Section Five

Sammy had joined the two hit men as soon as they returned to the restaurant. A mole at the estate had given them a lead on “the Mauser”. He lived in a penthouse on the east side, and it was likely that that was where they would find Elisa. Outside the penthouse, Sammy put an ear to the door and listened. Silence. He signaled to the two men, who prepared to throw all their weight into the door. They crashed into the door, which flew off its hinges. The Finn and the Italian broke from the kiss and looked up in surprise and fear as they were ripped from their blissful world into harsh reality. Matiel held Elisa tightly in his arms, and at the sight of this, Sammy adopted a look of pure hatred and fury from the doorway. He strode into the room and yanked Elisa from the safety of his strong arms. The Butcher snapped and the hit men joined him. As he held Elisa by the arm, Sammy sneered at Mauser Matiel.

            “Soon, fool,” he said in a quavering voice, “you will find out why they call me The Butcher. And you—” he warned, turning to his fiancée, “I will deal with you later.” The hit men cracked their knuckles and grinned menacingly at Matiel, who stood in his living room helplessly as Elisa was dragged out of the room and out of his life. Perhaps forever. Elisa looked back at him despairingly with a face of pity and sorrow. Sammy was silent on the car ride back to Morelli’s, but as soon as they entered, he exploded into a fit of rage.

            “How could you, Elisa, how could you?! He is a Finn, and a damn contemptible one at that! You and I are engaged to be married, and this is how you repay me?” Sammy slapped her across the face with rage.

Elisa’s father walked in, wiping his hands on a towel. “What is going on, Sammy?” Why are you yelling at my daughter?”

“She was found kissing a Finn in his penthouse.” Giuseppe’s puzzled expression turned into one of shock. “And not just any Finn. Mauser Matiel.”

Morelli looked at his daughter disbelievingly. “Is this true? You? Him?” He put a hand on the bar to steady himself.

Elisa looked at both of them indignantly. “Yes, father, it is. I love him. And there is nothing you can do about it.” With that, she stormed out of the room, leaving the two gangsters looking at each other with a mixture of worry and rage.

Matiel sat tied with coarse rope to a wooden chair in the dim office of an abandoned warehouse, staring indignantly ahead. The massive hit men looked on menacingly as they prepared to carry out Sammy’s orders. While they were not particularly intelligent, the two were good at what they did. Matiel was a fool to have crossed Sammy. He would pay.

“So, Mauser, think you’re pretty slick, eh? Trying to nail the Butcher’s broad?” the first hit man said as he donned brass knuckles.

Matiel rolled his eyes exasperatedly . “I was not attempting to violate Miss Morelli. She had no objection to our act of affection. Just one harmless kiss, and a damn good one at that. And if you care to know,” he paused dramatically, “She enjoyed it. She loves me, and I her. Does that penetrate that thick skull of yours?” the Finn sized up the one with the brass knuckles. “No, I suppose not.” This last remark earned him a crushing blow across the jaw, opening a bloody gash three inches long.

“Look, Finn, you’re not in a position to be criticizing. Any more comments like that and you’re gonna find yourself in a worse situation than a couple little scratches.” The second hit man clubbed him across the eye to prove his point. Matiel was in a bad way; barely holding onto consciousness, with numerous bruises and scrapes on his face and neck. The first Sicilian leaned over Matiel’s face.

“You’re not making this any easier on yourself. You made a bad mistake, and you’re gonna pay. We’re gonna make an example out of you for the rest of your Finnish friends.” He raised a fist to hit Matiel, and Matiel closed the eye that wasn’t swollen shut to brace himself. The hit man was interrupted, however, by the sound of a Colt .45 bullet striking the door lock at point-blank range. A feminine figure kicked open the damaged door and pointed her gun at the closest of the Sicilians. “Il Gatto”, he breathed fearfully. Yes, Elisa was the most beautiful and deadly woman in the family. Two lowly hit men would never dare to cross her. But they had their orders from a higher authority. “What do you want, signorina?      

Elisa looked at him dangerously. “Let him go,” she said in a steady, cold voice. The Sicilians looked to each other, confused as to how to handle this.

“Sorry, doll, I’m afraid we can’t do that. However, if you would like to join us,” the hit man said as he grinned and motioned to Matiel’s limp, unconscious form slumped in the chair, “feel free.” She narrowed her eyes at them and fired her gun. She missed the Sicilian by a hair, as a warning. This act wiped the smiles off the two’s faces, as they advanced towards her. With agility by which she had earned her nickname, she darted past them and slashed Matiel’s bindings with a small knife. The girl gingerly helped the barely-conscious Finn stand as the two hurried, out of the room, leaving the gangsters standing confused. Elisa was prepared and had a car waiting. She helped Matiel into the back seat and joined him on the other side.

“Where to, signorina?” the driver asked.

“Head upstate. Quickly.”

The driver nodded acknowledgement and sped off, as Elisa tended to Matiel’s wounds. He looked up at her and smiled.

“You…you saved my life… kiittää, prinsessa.” With these words, he once again passed out.

Elisa, with a soft expression on her face, kissed the top of his head and closed her eyes to rest. She knew of a small farm upstate that her mother had shown to her when she was very young. Matiel could recuperate there, and get some well-earned rest. The secret of its location had died with her mother, but Elisa remembered. They would be safe there.            An hour later, a jolt of the car woke Elisa from her slumber. Matiel was still out cold. Poor man…he had really taken a beating from Freddy and Angelo, the two hit men. Elisa knew them well; they were friends of her father’s. The last three days had been so…different than what she was used to. The life she had known was one of crime and deception, yet here she was, falling in love with the founder of the Finnish Perhe. It was utterly absurd. She looked around and saw they were now approximately one mile from the cottage. “Thank you, Armando. Drop us off here, and remember, you never saw us.”

“Sí, signorina.” Elisa stepped out of the car and helped Matiel as he groggily came to. He began to try to speak, but Elisa put a finger to his lips.

“Don’t speak. We need to get going. The cottage I’m taking you to should be about a mile from here. Can you make it?” He nodded and shakily stood on his own two feet. “Be careful.” Matiel smiled at her as he tenderly kissed her, then winced as her lips pressed against a cut. She drew back apologetically, her brow creased with worry.

“Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. It’s not bad pain. It’s the kind that lets me know there’s a girl there who’s worried about me, instead of the stalkers and gawkers I normally find.” Elisa beamed at him as she realized his fighting spirit was returning. Mauser Matiel certainly didn’t go down easily. If he did, she thought to herself, he wouldn’t be the founder of the Finnish mafia. It figured.

“Of course, now we need to get moving. Both families will be out looking for us shortly, and I don’t really trust that driver. He’s chicken; that’s why he’s just a driver.” Matiel chuckled understandingly and smiled at the clever girl he was lucky enough to be accompanied by.

The next mile passed quickly, and soon they arrived at a quaint, rustic little cottage. It was overgrown with ivy and weeds, but it would provide a good hideout for the two. Perhaps a bit more than that, even.

“It’s…uh…nice,” stated Matiel as he looked around the building. Elisa stood on the grass, clutching her handbag with a grin on her face.

“What’s the matter, bello? Not nice enough for you? Maybe you’d prefer to return to your luxurious penthouse and wait in comfort for my father to find you? That’s fine; your decision.” Matiel strode towards her and put his arm around her waist.

“Oh, hush, prinsessa. It’s fine.” With that, he kissed her squarely on the lips. “Don’t worry about what I think. What time is it, anyway? I seem to have left my watch at home…”

“That’s okay. It’s one o’clock right now…why?” Matiel shrugged as he looked at her beautiful face.

“Just curious,” he said as he pushed aside some ivy and tried opening the door. Nothing. He tugged harder at the elaborate antique handle, and with the sound of vines tearing apart, the door opened squeakily. The interior was covered with dust and cobwebs. Elisa looked around with disgust.

“Looks like we’re going to be doing some housecleaning, eh?”

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