Rude Boy USA (17 page)

Before they could deal with Edina’s appearances, Chimera had to solve the issue of the harassing phone calls. Jerome thought that the Ambrosino family was behind them. Ambrosino had been their chief adversary. The harassing phone calls to Jerome’s home had increased. The calls were used to taunt them. Mariana would pick them up, and the caller would insult her. She expressed concern to Jerome about the situation, as she had recently discovered that they were with child and did not want anything to happen to them. Sometimes the caller would refer to Jerome as a monkey and warn that he and the rest of their monkey family had better watch out if Chimera did not back down. This call was no different. Mariana called Jerome over to the line to help this time. Jerome took the phone from her.

“Luci was a waste. I never really saw the appeal of dealing with niggers,” the caller said and hung up. From that statement, Jerome knew whom he was dealing with. It was Dante Ambrosino. Dante had been the main voice of opposition to Chimera and their attempts to expand. He would often taunt Chimera as he felt that a group like them did not fit into the culture that the families had cultivated in New York City. He felt that the Cosa Nostra had no place for a mongrel group. The Ambrosino family did not want to take Chimera seriously, and they figured that the group would be easy to diminish. Jerome did not take kindly to threats to his family. He felt the obligation to protect them at all costs. He called John, and they got together, but not before Jerome had Mariana removed from the residence into a safer place.

A few days after the phone calls and the incident at the office, things returned to normal at Chimera. Edina’s visits had made everyone uneasy. They were smiling again now. Edina was only friendly to Ben and John. She was offhand to Jerome and Celia. Edina saw those two as a threat to her and John’s future. John had finally decided to make up his mind and begin the process of divorcing Edina. He was fed up with her. Bernie was no longer with them, and the lingering obligation to him regarding Edina no longer played a factor in the situation. John felt that he finally had an out. He knew that he would lose out big in a divorce financially. Edina had different plans. She thought if they had any chance to make it at all, Celia and Jerome would have to go, and she was determined to see that materialize. Roma Ambrosino put Edina in contact with the chief Ambrosino-family boss, Enzo Ambrosino, and they had a lengthy conversation.

John and Jerome decided to pay a visit to Dante Ambrosino themselves. They knew that his wife and children were out of town visiting another family. Edina leaked that info to John to make small talk with him and to ease him into what she was planning to do. John had never been interested in hearing what she had to say or learning about any of the Ambrosino activities until now. It was 10:10 p.m. later that evening. It was pitch black outside, so it was hard to spot them. The neighborhood was in a rural area in Westchester
that did not have a lot of street lighting. John and Jerome staked out on Dante’s property, hiding in the shrubbery and massive snow piles that were left on the lawn. Both were dressed in all black from head to toe. They wore black face paint and ski caps to make sure they exposed no identifying characteristics. John then went and disabled the power on the generator outside. They knew Dante was in there alone. His wife had revealed to Edina that her husband liked to sit and drink alone in front of the fireplace at night.

Before they entered the house, John looked at Jerome. “You ready?” he asked.

“Yep,” Jerome said.

“Let’s go and light his ass up,” John responded.

John and Jerome entered the house through an unlocked side window. They were surprised how easy it was to get in. That meant they did not have to leave any visible signs of a break-in. The window was located away from the room where Dante was sitting and drinking while reading the paper. Dante did not immediately notice that the generator was off, as he only had the fireplace and moonlight for light. John and Jerome made it in without tipping off any alarms. Dante did not have dogs, as Roma had an allergy to them and did not like them around the children. The Ambrosino family felt that no one had the balls to touch them in their homes, so they did not worry about security in the area. John and Jerome quietly walked through the house until they reached the room where Dante was sitting. He had nodded off. As they inched closer, John quietly cut every phone cord he
passed. They walked up to Dante. John stood behind the chair, and Jerome stood before it. Dante suddenly woke up and saw the unidentified person standing in front of him. Dante asked him to identify himself.

“It’s Monkey Man, motherfucker,” Jerome answered, and both he and John attacked the man, placing a chloroform-soaked cloth over his face until he passed out. Once he was out, they took part of the newspaper, lit it from the fireplace, and began burning things to make it look like an accidental fire. They burned his clothes and chair while he sat unconscious. The fire spread quickly, as many of the materials in the home were flammable. Jerome picked up the cloth they had used, and they headed out and left the area quickly. They burned the cloth when they returned to the city.

Chapter 8

A
fter the hit on Dante Ambrosino, the calls stopped. The Ambrosino family was preoccupied with the death, which the investigators ruled an accident. The house burned quickly, and the top of Dante’s body burned beyond recognition. He was positively identified by a tattoo on his foot. The coroner found no signs of other trauma on his body. They established that there had been no foul play, as they could not detect an accelerant or any sign of illegal entry. The investigators concluded that a spark from the fireplace might have started the blaze, as Dante had used unsuitable wood that produced flying embers that spread into the room. John and Jerome had a clean hit. They could have had the Jet family come and do the job, but this was personal to both of them. They intended to send a hard message about the years of taunting and threats. Chimera was
not to be fucked with. This counted as a needed hit in the way that Bernie had taught them. When your life or your family’s lives are in danger, you take the necessary steps to ensure their safety.

Edina completed the secret deal with Enzo Ambrosino the night of Dante’s death. She was excited about the agreement and the future of the group, as well as her and John’s livelihoods. She had her entire plan to present to John, but she knew she would have some resistance. She called the office again, but this time asked to speak to Ben. She needed a pathway to John. Celia and Jerome were out of the question. Ben agreed to meet with her. She had not told him what the extent of the conversation would be.

Ben and Edina met at a diner in Staten Island. Both of them thought that the place was off the radar and somewhere that John, Jerome, and Celia would not venture to. They began their conversation over a pasta dinner. Ben was still unsure about the meeting since their encounters had only been brief. Edina decided to break the ice and ask him about his life. He told her just the basics about himself, as he did not fully trust her with all of his information because of her connection with John. Edina then questioned him about Celia.

“What do you know?” Edina asked him.

“I work with her,” he answered.

“That’s it?” Edina said.

“No, but why is this important?” Ben responded.

“OK, I will tell you what’s happening. I think they are having an affair,” Edina told him. Ben’s suspicions about the meeting waned. He was more than willing to spill what he knew about John. He started providing more information.

“Well, I can tell you that nothing is happening now with them. They used to date, but I don’t know how far that went,” he told her.

“Oh, but how are they now?” Edina probed.

“I’m with her now,” Ben said to her. Celia had subsided contact with him, but Ben was in denial. Edina was slightly relieved to hear this. “But he keeps interfering. It bothers me, and she has now started to brush me off,” he added. Edina’s relief turned to discontent. “Look, I don’t know if he has feelings for her or what, and excuse me for my language, but I’ve wanted to punch him in the fucking mouth for a year now,” he added before putting a fork full of pasta in his mouth.

Edina sat silent. Ben had just confirmed her worst suspicions about John and Celia. Edina knew that John slept with women, but she had always dismissed that as something physical only. He didn’t love those girls. John was emotionally vested in Celia. This was worse. Bernie had kept him obligated, and now that he was no longer there, she knew John had no one else to answer to. She realized that if she wanted a chance in hell to save their marriage, she would have to get Celia out of his mind. Edina cut to the chase.

“Ben, I brought you here to sit you down and give you some important information. There have been things going on behind the scenes, a project that we’ve been working on,” she said.

“Go on,” Ben said.

“To put this simply, we’re merging,” Edina said.

“What? Merging with whom?” Ben asked her.

“Merging with Enzo Ambrosino,” she replied. Ben coughed as if he were choking.

“Merging with Ambrosino? That makes no sense. They hate us,” Ben said.

“No, it’s not like that. I’ve met with them. They are OK. They are investing in us,” Edina replied.

“So, John is OK with this? Who else knows about this?” Ben questioned.

“No, John does not know yet. Nobody knows. You are the first person who knows as of now,” she said.

“If John wasn’t there, then who did the deal?” he asked.

“I did,” she answered. Ben sat silent for ten seconds.

“So you’re running things now?” he said sarcastically.

“Ben, no, this was on the side. You know, and I know, and everybody else knows that since Bernie died, the group has been in a terrible position, and I know that you all are still trying to adjust. John needs the help. I used my connections and expertise to give you and him a life raft,” Edina said. “They were willing to bury the hatchet if we joined forces. It’s better for everybody. This move will make both groups stronger. I’m part of this as John’s wife. I knew
Bernard before everyone else. I wanted you to know first because I need you as an anchor to John. He is going to resist this,” she said.

“And rightfully fucking so. This is unbelievable,” he said. “This is disrespectful to Bernie. He put his life into us. What’s in the company—the money, the property, the clients, the history—it belongs to all of us.”

Edina sensed that Ben was not thrilled about the news. She needed his cooperation. She decided to use Celia as a draw, and if that failed, she would put the moves on Ben herself. “Ben there is something else I have to tell you. The way the Ambrosino family works, there will be no purpose for Celia or Jerome, so we will have to let them go. You stay with us, and you will have a bigger role. You are one of them, I mean the Italians. They will relate to you the most,” she said.

Ben sat there again in a ten-second pause. Despite their differences, dumping Jerome did not totally sit well with him. His only personal issue with Jerome was his cliquish relationship with John and the fact that Jerome has passed him in the ranks. He took an oath not to burn his brothers, even when at times he disliked them.