Page 19

Tito

“I’m sorry, Mama,” I said.

“Why are you insulting him?” my mother questioned in a firm voice. “Santa Madre! Max has been a Godsend to this family since before you were in diapers.”

I did feel a little bad about it, but the questions wouldn’t go away. “Mama, I ask you… Has he ever told you his last name? Has he ever talked to you…Like a regular man? Sharing anything about his family or his history? Has he changed at all since the day you met him?”

“Chiudere il becco, Tito!”

I shook my head. “Mama, I’m serious. You need to settle down…” I paused as I realized what I just said.

“Uh-oh,” Romeo muttered.

Yeah, I’d done it, alright.

Valencia and Julianna looked back and forth at us all. They were unaware of my mother’s rules about how you addressed her.

There weren't many, but there were two lines that you never crossed with my mother.

Never tell her how to cook or patronize her by asking her to calm down.

Even Uncle Stephano knew better than to tell her to…

settle down . She was about to show everyone in this room just how Italian she was and I would be said example of a rule breaker.

“Che bruta, what a bunch of stronza! Santa Madre, he is an amico. How could you be so mean?”

I lowered my head. I could see this would go nowhere fast. My mother had taken this the wrong way.

Yes, I did feel super curious to know if she had spoken to Max in a personal conversation.

They had both been here for years and years.

She was always cooking and in the house somewhere, basically running the household.

So you would think, she would have had talks with him.

Not that she would share them, my mother was many things but a gossip wasn’t one of them.

Raising my head, I told her in Italian, “Mi dispiace, Mama.” I would apologize then she would drop it and be on her way.

The room went quiet as Valencia took my hand in hers as support.

“Ok, ti perdono,” my mother replied. She forgave me. “But figlio, why would you say such things?”

I shook my head. All I would do was land in trouble again if I told her. Too many things didn’t add up about ole Max. I didn’t really know why after all these years, but these doubts about him just crept up on me recently. The non-aging, his acting like some robot, the pantry thing.

“So you refuse to tell me?” my mother asked.

“You’ll just get mad at me.” I decided to be honest. Any other approach got your goose cooked with this woman.

She always knew if you weren’t being truthful.

She was a sharp lady and as smart or smarter than anyone I’d ever met.

But she was a bit temperamental and she could swat your butt with a spatula like no one else.

I chuckled under my breath while remembering a few of those.

Then I paused while hoping she didn’t hear it.

She actually reached out to grab my ear. “Tell me the truth, Tito. Proprio adesso!” she demanded.

“Oww! Mama!” I exclaimed.

“Oh, wow.” Romeo chuckled.

She hadn’t done the ear thing in years, so I knew she was mad. It hurt like a bitch but I was an adult now, so I could take a bit more pain than when I was ten. Still, it was embarrassing too. “Ok, ok!” I told her in a bit of desperation.

She let go of my ear and then again crossed her arms over her chest.

I released a long breath. Knowing if I wasn’t careful, I could be digging a deeper hole for her to kick me into. But I went on and explained, “You have to admit, he hasn’t aged a day since he came here. He also has no emotions at all. And why does he go into the pantry so much?”

Staring at me for a minute, she then leaned her head back and broke into laughter.

I blinked at her response. I never expected for her to laugh. I expected a swat on the head or more Italian reprimands, but not laughter.

“Oh, mio Dio.” She kept laughing.

I shook my head and glanced at Valencia.

She was grinning at my mother’s laughter, but she met my gaze and shrugged.

“My, my. What an imagination you have.” Mama sniggered a bit.

“I thought you would outgrow this need to be a detective.” She giggled.

“That is how Max is, son. He was brought up to be a butler by strict family tradition. To act like a butler, talk like a butler. BE a butler. That means you never show what you think or feel. Then some people have wonderful genes. I asked him once about his age and he told me his father was still alive and he looked younger than his 95 years. As for the pantry. Max has all kinds of duties, Tito. Like he has to get napkins, doilies, straws and many other things when he serves drinks or lunch in the study. Especially when Stephano has guests. You question things that aren’t unusual.

So do not continue your investigation into Max, si? ”

I took a deep breath and nodded.

Reaching over, she mussed up my hair. “That’s my bambino.” Then she smiled at Valencia and Julianna. Turning, she made her way to the kitchen.

Valencia tugged on my hand to get my attention.

I looked over at her.

“So what do you think?” she asked me.

I shrugged. “I won’t investigate him anymore. But that doesn’t mean I am satisfied.”

“Best not let Zia catch you at it,” Romeo teased me. “I remember when you were what? Fourteen? When she took a spatula to your behind, because she busted you for—”

Cutting his revisit to our teens short, I raised my hand at him. “If you insist on going down memory lane Romeo, then I can do the same. As in we shall not test Shakespeare’s wrath… Ok?”

He paused and blinked at me. “You wouldn’t,” he exclaimed in shock.

“Would you?” I raised my hands innocently. “Nothing good can come from telling a story of my young teens. Or your teens either, correct?”

Julianna looked over at Romeo and asked, “What about Shakespeare?”

He shook his head.

The girls laughed as they could see these stories were taboo as far as us guys were concerned.

“That’s ok,” Julianna said with a shrug. “When Dante comes back, I’m sure he’ll tell me.”

“No, I’m afraid not,” Romeo replied. “As much as he would like to tell you, he would have much to lose as well. We were all fourteen once upon a time.” He laughed.

I laughed with him then said, “Except for Max, I’ll bet.”

“Now, now,” Romeo warned me as he stood and helped Julianna stand from her chair. “You’d better lay off this case, Sherlock. Or there will be a spatula with your name on it, in the future.”

We all laughed.

I might lay off Max but the pantry and its secret door wasn’t off limits, was it?

Julianna nodded at Valencia. “Ok, we only got a half an hour until the Zoom call with my parents—I mean with…” Her eyes sparkled with unshed tears.

Valencia stood and grabbed her hands. “It will be okay. We will sit together and face them. They raised you, Julie. They are still your parents. That hasn’t changed.”

Julianna gave her a nod and bit at her lip.

“So, where are we going to have it?” I asked

“In my room,” Julianna replied. “More privacy.”

I tugged on Valencia’s hand then looked up at Romeo. “Ready?”

He nodded.

Julianna and Romeo led the way out of the dining room.

We all saw Max pass by the stairway as he carried a tray.

“See?” Romeo said. “He had a doily right under that glass.”

“Doily, my ass,” I griped.

“What?” Romeo asked. “Damn, you aren’t giving it up, are you?”

“I have something to check on. If it leads nowhere, then I will not go any further. No more questions about him. Not that I would get any answers anyway.”

“You always had good instincts, Tito,” Romeo admitted. “I have to admit that. It’s what makes you such an excellent guard. You rely on your gut. I mean I know Max practically raised us if you think about it. But you did have some good points.”

I scoffed. “My mom didn’t think so. I never thought she would laugh like that.”

“It's just the way you said it all, I think?” Valencia said as we all went up the stairs now. “Like him not aging, and the pantry thing?”

“What do you think is up with him?” Julianna asked. “I ask because I wondered those same things about him when I got here.”

“That’s a good question…What do I really think?” I replied as we went down the hallway. “I’m not sure. It’s just a feeling. Like how could someone look the same for almost forty years? Is it possible?”

“Well, there is Cher,” Julianna suggested.

Valencia laughed. “Yes! Wow. The way she looks and dresses? It even makes me feel old.”

“Dolly Parton?” Romeo suggested. “Now that is a total mystery.”

“Yes, totally,” Valencia agreed. “I mean I don’t care what anyone says. She looks forty and has to be 80.”

“Maybe if you’re worth millions, you can afford some unknown youth drug?” Julianna asked.

“You mean that only us poor people don’t know about?” I asked.

“Poor?” Valencia asked. “Look at where you are.” She waved her hands around at the luxurious surroundings.

“But if there is a serum, Sis. You and I will be looking into that in about twenty years,” Valencia said.

“Nahhh,” both Romeo and I said in unison.

The girls paused their steps to stare at us.

“You are both angelic to look at,” Romeo said.

I agreed with him, “You won’t need any of that serum for at least fifty years.”

“Good, that gives us enough time to save up the money for it,” Valencia teased.

When we got to the door, Romeo opened it.

We all stepped in and then he shut it.

Julianna stopped in her tracks.

Romeo paused and looked over at her. “What is it?”

She motioned to the table that had three chairs sitting at it. “How did he know?”

“Know what?” I asked.

She pointed at the table.

On it was a tray with a pitcher of what looked like iced tea, four glasses and a small ice bucket.

“Max,” Julianna said.

Romeo smirked. “Well, I’m thirsty.

I let out a sigh and explained it, “I think he listens and then he improvises. A butler who supplies everyone’s needs.”

“Or this is a part of what you were saying,” Valencia suggested.

“Yes, it is sort of creepy, if you stop to think about it,” Romeo said. “But he’s been doing that for as long as I can remember. I just always thought Zia told him what we were going to do, or when we had friends coming.”

“I did too,” Julianna said. “Like when I would arrive for a meeting with your dad, he would have my favorite soda waiting in the study where I was to meet with Stephano. I mean it could be that Stephano always told him I was coming, I guess?”

“See?” Romeo shook his head at me.

“What?” I asked.

“Now you got my woman doing it.”

Julianna laughed. “Well, I am a lawyer and always loved mysteries, remember, babe?”

Romeo nodded. “Yeah, I know. You love all those shows too. CSI, Law and Order. But now he’s got you in on this whole Max is a monster idea.” He chuckled.

“Oh, careful now,” I joked. “I never said that!”

He shook his head and asked, “So what were you saying? He never ages, he never shows any emotion. Just what exactly would he be then?”

“A vampire?” Valencia suggested.

I looked over at her. “No, he’s out in the daytime.”

“Yeah, but out in the house, right?” Julianna stated as she opened her laptop.

I looked back and forth at the twins. “No…”

“Yeah, I have to agree with Tito,” Romeo said. “I think we would have noticed if he was sucking us dry as we slept!” He then laughed.

Julianna tisked as she typed on her keyboard.

Valencia laughed too. “Yeah, that would be a huge secret that wouldn’t stay hidden for what, how long?”

I shrugged. “Since before any of us were born?”

“Your dad said he came when he and your mom got married, right?” Julianna stared at her laptop.

“That’s what he said,” Romeo replied. “So let me see, Luca is thirty-seven. So thirty eight. So yeah, maybe forty years ago.” He paused as if to think about it, then added, “Wow.”

“Max looks to be about thirty seven or eight himself,” Valencia stated in a small voice.

“See?” I raised my hands up. “So was he a twelve-year old when he first arrived?”

We all stared at each other because this reasoning made everything I’d said come to life again as logical, despite my mom laughing at me.

“Hello?”

Now, we all froze and swung our gazes over to the laptop.

An older couple were on the screen.

“Mom,” Julianna sat down in the chair in front of the table.

Valencia came over and sat next to her.

“Dio mio!” the woman on the screen gasped as she visibly paled.