Chapter 6

Carlita rubbed the back of her neck and stared out the window. "We all gotta be on the same page when these two guys show up at nine."

"Before we agree to anything, I want to make sure the debt is legit," Tony said. "For all we know, these could be a couple of mafia wannabe scammers who are trying to make a quick buck."

"What about Vinnie?" Mercedes asked. "Have you heard back?"

"He called first thing this morning and said he was still working on it," Carlita said. "Unfortunately, we won't have much information going into this."

"Like I said, we're not agreeing to anything right off the bat. We're going to tell them we need to look into it, which will buy us some time."

"I can't believe your father left another mess for us to clean up." Carlita pivoted. "All this time, we've been working hard to get our businesses profitable. We're finally bringing in good money and now this."

"Which may have been by design," Mercedes said. "This Lombardo guy could have been sitting back, waiting for us to get to this point so he could swoop in and take it."

"Over my dead body."

"Ma, we're talking mobsters here. You never wanna tell them over your dead body. Most of ‘em would be happy to oblige," Tony said.

"It's almost nine." Carlita glanced at the clock. "The plan is to insist they give us proof of the debt. We tell them we need time to verify and then go from there."

"Yep. I'm gonna grab some coffee while we wait." Tony headed to the back while Carlita nervously paced. Thank goodness the restaurant wasn't open. Only a few key employees were in the kitchen prepping for lunch.

Hopefully, the meeting would be brief. The trio would collect whatever potential proof the men had, regroup and figure out their next move. Despite having a plan in place, Carlita's gut told her the boss's offer wouldn't be fair.

Vinnie was working on obtaining information. More than anything, Carlita needed to know who they were dealing with. The fact her son had no idea who Danny Lombardo was caused her more than an inkling of concern.

Tony returned, three to-go coffees in hand, and handed one to his mother and sister. The clock hit five past nine, and there was still no sign of the men. Carlita began to think perhaps they weren't legit and wouldn't show up after all.

Her glimmer of hope was dashed when the men appeared, casually strolling to the front door. "I see them."

"Stay here." Tony made his way to the entrance. After a brief word, he ushered them inside, where Carlita and Mercedes stood waiting.

"Mrs. Garlucci." Costanza greeted her.

"Taylor," she coolly replied. "This is my son, Tony and daughter, Mercedes. I presume you brought the proof about the loan my deceased husband and I signed and your boss, Mr. Lombardo, acquired."

"Of course." Costanza pulled a plain white envelope from his pocket and held it out.

Carlita grudgingly took it from him. She flipped the flap, removed several sheets of paper, and studied the first page. "This is for another property here in Savannah."

"Correct," Enzo said. "Your husband borrowed money to purchase it. As you can clearly see, you also signed."

Carlita dug through the papers. There, on the second to the last page of the agreement and directly below Vinnie's signature was her own.

"The debt was inherited by Mr. Lombardo. Not only did your husband borrow money, but he also left the property in less than ideal condition."

Carlita's mind whirled. Vinnie had her sign documents over the course of their marriage. She'd naively done so without giving them a second thought.

What sort of property was it? So many questions. Once again, she'd been blindsided, like she'd been when she discovered her husband owned the property she was standing on. Not even an inkling of knowing it existed until she and Mercedes found a safe deposit key from their bank.

"You're telling me all this time, a property still in my husband's name has been sitting there. Meanwhile, Mr. Lombardo has been lurking in the background, waiting for what? To send you two here to make good on the money owed? Did Vinnie make any payments at all?"

"The last sheet is a ledger, a record of the payments made before your husband's death," Enzo said.

"Can I talk to Mr. Lombardo? I have questions," Carlita said.

"He's not available."

"Not available right now, or not available ever?" Tony asked.

"It won't be possible to meet with him," Costanza said. "The contract is legit."

"We need time to review it." Carlita tidied the stack of papers. "For all we know, the city seized the property because the taxes haven't been paid."

"Feel free to contact them," Enzo said. "The taxes are current."

"Paid by who and why?"

"Mr. Lombardo. He ain't a fan of the government and would hate to see them take something he has a vested interest in, even if it's trashed."

"How has it been trashed?" Mercedes asked.

"We suggest you go check it out. Like I said, Mr. Garlucci left it in less than ideal condition."

Tony took the papers from his mother and began reading them. "I say let Mr. Lombardo have the property and we call it a wash."

"I can present the offer," Costanza said. "However, I believe he'll decline accepting the property as payment and the contract will remain intact."

"But Vinnie is dead. Surely, your boss won't hold me to this agreement, an agreement made without my knowledge," Carlita said.

"You signed for it, Ma." Tony made an unhappy sound. "And, according to this, the debt passes to Pops' heirs."

"As you can see by the purchase price, plus expenses and added interest, a five hundred thousand dollar payment is reasonable. On top of the loan and interest, there is the issue of the taxes which, as I already stated, have been kept current."

"Reasonable?" Mercedes gasped. "Half a million bucks for a property we haven't seen and had no idea even existed?"

"And if we refuse to pay?" Tony asked.

Costanza cracked his knuckles, his expression growing grim. "It won't end well. Mr. Lombardo will ensure his business dealings are satisfied, no matter what the cost."

"Meaning, if we don't agree to the terms, bad things could happen to me or my family." Carlita's voice was barely above a whisper, the implications of what might happen starting to sink in.

"You. Your family." Enzo shoved his hands in his pockets. "You got a really nice place here. It would be a shame to have something bad happen to it."

Tony clenched his fists, his eyes flashing with anger. "I wouldn't try it."

Enzo arched a brow, an amused look on his face. "Are you threatening us?"

Carlita, afraid her son and Enzo would start throwing punches, held up her hand. "What exactly does Mr. Lombardo want?"

"He wants his money, all cash. The second option is to make payments."

For a moment, Carlita thought maybe there was a way out of this. She could handle payments, depending on the terms. "A contract with terms clearly spelled out?"

"Yes. In fact, I have a copy." Costanza handed her a second envelope.

Carlita slipped her reading glasses on and pulled the papers out. Her heart plummeted. "Fifty percent of profits off the top."

"For all three businesses combined," Enzo said. "Until the debt is paid in full. Of course, every day it's not paid in full adds additional interest. Again, there is also a separate amount due regarding taxes paid."

"This is downright robbery," Mercedes said. "We would never pay the loan off."

"Eventually." Enzo shrugged. "And then we need to discuss the matter of offering our services to protect your current income-producing properties."

Carlita's throat went dry. "Offering your services?"

"For a fee, of course." Costanza smiled. Not a friendly smile, but more like an evil grin.

"My family and I need to discuss this." Carlita, thinking she could take out a business loan, using the restaurant or pawn shop as collateral, would solve their problem. Lombardo would get his money and go away.

She could take the property, sell it and help pay off the debt. Maybe there was a way out after all. "Give us a few days to figure this out."

"There's no figuring it out. You have twenty-four hours to come up with the cash or sign the agreement, paying 50% of your profits," Costanza said. "As already mentioned, Mr. Lombardo has also generously offered personal protection for your businesses."

"I don't need personal protection, not to mention I can't get this kind of money in twenty-four hours. I mean, maybe I can." Perhaps her friend Tori Montgomery could loan her the money. But then, Tori would have her cash tied up as well. Would any bank on the planet give her a half a million in a day?

Lombardo was offering terms no one could meet unless they had piles of cash just lying around. Obviously, his plan was for her to pay him a large, ridiculous sum. If not, something told her they were in trouble. Big trouble.