“True,” Mimi said.
“Well, that made him crazy. He took it as a threat. ‘You bitch,’ he yelled, and he grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me. ‘If I ever find out that you squealed on me, I’ll rip your heart out.’”
“Holy shit!” Mimi said. “Did you call the cops?”
“I yelled, ‘Screw you, Nicky. I quit,’ and I ran toward the door, but he got in front of me and blocked me. ‘You can’t quit on me,’ he screamed. ‘You can’t walk out on me. I confide in you, I tell you my secrets, I pay you triple time and this is how you treat me? You’re gonna walk out on me and tell the lawyers that I’m hiding cash in the safe?’
“I shook my head and pushed him back. ‘I didn’t say I’d do that, Nicky. I said they could subpoena me. But I can’t work here anymore. I’m done. This isn’t good for either one of us.’ I turned around to walk out the door, and the next thing I know he takes a swing at me, clips me on the side of my face and knocks me to the floor. Then he stands over me and starts bawling. ‘I’m so sorry,’ he says. ‘I didn’t mean it. You know I love you. Please don’t leave me.’ I got up, ran out of the office and came straight here. I can’t go home, Mimi. I don’t know how to handle this. If Preston finds out, he’ll go over there and kill him.”
“Where is Preston?”
“I think he’s home now. They were working today. Nicky wasn’t lying about the twenty-two contracts. They’re big transports to naval bases. My dad and Stanley came in to work on the details and then they’re flying back to D.C.”
“Are you going to tell Preston what happened?”
“Look at my face. All the makeup in the world isn’t going to hide this bruise. I thought about making up a story, that I slipped at the bus stop, but Pres won’t believe it. I’m not a good liar. He’ll see right through me.”
“Well, you did the right thing today, Chris. I’ve been telling you for months to quit that job and get away from that creep.”
Christine nodded. “I know, but what am I going to do now? How can I go home to Preston? He’ll know. He’ll go straight to Nicky’s and beat the hell out of him.”
Nathan shrugged. “Nicky’s got it coming. Besides, you quit. What do you care?”
“Nate, my dad’s not going to let me quit. He wants me to keep working there.”
“You have to stand up to him,” Mimi said.
“Easier said than done. But I got a bigger problem: what am I going to do tonight?’
The phone rang and Ruth called out, “Christine, the phone’s for you. I think it’s Preston.”
“Meems,” Christine whispered, “tell him I’m not here.”
“How can I do that? My mother just yelled out your name. He knows you’re here.”
“Oh God, what am I going to say?”
Nathan said, “Tell him you’re coming right home. I’ll go with you.”
Christine nodded and took the handset. “Hi, honey, I’m here with Nate and Mimi and…” She paused and listened. “No, I don’t know why Nicky’s been calling the house nonstop.” Pause. “He’s been saying he’s sorry? No, I don’t know what that means.” Pause. “No, Preston, do not let him come over to the house. I don’t want to see him. I don’t ever want to see him again.” Christine started to cry. “Pres … Pres, just listen. I quit my job today. I’m fed up with Nicky and his bullshit and I quit.” Pause. “No, don’t come over to Mimi’s. Really, Pres…” She hung up. “He’s coming over.”
* * *
Nathan was standing outside on the stoop when Preston’s Bonneville screeched to a stop in front of the building. Preston jumped out and headed for the door, but Nathan stopped him.
“Hang on, Pres. Let me talk to you for a minute.”
“What’s going on, Nate? Something’s wrong. Chrissie’s crying. It’s that asshole Nicky, isn’t it? He’s been calling the house all night saying he’s sorry. What the fuck did he do? I’ll kill that son of a bitch. What did he do, Nate? What happened to Chrissie?”
“Slow down. I want you to take it easy. Chrissie’s upstairs and she’s upset, but she’s okay. Nicky was an asshole today, he went off on Chrissie, but she quit her job and now it’s over. It’s finished. She’s not going back, and she never has to see him again. The last thing we need is for you to get upset and get out of control. She needs our support. Most of all, she needs you to be compassionate and understanding.”
“I’m not going to get mad at Chrissie. I love her. I’ve been begging her to quit that bullshit job for weeks.” Preston appeared to calm down, but then he looked in Nathan’s eyes. “It’s more than that, isn’t it, Nate? There’s something else, isn’t there? It’s not just about her quitting her job, or she would have come home. She wouldn’t need to stop at Mimi’s.” He pushed Nathan aside and bounded up the stairs.
Mimi met him at the door and quietly said, “Please be kind to her. She’s been through a lot today.”
The minute Preston saw the bruise, he flew into a rage. “He did this to you? He hit you?” He spun around and headed for the door. “I’m going to teach that punk a lesson.”
Christine ran for him, wrapped her arms around him and held tightly. “Please, please don’t go over there. He’ll call the police and you’ll get arrested. It’ll just make it worse. I quit my job today. I’m not going back. Can’t we just leave it at that?”
Preston was incensed. His face turned beet-red, his muscles tightened and his breathing rate doubled. He was ready to explode. “The bastard hit a defenseless woman. He hit my wife, for God’s sake! I’m going over there and teach that prick a lesson he’ll never forget.”
“Whoa, hold on, Pres,” Nathan said as calmly as he could. “Chrissie’s right. He’s probably at home and drunk, and if you go there and cause a scene, you’ll end up in jail.”
“Please don’t go there,” Christine said. “Pres, there’s something more important. You have to help me talk to my father. He doesn’t want me to quit my job. I called him a few minutes ago and told him what happened, and he said he’d straighten it out; he didn’t want me to quit. He insisted I return to work on Monday.”
“Not happening.”
“Pres, it’s my job to keep my eye on Nicky and report to my dad every day. Dad promised me it would never happen again, and he wants me to keep working. Pres, I don’t want to go back. I’m afraid of Nicky. I think he’s crazy. I’m afraid of what he’ll do to me. Please help me talk to my dad.”
“You’re not going back,” Preston said, hugging his wife. “I’ll talk to Vittie. I’m not going to let you go anywhere near Nicky ever again. If the mighty Vittie Zielinski doesn’t like it, he can kiss my ass. I don’t give a damn about his crooked business or any of his shady deals, and I’ll tell him that to his face. Shit, if he doesn’t watch out, I’ll blow the whistle on his whole goddamn operation, and he knows it.”