27. Rosa
CHAPTER 27
Rosa
M y dad is a criminal but there are always ways to take him down. With my own family and livelihood on the line, it’s time to take on the Newton family traits.
“I don’t want you to come,” I tell Nick. He’s confused, mainly because he’s secretly hoping to ambush my dad. Well, his dad, too.
“Are you insane, Rosa? Your…uh, our dad is not the kind of guy you try to outsmart,” he explains. “I’ve been studying him for years. He’s a trickster. It’s probably how he weaseled his way into working with the Montoyas in the first place.
I know that man better than anyone. He can lie right through his teeth but he has a weak spot. Plenty of them.
“I grew up in the house with him. I’m the better one to go in,” I press. “Besides, Mom isn’t with him. He’s hopeless without her whispering in his ear.” I can tell I have convinced Nick. He sighs and sits back down on the paisley comforter in the motel room that all three of us are crammed into.
“I’m following behind you,” he adds.
“We’re following behind you,” Vinny says as he comes out of the bathroom with half of his beard shaved. “I’m not taking any chances.”
I groan. “Fine! Tell Jodie the plan and we’ll head there.” I may act tough, but in just three short hours, my faith will be put to the test.
My dad is waiting for me in the back alley. He looks both shocked and relieved it’s just me.
“No, Nick?” he asks, peering behind me.
I move closer and hug him. “Just me, like it’s always been.”
When I pull away, my dad looks me up and down. “Did he get squirmy about me being here? It’s just a regular plan.”
I draw in a quick breath. “Dad, if there’s something you’re planning, I want in.”
He smirks. “Bullshit. You’re with that Montoya kid.”
I step closer. “But you’re my dad.” He laughs again, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I want us to be a family again, no matter the cost.” He’s quiet, this time his eyes have softened.
Got him.
“You really mean that, Rosa?” he asks.
Amazingly, fake tears roll down my face. “I really do, Pops.” I’m not prepared for the tight hug he gives me. A few tears roll down my dad’s face as he staggers back.
“God, Rosa. You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to hear that. You, me, your mom — all in business together to claim what’s ours,” he says. “I've been trying to take down the Montoyas for years. The only way to do it is to show their money laundering,” he says. “Everyone knows they deal drugs and murder folks. We all do. But for some reason, money laundering is the ticket.”
I hold back my gasp. “Dad, you don’t do that stuff, right?”
He gestures for me to follow him. “Why do you think I needed you two here? The only way to afford our moves and cover our tracks is through washing our money.” We walk through the back where a dimly lit hall has several files on the floor.
“I need our names destroyed, but keep the Montoyas,” he explains. “Then we turn them into the cops and we walk away free and take over what those bastards had.” I feel sick. He knew I was with Vinny. That we married and had kids. Yet, he already planned to destroy him.
I kneel down and sift through the papers. “Isn't that what everyone’s been talking about?”
He shakes his head. “No, they’re on about the dealing. The money washing is another layer. Luckily for me, I work with masterminds. I already have most of the Montoyas forged signatures.”
Forged signatures?
“I don't know Dad. Doesn’t that seem extreme? What if it gets back to us?” I say as I look up at him.
He’s unfazed. “Not even. Unlike Nick, I trust you. It took balls for you to come back here when you can potentially be seen as an accomplice,” my dad says. I pretend to be shocked.
My dad kneels beside me, patting my head. “I'm not going to let anything bad happen to our family, Rosa.”
I force a smile. “Did you give the cops the information? ” My dad sighs and shakes his head. “Not just yet. We just have to get these documents out and then we can take action.”
“Where’s the stuff we need for the cops, Poppa?” I ask, knowing the added ‘poppa’ will trip him up.
He points at the large blue box closer to the door. “Those. The rest is all us, pumpkin cakes. If you wanna take a stab at getting ours trashed first, I’ll grab some pho from around the corner.”
“Okie dokes, Pops!” I say. He plops a kiss on my forehead. Once he’s out the door and I hear his car start, I begin my plan. I take everything I can and stuff it in my pants. I then check the coast and dart across the parking lot where Nick and Vinny are staked out. They open the door and I throw the files in.
“What the hell are these?” Nick roars.
“Shut up and trust me!” I snap as I rush back inside. It would take six trips just to get everything in the car. Then, I would shred the Montoyas files.
“What now? This creep was planning on taking us out this whole time?” Vinny fumes.
“Are you really that shocked? It seems like a favorite pastime for criminals,” I say with an eye roll. “He’ll be back any second. We’ll knock him out and plant the evidence.”
Nick gawks at me. “You really are a Newton.”
“Shut up,” I hiss.
I rush back inside and prop myself on the floor next to the shredded files. Like clockwork, my dad strolls in with three bags of food.
“Almost like being back home,” he chirps. The door slowly opens and Vinny and Nick ease inside.
“Set them down, Pops, let’s eat,” I say as they inch closer. Vinny pulls out a white cloth and skillfully rushes behind my dad, covering his face. Before he can throw a punch, Nick kicks him in the shin and he buckles. It takes just a few seconds for the chlorophyll to kick in. His body collapses on the floor.
I jump to my feet. “We plant it then call the cops about suspicious activities.”
Nick hesitates. “Wait a minute, what about security cameras? They’ll notice us—”
I cackle at his question. “Obviously, I cut the cameras before I went to the car.” Nick and Vinny gawk at me.
“Who showed you that?” Vinny asks in amazement.
I position my dad so that it looks like he’s sitting up. “When you bounce around cities with criminal parents, you pick up a thing or two.” The files are pulled back in and we plant them around my dad’s unconscious body. I finally breathe a huge sigh of relief. Vinny, Nick, and I rush out and make it back to the motel in record time.
“I’ll be at the bar and make the call,” Nick grumbles. “This was…quite the eventful night.” I expect to be exhausted but for some odd reason, my body is burning with desire.
Vinny pulls me into his arms, kissing me. “That really was hot back there.”
“Is that so?” I ask as I kiss him back roughly. I straddle him and pull my t-shirt up. Sweat drenches us. Then, I reach into Vinny’s pants, pulling out his member. His fire is tantalizing as he rips the rest of my clothes off. Despite the nausea of the past months, I feel relieved to know that my life is about to start over for the better. The moonlight shines through the dusty blinds of the motel, lighting our room softly.
Vinny pulls my face closer to his, making his kisses slower.
“I love you,” I mutter, and Vinny goes wild, increasing his speed. I continue to roll my hips as pleasure drives me crazy. It’s the best way to end our wild night. In the distance, I hear cop sirens and it makes me smile.
The next few weeks are torture. The news of my dad’s crime comes to light and he’s immediately arrested. Of course, a lot of people connected to him get questioned, including Vinny. The police are swift and hold him for hours. Afterwards, all he has the energy for is sleep. There’s no getting through to him and it's nauseating.
“ Men are hard to prod when they’re stressed,” my mom used to tell me when my dad would be on the run from cops and drug lords. According to my mother, she had her fair share of lifeless, awful relationships and every time she could, she’d dump her past on me. I had no choice but to listen to her harp on about my dad and his affairs.
While Vinny and I had a rocky start, he was nothing like my mom’s old flings. Or my dad. He’s passionate and cares for his family. He took a risk to make sure he could keep our family safe.
We’ve eventually settled in a rental until things get sorted. After I have my morning coffee, I figure I am alone but the door flies open. Vinny files in with tired eyes. Nick is right behind him.
“How was it?” I ask, hoping to get confirmation that we’re in the clear.
Nick shrugs. “I think we’re still on the bad side,” he confirms. Vinny shuffles over to the couch without a word. My mind searches for the right words, but I draw a blank. If I remember any of the advice my mom gave my twelve-year-old self, it is to accept long silences.
I take Vinny’s hand and kiss it gently. Even though his shoulders relax slightly, he still has worry written all over his face.
“Tomorrow’s court day is my last chance,” he says.
I squeeze his hand “You have nothing to worry about,” I reply. Telling him how solid our plan is won’t alleviate his stress. He needs to know that his life will be able to go on after all this chaos is over.
“I really hope you’re right,” he whispers as he lays his head on my shoulder. “Can you come to the last appearance?”
I nod. I don’t want to miss it, but I wonder how it will play out with my dad potentially seeing me.
“What about my dad?” I ask.
Vinny chuckles. “What’s he going to do?” Vinny relaxes again, kissing me on the cheek. “You’re my family, Rosa. I need you with me at all times.”
I will always stand by my true family, and I am determined to see justice served for all the traumas my dad caused me and my children.
When it’s time for court I’m sweating bullets.
It takes me forever to settle on what to wear and Vinny rechecks with his lawyer for the fifth time before we head out.
Since the case has provoked a reputation, we thankfully have a private hearing. The court room feels empty and cold when I file in behind Vinny. All the eyes glare at us like we’re prisoners awaiting trial. Vinny isn’t moved and guides me to my seat. Towards the front I see my dad turn around and give me a nasty look. I can only imagine what he’d do to me if I was within arms-length.
“A lot worse than I imagined,” I whisper as I sit down.
Vinny plants a kiss on my head. “Ignore them. They’re all guilty anyway.” Vinny kisses me again, this time on the lips. A few gasps and whispers fill the empty courtroom.
Those huge doors leading to the hallway are hard to look at. In the next hour, we’ll either walk out feeling redemption, or we have to accept a darker future. Neither one of us is fully prepared to lose. Everything is at stake.
Eventually, a meaty judge walks to his seat and the case begins.
“Judge Sander,” Nick whispers beside me. “He’s really tough. A bulldog. No one gets off with him.” My heart leaps.
“Don’t say that, Nick!”
He shakes his head. “We need to be realistic, at least.”
I make quick eye contact with the judge, and his huge eyes stare down at me like I’m nothing. Judge Sanders looks to be around the same age as my dad, but his skin is thinner and his eyes sharper.
“We will begin,” he says. My dad of course takes the stand first. Aside from lying through his teeth, he tries to paint himself as an innocent bystander forced into the business.
“Didn’t you have documents that connect you to money laundering found when you were arrested?” Judge Sanders cuts in. My dad laughs nervously.
"Those three," he seethed, pointing accusingly at the trio in front of him, "set me up." He continues to glare at me. For a split second, I do feel guilty. He’s my dad after all. What daughter wants their parent to suffer? But all I have to do is remember the horrible childhood I lived through. The fact that my dad had no issue letting me get killed to cover his tracks. He deserves everything coming. The lawyer representing my Dad seems to be at a loss for words, their rehearsed script now has gone out of the window.
“Mr. Newton?” Judge Sanders asks loudly.
“I’m literally being framed and they get to walk away?” my dad shouts. “Rosa used me to cover up his mess.”
“Like a rat in a corner,” Nick whispers.
“We got him,” I whisper back. My dad begins to go on a tangent as he insults everyone in the courtroom. That’s his way of showing he’s overwhelmed. I’ve seen him do it plenty of times. Unfortunately for him, it just makes Judge Sanders angry.
“I’m warning you, Newton!”
My dad shouts. “After everything I’ve done for that brat and the Montoyas, I’ll be damned if you try to pin your mess on me!”
My ears are ringing and Nick holds onto my hand tightly, making me stay calm. I can feel everyone’s eyes on Nick and me but hold my ground. If I break, it’ll make what my dad’s saying a little too true. However, luck is on our side as the judge roars over my dad’s tantrum.
“You clearly want to rot in prison for all the mess you’ve created and defying me in my own courtroom!” the judge yells.
My dad squirms in his seat. “It wouldn’t matter. They always win,” he says under his breath. The final loose threads in my dad all unravel. He looks like a wild man.
“Where’s my wife? I can’t…I can’t do this,” he begins to plead. That’s who's missing. My mom. Panic rises in me and Nick nudges me once more.
“Keep cool. It’s almost over,” he whispers.
The judge continues as if my dad isn’t breaking in front of him. “Mr. Newton, did you try to frame the Montoyas?”
My dad shakes his head over and over. No words come out to defend himself. He’s like a scared kid on the stand. I now know why Vinny had a hard time taking down his dad. It’s torture. But when Vinny peers back at me, I take my sons to the court, hoping my dad will see how much joy our family can have if he makes the right choices, and how determined I am to make him pay his crimes.
It has to be this way.
“If you want to point the finger, why don’t you ask yourself why these criminals get to run free and the only time your weak lawmakers throw them in jail is if it involves your money!” my dad roars. It’s the final blow for him. The judge’s face glows bright red.
“It’s obvious to me that you want to spend your last days in a dirty cell. So, how about we just give you a 70-to-life sentence,” Judge Sanders hisses. Shock is all over my dad’s face, followed by tears.
“Please, I was just talking shit,” he stammers. Judge Sanders motions for the police officer.
“Well, I sure do hope it was worth it,” Judge Sanders replies without any mercy. “The sentencing is final without the option for parole.”
My dad freezes, his eyes glazing over. “No, no, no, no. Wait a minute—” The officers come to place my dad in handcuffs and escort him out of the courtroom. I’m also frozen as the man I used to call father is permanently removed.
Nick rises, taking my hand. “It’s over, Rosa. Now we have to let him go,” he whispers.
“What are you talking about? What about Vinny?” I ask, as I watch Judge Sanders walk out.
“Didn’t you hear what dad said? These lawmakers are just as guilty. He broke a code saying that aloud. So, we’re automatically free to go,” Nick explains. Vinny walks back towards us and gives me a tight hug.
“Close call, huh?” he mutters.
As people begin to walk out of the small room, I feel like I’ve cheated the system. Everyone else present is quiet, almost like they’re also confused on how twisted the laws are.
“So, that’s it?” I ask. “My dad goes down and everyone keeps quiet?”
Vinny kisses me. “Think of it as a warning. Anyone else connected to him will back down.”
It feels like there’s still unfinished business. “What about the rest of your family?”
He looks away. “You’re my family now, Rosa,” he answers.
Nick guides us outside where there are several reporters lined down the street. “Jesus, have they ever heard of privacy?” I brace myself and slide my sunglasses on as reporters rush over to us. Nick and Vinny place me, the babies and Jodie in the middle of them as we wade through the crowd of flashing lights and clamoring voices.
“What do you have to say for yourself?”
“How does it feel to put your own father in prison?”
“Can you confirm the mafia rules the State?”
We make it through the crowd and retreat into a black escalade pulling up out front. Once the doors close, I can take a deep breath.
“Is that what we have to look forward to?” I groan. The driver pulls out of the parking lot, speeding us out of dodge.
“We won’t be staying in the States,” Nick adds.
Vinny nods quietly. “There’s no way we can live comfortably with cameras staring us down, watching our every move,” he says with a shrug. “We finished our business here anyway.”
I would protest. New York has been my life. I have memories, both good and bad, and I know I’ll miss it.
“Will we ever come back?” I ask as I stare out of the window.
Nick laughs. “Do you want to be flagged down by TMZ?” I draw in a quick breath. This is it. My life will be outside of the States and I have to get over it.
“I think you’ll enjoy the life I’ve been setting up for you,” Vinny adds sheepishly as he strokes Fernando’s hair. He brings my hand to his lips and kisses my palm. I suppose it’ll have to work.
I don’t ask any more questions. Once we get back to the rental, our bags are packed and we’re on the next flight out. The good thing about Vinny’s end game is that he didn’t lose his money. So, we fly on the last private plane his dad had which is under Vinny’s name. The only thing that eases me up is holding onto my babies and kissing the tops of their heads. After grueling hours, we eventually land somewhere new. I spot tropical trees, lots of water, and thick heat. It’s not Mexico, though. As soon as we step off the plane, we’re greeted by two familiar faces. Vinny’s grandfather and Marisol. I run to them like a child seeing their parents at daycare.
“Look what the cat dragged in,” Vinny’s grandfather chirps as he gives us both a huge bear hug.
“I can’t believe this!” I squeal. Before I can ask what the next stop is, Marisol and Vinny’s grandfather escort us into the car. It takes just a few minutes for me to figure out the location of our new home. Brazil.
“How did you figure this one out?” I ask. The truck is silent for a few moments until Marisol chimes in.
“It just seemed like the right next step,” she says with a smile. “Here we can all start over and not have to look over our shoulders.”
“ I have a second home here. The babies will be safe to grow up and choose their own path,” Vinny’s grandfather adds with a smile. I can tell from the glint in his eyes that it’s all he’s ever wanted. We don’t mention the death of Vinny’s father. Or mine being in prison. We simply drive to the next destination. Our home. The forever place we plan on staying for as long as we want.