Chapter 11: Bickerin Like Teenagers
"Wha the fuck am I supposed ta do then? Knit a fuckin scarf?" Connor asked as he scanned the room.
"Winter is comin pretty soon…"I smirked at him.
"Dunno, but ya think we should give Smecker a call? He's bound ta know somethin about all this shit." Murphy said, puffing on a newly lit smoke.
"Yer not as stupid as ya look, brudder o'mine." Connor said, delicately reaching for the phone and dialing at light speed.
"Smecker? 's Connor. 's it alright if Aideen and Murph meet ya at tha station or somethin? We need some help and ya might be tha one we need." He said with a businesslike and causal air to his words. Connor could definitely be a salesman someday. He'd always had this way with words. He could convince you the sky was fucking purple and you'd believe it. He hung up the phone and wrote an address down.
"He wants ya ta meet him at a restaurant a few blocks away tomorrow at 11. Be careful, the two o'ya." He warned us, obviously pained at having to be left behind.
"Ya sure yer alright stayin by yerself Noccie?" I asked, concerned. My motherly instinct was kicking in hard.
"I'm a grown man, Deenie. I'll be alright. Ya need ta handle this an I can't very well go with ya in my condition. Mother's orders." He said dotingly. A soft knock at the door stopped our conversation immediately. Murphy and I looked at each other, our hands flying to our guns automatically. I motioned for him to stay near Connor, last thing we needed was him to get hurt, again. I could feel their eyes on my back as I looked through the peephole. I exhaled as I saw the face of their Da, patiently waiting outside. I opened it and let him in. His eyes swept across the apartment once owned by David Della Rocco, taking in the trash and clutter and finally landed on the bruised and battered Connor. His mouth fell open slightly and his eyes widened.
"Jesus boy! Wha'd ya do ta yerself?" He exclaimed, moving nearer to more closely examine him.
"Well, from tha looks of it, I'd say I got shot, Da. Quit yer fussin man. I'm alive an well." Connor reassured him, a grin dancing on his lips.
"Lord's fuckin name lad! I've seen men die from less. Yer lucky as shit to be alive!" He said with admiration.
"Let's jus say I've got a damn good doctor." Connor winked at me and Da turned around and looked at me.
"Ye fixed him, did ye? I always had high hopes fer ya, m'dear. I knew ye'd be somethin' special." He gloated.
"How'd….How'd ya find us? I mean, no one really knows we come here…" Murphy said uneasily, glancing out the windows.
"Yer brother's got a mouth the size of fuckin Lough Neagh when he gets ta drinkin."
"Were ya followed?" Connor said, a touch of tension in his voice.
"C'mon now boys, I've been doin this since before ye could walk! I'm old, but I've not lost m'touch!"
I sat by the window, watching the cars and people on the street below. A grey Cadillac sailed by slowly, and there were a few scattered pedestrians walking leisurely in the chilly fall air. My gun was still clenched securely in my hand and I could feel the cool steel of the buck knife that was strapped to my side. Surely, if the Italians knew anything about Rocco, they'd know where he lived, and if they came, we'd be ready. I watched the Cadillac turn the corner and disappear.
"-sn't tha right, Deenie?" I jerked my head to them at the mention of my name.
"Wha?"
"Regular fuckin space cadet ya are. We said, ya can handle a gun better'n most men!" Connor bragged as a smile crept onto their Da's face.
"Ye parents woulda been proud o'ya Aideen." He said, with a trace of nostalgia. "Good people, they were." I nodded solemnly.
"22 years this winter." I said softly.
"Ye remember 'em?" He asked.
"A bit. It gets a bit hazy sometimes. I remember Ma singin, fer sure." I smiled as I remembered my Ma quietly singing me to sleep, her face calm and soothing as she rocked me. I had to bite my tongue to keep back the tears I could feel starting to grow. The boys continued their conversation as I returned to looking back down to the streets. And there it was….that same Cadillac cruising by slowly, the passenger was pointing at the building and then up at the window where I was sitting. I ducked out of view and Murphy was at my side in a second.
"Wha? Wha's wrong, Aidey?" His guns in hand and ready.
"Twice now I've seen tha Caddy roll past an this time, they were pointin ta tha apartment." I said, peering out the window, my heart fluttering.
"Get away from there!" Connor said slightly alarmed as Murphy grabbed my arm and hoisted me backward.
"It's gotta be tha fuckin Italians. Wha'd I tell ya!" I said as adrenaline coursed through me. I jumped up and grabbed our duffle bags full of weapons, throwing Connor a hefty automatic. If he couldn't move fast, at least he'd have some sort of protection.
"Slow yerself Deenie. We don't know fer sure wha's goin on jus yet." Connor grabbed my arm as I rushed past him again, frantic. I took the cigarette he gave me as I came up behind Murphy who was diligently staring out the window.
"It's circlin' alright. Been past here twice more." He confirmed as Da drew the curtains.
"They won't be stupid enough ta try anthin in broad daylight. Not with this many people around. Have ye talked ta tha agent friend o'yers? Maybe he's got some insight on all this fuckin madness." Da said, puffing casually on a cigar, unalarmed by all of the insanity.
"I dunno if we should even go an see him now, given all this. Wha if there is a rat?" Murph said, opening a beer.
"We'll go an see him, just get tha lowdown on wha's goin on 'round here. It can't hurt. Da'll stay with Noccie while we're gone, jus ta be safe. Smecker's gotta know somethin." I declared. We would go and see him, it just would be sooner then we'd hoped. I grabbed the phone from the table and redialed his number. Smecker's voice danced on the other end.
"Back so soon?" he said, and I could see the smirk planted on his face.
"Aye. We need ta meet, now. It can't wait." I said trying to push the urgency of the situation.
"Well, if you really miss me that much, we'll just have to have a rondevu, now won't we?" He toyed. He gave us the address to a different place, a small run down place that the boys and I had inhabited a few times after a drunken evening or two. It was only two blocks away. I threw the phone at Connor, who now looked more fretful then I'd seen him ever before.
"If anythin happens, ya call Smecker, got it?" I ordered as I pecked him on the cheek. Murph and I grabbed our usual arsenal of guns and knives and left, both on our guards and both worried about what might happen. We took a back alley, trying to avoid being seen by whomever it was that was keeping tabs on us. Murphy lit a smoke and handed me one as well.
"It'll be alright. Con's gonna be jus fine." He mumbled, though I wasn't sure if it was more towards me or him. We walked along with our eyes open, ready for the first sign of anything amiss, but nothing happened. We walked into the tucked away little restaurant and found Smecker quietly seated in the corner, sipping on a frappuccino. He put down the paper he was reading as Murphy and I took a seat across from him.
"You guys alright? What's going on?" he asked, apprehension glinting in his eyes.
"Ya know tha job ya asked us ta handle?" Murphy started. Smecker nodded, sipping his coffee.
"Well, they knew we were comin. We were ambushed an Connor, well, he got tha worst of it. An now, we got people drivin past where we are, like they're lookin fer us." Smecker was quiet as he took it all in. He leaned back in his chair and lit a cigarette, shooting a glance to the young waitress who was doing what looked like homework at the counter as he exhaled.
"There's been talk about a turf war since you guys took out Yakavetta. Word has it the Macalusso family has been in line for ages to be the next big bambino, but the Russians are putting up one hell of a fight and they're doing a hell of a job considering the number of people they've got. But they've got one thing in common and that's you. Everyone's pissing their pants trying to figure out what you guys are gonna do next." He slid a file across the table at us and we quickly flipped through the various pages and pictures.
"Jesus fuckin Christ. There's gotta be like, 50 people here!" Murphy exclaimed.
"Ya know of anyone on tha inside that's a bit sketchy? It was no coincidence tha there was an ambush. We're thinkin there's a crooked cop somewhere in this mess." I said as Smecker mulled it over.
"If there is, he's damn good. I'll keep my eyes peeled for anyone who's a little too "hands on" with this whole thing." He assured us. "How's Connor doing?"
"He's alive. Took a few bullets, but ya know him, tha tough little bastard. Nothin a few weeks of sittin on his ass won't fix." Murphy said. We chatted casually for a few minutes and parted ways, both our minds reeling. We walked along in silence as we rounded the corner to Roc's old place. I looked up to see the Cadillac once again cruising by and I pulled Murphy into the alley we'd just come from. The two men in the car were stocky, to say the least. The driver was probably in his late 40's his hair dark and combed neatly to the side. He wore a thick chain with a crucifix on it that hung over his pinstriped suit. His passenger, who was shorter by a least a foot, was peering out the window and up at our apartment, saying something to the driver. His dusty blonde hair was long and flopped around his shoulders. He wore a cream colored suit with red accents. He looked younger, maybe in his late 30's at best. Murphy and I looked at each other. My heart jumped into my throat.
"Ya think they're Italians?" Murphy whispered as we peeked around the corner.
"They look awfully fuckin' Italian ta me. I fuckin knew it. Those motherfuckers." I replied. We waited until the car had disappeared down a side street and make our break for the apartment, not stopping until we were safely at the door.