When she could barely take any more torture, she kissed Maria’s mouth. She moved her tongue all around, frantically mimicking the action she longed to do between her legs.
Maria took her hand and placed it on her center.
“Please, baby.”
Helen was happy to oblige. She slid her fingers easily inside Maria. She coated them with her cream then rubbed her swollen clit. Maria moved against her hand, obviously close to her climax. Helen smiled as she sucked on her nipple, pleased with herself for getting Maria so worked up.
Maria put her own hand over Helen’s and helped her rub until her breath caught and her body froze, the climax crashing through her.
Helen stood and quickly stripped out of her clothes, anxious to feel the relief that Maria would give her. She lowered herself over Maria’s face and fought to maintain control as Maria’s tongue worked its magic. Helen felt the ball of heat forming at her center. She felt it explode, sending waves of heat over every inch of her body.
She climbed off Maria and pulled her close.
“So when can I tell Franco to get lost?” Maria asked.
“Soon, doll. In another week or so, you’ll leave him for good. I promise.” Helen thought of the hit they were planning on the gambling tournament. She hoped they’d take Moretti out then and Maria would be free of him for good.
“I hope so,” Maria said. “I hate being around him when I’d much rather be with you.”
“I know. Don’t worry. It’ll be just us soon.”
Chapter Fifteen
A few days passed before Helen was able to call Maria.
“Hey, doll, can I come over and see you?”
“Sure. Come on by.”
Helen arrived and pulled Maria into her arms.
“I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you, too. I want to see you more often. This every few days isn’t working for me.”
Helen was about to respond when the sound of gunfire erupted. Helen pulled Maria to the floor and lay on top of her until it quieted. They heard a car take off.
“What was that about?” Maria said.
“I don’t know. They didn’t hit anything in here. You stay here I’ll go outside and look around.”
Helen cautiously opened the door and backed away, fearing more gunshots. Hearing none, she ventured outside. The building looked fine. She closed the door and went back to Maria.
“I don’t see anything. I don’t know what they were shooting at, but they didn’t seem to hit anything. Maybe they were just warning shots.”
“I’m sorry, baby. We knew this wouldn’t be easy.”
“True. But I’m not backing down.”
Maria closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around Helen, who held her tight.
“You’re something special, Helen.”
“So are you, Maria.”
Helen broke the embrace. “I need to get to work. I’ll be back later. We’ll have dinner.”
“That would be swell.”
Helen kissed her and left. She reached her car and stopped in her tracks. It listed horribly to the right. She walked around it and found it was riddled with bullet holes.
“Shit!” She looked around the empty street. She was safe, but her car was ruined. She walked back up to the house. Maria opened the door.
“I was watching you. What’s wrong?”
“They shot up my car. I need to use your phone.”
“It’s in the hall.”
Helen called headquarters and was relieved when Kevin answered.
“They got my car,” she said. “I need you to come get me.”
“Where are you?” he asked.
“Shit. I’m at a boarding house on the South Side.” She gave him the address.
“And just what are you doing there?”
“What the fuck do you think? Just get here.” She slammed down the phone.
Kevin arrived and Helen got in the car. They rode in silence for a few minutes.
“Boss, are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
“It’s none of your business, Kevin.”
“They’re not going to stop ’til you’re dead.”
“They don’t want me dead. They just want me to back off.”
“You don’t know that.”
“They’re not going to kill me over a girl.”
“Look, boss, you don’t know how Moretti feels about this gal. He might really love her.”
“He doesn’t deserve her.”
“That’s not for you to decide.”
They returned to headquarters and Kevin got on the phone to call a truck to tow Helen’s car. Helen was in a foul mood. She couldn’t get over the nerve of Moretti’s people shooting her car in broad daylight.
“What time are the boys hitting the gambling hall tonight?” she asked Kevin.
“They’re gunning for midnight.”
“Good. I hope they draw blood.”
“You know this could turn into a war because you’re hot for some hussy.”
“She’s not a hussy, and don’t you ever call her that again.”
“God, boss. Listen to yourself. Men could die over this.”
“As long as they’re Moretti’s men, I don’t care. Now take me to Hank’s. I need a new car.”
*
Helen picked Maria up at six o’clock. She was on alert for anything out of the ordinary, anyone who looked suspicious. She saw nothing, but drove away with a heavy sigh of relief.
“Franco’s going to wonder where I am,” Maria said as Helen steered them to a safer part of town.
“I’m sure he knows,” Helen said.
“Are you scared?”
“No. I’m steamed.”
“But what if you’d been in your car this afternoon?”
“I wasn’t. And they knew that.”
They arrived at a steakhouse Helen owned on the West Side. They dined in peace, knowing they were safe. For the moment.
“Maybe we should get out of town for a while,” Helen said.
“Where would we go?”
“I’ve got a place up in Wisconsin. It’s on the lake. We could lay low for a few days.”
“Are you serious?”
Helen sighed. “I don’t think I am. As nice as it sounds, I really need to be here for the guys right now.”
“You’re not taking Franco’s crap lying down are you?”
“That’s not something for you to worry about, doll.”
“What? I’m not good enough to discuss business with?”
“That’s not it. I just don’t like to talk about business when I’m with you. Especially this mess with Moretti.”
Maria pouted. Helen ran her thumb over her extended bottom lip.
“It drives me crazy when you do that. It makes me want to suck on that lip.”
“Why don’t you?”
“Let’s get out of here.”
Helen drove to her apartment and once inside, she quickly took Maria in her arms. She kissed her hard, stripping her dress off her. Her breath caught at the sight of Maria standing in her lingerie. She closed her hand around a pert breast and rubbed the nipple through the flimsy material as she kissed her more passionately.
Maria fumbled with the buttons on Helen’s shirt, finally sliding it off and letting it fall to the floor. She moved her hands to Helen’s chest. Helen took her hands and led her to the bedroom, where she eased her onto the bed.
“You’re so beautiful,” she whispered. She helped her out of her bra and panties and quickly stripped off the rest of her own clothes. When they met skin to skin, the electricity between them was palpable.
Helen moved her knee between Maria’s legs as she nibbled her neck. She kissed down her neck, stopping to taste every inch, until she reached a taut nipple. She closed her mouth on it, drawing it in deep.
Maria arched against her, moving against her knee. Helen slid her hand between them and found Maria’s clit slick and swollen. She teased
it, rubbing circles around it until Maria begged for more.
“Please. Please, Helen.”
Helen ran her fingers over Maria and was greeted with a shudder as Maria came on her hand. She waited until Maria’s breathing steadied then started over again. It took little time before Maria cried out as another orgasm racked her body.
They made love for hours, with Helen taking Maria to one climax after another. Maria finally protested that she’d had enough and Helen lay back, pulling Maria close.
“I don’t know how you do that,” Maria said. “You make me feel so many different things.”
“Good, doll. You should feel all those things. All the time. Now just relax.”
“How could I do anything else?”
Helen lay awake as Maria slept in her arms. She knew she had to wake her up soon so she could get to headquarters. The hit would be happening any minute, and she wanted to be sure she was at the office when the men showed up.
“Hey, doll? Maria?” She kissed Maria’s ear. “Time to wake up. I need to get you home.”
“Hmm? Why? Can’t we just stay here?”
“Not tonight. I’ve got some stuff to take care of. Come on. Get up and dressed so I can drive you home.”
A groggy Maria rose and pulled herself together as Helen watched. She quickly dressed herself and they took the elevator to the main floor. Helen was vigilant as they left, once again. She needed to be sure no one was waiting to do either of them harm. Satisfied the coast was clear, she drove Maria home and dropped her off.
“I’ll call you,” she said.
“You promise?”
“I promise.” She kissed Maria and watched her let herself into the boarding house. Knowing she was safe, Helen sped out of the neighborhood and back to the safety of her office.
*
Helen arrived at the room behind the barbershop at just past midnight. She let herself in and poured herself a bourbon while she waited. Less than a half hour later, Kevin walked in, followed by the gang of men who’d hit Moretti’s place. Helen jumped to her feet.
“How’d it go? Tell me what happened.”
“That place is in shreds,” one of her lieutenants said. “We shot it up but good.”
“How many people were hit?” Helen asked.
“A lot,” Kevin said. “But we shot fast and got the hell out of there so we didn’t stick around to get a count.”
“Any of ours get hit?”
“Not a one.”
“Good job, men,” Helen said.
“We shot the shit out of their booze, too,” another commented.
“Sounds like a successful mission. Let’s drink.”
Drinks were poured all around. The atmosphere was euphoric. Kevin pulled Helen aside.
“Moretti was there, but not his girl. You know anything about that?”
“Maybe I made sure she was safe.”
“You didn’t tell her about the hit, did you?”
“What do you take me for?”
“I’m just checking, boss. You don’t think right when it comes to that dame.”
“What about you? You shouldn’t have had time to notice she wasn’t there. Where’s your head?”
Kevin hung his head.
“I just don’t want you compromising your safety or the safety of the men because you’re worried about my relationship with Maria,” Helen said. “Now let’s get back to the party.”
The celebration lasted into the wee hours of the morning. Helen congratulated herself on a great day as she drove home.
When she finally awoke the next morning, she was still in fine spirits and immediately called Maria.
“Hi, doll.”
“Hi yourself. I heard what happened last night. I could have been killed.”
Helen sat up in bed. “You think I would let that happen to you?”
“So that’s all last night was? A way to keep me from being shot?”
“Maria, calm down. Last night was much more than that.”
“I appreciate you keeping me safe, but I don’t like that you used me like that. Was I your alibi?”
“I didn’t use you. Last night was wonderful.”
“Were you staring at the clock the whole time?” Maria said. “Waiting until it was safe to take me home?”
“That’s not how it was at all.”
“Bullshit!”
“What can I say to convince you?”
“I need some time. I don’t know if this is worth it.”
“What? You can’t be serious.”
“I am. Good-bye, Helen.”
The line went dead.
“Dames!” Helen spat as she slammed down the receiver. She climbed out of bed and took a long shower, playing over every moment she’d spent with Maria. Frustrated and more annoyed than before, she got out and dressed quickly.
She arrived at headquarters to find several hungover men already there.
“What’s going on?” She poured herself a bourbon.
“Capone got a shipment last night.” The young man’s voice quaked as he said it.
“So?”
“So you told us to hit it,” another said.
“Oh, yeah,” Helen shook herself out of her misery and focused on current matters. “We hit the gambling hall last night. We’ll hit the shipment another time.”
The men looked at each other, then back to Helen.
“So the next shipment will be okay with you?”
“Sure.”
“You okay?” one of them asked.
“Of course,” she snapped.
“We thought you’d be mad as hell.”
“Last night was a job well done. No need to get upset over the missed shipment. We weren’t anywhere near ready to hit it anyway. How many guns does he have riding with it? What’s their route?”
“We don’t know all that yet.”
“Then it would have been like lambs being led to slaughter. I want you guys to do your research and get back to me when we know what it’s going to take. I don’t want to lose any men when it happens.”
Kevin walked in and took one look at Helen.
“You’re at it early.”
“Don’t judge.”
“I was just commenting.”
“Well, don’t.” To the rest of the men, she said, “Go make some collections and meet us at Mickey’s in two hours.”
They dispersed, leaving Kevin and Helen alone.
“You want to talk about it?” Kevin poured himself a drink.
“No.”
“Fine. But you should know you look like shit.”
“Nothing that work won’t help.”
“You want to make the rounds with me today?” he asked.
“Sure.”
Helen’s mood improved only slightly as their takes weren’t as lucrative as she would have liked. By the time they got to Mickey’s, they’d hit ten establishments and their envelopes weren’t as thick as usual.
“That’s what happens when you’re the ones involved in the war. No one wants to get shot up, so they avoid our businesses.” Kevin glared at Helen.
“You know, Kevin, you’re getting awfully big for your britches lately.”
“I’m just worried, is all.”
“Well, don’t.”
Mickey arrived with their lunches and Helen felt resentment toward the obvious feelings between Mickey and Kevin. When Mickey was out of earshot, Kevin got back to business.
“So what’s our next move? We let Moretti have at us, or do we hit him again?”
“You don’t need to worry about Moretti anymore. I’m sure he’ll leave us be.”
They heard squealing tires and the sounds of car doors slamming. They reached for their guns before three of their men ran in.
“Leo and Donnie got hit,” one said.
“What? Where? Who?” Helen said.
“Over by Marigold’s bakery. They had just picked up from them when some of Weiss’s men shot ’em.”
“How
do you know?”
“We were meeting them. We were all going to drive over together.”
“Where are they now?”
“On their way to General.”
“Let’s go.” Helen lead the way to the front door. “How do you know it was guys from the North.”
“I recognized DeSoto.”
“Shit.”
“We’re taking heat from all sides. Real nice,” Kevin said.
They found Leo in stable condition at the hospital, but were saddened to learn that Donnie hadn’t made it.
“Shit,” Helen repeated.
Chapter Sixteen
Ten men stood guard as Helen watched Donnie be lowered into the ground. It was a somber day and a reminder to them all how dangerous a business they were in. The funeral had been nice, and the whole gang had followed the hearse to the cemetery. As Helen turned away from the grave, her thoughts turned to Maria. Maybe she had been right. The price wasn’t worth it. Although, she knew she didn’t believe it. She wanted Maria. And she wasn’t ready to give up just yet.
The gang agreed to meet at the Golden Beaver, opting to celebrate Donnie’s life. It was their way of mourning. Helen rode with Kevin.
“You doin’ okay, boss?”
“As well as I can be.”
“It’s part of life, you know. Death, I mean.”
“That’s very profound,” Helen said.
“You don’t have to be such a bitch.”
“I’m sorry. That came out harsher than I meant it. I know it’s part of life. But he was so young. Twenty-two is too young to die.”
They rode in silence for a bit, then Helen said, “And why us? What the fuck did we do to draw Weiss’s ire?”
“I don’t know, boss. You’re not sleeping with his girl, too, are you?”
“Fuck you.”
They arrived at the speakeasy. Helen slammed her door as she got out. Kevin was quickly beside her.
“I’m sorry. That wasn’t nice.”
“Not nice? It was a shitty thing to say.”
“I’m worried about you, Helen.”
“Don’t be. Maria and I are off. And I’m not sleeping with anyone from Hymie’s group, either. Okay? Now forget about me and let’s go think of Donnie.”
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