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I look through the keyhole and scoff. “It’s for me, Linda. Sorry about all the noise. My stupid brother.”
“Oh, hunnie. I didn’t know you had one. Please, tell him to be a little less frantic next time. Don’t need to give this old lady a heart attack.”
“Sorry.” I frown as I open the door.
Marco has dark circles under his eyes, and his nose is red around the rims. He’s still up from last night, and by the looks of it, he’s on a coke bender.
“What?” I snap, only showing my face through the crack in the door.
“Come out here.” He beckons me with two fingers. I hate the way he thinks he can command me.
“I thought I told you I want nothing to do with your life.”
He laughs at that. “That’s out the window since you decided to step foot in our little show last night. Now come out here. Give your brother a kiss. That is, unless you want me to start ringing the bell again.”
I roll my eyes as I open the door. The streets of Howard Beach, Queens are busy on a Sunday. Everyone is probably gearing up for an early dinner already – Italian style. Then there’s me, just waking up like some kind of nocturnal creature. Shielding my eyes from the light does little-to-nothing for my pounding headache. I don’t remember drinking that much.
My bare feet against the cold brick stoop wakes me right up.
“Look.” Marco licks his finger and starts counting hundred-dollar-bills. “If you needed extra cash, you should’ve come straight to me. You know I’ll always take care of you.”
“I don’t want your money, Marco.” I push the wad of cash into his chest. “Just had the energy for an extra shift, is all. My boss asked me to take it, so I did. That’s that. Now why are you here? I was pretty clear that I don’t want you around after you splashed blood all over my face because a server pissed you off.”
He cackles, shoving his hands in his pockets. “You broke the ice yesterday. Besides, I miss you, Sis. Mom gives me updates, but it’s good to see your face.”
I hate how he twitches as he talks – still high as a goddamn kite at noon the next day.
“You haven’t changed.” I wipe some white residue from his nose.
He swats my hand away a second too late. “I’m a busy guy. Need to stay alert. Anyway… I don’t want to see you with those pricks unless I’m there to supervise, alright?”
I go to speak, but he talks over me.
“—I saw you getting friendly with the other girls. They like you. Or maybe they’re just being nice ’cause you’re my kid sister.”
“They didn’t even know you were my brother until you snatched my arm.” I shove my face closer to his, messing with his drugged-up reality.
“Not the point. You hear me, or what? Don’t need those schmucks trying anything on you, because then I’d have to kill them, and I need my men.”
“Castor was keeping an eye on me,” I test the waters.
“Lucky for us, eh? He’s the only reason why I didn’t kill anyone the second I saw you there.”
I internally sigh with relief. He still trusts him, which means he has no idea that he fingered me in front of his entire crew… under the table… in a near pitch-black area of the bar. It feels like I got away with murder.
“We clear, missy?” He licks his teeth.
“Yeah, whatever. You don’t look well, Marco. Go to bed.”
A delivery truck pulls up to my house, and I furrow my brow when the driver says my name. I don’t remember ordering anything.
Marco’s tapping his foot, snorting air way too aggressively while eyeing the poor guy. It’s like the driver interrupted mass at church, and Marco was the priest.
Don’t fucking snap at him. Don’t fucking snap at him.
I can already tell my brother’s a hair-trigger away from flipping, true to his name.
“Here you go, Ms. Castellano.” The delivery guy hands the sticker-less package over to me, and I’m even more confused.
