Chapter 31: Family Night at Montebello's
The early evening hours were fast approaching in Rushmore City and the sun was descending beyond the horizon, the daytime sky's light blue gradually giving way to the darkness of night, gradually transitioning to a shade of light purple that would soon turn to pitch black.
"God I'm so going to need a stiff drink after all the shit I've been through today," Artie said aloud as he approached Hymen Avenue, noting how all the usual nighttime crazies were creeping out of the shadows.
Taking a right turn onto the aforementioned street, the hired gun began to slow down as he drew closer to his cousin's bar and as he did, his eyes widened in surprise.
"What the fuck?" he asked in disbelief as he saw an entire line of people waiting outside the front door.
"People are actually waiting in line to get into The Little Black Book of all places? What the fuck is going on here? Seriously, that place is a fucking shithole!" Artie thought to himself parking the Sentinel on the street as opposed to pulling into the back alley as he normally did.
Stepping out of the car he could hear muffled techno music booming from within and at the front door he noticed Iceman standing to the side checking the ID of a young woman waiting to gain access and ran over to him.
"Alright, in you go ma'am. Enjoy yourself," the gun runner replied permitting the lady to enter, "Alright, next please!" he called out just as Artie approached.
"Hey Artie, what the fuck's up brother?" he asked reaching over to give his friend a hearty handshake.
"Just got back from a job," the hitman replied looking towards the bar, "I could ask you the same thing man. What the fuck's up here? This place never gets this busy."
"I don't know man to tell you the truth. I was in the middle of prepping an order for this guy who pissed off some Yardies when Zeke gave me a call, saying they needed some extra help over here and next thing I know, I'm here acting as the doorman. Normally I woulda' been like 'Fuck you,' but since I'm getting paid I can't complain," Iceman explained as the next would-be patron waited impatiently.
"Is it really that full?" Artie asked, listening to the blaring techno music and the loud hooting from within.
"See for yourself," Iceman said opening the door for him, both of them nearly bowled over by the loud music.
"You've gotta be shitting me," Artie muttered staring into the bar, unable to believe his eyes.
The Little Black Book was packed beyond maximum capacity and the second he stepped in he found himself scrunched between a group of partygoers like he was in a can full of sardines. Nonetheless, the atmosphere was festive and lively, a sight rarely seen in a depressing shithole of that magnitude.
"For once I don't have to take any antidepressants before I step through the front door," Artie told himself moving past a busty blonde in a low cut red top.
"Hey Artie!" a familiar voice called out above the racket and he looked over to find Zeke manning his usual post behind the bar, struggling to serve ten different people at once, all of them shouting their orders to him.
"Hey Zeke," the hired gun shouted back, trying to make his head seen above those surrounding him, "How the hell did this shithole become so popular all of a sudden?"
"It beats the living hell outta me dude!" the bartender shouted back while struggling to pour two drinks at once, "Oh well, I'm not gonna bitch with all the money we're drawing in! Hey Kenna, I need some help down on this end!"
"Coming right up!" a new voice called out and Artie was surprised to see Iceman's cousin Kenna behind the bar with Zeke helping him tend to the overzealous customers.
"Hey bitch!" another voice chimed in from behind, finding himself shoved into a group of people and causing them to spill their drinks.
"What the fuck?" Artie asked turning around to find himself met by another familiar face, this one not so friendly.
"I remember you! You're that fuckin' piss ant from Silver's!" the man cried out in a drunken stupor, none other than the self-proclaimed M.M.A. god Clancy Mays.
"Oh no, not this loser again," Artie whispered to himself, shaking his head and burying his face in his palm.
"Don't you be walkin' away from me boy! You and I are gonna have ourselves a nice long chat!" he boomed, shoving Artie hard into another group of dancers and spilling most of his drink, "Goddamn it…when you're not trying to embarrass yours truly in front of his homies, you're makin' me spill my drink!"
"No, I think you already do a good enough job of that by yourself," Artie replied rousing the laughter of a few nearby patrons.
Before the drunken man could raise his fist, his arm was caught in midair and the hired gun turned to see Dal standing there, wearing a black suit with an earpiece in his right ear.
"Dal?" the errand boy asked dumbfounded, "What brings your ass around here?"
"Oh hey Artie, how you doin'?" the underground fighter replied while forcing Clancy's arm behind his back in a chicken wing hold, "Never mind me, I'm just working security for this gig here tonight! Now if you'll excuse me I have some trash to take out!" he said forcing his unruly customer towards the door.
"Goddamn, I never thought I'd live to see the day something like this would happen," Artie said to himself, still in awe at how many people had congregated here tonight and were actually having a good time, just as he approached the center of the room, where the infamous Pukin' Pete was surrounded by people cheering him on as a beer bong was shoved down his throat.
"PETE! PETE! YOU'RE OUR MAN! IF YOU CAN'T DO IT, NO ONE CAN! PETE! PETE! LET'S GO PETE!" the crowd chanted as the drunkard signaled for the two patrons to pour the gallon worth of whiskey down the tube, swallowing all of it down like it was nothing.
"Yeah…who's…the…man?" he managed to slur before collapsing to the floor.
"Alrighty there ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to The Little Black Book! I trust you're all having yourselves a good ol' time!" a familiar nasally voice called out and Artie looked over towards the back of the room where the pool tables normally sat.
Sitting behind some D.J. equipment was Randy Spitz himself, wearing a purple skully, glow in the dark sunglasses and a gold chain necklace.
"Randy?" Artie asked cocking an eyebrow, not knowing whether or not he was hallucinating, "That pathetic loser actually knows how to D.J. of all things?"
"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! The fun's just getting started here at our humble establishment, so please be kind and tip your bartender…seriously people, do it, he needs the money really bad…and so does the other bartender Kenna…please…this entire establishment needs the money so we can get the Redcoats and Johnny Sneed off our tails! Anyway, here's a mix I made up all by myself, once again my name is D.J. Spittah telling all of you to kick back and enjoy yourselves!" Randy explained before starting a new track.
Artie had just begun to make his way towards Gino's office when he accidentally bumped into him just as he was attempting to score the phone number of a woman who looked young enough to be his daughter.
"Gino?" he asked, cocking his brow at his cousin.
"Oh my god, Artie! I'm so glad to see you!" he shouted before returning his attention to the woman, who had by now disappeared.
"What the fuck's going on here man? This place is never this packed!" Artie shouted back.
"I think I have a good way of explaining, here let me show you!" Gino replied leading him over to his office, having to shove a couple out of the way that was in the middle of intercourse.
"Jesus Fucking Christ, get a room you two!" Artie shouted to them before slamming the door behind them.
"Alright, it's over here," Gino said taking a seat behind his desk, where Randy's laptop was again present. Opening it up he typed in some commands before they were taken to the popular video sharing website MeTube.
"Randy showed me this earlier today. Apparently some kid shot a video from that day when the Redcoats were over here threatening to burn the place down and this is what he got," the elder Cappelli said before clicking on a button to play the video.
A scratchy video feed depicted Zeke struggling with some Redcoats, firing away with his shotgun before they pelted the bar with automatic fire.
"Fuck, I remember that day!" Artie blurted out leaning over to get a closer look at the video.
The scene then abruptly switched to the bar's exterior, where Artie and Iceman were shown battling the Redcoats, taking each one of them down in systematic fashion before Zeke stepped in to finish off the last gang member that had been threatening the younger Cappelli with a canister full of gasoline.
"Yeah, and so do a lot of other people now that this just got uploaded," Gino added before closing the laptop, "Thanks to whoever posted that, we're fucking famous and now we've got all these people here coming to check this place out! We're finally gonna be able to turn this place into a moneymaker! I can just taste it!" he cried out in excitement, "If I can keep all these people coming in, maybe I'll finally be able to pay off my debts to Johnny after all, fuck I could hire my own fucking army, then nobody will ever kick Giovanni Cappelli around ever again!"
The door opened and both Cappelli cousins looked up to greet their visitor.
"My god, I never thought I'd live to see the day this shithole dive actually made something out of itself!" Donnie Cappelli announced much to the shock of his older brother and younger cousin.
"Donnie! Oh my god, what are you doing here?" Gino asked himself, looking as if he had seen a ghost.
Donnie Cappelli was impeccably dressed as usual, wearing a fancy black leather jacket, a light blue button up dress shirt underneath, fresh blue jeans, expensive Italian-made dress shoes, his gold Crowex watch, a gold crucifix necklace and a golden eagle ring on his right hand.
"Like everybody else, I saw the video on MeTube and figured I'd come and see what the hubbub was all about, had no idea it would be this happening," he announced motioning to the main room behind him.
"Well hey, good to see you again as always Cuz!" Artie said tapping fists with his cousin.
"Yeah, good to see you little brother," Gino spoke without enthusiasm.
"I never thought I'd say it, but yeah good to see you too," Donnie replied sharing his brother's lack of enthusiasm before turning his attention back to Artie, "Nevertheless, I was in the mood for getting off my ass and doing something so I thought I'd come down and see what this was all about, then again I shouldn't be too surprised it was my own cousin being the ass kicker in this case. You oughta' keep this stuff up Cuz; you could be a real cash cow for this place! I could see all the merchandise and what not, fuck maybe even a movie deal if you're lucky!"
"You could be a real cash cow for this place too if you'd actually help your big brother out for once," Gino cut in furrowing his brow towards his younger brother.
"Yeah I could, but I happen to be a busy man myself," Donnie said casually waving his brother off, "but for once I figured I'd show some generosity and help my two favorite guys in the world," he spoke in an almost patronizing tone.
"What do you mean? Are you gonna help me pay off my debts to Johnny Sneed?" Gino asked clamping his hands together as if praying for a miracle.
"Get the hell outta here," Donnie scoffed, "I figured I'd treat you both to dinner for once. There's this sweet new Italian joint over in Emerald Hill called Montebello's that I've been meaning to check out for quite some time, y'know get us back in touch with the motherland!"
Gino's hopeful expression quickly deflated and he slunk back into his chair, reaching into his desk for some more anxiety medication.
"C'mon, it's family night over there; we can get ourselves a sweet discount! Like I said, it can be my treat a family bonding experience if you will," Donnie said with a hearty chuckle and a shit eating grin to match.
"So you're actually looking out for somebody aside from 'number one' for once in your life? That's new," Artie grunted.
"Look, just shut the fuck up and get your ass in gear will ya'?" Donnie said motioning towards the outside.
"Fine, c'mon Gino let's go have ourselves a 'grand old time' if you will," Artie said grabbing the little man by the arm and helping him out of his chair.
The trio made their way outside where Donnie had his Banshee parked in front of Artie's Sentinel, shooting a threatening gaze towards a young man who had been admiring it a little too closely, sending him running away in the opposite direction.
"I'll let you drive Cuz, I might be getting some important phone calls pretty soon and I don't wanna have to worry about driving and texting at the same time. You know how the people are around here," Donnie said running over and opening the front passenger door.
"Yeah, they're important when they involve you getting your dick sucked by some different woman every other night," Artie sighed climbing in while Gino helped himself into the backseat.
"Heh yeah, that's real cute," Donnie shot back, "Believe it or not, sexy well-endowed women aren't the only ones who come flocking to yours truly!"
"So you're bisexual, huh?" Artie asked while starting the car up, eliciting a snicker from Gino.
"Will you just shut the fuck up and drive already? You're still not too big for me to kick your ass when the time calls for it," the elder Cappelli snapped, switching Artie's radio channel over to Radio GX, just in time for "Invincible" by Adelitas Way to come on.
As soon as they were making their way out of the Camden Heights district Donnie spoke up again.
"So what's been going on lately Cuz?" he asked brushing off Artie's previous comments, "Been blasting up any bitches that talk shit about the good Cappelli name?"
"I've been blasting people Donnie, but they haven't been talking shit about the Cappelli name. I doubt anybody around here really knows who we are to be talking shit about us anyway," Artie replied.
"Well it won't be that way much longer," Donnie spoke, earning an odd stare from both Artie and Gino.
"And just what the hell are you saying?" Artie asked, not sure he would like the response he was about to get.
"I'm building up an empire of my own and I'm going to start small by buying Hell's Belles," his cousin announced.
"What the hell?" the hired gun asked in shock, "How could we ever be welcomed back there? Remember, the last time we were there, we ended up shooting that place up because you just had to do a favor for one of your so-called 'friends.'
"Well it was a successful mission was it not?" Donnie replied, "The jack off giving my friends trouble was dealt with and so were all of his henchmen. He was a nobody schmuck Artie! I seriously doubt he has anybody left around that'll be wanting to avenge his sorry ass. Now that he's out of the way, I can step in and pick up the pieces."
"Ever the enterprising entrepreneur aren't you Donnie? It's just like when you tried starting up that 'kissing service' back when you were in junior high," Artie spoke, which elicited another laugh from Gino.
"Oh god yes I remember that! I'm surprised Mom and Dad didn't fucking kill you for that! Their own baby boy…a pimp!" the eldest Cappelli roared.
"Fuck both of you!" Donnie spat, his words drowned out by the strident laughter of his family members.
"Yeah, I remember the look on Judge Weir's face when he found out his 'sweet little angel' was one of your girls!" Artie chipped in, laughing so hard he nearly lost control and swerved into the opposite lane, "He was going to hang you by the balls!"
"That old paranoid fuck thought everybody was fucking his daughter anyway! It shouldn't have been a surprise to him that she was finally getting paid for it!" Donnie shot back.
"Yeah, you're always talking about having all these 'friends,' how can I be sure any of them are even real to begin with?" Artie shouted, prompting Gino's laughter to raise an entire octave.
"He got you there! He got you fucking good there!" the eldest Cappelli snickered until he got the hiccups.
"Yeah, well compared to you at least I understood the concept of saving my money when necessary and not having to worry about living at my parents' house until I was almost thirty!" Donnie retorted to his brother.
"Hey, don't disrespect our parents like that!" the elder Cappelli screamed, reaching over to punch Donnie, but finding himself stopped by Artie.
"That'll be enough out of the both of you!" the hired gun shouted, "Jesus Fucking Christ, driving you two around is like driving two toddlers around! Fucking grow up for once!"
"You started it," Donnie replied, the typical response of a toddler would give while trying to talk their way out of punishment, always trying to lay the blame upon someone else.
The ride wasn't much longer, but then again Artie had been going above the speed limit so he could get out of the confined space with his two quarreling cousins much faster than usual. When he finally spotted the red, white and green awning of Montebello's he eagerly pulled into the adjoining parking lot and leapt out.
"Finally," he gasped like he just escaped from a crumbling cavern, "I would've had an accident if I wouldn't have stopped those two from tearing each other's throats out."
The trio made their way inside and approached the booth near the entrance, where they were met by a snooty host in a black tuxedo.
"And how many will it be?" the man spoke in a judgmental tone, eying up the manner in which both Artie and Gino were dressed.
Artie was still wearing the same clothes he had before his mission for the Aces, a dark blue t-shirt, blue and white track pants and a pair of matching athletic shoes, while Gino was clad in his typical cheap plaid sport coat with a gaudy mostly pink Hawaiian shirt underneath and a pair of wrinkled black slacks he looked like he had just thrown on at the last minute.
"Fuck you asshole, I'm going to dress however I damn well please," Artie mentally shouted at the man, returning his disdainful glare.
"That'll be a party of three, and tell them to make it quick. Yours truly didn't have time for lunch today," he said slipping the host a one-hundred dollar bill.
"Very well, right this way sir," the man spoke leading them to a table towards the front of the room.
Montebello's was very much an authentic Sicilian-style eatery decorated with several plants native to the valleys of Italy along with replica paintings and murals by famous Italian artists, statues of Roman-like figures and several pictures of famous Italians, including actors, statesmen and even a few famed Mafiosi. There was a fountain towards the back of the room depicting the Roman god of love Eros with his trademark bow and arrow in hand. A string quartet was set up near the fountain and playing some traditional music from the motherland while the intoxicating odors of breadsticks, spaghetti, strombolis, lasagna and other native dishes dominating the air.
These kinds of environments always had a very tranquilizing effect on Artie, reminding him of the many stories his maternal grandfather Domenico had always told him about from back in 'the old country.' One personal objective he had on his 'bucket list' before he died was to visit Italy and get back in touch with his family's roots.
"Maybe I'll finally be able to do that when the damned blockade is lifted," he thought as they were led to a table with a small Italian flag placed in the center, as it had been on all the tables, and they were immediately approached by a young waitress with a healthy olive complexion and long curly black hair.
"Hello and welcome to Montebello's, how may I serve you tonight?" she asked in a pleasant tone.
"Yeah, get us all the biggest bottle of authentic Sicilian wine you've got and I'll take the biggest platter of spaghetti you can spare a hardworking man," Donnie spoke wasting no time in attempting to charm the young waitress.
"I'll take a veggie Stromboli with an order of breadsticks and marinara sauce to go with it!" Gino cut in before his brother could go any further with his attempted overtures, Donnie shooting him a sharp glare as he handed her his menu.
"Give me a plate of lasagna and my own breadsticks, marinara sauce too," Artie said handing her his menu.
"Man, I need to eat at this place more often," Donnie said staring at the young woman's ass until she disappeared into the kitchen and then returning his attention to his family members, "The only downside though would be that I'd be getting fatter than you big brother."
"Don't you ever have anything nice to say?" Gino asked sounding hurt.
"Really man, you need to lay off your brother, he's been through enough," Artie interjected, "I've done my fair share of standing up for him with everything he's been through and you might as well do your share as well," he said motioning towards the short plump man, who began to fidget and look around nervously as if he expected someone had followed him.
"Look at him, he's a grown man! He doesn't need a fucking babysitter!" Donnie protested, "Jeez, you keep treating him like he's a baby and he'll keep feeling as helpless as he does. Look at me; I was on my own as soon as I got out of high school. I didn't have Mom and Dad leading me around by the dick and I turned out perfectly fine!" he spoke, stopping abruptly as a busty redhead walked past them.
"Even if you might think he's a pussy, he's still your brother Donnie and you owe him that much after all the times he was there for you when you were younger," Artie spoke.
"Yeah, even if you're a self-centered, materialistic prick, you and Artie are all that I still have left with Ma and Pa gone, so you might as well start acting like it," Gino stated firmly, feeling empowered by his cousin's presence.
"Fine," Donnie said raising his hands defensively, knowing he was outnumbered and backed into a corner, "When I get my empire in full swing I'll give you a cut of the profits."
"And just when do you plan on getting this empire up and running?" Artie asked before leaning closer and whispering, "When people find out what you did at Hell's Belles I'm sure that'll affect any possible business you might have."
"Oh gimme a fuckin' break will ya'?" Donnie sighed, "With all the hornballs running around in this city I'll never be low on business! You shouldn't be too surprised at how enticing a large pair of breasts is to some poor bastard just getting off his shift at the nearest factory, or to some overworked middle-aged businessman going through a midlife crisis and in need of that 'spark' missing from his life, or to all those bull dykes you hear about visiting from San Fucking Fierro! Exploit a person's hormones and you're always bound to win in the end!
"Fuck, I could go broadcasting to the entire world that I blew up an entire busload of children and nobody would give two fucks about it as long as I've got some big titted Latina waiting to grind on their cock until the cows come home!" Donnie finished pounding his fist on the table, shaking their utensils and inviting the awkward glances of those at the tables surrounding them, "What the fuck are you all staring at? Mind your own fucking business!" he shouted, forcing them to resume their previous routines.
Any sense of empowerment Gino had felt seconds earlier seemed to vanish as Artie looked over to see him once again beginning to fidget and look around nervously.
"You alright?" the hired gun asked.
The eldest Cappelli gasped when he noticed he was being spoken to, but quickly forced himself to calm down, "Y-Yeah…never better…never better…" he wheezed as the droplets of sweat fell from his forehead.
"Sheesh, if you'd actually take the incentive to get out of that shithole dive of yours every once in a while you wouldn't be that damned scared of your own shadow," Donnie grunted.
"Ha, like you'd be out and about if you had some jackass loan shark and a bunch of piss ant hoodlums trying to jump you from all sides the second you step out the door to grab the daily paper," Gino squeaked.
Before the conversation could go any further, the waitress returned with a tray carrying the trio's respective dinners.
"There you are fine gentlemen, you enjoy yourselves and have a good evening!" she said before again disappearing from sight.
"Jeez she's like the fuckin' Brown Streak," Donnie said comparing her speed to his favorite childhood comic book superhero, one who they could always try to wipe out, yet always missed a bit. "Oh well, food's here so let's dig in boys!"
The three Cappellis wasted no time assaulting their food, Artie especially after everything he had already been through today.
"Never know if I'll ever be able to enjoy another meal like this," he thought to himself, remembering the multitude of dangerous tasks he had carried out in Rushmore City, knowing each could possibly be his last.
As they were halfway through their meal a Caribbean-accented voice called ut.
"Eh, Donnie Cappelli, what cha' be doin' 'round 'ere?"
Turning around, he found them being approached by a tall Jamaican man in a floor-length mink coat covering a bright green suit with a black dress shirt and gold tie underneath, wearing several different golden necklaces, rings on every finger and a gold Crowex encrusted with diamonds. His hair was worn in long nappy dreadlocks dyed multiple colors and he had a bushy beard and mustache, as well as wearing an expensive-looking pair of shades indoors, a golden-tipped cane in one hand.
"Hey man, how the hell are you doing?" the Cappelli cousin boomed, rising to give the man a hearty embrace, "Oh, where the hell are my manners? Guys this is D.J. Babylon, he's the D.J. over at Rasta 106.9 and one of my poker buddies. Babylon, this is my brother Gino and my cousin Artie."
"Pleased ta' meet cha' all, your brudda be an honorary Rasta as we say in our parts," the D.J. said reaching over to shake hands with Gino.
"Uh yeah, he's just a regular do-gooder," the elder Cappelli said forcing a fake laugh, "Ain't that right Artie me boy?"
"Totally," the youngest Cappelli said with forced enthusiasm, "Well at least now I know all his 'friends' aren't imaginary," he thought reaching over to shake Babylon's hand.
"So Donnie me boy, ya' be ready for that party we gonna be havin' this weekend? Gon' be over at da' Montego, gon' be all sortsa' booze, boobs an' blow!" the D.J. laughed.
"My three favorite words in the English language," Donnie laughed while Artie and Gino only looked at each other rolling their eyes.
"Yah mon, we be seein' ya' there!" the D.J. spoke before a gunshot sounded and a second later he collapsed with a bullet through his right eye.
A barrage of automatic fire rang out and all of the patrons and staff members threw themselves to the floor, panicking and screaming.
"There he is!" a voice called out and next thing he knew, Artie found his table being torn apart.
"What the fuck is going on here?" he asked himself. He had his back to the direction which the gunfire came from and therefore hadn't gotten a look at the shooters. Now he was hiding behind a table, thankful for the tablecloth hiding him from view of his attackers.
"Who are these people?" Gino whimpered next to him, lying face down with his hands clasped over his head, a huge wet spot pooling beneath him.
Donnie meanwhile had withdrawn his pistol and was returning fire, much to his cousin and brother's chagrin.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Artie demanded.
"What the fuck does it look like? I'm defending myself, that's what the fuck I'm doing!" his cousin retorted, emptying his spent clip and slapping in a fresh one.
Saying nothing, Artie crawled beneath a nearby table and carefully lifted a flap up hoping to get a good view of the gunmen.
Donnie fired a few more rounds and eventually one of the gunmen would collapse to the floor, a blond-haired man with a bullet lodged in his upper right arm.
When Artie took notice of the man's dark blue vest he could feel the blood freeze in his veins.
The man was an Ace!
"What the fuck are they doing here?" he thought to himself watching as the man writhed in pain.
Whatever the case was, they were on his side and he couldn't risk harming any of them.
Crawling out from beneath the table Artie began tugging on his cousin's sleeve, "Donnie, you need to stop shooting at them!"
His cousin did as instructed, staring at him awkwardly as another barrage was fired in their direction.
"What the fuck man?" he demanded.
"You heard me, you need to stop shooting at them!" the errand boy hissed.
"Why? They're trying to fucking kill us!" Donnie grunted, holding onto his Beretta with a white knuckle grip.
"I'll tell you later, just get your fucking ass over to the kitchen. There has to be a backdoor we can escape through and then get over to the car. We need to get out of here before the police arrive. Now just do as I say for once!" Artie said reaching over to grab Gino, who stared at both of them with bloodshot eyes and sucking his thumb like a toddler.
"We're making a break for it. When we start running, follow after us, we're heading for the kitchen," Artie told his older cousin, who continued staring far away until Donnie reached over and slapped him upside the head.
"Pay attention you dumb fuck!" he shouted.
Artie glared towards Donnie before returning his attention to Gino and taking a deep breath before repeating himself, "Gino, we're going to make a break for it. When we start running, you follow after us. We're heading for the kitchen; did you get any of that?"
Gino sniffed heavily before nodding sheepishly in reply.
He knew they were taking a risk and he could only hope that none of the Aces present recognized him.
Listening for their footsteps and watching their shadows in the light, Artie waited for the gunmen to get closer and when he could feel them on top of him, shoved the table forward and knocked two of the shooters backward.
"Run!" he screamed, yanking Gino up from the carpeted floor, the three of them bolting for the kitchen as bullets flew around them, glasses being shattered, statues being chipped and paintings torn apart as they ran, also noticing the snooty host being gunned down before their very eyes before throwing themselves through the kitchen doors.
Members of the frightened kitchen staff threw themselves into cover as the trio made their way inside, Donnie eventually managing to grab a fleeing cook by the collar and shoving him hard against a nearby freezer.
"Where's the backdoor outta this place?" Donnie demanded, pressing the still warm barrel of his gun beneath the man's chin.
The man could only whimper his reply, shooting his right hand outward.
"Thank you," Donnie said before pistol whipping him to the floor, "C'mon!" he shouted to his family members.
Running as quickly as they could, the Cappellis made their way into the back alley and rounded the building towards the parking lot, where Artie then took point and ordered his cousins to hang back.
Sneaking over to the building's edge, Artie looked over to see two Ace-owned Vigeros and a Rumpo XL parked in front of the restaurant with four visible blue-clad gang members standing guard.
"Alright, just keep your heads down," the youngest Cappelli ordered taking cover behind an '08 Tampa, his cousins following suit, moving from car to car until they finally reached the waiting Sentinel and Artie slid his key into the slot, opening the door as quietly as he could, leaving Donnie to climb in first and then unlocking one of the backdoors so Gino could slip in, lying down on the backseat in a fetal position.
Slamming his door shut, Artie fired up his engine and sped out of the parking lot, knowing there was no way he would be able to exit without drawing attention, bullets slamming into the car's side as they passed the guards. Looking into the rearview mirror he watched as the Aces piled out of the restaurant making their way for their cars.
"I can't hurt any of those guys, they're on my side. I'm just going to get as far away from here as I can," Artie told himself speeding down the street, cutting off a Yankee and forcing it to jackknife, hoping it would slow the pursuing Aces down.
Unfortunately, the smaller, sleeker Vigeros easily bypassed the delivery truck and their occupants wasted no time firing away at the fleeing cousins, prompting Donnie to stick his upper body out the window and return fire.
"Donnie, for God's sakes I told you not to return fire!" Artie screamed taking an abrupt left to dodge an oncoming Bobcat.
"And why the fuck not? Those crazy bastards are trying to kill us!" the elder Cappelli shouted back.
"Because I'm on their side, that's why!" Artie replied.
Donnie looked at him in disbelief, "You're shitting me! What the fuck are you doing running around with those clowns? They're nothing but a bunch of fucking common thugs, too low class for our standards!"
"And what the fuck do you consider those prick Redcoats or their Hellcat bitches? Hell, what about those fucking drugged out Yardie bitches? Maybe they're too low for your standards, but not mine," Artie replied running a red light and cutting off another Sentinel.
"Ha right, next thing I know you're gonna be in bed with some of those bikers running around here," Donnie laughed harshly.
"For your information, I have helped the Luciferians," Artie stated.
"What in the fucking hell? What the fuck makes you think they'd ever roll with our kind? Remember, they hate Italians and pretty much everything else that isn't a white American!" the elder shouted back.
"We don't have time to discuss this. All I'm going to tell you is that they're not the 'lowly thugs' you think they are. They're a group of men and women fighting to protect their community from all the drugs filtering in thanks to those Redcoats and their prick friends," Artie spoke straight and to the point.
"Well if these guys are your friends then why can't you just call them off?" Gino whined from the backseat.
"They don't know I'm with you, that's why. For all I know they probably think I'm one of the bad guys thanks to your baby brother and his itchy trigger finger!" Artie spat.
"Well you should've fucking said something then!" Donnie screamed as more bullets whizzed past him, fighting his urge to fire back, "Jesus Christ I wouldn't have shot at them if I knew they were friends of yours, even if they are a bunch of lowly shithead hooligans!"
Artie ignored his cousin and focused on the road ahead of him, running yet another red light and causing a biker to plow head on into a Contender pickup truck. The two Vigeros swerved around the obstructions and continued their pursuit, now joined by two dark blue Mesa Grandes whose occupants fired upon them with submachine guns.
"Good lord, this is the last time I go out for Italian food anywhere!" Gino squealed.
"You'd better not be pissing yourself back there Gino! I just got that seat deloused after I caught that freak Freda sleeping back there!" Artie shouted, causing Gino to scream in disgust and Donnie to snicker.
Artie took another wide left to dodge an oncoming Feltzer convertible, only to find an Aces-owned Rumpo XL charging towards them, the driver sticking his arm out the window with an MP5 in hand.
"Get down!" Artie shouted to his cousins, lowering his head as a volley of automatic fire was sprayed upon his car, shattering all of the windows and tearing apart the seat's headrests.
"Oh my fucking god," Gino screamed as shards of broken glass rained down upon him, "Please just let all of this be one very fucked up dream!"
"We've gotta fucking fight back! They're going to fucking kill us!" Donnie hollered withdrawing his pistol and firing through the shattered windows, striking the dark blue van a few times, but doing no serious damage.
Slamming the gas pedal down to the floor Artie bolted down the street and eventually happened across a Packer car transport, its tires punctured and its very exasperated driver screaming into his cell phone for assistance. Fortunately its upper ramp had been lowered and was empty, creating another improvised exit.
"Hold on boys, we're gonna fly!" the hired gun announced keeping the car going at its current speed.
"Wasn't once enough for you?" Donnie shouted back grabbing onto his doors armrest.
Artie ignored his cousin's comment and sped up the ramp, sending the car airborne.
"Oh my fucking god! Oh my fucking god! I'm scared of heights! I'm scared of heights!" Gino screamed repeatedly, tears flowing freely down his face.
"We know now shut your fucking mouth!" Donnie cried, just before they hit the ground with a bone-rattling jolt, which would have sent both Artie and his cousin flying had they not been restrained by their seatbelts.
The Sentinel fishtailed violently as it hit the ground and plowed into a parked Schafter, causing its car alarm to go off, but there was no time to slow down they had to keep moving.
Artie watched from his rearview mirror as the two Vigeros sped up the Packer's ramp, the first making it and landing safely on the ground behind them, while the second landed at an awkward angle and rolled over twice before coming to a halt against the same car he had plowed into.
He hated himself for having to do this and prayed the Aces inside were alright, knowing he couldn't slow down and check up on them. One of the Mesa Grandes had stopped to check on the crashed car's occupants while the others continued their pursuit.
"Shit, they're still coming!" Donnie called out.
"Well we're going to lose them one way or another," Artie replied taking yet another left turn into a narrow alley and plowing through trashcans, piles of garbage and a group of hobos congregating around a trashcan fire.
"Hey watch it will ya'! I don't wanna go to jail for being a party to murder!" Gino whined from the back, shuddering as the pursuing Vigeros ran over the hobos Artie had just hit.
"Why don't you watch your fucking mouth 'cause I don't really wanna have to put a bullet in my own brother's face!" Donnie spat as Artie exited the alley in another abrupt right turn, coming within inches of running over a woman in a black pantsuit as he made his exit.
"Fucking assholes!" the woman cried out as the Aces ran past her, throwing all of them the middle finger.
"C'mon damn it, I've gotta lose these guys at one point or another," Artie thought to himself as they raced across the Eastwood Bridge, looking down to see he was getting dangerously low on gas, "There has to be a Pay n' Spray nearby, something where I can lose these guys without hurting any of them."
Artie was about to run through another intersection when he felt the grinding of metal on metal followed by another ear-piercing shriek from Gino, the remaining Vigero attempting to force him into a fishtail.
"Do something Artie!" Gino screamed from the back as a bullet whizzed past his earlobe, "Who did I piss off in a previous life to deserve such a fate? God I don't wanna die! Lord in Heaven have mercy. What I did ever do to deserve such a fate? Was I not religious enough? I'll seriously start going to church more if I survive this!"
"Okay, now's seriously not the time to be getting religious!" Donnie retorted.
"Put a lid on it both of you!" Artie shouted before another rattle of gunfire, ignoring his bawling older cousin as he struggled against the muscle car, eventually happening across a patch of road under construction.
"Bingo!" he told himself, swinging his wheel to the right as far as it would go until he finally forced the Aces' car into the construction site, causing it to become stuck in the mud.
The other Ace vehicles were lagging far behind, a small miracle the luxury car still managed to go this fast and let alone was still moving about.
"Man, I could kiss Gino for suggesting I take this car of all things," he thought to himself, but then looked into the backseat to see the short plump man curled into a fetal position and sucking his thumb like a 5 year old who swore he had just seen the boogeyman, "Okay, maybe not that far."
"Artie, keep going straight I know this area. There's a Pay n' Spray not far from here!" Donnie called out, recognizing the Queen Sheba's Revue gentlemen's club, telling him they were back in the Red Light District.
"You'd better not be bullshitting me," Artie grunted, feeling annoyed that it took his oversexed cousin noticing a strip club to get them on the right track for once.
"For once I'm not, now you'd just better focus on stepping on it," Donnie replied, noting the smoke billowing out from beneath the loosened hood.
The hired gun sped down the street until he spotted the familiar garage and took an abrupt turn, fishtailing in front of the small building and slowly making his way inside, the door lowering just in time for the Aces to speed past.
"Goddamn that was close!" Donnie exhaled relaxing against his torn apart seat.
Artie's hands were still gripping onto the wheel, his heart threatening to pound right through his chest and breathing in short, ragged gasps. When he felt a hand placed onto his shoulder he shot his hand out and clamped down.
"Ow! Let go Artie! It's me!" Gino yelped feeling his wrist being crushed, "We're safe, you can let go now!"
"And we won't be safe much longer if you don't shut your fucking trap!" Donnie said shoving his older brother off as he could still hear the rumbling engines outside. "Fuckin' A man, I swear traveling with you is like running around with a fucking siren strapped to my head. You're worse than one of those screaming bimbos in one of those slasher flicks-"
"I think we get it," Artie said stopping his cousin in mid-sentence, finally allowing himself to relax as they were approached by the mechanics.
"Oh man, I'm going home tonight and I'm locking all my doors!" Gino whimpered as he carefully climbed out of the backseat.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
All of the Aces survived the chase, one of them suffering what was hopefully just a minor flesh wound while the others escaped with bumps and bruises.
They had now gathered in a back lot area and were licking their wounds as a Mesa Grande pulled into view and out stepped the Ace street sergeant Philly.
Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his cell phone and dialed his boss' number.
"Darius speaking," the voice boomed from the other end.
"Darius, we managed to take down D.J. Babylon, but the other bastard got away," the sergeant reported.
"What? How the fuck did you let that weasel slip through your fingers?" the Aces general growled in disgust.
"He had a damned good driver with him. I didn't get a good look at the guy; I don't think any of the boys did to tell you the truth."
"Fuck, well knowing him he's probably able to afford better help by this point compared to the other schmucks he's had with him in the past. Is everybody else alright?"
"Yeah, everybody's fine. Ricky got shot, but he'll live," Philly spoke looking around to his battered subordinates.
"Alright, round them up and get them back here before anybody else gets hurt. We're going to need to think up a different plan if we're going to nail that guy. We might have to get help from that Artie guy too."
"Artie Cappelli? Are you serious? Boss, with all due respect we haven't known that guy long. Don't you think maybe he could be too good to be true? How do you know he's not really one of the Redcoats' bitches?" Philly demanded, fighting to sound respectful as he questioned his leader.
"Well I'm liking what he's doing so far. If he can whack a whole bunch of Redcoats in one sitting, he can damn sure take out one lowly piss ant drug dealer. Now just get the boys rounded up. We've got work to do."
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
Author's Note: This mission was largely inspired by the "Green With Envy" mission from "Saints Row 1."
In this mission you have to find out where Tony Green's hideout is and in doing so, you have to take out Tonya Winters' chauffeur and then drive her around to a few different locations. What happens then is you get a phone call from Julius telling you that Troy has sent some of his boys out thinking they were on a mission to whack Tonya, completely unaware of the Player's own mission. He must then drive around in an effort to lose them without actually hurting any of them as they are his fellow Saints. When he finally does lose them, he then moves onto the next part where he must drive Tonya back to Green's hideout.
I wanted to do something like that to present a similar objective to make things more interesting had this been an actual video game and wondered "What if Artie was placed in a scenario where he's actually told to NOT kill anybody?"
Obviously the Aces have no idea who was driving, so he's still in good standing with them at this point, but obviously he doesn't know it just yet.
Well that's it for my notes so all you can do until then is read and review. This is Metal Harbinger saying SPREAD THE SICKNESS, ONE MIND AT A TIME! \m/