One Life To Live

I had no choice but to step out of the car. Hiding in there while I waited for Paul would seem cowardly, and I wanted to keep the false bravado going as long as I could. I was good at this sort of thing – talking to get me out of bad situations. I was good with distractions. I was also good with fighting, but one person against a cluster of guys – trained killers – was a whole different ball field. I was cunning, but not that cunning.

Ed hadn’t changed since I’d last seen him. Physically, at least. He still had that deplorable mustache he tried to grow. He was as short and stocky as he’s ever been. As I looked at him, it was evident that something had changed. Hearing his coarse voice mock me made it clear what had really changed with Ed Rossi. He had back-up now. He was the man giving out the orders this time. Control is a funny thing when placed into the wrong hands.

“Lance, Lance. I do remember this situation well.” He smirked, tilting his head to the side.

I arched an eyebrow, and leaned against my Caddy comfortably. “Do you?”

He laughed in his raspy voice. “Yeah. I remember you and your brother, Paul. Yeah, you two acted like quite the hot shots when it was just me alone. I remember that well.”

“Mmm,” I murmured nonchalantly, “I do remember that.”

“Good,” he nodded, pleased at my response, “because what I am going to do to you will be nothing in comparison.”

“What’s your big master plan this time, Ed?” I inquired mildly, stalling for time.

“You want to know my master plan, Lance?” He asked rhetorically. He paced forward five steps just to get in arm’s reach of me. That was quite the gutsy move. Then again, if I even shifted forward, his minions would be on me like flies. “To destroy you along with your Capra clan. That’s my plan.”

“Very original.” I responded. I knew I was getting risky, but if I wanted to stall Ed I would need to fuel his anger. “And what, exactly, did we do to deserve your revengeful tendencies?”

He laughed loudly, his voice echoing through the air. “What did you do? What didn’t you do! You fools shoved me aside and made room for Macharelli, that’s what you did. Treated me like I was second rate help. Docked me my pay. I don’t like that very much.”

I stared at him unflinchingly while he raged in my face. I took a breath and continued, “Did you ever think of the fact that we chose Macharelli because you felt like ditching your work?”

His face twisted in abrupt confusion. “I never ditched my work,” he said gruffly.

“We have sources that would say otherwise.” I bluffed.

The thickheaded bastard still wasn’t catching on, but one of his associates behind him did. “He’s fuckin’ with you, boss. Let us deal with him.”

That clicked everything back into place for Ed. Realization slid down his features, washing away any perplexities. He remembered what he was set out to do. “That’s right, Conti. Why am I wasting my time? You’re quite the con-artist, Lance. Really takin’ after your old man.”

With my sham exposed, I snapped, “Keep your mouth shut about my father, Rossi.”

He grinned in victory. “There’s the Lance I know.” He chuckled, spinning on his heel as he turned away from me. “Boys? Why don’t you take care of him for now.”

His figure disappeared into the shadows, and a group of four brute men approached me. Tensing, I watched them steadily, the hair rising on my arms every foot they ate away. Once they got too close for comfort, I went for the first guy I could get my hands on. I managed to get a fist into his jaw, and one whap at his abdomen before the dog pile swallowed me up.

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Gathering up whatever self-confidence I had left, I got up, denying the waitress’s offer to get me a beverage, and followed the path Greg stormed out not five minutes ago. I sighed heavily and rubbed the back of my neck uncomfortably. I murmured a, “thank you,” to the waitress toying idly with her flower pen, and she stared back at me uncomprehending for a moment. “Didn’t you just—” but she stopped, putting two and two together. I gave her a thin smile and opened the doors with a clang.

I stepped outside, peering right at my car sitting in the lot. I began to pace toward it broodingly until a stiff arm wrapped around my waist. I whipped my head to the side expecting Greg – why I had no clue. My mind registered a tall man with scruff on his chin and long sideburns running down his cheekbones. I had no idea who he was, and stared up at the stranger with wide, perplexed eyes. The arm clutched me tighter, and he whispered in my ear, “Hello, Melanie.”

Just as I opened my mouth to scream, the man closed his hand over my mouth, jerking me to him. Dread shot down my spine with the force of a concrete wall and I twisted away instinctively, pounding him with my fists. My heart sped with adrenaline realizing the situation at hand. I was being kidnapped. I continued my blood-curdling scream even though my voice was mute against his silencing grasp; my arms were flailing for a way out even though there wasn’t one. A sleek black car sped around the corner and the last thing I saw was the leather of the seats as I was being shoved inside.

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My head was slumped against the brick wall, my vision marred by a big, fat bruise welling up under my eyebrow. My muscles were aching, and I had the vague assumption that a couple of my bones were broken. I groaned in pain. Damn Rossi couldn’t even fight me man to man.

To make it worse, Conti and Angelo were leering over me, and saying whatever they could to get under my skin. “What, no search party out for you, Lance?” Angelo sneered, his ugly face twisting in amusement. Even though I hated the weasel, Angelo had a point. Paul did say fifteen minutes, did he not? Well the hell was the asshole?

He waited for me to answer, and when I didn’t, he kicked me in the gut. I lurched forward, spluttering a wad of blood on my jeans. I rested my head on my knees, my breathing shallow and labored. “Well?” Angelo repeated, his foot pushing me sideways until I was all but on the ground. I heard his footsteps coming closer, until I could hear his voice just a few inches from my face. “They left you all by yourself. How pathetic.” He cackled. “Just like your little girlfriend did.”

That was the wrong thing to say. I mustered all the strength I had left to curl my hand into a fist and crack it right across his jaw. “Unnuh,” Angelo said in surprise, his hand flying to his left mandible to inspect it for a brake. Red hot rage glinted in his eyes, and he kneed me in the face. I collapsed back, and eventually to the ground.

“Enough.” Conti muttered in his baritone voice. “Rossi said he wanted Capra awake. You keep that shit up he’ll be unconscious.”

“Rossi doesn’t make all the decisions.” Angelo said churlishly.

“Here he does. You can go whine to your Pops later, Mastrani.” Conti replied sarcastically.

“You work for my father,” Angelo pointed out, “keep that in mind.”

“I’m the best your father has. I ain’t goin’ nowhere,” Conti laughed lowly.

There was no response after that.

What I did hear was a shuffling of men into the alleyway. There were new tones and I had to concentrate to tell them apart – my hearing was drowning in and out. “So you guys thought it’d be funny to beat up my brother?” Definitely Paul. About goddamn time, I groaned.

Romano spoke up. “Move another inch and I’ll bust a cap in your ass, Capra.”

“Oh c’mon boys, playing with guns again?”

“I mean it. Back up.”

“Funny thing about that is, is that I’ve got a gun myself.” There was the click of the bullet into the chamber, and I knew Paul wasn’t messing around. I wondered where Paul had Meg and Vinn hidden on site, and when they were planning on jumping in. Conti was the one who spoke this time. “You have no idea what you’se are in for.”

“Oh really? Where is Ed, that bastard?” Paul remarked.

“Right here,” Ed said, his voice coming from a way’s away. “I thought you’d like to see your girlfriend again, Lance, before we finally dispose of you and your brother.”

My eyes opened, the shadows and swirls of colors that were hounding my vision disappearing, only to stare into the eyes of my girlfriend. They were wide, blue marbles of shock – her lower lip trembling in fear. My heart dropped, my mind crippling at the sight of her. One of the men had her pinned against him, one of his arms around her waist, the other locked around her neck. Her chin was raised in the air, tensed and trapped.

“Get away from her!” I roared.