Deadly Embrace (9 page)

"Yes," Dani agreed, trying to stay positive.

Six hours later, after checking the hospital emergency rooms, Dani
and Sam were sitting in the police station attempting to file a
missing persons report.

"We don't consider anyone missing until they've been gone for
twenty-four hours," said the desk cop, a big man with weary eyes and
plenty of attitude.

"She
is
missing," Sam said forcefully. "She should've been
home by four-thirty. It's now one in the morning."

"Sorry," the cop said. "There's nothing we can do."

"Goddamnit!!" Sam yelled, banging his fist on the desk. "You gotta
do
somethin'
."

"Can't," the cop said. "Come back when it's been twenty-four
hours."

Muttering under his breath, Sam strode from the station, Dani
right behind him. She'd never seen him so angry.

"I'm gettin' on my bike an' searchin' the Strip," he decided.
"Y'know, check out every hotel, motel, casino. She's gotta be
somewhere
."

"I'm sure she's all right," Dani reassured him.

But deep down she had a wretched feeling that they'd never see
Emily again.

"I'm comin' to your grandma's funeral," Marnie Giovanni announced
as she flounced around the store picking out canned goods and tossing
them in a basket carried by one of her husband's henchmen, who
trailed behind her.

"You don't have to do that," Michael answered, surprised that
she'd suggested it.

"Yes, I do," Mamie insisted. "I knew her, I should be there."

"That's real nice of you, Mrs. G."

"Nice, schmice," she said with a casual shrug. "It's the least I
can do."

Grandmother Lani had passed away in the middle of the night She
wasn't alone; Michael had hired a nurse to sit with her.
Unfortunately the nurse had fallen asleep, failing until early
morning to notice that her patient had died. Then the woman had
panicked and run around the house yelling hysterically that it wasn't
her fault.

Filled with guilt that he wasn't with his grandma at her passing,
Michael had immediately called the doctor, who came over and later
issued a death certificate. It was all very depressing.

He wasn't sad that Grandma Lani had died. At the end she was
senile and in pain, so it was almost a relief to see an end to her
suffering. He'd miss her, though; she'd always treated him well.

Vinny didn't seem too upset. "She's better off where she is," he'd
said, staring at a rerun of
I
Love Lucy
. "This is a
shitty world. Now at least she can have some peace."

Michael was glad he didn't share the same attitude. He had no
desire to follow his dad into a life of doom and gloom. He wanted
more, he wanted everything he could get. In fact, he wouldn't mind
being like Vittorio Giovanni, a man who had respect and money.
Everybody talked about Vittorio being a gangster, but he'd seen no
signs of it As far as he could tell, Vito Giovanni was a smart
businessman who did things his way.

Two years ago, Marnie had kept her promise and introduced him to
her husband. She'd told Vito she'd known Michael since he was a kid,
and that they should be good to him. To please his wife, Vito had put
various small jobs his way—such as occasionally delivering a
package or storing stuff at his shop.

"I gotta say I like ya, kid," Vito had told him after a few
months. "You're smart—you'll do okay's long as you don't fuck
up."

"Fuck what up?" Michael had asked.

"Anything." Vito had said, and roared with laughter.

"Don't expect my husband to come to the funeral," Marnie said as
she roamed around the shop in her usual outfit of high heels, tight
skirt, and low-cut sweater.

"Didn't think he would," Michael answered.

"You'll ride in the car with me," she added, tossing two cans of
tomato sauce into her basket.

"Can't," he said, going behind the counter. "Gotta go with my
dad."

"Hmm," she mused, walking over and leaning on the counter,
revealing quite a bit of deep cleavage. "It'll be somethin', seein'
Vinny again." She paused, licking her overglossed lips. "He ever talk
about me?"

"Uh... I never heard him say anythin'," Michael replied, trying to
avert his eyes from her generous bosom.

"Does he know you've been doing things for my husband?"

"No," Michael said quickly. "An' I'd sooner you didn't tell
him."

"Yeah, yeah," she agreed, sucking on her lower lip. "Knowing
Vinny, he wouldn't approve."

Just how well
did
she know Vinny? Whenever he pushed for
details, she changed the subject, and every time he asked Vinny, all
he got was a blank stare.

Now that Grandmother Lani had passed on, Michael started wondering
who she'd left the shop and the house to—him, or Vinny? It
didn't make any difference—they'd be his eventually. He'd been
running the shop by himself for the last year. Vinny rarely bothered
coming in, and even if he did, he didn't know shit about
anything.

Lately Michael had found that women were tripping over themselves
to get near him, which was okay because Polly was long gone. She'd
married Cyril and moved out to the boondocks. No big loss. Even
Marnie Giovanni occasionally threw out a hint that she might be
interested—not that he'd ever think of going anywhere near her.
First of all she was twenty years older than he was, and second, she
was married to a man he wouldn't dare cross.

Still... he'd noticed that flirting put him in good stead with
women. They got off on being told how pretty they looked or how nice
they smelled. He wasn't stupid; he realized that his exceptional good
looks gave him plenty of advantages.

He'd made a one-night-a-week deal with the local motel, and every
Friday he took a different female there. Sex was his way of relaxing,
getting his rocks off, which put him in a good mood for the rest of
the week. None of his dates meant anything to him—they were all
interchangeable. Women were easy, and in a way that took away the
thrill.

The Giovannis treated him like family, inviting him over to their
house on holidays and special occasions. He was closer to Vito than
he was to his own dad.

He'd found out from one of Vito's henchmen that Marnie couldn't
have children. She'd given birth once, and the baby—a
boy—was stillborn. After that it was a no-go situation. In his
mind he began imagining that he was the son they'd never had.

On the day of the funeral, Vinny was in a worse mood than usual.
He wheeled himself into the kitchen, scowling with anger. "Do I gotta
go?" he demanded, glaring at his son.

"It's your mom," Michael pointed out, feeling as if
he
were
the adult in the relationship. "You havta show respect, Dad. It's
only right."

He didn't mention that Marnie Giovanni would be there. Truth was,
he was interested in seeing how Vinny would react when he saw
her.

"Shit!" Vinny muttered, slamming his coffee mug onto the
table.

The neighborhood turned out for the funeral. Grandma Lani had been
quite a force in her day; everyone liked her.

The simple ceremony took place in the local church. Afterward, a
small procession of people trooped out to the burial ground to
witness the coffin being lowered into the ground.

Pushing his dad's wheelchair, Michael glanced around hoping to
spot Mamie, who so far had not put in an appearance.

He couldn't see her, so he decided she probably hadn't meant it
when she'd said she'd be there. Why would she want to come to his
grandma's funeral anyway?

As the priest chanted a prayer over Lani's coffin, Michael stared
straight ahead, thinking that things would be different now. He'd be
in total control, with nobody to answer to.

His friend Max suddenly nudged him. "Take a look at
that
,"
Max muttered.

He took a look.

Marnie Giovanni was tottering across the grass, clad in a
skintight red suit cinched in at the waist, a revealing black blouse,
and four-inch hooker heels. Her dyed blond hair was teased high on
her head, and she was heavily made up. Her cousin Roy was with her.
She hovered at the edge of the crowd, standing out like a beacon in a
sea of somber black.

Max stifled a laugh.

"Shut the fuck up," Michael whispered, sneaking a quick glance at
his dad, who didn't appear to have noticed her arrival.

Later, everyone came back to the house. Some of the women in the
neighborhood had organized a spread of cold cuts, salads, and baked
goods. As they all sat around eating and talking, there was quite a
festive atmosphere. After a short interval, several of the women
trooped up to Grandma Lani's bedroom and began going through her
clothes.

Michael stayed close to Max, Tina, and Charlie. Max and Tina were
still together in spite of Tina's no-sex edict. They seemed like the
perfect couple. Tina broke his balls, and Max enjoyed every moment.
She treated Michael with a mixture of coolness and
contempt—still smarting because he'd dumped her. He suspected
she was dying to break up the close friendship he shared with Max,
only she had no chance. He and Max were tight—lifetime best
pals, andjpo girl could come between them.

Picking at the food, he kept an eye out for Marnie, wondering if
she'd turn up at the house.

Across the room, trapped in his wheelchair, Vinny couldn't wait
for them all to leave so he could get back to his TV. He hated the
house being filled with people disturbing his routine. In fact, he
hated the house, period.

He hadn't told Michael, but his plan was to sell the business,
then the house, and move to Florida, where he'd get himself a place
on the beach and a big TV. They could all go screw themselves, he
didn't care. Michael was nineteen, he could fend for himself. The boy
was big enough and handsome enough. And he was able to
walk
,
for crissakes. Up until now Michael had had it too easy; it would do
him good to be out on his own without his grandma fussing around
him.

Sometimes, when Vinny looked at his son, he saw himself at the
same age, when he'd
had
a future. Anna Maria's murder and
getting shot in the robbery had destroyed not only the use of his
legs, but his spirit too. As far as he was concerned, everything had
ended that fateful day. Now he didn't care about anything.

Michael spotted Marnie the moment she walked into the house. She
was hard to miss in her tight red suit and teased blond hair. People
stared and whispered.

Marnie couldn't care less; as Vito Giovanni's wife she was used to
it.

She headed straight for Michael. "Take me to see Vinny," she
commanded.

He jumped up and obliged. Behind him he heard Tina say, "Who's
that
? What a
tramp
!"

He led Marnie across the crowded room until they reached
Vinny.

"Hey, Dad," he said. "Got a friend of yours here—she'd like
to say hello."

"Who?" Vinny said, shifting in his wheelchair.

"Marnie Giovanni."

And to Vinny's surprise, there she was—Marnie, his old
girlfriend, standing in front of him, just as big and brassy and
blond as ever.

"Hi'ya, big boy," she drawled. "Long time no see."

"Marnie," he said, utterly shocked.

"Remember me?" she said, flashing him a big smile. "I'm the girl
you dumped for that piece a trash you dragged back from Italy."

"Don't talk about my wife like that," he muttered, his face
twisting with fury.

"Oh, so sorry," Marnie said sarcastically. "Have we made her into
a
Madonna
now she's gone?"

"Why don't you get outta my sight?" he said, livid that she could
be so disrespectful.

"Didn't want you worryin' about me, Vinny," she said, savoring
every moment. 'Ysee, I did okay for myself. Married the most
important guy in the neighborhood. Vito Giovanni. I'm sure you know
who he is."

"Did you
hear
me?" Vinny shouted, blinking rapidly. "Get
the hell outta my house!"

There was a hush in the room as everyone strained to see what was
going on.

"Dad!" Michael interjected.

"And you," Vinny said, glaring up at his son. "What kind of fool
are you—bringin' her here?"

"She, uh ... wanted to pay her respects to Grandma," Michael
mumbled, shocked at the way things were going.

"Respect, my ass," Vinny said harshly. "Lani couldn't stand the
sight of her, and
she
knows it. The bitch came here to gloat
'cause I'm in a fucking wheelchair." His voice rose. "Now get her
out
!"

Michael had never seen his father display so much emotion, and now
the entire room was watching. "Uh ..., Mrs. G.," he said, quickly
grabbing her arm, "I think we gotta leave. I'll, uh ... walk you
outside."

Marnie wasn't going anywhere until she'd finished having her say.
Shaking Michael's hand off her arm, she leaned over Vinny's
wheelchair. "Still the same old Vinny," she taunted. "Funny, I don't
remember you telling me to get out when I was sucking your little
dick
!" And with those final words she stood up straight and
flounced her way to the front door.

"Jeez," Michael said, running after her while everyone in the room
stared at them. "Why'd you havta say that? This is my grandma's
funeral
."

"Why'd I say it, sonny?" she said, exiting the house and standing
on the sidewalk. " 'Cause it's true. Before the
Eye-
talian
came along, I was your dad's girlfriend."

"I didn't know that," he said. "You never told me."

"We was gonna get married," she continued, "only Miss
Italy
got herself knocked up, an'
forced
him to dump me. So don't go
off on me if I'm mad."

"You shoulda told me about you an' my dad. I shoulda known."

"Aw—shit, it's old news. Anyway, don't start feelin' sorry
for
me
. I did a lot better than Vinny Castellino."