Chapter 6 - The Shadow Of The Uncle
The black SUV rolled onto Main Street on a Tuesday afternoon.
It was out of place in Cedar Hollow,
too clean,
too expensive,
with windows so dark they looked like ink.
Rocco saw it from his spot on the sidewalk,
the chair positioned just where it always was.
His heart beat a slow,
steady rhythm.
He knew that car.
The door opened,
and a man stepped out in a tailored suit that cost more than the bakery.
It wasn't Gino.
It was Marco,
Gino’s youngest son and Rocco’s cousin.
Marco was a bully who had never had to work for anything in his life.
He looked around the street with an expression of pure disgust.
He walked straight toward the bakery,
ignoring the man in the wheelchair.
Rocco kept his head down,
his chin tucked into his chest.
"Hey,
you,"
Marco shouted,
kicking the wheel of Rocco’s chair.
"Where’s the girl who runs this dump?"
Rocco didn't look up,
but his fingers curled into the fabric of his lap.
"The bakery is closed,"
Rocco said,
his voice a low growl.
Marco laughed,
a high-pitched,
annoying sound.
"I didn't ask if it was open,
old man."
"I asked where she is."
He kicked the chair again,
harder this time,
nearly tipping it over.
"She’s inside,"
Rocco said,
forcing himself to stay still.
"But you don't want to go in there."
Marco sneered,
reaching down to grab Rocco’s collar.
"And why is that,
pops?"
Rocco finally looked up,
his eyes locking onto Marco’s.
For a second,
Marco froze,
a flicker of recognition crossing his face.
He had seen those eyes before,
usually right before something terrible happened.
But he couldn't place them on a beggar in a broken wheelchair.
"Because if you touch her,"
Rocco whispered,
"I will make sure you never walk again."
Marco stepped back,
startled,
then laughed to cover his fear.
"You're a crazy old bastard,"
he said,
spitting on the ground near Rocco’s feet.
"Tell her Thorne is coming tonight with the final papers."
"If she doesn't sign,
this whole building is going to have an unfortunate accident with a gas leak."
Marco turned and walked back to the SUV,
leaving a cloud of expensive cologne in his wake.
Rocco watched the car drive away,
his mind working through the tactical possibilities.
Gino was getting impatient.
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The "debt" Ray had mentioned was a secret so big it threatened the entire Castellano empire.
And Rocco was the only one standing in the way of the wrecking ball.
