Mobster's Vendetta (2 page)

“Uh...I don’t know about this. Why don’t you
take some shots, and I’ll watch?”

I’m very uncomfortable about this. The last
time I held a gun it was over the guy that broke into my house. I
did my best to not touch any of Antonio’s weapons, even though they
were around all the time. I’m not sure why I picked this up.

“We’ll fire together,” he suggests. He
gestures for me to take the gun by waving it at me slightly.

An image flashes in my mind.

Shadows.

Danger.

There are tall shadows, and I’m so low and
small.

I shudder.

“Come on. It’ll be fun,” he encourages. The
gun still hangs in the air between us.

I take it.

“Move right over here.” Joey gently places
his hand on my back and lines me up at the firing range. “Stand
here and put these on.”

He hands me goggles and a headset and grabs
a set of his own from the next station. His voice is muffled when
he speaks again.

“The safety is off on this gun, so there is
nothing to do. Just hold it in front of you, point, and pull the
trigger.”

Joey stands behind me, all business. My
fingers and hands seem to slip into the right position. It feels
familiar, and I have held a gun before.

I readjust myself and get comfortable. It
feels intuitive, like I know what I am supposed to do. My mind
flashes again with images of tall men in shadow. I shake it
off.

“Now, look right here. It’s the site. Aim
right for the heart on the target,” Joey says bringing me back to
the here and now.

My heart beats faster as I hold the metallic
object in my hand. My hand fits perfectly. My index finger is lying
comfortably on the trigger.

“Take your time,” Joey says to me in my ear.
“Focus. Look only at the target.”

A hysterical giggle wants to erupt from
inside me, but I don’t let it.

I suck in a breath, focus myself, and
squeeze the trigger. The gun bucks slightly as the bullet releases.
I can feel the shot all the way down my arms and into my chest.

Joey freezes.

I freeze.

He pushes a button on the panel. The target,
suspended on a wire, rushes towards us. It has one hole in it. And
the hole is through the heart...perfectly.

After a second of silence, Joey jumps and
fist pumps the air.

“I knew it!” he yells. ”The minute you
picked up that gun, I knew it!”

I’m confused.

“You knew what?!” I yell, partly because
it’s hard to hear with the headset and because I am scared. What
did he know?

“You’re a sharpshooter! It’s gotta be in
your blood. Holy Shit! I knew it!”

Joey grabs the door to the security
room.

“Dude! Get the guys. They
gotta see this!
Mannegia
!”

Joey is beaming as he comes back to me.

“Do it again!”

I’m flustered. I’m a what? Sharpshooter?
Don’t you need to go to like some kind of gun school for that...or
years of training?

“Come on, do it again! I bet you can do it
every fuckin’ time!” Joey pleads. “Go through the same hole! Come
on!”

He pushes the panel button and the target
swishes back to its position. The room fills with enforcers and
bouncers. The huge expanse of the firing range becomes very
small.

The hulking guys are pushing each other and
fooling around, being guys. Joey stands behind me again.

Ty starts chanting my name like he is
waiting for me to score the winning touchdown. Some of the others
join in.

Joey gives me some last minute instructions.
I push out the noise and commotion behind me. Joey must raise his
hand or something because the room becomes very quiet.

I suck in a breath, focus myself, and
squeeze the trigger just like last time. I fire and the gun
bucks.

The room is still while Joey pushes the
panel button. The silhouette target dances towards us again. I
concentrate on it before it makes it to us. Another hole. This one
overlaps the other in a figure eight form with the middle missing.
I was off by a millimeter.

“HOLY SHIT! She did it!” Joey exclaims, and
cheers erupt in the room. “I have to save this for Delisi!”

I feel hands on my back. Multiple hands clap
my back and congratulate me. Joey pulls me in for a half-hug.

“You are the awesomest medigan I have ever
met!” Joey yells and unclips the paper guy from the wire. He holds
it over his head. “Fuckin’ awesome!”

Everyone hovers around us as Joey examines
my bullet holes. The flock of guys are all gasping and chatty like
little girls.

“Only Delisi would find a girl who can shoot
like that,” Ty says to his friend.

Joey pulls his phone out. It must have been
ringing, but I didn’t hear it over the noise.

“Yeah we’re coming,” he shouts into the
phone. “Nope, right now.” He ends the call and looks at me.

“Ready to head back upstairs?” he asks
grinning.

“What about the ice cream for Erin?” I ask.
I don’t really care about me, but I want to at least bring it for
Erin and Clarissa.

“Don’t worry. I’ll have someone bring it
up.”

The hallway is silent as
usual. In the elevator, Joey stares at the target the entire ride.
He certainly is proud. I am surprised by my own ability. Maybe it
was just luck. Maybe, maybe not. It felt right. I just knew what to
do. It was easy. Why is it so wonderful?
Can’t other people do that?

At the suite, Joey puts a code in, and the
door opens. I walk in to darkness. The suite is completely black.
Where is Erin? I immediately snap to alert.

I hear Joey click the lights on.

“Surprise!”

It takes me a second. The entire room is
filled with people.

Clarissa and Carlo.

What’s he doing here? He supposed to be with
Antonio. I quickly scan the room for Antonio’s face, but sadly
don’t see him.

Doc Howie and our governess, Lucia. Okay,
she is really a tutor, but I go with the flow. It’s what Ennio
calls her.

Alex, one of our bodyguards and enforcer
stands off to the side with a deep grin on his face. He is a tall
drink of cool water like the rest of them. Natural dark skin,
intense brown wavy hair, and built in all the right places.

My mother is not here. She went to stay with
the O’Connell’s back in Palmetto. Once Erin started getting better,
she left. She didn’t even ask us to go with her, probably knowing I
wasn’t going to listen to anything she said. I want to at least be
in the same state as Antonio, and Erin’s proximity to Doc Howie is
vital for her recovery and safer than any hospital in Palmetto
right now.

Troy!

Troy is here. He sweeps me into a hug and
spins me around just like he used to.

“Oh my god! I’m so happy to see you.” My
eyes adjust as the room spins. I can’t believe it. Troy is here.
Ennio was so adamant that no one could come to visit. “How? They
let you visit?” I fumble my words.

Troy still holding me, whispers in my
ear.

“They blindfolded me. They fuckin’
blindfolded me,” he says as he puts me down. “It was the only way
they would let me see you.”

“Oh.” His words make me falter, but I
recover because I am just so happy to see him. I missed my friend
so much and hug him again.

Shock consumes me and Erin comes up to
me.

“What is this all about?” I ask.

“This is for you,” she says.

“But it’s your birthday tomorrow, not mine,”
I say puzzled by all this.

“I wanted to do something to thank you.”

“For what?” Now I was really baffled.

Tears spring into Erin’s eyes. “For taking
care of me.” She pauses. “And putting up with me.”

I reach out and hug her.

“Oh, Erin, I am just so glad you’re better.”
Tears leak out onto my cheeks, too.

There is nothing I won’t do for my sister.
As fragile as she is, I would do everything I could to help her.
Over the past few weeks, the dark circles under her eyes have
lessened. Her rosy complexion has come back, and her strength is
returning.

We break our embrace, and Clarissa comes up
to hug me, as Lucia and Doc Howie. I am so busy talking that I
don’t notice Alex trying to get my attention until he taps my
shoulder.

“Come on over here,” he says. I follow him
across the room. Troy and Erin are right behind me. Staff from the
casino mill in and out of the room offering stuffed mushrooms and
little egg rolls.

Near the windows facing the windy city of
Chicago is a sheet draped over something huge. I stand in front of
it as everyone else makes a semi-circle around me. Alex rips the
sheet off...

A harp!

The most gorgeous harp I have ever seen.
Intricate scrolls and designs cascade down the sides. A cherub with
hands extended, graces the top arch. It is absolutely
magnificent!

“It’s the most beautiful thing I have ever
seen,” I breathe aloud in awe.

I step closer and gently strum my fingers
across it. Perfect!

“What is this for?” I ask no one in
particular.

“It’s from Tonio,” Alex answers. “He knows
you miss the one at your house.”

My chest tightens and my cheeks burn. I ache
for him so much.

“Play something,” Alex says. Everyone in the
room mumbles and nods encouragement.

“Yeah, come on, Meg,” Troy urges.

Erin sits down on the sofa, and Clarissa
follows. Slowly, each person in the room finds a seat as I settle
behind the enormous instrument. I caress it easily, loving the
feeling of the strings. I play a few chords, learning the
composition of it.

Beginning slowly, Ave Maria glides out of my
fingers into the strings and out into the air. I am home.

Chapter 3

Take Out: kill

Antonio:

“This fucking sucks!” I toss my phone hard
onto the dresser. I won’t be surprised if it doesn’t work
later.

“Tonio? I thought we were going to the
casino tonight?” Vito asks, coming out of the bathroom with a towel
wrapped around his waist. His black hair is wet and longer than
usual.

Vito and I are staying in a scummy
hole-in-the-wall hotel in the heart of Chicago’s hit area. It
sucks, but we have no choice. Pop wanted me home for a week to take
care of some business for him, then come back here. I said No
fucking way! I am not leaving without Megan.

I am miserable. Vito is more ornery than
usual, too. Crossing our path is bad luck for anyone and everyone –
even the poor guy that sold us coffee at Starbucks.

Vito walks to the bed to put on his jeans. I
get a good view of his back. His scars are pink and angry from the
burns. It’s been three weeks since the car bombing. We are no
closer to getting Uncle Tutti than we were then.

“Dude, Pop called,” I huff out, disgusted
that I even have to tell him this. “We have a meeting down on
Charleton Street at six. We’ll never fuckin’ make it to the party,”
I tell him.

Three weeks of chasing.

“Mannegia!”
Vito growls.

Chasing after Uncle Tutti and Luigi Prazzo
is playing on my fucking nerves. This is bullshit! I have to kill
them. Sadly, that’s not what’s eating me alive...the biggest
fuckin’ stab is being away from Megan.

I really want to see her face when she
receives that harp. It’s the most expensive thing I have ever
bought in my life. Pop had to take money out of an overseas account
he has for me to pay for it.

“What the fuck is goin’ on now?” Vito spits,
aggravated.

We both wanted to see Megan and Erin
tonight. We’ve both been on edge. I’m starting to question my own
sanity. Days are running into together. My mind feels edgy and
frustrated.

For weeks, Pop, Patrick, Vito, and I have
been scouring Chicago and Palmetto for Uncle Tutti’s men. And now,
we are forging another alliance...tonight. Ennio’s family, the
Mancuso’s, arranged a meeting with another Mafia family in Chicago,
the Furlotti’s. Pop is coming to Chicago tonight especially for
this meeting.

I pull my shirt over my head as I walk to
the bathroom, ready to shower. Vito is pulling his jeans on.

Knock, knock.

We both become motionless, and then spring
into action. Vito grabs the two handguns off the bedside table and
tosses one to me. We flank each side of the hotel room door. I nod
to Vito, and he opens it.

“What do you want?” Vito barks out.

I infer by Vito’s response that the person
at the door is an undesirable. I stiffen, bracing myself to
react.

A very female voice answers.

“Marrone!
Is that anyway to talk to me?! I’ve known you
since you wore diapers.”

“Get in here,” Vito scolds. “This is no
place for you!”

“Nice to see you too, asshole.”

Alessandra steps over the threshold.

“Tonio!” she beams at me and throws her arms
around my neck. I embrace her back. I bury my head in her thick
brown hair.

I have missed her. Besides Vito, she has
been my closest friend. When everyone else was fake or stayed away
from me, she never did. She has been tried and true...like a
sister. She calls me on my shit and never lets me get away with
anything.

I pull away. “What are you doing here?” I
ask much gentler than Vito and throw a glare his way.

Vito reads my glance, hugs her, and then
stands back, arms folded across his chest waiting for an
answer.

“School’s out for holiday break. I was
bored. My parents flew me out here. I rented a car, and here I
am.”

“Who told you where we are?”

“Carlo,” she says. “Hey, where is he? I
thought he said he would be with you?”

“He is back at the casino. I wish we were,
but some stuff has come up,” I say aggravated.

“Oh...he said something about a party there
for Megan?”