Charlie Opera

Chapter 36

The flash from the camera caused Francone to blink. He felt a searing pain in his lower back as his eyes refocused. When he could see clearly again, Lano was standing there.

Francone realized the pain was from his rectum. He tugged against the restraints on his arms and legs, but it hurt to move. He looked down at himself as Lano started to laugh. Francone’s mouth was cotton dry. He couldn’t speak.

“There’s about eight inches of a twelve-inch dildo up your ass,” Lano said. “You better be careful you don’t turn over and jam it into your stomach.”

Francone was trying to wet his lips. “The fuck are you doing?” he asked.

“Ruining your life,” Lano said.

“We’ll kill you for this. You know that, right?”

Lano winked at Francone as he spoke though a coughing fit. “In case you don’t get it yet, pally, I’m not too concerned.”

Francone tried to move his right leg, but the pain in his rectum sent a spasm up his back. “Fuck!” he yelled.

A knock at the door stopped Lano from laughing again. He did his best to suppress another coughing fit as he stepped back to block the door. A second, louder knock followed.

“Who is it?” Lano asked through a cough.

“The guy from the hospital,” a voice said.

Lano checked the peephole in the door for police. If they were out there, they had moved out of his view.

“Who else is there?”

“The husband,” the voice said.

“Shit,” Lano whispered to himself. He knew there was a chance the husband would get involved. He wasn’t sure about the boyfriend, but the husband was the one who had broken Cuccia’s jaw in the first place.

He opened the door a crack and stepped away fast. He held his gun up for whoever else might be there. “Go easy,” he said. “I’ve got something in my hand.”

Charlie touched his gun and immediately thought better of it. His life wasn’t in imminent danger yet. He could turn around and leave right now.

He had nded on using the same move he used upstairs with Cuccia. As soon as the door opened a crack, he would force his way into the room, shoulder first. But now the guy on the other side of the door was telling Charlie he had a gun, too.

Charlie pushed the door open instead of rushing through it. An older man dressed in black stood with a gun at the foot of one of two beds. The man’s shape looked somewhat familiar.

Charlie definitely recognized the other man. A flesh-colored tube was jammed inside his rectum.

“You must be Charlie Pellecchia,” the man with the gun said. “I’m Vincent Lano.”

Charlie waited for Denton to close the door behind them. He nodded at the man holding the gun. “You’re also one of the scumbags who did this to me,” he said as he pointed at his facial bruises.

Lano didn’t flinch. “I’m sorry about that,” he said. “Really. I followed orders. I was wrong.”

“And what about my wife?”

“I didn’t touch her,” Lano said. He pointed the gun at the ridiculous sight on the bed. “That was this clown. On orders from the guy upstairs.” Lano motioned at Denton with his gun. “I gave him the names. Suite 24-B, in case you haven’t made it up there yet.”

“We just came from there,” Charlie said.

Lano motioned at Denton again. “I went to this guy to give him the information,” he said. “It don’t make me innocent, but I didn’t lay a finger on her. I had no intention of doing that. That isn’t me.”

Charlie looked to Denton. Denton was staring down at the man on the bed.

“Can he get hurt like that?” Denton asked.

Before Lano could answer, Charlie grabbed the base of the flesh-colored tube and pushed it from side to side and down. The man on the bed gasped loudly. His eyes and mouth remained wide open from pain. Blood trickled outside his rectum around the tube.

Denton moved between Charlie and the bed. “Enough,” he said.

“What are you gonna do?” Charlie asked Lano. “Shoot me now?”

“Not if I don’t have to.”

“What if I want to break your nose?”

“I’d think this would stop you.”

Denton was terrified that Charlie would take his personal vendetta to another level. He had already assaulted one mobster. Now there was another one holding a gun. Denton tried to stay between them. He knew he was the voice of reason in the room. He also knew his vote counted the least. Charlie was running on rage. Denton wasn’t quite sure what was motivating the man with the gun.

“Look,” Denton said to Charlie. “We’re in deep enough shit already. And I know I don’t wanna get shot.”

Charlie pointed behind Denton at the bed. “That piece of shit broke your girlfriend’s teeth.”

Denton looked to Lano. Lano said, “He’s right, he did.”

Denton clenched his teeth at the man on the bed. He looked to the dildo but couldn’t bring himself to touch it.

“Not that,” he said.

“Then what?” Lano asked.

Denton walked around Charlie to the dresser. He opened a few drawers and found a white T-shirt. He wrapped his right hand with it and walked back to the bed. He aimed a straight right lead down at the man’s mouth as hard as he could throw it. The man on the bed took the punch flush on the right side of his face. Blood splattered from a split lip.

“There,” Denton said.ldquo;Now can we go?”

Charlie shook his head. “I’ll give you one more try before I take out a few of his teeth with my foot. Or you can break his nose. They fractured mine, and I intend to break his.”

“This is crazy already!” Denton yelled.

“If you guys’ll hear me out, I think I have a better idea,” Lano said.

“Really?” Denton asked.

“What’s that?” Charlie asked.

Lano smiled.