Leon leaned against the wall in the basement and watched with dispassionate eyes as the Cutter did his work. It was Christmas Eve and there was a party going on upstairs. Deke wanted to give Cassie the one thing she missed out on all her life and while Leon was happy for her, he needed to see this done as well.
Siobhan told him much earlier she had a secret and this secret was one she’d held onto for a very long time now. She told him it concerned a woman he once knew. It was about Evelyn. His heart ached thinking about her.
The Cutter had stripped Siobhan down to her bra and underwear before he began his job.
She had berated them every which way but loose. Siobhan looked over at Leon and said, “Are you enjoying this, you filthy old man. Are you too old to get it up and you have to look at women’s bodies to get hard?” She spit on the floor at his feet.
The Cutter ignored her insults and Leon shut them out as well. They were in a special room Deke had soundproofed in case they ever needed it for just this purpose.
The Cutter looked over at Leon and shrugged. “I do apologize Leon, but bare skin works better for this sort of thing. This will be messy and it takes a while and this way there is nothing between her and the blade.”
“No problem.” Leon nodded. “I have no carnal desire for looking at her.”
When he began his job, Siobhan tried to resist the pain of the thousand tiny cuts he was giving her. This was his proven choice of torture as most people could only take the pain for just so long. He looked like a master at the game and the cuts he was making he didn’t expect hurt her over much. After all, this was only stage one of his operation.
But he was a master of the blade and soon, she began to feel it. She took it longer than he thought she would, he had to give her that much. Neither man asked her anything for the longest time as they waited for her to stop the torture.
She was a bloody mess when Leon felt the need to begin asking questions. “Why did you do all of this? What was your purpose?” Leon’s stomach was rolling with disgust when she looked up at him and said a single word, his entire world stopped on a dime.
“Evelyn.” She spit a mouth full of blood at him. It didn’t even come close to him but she said it. Glaring her hatred, she told him, “I took her all those years ago. I was going to ransom her back to you, hell I even sent out a ransom, but my stupid son couldn’t even get that right.” She shrugged and said, “Liam never was very bright I guess. I thought about just killing her but then she told me she was carrying your baby. I knew I couldn’t just let her go back to you. I wanted you to suffer the same way I was suffering. I held on to her and watched her belly swell with your brat.”
“What did I ever do to you?” Leon wanted to know.
She took a deep breath and was lost in the past, never seeming to hear his question. “I would watch you from afar every day as you hunted for her. I used to sneer at your effort to find her when she was closer than you realized the whole time. I watched the pain in your face age you and I wanted to tell you I had her but I knew I couldn’t. All I could do was watch you suffer. I knew you would have killed me back then. Did you know she waited for you to come for her? Even after all these years, she’s still waiting for you.” Siobhan sneered.
“She had my child and you kept her prisoner all these years?” Leon growled. His hands clenched into fists. “You deserve everything the Cutter is going to do to you, you dirty old bitch. Do you know the battle for the streets of Boston was over before it even began? Your son is certainly no leader. He caved the moment he found out we uncovered your charade. He got on his knees and begged us not to kill you.”
Siobhan sneered at his words. “Liam always was a weak child. He was never the man I wanted him to be.” Then she got a look in her eyes as she told Leon, “But your Evelyn, she was so easy to control. Especially after she had the baby. All I had to do was threaten to take the child away, her baby and she did whatever I told her to do. Your daughter on the other hand, she must take after you. She was a stubborn child the older she grew. She kept trying to escape.”
“So I really have a daughter?” Leon pushed away from the wall. “Evelyn gave me a daughter? This is the truth?”
Siobhan laughed then choked and spit out another mouth full of bloody discharge. “Yes, she gave you a daughter. She named her Dominica. She was born on Christmas day, so tomorrow is her birthday. Of course, you will never know her as she’s been in hiding for the last twelve years but that’s the way this sort of thing goes isn’t it?” Siobhan shrugged. “The kids grow up and leaves home and you never see her again.”
“What about Evelyn?” Leon demanded. “Is she still alive?”
Siobhan sneered. “Of course she is well but as I never returned to Boston I’m assuming she is, but you’ll never find her. She’s waited all this time for you and if I don’t make a phone call, my man will put a bullet in her head.”
“You ugly bitch.” Leon cursed her. “Tell me where she is and I’ll let you live another day.”
“I’d rather die than tell you that.” Siobhan growled back.
Leon turned his head to the Cutter and gave him a nod.
The other man silently went back to work. This time it only took him a few minutes before Siobhan began to scream. In the end, it really didn’t matter. The Cutter was known for the results he gave his clients.
Before he left the torture room he asked her again, “What the hell did I ever do to you that you would hate me so much?”
Siobhan raised her head weakly and glared at him for a moment, “Does the name Richard Waylon mean anything to you?”
Leon frowned. “Should it?”
“You killed him and you don’t even remember him? She scoffed. “He was the man I loved all those years ago. You took him away from me so when the time came, I took the one I knew you cared about.”
Leon shook his head. “I remember everyone I ever killed but the name Richard Waylon doesn’t ring a bell.”
“That’s impossible!” She spat. “He came to me and told me he cheated you out of a lot of money. He said you gave him one chance to repay the money and if he couldn’t, then you would take his life. I gave him the money and he came to pay you but you murdered him anyway.”
Leon shook his head. “I think he lied to you. No one ever stole from me and I never would have let him go if he had. I think he took your money and left town. I never met your Richard Waylon.”
Siobhan looked stunned for a moment then rage filled her body, “That son of a bitch.” She swallowed hard and said, “You find that bastard for me and kill him. Promise me that and I’ll tell you where your Evelyn is.”
Leon shook his head. “I’m sorry but I don’t work that way. I don’t kill just because I can.”
“You are a sorry excuse for a made man then.” Siobhan sneered as she choked on the blood filling her mouth.
“Tell me where Evelyn is,” Leon demanded.
“I’ll see you in hell first old man.” She growled.
So The Cutter had only gotten so far as Siobhan in her own way, got the last laugh.
She screamed one last time as the Cutter finally gave her the mercy of death.
When Leon rejoined the party, he came up to stand by his son.
Calderone asked, “Did you learn anything interesting tonight?”
Leon smiled. “Yes, I did. I found out Evelyn was kidnapped all those years ago and she is still alive. All this time she’s been waiting for me to come and free her.”
Calderone stared at his father in shock. “She’s alive? After all these years?”
Leon nodded. “Yes. I want to go back to Boston tonight.” He paused then said, “I hope you understand.”
“Of course, I understand dad.” Calderone shook his head. “This is unbelievable.”
“There’s more. Evelyn gave me a child all those years ago.”
“What?” Calderone was stunned. He had to sit down quickly. “You have another child? How is that possible?”
Leon raised an eyebrow at him. “I think we had the birds and the bees talk a long time ago son. Surely, you know how babies are born?”
Calderone flushed. “I’m not talking about that. Geez dad, grow up will you?” He just stared at Leon in shock. “I’m stunned by the fact you have a child you didn’t know about until now.”
“So am I,” Leon admitted. “I had no idea back then. You have a sister, and her name is Dominica. Evelyn named her after your grandmother. ”
Calderone grinned. “But that’s wonderful news.”
“Well, it is and it isn’t. The girl ran away about twelve years ago and Siobhan didn’t know where she is or if she’s even still alive. Or so she said but I have a feeling she took that information with her out of spite. As she’d kept Evelyn hidden all these years, it’s doubtful she knew where our daughter is either. I’m not willing to take her word for anything. I just felt she knew more than she was saying. Even toward the end. She took some of the information to her grave.”
Calderone got to his feet and grabbed his dad’s arm. “Well, we’ll just have to find her then, won’t we?”
“This is going to change both our lives son,” Leon reminded him. “Are you committed to this?”
Calderone smiled. “Dad, if anyone knows the pain of losing a child it’s me. I lost my daughter for sixteen years. I never expected to get her back after that long, but she was returned to both of us. You were there for me every day she was gone. You held my hand when the pain I went through got to be too much. You stayed up with me all night when the pictures in my head got the better of me. You prayed with me when the thought of her out there all alone, scared the hell out me. Now we find out you have another child out there somewhere? Of course, I would welcome your daughter into our family any day of the week. I would welcome Evelyn back as well. I know you still care about her. I can see it in your eyes every time you look at the picture of the two of you on your dresser.” He paused then added, “I think she would be good for you.”
Leon shrugged. “Maybe all those years ago, but now? She’s been held a prisoner for a very long time.”
“Let me ask you this…” Calderone stared his father. “Do you still care for her?”
Leon paused then nodded. “Yes, I still have feelings for her.” He shrugged. “According to what Siobhan said, she’s still waiting for me to rescue her, so I would say yes. She does still love me.”
“Then what are you waiting for dad?” Calderone asked. “Let’s go find and rescue your woman and hunt down my sister.”
Just then, Cassie and Peaches joined them.
“What are you two up to?” Peaches asked. “I haven’t seen much of you tonight grandpa and now, I find you getting rather intense with dad. What’s going on?”
Leon turned to his granddaughter and held her hands as he explained, “My dear, I recently got some unexpected news that has given me hope for the future. You see long after I lost Calderone’s mother, I fell in love with another woman. She was my entire world for a while. Then something happened and I lost her without warning. She just disappeared from my world and I couldn’t understand why she would just walk away.”
Calderone smiled. “We found out tonight that she didn’t go willingly and that Siobhan had her taken. We also found out that I have a sister neither of us knew about.”
Peaches gasped and raised a hand to her mouth. Looking over at Leon she said, “Are you going to find them and bring them home?”
Cassie grabbed Peaches’ arm and just held onto her. They both waited for Leon’s answer.
“I’m hoping to.” He looked away briefly then looked back at her. “You know Siobhan better than I do, would she lie about something like this? Is it possible Evelyn is still alive? It’s been a very long time.”
Cassie smiled and leaned forward. Taking his hand, she told him, “If you feel it in your heart then the only way you’ll know is if you look for her. You have to try and find her. You never give up on someone you love or could love. You go find your woman and daughter. You have to try. They are both waiting for you.”
“But my dear, this is your party, we can’t just leave,” Leon argued.
“There will be more parties,” Cassie told him. “But if you don’t find your woman, you might end up alone and there is nothing sadder or more heartbreaking than being alone when you don’t have to be.”
“Then you don’t mind if we leave early?” Leon looked at her steadily.
Cassie smiled with tears in her eyes. “Go find your woman and your daughter. And when you find them bring them here. I’d very much like to meet them.” She hugged the older man and said, “This is getting to be the best Christmas ever!” She leaned closer and brushed her lips against his cheek. “Best of luck in your quest.” She backed away.
Then Peaches stepped up. Throwing her arms around her grandfather’s neck, she whispered loudly, “Good luck grandpa. Bring them both home.”
Leon gathered both women in his arms and hugged them tightly. “You two girls are the best.”
Calderone just stood back and smiled.
Deke and Iceman joined them and neither of them looked happy.
“What’s going on here?” Deke asked as he pulled Cassie back into his arms.
“Siobhan told my dad she took his woman all those years ago,” Peaches explained. “That was her big secret. She also told him he has a daughter.”
“That horrible bitch.” Iceman growled. “Are they in Boston?”
Calderone nodded. “As far as we know, yes.”
“Do you need help finding them?” Iceman stared at him. “The Sinners can help locate them if you need help.”
“I’ll keep that in mind and call if I need help.” Leon nodded. He looked at the whole group and asked, “You all would accept them? Just like that?”
Cassie frowned. “Why wouldn’t we? As long as they aren’t like Siobhan, we just want you to be happy.”
“Evie isn’t anything like Siobhan. She was the sweetest. Most gentle woman I knew.” Leon acknowledged. “I was worried she wouldn’t be able to accept our way of life. Sometimes we have to deal with bitches like Siobhan and that isn’t always easy or pleasant.”
“Well, I can’t wait to meet her.” Peaches smiled.
“And I can’t wait to finally meet my sister.” Calderone nodded. “We have a lifetime to catch up on.”
At their enthusiasm, Leon threw his head back and laughed out loud. “Well, let’s go find them and bring them home where they should have been all this time.”
A little while later, the two Vincinti men left Troy and began the journey back to Boston to hopefully, find part of his past and more importantly, part of Leon’s future.
