Chapter 8

Gallo hoped that Alice would believe him. He knew that this was going to be very dangerous. He couldn't do this alone, either. Eddie had to pretend to be his brother again for this.

Eddie was more than happy to oblige. He was still all excited from this morning's fun. So it was that as the sun was setting, he drove Gallo back to Alice's home.

Eddie had at least put away that one song from before. Now it was Billy Joel's "The Ballad of Billy the Kid". That had always been one of Gallo's favourite songs, and he joined Eddie in cheerfully singing along with old Joel in the car. All in all, a much happier car ride than the one driving towards Joe's place. Funny how that worked out.

Gallo waited for Eddie to replay the song for the third time before asking, "So you know what to say?"

Eddie snorted, "Motherfucker I know what to say better than you do."

This was probably true but Eddie hadn't meant it seriously: he was just making what he thought was a silly joke. Gallo felt irritated by the fact behind it, but the feeling slowly passed.

He began to feel nervous: Eddie had really hit a mark with his joke. Gallo wasn't sure what to say when he was going to tell Alice about the trip. She would definitely be suspicious, but if Eddie could act as convincingly as before, then she might believe him. Certainly she'd love to go down to Hawaii: she had always talked to Gallo about how she was saving up for a trip. Maybe Gallo had a chance.

Alice opened the door, smiling at Gallo's arrival. As always, Gallo noticed just how beautiful she was. He felt bad about how he was always lying to her.

Kissing her on the cheek, he put aside his panic, "How you doing, honey?

Alice shrugged, "Alright. What's the special occasion?" She nodded at Eddie, who to give his due, now looked as though he'd just gotten over a crying fit. His emotions were so well placed that he looked genuinely as though he was recovering from an immense tragedy in his life. If Gallo had any say at the Oscars, they should nominate Eddie for one.

Gallo gestured toward Eddie, "My brother just told me some amazing news. I want to tell you about it inside. Is this a bad time?"

Alice stepped to the side, "Sure, come on in, please!" Eddie gave her a watery smile as he walked in. Gallo rolled his eyes to himself.

Seating Eddie and Gallo down on the couch, Alice went to get them some coffee, ignoring Gallo's offers to help and Eddie pleas for no trouble.

Setting the cups on the little table in front of them, she sat on the couch on Gallo's other side, "Okay, so what is it you wanted to tell me, sweetie?" Gallo smiled at the name tag. She never usually called him names like that unless it was a special occasion. She could sense when something big was coming up.

Gallo spoke up, "Well, the thing is, my brother here called off the wedding, right? But the honeymoon was all in his money and name, so he could still go in theory."

Alice looked at Eddie, "So what does that have to do with us?" Both men could hear the anticipation in her voice.

Eddie spoke up, "Well, I can't get my money back, but for a special price I can bring more people along. So I'm going to bring some of my oldest friends, and some of my family. My dad, uncle, and brother here are coming too, and we're going down to Hawaii."

Gallo took over from here. Grabbing Alice's hand, he asked, "Do you want to come with me?"

Alice looked shocked at the idea of suddenly going down to Hawaii, and Gallo almost expected her to squeal with delight. Be that as it may, she lit up like a light bulb, quivering with excitement, "Are you serious? When is this?"

Eddie spoke up, "We leave in just over a week."

Alice faltered, "A week? Isn't that a bit quick?"

Eddie shrugged, "Well it's been arranged for a month now, but, of course, some things can't be..." He bowed his head a bit, and Gallo quickly put an arm around Eddie's shoulders as if to comfort him. Gallo could see that Eddie was pretending to restrain tears.

Alice immediately grabbed Eddie's cup of coffee, "Oh, I'm sorry, Eddie. I didn't mean to do that, I really didn't!" She looked half-ready to cry too, with guilt ridden all over her face. Gallo himself felt guilty about manipulating her this way.

Eddie composed himself, and accepted the cup, "No no, it's not your fault. It's just that I'm still getting over it. I'm doing much better now, though. Look, I really would appreciate it if you could come. I'm sure you and Tommy could have a great time together, and I'd have my dad and uncle, and my friends. It just seems to be a great idea, you know?"

Alice paused. She really wanted this, Gallo could tell. She was going over the things that would have to be taken care of, and seeing if strings could be pulled. Finally she smiled and whispered, "Thank you so much for this. I'd love to come."

Gallo felt little butterflies in his stomach take off. This was it. Once again he had been able to control and change the situation to prefer to his interests.

So far it looked pretty good. A free trip to Hawaii with the girl he loved, and then they could go home. And Gallo could put away all this shit about robbery, Joe, gangsters, and stick to his job, his girlfriend, and the life as he'd known it.