Chapter Seven
"I better get going. It's getting late."
Calogero protested against Jane's words by pulling her closer and pressing his lips against hers. She let him for a moment or two before she pulled away, smiling softly.
"Calogero, I have to go."
"Why?" He whispered. The smell of her skin was driving him crazy. All he wanted to do was bury his face in her neck. Time always went too fast when they were together.
"Because my Mom's expecting me, that's why. Willy is gonna meet me at the end of the street." She was already straightening her skirt and he realised with a sigh, she really meant it.
"It's no problem. I could walk you home."
"He was passing this way anyway. You can walk me to him, come say hi." Jane stood up and retrieved her bag from the side of his bed.
She frowned a little when he stretched out and didn't move to get up.
"Calogero?"
He stared up into her beautiful eyes.
"You ever think about it, Jane? About spending the whole night together?"
She looked shy all of a sudden.
"Of course."
He reached up for her hand.
"You think it'll happen one day?"
"Maybe," she laughed a little, still looking embarrassed. "Maybe one day. But not today. My brother is waiting for me. You coming?"
He groaned and slid off the bed, kissing the tip of her nose before he reached down to get his shoes.
Vito was lying on the couch when they exited the guest room. He gave them a mock salute as Jane called goodbye.
"You coming back, C?" He asked.
"Yeah, I'll just be a minute. We need anything?"
Vinnie waved off his comment, not taking his eyes from the tiny black and white television.
"What does he do all day?" Jane asked Calogero in a hushed tone as they came down the stairwell.
Calogero shrugged.
"Beats me. Not a lot from what I can see."
They didnt say much else as they stepped out of the tenement and into the street. He kept hold of her hand and every so often she'd look at him and smile. The cool air felt good on Calogero's face and he was determined to enjoy every last second of the little time they had left together that night.
He didn't light a cigarette and for once, the thought never even occurred to him.
Everything would have been just perfect if not for the noise coming from up ahead of them.
"Think you can come into our neighbourhood and look at me like that, nigger?"
Calogero wanted to cover Jane's ears but it wasn't this Williams that needed saving. It was Willy.
Willy Williams, tall and lanky, with a swagger in his walk and most often a huge smile on his face. But Willy wasn't smiling right now.
Calogero let go of Jane's hand and bolted into the affray before the three boys surrounding Willy could move in any closer.
"Hey, fellas, fellas, what all this about?"
The kids were a year younger than Calogero, the same age as Willy. Calogero knew their faces but not their names.
"This nigger giving me evils, is what," said the tallest one.
"Oh, he ain't gonna care. He's got his nigger bitch with him anyway," a second kid said.
Calogero was horrified that the words had been said in front of Jane. Horrified and furious.
He turned and swung at the offending kid, dropping him with a solid punch to the face. Another kid came at him and and when Willy tried to separate them, the third kid socked him one.
Jane began to scream.
Calogero felt like he was in a familiar nightmare. He didnt care about getting into a fight on the street. He didnt even care about getting beaten the shit out of. But this couldn't happen with Jane here. He needed to get her away from it.
One guy was astride Willy, throwing punches while Willy shielded his face. Two guys were now facing off with Calogero, and the one he had hit was mad as hell. He was probably going to take a beating now. In front of Jane.
As he braced himself for the first blow, a fist suddenly came from behind them, glancing off one guy's ear. When his friend turned around, he was head butted full in the face by Calogero's rescuer. The kid beating up on Willy leapt to his feet and ran off before he could face the same treatment, his friends hurrying after them, one of them covering their bloody nose.
"When I see you again, you're dead, you little fucks!" Vito yelled down the street after them.
Jane was at Willy's side instantly, examining him carefully while he told her not to make a big deal out of it.
"Jane, are you okay?" Calogero closed the gap between them and wrapped her into a hug.
"I'm fine. But my brother…" She was tearful as she gripped Willy's arm.
"Hey, I'm okay," Willy said, squeezing her hand briefly. His eyes met Calogero's.
"Thanks, man."
"No problem. It was Vito here who saved our asses anyways. Vito, this is Willy, Jane's brother. Willy, Vito."
Willy reached out to shake Vito's hand and repeat his thanks.
"I was watching from the window. What was that about?" Vito asked.
Willy spat some blood out of his mouth.
"Wrong colour, wrong neighbourhood."
Vito scoffed.
"Well, it ain't their fucking neighbourhood, it belongs to my uncle, and he don't give a shit what colour you are."
Willy gave Vito a grin and even Jane managed a small smile.
"Come on, I'll walk you back to Webster Avenue," Calogero offered.
"Nah, I got this," Willy said. He looked embarrassed. "We'll be cool."
Vito patted Willy on the shoulder.
"It's no problem, man. I'll come along too. Who's that on your shirt?" Vito gestured to Willy's now crumpled red t shirt. "James Brown? Man, he fucking kills it, ain't no Italian that can sing like him."
As Willy and Vito struck up conversation in front, Jane and Calogero trailed behind. He kept his arm protectively about her shoulders.
"Are you okay?" Jane raised Calogero's swollen knuckles and looked at them with concern.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just sorry you had to see that."
"I'm sorry I had to see it too," she said quietly. "Thank you though. For helping my brother. I hope nothing come back on you for doing that…"
He waved her comment away.
"They're just kids. Like Vito says, his uncle runs the show. Nobody's gonna mess with him or me because of that."
Jane gave him a small smile but she was distinctly quiet until they parted ways at Webster Avenue.
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"So we'll get some beers…get some girls round…i mean, you can ask Jane if you want…" Vito's chattering spiralled off and he gave Calogero a sharp nudge. "You even listening to me, Annello?"
Calogero wasn't. Because he was watching a tense figure across the street pace up and down on the sidewalk. Every now and then the figure craned his neck to look up and down the street as if waiting for a car. Calogero was walking over there before he even realised Vito was still following him.
"Dante?"
Dante looked stricken to see him.
"C, it's not a good time, man. Just go. Please."
Dante was clammy and pale. His strained expression made Calogero feel sick.
"Hey, what's wrong, man? Is your mother okay?"
Dante looked confused. His eyes went from Calogero to Vito before he shook his head.
"She's uh- fine, C. She's good. No problems."
"Hey, Dante, right? We met at a party a while back?" Vito was thrusting out his hand and smiling his two hundred watt smile while Dante nodded dazedly before his eyes went back to the street. Calogero opened his mouth to say something else before he heard the hum of a car behind him.
The car was a sleek black saloon with tinted windows. When the rear door opened but nobody climbed out, Calogero was instantly on alert.
"That's my ride, C. I gotta go." Dante pushed past him, a redundant looking backpack hanging off of his arm. "I'll see you's later, okay?"
But it wasn't okay. And by the look on Dante's face, he wasn't sure he would see him later, either.
As Dante climbed into the rear of the car, Calogero shot Vito a look.
"Just hold on a second here, would ya?"
And whilst knowing it might be the stupidest move he had ever made, Calogero climbed in after Dante and slammed the car door shut.
He didnt know who looked more shocked in the back seat- Dante, or Manny Helnaz.
"What the fuck is this?" Manny demanded. He was dressed in an open shirt with trousers and sandals on. Calogero turned his nose up in distaste. He could almost hear Sonny in his ear saying '"Manny Helnaz'll never amount to nothing, He dresses like a fucking mutt."
"C, man. I told you to go." Dante said desperately.
Manny grabbed Dante's arm threateningly, and Calogero locked eyes with the heavyset driver in the rear view mirror. He looked like he could crush C and Dante with one hand.
"You been telling my business to this little babosa, eh Grazia?"
Calogero didnt speak Spanish but babosa didn't sound like a compliment. He could feel Dante trembling next to him.
"No, Manny. I ain't told him nothing. He just come out of nowhere. For fucks sake, Calogero, get out of the car!"
"No." Calogero said this very coolly, even though inside he was about to shit a brick. "Helnaz, I don't know what the fuck it is you've got him into. But it stops. Right now. Go find some Hell's Kitchen retards to do your dirty work. This neighbourhood don't belong to you."
The driver turned around menacingly and Calogero realised with a pang of fear that this guy was probably a Hell's Kitchen 'retard' himself.
"You're a brave little fucker, I'll give you that." Manny said. "Now you got two seconds to get the fuck out of this car or I'm shooting you and your fucking friend right now."
Manny slid a revolver out of his pocket and Calogero felt his stomach plummet. Sure, he had suspected that Manny carried a gun but seeing it pulled out was a different kind of fear. Dante looked on the brink of tears and despite the urge to get out of there and run, Calogero couldn't leave him behind.
"Look, Manny. You could pay a thousand different guys to do whatever it is you want Dante to do, so come on, save yourself the trouble of shooting me and explaining it to Carmine. Just let him out."
For the first time in the conversation, Manny looked marginally uncomfortable.
"This ain't your business, Annello. And I aint paying him to do nothing. This sucker owes. And he needs to pay me."
Calogero didnt know much but he did know if he let Dante leave, there would be a good chance he'd never see his friend alive again. He imagined Mrs Grazia's worn face when she heard the news that her only surviving son was dead or in jail. He tried to think what Sonny would do in his place. Shoot this fucker in his face, probably. But Calogero didnt have a gun.
Use your smarts, kid, Sonny would always say. Brains, not brawn.
And that's when Calogero came up with the idea.
"Alright, let me come along."
"What?" Dante and Manny said in unison.
Dante was shaking his head mutely but Calogero could already see the wheels in Manny's mind turning. If Calogero was in on it, he couldn't go running to Carmine now, could he?
"You heard me," Calogero said. "Least this way, I get to keep my boy safe. Two heads is better than one, Dante."
"C, get out of the car," Dante tried to reach over and open the door but Manny cuffed him hard about the head.
"You need all the help you can get, you dumb wap. But remember, Annello, you don't get paid. I already told you this little punk owes me."
"Not a problem," C shrugged amiably. "I just need a little favour first. I'm with my cousin. He's right outside the car and he ain't from this neighbourhood. Can we drop him home first? It's just down the street."
Manny growled and gritted his teeth.
"I ain't a fucking taxi service, Annello. Not my problem your stupid cousin can't find his way home. Either you're coming or you ain't."
But Calogero could already tell Manny didnt want him leaving. Didn't want him walking home, passing Chez Bippy and calling in to tell Carmine about a visit from Manny Helnaz.
"Come on, it'll take two minutes." Calogero opened the car door. "Hey, Vito, jump in the front, would ya? We're getting a ride home."
Vito looked at him quizzically and Calogero gave him a meaningful look. Without a word, Vito rounded the car and climbed in next to the burly driver.
"How's it going, folks?" Vito treated them all to a smile and snorted when the driver sneered at him.
"Nobody wants to hear your fucking voice, so shut up, okay?" Manny snapped at him. "And let's make it clear, we're dropping your cousin off, Annello. Not you. You ain't getting out of the car."
Calogero knew Vito could be a big mouth sometimes. He wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer but he somehow he had caught on that something wasn't quite right. He didnt correct Manny's 'cousin' comment, but he did turn around and say:
"Who in the fuck are you telling to shut up, stonzo?"
The driver braked sharply and Calogero saw that Manny's hand slid into his pocket for his gun.
"This is Vito Aquino," Calogero said quickly. The name made all the other occupants in the car sit up a little straighter.
"As in Carmine Aquino?" Manny demanded. "I thought this was your cousin?"
"We're like cousins." Calogero shrugged. "Maybe brothers, even. Vito is Carmine's nephew."
Calogero could hear Dante's breathing become more strangled as seconds of silence ticked by and Manny slowly absorbed the information. Calogero remembered that Dante had no idea Vito was related to Carmine either.
"You said he wasn't from this neighbourhood…" Manny was glaring at Calogero, knowing he was fucked now. There was nothing he could do to stop Calogero leaving with Dante. Not with the boss' nephew in the front seat of the car.
"I ain't from this neighbourhood, dipshit. Now, who the fuck are you?" As cool as Vito had been playing it, he was an action junkie, and Calogero could see he was spoiling for a fight.
That couldn't happen though. The situation was fucking sticky enough.
"That ain't important. Here, forget the ride home. We're getting out here." Calogero yanked the rear door open and dragged Dante out with him.
"Good to see you, fellas. You have a nice day, alright?"
And with Vito following them out onto the sidewalk, Dante and Calogero escaped the clutches of Manny Helnaz.
Once the car had pulled away, Dante threw up in an alley. Vito scrunched up his nose and nodded at Calogero.
"He ain't looking so hot. What the fuck is going on?"
"I'll explain in a minute," Calogero said. He followed Dante into the alley, side stepping the puddle of puke as Dante leaned against the brick tenements gasping for air.
"C, man. What have you done?" He was spluttering unashamedly with tears.
Calogero felt a surge of anger.
"What have I done? Saved your fucking ass. That's what I've done."
Dante clutched at his hair desperately.
"You kidding me? You think it's over with? He knows where I fucking live, man!"
Shit. This was true. Think, Calogero, think.
"I can straighten it out," he told Dante calmly. "Right now, you need to get home, get your mother and get out of town for a few days."
"And go where?" Dante demanded.
"I don't know….don't you have an aunt in Boston?" Calogero remembered Slick regaling them with tales of his cousins from Southie. Probably mostly bullshit knowing Slick, but they had visited a number of times over the years.
"Yeah. Yeah I guess I could go to Aunt Celia's. But what'll I tell my Mom?"
"Dante, I dont give a flying fuck what you tell her. Just get her out of here. Now. Call me on Sunday. Six o clock at the payphone outside the general store."
Dante was slowing gathering his wits again, wiping his mouth and straightening his jeans.
"And what are you gonna do?"
Calogero regarded him grimly.
"I'm gonna try and fix this fucking mess. Now go."
Dante gave him a brief puke smelling hug before hurtling out of the alley. He sprinted past Vito without saying a word to him.
Calogero came out of the alley two seconds later to find Vito shaking his head as he watched Dante gallop away.
"Your life always this exciting?"
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