Alfonzo (14 page)

He wished he could tell
mami
not to
cry,
he wasn’t worth it.

The street
finally
exacted its justice in blood.
Karma.
The payment for his sins became due and he grimaced. The blue eyes
fluttered open
, his cheek kissed the sidewalk and he turned ever so slightly
to peer above at the million specks of lights
which began to fade then w
ere
extinguished by the black sky
,
like his dark soul. He welcomed the
dark with a smile
;
glad the pain
finally
ceased
.

“
Hi
dear
,” Gina Palazzo said
then
kissed the wrinkle
d
cheek of her
ailing
husband.

In a weak voice he asked, “Where have you been?”

She opened a window. The opulent room smelled of urine and feces. She vowed to fire
the housekeeper. The feeble-minded woman was told to put fresh flowers in the vase daily.
Those instructions were disobeyed!

Gina’s blond hair was coiffed in a fashionable chignon. At age
f
ifty-three she looked ten years younger. False lashes raked over her husband with hidden disgust. He should be dead, instead, he continued to fight the cancer and spoil her plans for
wealthy independence. Tired of living in the shadow of billionaire developer Luzo Palazzo, she craved independence!

Luzo directed his cousin Carlo Dichenzo and that weasel attorney Alberti, to keep an eye
on her.
If Luzo suspected what she’d done, death would be her
punishment;
therefore she
continue
d
the pretense of a loving wife.
She sat on the bed and rubbed his hand, “I attended a charity function in New York for The American Cancer Society,” she smiled, “I gave a sizable donation on
your behalf
. You’re to
receive honorable
m
ention in their literature.”

This pleased Luzo, “Good…good, especially since I am going to America in the
morning to see a specialist at Sloan-Kettering.”

“America,” her eyes widened in surprise, “Luzo you
cannot
travel, you are
too ill!”

“It is arranged,” he answered with finality. The private jet would be waiting
along with his nurse, Alberti and the Serano twins. Details he did not share.

“Then I am going with you.”

Luzo became weary. He must move in haste before the cancer attacked his brain.
Fiery blue eyes did not waver, “You will remain here, Carlo will visit tomorrow with
very
important business documents
and you must receive them
.”

The mention of Dichenzo silenced any further protestations, “Of course.”

She rose and flitted through the door leaving him in his sick room. The stench sickened her. She traveled the wide spiral staircase to the main floor in search of the housekeeper and found her in the laundry room.
“Why are there no fresh flowers
Lisette
?”

“S
ignor
e Pal
azzo asked me to take them away.”

Gina frowned, “His room has an awful stench, go clean it now.”

The woman sat the towel atop the basket and hurried off.

“Lazy woman!”
Gina scowled.

She was in a foul
mood,
her trip abroad was for nothing!

In a fit of rage she marched outdoors to the garden. There were several bodyguards patrolling the huge estate
. She noticed one in particular, Nico standing nearby
having a
smoke
. He extinguished it in the decorative flower pot and she marched over.
“My flower pot is not an ashtray.”

The handsome and massive bodyguard did not smile. He never smiled. He never showed any emotion. She attempted to seduce him
on many occasions but he
a
l
way
s
walked away
as if she were no
thing
more than a wisp of wind
on the Italian hillside
.
N
ico was her husband’s personal bodyguard, someone
who
might prove to be a formidable ally
if she could win him over
. Instead his loyalty remained ironclad like some devoted dog to its master. Pity!
“Did you hear what I said?”

Dark
,
cold eyes swept across her face, “Your statement did
n’t
require an answer.”

She stepped forward inhaling the strong masculine scent of his earthy cologne. He was a man she would love to have in her bed.
A d
angerous
and
exciting
lay
by the
appearance of his
sensual
mouth
. Nico was a man
who could pleasure her
immensely, she could tell.
“Signore Palazzo is dying
and
soon your services will no longer be needed…unless you cho
o
se to stay on with me.”

For the first time
there was
a glimmer of mirth in the cold eyes and a tug at the corner of the sensual mouth, “I am not a boy Signora Palazzo
and
your whorish ways
aren’t enticing
.”

She
quickly
raised her hand to strike his smug face but he caught
it
in
mid-air and she spat
, “
Bruto
!”

“Never raise your hand to me again
. I give you respect because you
’re Luzo’s
wife but I
don’t
tolerate abuse
, it upsets me and I like to stay calm.
Sai
?”
He released her arm and
watched her spin around indignantly then march back into the house.

Gina fumed, Nico was the worst. Her advances and bold flirtations failed to
work on the handsome bodyguard. She’d tried on many occasions to find his weakness but apparently, the brute was made of stone!

CHAPTER T
WELVE

Domingo
lay sprawled on the sofa engrossed in a
video
game when gunfire erupted.
He looked out the window
. Down the
block
were silhouettes tussling
,
then
they toppled to the sidewalk
.
He strained for a better view of the action but beneath the dim streetlights it was hard to see. However, one man resembled his cousin
Alfonzo.
Without hesitation he
hurdled over the coffee-table
and raced out
the door
followed by his young brother Manuel.

Alfonzo
was in trouble
!

Maria r
an
from the kitchen,
on her tail were
Carmen and the girl’s.

The noise interrupted their cooking conversation.

“
Que
paso
,
donde
es Domingo y Manuel?”
Maria asked her
lone nephew
who stood
on the sofa peering out the window.

“
Yo
no se!”
Rafael exclaimed, “Somebody
shootin
’ and Domingo ran out.”

“With Manuel?”

“Manny
went,
too,” The eight year-old added.

“
Aye Dios, mi loco
hijo
s
!”
Carmen shrieked.

Minutes later Manny returned panting, “Alfonzo’s shot!”

Maria screeched loudly and ran outdoors. Police sirens filled the block and multi-colored
lights illuminated the dark street. Domingo cradled a
bloody
figure in his lap and shouted for an ambulance.
Her feet were lead as she ran toward them and as she drew near her heart screamed.
“Aye!
Aye!
Aye, Madre de Dios!”
She shrieked falling to her knees beside her fallen son.

Alfonzo’s beige
Oleg Cassini shirt
was
stained a dark mahogany color and
it
clung to his body
like a wet T-shirt.
She
cupped Alfonzo’s cold face.
‘
God please don’t take my
only child…take me God…take me
!’

The handsome young face was battered
. B
lood poured from his head and she wiped it, smearing the sticky substance across the prominent cheekbones of his father and wailed
when he did not respond to the touch of his mother.

Domingo moved aside
when
the paramedics arrived
and
sat
their equipment
on the ground
. One spoke to Maria asking her to step back so they can assist her son. She did
and
st
ood
nearby wring
ing
her hands anxiously
as
they worked.
He
frowned,
it
didn’t look good.
His cousin’s
face
was
extremely pale
. He had the look of death
.

Hold on
cuz
…hold
on!

“We got a faint pulse!” The female medic shouted to her partner.
She administered oxygen while her male partner cut away Alfonzo’s clothes
.

He
inspected
the extent of the injury
.
“We got two gunshot wounds, looks like the left clavicle and lower right flank.”

Domingo spotted detectives pointing at something. He moved
with
in earshot
and listened
.

“This looks like one of the weapons.”

“We need to sort out whether he’s a
perp
or victim.”

“Eyewitnesses say he’s the victim. He visits his mother regularly and
apparently someone tried to mug him.”

“
We’re still going to need a statement, that’s if he makes it….”

“Looks like he injured the perp…
we
better notify the hospitals in case anyone tries to
get
medical attention for gunshot or stab wounds.”

Domingo
recognized Alfonzo’s knife by the carvings on the handle.

‘
Good work
cuz
you got that sonovabitch!
Alfonzo never used that blade unless he intended to kill.
’

Alfonzo’s limp body was loaded
on a gurney then
in the ambulance.
A police
escort
was provided
in case he awakened and
could
positively identif
y
his assailant.

Maria stayed at Alfonzo’s side. She groped the beads at her neck in solace.
Must Alfonzo suffer for the sins of his father?
Could this be God’s punishment for her sins?
Her eyes swelled with tears as medics continued to work on
her boy as the vehicle swayed back and forth as they careened through the streets sirens blaring.
She thought of the little
baby who weighed a mere six pounds at birth.
He was once a good baby. He had a
quiet disposition and
joyous smile
but then he
change
d
when
he became a teenager.
He began to
fight
in
school, stay
ed
out
late with
thuggish
friends
, started
smoking weed
and a host of other things she disapproved of
. She’d tried everything to curb his rebellious spirit
with little success. Her brother Al intervened and tried to be a surrogate father.
Alfonzo needed
his real
father
but it could never be…no…
never.!