Chapter Five- Dior #2
“He’s inside,” he said, holding the door open so that Mia and I could get by him.
I felt my nerves start acting up all over again because Edwardo was here.
All this time we believed that this man had gone into hiding; meanwhile, he had been hiding in plain sight all along.
The guard led the way inside the living room, where a man was seated.
He reminded me of the actor Andy Garcia; he sat in a huge leather recliner, a cane leaning against his right inner thigh.
I looked at him as he looked at me, the famous Edwardo.
This was the man who kidnapped Buddha years ago, torturing him for an entire week, all because his wife couldn’t keep her legs closed.
“Mr. Bianchi, I am Angelina Smith, and this is my colleague Jackie Laurel,” seeing that Edwardo didn’t bother getting up. I walked over to him and held my hand out. I could tell he didn’t really wish to shake my hand, but he did anyway.
“You’re a lawyer who has something for me?” He asked with an eyebrow raised.
“Yes, on behalf of my client Vincent Ricci,” I informed him as I handed him the fake documents. Edwardo looked at the envelope, confused by what I said.
“Vincent Ricci? What the fuck is this?” Edwardo snatched the envelope from my hand, which was very rude of him. Opening the envelope, he took out the contents and read them.
“I’m sorry, this document says Vincent is suing me for aggravated assault? When did I assault that uomo (man)?” Edwardo asked with a sarcastic look.
“My client said that on the date stated on the document in your hand, you came into his brother’s pizzeria and physically assaulted him. He’s suing you for damages caused to his arm from said altercation,” my lawyer's voice was on point too; nobody could tell me otherwise.
Edwardo started laughing, shaking his head in disbelief.
“I thought those brothers got shot. I guess whoever shot them didn’t do a very good job, or he wouldn’t have found time to sue an old man.
Those Ricci men are very desperate; they must be broke, which is why they’re trying to come after me for an easy payout.
I have someone that will love to hear this,” Edwardo said, patting the pockets of his pants until he found his phone.
Nervously, I looked around the room. Mia made a weird face, and I kept my cool as I searched around to see how many men were present. There was only one, which was the guy who let us in, so there were only three men that Buddha and Snow should be concerned about.
“Didn’t I tell you not to call me? We need to lay low until I tell you otherwise,” the voice on the other end of his phone call almost made me piss on myself. It was Francesco; I knew his voice anywhere.
“I know, but I wanted to tell you something. Apparently, I’m being sued by none other than Vincent Ricci, aka Snow.” Shit, I needed to go to the bathroom so that I could call Buddha. I had a specific timeframe to make the call, or he and Snow were coming regardless.
I gave Mia a telling look before making my way over to the nearby security guard.
He watched me stone-faced as I approached him.
“I was wondering if there was a guest bathroom I could use? I drank a huge cup of soda before I got here; I think it's ready to come out, I apologize for this,” I said with a shy smile, making an awkward face. He didn’t seem very amused by my request. Saying nothing, he walked to Edwardo and whispered to him, and Edwardo nodded in response.
“Come on, it’s this way, and be quick,” I followed him, looking back at Edwardo as he spoke to Francesco. I hoped Mia would be alright; I had to call as quickly as I could and get back out there. I didn’t like the idea of leaving Mia behind with Edwardo.
“Thank you,” I said to the guard as he pointed at the door not very far from the living room. I stepped inside and made sure the security was a distance away before closing the door. Releasing a shaky breath, I took my phone out and dialed Buddha’s number; he answered on the first ring.
“Why you took so long?” he asked, his voice sounding irritated.
“Forget all that. I’ve seen three guards, two at the gate and one in the house with us. Get this, Edwardo’s here and he’s on the phone with Francesco as we speak.” I spilled all the tea.
“That mothafucka has been right here all this fucking time. He knew we would think he’d run, and that his house would be the last place we’d expect him to be, because it was too obvious. Hang tight, we’re coming in.” Before I could say anything else, Buddha hung up the phone.
I rubbed my stomach nervously because I was about to witness something I’d rather not see. I tried to calm myself as I reached for the doorknob and pulled it open. I kept my head somewhat down as I walked toward the security guard who was standing a short distance away.
“Thank you,” I muttered as I walked by him, heading back into the living room. By the time I got back, Edwardo was off the phone with Francesco. He narrowed his eyes a bit as I got closer. Mia was now sitting down, and she gave me a weird look.
“Umm, I need you to sign for collecting that. Let me just get the form,” I said, walking over to him as I reached for the envelope, but Edwardo quickly snatched it away from my reach.
My heart went pitter-patter in my chest, loud as a mothafucka, as I watched him, confused. As I was about to pull back, he grabbed my wrist, clenching it hard as hell. I tried my utmost best to keep my cool.
“Is something the matter?” I asked him, praying that Buddha and Snow would make their grand entrance sooner rather than later.
“Yeah, I was asking your little friend here. Since when does it take two lawyers to deliver papers like this to somebody?” Edwardo asked, looking at me so suspiciously that I believed no matter what I said, he would never believe me.
“Well, she’s new in the office, and I wanted to show her the ropes a little. So I invited her to tag along while I served people their summons of their court dates.” I lied, looking directly in his eyes, praying that he would believe me.
“A new lawyer?” Edwardo said, looking at Mia, but he never released his grip on my wrist. “Funny, that’s not the reason she gave me.”
Oh fuck my life! Take me now, Lord! I screamed in my head because I just knew this man was about to have his security give Mia and me a one-way ticket to the upper room. Just as he was about to say something else, the ringing of his guard’s phone interrupted him.
“What you just say?” The security guard shouted, drawing Edwardo’s attention from me. “Shit, something is happening at the front gate,” the security guard said, reaching for the gun at his waist. It was only then that Edwardo released my wrist.
“What do you mean something is happening?” Edwardo asked, reaching for his cane as he struggled to get to his feet. I hurriedly made my way over to Mia, stretching my hand out to her. She reached for it, and I pulled her to her feet.
“I dunno, but it sounded like gunshots.”
Mia and I stood back in silence as we watched the two men draw their weapons.
Edwardo suddenly turned his attention to both of us, and his eyes squinted as if he realized what was happening.
I grabbed Mia’s hand and held on so tight that I was sure her circulation got cut off.
Just as Edwardo opened his mouth to speak, we heard the front door being kicked open.
I screamed dramatically and dropped to the floor, pulling Mia down with me. A hail of bullets erupted around us; Mia and I screamed bloody murder, and someone fell to the ground with a loud thud. Slowly, I turned my head to see that it was Edwardo’s security guard.
“Nah, mothafucka, put your fucking gun down before I buss a shot in the middle of your fucking forehead!” The voice that shouted the threat was definitely Buddha’s.
“You two ladies, get up,” Snow said, outstretching his hand for me to take it.
I did so reluctantly, and he pulled me to my feet before helping Mia up.
I was breathing hard as hell as I looked at both brothers.
When did they change their clothing, and why were they standing looking like fucking Rambo?
Buddha and Snow were both dressed in identical black sweatpants and plain black tank tops, each wearing a bulletproof vest. Snow had an AR-15 in one hand, while his brother had a 9mm. Buddha’s 9mm was pointing at Edwardo’s head.
“You two ladies sit down while I talk to this figlio di putana (motherfucker). Snow, look around and make sure nobody else is here,” Buddha said, signaling to Snow with his gun.
Snow nodded his head before he turned and walked off.
Mia and I sat next to each other, watching in silence as Buddha stood before Edwardo.
“Now, I want you to listen real fucking carefully, old man. I know you, Francesco, and Luca set us up. If you tell me where those two low-lives are, maybe I’ll let you live.” He said, using the nozzle of the 9mm to nudge the side of Edwardo’s head.
“I don’t know where they are,” Edwardo replied.
Whack! Buddha used the gun to crack him across his face. “Don’t fucking lie to me,” he wagged his finger in front of Edwardo’s face.
Groaning softly, Edwardo used his index and middle fingers to touch his busted lip. Looking at the blood on the tips of his fingers didn’t seem to faze him; he actually smiled a little.
“Wow, I just know you’ve been dying to do that for a very long time,” Edwardo said, eyeing Buddha with an amused expression.
“You think this a game? You and Francesco have been plotting against my family all this time.
The both of you really put y'all two dumb fucking heads together and came up with that stupid plan thinking you both would get away with it.” Just as he said that, Snow walked back into the room with a concerned look on his face.