later.” He puts me down, but doesn’t remove his arms from
around my waist. “Where is Erin?”

“She’s sleeping,” I answer.

As he sweeps me up in his arms and carries
me towards my bedroom, he glances at Vito who is getting himself a
cup of coffee. “Let me know if anything happens.”

“Yup,” Vito clips without turning to see
us.

Antonio kicks the door closed with his foot
and plops me on the bed. He follows me down, kissing me with a
drugging passion...like we didn’t just see each other
yesterday.

*****

An hour or so later, Vito knocks on the
door. “He’s awake.”

“Who’s awake?” I ask. Antonio’s heated eyes
find mine as he begins to rise.

“Nobody.” He kisses me again. “But I have to
go,” he says reluctantly. He pushes himself off my bed, and I feel
the loss of his warmth.

As we come out of my room, Erin is in a
chair with her legs curled up reading a book. Vito has the TV
remote in his hand as he sits on the couch looking bored. Vito and
Erin apparently aren’t speaking. I’ve noticed that they tend to
avoid each other lately. It confuses me, even more when I think of
Vito buying all those expensive clothes for my sister. I haven’t
asked her yet if she’s thanked him. We’ve all been through so much
together; their sudden aloofness towards each other is odd.

Vito pops off the couch and tosses the
remote on the coffee table and stretches, his muscles rippling
under his shirt. Antonio reaches for my face and kisses me
gently.

“I have to go,” he says. I don’t want him
to. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” And they leave just as
quickly as they showed up.

*****

I have barely sat down when the suite door
opens.

“How about some target practice? Not that
you need much.” Joey quips as he comes in. He observes Erin and
me.

I look over at my sister, not really wanting
to leave her. I’d love to get out of here, though. I am so sick of
staying cooped up. Especially since Alessandra left this morning
for Palmetto and Clarissa is at dinner with her family in their
suite.

“Can I come too?” Erin asks. Joey is as
dumbfounded as I am.

“Umm, I guess so,” Joey says, unsure. Erin
dashes into her bedroom for her shoes. “That’s new.”

“I know. But, it’s a good sign right?” I ask
Joey, perplexed.

“Yeah. It’s better than locking yourself in
the suite all the time.”

We arrive at the basement floor. This time
when the doors open, no one is there.

“Where is everybody?” I ask.

“It’s Sunday. Everyone is on the floor.
Those seniors can be pretty rough.” Joey chuckles. “It is usually
arguments over machines...someone hogging too many.”

“Oh.”

Erin’s eyes are like saucers when she takes
in the sophisticated room. “I didn’t know this was all down here,”
she says in amazement.

“Only security, bodyguards, and enforcers
are allowed down here,” Joey tells her.

Joey takes us through to Gilly’s room, and
he’s is sitting at the multitude of screens chomping on a powdered
doughnut.

“Hey, what a great surprise!” Gilly
exclaims.

“Hi, Gilly. Nice to see you again,” I say.
“This is my sister, Erin.”

Gilly’s face is beaming. He obviously
doesn’t have many visitors down here, probably just sees the same
guys every day.

“We’ll be in the range,” Joey states.

Joey walks Erin and I into the range. Erin
takes my hand, which is understandable as the room is very
cavernous and intimidating.

“I think we’re going to try a rifle today,”
Joey says.

He picks up a long, heavy-looking gun with a
round black thing on the top. Erin steps back as Joey moves me
towards the lane. I pick up the headphones and place them on my
ears, and Joey hands me the rifle. He picks up another headset,
handing it to Erin who covers her ears. After he has put on his own
ear protection, he moves me into position.

“Put the butt of the gun against your
shoulder. Like this.” He moves my hands and arms into the correct
spot. This doesn’t feel as comfortable as the pistol. The rifle is
heavy and awkward. “Look through the site,” he instructs. “Aim it
so that the cross is in the middle of your target.”

He moves my hands a little bit more,
adjusting them. I turn my head to look at Erin, just to check on
her. She is watching in awe as I prepare to fire.

“How’s this?” I ask him. He stands back to
admire his handiwork.

“Looks good. Whenever you’re ready,
fire.”

I lean down focusing myself. I force my eye
to look through the site. I line it up...and pull the trigger.

The gun bucks wildly,
jamming into my shoulder painfully. I let out an
OUCH!
I was not ready for
that.

“Are you okay?” Joey asks in a panic. He
rubs my shoulder. “I forgot to tell you about that! Sorry!” My
shoulder feels as if someone rode a motorcycle over it.

Erin comes over to examine me. “You okay,
Meg!”

“I’m fine. It just startled me, that’s all,”
I say letting out a breath.

Joey hits the button on the panel. The
target swings towards us. There is a hole just off the center of
the heart. Good. But not as good as my shooting with the
pistol.

“Wow, you still had a great shot though!”
Erin says excited. “Can I try to?” she asks Joey.

Joey’s face becomes indecisive. “Well...” He
pauses a long time.

Erin speaks up again. “I’d like to learn how
to defend myself. I’m tired of feeling helpless and weak.”

Joey and I share a look. I can tell in his
eyes, and he can probably tell in mine, that this is a big step for
her, and we shouldn’t dismiss it.

“Okay. Meg, why don’t you keep practicing.
I’ll set Erin up over here.”

Joey and Erin walk all the way down to the
far end. He selects a small pistol. I watch for a minute as he
points out the different parts of the gun and stuff. He is showing
her how to hold it, how to load it. I can’t really hear them with
my headphones on, but I note how my sister looks so tiny next to
Joey.

I position myself again with the rifle,
attempting to remember everything that Joey has shown me. This time
though, I rest my elbows on the counter and bend down.

I fire off a couple of shots until the ache
in my shoulder becomes too much. I relax for a few seconds and
stand up straight, working the cramp out of my shoulder.

I feel rather than see the door open, and
suddenly I recognize a new presence in the room. I turn my head to
see a man I don’t know standing about ten feet from me.

Joey yells, “Get down!”

Don’t think, just do. I drop to my knees and
throw my body under the counter between the lanes. Clutching the
rifle, I sneak a peek at the stranger. His clothes are torn and he
is talking to himself wildly as he bounces around the room like a
monkey in an unwanted cage, trapped.

An instant later I see Antonio and Vito in
the doorway, breathing heavily. Without a thought, my body raises
the rifle and aims. A familiar kind of protectiveness overcomes me.
Antonio sees me at the last second and yells to me, his hand
raised, “Just nick him! Don’t kill him!”