Mean Little People

by Dearth, Paige

  More childhood images of what the Walsh brothers had put him through flooded his thoughts. Tony was cranked tight, and his jaw was jutting out when he focused on Brian again. “Get ready to go to hell.”

  Tony lifted his gun and shot one deadly bullet into the side of Brian’s head. As brain bits sprayed on the wall behind him, Brian’s body slumped onto the floor. Blast and Smoke looked over at Kenny. Most of his blood had drained from his body, and he died quietly.

  Tony finally turned to Blast and Smoke. “I appreciate ya helpin’ me out here tonight. I owe ya one.”

  Blast and Smoke stared at Tony. Blast’s mouth hung open, and Smoke reached into the pocket of his black leather jacket, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it.

  “You’re one brutal motherfucker,” Smoke began. “I seen a lot of shit in my day, but nothin’ like that.”

  “They fucked wit’ my family.”

  Blast turned and walked out of the warehouse. “Let’s get the fuck outta here.”

  As Tony walked to the car, his legs felt wobbly, and his fingers fidgeted on the seam of his shirt. “Smoke, can ya give me one of those cigarettes?”

  Smoke threw the pack to Tony and then the lighter. He lit one and inhaled deeply, thinking about what he had just done. He knew the Walsh brothers deserved what they’d gotten, but in his blind rage, he’d performed a gruesome act, worse than anything he’d done before. The thing that worried him was that he had no remorse.

  Chapter Seventy-Seven

  Johnny Morano looked at his son with surprise. “Are you telling me that Tony killed the Walsh brothers?”

  “Yes, that’s what I’m telling you. Even though Donata buys all her baking supplies from us, and with that should have come protection, it was Tony who took care of those two assholes.”

  “How do you know this?”

  “Tony told us about it.” Salvatore turned to Vincent, who nodded in agreement.

  “Why would he do this?”

  “Because Donata and Ruth were like his family, Pop. They helped him out when everyone else turned their backs on him.” Salvatore glared at his father. He knew they should have done more for Tony. He’d lost so much, taking the blame for Salvatore’s crime.

  Johnny turned to the two boys. “Listen to me, boys. Tony did the right thing to those Walsh maggots tonight. In our family, we believe in an eye for an eye.”

  “Yeah, well, Tony ain’t in our family—remember, Mr. M.?” Vincent said.

  Johnny shot Vincent a threatening look.

  Salvatore spoke up quickly. “It’s true. We need guys like Tony. He would die to protect the people that he loves. That’s what you and Big Paulie are always preaching to us. You realize that the gang he is in will punish him if they find out he killed the Walsh brothers.”

  “That’s not my problem, Salvatore. Tony’s a big boy, and I’m sure he can take care of himself.”

  Salvatore’s shoulders slumped forward, and he slowly shook his head. He gave his father a bitter smile and raised his hands in the air as if to plead on Tony’s behalf.

  Johnny waved a dismissive hand at his son. “Go. Go find your mother. Tell her to put on a pot of coffee. Some of the men are coming over tonight. We have real business to take care of.”

  When Salvatore and Vincent left the office, Johnny turned to Big Paulie.

  “What do you think?”

  “I think Tony has balls of steel. I told ya a while ago that boy would be someone to watch out for someday. Looks like that day has arrived, Boss. That kid is willin’ to do shit that other people couldn’t stomach. When it comes to protectin’ his own, like he did wit’ Salvatore and now Donata and Ruth, he’ll do whatever it takes. Salvatore’s right. That’s the kinda man we need in this family. The kinda person who experienced the dark side of life, so when push comes to shove, he don’t think about what he’s got to lose ’cause he never felt like he had nothin’ anyway. Tony’s a lot like you, when ya was young and full of hate. Ya know as well as I do, Tony’s a born mobster.”

  Johnny nodded. “That he is. Still, there’s something about him that gets under my skin.”

  “I know what it is. Ya see a lot of yourself in ’im. He’s full of hate and anger. Ya gotta look past that so ya can see his potential, just like the Bonanni family saw it in you.”

  “You’re right, Big Paulie. As much as I hate to admit it, Tony’s got that balance of good and evil—the two things that keep a man loyal and deadly. Let’s keep Tony on our radar. If the time comes that I feel like he’s good enough to join us, you’ll be the first to know,” Johnny stated.

  Chapter Seventy-Eight

  A month later, Tony and Kate had snuck away to a little restaurant off the beaten path. They had just finished eating a sandwich, and it was almost dusk. Tony grabbed Kate in the back of the restaurant and gave her a kiss.

  “All right. You head back to Donata’s. I’ll be followin’ ya.”

  “I wish we could be together like a normal couple. I hate hiding all the time.”

  “Yeah, it won’t be forever. Razor has been up my ass, asking all kinds of questions. He thinks I should be in North Philly more. Accused me of selling information to other gangs. He’s a dipshit, and we need to be careful. We been through all this before.”

  Kate didn’t want to argue, so she gave Tony a quick hug and left. Tony waited a few seconds before following her. When he stepped outside, a man leaning against the building groaned. Tony looked at the man, and, noticing he was drunk, quickly followed after Kate. Had Tony looked closely, he might have known it was a Slayer recruit dressed in layers of men’s clothing, holding a half-empty bottle of Southern Comfort.

  Once Kate was inside the bakery and the door locked behind her, Tony walked toward the bus stop that would take him back to the Slayers’ house. The night was dark; the cloudy sky blocked the light from the moon and stars. It was unusually quiet, and all Tony could hear were the distant taxi drivers honking their horns. A block away, Tony saw Salvatore’s Bentley pull up to the curb in front of a well-known steak house. Tony lifted his arm to yell for Salvatore and Vincent when they got out of the car, but stopped short. Another driver pulled up the block behind the Bentley but remained behind the wheel with the engine running. Tony ducked out of sight. He kept low to the pavement, making his way down the block. Tony was acting on his instincts. There was an increase in pressure in his head, a sign that danger was looming.

  Tony was lurking in the shadows of the buildings, only twenty feet from where Salvatore and Vincent stood finishing a cigarette before going into the restaurant. Two men were approaching from behind them, the car they came from still running with the lights off.

  Tony reached for his gun in the back of his pants, but before he could pull the trigger one of the men shot Salvatore, hitting him in the right shoulder. Tony shot and killed the man in the next instant.

  “Vincent!” Tony screamed.

  Tony got his next shot off, killing the second man instantly. Then he ran toward the parked car. The driver put the car in drive and hit the gas. Tony ran into the middle of the street, firing three quick shots. The third shot hit the driver in the throat, and the car veered into a parked vehicle.

  Tony ran over to the sidewalk. Salvatore was lying flat on his back.

  “Help me get ’im to the car,” Tony instructed Vincent.

  Within seconds, Tony was in the backseat with Salvatore. Vincent jumped into the driver’s seat and sped to the Moranos’ house. Vincent ran from the car to get Johnny.

  Vincent banged on the door, and when Alessandra answered, he pushed past her and barged into Johnny’s office.

  “What the fuck?” Johnny snapped, aiming his gun at Vincent.

  “Somebody tried to kill Salvatore. He’s been shot.”

  “Where is he?” Johnny demanded.

  “He’s in his car. Out front.”

  Johnny didn’t have time to process the information. “Move it,” he yelled to three of his top men. Within seconds everyone was
in motion. “Call the doc,” Johnny yelled as he ran to the front door.

  Johnny flung open the back door of the Bentley. Inside, Tony was holding his wadded-up shirt tight on Salvatore’s shoulder. Johnny gave Tony a grave look.

  “How bad is it?”

  “I don’t know for sure. He’s lost a lot of blood, but he’s alive.”

  “Get Salvatore into the house,” Johnny instructed Big Paulie. Another mobster helped Big Paulie, and less than a minute later, Tony was sitting in the back of the Bentley alone. He quickly got out of the car and ran. He knew Johnny Morano was volatile; his hairpin temper could trigger, and he’d go after Tony without knowing what happened. Tony didn’t want to stick around.

  ***

  Chaos ensued inside the Morano home. Salvatore was brought up to his room, and Johnny stayed with his son. When the doctor arrived Johnny left Salvatore and found Vincent.

  “What the hell happened?” Johnny asked.

  Vincent related the story to Johnny. Then he said, “If it wasn’t for Tony bein’ there when he was, me and Salvatore would be dead.”

  “I see,” Johnny said. “Where is Tony now?” he said, looking around the room.

  “He left right after we got Salvatore inside. He slipped outta the car durin’ all the commotion.”

  “When you see Tony again, you tell him I said thank you.”

  Vincent beamed. “Does that mean Tony can work for ya now?”

  Johnny leaned into Vincent. His eyes were blazing, and the boy shrank away. “It means tell him I said thank you,” he repeated, his lower jaw protruding beyond his upper.

  Vincent held his hands up in front of his body. “All right, Mr. M. I got it.”

  The next moment, Johnny’s eyes flickered with a fiery passion. His expression was set hard and the muscles in his body tense, and his hands slowly clenched into fists. He glowered at Vincent, as though he were possessed by Satan himself. He studied Vincent as if he was waiting for him to say something to piss him off. Vincent squirmed under his scrutinizing stare. The air in the room had grown thick—it felt like it was a hundred degrees; it was stifling.

  “What happened, Mr. M.? Did I say somethin’ wrong?”

  Johnny broke the uncomfortable silence. “It angers me to think that someone dared to try and kill my son.”

  Vincent subtly nodded and then cautiously spoke. “Yeah, I know. But like I told ya, Tony killed all three of the guys. He saved both of us. I think that’s somethin’ real good that came outta somethin’ real bad.”

  “Shut it!” Johnny screamed.

  Vincent slowly backed out of the room and crept up the stairs. He sat next to Salvatore’s bed and watched his chest rise and fall. The doctor had given Salvatore morphine, and he slept quietly. “You’re alive ’cause of Tony. Your pop don’t wanna see it, but he will as soon as ya wake up. Ya gotta make this right for Tony,” Vincent whispered.

  Chapter Seventy-Nine

  It took Tony several hours to fall asleep. He wondered if Salvatore was still alive. When he finally fell into a deep sleep, his dreams were of Salvatore, bleeding and gasping for air. He had been asleep for three hours when he was awoken by beer being poured into his face. He shot up from his mattress. Two Slayers pulled Tony to his feet and restrained him.

  “What’s your problem?” Tony yelled, all his senses stinging.

  Razor gave him an ugly smile, his silver front teeth making him look more demonic. “We know ya got a bitch. Dudley saw ya wit’ her last night. Ya wanna tell me about her?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talkin’ ‘bout.” Tony looked from the guy on his right to the one on his left keeping him restrained. “I suggest ya get the fuck off me.”

  In response, they gripped Tony harder, pushing his arms upward behind his back.

  “What the fuck?” Smoke blurted from behind the group of Slayers. “What’s goin’ on here?”

  Razor whipped on Smoke. “Bruno’s got a bitch that he’s seein’. One that ain’t a part of us.”

  Smoke looked at Tony intently. “Let ’im go. We don’t know it’s true. Besides, if he is seein’ someone, maybe he was gonna bring her here to become a Slayer.”

  Tony shook his head. “If there was someone, I’d never bring her into this shithole.”

  Razor punched Tony in the mouth, and blood dribbled down his chin.

  “Let ’im go,” Smoke said again and moved in to grab Tony.

  The two Slayers held tight to Tony’s arms. Smoke turned and stood nose to nose with Razor. “You may be our fill-in leader, but ya don’t make decisions about anything wit’out everyone agreeing.” Smoke looked around the room, and heads nodded—Smoke rarely took a stand on anything, so when he did, the other members listened.

  “Let ’im go,” Smoke growled at Razor.

  Razor looked around the room. Scrutinizing eyes were on him, waiting for his next move.

  Razor met Tony’s eyes. “You and me both know ya got a bitch on the outside. If we see ya wit’ her ever again, I’ll kill her myself. If she ain’t one of us, that makes her a threat to all of us. Let ’im go,” Razor said.

  Tony moved his arms back and forth to get the blood flowing again. Slowly the gang members left the bedroom, except for Smoke.

  “Ya got a bitch on the outside?” Smoke asked.

  Tony held his gaze but didn’t answer. He didn’t want to lie to Smoke, but it was too risky to tell him about Kate. Silence filled the room as they watched each other.

  “I gotta get goin’,” Tony finally said.

  “Where?”

  “Goin’ to the bakery. Ruth’s comin’ back today.”

  Smoke nodded and turned to leave. He stopped short of the doorway and looked back at Tony. “If ya do got a girl, ya better be careful. If Razor can prove it, he’s gonna get the others to back him,” Smoke warned.

  “What about you?”

  Smoke lit a cigarette. “What about me?”

  “Can Razor get ya to back ’im?”

  Smoke riveted his eyes to the floor. “Nobody gets me to do nothin’ I don’t wanna do. But ya gotta remember, we got rules for a reason. Just watch what you’re doin’.”

  When Smoke left the room, Tony looked around him at the empty beer bottles and ashtrays. He was afraid for Kate. He felt trapped, and his stomach felt filled with acid. He didn’t take the warning lightly and knew Razor would make good on his threat.

  Tony dressed quickly and left the house. On the bus ride into South Philadelphia, he weighed his options. He stopped at Vincent’s house before going to the bakery to make sure that Salvatore was OK. He was relieved to learn that, while serious, the gunshot had not been life threatening. By the time he arrived at the bakery, he’d made his decision.

  When Tony walked into the bakery, he ignored Kate and went upstairs to find Ruth. He sat down on the bed next to her.

  “How you feelin’?”

  Ruth pushed her hair back from her face. The swelling was gone, but the yellow-purple bruises on her face reminded him of how he’d let her be hurt. He averted his eyes from the place on her skull where the hair had begun to grow back. The scar was long and ugly, a testament to the beating she’d endured.

  “I’m OK,” she said in a shallow voice.

  “Good. I wanted to check on ya. I gotta go downstairs. I got work to do.”

  Tony touched the top of Ruth’s small hand.

  “I’m scared,” Ruth whined.

  “Ain’t nothin’ to be scared about. The Walsh brothers ain’t never comin’ back here again.”

  “Are you sure?” Ruth asked, her eyes bloodshot from crying.

  “I’m positive. Ya trust me, don’t cha?”

  Ruth pouted and gave him a nod.

  “Good. When I tell ya somethin’, I mean it. I just want ya to rest so you can get better and make me some of those cinnamon buns that I love.”

  Ruth relaxed into the soft pillows stacked behind her. Tony kissed her gently on the cheek and walked down the steps into the bakery.
He grabbed the rubber apron, marched over to the sink, and turned on the water to wash the dirty pans.

  “What’s with you?” Kate asked, as she entered the kitchen.

  Tony glanced at her. “Nothin’. I just got things on my mind.” He dried his hands and looked Kate in the eyes. “There are some things I gotta take care of. I ain’t gonna be able to see ya for a while.”

  Kate crossed her arms over her stomach. “How long is a while?”

  “I don’t know yet. A while. Maybe a couple of months.”

  “I don’t understand. Are you done with me? I mean, if you’re breaking up with me, don’t you think I deserve an explanation?”

  “I ain’t breakin’ up wit’ cha. I just got some business to take care of, and I’m lettin’ ya know I won’t be around. That’s all.”

  Kate’s mood went from sad to angry.

  “Fine,” she yelled. “Just go and take care of your business then. You’re a fucking jerk. You could at least tell me the truth. You don’t want to be with me, then go on and live your life, and I’ll do the same.”

  Tony reached out to Kate, but she pulled away. His facial expression softened; he was disturbed that she was hurting so deeply.

  “Kate, I love ya. It just ain’t safe for me to see ya for a while.”

  Her eyes bulged. “Do the Slayers know about me?”

  “Yeah. One of ’em saw us at the restaurant last night. Went back and told Razor. I won’t be comin’ back here for a while. It’s the only way I can keep them away from you,” Tony said.