“I could understand that. But it seems like we could both use a vacation.” Sabrina smiled suggestively at Gio, hoping she had just sparked his imagination.
As Gio masterfully maneuvered the crowded city streets, Sabrina admired his strong profile as well as the cool control with which he drove. A vacation in California wine country with this man would be blissful. It was half past seven when Gio finally found parking on a side street near his uncle’s apartment. The couple walked several blocks and reached the apartment.
“One request before we go in. Please don’t judge me based on these weirdoes. And don’t think my father had anything in common with them. It was sometimes hard to believe that Marcello and Stefano Salvatore were really related by blood.”
Sabrina smiled, flattered that her opinion mattered so much to him. “Don’t worry. I don’t judge. Let’s just keep an open mind about the evening and enjoy ourselves.” Gio gave her a quick kiss on the lips and proceeded to ring the buzzer.
A sullen, gaunt-faced woman appeared at the door. Sabrina surmised that this was Aunt Helena. The silver-haired woman looked undernourished, and her skin had a pallor that signified ill health. Even Gio seemed taken aback by her appearance, and Sabrina wondered if the woman had changed drastically since their last encounter.
“You’re late. You’ve ruined the surprise.” These first words from the skeletal figure in the doorway were spoken in a cold, condescending tone.
“Sabrina, please excuse her. Aunt Helena, that was a very rude greeting. You know how congested traffic can be, especially on a Saturday evening. Is Uncle Stefano inside?”
“Yes, he arrived here at the appointed hour with our friends.”
“Then the surprise wasn’t ruined. Our tardiness didn’t affect anything.” Gio’s tone was as frosty as hers. Sabrina stood there, feeling foolish holding the potted fern in her hands, as though it were a peace offering.
“Helena, this is for you.” Sabrina handed the plant to the woman, who took it from her without a word. It was easy to see why Gio had found it impossible to live with this woman. Even if Stefano had the jolly disposition of Santa Claus, this witch alone would make anyone feel unwelcome.
Gio intervened. “I’ll introduce you properly now. Aunt Helena, this lovely lady is Sabrina Montrouge.” Sabrina was the first one to extend her hand, as Helena robotically did the same, her grip icy and reserved.
“Come upstairs now.” Helena commanded, as Gio gestured for Sabrina to walk ahead of him. Once upstairs, the sound of swing music pulsated through the apartment. A small group of about twelve adults were mingling and drinking from red plastic cups. A stout man wearing a cone-shaped birthday hat immediately spotted Gio and Sabrina.
“It’s been a long time, Gio, boy.”
Gio tried not to glower at the old fool for referring to him as ‘boy’ and instead gave him a pat on the back. “Happy birthday, Uncle Stefano. This is Sabrina Montrouge.” The man’s eyes took on a perusing glimmer that neither Gio nor Sabrina approved of. Sabrina flushed hotly as Stefano examined her.
“Looks like you’ve got a good girl here.” Stefano winked as Gio looked at him condemningly.
“Here you go. I thought you’d enjoy a little whiskey.” Gio thrust the bottle into Stefano’s meaty hands while the older man laughed heartily.
“Thank you boy. Go get yourselves something to eat now.”
“Will do.” Gio slid an arm around Sabrina’s waist and led her over to a paltry buffet spread. He clasped a triangle sandwich between thumb and forefinger, as Sabrina scooped some three-bean salad onto a plastic plate.
“They’re atrocious hosts.” Gio whispered into her ear, pouring himself a cup of soda. “There’s not even any ice out here,” he grumbled, “but I guess we could borrow some from Helena’s veins.”
Sabrina tried to stifle the laughter that was bubbling in her throat. She picked at her food while glancing around the room, as several pairs of curious eyes fixated on her. The whole evening seemed surreal so far, and Sabrina was surprised to feel a twinge of homesickness for her parents’ overprotective, yet loving home. She couldn’t fathom how Gio could have survived all these years without a real family, how he could have become not only a functional, but also heroic, member of society. The only explanation was that his parents had been truly extraordinary.
Gio gobbled up a few more triangle sandwiches and took Sabrina by the hand, looking behind him as he led her to the spare bedroom where he had once been a guest. Once in the spare room, Gio silently closed the door behind them.
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to try any monkey business.” He assured her.
Instead, he opened the closet and inventoried the contents. There were clothes hanging, old books stacked up, and an unmarked box sealed with masking tape. This last item caught Gio’s attention, and he lifted it out of the closet, peeling back the masking tape easily and estimating the box had been sealed for quite some time. When he dug into the box, his pleasure was bittersweet. Tucked inside were several business size envelopes, once white but now browned with age. Inside the envelopes were photographs of his parents and brother. Gio gasped with thick emotion as he held the first one between his hands, a picture of the four of them one Easter in the early 1960’s. He held it up for Sabrina to see.
“Here they are,” Gio choked.
Sabrina didn’t touch the picture, but leaned in to get a close look at it. His parents were both beautiful. Marcello had a beard that made him look wise and a strong build with a height almost equivalent to his son’s. Laura had long, chestnut colored hair and eyes that shone with happiness and family pride. In her floral, knee-length dress, she looked both attractive and refined. Carlo was a smiling boy with dimples to match Gio’s.
“What a beautiful family.” Sabrina whispered, but Gio seemed not to hear. He was sifting through about two dozen other pictures including a few of his baby pictures and some much older prints of Marcello as a child.
“It’s a shame that all these pictures are just wasting away in this box. They should be properly preserved in a good quality photo album. If I were you, I would take them.” Sabrina encouraged, nudging him.
“I want to take them, but…”
“But what? But you think it would be stealing? They’re rightfully yours, Gio. You told me yourself that you don’t have any pictures of your family.”
“You’re right. It makes me so outraged that they shoved these precious memories into some old box and stuffed it in a closet.”
“Here,” Sabrina unzipped her bag, “Let me hold them in my purse for you.” Gio conceded and handed her the pictures, quickly rummaging through the box and closet to see if there were any more objects that pertained to his parents. But he found none.
Content with what he had unearthed, Gio said, “We better get back out there before anyone notices that we’re missing. I promise we’ll be out of here after I can get a moment to talk to my uncle and tell him about the whole Bert Shanty fiasco.”
Just as they were about to rejoin the party, Stefano stormed into the room, pushing the door open wide and pinning Sabrina against the wall.
“Sabrina, are you ok?” Gio asked, concerned, glowering once again at Stefano.
She replied quickly, “Yes, I’m fine. Don’t worry.”
Stefano looked at both of them contemptuously. “What are you doing snooping around in here?”
Immune to intimidation, Gio dodged the question, “Now that Sabrina and I have had a few moments of privacy, we’re ready to socialize with your guests. But I’m glad you came in here because I wanted to speak to you about an important matter.”
“I have guests to entertain, boy. If it’s important, you can tell me after they go.”
“Well, I’m afraid that won’t do because Sabrina and I have to head out shortly. We have a long drive up north tonight. Really, it is urgent and I suggest you lend your ear.”
Stefano’s impatience was mounting. “You still haven’t answered my question about w
hat you were doing in here---“
“Haven’t I? As I said, Sabrina and I required some brief privacy.”
“This is not some swinging singles party!”
“Nor are we swinging singles. We simply wanted a moment away from the commotion to have a private conversation.” Gio knew he was openly lying and hated himself for it, but felt that he did not owe any courtesy to this man. “Now do you want to know what I have to say or not?”
“Make it fast.” Stefano clipped, as Helena suddenly appeared alongside him and the two listened to Gio relate the entire story of Bert Shanty’s disclosure. When he had finished, Helena’s complexion was whiter than an eggshell, while Stefano wore a mask of arctic indifference.
It was Stefano who spoke first. “Do you really think that garbage amounts to anything? It sounds to me like the insane ramblings of a confused old man.”
Gio and Sabrina shook their heads emphatically in unison, as he countered, “It’s the total opposite, Uncle Stefano. Bert Shanty was completely lucid and told us everything he could remember. Now it’s up to us to reopen our own investigation and get a hold of this Cooper character. He could hold the key to uncovering why the fire happened in the first place.”
“It was established years ago that it was your mother’s careless fancy for lighting candles.” Helena said tightly.
“But that has now proven to be a false premise! And watch how you speak of my mother, God keep her soul.”
Helena retaliated, “Why don’t you leave the past where it belongs? You can’t bring them back.”
It took all of Gio’s self-control not to physically attack the haughty and mechanical woman right there in her own apartment. “My goal is to have justice served, to move on with my life by finally understanding exactly what happened that night in 1966. I am not recruiting your assistance, but I thought as family,” Gio seethed the word, “that you would want to know what, or who, destroyed your brother, sister-in-law, and nephew!”
Sabrina listened disgustedly, disgraced by the insensitivity of these fair-weather relatives. In her mind, they were now suspects, and she wondered how to present the notion to Gio. From the way he was responding to them, she doubted he would be insulted, but would he take her seriously? And again, what would the motive be? Sabrina found it wholly unfathomable why anyone would want to harm a single hair on the heads of any of those three beautiful people. But she wasn’t naïve enough to think that it wasn’t possible.
Like a camera lens, she zoomed in on the faces of Stefano and Helena, perceiving apathy in the former and defiance in the latter. Stefano’s countenance was not as emotional as his wife’s, and he seemed more bored than anything by the conversation, gripping the doorknob as though he were itching to return to the party.
Stefano spoke up, “Helena, if the boy wants to play detective and waste his time, then so be it.” He shrugged, walking down the hallway back to the group of celebrants. Helena stared after him, those pasty emaciated cheeks now flaming indignantly.
She addressed Gio firmly, “Be a fool about this if you wish. But don’t be surprised when your amateur investigation leads you to a dead end.”
The woman turned on her heel and followed her husband down the hallway. Gio had long been accustomed to such disrespectful treatment from the married couple, who addressed him only as “boy,” never uttering a syllable of his first name. Nevertheless, he was astounded by their reaction to his news. Stefano had been cryptic as usual, but Helena had practically gone into hysterics right there in front of them. He felt an unexpected shiver course through his body and knew that he and Sabrina had to leave immediately. Completely attuned to his emotions, Sabrina fastened her purse, family pictures safely inside, and walked swiftly with Gio to the living room.
Stefano eyed them expressionlessly from the corner, as Gio waved a cursory good-bye and departed with Sabrina into the night. Outside, the air was no longer balmy but harsh and windy, making Sabrina wish she hadn’t left her button-down sweater in Gio’s truck. Noticing her goose bumps, he put his arm securely around her, and she rested her head on his shoulder as they walked to his truck.
Chapter 8
“I have to apologize for that abomination of a Saturday evening. But the night is still young if you’d like to get some real food instead of that bird feed they gave us.” Gio tried to keep his tone light, but inwardly he was brimming with previously untapped suspicions about Stefano and Helena.
Sabrina recognized his forced effort at normalcy and said, “I am hungry. But let’s not hide from the elephant in the room again. I just wonder if you’re thinking what I’m thinking.”
“What are you thinking?” Gio asked blankly, though he already knew the answer.
“I’m thinking that Stefano and Helena must have a vested reason why they want you to leave this mystery unsolved. I don’t want to make any premature accusations, but…”
“But you’re thinking that they were somehow involved?” Gio finished for her.
“Yes, that is what I’m thinking. But I’m just an outside observer. You grew up with these people. What do you think?”
“I think I must have been unconscious for the past fourteen years. It would be obvious to a child that those two are hiding something. I’m trying to avoid actually saying the words out loud, you know?”
“Yes, I do know. But say what’s on your mind. Say the words out loud.”
“I think they did it. They must have. There was always a rivalry between Helena and my mother. Helena was so envious that my mother had two sons, and she and Stefano were unable to conceive.”
“What about your father’s relationship with Stefano?”
“Stefano was not openly hostile to my father, but I did get the feeling that he was envious of his ‘country house,’ as he called it. Stefano has never been able to get himself out of a two-bedroom apartment.”
“What does Stefano do for a living?”
“He sells shoes. Helena has never worked.” Gio replied, in his head trying to formulate how exactly they were involved and if it had been one or both of them, or if the night was simply playing tricks on him and they weren’t guilty at all.
Then, just as Gio was parking outside a neon lit pizzeria, Sabrina posed a question that left him even more perplexed. “You said once that your father died penniless, but are you sure about this? Did your father leave you any money at all?”
“My father left me absolutely nothing. He had a will, but all there was to bequeath was the house. Since the house was destroyed, and my father was not savvy about things like fire insurance, I received absolutely no inheritance. So it couldn’t have been money.”
“But there was something so ominous about being in Stefano and Helena’s presence tonight. I always knew they were unsociable people, but tonight I sensed a certain evil. I don’t know, maybe I’m just pulling at straws now.” Gio mumbled. “But who else would have done it? No one else had a motive. Maybe Stefano and Helena had a motive that I don’t even know about.”
Gio hung his head in fresh despair as Sabrina latched onto his hand. It was as though a stone wall had just been pulverized and he alone was charged with reassembling it.
“Gio, why don’t we just go back to Vermont? We can have pizza anytime.”
Then, firmly, he said, “Sabrina, those miserable bastards have ruined too much for too many people. They’re not going to destroy what’s left of this night. Let’s go inside.” Sabrina could see that he was not going to back down, so she let him lead her into the restaurant and take a seat in the back where there was less activity. Before they had a chance to resume their discussion, a giggling, bubble-gum chewing waitress accosted their table.
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