Audrey Hepburn's Pearls: Part I

Chapter 60.1: 1968, Georgina

Chapter 60.1: 1968, Georgina

As predicted, we were late to the club, especially after having to wait at Rossini's for them to give us some lasagna for the old man's pleasure. Where was my mind? Not knowing it was a Wednesday, I hadn't prepared him his customary meal. With Paulie gone, it was up to me.

Genesis' car was still running as I ran out of Rossini's carrying a white paper bag with two servings of their famous lasagna and three cannolis filled to bursting. They'd taken a punch to my wallet, but it was worth it for the old man.

When we got to the club, I dove into the kitchen after ducking through the main room. Frankie was bartending, a rare act for him. He didn't know how to make many of the fancy cocktails that this crowd preferred, and it was easy to detect the unrest in the room because of it.

He of course saw me, giving me a cute surprised expression which made my heart jump and pause. However, there was no time for pausing and I made it down the tiled hallway and into the kitchen without error. Once there, I hastily took out one of our china plates from the cupboard and smacked the lasagna onto it. I tried my best to make it look presentable, but I knew as well as Paulie that the old man only cared about taste, bless him. At least it was still warm.

Hurrying, I flew out of the kitchen, presenting the plate high. In the car, Genesis and I had discussed how we would present this meal. I would hand it off to him at the bar while I took my place behind in order to bartend for the rest of the night.

Imagine my dismay to find Genesis nowhere in sight at the exact moment we were supposed to hand off.

Searching around like a panicked meerkat about to be picked off by a hawk, I craned my neck towards the bar and Frankie was staring at me like he knew what was up. I was standing in the middle of the aisle holding a big plate of lasagna after all. His eyes were wide. 

My brain started going a mile a minute. There was no way we could let him serve his own father. It just wasn't done. And Cha Cha... Both Frankie and I peeked over at his family's booth. Eddie was there, impatiently tapping his nails on the wood in front of him. His father already had his bib around his neck, now gazing at his Rolex. Cha Cha looked up at me questioningly, eyeing the plate. There was no way I'd allow Cha Cha anywhere near Eddie. He hated him more than he hated me.

"Where the hell is Genesis?" I hissed in Frankie and Cha Cha's general direction. "He has one job and he's failing at it right now!"

"I have no idea. I saw his hair when he came in but then he disappeared," Frankie admitted honestly, his face telling me he wished he could help more. It made my heart soften but my panic no less. A finger went up at the far side of the bar and Frankie retreated to take the order apologetically. Now I really felt alone and helpless.

"I take it," Cha Cha offered, his big brown eyes eager and his hands already in the air to take the plate. But I couldn't let him. Not with the way Eddie treated him, as if he were less than a human being. There was only one choice here, as difficult as it was to handle.

"No, baby. I'll take it." I would have patted his head, but both of my hands were occupied.

"No, Eddie there," he said quietly, but near enough to me so I could hear the concern in his voice loud and clear. The fear.

I started to shiver in my shoes. There was no helping it. His fear was giving a reason for my own fear and therefore fueling it. With each minute passing by, the situation was getting more perilous. It was almost as if I could see Eddie getting more annoyed.

With a big breath, I hoped I would steady myself but it made no difference. At that moment, Frankie reappeared with a couple of drinks on one of our black trays and Cha Cha scooped this up professionally, reading the table number dropped between the two glasses. He disappeared quickly, his small body carrying him as swift as a fox.