Grave Digger – Brothers At Arms #4

The next time Emily opened her eyes, she looked down at her son and found him looking back.

His eyes were clear of the fever and he had his mischievous glint back. “Mornin’ Mama,” he whispered with a giggle.

Emily smiled and replied, “Mornin’, sweet baby. Are you feeling better today?” She felt his forehead and was relieved to find it was cool instead of feverish.

Anthony nodded. “I’m not so hot today. But my belly is growling. I’m hungry.” Then he looked around. “Where are we?”

“Well, some guys found us last night. You might not remember because you were so sick but they brought us here to their clubhouse.”

Anthony thought for a moment then asked, “Are we gonna be okay? They won’t hurt us will they?”

Emily frowned. “Why do you say that? Why would they hurt us?”

Anthony snuggled closer to her and said, “Some men came to my daycare the other day and they were looking for me. They told Cathy my name even. They talked to Cathy and they were asking questions. She didn’t tell them much but those guys scared me. They looked mean.”

Emily’s heart froze. “Did you see these men again?”

Anthony shook his head. “They scared me, Mama. They looked so mean.”

 Emily held him close for a moment then vowed, “You don’t have to worry about those men, honey. I won’t let them hurt you.”

“I’m hungry.” Anthony looked at her.

“Come on then, let’s see if we can get something to eat, but first we have to find you something to wear.” Emily got out of bed and walked to the door. When she opened it, she found their clothes folded up on the other side. She said a little prayer of thanks as she brought the clothes in and got them both dressed.

Then she took her son’s hand and walked back to the main room.

 Marty met her gaze with a smile and motioned for them to join her and the girls.

Both little girls looked up and giggled.

“Hi, well you two certainly look better this morning,” Marty greeted her.

“We’re feeling better as well. No fever this morning.” Emily smiled back. Shaking her head she said, “Delaney had some medicine that worked at bringing Anthony’s fever down, so he’s better too.”

Marty looked pleased to hear this. “That’s great. These are my kids, Angel and Lily. Well, Angel is Zeus’s daughter and Lily is my niece but they are still my kids.”

Emily smiled and said, “And this is my son Anthony. He’s been sick recently, otherwise we would sit with you, but I don’t want to get the girls sick.”

Marty nodded. “I understand. But please help yourselves to breakfast.” She motioned toward the buffet style setup for food.

Emily found another table and left Anthony sitting while she went to fill two plates. Taking them back, she sat down just as Grave Digger walked in.

 He saw them sitting there then he grabbed a plate of food and went to join them. “Good morning.” He smiled at them as he sat down. He looked over at Anthony and grinned. “Hey buddy, you seem better this morning.”

Anthony nodded. “I feel better.”

Grave Digger nodded. “Glad to hear that little buddy.” He swung his gaze over to Emily and searched her face for a moment. He saw the tiredness on her face and the dark circles under her eyes. “And Mom? How does Mom feel?”

“Mom’s fine,” she quietly replied. She looked down at her plate and continued to eat but the food suddenly tasted like cardboard. She pushed her plate away.

 “Mama, you gots to clean your plate, Anthony reminded her, “We don’t waste food ‘member?”

Emily side glanced at her son and smiled. “I remember.” She pulled her plate closer and began to eat again.

Grave Digger quietly finished his own breakfast. When he was done, he sat back in his chair and sipped his coffee then he remembered something. “You said you were leaving town, right?”

Emily nodded.

“Where did you park your car before you went into the garage?” he asked.

Emily glanced down at Anthony then back up at him as she replied, “I pulled it into the tree stand nearest the garage and carried everything we had to the garage.” She shrugged. “We didn’t have much.”

Grave Digger nodded. “I’ll let Zeus know and he’ll have your car brought up here.”

Emily nodded. “That might be a good thing.”

Grave Digger nodded back.

“Is there any word from the outside yet?” Emily asked. “About the brothers I mean. Do you know if they’re here yet?”

Grave Digger paused briefly then shook his head. “I have no idea, why?”

She looked at him and whispered, “Because I can’t be here, if they are.”

“Do I want to know why?” Grave Digger asked.

She shook her head slightly then gazed down at her son again.

Memphis, Delaney, Alfredo, Zeus, Diabolus and Lindy came into the room.

Zeus paused then came over to Emily and Grave Digger’s table. He stared at the boy sitting next to his mother then he looked at Emily. “I take it he’s feeling better today?”

Emily nodded. “Yes, his fever broke and he’s much better today.”

“Good, I’d like the chance to talk to you then, if you can find the time.” Zeus gave her a nod.

Emily swallowed hard but nodded back. “I have to find someone to watch Anthony then.”

Alfredo grinned. “He can stay with me while you speak to Zeus.”

As more and more brothers joined them, a couple of men dressed in very expensive looking suits also came in.

The older man stopped to stare at Emily and her son, then looked at the other man in the suit.

When he was staring at her hair, Emily grew uncomfortable. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail but she was also aware of its unusual coloring. Her hair was dark, almost black but it also had red undertones. She might look like her mother but her eyes and her hair color was all her father’s.

The older man who’d been staring at her acted like he knew her. He then looked over to Zeus. “Who is this woman and where did she come from?”

“Grave Digger saw her last night on the cameras,” Zeus explained. “She was in the old garage, and she claims to have been there for three days. As you know, we have had Roger putting up the fence since then. She says she got trapped inside the fence after they put it up. She stopped there because her son was sick.”

The older man turned to the young woman and asked, “What is your name, child?”

“Emily Saron.”

Then Anthony piped up and said, “I’m Anthony and I’m three.”

The man gave him a warm smile as he nodded. “Well Anthony, my name is Leon and this is my son, Calderone.”

Emily paused and studied the man who claimed to be Leon. He somehow looked familiar to her but where she met him before was a mystery. Then she gazed down at Anthony. “Can you stay here with Alfredo while I go talk to Zeus?”

Anthony smiled and nodded. “Yes, Mama.”

Emily rose from her chair and told him, “Be minding your manners, young man.”

“I will, Mama,” Anthony promised.

When Emily stepped away, Alfredo sat down in her chair and immediately struck up a conversation with the boy..

She followed Zeus, Memphis, Diabolus, Grave Digger, Delaney, and even Leon into Zeus’ office.

Leon shut the door behind them all.

Emily looked around the room at everyone there. “What would you like to know?”

“You told us last night that you were leaving Festus, why?” Zeus asked.

Emily shrugged. “I heard the rumors about the Raggetti’s coming back to get this place. I decided I would just get me and Anthony out of the way of a crossfire.”

“How come we don’t know you?” Diabolus asked her. “I’ve never seen you before.”

Again, Emily shrugged. “I tend to keep to myself. I go to work in the middle of the night at the bakery, so I get done in the early morning. Most people are just waking up when I get off, then I go home and sleep until about noon. At about 2, I pick up my son from daycare and I spend the rest of the day with him. I don’t go out and socialize as I don’t drink or have anyone else in my life. So why would you see me around town? I’ve only been here for about four years, so that was long after you got here.”

“Where did you live before?” Leon asked her.

“I lived with my dad in one of the suburbs of St. Louis. When he died, I moved away. Too many memories, you know.”

“What was your father’s name, child?” Leon asked her.

Emily turned her head to stare at him for a moment, then she answered, “He’s dead. Please just leave him at peace.”

 “Tell me child,” Leon insisted. “Was his name Vincent Sarano?”

Emily froze then as she stared at the other man a single tear ran down her cheek.

Leon could read the truth in her eyes and he swore in Italian, “Dannazione, questo lo sapevo. What happened to him?” He growled.

“Why do you want to know?” she whispered, “He died, so please let him rest in peace.”

Leon came over to her and grasped her shoulders, and when she tried to hang her head, he lifted her chin and wiped her tear away with his thumb. “Your father was a good friend of mine. I didn’t get to see him often but he always called me to share a talk and a good brandy with me on the east coast and him in the middle of the nation. When I heard his bar burned down and he was caught in the fire, I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe he was gone. Do you know what happened?”

Emily nodded. “Yeah, I know what happened. I was there. I was in the office when he closed up. He was just cleaning up when someone pounded on the door.” Her words were softly spoken but the room was quiet so everyone could hear. “He told them the bar was closed and they kept pounding on the door. He went over to the door and shouted that he was closed and that’s when everything went to hell.” She closed her eyes and shivered as she remembered that night four years ago. “They forced the door open and four men came inside. My dad asked them what they wanted and one of the men said they wanted a share of his bar. My dad told them to get out. He wasn’t interested in selling his bar. The guy laughed and said he didn’t have a choice. My dad said he did have a choice and he wasn’t interested.” Her eyes went dark and her voice dropped down to a whisper, “The guy reached into his pocket and brought out a knife. He flipped it open and he cut my dad’s face. My dad screamed and there was so much blood. The guy just smiled and said, Bet you change your mind now, motherfucker.” She shook her head. “The guy with the knife ripped open his chest then he slashed him again. His friends just watched and cheered him on. My father told him to go to hell and the guys sliced him again. This time, he opened his belly and my dad dropped to the floor. Blood pooled around him and the men standing there began smashing the bottles of booze behind the bar. They broke the mirrors and proceeded to wreck the place.” Emily trembled as she rubbed her arms. She couldn’t believe she was reliving the nightmare all over again.

The people in the room all stared at her with sympathy in their eyes.

She swiped more tears from her cheeks as she went on, “One of them opened a lighter, and I could see the flames. My father turned his head and looked at the back hall to where I stood, up against the wall. I could see his lips and he was mouthing the word Run. I couldn’t move for a moment then he mouthed the word again and again. Finally, one of the men took notice. He turned his head to look at the back hallway. When he headed toward the office, I took off. He must have heard the back door open because I was running and he was running after me. Then I heard a loud whoosh and I could see the flames. They had dropped the lighter and the bar was on fire.” She looked up at Leon as fresh tears were rolling down her face. “I knew he was gone then. Those bastards murdered him and I was alone.”

Leon shook his head and gathered her in his arms.

Emily did not weep or sob. She had done that too many times over the years. But she did let him hold her for a moment. Then she stepped back and stared at him. “My father Vincent Sarano was laid to rest three days after the fire. The police think his death was an accident and I didn’t tell them any different. I buried him and then I left Oakville.”

Leon nodded. “You and I will talk later. I want their names. They will pay for their misdeeds. I will hunt them down and make sure of that.”

Emily just stood there for a moment as she stared at the floor. She shuddered then raised her head and looked at Zeus. “I left Oakville and changed my name to hide in plain sight from those monsters. I’ve lived with this for four years now. Then I got caught behind your walls.” She paused, then stated, “ I’m going to get my son now.” She turned and left the room.

Everyone left in the office was silent.

Finally, Grave Digger broke the silence, “Why do I get the feeling she’s got a lot more to tell?”

Zeus turned his head to glare at him. “You mean I wasn’t the only one who noticed that she didn’t tell us everything?”