Dante was right. Over the next few weeks I made sure to leave the casino by ten o’clock at the latest. I enjoyed the time spent talking to the girls, bartenders, or dealers, but listening to most of the customers was tiring.
At least Raphael had made sure to stay away from me, which was a huge plus. When Enzo took me home at night, I always checked the street for any sign of Frank, but the only person I regularly saw on the sidewalk was an elderly woman walking her Yorkshire Terrier. By now I had almost convinced myself that I had imagined it. Perhaps in my mind unconsciously Antonio was missing, and conjuring up Frank had been a way of dealing with him. Dante was not the presence I wanted him to be in my life. He carried me every night, mostly in the dark, and always with his back to him, sometimes on his knees, sometimes lying on his stomach. Not that I was complaining. He always made sure I came at least once while he was in me, but I was beginning to want something else.
It felt too much like a simple fuck, almost as if I was nothing more to him than a way to relieve tension, but every time Dante’s hand slipped between my legs at night, I promised myself I would talk to him next time, too desperate for his touch. As usual, my eyes wandered to the sidewalk when Enzo walked through the gate of the house. But tonight I saw him again. Frank was strolling along the sidewalk across the street, trying to look like he was just trying to get a breath of fresh air. He wasn’t succeeding. He looked suspicious, so I didn’t dare think about how he would appear to Dante’s guards. I would have to find a way to send him away. It was too risky. I headed straight for the guest room that allowed me to see the street, but, like last time, Frank seemed to have disappeared. My phone rang and for a moment I was sure it was Frank, but he knew better than to call me. After all, there was no telling who was monitoring my calls, and I had changed my number a few months ago. Bibiana’s name flashed on the screen. I picked it up. “Hi Bibi.” “Val,” Bibi said in a whisper. Her voice trembled. She sounded terrified. “Can you come?” I stiffened, turning my back to the window. “What’s wrong?”
“Thomas, he…” He pulled up with his nose. “He was in a bad mood today.” “What did he do? Is he still there?” “No, he left for a meeting with Raphael, but he’ll be back soon. Can you come over? I’m afraid of what he will do when he comes back.” My eyes ran to the clock that said it was almost nine o’clock. “I’ll be there in ten minutes, Bibi.” I ran out of the guest room and down the stairs. I wasn’t sure where Enzo was. He would probably be easy to find, but I didn’t feel like explaining myself. Instead, I grabbed the keys from the garage hook and got into the SUV. Before the doors were fully up, I hit the gas and pulled out of the garage, with the roof of the car missing the bottom of the door by inches. I only slowed down as I waited for the gate to open for me. Dante would be furious. As I rounded the corner at the end of the road, I noticed a familiar back and hit the brakes. Frank jerked and cast a panicked look over his shoulder. He had the phone pressed against his ear but ended the call when he saw me. I checked our surroundings before rolling down the window and motioning for him to approach. “What are you doing here?” He approached furtively, his eyes darting around nervously. I understood his anxiety all too well. He was risking too much by staying there. “I need to talk to you in private.” I frowned. “About what?” “About Antonio, about the Outfit, about everything.” I checked the rearview mirror again. “I can’t talk right now. I’ll see you tomorrow around 5:30 p. m.” I explained the street where the warehouse that hid the casino was located, but I didn’t tell him. “That’s where one of the underground casinos is located, right?” I looked. Had Antonio told him? Yikes. Why couldn’t Frank stay away? “We’ll talk tomorrow.” I let the window rise and walked away. No one seemed to have followed me, or at least I couldn’t see anyone. I hoped to be able to leave the casino tomorrow undetected. I needed to clear the air with Frank. What if he really wanted to blackmail me in some way? I knew he would leave me no choice but to tell Dante if he did. Why did today have to turn into such chaos? It took me less than ten minutes to get to Bibi’s house. As always, a guard sat in front of the car. He gave me an abrupt nod when he saw me get out of the car. I almost ran to the door. Bibi opened it before I even had a chance to ring the bell. I had to hold back a gasp when I saw her face. His lower lip was split and dried blood had stuck to the underside of his chin and shirt. A bruise was already forming on his left cheek and the eye above it was beginning to close. He let me in, then quickly closed the door. Before I had time to say anything, she threw herself into my arms. I hugged her but she gasped when I touched her ribs and loosened my grip on her. I pulled back to look at her face.
“Why did she hit you?” Bibi shrugged, then gasped. I didn’t even want to know what her body looked like under her clothes. Finger marks bloomed bluish-red on her throat and collarbone. “He’s been in a foul mood all day, and when I told him I wasn’t pregnant yet, he lost it.” Something tickled in my mind, but I put it aside for the moment. “Maybe it’s his fault.
Maybe that old fool is barren,” I muttered . I didn’t like the word “hate” or the feeling behind it. Hate always leads only to more hate, but I definitely hated Thomas. Dante wasn’t sure I was capable of taking another person’s life, but I did. “He can’t be. He impregnated some whores from the Palermo Club . My eyes grew wide. Bibi had never told me that.
“So he has children with other women?””No, he forced them to have abortions. No one wants to fuck a pregnant whore, that’s what he said.” “I’m so sorry, Bibi.” “I’m so sorry for pulling you away from Dante on Valentine’s Day.” I had completely forgotten about it. Not that Dante had given any indication that the day was special during our breakfast together. “Don’t be ridiculous. You know I’m always there for you. What can I do?” A small sob escaped her and she covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes huge and full of fear. She lowered her hand. “I don’t know. I don’t know, but I was so scared and didn’t know who else to call. You’re the only one who seems to care.” “I care, Bibi. You do.” “I’m afraid of when he will come back. He told me it wasn’t over. And he’s more and more brutal after spending time with Raphael. They are both disgusting sadists. Oh, Val, the things Thomas sometimes does to me, the things he forces me to do, I can’t even tell you.” I took her hand. “Come. Spend the night at my house.” “I can’t get away from him. You know they would never let me. They will always force me to go back to him, no matter what I do . I knew it. How could I feel sorry for my loveless marriage when things were so much worse for Bibi? “I know, and I didn’t mean you should leave. But you could spend the night with us so Thomas has some time to cool off, and tomorrow after breakfast I’ll take you home.” Bibi nodded slowly. “Are you sure Dante won’t mind? I don’t want to impose on your time together. I almost laughed. “He won’t mind, don’t worry,” I said. ” Do you want to leave now?” She trembled, her thin arms rose to wrap around her waist. There were bruises on her wrists as well. If my fury alone could have killed Thomas, he would be dead now. I helped Bibi prepare some things before taking her out of the house. The guard looked up, then gasped, obviously unsure of what to do. Thomas had probably told him that Bibi could not leave the house, but I was the Chief’s wife, who was his main boss. Bibi tensed in my arm but did not stop walking. Not even when she picked up the phone and called someone, no doubt Thomas. I felt within me the childish need to give him the finger, but I was past the ‘age when I would consider acting on it. Bibi dropped into the passenger seat, and I slid behind the wheel. “Are you unguarded?” I shrugged. “I didn’t want to waste time looking for Enzo or Taft.” “I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me,” he said miserably.
I started the car and pulled away from the curb. Bibi’s guard didn’t try to follow us. He knew where we were going anyway. “I won’t.” “Did Dante ever beat you or force you?” “NO. He is not violent. Well, at least not in our marriage. Of course I know he is perfectly capable of heinous acts. He told me that he doesn’t believe that fear or hatred is part of marriage. That’s probably why.” “He is a good man.”