I don’t know who was happier to see me once I got back to San Francisco, Django or Thanh-Thanh. She kept squeezing my elbow and speaking to me in Vietnamese. I didn’t know what she was saying. I hoped she wasn’t telling me that watching Django had been a pain in the butt.
I’d bought her an assortment of scarves and perfumes and even a silk robe and slippers at the duty-free shop at the Rome airport. I was lucky to have her help with my dog. I handed her three hundred dollars. She shook her head, but I pointed at Django, miming her walking him. She shook her head again, but I held the money to my heart in a begging gesture and she actually rolled her eyes and then took it, giving me a small bow.
Inside my apartment, I collapsed on my bed, exhausted from jet lag and ready to sleep for the rest of the day. Django jumped up on the bed, licked my face and then settled down beside me to take a nap.
When I woke, it was dark and I was starving.
I grabbed Django’s leash, and put my gun in its holster under my big Army coat. Django skipped around in frenetic circles until I clipped on his leash and opened the door.
Downstairs, Ethel wasn’t in her usual spot. I hadn’t seen her earlier, either. Maybe she’d already headed for the church early to sleep.
Grabbing a burner cell phone out of my bag, I dialed Susie’s parents’ house in Berkeley. Her mother immediately put Susie on the line.
“Oh, Gia, we were worried about you,” she said.
“Me? I’m fine. How’s Kato?”
“Much better. He’s sleeping right now or I’d let you talk to him. He’s a bit more tired than usual and keeps complaining that we won’t let him go back to his dojo and are making him relax for another few days.”
“It’ll be good for him,” I said. “How’s his head?”
“The doctor said he might have some memory issues and fuzzy thinking for a few months, but there’s no permanent damage.”
“Thank God,” I breathed the words out in a big sigh. Django stopped to do his business and I dug around in my purse for a plastic baggie.
“Gia, we’re worried about you, though. Kato said these guys weren’t messing around. They wanted to know where you were …”
“Yeah, I’m going to take care of that. Why don’t you guys stay there a bit longer?” I eyed a guy walking on the opposite site of the street. He had baggy pants and a big coat and looked like he was about to head my way. I turned slightly and pulled back my jacket so the streetlight glinted on the handle of my gun. The man headed in the other direction.
“Gia, be careful. Kato said if some of his students hadn’t arrived early, he’s pretty sure those men would’ve killed him.” Her voice was quiet.
I swallowed hard. “I know. You just stay safe with the boys and Kato. I’ll call you in the next day or two. It should all be over by then.”
I hung up before she could answer.
When I got to Club Katrina, I realized I probably wouldn’t be able to bring Django inside so I kept walking until I got to a hoagie shop. Wasn’t my first choice, but it was an easy place to tie Django up in front of while I ordered. I got a plain roast beef for Django and a Spicy Italian sub for me.
I brought our dinners back to my apartment and started to make plans. Armed with the information I’d found in Italy, I knew it was time to confront Vito.
I’d head down to Monterey tomorrow. Kato and his family needed to get back to their normal lives. The time for gathering evidence against my godfather had passed. I wasn’t going to need any more proof. Instead, I’d get a confession. My godfather had killed my parents and I was going to make him tell me why he did it. He would confess to me that he was a greedy bastard. He would beg my forgiveness. And then I would kill him.