A Blood Brother Bond

By Richard J J Cancemi

A Blood Brother Bond is a story of two boys who swore their allegiance to each other as pre-teens and honored that bond throughout their lives.  Their story is told covering decades of their lives in which each has chosen a different side of the Law on which to live.  Despite their different life paths, no one and nothing is ever able to sever their bond of friendship.  Together they experience good and evil in their respective worlds as well as within their own inner selves.  Never passing

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 23, 2015
• ISBN: 9781681397917

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

A Blood Brother Bond is a fictional story based on a true occurrence and set in a real neighborhood. The setting of most of the story is accurate, as are street names and places. The rest is all fiction. Names of characters do not reflect on any persons living or dead.

The two main characters in the book, in the eyes of society, would be considered as either good or bad or both. The reader can decide which is which. The story wishes to offer a challenge that what society labels as good may not be good and what is bad may not be bad. The dichotomy of good and bad resides in everyone.

Morality and legality are contrasted, as is justice and vengeance, right and wrong. The reader is left to decide where to place the appellations on the characters and their actions, should he wish to do so. It is hoped that the task will not be an easy one.

Love and loyalty are the main undercurrents of the motivational forces within the story. Hopefully, the reader will be slow to judge, and will replace future knee-jerk reactions with a thoughtfulness that examines the collective pronouncements and judgments that society makes for us.

Certainly there live bad and evil people, as well as good and virtuous people; sensible and nonsensical things in our lives occur, but let us all decide for ourselves and not accept blindly, nor carry within ourselves the thoughts, opinions and judgments of others. Not all is as it seems. I reject evil and badness in and of themselves, but try to judge things and people objectively and independently. Some wise person once said, Believe nothing of what you hear and only half of what you see.

ONE

It was ten pm on a winter’s night in Brooklyn, New York. Gray-haired Gianni Elchi, or Old Man Elchi as he was more often referred to, was humming softly while polishing the long mahogany bar in his saloon on the corner of Central and Willoughby Avenues. He was readying things for the next day’s business before closing up for the night. The day had been moderately busy with his regular neighborhood customers. Elchi’s Bar & Grill was a friendly place and Gianni’s cheerfulness always raised a man’s spirits no matter how low they might be. He provided some free snacks of antipasti so that no one had to drink on an empty stomach. He frowned on anyone becoming intoxicated in his bar. Besides, while helping to keep his drinkers sober, the spiciness of the food invited more cold beer to be drunk. All in all, he was a respected and revered man throughout the neighborhood.

It had been a long day and business had been fairly good considering the recession which had the country in its grip. Life had been good to him. He earned enough to support his wife and help his children, young Gianni, his son, and his daughter Anna, both of whom were attending College. Anna wanted to be a nurse, and Little Gianni as his parents referred to him, was married, working and also studying to become a lawyer. Both children were a delight to their parents who were very proud of them. The fact that both children appreciated that education was the best road to success and security was a comfort to both parents. Sighing with his life’s good fortune, it was well that he didn’t know what the day was yet to bring.

While he polished the bar and cleaned up the remains of the day, he began thinking back to his humble beginnings in Sicily and a poverty that many could never imagine. There were no luxuries in the life of the paesani and every day brought a struggle merely to eat and stay alive. His mother, Ida, tried to keep clean a house whose dirt floors defied cleaning. Dust occupied every space. Gianni’s father, Vito, had fought with Garibaldi as a young man supporting his campaign to unify and modernize Italy, in hopes that life would become better for all those living at the mercy of rulers, landowners and merchants. When the war of rebellion was over and the smoke cleared, it became obvious to most that, even with the dissolution of the Papal States and Dukedoms and the creation of a united Italy, conditions in the south would remain the same. Nothing had changed for the peasants. Life was as brutal as it had ever been. As a result, there was a massive resurgence of emigration from southern Italy and Sicily to lands that offered hope for a better way of living.

The years passed and Vito despaired of ever leaving this cruel land that demanded so much of a man and gave back so little. He never had been able to save enough money to pay for a voyage that would take him and his family to a better place. He did not wish that his son Gianni could end up a poor peasant like himself, living worse than an animal. It pained him to see his son breaking his back working so hard and having so little to look forward to. Vito told Gianni that life would be better anywhere else than in Sicily and encouraged him to find a way to pursue the dream on his own.

When the young Gianni, his only surviving child was old enough, he took to heart his father’s urgings to seek his fortune in a place called America. Gianni had had two brothers and two sisters all of whom had died from illnesses that would not have proven fatal had they lived under more humane circumstances. Vito wanted a better life for his last son and for him to carry-on the family name. Gianni worked at every extra job he could find to save enough money to fulfill his father’s wish for him. When he felt that he was ready, had sufficient funds and was man enough to tackle the adventure, he began to discuss it with his father and make plans. Neither he nor his parents took pleasure in the thought of his leaving but it was Gianni’s hope that he would be able to bring them to America in the shortest time possible.

He had watched various families leave for a new start in other countries. Some had gone to South America, some to Australia; others went wherever the boat took them. Some became the victims of charlatans who promised them riches but gave them very little. Others sent them to connections in the New World where factories and mines would exploit their labor. Gianni observed carefully and learned to tell the difference between the good guys and the bad guys who were preaching the doctrine of riches to be had in the New World. He discovered that there were some in his paese, or village, whose relatives had gone to a place in America called Brooklyn in the state of New York. They had written back and said that, although it was difficult, there were jobs and opportunities in America that did not exist in Sicily. A man could get an education, learn to read and write, and make something of himself if he was willing to work. He’d learned that the Puglese family; father Antonio, mother Maria and two sons, Bruno and Nunzio, were planning to leave soon and live in this place called Brooklyn.

With his parents’ approval, Gianni approached the father and said, "Excuse me, Senore Puglese, may I have a word with you? I have a big favor to ask."

Why sure, Gianni. How can I help you? You realize that I’m taking my family to America soon, but whatever I can do, I will do.

It’s this that I wish to discuss with you. I would like your permission to travel with you, if you’d allow me, because I too want to go to America, said Gianni. My father prefers that I not go alone. He respects you very much and mentioned that he would approach you and ask you himself if you would be kind enough to allow me to travel with your family. Since I will soon have to be my own man, I told my father that I would approach you myself. So please excuse that my father has not come to you directly. No disrespect was intended.

I understand and respect you for doing this yourself. I can see that you’ve already become your own man and an honor to your father.

"Thank you, Senore Antonio. I know your sons well and hope they won’t resent my asking you. I haven’t spoken with them yet, as I wanted to seek your permission first."

It will be my pleasure to have you travel as one of my family and to do this favor for your father. I am sure my wife will welcome your presence too, and I know Bruno and Nunzio will be pleased to have you as a companion. He then added, You do know it will cost one hundred dollars for the boat and you will need money when you arrive in America to carry you until you get a job. I have just barely enough for my family, you understand? You can live with us in Brooklyn until you decide where you’d like to go. We have a small, four-room apartment reserved in a house my uncle recently bought. He’s been in America for only fifteen years and already he has his own business and owns a house with six apartments in it! Imagine how impossible that would be here. We are all going to work for him and I’m sure he will have a job for you also. America will truly be a land of opportunity for all of us!

Gianni told him not to worry and that he had saved two hundred dollars and could pay his own passage and still have a hundred dollars left to pay his way in America. And of course, he would welcome a job when he arrived.

May I ask when you are leaving? he said.

The boat sails from Palermo in two weeks. Can you be ready?

I’ve been ready and could leave tomorrow if it were necessary.

Antonio laughed and said, I think you’ll do very well in America.

The following two weeks were taken up with Mamma Elchi making packets of dried meats, cheeses, biscotti, dried fruits, and olives for Gianni to take on the journey. He was told, Be sure to share with the Pugleses. They are being very kind to you and will be like your family. With this, Mamma Ida burst into tears.

Don’t be sad, Mamma, Gianni said. I’m going to America to prepare for you and Pappa to join me as soon as possible. It won’t be long before we’re together again. They are so old and worn already, he thought, and hoped his promise would not prove to be an empty one.

TWO

The day of departure finally arrived. It was a fine spring day, sunny and cool with the scents of orange and lemon blossoms in the air. Gianni thought, I’ll miss this country even though it is a cruel place. The people of the town all came out to wish those who were leaving "Buon Viaggio!, Buona Fortuna! and Vai con Dio!" There were lots of tears, hugs, kisses and sorrow to see loved ones go off, perhaps never to be seen again.

Gianni kissed his mother and father, saying, "Don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay with the Pugleses. And remember I will send for you as soon as I am able. Ciao Mamma; ciao Pappa."

The parish priest was there to bless the voyagers and to say a prayer for their safety and success. "Andate con Dio," (Go with God). With this final wish and the Sign of the Cross, the travelers boarded the train and left for Palermo, their port of departure.

For the majority of them, this was their first time to leave their village of Montivago in southern Sicily, and they were overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle when they arrived at Palermo, the major port city. They all secretly hoped and prayed that they would not meet up with, and have any demands made on them by, the local Mafia. In those days, the Mafia was an ‘alternate government’ which began as a protective union after the disappointing years following the Garibaldi revolt. They provided ‘protective services’ for the poor peasants against the land owners and politicians who took advantage of them. They were the Robin Hoods of their day, but they did exact a toll from each for their ‘services’. They considered themselves to be ‘men of honor’. For the most part the peasants regarded them this way too but also knew to respect the heavy hand the Brotherhood would wield against those who thwarted or betrayed them. However in time, like all governments, it too became corrupted by the power it accumulated. Gianni and the Puglese family boarded the ship without incident, and after searching, they found their meager assigned areas in the hold of the ship.

They were fortunate to have been booked on a three-masted steamer which would take between two to three weeks to reach America, rather than the non-steam ships which took four to five weeks or more. The port was filled with ships of all sizes teeming with people, and everything appearing as a chaotic mess. Yet the ship left the berth on time with the tide and was soon sailing out into the Mediterranean Sea. The passengers stood along the ship’s railings watching the distance grow between them and their homeland. Women sobbed and many a man had tears in his eyes. Most were thinking, Will I ever see my loved ones again; will I ever return? Addio, Sicilia! When the island coast was out of sight, they all went below to settle in and prepare for the long journey to the unknown land, America. The word held a magic meaning of hope and freedom for all of them.

The winds were favorable and, with the seas calm, the ship made good progress. The Captain announced that it shouldn’t take more than two weeks to reach America, even though they would stop at Gibraltar, and later the Azores, to re-provision their stores. This was good news to people who had lived all their lives inland and had never seen the sea. On board, they had formed a sort of community, and sang and danced and shared their food with each other. Most mornings and evenings, the passengers also walked the decks for exercise, as the Captain advised, to maintain their health. The days passed pleasantly enough in spite of their crowded quarters, and Gianni and the Puglese boys, being as healthy as any of the other males on board, were experiencing surges of hormones. Every young female that they saw aboard caused lust-filled thoughts, desires and embarrassing responses in their trousers. They could look but never touch if they valued their lives, for to deflower a virgin before her marriage would disgrace her and her family and make her almost ineligible for anyone to want to marry her. Besides, the father and brothers of such girls would show no mercy, unless you married the girl, and the offender could be ‘lost at sea’.

They thought it their good fortune that a young prostitute was on board. She had no family and had no means to earn enough money to emigrate other than to sell her body. She had made this decision hoping that it would prove to be not too damaging to her future, for she did not like what circumstances were forcing her to do; in fact she was very ashamed of what she was doing. On board, she would be allowed to ply her trade discretely if she chose, for a small monetary consideration to the Captain. The more money she ‘earned’, the more freedom it would buy her in America, she reasoned. She had a strength of character and determination in her that made her equal to the unpleasantness she endured, but one had to do what one had to do in life. She had her own small cabin and was nick-named by those few in-the-know "La Paloma" or the dove. She was a very good-looking young woman with a bella figura, and presented a difficult temptation to resist. Whenever she passed by, the scent of lemon blossom followed her. It made the men sniff the air deeply, roll their eyes and mutter, "Mamma mia!"

She was an object of desire for the young males and Gianni, Nunzio and Bruno were no exception. One evening, they were on deck and saw her talking to two men. Money was surreptitiously passed to her and as she turned toward her cabin, she glanced over at the boys and smiled beguilingly. That was it! They had to have her, but the elder Pugleses mustn’t know. They followed her and discovered her cabin and decided to see if they could strike a deal. They could not squander their money before New York was reached and Gianni was elected to approach her. It was now the tenth day of their voyage and this opportunity would be gone before long. The following morning Gianni waited in the corridor near her cabin. When she emerged, he approached and said, "Excuse me, Signorina, may I have a word with you?"

"Yes, signore; what is it you want?"

Please do not take offense at my presumption, but I would like to know if I could be fortunate enough to experience your favors, but I don’t know if I can afford such a beauty as you.

This compliment pleased her and she raised a hand to her hair and ran it down to her neck. She almost blushed since most men were not so gallant with her. She responded by saying, Perhaps it is your father who should be seeking my favor, for you are somewhat young.

Gianni replied, "I may be young but I am quite mature in my ways as the Signorina will have observed from her watching me. This did bring a blush to her face, as she had noticed Gianni on deck many times and thought him to be very handsome. In fact, she had even fantasized what sex would be like with him. Gianni added, If the Signorina will be gracious and allow her fee to be within my means, I will do my best not to be a disappointment to her."

What a charmer, she thought. Why not? You are a gentleman despite your young years and this I find appealing, she responded, and told him to come to her cabin in mid-afternoon.

At three o’clock, he tapped on her door, his knees trembling since this was to be his first sexual encounter. La Paloma, whose real name was Rosa, opened the door and beckoned him to come in quickly. She was dressed in her nightgown and was made up beautifully. Gianni’s mouth went dry as he croaked, "Buon giorno, Signorina. My name is Gianni and it would please me to know yours."

"Mi chiamo Rosa and the pleasure is also mine, Gianni." She liked this young fellow very much. He treated her like a lady and not like a putana. She locked the door, took his hand and led