Chapter Nine

The week had been a long one for Ava. Between worrying over the mysterious phone call she’d received, trying to maintain her business and Maia’s all-consuming excitement about Natalie moving in, Ava was exhausted. Thank God today was Friday.

This evening would be the start to a wild weekend in which she intended to let loose and have some fun. If that fun included having her legs wrapped around a handsome stranger, all the better. And after everything she was currently going through because of her husband’s inability to keep it in his pants, no one could blame her.

Her attorney, Melissa, had filed a petition to have the lawsuit dismissed. Now, all they could do was wait to see which judge would be assigned the case. The next phase was likely a hearing. Ava couldn’t wait. She was ready to wipe the floor with Dominic. How dare he think he could just walk into her perfectly ordered life, and disrupt everything without any consequences?

By the time she was finished, he’d wish he’d never attempted this foolishness in the first place. Her desk phone rang. “Yes, Karen?”

“A ‘Smitty’ is on the line for you.”

“Put him through, Karen.” Ava waited for the transfer and soon Smitty’s voice came on the line.

“How’s my favorite mob princess?”

“Really, Smitty? You call my work phone making jokes like that.”

“Hey. You are what you are. No denying it.”

Ava laughed. “All right. You got something for me?”

“Yeah I do. Check your email and get back to me after you’ve had a chance to look it over.”

“I’ll get back to you next week.”

“Next week. I thought you’d be chomping at the bit.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I am, but I have plans this weekend so I’m putting all business on hold for a few days.”

“Ava is about to let loose. Don’t let me catch you on the news,” Smitty teased.

Ava ended the call and quickly went to her private email account. The email from Smitty was waiting. No note, only an attachment, a PDF with fifty pages. Ava waited for the information to come out of her printer. As the first of the pages slid out of her printer, she realize the first was a birth certificate. Dominic Sambarino. December 3rd. Only eight years separated them in age.

Ava noticed that no father was listed under parent’s information and the name Martelli nowhere on the birth certificate. The boy had been born at Dade Memorial. His mother’s full name was Carmella Donatella Sambarino.

The birth certificate would be helpful. If things went further with this court business it could definitely go a long way to thwarting Dominic’s case. She wondered how Smitty had been able to get a hold of it so quickly. There was no telling with him.

Putting it aside, she reached for the next page off the printer. It was a photograph of Joseph, Carmella and a very young Dominic. Even at a young age, Ava could see the rage hiding behind his eyes. In the picture Joseph was kissing Carmella’s cheek.

Ava swallowed the rising anger in her throat and put the picture away. She could hear the printer slowing. It was almost done. She moved the waiting pile of papers onto her desk. More photos. Pictures of Carmella and Joseph. Pictures of all three of them together. In none of the pictures was Dominic smiling.

For him to be so adamant about Joseph being his father, he sure didn’t appear to be very fond of him. Ava hated to admit it but the pictures established that there was some kind of relationship between the three. The true extent of it though, could be spun any kind of way with the right attorney. And Melissa was definitely the right attorney.

Ava looked through a few more family photos. Each one made the knot in her neck pull a little bit tighter and she didn’t understand why. She knew Joseph had not been a faithful man. She’d never expected that of him. But seeing photographs of him with another woman, well it was tangible proof of everything she’d tried to lock away.

Dirty little secrets. She guessed everyone had them. She blinked away the tears forming in her eyes. Some things always had a way of coming to the light no matter how much you tried to keep them in the dark.

Frowning, she put the pictures away, only to find that there were more of them. The first was of Dominic and a pretty woman obviously older than him. She quickly thumbed through more of the pictures. They were all the same. Dominic pictured with attractive, older women, some black, some white and others Hispanic. All of the women appeared to be impeccably dressed and expensively coiffed—all in their thirties and forties.

In some photos he was holding the woman’s hand, in others, he had an arm wrapped around their waist or shoulders. He liked older women it seemed.

The last photograph she looked at made her pause. It showed a young Dominic, Carmella and Angelo. Her brother-in-law had never hinted that he had his own relationship with Carmella, other than just knowing her as Joseph’s mistress, but this photo told a different story.

With Angelo kissing her cheek as Dominic looked on, it was more than evident that Angelo had his own dirty little secrets. Maybe Angelo was the boy’s father. Intrigued, Ava put aside the photographs and picked up Smitty’s accompanying notes.

Boy is a high school graduate only. Never held a job in his life. Appears to prefer to keep company with older, well-established women. Lives mainly from an allowance given to him by Carmella and a small trust left to him. Lives in a high-rise penthouse off the beach. Seems to prefer a somewhat extravagant lifestyle.

There is talk of Dominic signing on with one of the other families as a soldier. Boy appears secretive and keeps to himself. Joseph Martelli seems to be the only significant male figure in his life.

Ava rolled her eyes and flipped the page. The next thing that greeted her eyes was a small clipping from the Miami Herald. The clip was almost 30 years old. Ava read on. Domestic disturbance at the home of Carmella Sambarino. Ms. Sambarino was found with a black eye and busted lip. Her attacker, known Miami mob muscle Andre Bonasario, was shown fleeing the scene. Ms. Sambarino later declined to press charges.

Ava turned to the next page. It was another news article from the Miami Herald. It was dated about three months after the previous one. Mob man Bonasario meets his end. Victim of a drive-by shooting. Police are investigating.

She moved to the next page. Local gossip suggests Joseph had Andre whacked. Apparently Andre had been secretly seeing Carmella. Joseph was livid and after it all came to light with the news article, Andre had to be dealt with. Soon afterwards Carmella was pregnant. Some think Dominic is really Bonasario’s kid.

“Bing-o.”

This was it. This was what she needed. It was the smoking gun. Not only was Joseph not listed on the birth certificate, but Carmella apparently was not a one-man kind of woman. All of this combined with the information shedding light on Dominic’s less than stellar character should help her case. The man was clearly a user who had no thoughts of trying to be anything other than a criminal.

Ava was pleased with Smitty’s work. Turning to her desktop, she quickly forwarded the email to Melissa. While it was true they might not be able admit any of Smitty’s surveillance into court, insinuations alone could go a long way to damage Dominic’s credibility. Melissa would know just what to do with the information. Ava looked at the clock on her wall.

“Time to go.”

Turning off her computer, Ava scooped up all of Smitty’s information and put it inside her purse. Her heart rate started to accelerate. Well this was it. The time had come. After dropping home to get ready and pack a small bag, it was time to get her wild weekend started. Natalie was staying at the house with Maia and Mrs. Valdez would be staying in the main house as well. So far Ava’s search for a bodyguard was at a firm halt. Seemed some of these so-called bodyguards were too afraid to work for the widow of a mob boss. But she’d find someone. She had to.