18. Vinny
CHAPTER 18
Vinny
J alisco has the best sunrise. The sky practically looks like a pot of melted candy as the orange meets with yellow. The blue takes over and it makes anyone forget about their worries back home. For me, this has been life. I hide out in a tiny hut with a mild-tempered woman named Marisol. I eat a heap of breakfast, lunch, and dinner. My beard has grown out, making me look like the spitting image of my grandfather. Showers are outside with the freshly washed towels Marisol cleans with rocks and cheap cleaner. The smell is immaculate — fresh soap and the openness of farm air. The city is only a few blocks down, but living in the middle of nowhere has its perks, too. The trees and wildlife are different from New York. The sounds of children and goats bleating make me feel like life in New York never happened.
Except that’s the thing. Life in New York did happen. It’s an ugly scar on the family name and I’m shocked my grandfather didn’t immediately have me taken out for embarrassing the bloodline. Thankfully, I severely misunderstood my grandfather’s undying loyalty for me. It took him three days to face me. I was thankful for those three days because Marisol prepped me on his temperament.
“These days all he does is eat and stay inside. He lets the young boys take over the violent stuff,” Marisol told me as she wrapped my tortilla. Eventually, her warnings calmed me. The day I saw him he looked a lot different than I remembered. Years ago, he was a fifty-something man with black and silver hair. His tattoos gleamed on his lean body and women were at his beck and call.
The man I met was different. He had a belly, thinning hair, and more lines around his eyes. I almost wished for the past when I saw him.
“Looks like we both changed,” he said as he stood in the doorway. I expected to keep my composure but I rushed over and hugged the old man. We reacquainted ourselves with beer and stories of my youth. I learned about his many failed relationships and he learned about my near-death run-in with my dad.
“Your dad went the other way,” he said finally. “The Montoya name wasn’t supposed to just be about power. It was also about respect.”
“Well, he’s got half of New York in debt to him,” I muttered. This angered the old man. He threw his empty beer bottle at the wall. The loud smash made me jump.
“This is why I dropped out,” he said after a while. “The new age kids have it all twisted.” It all started to make sense why my dad and grandfather stopped talking. My dad became a disappointment to his father. It’s a classic tale that played out sourly.
“What now? You’re the original Montoya. Can’t you do something?” I asked. He snickered and shook his head like I asked a ridiculous question.
“I’m in Mexico, hijo. What happens in the US is out of my hands,” he answered.
“But your family lives in the US. What about us?” I pressed.
He didn’t seem to care about the terror in my voice. “You all are men. If you need my help, you can come to Mexico. You’re here now, so there are no more issues.” Only there are plenty of issues. Rosa is the biggest. I knew I couldn’t stay too long in Mexico, especially knowing my grandfather wasn’t concerned about my life in New York. For that reason, I rested my mind for a few months before I prepared myself to go back.
“You could have a good life here,” my grandfather tells me now. He’s angry that I’m packing my bags. “You could marry and forget about all the shit in New York.”
I slam my suitcase on the ground. “I have a woman back there and I’m not abandoning her.” Rosa needs my help. Even if Nick pushed me away and claimed she was better off without me. I’m not giving up that easily.
“You might be done with the US but you’re the reason the family is in this business to begin with,” I snap. “I don’t wanna be like my dad so I have to fight back.”
My grandfather stares straight ahead like an angry teenager. “If you get killed that’s on you.”
“I’m done being a coward,” I say. “If that gets me killed, so be it.”
Once I’m back on New York soil I feel like a dead man walking. Any wrong move could be my last. My only goal is to locate Rosa. If anything else happens with my dad, I’m prepared to die. I don’t expect Rosa to want anything to do with me. I just need her to know how sorry I am for being so weak. The guilt and shame have been drowning me for months and I want closure. But the only way to find Rosa is to find Nick. Being that he’s now the top dog for my dad, there’s one sure way to find him.
Laretto’s Bar is the only mafia-serving bar in town that forbids outsiders. The most dangerous men dine there and it's where a lot of deals are created. I used to go with my dad late at night to watch him settle scores with enemies or wage deals for people’s lives. It's brutal. So many shootouts and lives have been taken under those hazy blue lights that it’s like walking into the underworld. It’s my best bet though.
Once it's past midnight, I walk up to the backdoor entrance where Alec, the same bodyguard from years back, is standing guard. I brace myself as I walk up.
“Password?” he grunts. His eyes get big once he realizes who I am. “Vinny? Word around is you’re dead.”
“Word is wrong,” I respond.
He grins. “Yeah, well your boy Nick is holding the fort pretty well. Been talking about how he’s got his eye out for you.”
I roll my eyes. “I thought everyone thought I was dead?”
Alec smirks and opens the huge iron door. “Enter at your own risk, man.” I smoothly walk through, trying to ignore how violently my heart is hammering in my chest. Once inside, I see all the big names sitting around at their individual tables. My eyes immediately float to the table towards the pool table. Usually, it was my dad’s spot but now it has been claimed by Nick. I touch my gun poking through my back pocket. It’s now or never.
I glide through the crowd and feel the eyes on me. Anyone could take a shot at me if they wanted. No one would care. I’m a traitor, after all. I hear the murmurs and once I step in front of Nick, I hear guns being cocked.
Nick’s mouth hangs open. “You’ve got some balls coming in here.”
“Where is she?” I blurt out.
“All this for Rosa?” Nick snaps, rising to his feet. “You’re dumb coming back.” I reach back and pull out my gun.
“Maybe, but she’s in this because of me,” I press.
“No, she’s in this because of her lowlife father,” Nick says as he moves closer to me. “According to her, you’re no better than Ralph Newton. So, you stepping back into New York was stupid.”
I’m not afraid of him or the circle of men getting even closer to me. “Fine, what are you gonna do now that you’re his puppet?” Nick doesn’t waste any time with retaliation. He raises his fist and slams it into my face. Then, all hell breaks loose. I fall to the ground and kick and punch at Nick as the others try to grab me. Before I know it, other men are pushing into guys and the bar is in one big brawl. A gunshot fires and I stay low to the ground. I feel a hand grab my ankle and when I look up, I see Nick’s fierce eyes.
“Follow me!” he roars over the mess. I crawl behind as bullets fly past me. The dark lights thankfully save us and we make it out of another entrance. Nick tugs me down a dark alley and we’re running as fast as our legs can take us. We end up several blocks away from the bar and I’m still shocked we’re not dead.
Nick slumps to the ground with his hand holding onto his side as blood pours out of a wound.
“Shit, I gotta take you to the hospital,” I roar but Nick holds up his hand.
“No, down the alleyway. Take me there,” he pants.
“Are you insane?” I snap. “You’ll bleed out!”
Nick glares at me. “Just do as I say! I know these parts better than you!” I reluctantly put him over my shoulder and run in the direction he tells me to. The alleyway narrows out and I realize it’s not like the other alleyways I’m used to. Nick reaches into his pocket to pull out a blue phone, punching three numbers. Suddenly, a side door that I thought was just brick, bursts open. A wild-eyed woman with short hair glares at me.
“Nick, what the hell is this?” she yells as she pulls out a gun.
“Easy! He’s been shot,” I yell. Nick is losing blood by the second and looks extremely pale. The woman keeps the gun out but gestures for me to follow her. As soon as the door is shut behind us, I walk into a whole new world.
“What is this?” I ask in awe. She pauses at another entrance and knocks on a green door.
“A place built to protect us from assholes like you,” she snaps. The door swings open and Dr. Carmy rushes out.
“Dr. Carmy?” I squeak. He ignores me and helps Nick inside where an operating table is in the middle of the room.
“Not the time, Vinny,” he says. “He’s losing blood rapidly and I don’t know if we have his blood match.”
“Use me. He donated blood to me once and we’re a perfect match,” I say. The woman and Dr. Carmy stare at me blankly.
“We have no choice,” Dr. Carmy says. “Jodie, get him prepped. Time is of the essence.” Jodie rolls her eyes and pulls out the tools. Nick is already unconscious and I’m rethinking whether or not my plan of finding Rosa was worth it. If I lose Nick, even though I was already betting on it, I don’t know how I’ll feel.
Dr. Carmy starts the blood transfusion and keeps his eye on the door down the hall. Beads of sweat roll down the side of his face. I also look down the hall, slightly worried someone might come out and take me out.
“My dad knows you’re out here?” I ask, slightly woozy from the blood loss.
He sighs. “Does he know you’re here?”
The door down the hall creaks open and Dr. Carmy groans. “Brace yourself.”
Before I can react, I hear her. Rosa.
“Nick?” she cries as she rushes over to him, not even noticing me. I try to stand up but Dr. Carmy squeezes my arm.
“What happened?” she screams, turning to face Dr. Carmy and finally seeing me. Her mouth drops open. I expect her to throw a punch but tears fill her eyes.
“I don’t believe it,” she says. A bulging belly also greets me. It takes a few seconds for it all to register. Rosa places her hand over her stomach.
“I wanted to tell you,” she whispers. “We’re having twins.”
I don’t even realize I am crying until she moves in and wipes the tears away. I take deep breaths. “I knew I had to get back here to find you. I can’t believe it, Rosa.” Twins. Two babies. And to think I was in Mexico all this time. I could’ve missed out.
Dr. Carmy exhales and stands up. “Alright, Nick should recover. Since you’re here you should learn the ground rules—”
“Can we have a moment?” Rosa asks, taking my hand and pulling me down the hallway. Once we’re in the room, Rosa shuts and locks the door then roughly kisses me. I don’t ask any questions. We have a lot of catching up to do.
Rosa practically rips my shirt off and her hands hungrily pull my zipper down. We’re a tangle of bare skin as we fall onto the bed. Her breasts are already swollen from the pregnancy and I know every little thing feels like heaven for her. The heat and sweat are delicious and Rosa’s moans are like music to my ears. Everything melts into one as we savagely make out. Once I’m inside Rosa, her eyes roll back and she scratches me roughly, drawing blood.
“Harder, please!” Rosa grunts. We re-position with her on top and she rolls her hips faster. I keep a tight hold on her full hips, watching in pure ecstasy as she does what she wants with my member. Her tightness makes me feel like I’ll explode at any second — I can’t just yet. As Rosa tires out, I pick her up and bounce her up and down gently. Each thrust brings us closer to finishing and the energy is immaculate.
“Make me finish,” Rosa demands, making me go harder until the moment finally arrives. We fall back onto the bed, drenched in sweat. My entire body is sore and throbbing as Rosa lays on my chest. We catch our breaths, staring into one another’s eyes.
“I want more,” Rosa tells me. It’s going to be a long night.