Memories of the past emerged.
Oh, she was y
oung
and
foolish
in her youth
and trusting
.
The young man lying motionless on the stretcher began asking about his father in Junior
High School
when
pre-teens experience the
e
ffects of peer pressure.
She told him half-truths about his father
because she did not want him to know..
.
her shame.
To a child it is important to know their parentage, it’s v
ital to their identity
but
Maria did not want her son influenced by his father’s lifestyle or acquaintances.
To prevent further inquiry she told Alfonzo his father died. Alfonzo never
questioned
her
.
She hated
to
lie
to her son
. She hated Luzo.
As a maid in
a
upscale hotel in Manhattan she spent time around the rich and envied
their lifestyle. This was the first of
her
many sins.
She
met Luzo Palazzo
there
, a
tall handsome and charming
businessman.
It was love at first sight.
Days before check-out he offered her an enormous salary caring for his villa in Europe
and
placed a business card in her hand, “I pay well and you will have free room and board,”
he said convincingly.
Finally, after
careful consideration and speaking to co-workers who affirmed Luzo’s reputation
as
a
respected
international
businessman
,
she accepted the job offer and left
New York City for a new opportunity. S
he arrived in Palermo
,
Italy and Luzo showed the unsophisticated city girl
Italy’s famed tourist attraction and the beautiful countryside. With the exorbitant salary she could send money to America
and help her family
.
Good intentions on her part
,
but his were not.
“You will have access to the Mercedes and I will give you an expense account.
Since I travel frequently I do not get to enjoy my own villa,” he said
.“
However, when
I return
home
I like
my
home
warm
and
smell
fresh flowers.”
After a year of his calculated seduction she
began to fall in love with her charming employer and committed the ultimate sin. She gave herself to him many times. She enjoyed his lovemaking
and most of all she envisioned a life with him until she
discovered the truth about Luzo Palazzo.
He was married.
She returned home in disgrace, unmarried and pregnant. The
unpleasant lamentation was
interrupted by anxious voices.
“
He’s losing too much blood, call it in, we need a trauma team on stand-by.”
The driver radioed the dispatcher, “
M
ale…early twenties…penetrating trauma
secondary to a gunshot…”
The
medics
e
xpressions were intense as they tried to tamponade the bleeding and assist his ventilations using a Bag Valve Mask.
She saw Alfonzo’s chest rise each time the
y
squeezed
the device. She
clutched tighter
at the rosary beads.
I must keep faith!
Maria marveled at the
medical workers
cool composure as
s
iren
s
crackled and they
were jostled
every time the
vehicle bounced over potholes. Within the
confines of the
ambulance
the medics
maintained equilibrium
and worked to keep her son alive. S
everal times the female paramedic glanced in her direction
with a reassuring smile. This gave Maria hope, a rare commodity
in this season of loss.
She prayed for the workers, and she prayed for strength.
Domingo followed closely behind the ambulance. Heavy traffic failed to yield
to the emergency vehicles despite their incessant sirens.
Only in New York!
He
watched the ambulance turn south on first avenue to Metropolitan Hospital.
He maneuvered abruptly to
avoid a yellow taxi
which stopped suddenly to
pick-up
a fare.
“
F
ucking asshole
!”
The ambulance disappeared around a corner
and he sped to close the distance and roared toward the
illuminated EMERGENCY sign
which
stood like a beacon of
hope or tragedy
,
depending on the nature of
the
visit.
He
double-parked without regard and hurried through the unlocked doors
of the hospital in search of the Emergency Room main door
. Tonight, a
sense
of dread grew like limbs on a vine. Alfonzo had the look of death.
He’d seen it when his
friend
got killed, and the night grandpa died.
Alfonzo was more like a brother than
a
cousin. T
hey were born nine months apart
and did almost everything together. He couldn’t imagine losing his best friend.
He’d lost enough.
Abuela,
Abuelo
, Tio, several friends and now Alfonzo.
No, he couldn’t deal with another loss of someone he loved.
He dialed Raul’s cell, “
Yo
, Alfonzo’s shot…I’m at
M
etropolitan Hospital
. Tell
Chino
t
o get over to the spot and hold shit down.
No sales tonight. Lock shit down!
” He
instructed .
Security approached, “No cell phones can’t you read?”
“No!” He said with sarcasm
.
“Smart-ass.”
“My cousin was brought in by ambulance.”
“What’s his name?” The security asked noncommittally.
“Alfonzo Diaz.”
“Wait here.” He walked away.
The guard returned, “You can’t go in yet.”
“
What, why not?”
Domingo
bellowed
.
The security guard returned to his post without answering. He kept a watchful
eye
on the thug.
These
street guys
were nothing but trouble!
“
Maricon.”
Domingo cursed.
Ten minutes later the entire family converged upon the hospital waiting room.
They were a large bunch and boisterous as they waited for word about their loved one.
Finally, the security guard allowed him inside the Emergency Room.
“Only one person can go in,” he said to the other family members as they tried to enter
with Domingo
.
Aunt Maria talk
ed
to a man in blue scrubs
and
Domingo joined them listening intently as the doctor described the severity of Alfonzo’s
injuries.
“Your son is in critical condition with two gunshot wounds. We‘re going to take him
into surgery once the anesthesiologist arrives.”
“Where is he shot?” Maria asked.
He pointed to his body,
“ One
bullet exited through his right side, the other bullet
grazed
his shoulder
. W
e’re concerned with his head injury and
we’re
monitor
ing
the swelling on his brain.”
Maria wailed then cupped her mouth, “Dios!”
The man in scrubs continued, “We‘re going to do everything we can to save your son.”
“How long y’all
gonna
’
wait for the anesthesiologist?” Domingo
enquired.
The doctor answered, “He‘s on his way now.”
A plump nurse approached.
“Excuse me
Dr. Moore,” she said
, “the
anesthesiologist is here.”
The surgeon
nodded then turned to the family, “
He’s here.”
They were asked to accompany the nurse
over to the Nurse’s Station
where she collected A
lfonzo’s medical history.
Nurse Langer saw hundreds of trauma cases a month involving gunshot wounds.
Gun violence in Harlem
was
prevalent among young minorities and the fatality
rate a cause for alarm.
However, the
Mayor failed to recognize th
is growing
epidemic.
An urban genocide was her summation and u
ntil statistics for Caucasian victim’s
equaled or surpassed
those of minorities, nothing
…absolutely nothing would be done about
it
. –And so once more here she stood with another distraught family taking information on a twenty-three year old man w
ith a slim
chance of survival judging by the extent of his injuries.
CHAPTER
THIRT
EEN
“
Stop
talkin
’ shit, you
messin
’ around with the wrong
dude
.” Jay said between puffs
of weed. He felt nice and Carlos was
killing
the
high.
Carlos leaned back in a worn leather chair. Jay’s bedroom was sparsely decorated
with a twin bed too small for his six foot,
t
wo-hundred pound frame.
Carlos took a hit and passed the blunt back to Jay
and
continued the unilateral conversation, “
Yo
, the blue-eyed motherfucker’s out
of commission.
He’s been
the hospital
for a
while
,
trust me his spot’s vulnerable
.”
“So what you
sayin
’?”
Jay asked already knowing the answer.
Alfonzo was out of commission and Carlos being a
n opportunist wanted to hit
his spot. “We
gonna
’
rob the motherfucker.
Y’know
grab
some g’s and shit.”
“We can help find the dude who killed those people and collect the reward, that’s what I’m thinking.”
“
Yo
, that ‘
aint
happening Jay.
Word is that shit was a mafia hit. Not NYC motherfuckers either, nah…the real Italian crew. Whoever his uncle messed with, man he fucked up royally.”
“When you
talkin
’ about
doin
’ this shit?”
Carlos sat
forward,
he finally got Jay’s attention and continued the bait, “I heard through
a reliable source he got five-hundred g’s in bearer bonds.”
Jay looked puzzled, “What the hell are bearer bonds?”
“Th
e
shit
’s
like cash, just lighter to carry.” Carlos rubbed his hands together,
“Just think about it, if Alfonzo can throw a mil to the wind think about what he got stashed away.
Yo
we
gotta
’ move, now. I’m
talkin
’ about tonight, you down or what?”
Jay didn’t answer, he seriously consider
ed
the proposition
but this guy
Alfonzo wasn’t a regular thug. He’d checked the boy out and hitting his spot
was
risky, not to mention foolish.
Hardened criminals feared that Puerto-Rican dude. Talk on the street was that the
dude ha
s
protection
and
not the kind you buy at the store.
Real hard-core motherfuckers who made you disappear. He looked at Carlos. The two-bit back-stabbing punk was lookin
g
to get him killed!