The Legacy of the Assassin

by Tony Bertot

  As Maria made her way to the other end of the counter someone asked her for some coffee. "Sure, Steve-O." She reached for the pot and poured him a cup.

  "Damn it," another customer said as he popped a can of C&C Cola, which spilled all over his pants.

  "Good job, Bobby Wings," Maria said as she continued her walk toward the end of the counter.

  Having arrived, she asked the couple what she could get them. Both Tom and Kathy smiled up at her as they gave her the order. Maria spoke to the person sitting to the left of Kathy, "Mother, you almost done?"

  "Hey, you rushing me?" the lady responded.

  "No. No. Just wondering when we can free up the stool," Maria said laughing.

  Just then, Bob happened to look down towards Maria and spotted Tom and Kathy. He met Maria's eyes and signaled her to step back to where he was. Maria took Kathy and Tom's order and headed back to Bob.

  "Let's not bring any attention to them," Bob whispered to Maria.

  For a long time people were coming in and out as they either sat down and ate, or simply picked up their orders. It seemed like Maria and Bob knew every person that came through their doors, and if they didn't know them they introduced themselves right there and then. They made all their customers feel welcomed. Not wanting anyone to notice the two in the corner, Bob remained up front and tried the best he could to keep most of the customers at the front of the store; away from Tom and Kathy. Finally, when the place had almost emptied out, some several hours later, he walked over to the couple and handed them a pair of keys with a piece of paper containing an address.

  "Go there and we'll see you later," he told them.

  A minute later, Tom and Kathy walked out of the deli, got into Bob's car and drove some two miles to Valley Stream where Bob and Maria lived, and where they would remain hidden for a week before continuing their quest to the Hamptons to kill Felicia Giordano.

  The News

  December/New York

  Felicia cautiously stared out her bedroom window, watching as two guards patrolled the area. In a way she felt like a prisoner in her own home, afraid that if she stuck her head out far enough someone would put a bullet in it. Just beyond the gate she could see the reporters with their long lens cameras trying to get a glimpse of her and snap their valuable photos.

  "Fucking assholes."

  Suddenly she noticed some activity at the gate. Someone had pulled up requesting access. She watched as several guards with automatic weapons headed towards the gate followed by one of Leo's sons. A few minutes later, Leo himself appeared, heading toward the gate. With men on both sides and their weapons pointing at the car, Leo, along with two other men, went through the gate and approached. Felicia continued to watch as the trunk was opened, while another guard looked under the car. The passengers stepped out of the car and were frisked. She quickly recognized one of the men as Jimmy (Slick) Debonti and two of his men.

  Before joining the Ruiziano organization, Slick was a private detective working for the Giordano family in New York. As Felicia began to build her empire she realized she had to have eyes everywhere. So she hired and planted several men in different crime families that had emerged in the late 60's. She asked Slick, now planted in Chicago, to discreetly perform some investigative work for her.

  Felicia walked over to the phone and called the front gate. One of the guards walked over and picked up the phone.

  "Tell Leo it's ok to let them in," she ordered.

  She saw Leo look back toward her window and wave as he turned to the men and said something. The men got back into their car as the gate opened. Leo stepped onto the driver's side running board, accompanying the vehicle as it approached the house. Felicia walked out of the room and headed downstairs to meet her guests.

  As Felicia, Slick and Leo began to settle in the living room, they were interrupted by a knock on the door announcing they had several other visitors at the gate. Felicia walked over to a nearby window and peered out as Leo once again took his position at the entrance to the estate. She could see two cars waiting to gain access as Leo opened the gate and, once again escorted by several guards, went to meet the guests. She watched as the passengers disembarked with their hands up as her men approached and padded them down. Leo gave a signal and the gate was opened wider to allow them passage. Felicia turned to her guests and smiled.

  "Slick, it has been a while," she said.

  "Yes, Miss Giordano. We have the information you requested," he said, handing her several papers.

  She smiled at him, took the documents and began to go through them. A knock at the door caused her to look up as Leo entered.

  "Felicia, did you order more men out of San Francisco and Florida?" Leo asked her.

  "Yes. I'll talk to them when I'm done here. See if they want anything to eat," she responded.

  "Sure. I'll take care of it," Leo said as he left the room.

  "Slick, as usual you did an excellent job. There is no need for you or your men to return to Chicago," she told him.

  Slick stared at her for a few seconds then said, “We kind of made Chicago our home."

  Felicia stared at him and nodded. "Well then consider yourself and your men our guests for a few weeks until our issues have been resolved. How about the men you brought with you, can they be trusted?" she asked.

  "I trust them with my life," Slick responded.

  Both Felicia and Slick stood up and shook hands.

  "I look forward to working with you," Felicia said as Slick nodded and left the room. Felicia took the papers, walked over to a desk in the far corner of the room and inserted them in a yellow manila envelope. She grabbed a pen and wrote an address on the front and called for one of the guards. "Have this envelope taken to the post office and mailed overnight," she ordered handing it to the guard.

  Next, Felicia met privately with the other men who arrived that day. After several hours, she called Leo in and asked him to have them put up nearby. Later she gave Leo a list containing the heads of several crime families inviting them to join her on Christmas Eve for a special celebration.

  After a couple of hours, she met with her lieutenants to discuss several issues, one being the whereabouts of the Diasparras. There was no update other than they disappeared somewhere between the Van Wyck Expressway and the Bell Parkway. Another bit of news that Felicia found interesting was that Tyler Santiago was no longer with the New York police force, and was currently being sought by the FBI. Additionally, there was a strong rumor Nick Costello had just completed a twenty-two year stretch at the Wisconsin Penitentiary under an assumed name, and that the FBI was also looking for him. Felicia stared across the table at the bearer of the news.

  "We need to find him before the FBI does. So now we know this asshole we hired, and have been working with all these years, is not really Nick Costello. I wonder how the real Nick Costello would feel about this. He may be so pissed off he would be kind enough to put a bullet in this imposter's head for us," she said aloud. Smiling, she thought, "Finally, things are going my way."

  Saying Goodbye

  December/Chicago

  Unaware of any pending danger, Denise had Dianna's full attention as she discussed her feelings toward Mike and Nick. Only a block from their apartment building, Denise never saw the attack coming.

  "You fucking bitch," was the last thing Denise heard before being struck from behind. Dianna turned to see Kevin standing over Denise with a clenched hand. Dianna lunged at him with all her force as he turned to meet her onslaught. Dianna scratched his face as he punched her on the side, sending her to the curb. Both women lay on the ground as Kevin bent over and started to pick Denise up by the hair. Denise, still a bit dazed, turned and swung as hard as she could, hitting Kevin in the face. The slap had no effect on him. Dianna turned and saw Kevin punch Denise in the face, breaking her nose and plunging her once again to the snow covered curb. Dianna began to scream as she began to slowly get up.

  "That's what you get, bitch! No one dumps me!
From now on you better watch your step!" he shouted at Denise as he turned and quickly walked away before anyone came to their aid.

  Dianna made her way to her sister who was lying on the ground bleeding from her nose.

  "Someone call an ambulance!" Dianna screamed as people began to come out of their apartment buildings.

  Down the block, Mike had just arrived and was walking up the steps to Denise's apartment building when he heard Dianna's screams. He turned and ran toward her. As he approached her, he saw a crowd gathered around someone lying in the snow.

  "It's Denise. That asshole Kevin attacked us!" Dianna screamed at Mike. Mike pushed his way through the crowd and saw someone giving comfort to Denise as the sound of an ambulance was heard in the distance. A few minutes later Mike had Denise in his arms when they carried her to the ambulance.

  "I'm ok, really Mike. I'm ok. He hits like a girl," she told him as he stepped into the ambulance with her.

  Some friends of Denise and Dianna ran to the Randazzo apartment to advise the family. Within minutes, a crowd had grown at the site of the incident and among them were Nick and Tyler. Dianna walked up to them and told them what happened.

  "Where is Denise now?" Nick asked.

  "She was taken to the hospital. Mike is with her," Dianna told him.

  Dianna went on to tell them about Kevin, and that he hung out at a bar called The Watering Hole a few blocks down the street. A few seconds later, a police car arrived at the scene and began to question Dianna about the incident. Tyler and Nick watched as she told the officers the same story.

  "Are you sure it was this Kevin? But you don't know his last name?" the officer asked her a couple of times.

  "No, I don't know his damn name already," Dianna responded somewhat irritated and almost shouting.

  "Lady there are probably a million guys named Kevin in this city," the officer responded.

  "Well, you can't miss this one. He looks like an asshole. Can't be too many of those around," Dianna shouted back.

  The officers stared at her and shook their heads. "We're going over to the bar to see what we can find," the officer told her as they headed back to their cars. They made a U-turn in pursuit of Denise's attacker. Both Nick and Tyler approached Dianna and walked her home. After getting Dianna home and talking with the Randazzos, Nick left the apartment building and headed south on Wabash.

  "Hey, wait up," Nick heard Tyler shout out from behind him.

  "Just going for a walk," Nick told him.

  "Well, I'm kind of thirsty, and I heard there's a nice bar a few blocks from here. So if you don't mind my walking alongside you...?" Tyler suggested to him.

  Nick stared at him and smiled thinking, "This guy can read minds just like his old man."

  Five minutes later they were at The Watering Hole. It was a dimly lit place with a bar to the left, and tables on the right side and in the back. There were also a few pool tables and several pinball machines.

  Nick and Tyler saw the officers that had questioned Dianna talking to several men at the other end of the bar, and watched how the men and the officers interacted. It was obvious by the casual way one of the men laid a hand on an officer’s shoulder that they knew each other. Nick and Tyler both heard one of the men say, "No, I've been here all day. You can ask anyone." The other men nodded their heads in agreement with the man speaking.

  "Ok, then. Just stay out of that area for a while, Kevin. You hear?" one of the officers said.

  "Yeah, Dan, no problem," the one called Kevin answered.

  Both Tyler and Nick sat at the bar nursing a couple of beers as the officers passed behind them, leaving the establishment.

  "What time is our flight tomorrow?" Nick asked Tyler.

  "Ten a.m.," Tyler answered.

  "Plenty of time to clean up some shit," Nick said.

  "Yep," Tyler nodded as they finished their beer and headed out the door.

  Two hours later they were at the hospital where Denise had been admitted for observation. Mike was there by her side when they entered the room.

  "Hey kid, you ok?" Nick asked her.

  "Jeez, I must look like crap," Denise said.

  "Naw... crap looks better," Nick responded causing everyone to laugh.

  "That wasn't nice," Denise's mother said, scolding him.

  "Sorry ma'am. Only kidding," Nick said apologetically.

  Mike was holding Denise's hand when he got up and looked at everyone in the room. He turned to Mary, Denise's mother, and said, "I have to get back to the base tonight. But I swear, when I come back I'm going to make this bastard pay."

  Mary looked at him, shaking her head no and said, "Mike, let the police handle it. I know this guy. He's nothing but trouble."

  "Well, we got to be going. We're leaving in the morning. I am sure the police will put this guy away for a long time," Tyler said as he walked over to Denise's side of the bed and gave her a kiss on the head.

  Nick followed behind Tyler, also kissing her on the head and said, "Goodbye, kid. I wouldn't worry about this asshole. I'm sure he'll get what's coming to him."

  Both men shook hands with Mike and hugged Mary before leaving the room.

  It was around 11:00 p.m. when Nick and Tyler returned to The Watering Hole to find that besides the bartender, Kevin and his friends were the only ones that remained. "What do you think about a man who beats a woman?" Tyler asked the bartender.

  The bartender stared at Tyler and then at Nick.

  "Though I don't like it much, it ain’t none of my business, mister," the bartender said.

  The bartender walked over to the front door, bolted it and flipped the open sign around indicating that the place was now closed.

  "I'll be gone for about fifteen minutes. Got some chores to do out back," he told them as he headed toward the door.

  Tyler got up and headed toward the men playing pool while Nick moved around the bar to the other side.

  "Hey, bartender, we need another filler," one of the four men shouted out as he saw Tyler approaching.

  "Hey, where's the bartender?" the man asked Tyler.

  "He stepped out. I'm sure he'll be back in a few seconds," Tyler said.

  Kevin was standing between two pool tables and was about to take his turn at play when he spotted Nick on the other side.

  "Hey, motherfucker. You remember me?" Kevin asked him.

  "Yeah, I remember you. You're the jerk whose ass I kicked out onto the street. The same fucking loser who beats on women," Nick said.

  Kevin turned the pool stick and was now holding it like a bat, heading for Nick. Nick remained still and waited for Kevin to make his move. Kevin's buddies also grabbed pool sticks and followed suit. Kevin swung wide and Nick connected with a punch to the face sending Kevin reeling back into one of his buddies. Another man sidestepped Kevin and the one he ran into, and swung at Nick missing him by inches as Nick kicked him in his groin. The last man didn't move as Tyler stepped in front of him and stared him down. Kevin got up and lunged at Nick, who quite easily moved aside using martial arts to stop any further attack by Kevin. Tyler picked up one of the sticks and sat on the pool table watching the man he stared down. The man Kevin fell into got up and ran towards Nick. Once again Nick stepped aside and guided the man into Kevin who was almost on his feet. They both collided onto the floor.

  Nick walked over to Kevin, turned to Tyler who tossed him the pool stick, then turned back and swung the stick at Kevin's head sending him screaming onto the floor. Next, Nick came down as hard as he could with the heel of his shoe on Kevin's hand resulting in a blood curdling scream. Nick turned around to see if anyone else wanted a piece of him, but they were either too drunk, or not drunk enough to risk it. Nick bent down and grabbed the now sobbing Kevin by the hair, and brought him over to one of the pool tables.

  "Where I come from this is what happens to men who beat women," Nick said as he grabbed a pool ball, and taking a full swing rammed it into Kevin's mouth with a crushing blow. The men stared in hor
ror, saying nothing as they watched Kevin fall to the floor spewing blood from his mouth and nostrils. Finally, Tyler got up and walked around the side of the table to where Kevin lay and brought his foot down on Kevin's ankle causing everyone to cringe when they heard the bone snap.

  "That's so you remember every time you take a step that you don't fuck with our friends," Tyler said as he headed toward the exit with Nick following.

  As they reached the door, they turned and noticed that the bartender had returned and was smiling.

  "Have a good day gents," he told them.

  It would be several weeks before Kevin would be released from the hospital, and though the police questioned him and the others thoroughly, no one could identify the men who inflicted the beating.

  Denise was released the next afternoon, and her recovery was enhanced by the news that Kevin had been rushed to the hospital in very bad condition.

  Denise and Dianna never got the opportunity to say goodbye to Tyler and Nick since they had left early to catch the ten a.m. flight to San Francisco. Only Benito Randazzo got a chance to see his guests get into a cab. Nick turned and looked up at him, smiled and waved. Benito smiled back, thinking, "Good luck, you two. Something tells me you are going to need it."

  No More Running

  New York

  Almost two weeks had passed when a broadcast came over the radio; "Seen heading west on the Southern State Parkway at the Mill Road exit," and the chase was on again.

  Sam and Sheila remained on Long Island and were located close to McArthur Airport where they had established a command center. At their disposal were six police officers and four FBI agents; each having his own car with radio transmitter. They had the map of Long Island stretched out on a bulletin board with all the highways visibly marked.

  "Send two cars heading west and have two cars at the Cross Island Parkway waiting for them," Sam ordered.

  As Sheila studied the map she was saying something inaudible. One of the other detectives looked up and asked her to repeat what she had said.