Vinnie and Guido, Draft 2

Elizabeth opened her front door to find a tall, wide-shouldered man in a dark suit, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his lapel. She half smiled, half sighed, her hand settling on her stomach. "Angie isn’t here, Vinnie. She slip out again?"

Vinnie grunted, his black brows raising momentarily over his heavy-lidded eyes. "Nah. Not why we’re here."

"Guido with you?" Elizabeth went to her top-toes, trying to see over his shoulder, but gave up quickly and rocked back on her heels. "Whatcha here for?"

"Hold on." Vinnie turned and shambled down the steps to the black Lincoln parked out of the circles of street light. A thin man, Guido, slipped out of the driver’s side, hopped over to the sidewalk and to the back passenger door. He opened it and Vinnie reached in, dragging someone else out of the sedan to stumble on the sidewalk. The brothers grabbed the man’s shoulders and forced him to his feet, then hauled him up the steps. They reached the landing and came into the rectangle of light spilling out of her doorway. Elizabeth stepped back to let them in, flinching, her blue eyes wide.

"Here." There was a slight thud as Guido slammed the door shut behind them. Vinnie shoved their captive forward, but kept his hand on the man’s shoulder. "What you want us to do with him?"

Elizabeth blinked rapidly and worked to keep her jaw from falling open, at the same time fighting the upward twitch of her lips. "You’ve got to be kidding me."

Guido just looked back at her from under his fedora, his fingers tapping his thigh. "Mind if I smoke?" he asked, leaning on the doorframe and reaching into his suit jacket.

Elizabeth absently shook her head, staring at the gagged man the brothers had so unceremoniously dropped into her living room. "Vinnie?" Elizabeth began, her eyes locked on the pale and bloodless face of the man with the gag in his mouth. His dark eyes were wide under his black hair, his bottom lip split, dried blood tracking on his chin.

"Yeah love?" Vinnie dropped his hand from the man’s shoulder and the captive slumped in his tailored suit.

Elizabeth folded her arms over her chest, broke her gaze to focus on Vinnie, and sighed. "Why, may I ask, have you bloodied my ex and brought him to my doorstep?"

One side of Vinnie’s mouth quirked up in a smirk. "Angie and Daddy weren’t happy." His voice acquired a growl. "And I wasn’t happy."

"Actually," Guido said, reaching out with his free hand to tug on the gag’s knot. "Angie was pissed. Daddy mostly waved his hand and said do what we like. So we thought we’d bring him to you." He jerked hard on the fabric, and the man’s head yanked back. Guido blew smoke onto his face as new blood welled from the split lip. "He hurts our little sis, she decides what we do to him."

"You’re family. Been Angie’s best friend since we was all in diapers." Vinnie stepped forward and touched Elizabeth’s cheek, then turned to his captive with cold eyes. "Nobody messes with my girl."

"So this was Angie’s idea?" Elizabeth caught her bottom lip between her teeth, absently touched her cheek where Vinnie’s fingers had been.

"Yeah." Guido’s eyes flashed over to her, then continued to roam over the room. He took another drag off of his cigarette. "She wasn’t too specific. Just said we should take care of it."

Elizabeth reached out a hand and touched the captive’s face, his jaw muscles clenched under her fingertips as she moved his head from side to side, her eyes scoring every inch. Bruises were forming just below the skin. "Hurt him badly?"

"Nah, not too much." Vinnie sat down on her powder blue loveseat, his eyes never leaving her.

Elizabeth glanced back at Vinnie, offered a wan smile before reaching up to undo the knots that held the gag in place.

"Sure you want to let him talk?" Guido asked, pushing aside the filmy drapes and peering through the blinds.

"He’s been quite the screamer tonight." Vinnie smoothed his lapel, a trace of blood visible on his knuckle.

"You’ve been beating him, Vinnie. I'd be upset myself." Elizabeth moved to go behind the captive, but hesitated. She looked him directly in the eyes, one hand still holding onto the back of the gag. "If I get this off, Ryan, don’t even consider screaming. While I wouldn’t approve of it, they’ll shoot you. They’ve got people who can remove bloodstains from my carpet, understand?"

Ryan nodded, his eyes locked on Vinnie.

She went behind Ryan, her fingers tugging here and there at the remainders of the knot. "So, again, Vinnie, why is Ryan bruised and bloodied? If you were planning to let me decide what to do with him, isn’t this a little much?"

"Well…" Vinnie hesitated, then looked back to his brother. Guido was now leaning on the mantle, poking at the dying embers in the fireplace, and he only offered a shrug. Vinnie began again, "I was ready to just dump him in the river, after a little more punishment. But Guido thought maybe you’d like a say."

Guido nodded, took a final drag off his cigarette. "Thought it’d be more fun." He nearly flipped the butt into the fireplace, but instead stepped forward and snuffed it out on Ryan’s white collar. "Didn’t want to upset you, in case him at the bottom of the harbor was a bad idea."

"Good thinking on that one." Elizabeth paused a moment to pull her lace scrunchie off, then put her blond hair back into a new ponytail. She gazed at Vinnie a moment, smoothed her hands over her stomach, and he gave her a small nod. Returning to tugging at the gag, she muttered, "What in the world would make Angie think this was a good idea?"

***

"Asshole." Elizabeth had slammed the phone back into its cradle hard enough that a hairline crack had appeared on the handset.

"Problems?" Angie paused in painting her toenails, looking up from their tiny shiny pink rectangles and putting the brush back in the polish bottle. "Got a fuck and run on our hands here?"

Elizabeth flopped down onto the love seat, arms crossed over her chest and chewing on the insides of her cheeks. "Probably. Yeah." She crossed her legs under her and grabbed a nearby throw pillow to crush in her arms. "I knew he’d do this. I told you he would."

"Yeah," Angie said, a smirk of a grin visible on her face between the long black fringes that escaped her hair clips. "And as I recall, I agreed. But you went out with him anyway." She tossed the nail polish bottle into the bin full of them at her feet and began rummaging for a new shade, muttering, "Certainly made Vinnie jealous."

"But he said all the right things…" Elizabeth’s voice began to pitch up in a whine. She burrowed deeper into the plush cushions, plucking at the bottom of the yoga pants. "Why do I always pick the assholes?"

Angie laughed at that, pulling out a dark red and holding it up in the light. "We all pick assholes, dear. That’s what men are." She laughed again, dark and rich. "Does this shade match my shoes?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Of course it does. You bought it to match." She buried her face in the pillow and sighed a high pitched scream. "How could I be so stupid?" She threw her head back. "I knew this would happen. I knew better."

"Don’t we all, hon. Don’t we all." Angie’s forehead furrowed as she carefully painted her pinkie finger, stayed frozen that way when she looked up at her friend. "You really liked this guy, didn’t you?"

"Yeah." Elizabeth’s voice was a whisper in response. "No." Her blond hair hung forward over her eyes as she leaned her chin on the satiny throw pillow. "I don’t know. He just seemed so genuine. He brought flowers, expensive dinners, seemed to have a real respect for me and what I do." She sighed, analyzing the hair in front of her eyes rather than looking at Angie. "He seemed to be what I needed. I trusted him too much, I guess. Shouldn’t have gotten all starry eyed."

Angie frowned and put down her nail polish bottle. "Don’t even go into the blame yourself pit, hon, cause I’ll never get you out of it. Not to mention that he’s the asshole. The guy managed to avoid my radar and I have the most finely tuned bullshit detector in the world. You didn’t do anything wrong, he did." She slid over on the couch and reached out to touch Elizabeth’s knee. "And you know you’ve got everything you need here. We won’t ever let anything happen to you."

"I trusted him." Elizabeth raised her head enough for her hair to part in front of her face, a tear ready to track down her cheek.

"Ah, fuck that. Gotta trust them or it’s all worthless." Angie rubbed Elizabeth’s knee, shaking her head. "We just occasionally stumble on the winners of the loser competition."

"I’ve got to see this one every day now though." Elizabeth reached up and brushed away the few tears that were escaping. "He just got hired at the firm down the hall. With my fucking recommendation."

"Oh, don’t you worry." Angie grabbed a kleenex and dried the last of Elizabeth’s tears. "Maybe you’ll get lucky and he’ll just disappear."

***

"Should’ve known that was what she was talking about." Elizabeth pulled out the last of the knot and unwound the gag from Ryan’s head and mouth. "You okay?" she asked, standing in front of him again and running her fingers over his bruised cheekbones.

Ryan pulled his head away from her touch with a pained flinch. He clenched and unclenched his jaw a few times, his eyes never leaving Vinnie. "Not particularly." He paused, rubbed his jaw against the shoulder of his suit jacket, spit some bloody saliva onto the rug. "Do this often?"

"Not really," Elizabeth answered, glancing back at Vinnie with her eyes narrowed. She and he and Angie needed to have a talk.

Ryan strained against the rope wrapped around his wrists, well manicured fingers tinged an unnatural shade. "Can I get my hands untied?"

"No." Elizabeth and Vinnie’s voices were in unison, Vinnie up and at her side.

Guido arched his eyebrow from his mantle perch, stabbing with the poker at the embers of the fire. "I’d agree. You were breaking things left and right till we got you tied down."

"Just a little too grabby for my taste." Vinnie touched the small of Elizabeth’s back.

‘"So, Lizzie love, what should we do with him?" Guido nudged at Ryan with the poker, singing the breast pocket on his victim’s suit, eliciting a surprised grunt. "Toss him in the river? Take the Tina Maria out to shark waters?"

Elizabeth sighed. "I’d have preferred you never showed up with him in the first place. This is so not what I need right now." Vinnie’s hand still supporting her, she crossed her arms just above her hips, staring at Ryan. The bruises where becoming darker on his face, knew from a childhood of watching Vinnie and Guido fight that there were probably more splotches of purple underneath the disheveled tailored suit. He returned her look measure for measure, his lips sealed tightly on his teeth. She turned, put her back to all of them. "Just go away for awhile. Give me time to think about this."

Footfalls, a door closed, and she let her shoulders fall, her hands on her temples as she stared at the floor.

"You called the fucking mob on me?" There was no mistaking the rage and disbelief in Ryan’s voice.

Elizabeth whipped around, her head shooting up and her hands falling to her sides. "Oh, fuck. They weren’t supposed to leave you here."

"You called the fucking mob on me." Ryan’s eyes were slits and he walked around the end table towards her.

Her shoulders tensed again as he neared her and she slapped him, her eyes narrowing to match his. "Shut up and stay away from me. Whether I want them to or not, if you touch me they will kill you."

He took a step back, his mouth open, turning to watch her as she moved behind the loveseat. "Excuse me, but you’re the one who called them in."

"Not exactly." Elizabeth sniffed, shrugging on a hooded sweatshirt and zipping it, kept a steady glare on Ryan. "I ever mention who Angie’s father is?"

"No, you didn’t." He spit a little more bloody saliva onto her carpeting. "But I can imagine."

"Think bigger, because he is." She watched the red settle into the creamy color of the material. "Let’s just say there’s a reason I’m not a prosecutor. And stop fucking spitting on my floor."

"What, will they only pay for cleaning if they kill me?" Ryan sneered, but didn’t spit again. He took another step back, stumbled when he hit his shin against the end table.

"Don’t test me, you pretentious ass." Elizabeth snapped at him. She grabbed the back of the loveseat with one hand, the other resting on her abdomen. "You picked the wrong woman to screw over this time." She paused, glaring at him. "No smart ass remarks?"

He shook his head, and they both stopped. The silence stretched between them, her knuckles white, his face gaining bruises by the moment as they stood in her living room, only the blue loveseat between them. A mirror hung behind him, her reflection staring back.

Elizabeth closed her eyes, let her head fall forward. "How the fuck did I get here?"

Ryan seemed to collapse in a little, then shrugged. "Hell if I know." He sat down on the couch. "It’s not normal procedure for me to anticipate anything like this as possibility."

Her knuckles became a little pinker as her grip on the loveseat back eased. "Well, my friends can be a little zealous."

He looked up at her, shifting his still bound arms behind him. "You know, considering your career path, you might want to consider getting some new friends."

"There are some friends you can’t get rid of." She raised her head to meet his eyes, hugging herself. "Whether I want it or not, I’m in that family." She tightened her arms over her belly. "I’m never getting out." She took a few deep breaths, her eyes closed again. "I need to call Angie."

***

"What were you thinking?" Elizabeth’s voice was strained as she whisper yelled into the phone. "He’s a stupid man, but sending the boys after him?" Her hand was splayed out on the countertop, ready to sink deeper into the surface.

Angie’s gum chewing carried over the phone line. "Dunno. Always wanted to make my fuck and runs disappear." A jaded giggle came through the receiver. "Since they’re usually Daddy’s right hand men, not so easy."

"This isn’t one of yours, Angie. This one was mine and he’s someone that people will notice disappear." Her nails pressed hard on the Formica of the countertop. "Not to mention I avoid knowing anything about any disappearances that might happen around the family, let alone want one connected to me."

"He’s just a lawyer." Angie’s voice was dismissive, highlighted with a gum snap.

"So am I!" Elizabeth tugged at her hair and it fell out of its ponytail. "I didn’t want him taken care of Angie, I was venting. What am I supposed to do now? He’s in my living room in his full beaten glory, and your brothers are somewhere waiting for me to decide how they get to kill him. And I’d prefer they didn’t."

"Hmm." There was a disappointed whine to Angie’s tone, and Elizabeth could imagine her rolling her eyes and buffing her manicure. "You take all the fun out of life, hon."

"I. Don’t. Want. Him. Dead." Elizabeth growled to emphasize her point. How the woman could be so nonchalant about a hit never ceased to amaze her. "You better have a way to keep him quiet. I’m about to be made junior partner and this would be just a slight interference.

"You could always work for Daddy’s law firm. You know he’d take you in a second."

"No." Elizabeth slammed her hand on the counter and the water in a nearby glass rippled. "You have a way, right?"

"Of course," was the sighed response. "That secretary he’s fucking is actually married to…well, I’ll refrain. Let’s just say her husband is well connected and tends to be…jealous on a scale that makes Daddy look like the Pope."

"Good." Elizabeth rubbed her temple and leaned against the counter. "Call your brothers. Tell them the bad news that they don’t get to kill them."

***

"Sorry boys." Elizabeth patted Vinnie’s arm, his stare still on Ryan, who was standing near Guido and the door. Ryan was massaging his recently freed wrists, his hands slowly regaining color. "I appreciate the thought, but…you understand."

"Guess we’ll know better next time." Guido tilted his fedora in her direction. "Come on Vinnie. Let’s go."

"Don’t hurt him. Just take him home." Elizabeth said, catching Vinnie’s gaze with a tilt of her head. "Then go home and tell Angie I don’t want this happening again." Vinnie leaned down and kissed each of her cheeks. He touched her stomach and she sighed, slowly put her hands over his, and he smiled. She kissed his cheek, and the men filed out the door, the brothers and their former prisoner. Elizabeth watched them as they walked down the steps, as they began to get into the Lincoln, ever parked out of the street light. "Vinnie," she called down, and he paused in closing his door. She splayed her fingers out on her stomach, forced out the surrender. "Tell Daddy…tell Daddy I’ll be there for Sunday dinner."