Chapter 16 Antonio

Anger consumes every ounce of me as I land one blow after another to the asshole who stalked and scared Gemma the other night. She’s screaming behind me and a crowd gathers around us. I hate him for making her feel unsafe in her daily routine. It’s not fair she has to look over her shoulder walking to her job from her car.

The sound of a whistle blowing and masculine voices shouting to break it up pull me out of the moment enough to stare down at the scarred man. He’s smiling a bloody smile which drives me crazy, but it fades the moment a police officer steps closer to us.

“I was just minding my business, and this guy starts wailing on me for no reason,” he screeches to the officers.

“He’s a menace and has been harassing my fiancé,” I tell the officers as they pull me away from the crowd. I have no doubt I’m taking a ride in the back of their squad car, but it was worth it. Hopefully, my reaction will teach this guy that Gemma is the wrong woman to make uncomfortable.

“It’s okay. I’m not going to press charges,” the scarred guy says to the cops. “I understand what I look like, and I can be menacing . I mean, some people have even accused me of slashing their tires and shattering their windshields when they parked in an unsafe area at night.”

My eye twitches as this asshole taunts me, basically admitting to vandalizing Gemma’s car, and there’s nothing I can do about it with the police standing here.

“He stalked me to my car the other night,” Gemma chimes in. “He was here, and—”

The officer eyes her with confusion, and asks, “Did you call the police? Is there a report we can reference?”

“No,” Gemma huffs. “This guy was here on Saturday night. He basically threatened me, saying that Verducci sends his best and then stalked me through the garage.”

“And you didn’t call the police?” The officer asks again.

“No because he’s not on camera. I just know it was him,” Gemma says, shaking her head because she understands how crazy this sounds to someone else.

“I’m sorry if I scared you, Gemma,” the scarred man replies. “I thought I left my wallet here the other night. Maybe you saw me coming back here and got a bit worked up.”

Her eyes go wide and I speak up to stop her anger from bursting free and making this any worse. “Gemma, it’s fine. I’ll go with you guys and Gem, I’ll be back here to get you after your shift. Don’t leave without me.”

The cops walk me over to the squad car with the scarred guy grinning from ear to ear as he follows beside us.

“I won’t press charges if you let me hit him back. He caught me off guard back there,” Scarred says to the police.

“Now, listen, buddy.” The officer puts his hands up and steps between us. “It’s too early in the goddamn morning for this shit. Fighting over a chick is never worth it. Why don’t you two just promise to stay away from each other and keep your shit out of the businesses on the pier?”

“Officers, you have no idea what you’re asking this muscle-bound meathead to do,” Scarred continues taunting me. “Don’t let his title of Doctor fool you.”

“Wait a minute, how do you know this guy’s a doctor?” One officer says, turning and eyeing me from head to toe.

There’s nothing about me without my lab coat and stethoscope that says I’m a doctor. My car is in the garage so they haven’t seen my MD plates. Scarred-face screwed up.

“I was just saying he doesn’t know how to stay away from me. That’s all.” Scarred tries to steer the officers’ inquiries away from him.

The officers look at each other and then at me. “Are you really a doctor?”

“Yeah. I’m Dr. Antonio Calisi. I’m on staff for the Cannella Medical Group just outside the city. I used to do rotations in the ER at Cedar General.” I pull out my phone to show them the number to the clinic.

One of the officers nods and turns to the other, whispering and then turning back to me. “You’re free to go, Doc. You, what’s your name?”

But when we all turn to hear Scarred’s answer, he’s gone.

“That’s the second time that asshole has slipped through my fingers,” I grumble.

The officers get into their car with a few final words to me. “Well, next time, don’t attack him in broad daylight. Keep it clean, doc.”

Just like that, they take off and leave me at the front entrance of the pier. There aren’t many tourists, and most people have uniforms that reflect the shops they work at. I’m about to make my way toward Booked and Boozy when I see Gemma jogging toward me.

“I was just about to come bail you out. What happened? They just let you go?” she asks. Gemma can’t help but scan our surroundings, ever alert.

“Yeah, the asshole got away from me again. Don’t you have to work?” I find myself peering over her shoulder, waiting for someone to call her back into the cafe.

“No, I don’t have to worry about working there ever again,” she says with sarcasm coating every syllable.

“Fuck,” I spit out, running my fingers through my hair.

“It’s fine. It was only supposed to be temporary. Natalie already knows what she wants to do. She wants to sing and write songs. Me? I have no clue, but now? I guess I have plenty of time to figure it out. My manager didn’t think having a fiancé attack a customer was good for business, so I’m out.”

“I’m sorry, Gemma. I should have kept my cool, but I just lost it.”

She rubs my shoulder before lacing her fingers between mine. “This isn’t your fault. This is stupid Frankie’s fault and stupid Verducci for sending that asshole with the scar to scare me; us.”

All of this to make sure no one else loses their life is what pushes me to keep going. Soldiers or not, anyone in or working for the Marzano family shouldn’t have to risk their lives because Frankie decided to put his hands on Gemma. We have to put an end to this shit one way or another.

I glance around us and decide it’s better to leave the area than hang around to see if the asshole shows his face again. Next time we’re face-to-face, I have to make sure he doesn’t get away. For now, he can try to intimidate Gemma, but I’m certain he knows that showing his face around me isn’t going to end well.

“Did the police say anything?” she asks.

“I told them I was a doctor, and they let me go, mainly because the asshole left before giving his information. I should have broken his jaw.”

“Easy, Antonio,” she says with a sheepish grin. “We don’t need Verducci thinking we hurt two of his people.”

“I can’t say that this guy is one of Verducci’s people. There’s something different about him. Why don’t we head to the mechanic to check on your car? We need to get our minds off this.”

We head to the body shop with the hairs on the back of my neck standing on edge. I can’t shake the feeling someone is following us, and I hate that I can’t do anything about it until it’s too late. Thankfully the windshield is already replaced and new tires will be on soon.

“These guys work fast,” Gemma murmurs to me.

“They work fast when they’re paid extra,” I tell her with a wink. When they pull the car around with a fresh windshield, I can feel the relief beaming from Gemma.

“I’m going to check on Natalie and let her know our car’s okay.”

“I’ll need a copy of the registration and plates for my building’s security. You can park in my space and I’ll rent a new one.”

Gemma turns to me with dismay in her eyes. “I know money is not the biggest concern to you, but paying for parking where you live is horrifying. It’s bad enough that me and Natalie pay for parking in that garage every month. Why don’t we leave my car there and I’ll stick with you or public transit? It doesn’t make sense to waste money.”

“I want to be able to see your car, Gem. At least if it’s parked in my building, no one can mess with it. Is there an attendant at the garage near your place?”

She pouts and shakes her head. “There are security cameras, but the management office is somewhere Downtown.”

The sound of my phone ringing steals my attention. “Yeah?”

“Antonio, it’s Camilla. I need you at the clinic. I can’t get a hold of Ronan, and I think some of his friends are here.” She ends the call before I can get more information.

I turn to Gemma, telling her, “We need to go to the clinic. It sounds like there’s trouble and Ronan’s sister can’t get hold of him. I don’t want you in the middle of whatever’s waiting for me there.”

Gemma speaks softly. “My car will be ready in what? An hour? Go ahead. I’ll head straight back to your place, and text you as soon as I get there.”

I relent and text the security guard at the desk in the lobby, send him the information for Gemma’s car, and hope there aren’t any issues with her for the rest of the day. Although, given the way this day has started, I won’t hold my breath.