Walking through the revolving door, Frank stuffed the valet ticket into his jacket pocket. Emerging into the lobby of the Hyperion Hotel, he couldn’t help but be impressed by the luxury of the hotel every time he came here. Polished marble floors, giant columns and several fountains laced the cavernous ground floor lobby. Impeccably dressed bellhops stood at attention near the front desk to his left and straight through the lobby, a bank of elevators faced him. To his right, a few upscale shops opened to the floor.
After surveying the impressive lobby, Frank continued across the floor past the front desk. Tucked around the corner from the front desk was the hotel’s restaurant. The wood-floored bar rose above the marble floor like an oak oasis appropriately lined by large, leafy plants and jungle-like foliage. Frank greeted the hostess and told her he was just going to sit at the bar. He climbed the three stairs and selected a stool at the horseshoe shaped bar. Placing his jacket on the back of the stool, he reached into the inside pocket and retrieved the note he had received from Carmen. As he settled into the stool, the bartender took his order for a vodka soda. Unfolding the note, he read it again:
Frank,
Please meet me for dinner at the Hyperion. I have important family business to discuss with you. I trust you and need your advice. Given the nature of this situation, I may choose to not meet you in the restaurant. If I’m not there to meet you by 7:30, please meet me in the family’s suite.
Please, do not call me; this is not something I can discuss over the phone.
Thank you, Carmen.
Frank glanced at his watch: 7:13pm. He folded the note back up and stuffed it into his shirt pocket. He loosened his tie as the bartender placed his drink in front of him. Instructing the bartender to put it on the suite’s bill, he squeezed the lime into the drink, stirred it with the tiny black straw and took a sip.
Frank was a bit confused by the note, but not overly concerned. Carmine had always made it a point to shield his only daughter from the harsh realities of the family business. He thought that besides it not being a woman’s place, he wanted a much more ‘normal’ life for her. But often, he was caught up in family business and couldn’t see to it himself. Thus, Frank took on the responsibility. He protected her, doted over her and kept a close eye on her throughout her entire life, perhaps being even more protective than Carmine would have been. For the most part, he was successful.
Occasionally, the family would be mentioned in the newspaper or the local news. As she became older, on the few occasions Carmine had to appear in court or the police would come to call on her father, Carmen didn’t quite accept the excuses that her aunt in Florida wanted to see her for a few weeks or that a distant cousin had entered the hospital and her father was the only listed relative. When she started asking questions, Frank sat her down and tried to explain the business in the most basic of terms. He didn’t sugar-coat it, but he also didn’t give her the gory details. As intelligent as she was, she had discovered a lot more than Carmine or Frank ever wanted her to.
Still, he also figured she probably now had some questions. With her father gone, she was probably feeling brave enough to ask some tougher questions and it was this reason that Frank wasn’t overly concerned about the note. She probably just wants to clarify a few things about the family. While brave enough, she was also probably smart enough to figure out that her father had purposefully kept her sheltered. So, like the intelligent girl she was, she was keeping a low profile about the whole thing.
Anthony, on the other hand, was a completely different story. While Carmen got the white-glove treatment from Carmine, Anthony was groomed to take his father’s place. Frank loved that about his former boss: he could be an incredibly caring and understanding human being, yet at the same time, he could be a ruthless cutthroat. Anthony was trained in the ruthless cutthroat side of the family. Anthony was taught by one of the best in Carmine Abbate. Understanding in the matters of business, yet cold-blooded enough to not let any competition or other interests interfere with the business, Carmine was an excellent boss. Slippery as an eel, too. Frank smiled to himself as he remembered all the times the authorities came to question him and how many times he was home the next day.
The one family member Frank was only slightly in-the-dark about was Isabel. Carmine kept his relationship with Isabel a little more personal than everything else. Frank asked his friend several times what he chose to tell his wife, and Carmine always said that he told her enough that she felt involved, but nothing more. Carmine always said that a woman didn’t need to know the business; it wasn’t a woman’s place.
Frank pondered all of this while sipping his drink and keeping a loose eye on the TV screens above the bar. The Cubs were losing, the Dodgers were ahead by one. A few hotel guests dotted the tables around the bar; it was not a busy night.
Frank checked his watch again: 7:23pm. He turned to the entrance just to occupy his mind. Glancing over at the elevators, he took another mindless sip from the vodka soda...
The Cubs loaded the bases with only one out, but the mid-season pick-up grounded into a double play to short, killing the potential rally. “Lousy free agent,” Frank mumbled to himself. The network flashed the box score on the screen before the commercial and Frank stole another look at his watch: 7:31pm. “Another couple minutes,” he decided, and ordered another drink.
He could help but let his mind wander. As he sat there enjoying his cocktail, he recalled his introduction to the ‘business’. Frank often marveled at how he went from a law student in one of the top schools in the country to the trusted advisor of one of most powerful crime families in the country. That trial he sat in on, the lesser crime boss and the first time he ran into Carmine... Oh, and that beautiful, young wife of his...
Frank paused his meandering thoughts to watch a squeeze play attempt. Nice bunt, idiot. The commercial break failed to distract him further.
His eyes lost focus as he remembered the bar in which he, Carmine and Carmine’s wife, Isabel, were having drinks that night. The chaos, the noise, the screams and suddenly Frank being tackled to the floor... Even though his law professor pulled him from the case, Frank continued to speak with Carmine. He couldn’t turn his back on the man who had saved his life.
A quick check toward the front desk revealed no Carmen, still.
Frank couldn’t deny Carmine a couple years later, either, even though it cost him his chance to become a lawyer. Still, Carmine and Isabel took him in while he decided what to do next. It was during this intimate time that Frank learned the mafia life. It turned out he had a knack for the financial and business side of the operation and Carmine recognized it. It made Frank an excellent candidate for consigliere when Carmine took over. Sp eventually, Frank became part of the ‘family’ without ever having the fanfare of an official ceremony or induction; and he was fine with that. His knowledge and advice was valued and he was handsomely rewarded.
Checking on his patron, the bartender brought Frank back to the present. Frank ordered one more and turned his attention to the game.
After another half-inning, Frank decided it was time to go see Carmen in the suite. It was obvious she wasn’t going to meet him in the restaurant after his watch showed that it was 7:49pm. Frank flagged down the bartender, got up off the stool and collected his coat. Placing the coat over his arm, he tossed a $20 on the bar for the bartender. He grabbed his drink and headed to the front desk.
As the Abbate family had used this hotel frequently, they had a suite on reserve. So, when Frank approached the desk, the attendant called him by name. He asked for the keys to the suite; the woman didn’t bat an eye and immediately granted his request. Frank thanked her and carried his drink with him across the lobby to the elevators.
Exiting the elevator at the 26th floor, Frank walked the length of the hall to suite 2654. Standing in front of the door, key in hand, Frank heard sounds coming from inside the room. Frank immediately became concerned when he heard what sounded like a struggle. Thinking Carmen to be in trouble, Frank dropped his drink and quickly unlocked the door with the key. He reached down to his ankle where he had holstered a .32 caliber pistol for just such an emergency. Gun drawn and adrenaline pumping, Frank threw open the door and burst into the room.
Seeing nothing in the main room of the suite, Frank could clearly hear the noises coming from the bedroom to his left. He threw his shoulder into the door which was already ajar and took a few quick steps into the room.
“What the?...” Frank said, frozen in his tracks at what he saw.
Atop the bed, a naked man on his knees had his back to Frank. His head spun around to look at Frank when he entered the room, his eyes wide with fright. Another person was bent over in front of him, his legs spread aside the kneeling man’s legs on the bed in classic doggy-style position. The person bent over on the bed yelled out, “Oh my God!”... It was Anthony’s voice.
Frank stood stunned. Anthony violently thrashed on the bed, throwing the man behind him to the floor. The man screamed, then grunted as he hit the floor. Anthony scrambled to collect the sheets from the bed and cover his nakedness. Stammering incoherent words, Anthony frantically worked to locate his clothes.
Frank couldn’t identify the emotions he felt as he viewed the scene before him. Enraged, mortified, embarrassed, disappointed and confused all at once, Frank simply couldn’t believe what he was seeing. As Anthony flailed on the bed, he couldn’t look at Frank for longer than a split second at a time. Swearing and offering hurried apologies, Anthony tried to sit on the edge of the bed while still frantically looking for his clothes.
Finally collecting himself, Frank backed out of the bedroom, hand on the doorknob. As the door closed behind him, Anthony yelled out, “It’s not what you think!”
The door latched and Frank wrung his hands around his gun. Looking over the room, he tried to grasp the revelation he had just witnessed. He could still hear Anthony swearing to himself and running around the room collecting his clothes.
Frank finally went to exit the suite as the bedroom fell silent. Turning the knob to the door, Frank could faintly hear Anthony begin to sob in the next room.
Thirty minutes later, Anthony stepped out of the elevator into the hotel lobby. He nervously scanned the lobby as he quickly walked across the marble floor. Looking to his right, he spotted Frank sitting at the bar. Ashamed, he quickly averted his eyes and stutter-stepped from side to side hopelessly looking for a place to hide. But, on the vast expanse of marble, there was nowhere to go.
After a few awkward steps, he glanced back at Frank who was looking directly back at him. Anthony could not look away this time. Slowing his walk, he looked despairingly at Frank, almost begging for forgiveness from a distance. Frank pulled out the stool beside him and looked down into his drink. Anthony could tell by the look in Frank’s eyes that he wasn’t going anywhere until he spoke to Frank. Lowering his head, Anthony veered toward the bar.
As Anthony climbed the steps, he saw Frank call the bartender over. Handing over a couple $100 bills, Anthony heard Frank tell the bartender to buy the few patrons sitting at the tables a round of drinks and then “to go on break” for the next 30 minutes. The money, combined with the look in Frank’s eyes, propelled the bartender to immediate action.
Anthony crept onto the stool next to Frank and meekly pulled himself to the bar. The bartender placed a napkin and a cocktail in front of Anthony, but he made no effort to reach for it. Frank never looked anywhere other than straight ahead, focusing on the TV directly above the bar.
They both sat in silence as the bartender hurriedly dropped off fresh drinks to the patrons lingering in the bar area. After delivering the last of the drinks, the bartender dropped his tray on the bar top, tore the towel from his waist and tossed it on the well rack in front of him. He turned to Frank and nodded before slipping through the door to the kitchen.
Frank placed his drink back on the bar and brought his eyes down with it. Obviously, wracked with countless emotions, Frank visibly concentrated to keep his tone in check.
“Anthony,” he began, “do not say a word. I don’t want to hear it.”
Anthony nodded his agreement; he wouldn’t have been able to speak anyway. He was still unable to look Frank in the eye as he spoke.
“I never had kids, Anthony, but I’ve always loved you and your sister like you were my own. That’s why I will try to accept this. I will never understand it, so don’t ever try to explain it. But I will try to accept it.”
Anthony looked up and started to speak, but Frank interrupted him. “I won’t tell any of the guys, either. They wouldn’t be so understanding.” He looked down into his drink and spoke almost to himself. “My god, how things have changed... There was a guy back in ’74 - Tommy was his name – goddamn toughest SOB you ever met. Anyway, he got caught with his pants down in a bath house. Some guy barely affiliated with the family saw him and told one of our guys. Of course, the word spread, but those of us who heard about it first, decided to keep our mouths shut and try to keep it under wraps as long as we could. Tommy was a good guy, and truth be told, I think we were a little afraid of ratting on him. Like I said, the guy was tough, gay or not. But eventually, as with everything, enough people find out, and the truth gets to the top. Nick Diccante was running the show back then. Nick was an ancient bastard; couldn’t adapt to the times – that’s why he wasn’t in control for long. Anyway, Nick found out about Tommy’s preference for men. Back in Nick’s day, if you were gay, you were considered weak. You were like a woman: couldn’t be trusted. So Nick found out, and, well, it didn’t end very pretty for Tommy. He was found in a construction site. He had his tongue removed, hands cut off, and his own dick shoved up his ass. I’d never seen anything like it, and by God, I hope I never do again.”
Frank took a drink and looked at Anthony who was wide-eyed in shock and horror. “I didn’t tell you that to try to change you. They say this isn’t something you choose. I believe that, otherwise, we wouldn’t be here right now. No, I told you that story because even though times have changed a bit, you never know how some people are gonna react to such things, especially men in our line of work. I don’t even know how your father would’ve reacted.”
Frank saw Anthony’s reaction to this statement and added quickly, “I think he would’ve tried to understand in your case. But it doesn’t matter. Carmine’s gone, and Joe is in charge. I don’t think Joe is gonna gloss over this kind of thing. Not to mention what would happen if any of our rivals found out.”
Frank took another drink. “Anthony, you gotta decide now what you want. At the end of the day, I just want you to be happy, but the reality is this: If you wanna lead this life, you can’t do it here.” Frank put his hand on Anthony’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I really am. And believe me when I say that whatever you decide, I will help you in any way I can.”
The two men sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally, Frank stood and started to leave. As he passed behind Anthony, he placed a hand on the young man’s shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze. Anthony looked up.
“Frank, I’m sorry. I truly am. I don’t know what you think of me, and I hate imagining what it might be. I know you are disappointed and don’t want to hear any excuses, so I won’t make any. But I have one question.” Anthony’s face looked like a ghost. Frank nodded his head and blinked his permission. “Why were you at the suite tonight, Frank?”
Frank’s face hardened with resolve. “That’s what I need to find out.”
Carmen stopped singing along with the radio and turned it off when she heard her phone ring. She had been feeling very free and alive all night. A sense of exhilaration rushed through her entire body as she drove to meet some college friends.
The exhilaration changed to surprise, however, when she saw the Hyperion Hotel’s name on the caller ID of her phone. I can’t believe Anthony would call me, of all people, after what he pulled earlier! She smiled as she imagined him sitting in the family suite, crying at what had transpired. She knew that Frank would never “out” Anthony, but still, the embarrassment and shame that Anthony must have felt when Frank had walked in that door... She almost wished she could have been there.
Composing herself, she accepted the call and placed the phone to her ear.
“Hello?”
“Carmen, what the hell is going on?” Carmen’s smile disappeared. It was Frank.
She had known that Frank would eventually confront her about why she arranged for this to happen, but she had not expected it so soon. She assumed Frank would have been too embarrassed to do anything tonight or even the next. She felt her pulse start to race. She thought quickly.
“Oh, Frank! I’m so sorry. I tried to call you at the office to tell you that I needed to cancel tonight. Haha. Honestly, it was a silly thing I wanted to talk you about, anyway. I’d had a-”
“Stop with the games, Carmen,” Frank cut her off. “I went to the suite. I saw what you wanted me to see. What the hell were you trying to accomplish?”
Carmen winced slightly. Frank’s tone of voice reminded her of the time he had caught her trying to sneak out of the house to go to the mall with her friends. At the time, she was 12, but his voice was the same then as it was now. She pushed the memory from her mind.
“Frank, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She tried her best to sound confused and slightly insulted.
“Carmen, this is not a joke. I don’t know what happened with you and Anthony, but how could you do that to your own brother? You have no idea what you’ve done to him. Jesus, Carmen, you don’t realize what you’ve done. He’s terrified. He’s broken. I don’t care what he’s done to you, this is, this is... Jesus, I don’t even know.”
Carmen felt the guilt start to build in her. It wasn’t that she had hurt Anthony. No, she still thought he deserved what had happened. The guilt stemmed from the sound of genuine disappointment that now saturated Frank’s voice. She couldn’t bring herself to respond.
“Carmen?”
She couldn’t answer.
“Carmen!”
She could not get the thoughts in her head to form words. But apparently Frank had been able to read her mind.
“Okay. Fine. Just... I, I don’t... I’m so disappointed in you.”
Carmen heard Frank hang up on his end. Still, the phone remained to her ear as her mind raced. Finally, she set the phone down and turned down the next street. She needed to talk to someone. She realized that this was the first time in a long time that she felt totally afraid. Afraid of what, though? She didn’t know the answer exactly; all she knew was that she wanted to talk to her mother. And suddenly she felt like she was 12 years old again.
Ten minutes later, Carmen pulled up outside her mother’s apartment. She got out of her car and locked the door. She was in such a hurry that she didn’t notice Matty’s car parked three spaces in front hers.