by Tony Bertot
Theo continued to Sylvia’s apartment building while his thoughts brought him back to the last time he saw Nick Costellino. He did not doubt he would be seeing him again.
Nick rode along and thought back to the last time he saw Theo. He isn’t a kid anymore, he thought to himself. It would be great to see someone he trusts, someone in whom he could confide.
Reaching the apartment building five minutes early, he decided to wait on the stoop before ringing the doorbell. Sylvia could see him through her window, just standing there.
“What is he waiting for”, she thought to herself. Then she saw him look down at this watch.
“You got to be kidding me,” she said to herself.
At exactly 6:30pm Theo rang her doorbell and after a couple of seconds he heard the outside door Click open.
Within a couple of minutes he was inside her apartment meeting her mother.
“Mommy, this is Theo Gresco. He is a good friend of Ana and Benito Randazzo,” She told her mother.
Theo smiled at her and nodded.
In broken English, she acknowledged him and smiled. She instructed them to go to the living room while she continued preparing dinner in the kitchen.
Mrs. Santiago was happy for her daughter. This was the first man she ever brought home. He seemed nice yet at the same time, she felt uneasy. He had a genuine smile and yet his eyes did not reflect any emotion, she thought to herself. A few minutes later, after serving dinner, Sylvia’s mother started to head back into the kitchen leaving them alone. Theo insisted she join them, stating he would not feel right with her by herself in the kitchen. Sylvia’s mother was impressed with his behavior dismissing any doubts she had previously.
The night went well and Sylvia and Theo cleaned the kitchen allowing Mrs. Santiago to relax. Sylvia was pleasantly surprised by Theo’s behavior. Though she had dated a couple of times, she never felt confident enough to bring any young man home. Her dates were either too self-absorbed or more interested in a one night stand.
Finally, it was time for Theo to leave and lacking any graceful strategy he simply got up and said,
“I think I have to go, now.”
“Really?” Sylvia asked.
“Um... Yes, if you don’t mind,” he responded to her.
Realizing this was awkward for him she politely responded,
“Of course, let me get your coat.”
Theo walked over to Mrs. Santiago and bid her goodbye. She got up and gave him a hug. Theo stared at her and smiled. He liked this woman, he thought to himself.
As Theo exited the apartment, he turned to say goodbye and was surprised to find Sylvia up close to him. She looked up, into his eyes and gave him a hug and kiss on his cheek. He hugged her back and smiled.
“Thank you for coming,” she told him.
“Thank you for inviting me. I had a good time. Please tell your mother the food was delicious and I enjoyed her company, as well as yours,” Theo told Sylvia.
Sylvia, for the second time tonight was caught by surprise. This was the most Theo had spoken since they met.
As Theo left the building, he welcomed the chill air. He had been practicing what to say for the last two hours and hoped he didn’t make a fool of himself. He liked Sylvia but she made him nervous. It was a good nervous.
Walking toward his building, he felt different. A feeling he didn’t understand. A feeling he had not had for a long time. A feeling that would set the groundwork for a new direction in his life; even if it was fleeting.
Ulterior Motive
South Wabash/Chicago
A few days had elapsed since Nick Costello joined the Giovanna family. It was now around 10:00pm on the same day he saw Theo for the first time after twelve years. He was just getting home on E. Roosevelt when a man came out of the shadows.
“Well, Nick, did you get in?” the man asked.
Nick turned around, smiled and nodded.
“Yeah, I’m in. I’m sure they’ll be watching me, checking me out first before they trust me with anything important,” Nick replied.
“That’s expected. I made sure no one was following you before I approached. Where can we talk?” the man asked him.
“Upstairs,” Nick answered as he motioned him to follow.
Realizing his mother was probably already in bed, Nick motioned to be quiet as they entered the apartment. Nick grabbed a bottle of whiskey from under the sink and two glasses, poured himself and the man a shot.
“Now what?” Nick asked Rino.
Rino Porfirio had been by his father’s side when the attempt on their lives was made. The shot came from across the street while they both dined at a local restaurant. Though wounded, Rino survived the gunshot. Anzio was not as lucky and was pronounced dead in the ambulance.
Anzio Costello, Nick’s father, had an encounter with members of the Sabrisio family when he refused to pay more money for their services. Because of the war in Europe, Anzio was forced to pay the Sabrisio family for helping him smuggle olive oil in from Sicily and Italy. After the war the need to smuggle ceased as trade embargo’s were lifted; however, the request for payments continued. Finally, Anzio had enough and made it clear to the pickup men he would no longer pay for services unnecessary services. The next time three of Sabrisio’s men showed up carrying guns, Anzio was waiting with a few guns of his own. The element of surprise resulted in all of Sabrisio’s men being wounded.
In all the years that Anzio and Rino dealt with these men, the identity of their boss had never been disclosed. Emilio Sabrisio assumed that Anzio never knew the men worked for him. It was Rino, who eventually followed the men and identified the Sabrisio brothers as their bosses; something they kept to themselves.
In retaliation, Frank Sabrisio, ordered the hit on Anzio Costello and Rino Porfirio.
After a few weeks and with no additional leads, the murder of Anzio Costello was swept under the rug. After all, the authorities saw it as another mob hit and not worth pursuing. Nick on the other hand did not forget though he never had any real affection for his father or his business for that matter. He ended up taking over and in his heart felt his father’s death needed to be avenged. Struggling to keep the business going he was pleased when after six months in rehab, Rino Porfirio paid him a visit.
Nick and Rino had a special relationship; simply put they didn’t like each other. But, when Rino approached Nick he welcomed him with open arms, as if he had seen a long lost friend.
Rino told Nick everything he knew about his father’s murder and who he suspected was behind it. Rino helped Nick run the business while they plotted their revenge on the Sabrisio family. Over the next two years both Nick and Rino made a fortune in olive oil. About three months ago, as part of their plan, Nick sold the business, making a significant fortune and giving Rino a substantial cut in the deal. The idea was for Nick to infiltrate the Sabrisio organization and position himself so he could have his revenge, while over the next few months Rino would hire ex-military mercenaries to plan and assist with their attack.
Theo & Sylvia
South Wabash/Chicago
At 8:00am, Theo exited his apartment building and headed north towards the butcher shop. It was the day after he had dinner with Sylvia and though he really wanted to see her, felt it was inappropriate to wake her up this early in the morning. This was based on his childhood recollection when he tried to wake his mother up too early in the morning and she would scoot him away a little annoyed. As anxious as he was he decided to fill his morning by visiting the butcher shop where he had coffee and a sandwich.
As he approached the shop, he noticed two bulky men standing in front. As if they were guarding it. He slowed his advance and moved towards the street to see if he could get a better view of what was going on. Going between the parked cars, he continued forward. As he came in alignment with the storefront, he looked past the men and saw nothing unusual. A couple of customers went in between the two men as if they did not exist. Theo came back onto the sidewalk, tu
rned around, and started heading back towards the shop. As he got closer, three men exited the butcher shop carrying paper bags. Recognizing one of the men as Nick Costello, Theo did not flinch and kept his pace. Nick recognized his old friend, nodded and kept his pace. As they passed each other there was a smile on Nick’s face. Theo did not smile but nodded back and kept moving as if he didn’t know him. The exchange was not noticed by any of the four men walking alongside Nick Costello. As Theo reached the shop he turned slightly and looked after the men as they continued their march up the street. When they reached the corner two of the men walked left towards a parked car while Nick and the other two men walked into the corner liquor store.
Theo stepped into the butcher shop where he was almost immediately apprehended by Sonia Randazzo. She took his hand and pulled him to the back table.
“Sit here and have a coffee and sandwich with me,” She ordered.
“Hey Theo, are you trying to steal my wife?” Calito shouted out to him.
“Leave him alone. He’s my date right now.” Sonia responded to Calito.
“No. I wasn’t trying to steal her. Really, I wasn’t,” Theo responded alarmingly.
Benito Randazzo laughed and shouted out,
“Hey, leave Theo alone. He thinks you’re serious.”
“Don’t pay them any mind,” Sonia told Theo as they sat.
Within a couple of minutes Calito came over with two cups of coffee and two ham and egg sandwiches.
“That is normally my spot. So now you take my wife and you take my chair. Thank you for being a friend,” Calito told Theo.
Theo started to get up but Calito placed a hand on his shoulder pushing him back down.
“My friend, I’m kidding,” he told Theo.
Theo looked up and realized he was kidding. Theo was not used to teasing or having anyone joke with him. He smiled at Calito, nodding, and relaxed. Calito returned to his position at the back of the counter leaving him and Sonia at the table.
“So Mr. Valentino, how did it go last night,” Sonia asked Theo.
Theo stared at her for a second.
“No. My last name is Gresco,” he replied.
Sonia stared at him for a few seconds and almost burst out laughing.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh,” she told him.
“Yes, of course. Mr. Gresco. Is it alright if I call you Theo?” she asked him amused.
“Sure. You did already when I came in,” Theo responded.
“Well how did it go?” Sonia asked him again.
“What?” Theo asked her.
“Your date with Sylvia, how did it go?” she asked again.
“Oh. It wasn’t a date. We just had dinner together. She has a nice mother. I like her,” Theo responded.
“Who? Her mother or Sylvia?” Sonia asked.
Theo stared at Sonia for a second before responding.
“Both, I like them both.”
Sonia had a knack for pulling information out of people and Theo proved to be a challenge as she slowly got a picture of how Sylvia and Theo spent the evening.
“So you like Sylvia?” Sonia asked again.
“Yes, I like her, she’s nice and also she smells good, too.” Theo replied.
Sonia stared at Theo for almost an entire minute after this last comment and said nothing. Slowly she realized this young man was not only shy but had no inkling of how to act around women or what was appropriate to say and what was not. Regardless, she liked him. He was honest and to the point. After a few minutes, their conversation turned to other things. Theo was wondering if he could get a job working for Benito. Sonia said she would ask him when she had the opportunity. As the morning progressed Theo felt comfortable around Sonia. Though he felt she was nosy, he liked her nonetheless. Especially, when she laughed and tried to make him laugh. Theo would stare at her, smile and nod.
It was around 9:30am when Sylvia came into the shop and walked over to them.
“So there you are!” she said to Theo.
Theo almost jumped when she came up behind him. Sonia smiled up at her and said.
“I’ve been keeping him company, waiting for you.”
Sylvia looked at Sonia and smiled.
“I bet you have,” she commented.
Sonia and Sylvia had been friends since childhood. There were no secrets between them. Sylvia already figured Sonia knew everything there was to know about last night.
“So may I join you?” Sylvia asked them.
“Count me out. Have to go. You know the saying two is company and three is a crowd,” replied Sonia.
“Who said that?” Theo asked innocently.
“Good riddance,” Sylvia said to Sonia.
The girls laughed as Sylvia took Sonia’s chair.
“She said that,” Sylvia replied to Theo.
Theo sat back down and he could feel that sinking feeling returning to his stomach.
“So what did you two talk about?” Sylvia asked him.
“We talked about last night, about our dinner together,” Theo responded.
“What about our dinner. Did you enjoy it?” Sylvia asked him.
“Yes. I did. I enjoyed you and your mother’s company,” Theo replied openly.
“Oh, I see. Would you like to have dinner again with us?” Sylvia asked him.
“Of course I would. But, first I have to find a job,” Theo said.
“Sonia said she was going to ask Mr. Randazzo if I could work for him,” Theo told Sylvia.
“That would be nice. So are you planning to stay in Chicago?” Sylvia asked.
Sylvia was a little shocked when he replied that he wanted to stay so he could see her again and have more dinners.
“Really?” she asked him.
“Yes, is that ok?” Theo asked her.
“Sure, not a problem,” Sylvia replied.
Over the course of the next few weeks, Theo saw more and more of Sylvia.
Theo was given a job working at the butcher shop. At first, he was there to clean up the place and later on they began to teach him the business. He became close to both Calito and Carmine as they showed him the ropes. Benito was impressed with how fast Theo caught on and how there was no job he could not do. He would as easily empty the garbage cans as slice up a ham for a customer. Theo spent most of his free time with Sylvia, as their relationship became serious. Sylvia, her mother and Theo spent Thanksgiving Day at Ana and Benito’s apartment. Though George Santiago, Sylvia’s brother, was unable to get away, he promised to be there for Christmas when he would have the time off.
For Theo, life took a positive turn. He had a new family, a new life and his heart ached with this newfound happiness as he gradually came out of his shell. He began to feel wanted and loved once again.
Theo spent Christmas Day at Sylvia’s place where they exchanged gifts. Later they went to the Randazzo’s apartment and continued the celebration. It was a memorable day for Theo. That night after returning to his apartment, there was a knock on his door. It was Sylvia.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” Theo asked her.
“Well, I decided to come and spend the night with you, if you don’t mind,” she told him.
Until then they had never been intimate. It was six dates before they actually kissed romantically. It was Sylvia who initiated this intimacy as she quickly learned Theo was inexperienced with women.
“What about your mother?” Theo asked her.
“She couldn’t make it,” Sylvia responded.
“No. I mean she’s alone,” Theo went on to explain.
“She’ll be ok,” Sylvia told him as she reached up and kissed him.
Theo instantly returned the kiss and felt a warmth throughout his body. Sylvia made him feel good. It’s as if she belonged in his arms. She led him through the living room into his bedroom. Once more, she kissed him and pulled him down on top of her. Slowly she aroused him as they undressed and met under the covers. For Theo it was a magical night and for Sylvia
the fulfillment of desire since she first laid eyes on him. The night was filled with intense emotion and little sleep. Theo found love, both physical and emotional, for the first time in his life. Deep into the morning they laid in each other arms, Theo chatting about the important things that had happened in his life as Sylvia listened intently, visualizing the various significant events. The death of his mother, the man he killed in retaliation, how he stopped the men who came to kill his grandparents and finally his reason for returning to Chicago. Through it all she remained quiet listening to every word. Though shocked, she kept it inside as she realized he was pouring his heart out to her. He never truly had anyone with whom to talk or confide. After a few minutes, when he became pensive she turned to him and asked how he felt about killing those men and he responded with,
“Someone had to do it. Someone had to stop it.”
Looking into his eyes she saw the coldness resurface. There was no pity for the men he killed. She could feel it.
“What about now, Theo? What happens to us if you go find the men who killed your father?” Sylvia asked him.
Looking into her eyes, he said,
“Nothing else matters now.”
“Theo, are you sure?” she asked him.
“Yes. We’ll get married and have a family, celebrate the holidays together and I’ll support you and our kids,” Theo responded. “We’ll be a family.”
“Are you asking me to marry you?” Sylvia asked.
“Well, we have to get married now. We made love!” Theo replied with a sincere look.
“What? Are you sure you want to marry me?” Sylvia asked him smiling.
“Of course, why not?’ he asked looking at her in a puzzled way.
Sylvia smiled and kissed him and laid her head back on his chest thinking, “What have I gotten myself into?”
“Theo, you have made me very happy,” she told him as she nodded off to sleep.