“All right, girl,” she sounded pleased. “You got to hold out until tomorrow then you and Luke can do the nasty. It has to be tomorrow.”
“Shirleen, Luke and I are never going to do the nasty.”
“Unh-hunh.” Now she sounded like she didn’t believe me.
I rolled my eyes and came to a stop at a red light.
“He there now?” she asked.
“No, I’m on my way to pick up Sissy.”
“He let you out?” Now she sounded surprised.
“Not exactly.”
“Oh Lord.” Now she sounded worried. “What’re you and Sissy plannin’ to do? Daisy’s over and we’re gonna watch a Days of Our Lives marathon. Now that I got a day job, I got to Tivo Days of Our Lives. I watch the whole week solid every Sunday afternoon. It’s a ritual. You and Sissy could come over, we got popcorn.”
“Sissy and I are going to talk to Vito Zano.”
Silence.
“Shirleen?”
“Girl, why in the hell are you and Sissy goin’ to talk to Vito Zano?” Now she sounded kind of mad.
“He’s Dom’s uncle. Sissy and I both know him. We’re going to ask him to help us out. He loves us. He’s Uncle Vito.”
“Uncle Vito my ass. Are you crazy?” Now she sounded like she thought I was crazy.
“Relax, Shirleen, I have it all figured out.”
“Shee-it, girl. You’re cracked,” she took the phone away from her ear and I heard her talking to Daisy then I heard Daisy screech. “Is she crazy?”
Jeez.
Shirleen came back to me. “Tell me what chance I got of talkin’ you out of this fool idea.”
“Zip,” I informed her.
“Tell me where Sissy’s stayin’. We’ll meet you there.”
“Shirleen, there’s no need.”
“There’s a need, there’s so much of a need, I’m missin’ my Days of Our Lives ritual. Tell me the address.”
“Shirleen –”
“Tell me.” Now she sounded like she wasn’t going to take no for an answer.
I told her.
* * * * *
Sissy, Shirleen, Daisy and I rolled up to Uncle Vito’s house in Englewood.
He lived in what looked like your normal, average, everyday house in a normal, average, everyday neighborhood. It wasn’t until you got inside and saw the Picasso scribble framed on the wall and swam in his indoor pool off the back room that you found out he was loaded.
We all trooped up to the house and knocked on the door. Uncle Vito’s wife, Aunt Angela, opened the door.