Making Angel (Mariani Crime Family Book 1) (7 page)

“Couple of wannabes?” Bones asked.

“Man, I hope not.”

Occasionally people heard stories about my family. Sometimes the stories glorified our life and made people want to experience it for themselves. It really sucked when these people were disillusioned kids who lacked parental guidance. Batman saw us watching him and nodded like he knew us. Then, with Spidey in tow, Batman strutted over in his hundred-dollar sneakers. The duo stopped right in front of us and waited. I pretended not to notice them, returning my attention back to my siblings on the cakewalk.

I could feel Batman watching me for a while before he finally grew the balls to say hello. I wasn’t about to encourage whatever visions of mob life grandeur the kid had, so I didn’t respond.

“Hey,” he said again, taking another step toward me. “Cool costume.”

Bones cleared his throat and stepped forward, crossing his arms and standing with his feet apart.

I glanced down at the kid. He looked at Bones and swallowed, but didn’t back down. He focused back on me and asked, “You Luci and Georgie’s brother?”

“Yeah. Do I know you, kid?”

He nodded. “I’m Tanner. Tanner Michaels. My dad helps your dad out sometimes.”

Spiderman snickered.

I frowned. Some idiot associated with my father had been stupid enough to discuss business in front of his child. And like most children, Tanner clearly had a big mouth. Michaels. I couldn’t place the name, but would have to mention it to the old man. Could be the kid was lying altogether, but I’d have to make sure. Focusing back on the problem at hand, I shrugged and asked, “So?”

That seemed to burst Tanner’s bubble a little. He took a step back and glanced around. “Just thought I’d say hi,” he replied.

The last thing I needed was some punk kid following me around trying to be a wiseguy. I crossed my arms and looked down at him. “Yeah? Well, you said it.” Then I dismissed him and turned away.

Tanner didn’t know what to do. I watched out of the corner of my eye as he and Spiderman stood stunned for almost a full minute before scurrying off like they suddenly had someplace to be.

“You know who his dad is?” I asked Bones.

Bones pulled out his phone and tapped the screen to life. “Nope. But I’m about to find out.”

“Good.” I wasn’t a violent person, but I’d gladly make an exception for a father who knowingly put his kid in danger just to look cool.

Not long after our encounter with Batman and Spiderman, the twins got their fill of the carnival. It was a little after seven, so we stopped by enough churches to fill their sacks with enough candy to keep them jacked up on sugar until next Halloween before carrying the exhausted duo to the door.

“You’re the best brother ever,” Luciana told me, kissing my cheek. Then she leaned over to hug Bones around his neck and kissed his cheek. “You too, Bones. Thank you guys.”

Bones put Georgio down and gave him a manly fist bump, like he hadn’t just given him a piggy-back ride to the door.

“Who wouldn’t want to take Princess Luci and the great Genghis Kahn Georgie around for a night?” Bones asked. He bowed and added, “It was an honor, your Highness.”

We released them into Father’s care and bowed again, several times, making them laugh as we walked away.

CHAPTER SIX

Angel

F
OR MY HIGH school graduation, Father gave me the key to a two-bedroom condo located in a high rise just off the strip. He owned the building and controlled the security, but having my own space at least gave the illusion of freedom. While my high school friends escaped their families and headed to college, Father granted me independence he could control, and surrounded me with people he could trust.

The condo was a beautiful prison, complete with earthy tones of bamboo flooring, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, custom leather furniture, and bold crimson curtains framing floor-to-ceiling windows with a view facing the lights of the strip. Every inch of the space was designed and furnished to remind me of my position as heir, in line to reign over the city through blood and luxury.

As I entered the condo, I dropped my keys in a dish on the console table and turned to face Bones, still engaged in our argument. “Listen, you thrill-seeking maniac, I think the cops will be able to tell these aren’t fake.” I tugged at my Kevlar vest. “I see ‘impersonating an officer’ charges all over this one.”

“It’s Halloween, the one night you can get away with impersonating anyone,” Bones replied.

“But what if they start asking pesky little questions like where did we get them? What are we doing with them?”

Bones shrugged. “They fell off a truck.”

“Right.” I couldn’t help but chuckle. Ask a wiseguy a question and get a wise-ass answer.

“Angel, you play responsible big brother to half the city. For one night, I’d like to see you relax and let loose. Do something crazy and enjoy yourself.”

I inwardly groaned, wanting to stay as far from crazy as humanly possible. But Bones was my friend, and sometimes friendship required stupidity. “Fine, but if I go clubbing with you in a SWAT uniform, my crazy-card is filled for the next five years.”

“Five years?” Bones snorted. “For dressing up on Halloween? This buys you maybe one month. Just wait until you see what I have planned for Christmas. You’ll want in. You’ll reconsider.”

That sounded ominous. I had to find a way to get past Christmas. “One year.”

Bones cocked his head. “I can’t believe you’re negotiating away your fun.” Then because he could never resist a good gamble, he added, “Two months. Come on, Angel. The chicks are gonna dig this.”

I was more concerned about a real SWAT team taking offense to us terrorizing the nightclubs with cans of silly string and squirt guns. And Father would kill me if I ended up in jail tonight or on Christmas. “Six months. I go clubbing with you tonight and I don’t have to do anything else stupid until at least April.”

He gave me a hard stare, and then split the difference. “Four months, and that’s my final offer. You’ll miss Christmas, but we’ll have Valentine’s Day, and I got a real plan for getting the honeys this year.”

Resigned to possible jail time over a stupid Halloween costume and fearing whatever the hell Bones had in store for February, I scooped up my keys and followed my friend out into the cool, autumn night. Bones picked the club, and I drove. As we approached, he pointed to a line of costume-clad club jumpers that stretched halfway down the block.

“Looks packed,” I said. “We should probably call it a night and head home.”

“Don’t worry about it. I got this.” Bones pulled out his cell phone and started dialing. “Just park.”

I reluctantly handed over the Hummer to the valet and followed Bones to a side door. He sent a text, and moments later the door swung open, pouring loud, thumping music into the street.

A thin, short woman wearing skin-tight black fabric that barely covered her bust and butt struggled under the weight of the door. Black velvet ears clung to her head and whiskers streaked across her cheeks. Her eyes rounded at our costumes for a beat before her face lit up with recognition and she squealed in delight. “Bones! You crazy bastard, you scared the shit out of me!”

Then she looked me over and added, “Why, hello there. You must be Angel. I’ve heard so much about you. I’m Trixie.”

Any chance of blessed moments of anonymity went up in a poof. I glared at Bones, wondering just what he’d blabbed to the girl.

Bones shrugged. “What? Did you wanna wait in that line all night?” he asked.

“Don’t worry, handsome, your secret is safe with me,” Trixie said. She led us to a booth and we both ordered water.

“That’s it?” Trixie asked, clearly disappointed.

“For now,” Bones replied with a wink. “We usually don’t turn up until after midnight. We just woke up a couple hours ago.”

“Oh, I see,” she smiled, seemingly satisfied with his answer. “Night people.”

When she walked away I kicked Bones under the table. “What the hell are we, vampires? And since when do we ‘turn up’?”

“Hey, gotta live up to the image. People expect certain behaviors from you.”

I couldn’t even live up to my father’s expectations. If I had to start jumping through hoops for the rest of the world, I was screwed. “Think she’ll be disappointed when we don’t get smashed and thrash the place like rock stars?” I asked.

Bones chuckled. “She’ll get over it. What’s up with them?”

I followed Bones’s gaze to find three suits sitting at the bar, two with their heads together and the third watching the bar crowd. The three stuck out in a room full of costumed crazies. “One of the families. Who knows what they’re up to?”

“The bartender doesn’t look too happy with them,” Bones said, ever observant.

I found the bartender in question just in time to watch him set drinks in front of the suits. They didn’t offer payment, and he didn’t quite hide his scowl before he turned away. One of the suits said something, but the bartender put up his hands and softened his expression. Wasn’t my business though, so I shrugged and scanned the rest of the club. Drinks in hand, costumed professionals, tourists, college students, and entertainers bounced, grinded, and swayed, on and off the dance floor. A handful of working girls wove through the crowd, seeking out the lonely and trying to make a buck. A fight between a skeleton and a hippie broke out by the side door, but bouncers swooped in and carried off the offenders before it got out of hand.

Trixie returned with our waters, asking if we needed anything else. Bones ordered me a glass of wine.

“You need to relax,” he said as Trixie walked away.

I leveled a stare at him. “If I was any more chill, I’d freeze our drinks.”

He chuckled. “So that’s where the frost is coming from, huh?”

I couldn’t help but crack a smile.

Bones grinned. “There. That’s better. Now check out those girls on the dance floor. The ones wearing the belly dancer costumes. You should go up and say hi.”

“Sure. I’m just gonna walk up and strike a conversation with a girl wearing gauze. Maybe I’ll tell her how pretty her brain looks.”

“And that’s your problem. I’m not telling you to meet her parents. I’m telling you to have a good time and enjoy the night. Nothing more.”

“Right.” I took a sip of water. “Bones, if I need to get laid, I’ll call Terrance and have him send a girl over.”

“I never understood that. Why would D’Angelo Ma… why would
you
pay for sex?”

I shrugged, ignoring his near slip. “Simpler that way. No chance of someone screwing around and catching a feeling.”

“No chance that someone has to meet the fam,” Bones replied.

I tilted my head to the side. “See? Simpler
and
safer.”

Trixie reappeared long enough to pour me a glass of wine. I swirled it around and took a sip, and for some reason the strange girl from the pizzeria slipped into my mind.
Markie.
I tried to imagine her on my arm, meeting my family, but couldn’t even fathom it. They’d rip her apart and hang the pieces by her sundress.

“That was almost a year ago. You need to put it behind you,” Bones said.

Wondering what the hell he was talking about, I replayed our conversation in my head.
Leilani. Right.
My old on and off again girlfriend would forever direct my future relationships. Leilani was exotic: dark, sleek hair, flawless caramel skin, legs that went on for miles, blue eyes that contrasted with the rest of her appearance. She saw me coming from a mile away and sank her perfectly manicured nails into me, refusing to let go. I knew she was like the others, and understood what she was after, but I was tired of being alone. She danced, and often got a little too friendly with her clientele. I begged her to quit, and in return, she tried to negotiate a ring out of me.

Our Christmas gift exchange was awkward, to say the least. In hindsight, giving her a small jewelry box in a nice restaurant was probably misleading. But since I’d never even invited her to meet my family, I didn’t think she’d read so much into it. When she opened that box and saw earrings she threw a public tantrum, aided by the rum and diet soda she’d been guzzling throughout dinner. She started swearing, and I turned to walk away. She attacked me, and I blocked. Bones grabbed her and tried to get her under control. Leilani kicked and screamed about how I used her and tried to control her. People crowded around, watching the spectacle of our crumbling relationship. Hotel security detained Leilani and helped us slip away, but word got back to my father. He, Uncle Carlo, and Cousin Alberto were waiting in my apartment when Bones and I got home that night. Father made a quick call, and then we all sat down and played poker. We didn’t talk about Leilani, or the incident, but we didn’t have to. The old man would never stand for such an open show of disrespect to our family, no matter who it came from. I knew his presence there meant he was my alibi, and I was his.