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“He got five years for killing six men?”
“No, there was only a witness to one of the murders. None of the others could stick because of a lack of witnesses or evidence.”
“Dom, he said everyone went through something. I thought he was just being a dick but fuck, he wasn’t. His mom, his brother, then his dad all taken from him one after another.”
“Yeah, it was rough. There he was only fifteen and fighting to keep Tony’s business together—”
“Fifteen?” What the hell?
“Yeah, we’re the same age, only a few months separate us. His mom died when he was fourteen, then Anthony the next year. Then men in the Outfit were hungry for Tony’s business, for his cut. He refused to back down. Dom was the one who started the underground fighting, he lined up college kids too dumb to know better. He also got poker games going in the dorms, frat boys who watched too much television and thought they were the next poker star.”
I’m still in awe. “Fifteen.”
“He didn’t look it, no one would guess he was younger than his twenties. No one questioned him, ever. Tony was sentenced to five years but he only did three, and in those three years Dom made Tony’s business stronger. It also helped he moved into less illegal business, but he still handles gambling, loans, and illegal booze. And before I forget, I should tell you about one thing you won’t find in a newspaper. Tony does handle women, but he doesn’t run them. They came to him for protection. They work when they want to out of a building he owns. The whole economic downturn has women with master’s degrees barely making enough to pay their rent, and s
ex always sells.”
I sag against Enzo. “Man, I think I need a drink. It’s all a lot to take in.”
His arm goes around me. “Is it a problem?”
“What? No. I mean I knew the mob, the Outfit. I guess I thought it was...I don’t know, somehow removed, though. Ignore me. I get it. It isn’t a problem. Dante mentioned the street fighting one time when he told me how Cesare had his nose broken, that you both fought for money when you were younger. Even if I didn’t know Tony and Dominic, I can understand why they have done the things they’ve done. I’m not here to judge anyone when I haven’t been forced to make the same decisions. I’m glad you told me though. I would have hated to stumble into something so sensitive. About Dominic’s mother, was it really an accidental overdose?”
A nod. “From everything Dom has said about his mother, there was no way she would have died in her bed in the same thing she’d been wearing for three days straight with her hair a mess. Apparently she was a tad dramatic, and prized looks above everything else.”
“I’m glad you guys finally got Tony and Dominic in your lives. It sounds like you all needed each other.” I mean it. Even with all the daunting things about the two men I’ve learned today.
“There were all of four people at my parents’ funeral, and Dom was one of them. He gave his number to each one of us, not just Che, and told us if we needed anything, money, a place to stay, to call him. No one else told us that. The important thing is he meant it. Dante has had asthma since he was a kid, then he got pneumonia and medicine was expensive. Che went to Dom for a job where he could make money without going to jail, our social worker was at our place every damn week for those first few months. Dom put him in the ring. It wasn’t pretty but it paid the bills. Then when the time came, he increased the payout. By the time Tony was out there was enough money saved that Tony could sell Che a property for what he paid for it.
“Tony checked up on us, made sure we had what we needed, but he kept his distance to protect us. We only met up once or twice a year, we had dinner and drinks at the club. Other than that it was pretty casual, some calls in between mainly about property to buy and that kind of thing. You know how Dom keeps saying no family discounts? He does it to protect us, that way it doesn’t look like we’re doing a deal with a mobster and it could look bad against us. When Tony didn’t hesitate to help if needed for a situation with Che and Alicia, Che said fuck it and made sure Tony and Dom got invitations for every family gathering.”
“Bethany said Tony visits Alicia twice a week to help with Matteo.”
“Yeah, he picked up on her being lonely out in the suburbs while Bethany was at school and Che at work. Tony loves playing grandpa.”
“Do you think Dominic will ever make him a grandpa for real?”
“Never say never. Why, got a friend you want to introduce him to?”
I laugh. “Not anyone I hate enough to inflict him on. Who am I kidding, Russell is my only real friend.”
“Speaking of Russell, let’s get home to get changed.”
“Sir, yes, sir.”
***
Chloe
I’m trying, I really am, but I do not like Adam. It could be the way he pats Russell as if he were saying “good dog.” Or it could be the way he seems to talk down to both me and Russell, as if what he’s saying is too complicated for us to understand. I want to be happy for my best friend, who is looking at Adam as if he’s found his every wish come true.
For the umpteenth time I bite my inner lip to keep from responding with sarcasm. Damn, I’ve been doing it so much my lip hurts. “Wait, Russell, you’re going to quit your job?”
Adam answers for him, the way he has almost every time I asked Russell a question. “It makes sense. I make more money. Besides, why have children if you’re going to have someone else raise them? Russell and I believe at least one parent should be home. Especially if we’re going to adopt from the foster system. Those kids have been through all sorts of trauma they need to come into a stable environment with someone they know is always going to be there for them.”
I want to stab him with my fork. He annoys me even more by making sense. To avoid arguing, I sip my wine. “It’s just, Russell really loves what he does. I understood Russell does pretty good financially too. Why can’t you split working so both of you can be with the kids, while Russell can also keep a foot in a profession he’s worked so hard to advance in?”
An annoying laugh that grates on my nerves. “Russell does okay, but I make far more. I mean, that’s like saying Enzo is going to become a stay-at-home dad. There’s no real comparison.”
