Perhaps it was fate, because as we drove through a gap in a low stone wall we couldn’t help but notice a sign, Stone House.
“Bro, see that sign?” I said.
“We’d need to change that if we get involved,” Robert replied.
“Why?”
“This needs to be kept under the radar. We don’t need my surname attached to this, we have too much history, and that doesn’t need to be brought here.”
I understood what he meant. We were greeted at the door by a friendly but harassed-looking older woman. She introduced herself as Nancy Pearson and seemed thrilled that we had taken the time to visit. I thought to myself that she probably hadn’t had much support from her fund raising campaign. We took a tour of the house and the grounds - it certainly needed some repair and modernising - and then sat in the kitchen for coffee and homemade cookies. Once Nancy explained that the home took in homeless children, something changed. Without even knowing Robert’s thoughts, I wanted in. I wanted to be able to do something to help, and because of Robert and his grand plan, I had a bank account with enough money to last me my lifetime. It was time to give something back.
“Nancy, this house needs a lot of money spent on it, repairs, redecoration and some modernisation,” Robert said before looking briefly at me, we smiled and I nodded.
“We want to buy this house from you. It will stay as a home and I would like you to stay here, but with help,” he added.
“We’ll have it valued and give you a fair price for it,” I said.
Without hesitation she agreed, confirming that her fund raising hadn’t been successful. We arranged for our lawyers to make contact and start the process. We left Nancy shortly after and as we walked back towards the car I paused, looking over at the grassed front yard.
“Rob, let’s do this, just us. Keep it outside of Vassago, this is personal,” I said.
Robert agreed, it wasn’t something we wanted associated with Vassago and some of its shadier dealings.
The purchase went through fairly quickly and modernisation started. Paul was pulled off a development to help organise the work team and with as little disruption as possible to the children, we created a place fit for habitation.
“I’ve had a thought,” Robert said one day. “I want Ted in there. Look what he did for us all those years ago, he’d be perfect for handling those boys.”
“Brilliant idea, maybe the kids can come to the gym one night a week, get them boxing,” I added.
Boxing was not just a way to learn to fight; it was a lesson in discipline, in control of emotions such as anger. It would help the stay fit and healthy, and more importantly it would give them children what it gave us, a sense of self worth, a purpose.
Once the modifications were complete we had an ‘opening ceremony’, something small. Jonathan had wanted to use the home for a little publicity, probably show the world that Vassago had a heart somewhere, but Robert and I disagreed. Ted was amazing with the kids, he was a man able to give a hug when needed, separate a fight if necessary and he was tough enough to stand up to their tantrums. He was the perfect choice and he worked well with Nancy.
****
“Boys, I want to be involved in the home. I’m bored rattling around the house all day and that’s another thing, I want to downsize,” Evelyn said as she prepared a meal for us.
She came to the apartment on a regular basis. Despite our insistence that she take things easy for a while, she couldn’t stop looking after us. She cooked, not every night, but it was nice to have a home cooked meal and she tidied up after us. Okay, me more than Robert. She made sure our suits were cleaned and she fussed, just as she had since we were twelve years old.
“Okay, what do you want to do?” Robert asked.
“I’m going to help Nancy clean the place and cook. Not every day but it will give me something to do,” she replied.
“Don’t you think you already do enough?” I said.
“Travis, I have the energy of someone half my age and I’m bored. I want to do something other than pick up after you. Although having seen some of those boys, they could do with a little re-educating on how to look after their things,” she raised her eyebrows at me and I was taken back fifteen years.
One thing we had learnt about Evelyn over the years, if she made her mind up about something, there was no changing it. There was no point in arguing with her and she was right, since Joe had died she had been a little lost. Looking after people was what she did best, it’s what she needed to do.
“What do you want to do with the house, Ev?” Robert asked.
“I’m going to sell it. I’ll put a third of the money in trust, just in case he ever shows up and the rest I’ll use for Maria’s care,” she replied.
There was no need to use Joey’s name and as the son of Joe he was entitled to a third of the property. It had been stated in Joe’s will that the house was to be divided among his three children and the money he had in various bank accounts around the world became Evelyn’s. She was a wealthy woman. The properties Joe had not already sold to Robert were gifted to us. Joey had not attended the will reading, despite being invited, so he was unaware that his father had opted to leave a large portion of his wealth to his ‘adopted’ sons.
“Okay. Speak to Richard, he’ll handle that for you,” Robert said.
“Ev, you can move in here until you find something else,” I offered.
“I know, but I’ll probably just get a rental for a little while, until I decide what to do,” she said.
“Before you do that, I might have a plan,” Robert added.
Evelyn and I looked at each other, raised our eyebrows and laughed. It was a source of great amusement to us that Robert always had his plans - plans he never shared, but plans we knew included us. Plans that always came to fruition and we benefited from. Never once had he done wrong by us.
****
It was a month or so later that Robert’s latest plan was revealed. He wanted to build a house, he wanted more space and was getting stressed at the amount of women I brought back to the apartment. I had teased him many times, he just wasn’t getting enough of the ladies - jealous, that’s all. But deep down I knew the reason. The more successful we became the more private and reclusive Robert was. At first I worried about it; he dated, he fucked women, but he never opened himself up to any one of them.
Many a woman would cry on my shoulder wanting to know why he wouldn’t love them back. It was something Evelyn and I had a private discussion about.
“You need to leave him be, Travis. Stop interfering. He’ll meet the one, one day,” she said as we sat at the small table in the kitchen with our coffee.
“I know but he worries me. It’s like mindless sex for him. He takes them to dinner then to the hotel, he never brings them home” I replied.
“You know he doesn’t want them here, and I think you should be mindful of that as well. He’s trying to protect us all, himself more than anyone, and we need to respect that privacy.” I felt like I was a teenager again and she was scolding me.
“But this is my home, too. I can’t just run my life around how Robert wants to behave,” I protested.
“And he has never said a word to you about the amount of women you bring back here, has he? This is me speaking, Travis. I’m just asking you to be a little more considerate. I’ve picked up three pairs of panties, a bra, one shoe and God knows how many…, well, I don’t even want to go there,” she said while giving me one of her piercing stares.
I had the good grace to be embarrassed. Sometimes I missed the bin, that was all.
“You know Robert, he wants the best for everyone and he will always put himself out for that. He stays out of his home so you can have your women here. He runs his life around you, me, everyone. Let’s give him a break from that for a while,” she added.
I hadn’t thought about it that way. “Maybe I’ll take them to the hotel as well.”
“I think that’s a good idea. Now, t
his house he wants to build, have you seen the plans?” she asked.
“Only a plan of the site, looks like there are already a few old stone buildings there. We’re going to take a look around soon. In the meantime I know he has found a house we can move into. As much as I love the apartment it’s too small for us now.”
Although the apartment was three bedrooms and the living space fairly large, for some reason it often felt claustrophobic. As much as Robert and I enjoyed living together neither of us wanted to be in each other’s company all the time. It would be nice to perhaps have a separate TV room. We had very different ideas on what entertainment was, and although he never complained, if I was watching a movie or a chat show, Robert would take himself off to his bedroom.
“Is Robert still dating Miranda?” Evelyn asked.
“Well, if you can call what they do dating, I guess so,” I replied.
Miranda worked at a museum and Vassago had been involved in donating to their outreach programmes. They wanted children from inner city environments to have a better education. It was the only charity Vassago donated to. She also happened to be a friend of his PA, Gina. I think it was when Robert took Gina to a meeting that he met Miranda.
“Toxic, that one. I hope it doesn’t last. She’s a little too up her own ass for my liking,” Ev said.
I nearly choked on my coffee. Evelyn very rarely cursed but when she didn’t like someone it showed. I’d often joked with her that she would never make a great poker player, she wore her emotions like her clothes. But Evelyn and I had met Miranda at a lunch, and I agreed. She was snooty, looked down her nose at everyone and clung to Robert like a leech. No matter how rude he was to her, she took it. He had not one ounce of respect for her, all I could guess was that she had some special skills in the bedroom to keep his attention for as long as she had.
We heard the key turn in the front door and Robert entered the apartment. Under his arm he had a set of documents.
“Rob, can I get you a coffee?” Evelyn asked.
“Sure, that would be great,” he replied.
“What have got there?” I said.
“This, bro, is where we are moving to.” He laid a brochure on the table.
It was a house that Vassago had acquired and was in the process of being remodelled. We would move in until our build was finished, then it would go into the property department as a rental. We had slowly been building up a portfolio of exclusive properties that were often let to companies for their executives when they were in town on long-term business.
The three of us sat and looked through the brochure. It was a large property on the outskirts of the City. It contained four bedrooms with en-suite facilities and dressing rooms, two living rooms, a huge kitchen area and a home office. Beside the house were two garages, and the front and back yard were to be landscaped.
“Ev, you’re welcome to move in as well, your house sale is likely to go through quickly,” Robert said.
“You boys don’t want me hanging around,” she replied.
“Of course we do, at least we know we’ll be fed,” I said, earning a slap to the back of the head from Evelyn.
“I’ll think about it,” she replied.
Robert and I were unhappy with the choice of apartment she moved into as a temporary measure while she decided what to do. It was in a great block in Columbia Heights, one of ours of course, but we worried about her. The area was still up and coming and although there were massive improvements in the quality of tenants, we were still weeding out the rough ones.
****
Robert and I took a drive with Paul to see the land in Great Falls that was to become our home. Plans had been drawn up; I was yet to see them but I knew as we pulled into an unpaved road and through a gap in a wall that it was a perfect location. I parked the Range Rover and we took a walk. The land was mainly woodland and there were three stone buildings in varying degrees of disrepair. The one that caught us unaware was a chapel.
“That looks old,” I said, as we stood outside.
Scattered to one side were headstones, some had fallen down and the remainder looked like they were about to. They were too old to make out the engraving, and were covered in moss. Robert pushed open the large wooden door at the entrance. Birds flew from their nests, having been disturbed most likely for the first time ever. Their panic created a haze of dust, its particles picked out by the sunlight streaming through the broken windows. Oak pews lined both sides, and as we walked a few paces down the aisle Robert came to an abrupt halt.
I followed his gaze to an arched stained glass window in the back wall. The sight took my breath away. For a moment no one spoke. Looking down at us was an angel, God in the background casting her away. She had tears on her cheeks, her head was bowed and her hands were clasped in front of her naked form. What took my breath away wasn’t the window itself, but that the angel was a replica of the one Robert had tattooed on his back; a tattoo he had designed himself many years ago.
“Leave this building standing, Paul,” he said quietly before he turned and walked out.
Paul looked at me. “What was that all about?” he asked.
“That window. Look at the angel. Have you seen it before?” I said.
He took a moment to stare. “Fuck me, that’s the same as his tattoo, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. That would spook anyone.”
We found Robert walking around the chapel; he’d stopped to study a gravestone. His fingers ran over the mottled face as if trying to understand the words, like a blind person would read braille. He was pensive, quiet. Robert had learnt to bottle up his emotions as a child, and it made him hard to read as an adult. There was no point in asking if he was okay. After a moment or two, he turned towards us and we carried on exploring the grounds.
We came across another old stone building, its windows too grimy to see through. The wooden door had a padlock that was so rusted it disintegrated in my hand when I shook it. Inside was a workbench and some old tools. The walls were sturdy though, this building was in a far better condition that the rest.
“Leave this one too, knock down the rest,” Robert said.
We made our way to the car. “Paul, I want most of the woodland left, just clear enough space for the house, the buildings I want, and a parking area out front. Have the plans done as soon as possible,” Robert said as we drove back to the office.
It was only a few days later that Robert presented the plan. What had been drawn up was stunning, a main house with all the living accommodation on the top floor and the front wall made of glass. Beside it were four garages with two apartments above. To the side, there was a pool house and gym with a small guest apartment. Without hearing the words I knew what Robert was about to propose.
“Trav, it’s about time you had your own place, you can keep it as messy as you like and it won’t stress me out,” he said with a grin.
Robert and I had lived together in one place or another since we were twelve and the thought of living separately was a little daunting but he was right, it was time to live apart. We were nearing thirty and an apartment suited me better than a house. I found myself rattling around the one we were staying in. I didn’t like the expanse of space and I wandered from room to room not really comfortable in any of them. I liked the plan, I liked the thought of having an apartment over the garage and still within a short distance from each other, and I loved the thought that Evelyn might move in too.
“Ev, what do you think? Will you move into the apartment?” I asked.
“I have to say, it looks amazing. Yes, I’d love to,” she replied.
It was obvious Robert was worried about this announcement, to soften the blow, he’d said, he had a surprise for me. We took a walk to the garage and when the doors opened, standing there were two identical Ducati motorbikes.
“Oh fuck, Rob, where did you get them?” I asked as I strode over and ran my hand over the gleaming black metal.
“Rome, believe it or not. Remember Luc
a, Massimo’s son? He has a contact. Come on let’s go see what these beauties can do.”
“Boys, helmets please,” Evelyn said as we mounted the bikes.
The noise of the engines was immense, a low growl that echoed around the garages. With a wheel spin that kicked up dust and stones, we roared down the drive. We raced each other through the lanes of Great Falls and had fun. Even over the noise of the engines I could hear Robert laugh, something I hadn’t heard in a while.
Eventually we pulled up alongside a bistro, well, more of a café, and the one we used to frequent when we were younger and needed to sober up. Fredrico, the owner, greeted us with his usual exuberance, embracing us and fussing around. He cleaned a table for us and rattled off the menu in part Italian and part English. We sat as two espressos were placed on the table
“Fuck me, that was amazing,” I said.
“They’re something else aren’t they?” Robert replied. “You okay about this move?” he added.
“Sure, I guess it’s time to grow up a little,” I laughed. “Seriously bro, I’m looking forward to it. People will talk if we continue to live together.”
****
The house took just under a year to build, the plans changed frequently, and it was fun to watch Robert get stressed every time Evelyn or I changed our minds about something. I wanted a shooting range and a gun room. We kept guns in the house, not that Evelyn was aware, or she would have freaked. We hadn’t totally shed our old way of life, and every now and again it reared its ugly head. We had enemies from the past and far more dangerous ones otherwise known as businessmen and politicians.
The new house was fixed up with a state of the art security and intercom system so we could communicate from one property to another. The cars were fitted with sensors to allow them to pass through the electronic gates, and the whole system was linked to the one at the office so it could be monitored twenty-four hours a day.
The day we moved in was strange. I didn’t ask who designed the interior, I knew it wouldn’t have been Alison; she had long since made the move to New York. It was laid out exactly as I wanted. The apartment had two bedrooms, both en-suite, open plan living space with the kitchen at one end. A bar separated the kitchen from the seating area. There were windows overlooking the woodland to the back and the gravelled parking area to the front. It was a light and airy space and I immediately felt comfortable. However, that first night was odd. I climbed into bed and although I knew my family were close, I missed being in the same house with them.
Travis: To accompany the Fallen Angel Series - A Mafia Romance Page 18