Ransom

The start

Elmira, NY
December 3, 1946
8:32 PM

Sitting down at the dining room table, my father raised his nearly empty glass of gin to his lips. He was anxious. Tapping his fingers, and bouncing his leg. He's been this way since last week. Always looking out of the window through the blinds, making sure he didn't raise them super high. Making sure the doors, and windows were locked. He'd tell me I'd have to be inside before the sun began to set, and that I could never go far from home. Everytime I asked him what he was so nervous for, he'd stay silent. Never answering my questions.

He took a small sip, before sighing and lowering his head. My father was never one to show his emotions. Tonight, however, he doesn't seem to care about the expressions he's making. He fills his glass before standing up and walking over to the shelf that holds our family pictures.

He raised his hand to pick up a photo of our family. It was the first photo we ever took here in America. 'Our new home (1942.6.23)' was written across the bottom. We were standing in front of our house. My mother was smiling and holding my hand, while my father was wearing a wide smile and holding the Dominican flag in the air. I was about 4 in the picture. We had just purchased our first home. 3852 Abbott Street. They came to the US in 1938. I was born a month after. Since then, we've been here in Elmira.

"You know mijito, this isn't what I imagined." He said, looking at the picture in his hands. His face, filled with an emotion that I couldn't quite place.

"What do you mean Pa?" I questioned, standing up from the couch across the room. I walked up beside him and looked at the old photo. I smiled gently at the image.

"When we came here, I promised your mother a good life. I promised to work for everything. I told myself I'd never allow people tell me I'm not good enough for this country, and have them be right. And I've done all of that. I fulfilled all of them." He replied, setting the photo down on the shelf in its respective place.

"So, what is it that didn't go your way?" I asked confusingly. He's given us a good life. He's always provided for us, made sure that I was doing good in school. Kept us happy. He was always working late into the night, sometimes not coming home at all. Always told me that he'd never let a man work harder than him to keep his family happy.

"I told myself that I'd never cheat. I'd work for everything I have. I'd earn it fair. No cutting corners. Nothing illegal. No taking the easy way out. And I.." He trailed off of his words a bit, and turned to me. "I never meant for it to get to where it is now. I told myself that it was a one time thing. That I'd get the money and be done. I've dug myself deeper and deeper. Each night that I'd leave, I'd say it was my last one. I just couldn't get out." He said as he walked over to the dining room table, setting his drink down and holding his hand to his head.

"Pa..what are you talking about? What do you mean you couldn't get out?" Just as I finished my question, there was a knock on the door. My father took a deep breath and walked to the door. Upon opening the door, I saw two Italian men. Both of them slightly taller than my father who stood at 5'11. They were dressed in nice suits, one carrying a small sheet of paper. Both look at my father expressionless.

"Señor Reyes. It's nice to see you again." One of the men say with a small grin on his face. "You didn't think hiding in your home would keep us from seeing you again, did you?" The men walked in to the home, as if it was their own. They walked past us and stood in the center of the living room.

"Pa.." I said as I hid behind him. My father slightly pushed me away from him. "Anthony, go to the room with your mother, and both of you stay there." He stated, not looking away from the men.

"But-"

"Now."

I stood still for a second, before turning away and walking to my parent's room. I shut the door behind me, and pressed my ear to it.

"Aye, mi amor. Que pasa? Por que estas aqui?" My mother questioned, worried. I turned to her and replied in a low whisper.

"Some men are here to see Pa. He told me to come in here and make sure we both stay here."

"What?" She said as she rose from the bed, and walked over to the door. As she reached for the handle, I grabbed her hand and shook my head and pressed my ear back on the door. Her eyes were filled with worry but she nodded her head, and wrapped her arm around me. She gently pressed her ear against the door next to me. We could faintly hear the men talking.

"Why did you disappear Reyes?"

"I don't want to be involved anymore. It's gone too far."

A 2nd voice, belonging to the other man, spoke up.

"You got into this yourself. We've only asked you to do what is expected of you."

"I was told it was one job when I started. Even then the job was more than I was told it would be! That man could've died!"

"Sir, he did things he shouldn't have. Talked to people he shouldn't have. He suffered the consequences."

"No! I was told we were just going to scare him! Send him running home to his mother. You guys beat him half to death!"

"You came here to be in this family-" The first voice started.

"No, this is no family. And I came here to give my family a good life. Too make them happy."

"And to do that, you joined this family. There's no hiding to escape it."

"Well I'm not doing anything else. I'm done."

The 2nd man sighed heavily.

"Señor Reyes, I'm not sure if you know this, but you're under our control. We tell you to do something, you do it. If we asked you to rob someone, you do it. Hell, if we ask you to shine our shoes to perfection, you'll do it. As long as you're alive, and as long as you're in America, your whole family belongs to us."

Silence filled the room for a few seconds before the first man made a loud noise. I can only assume he clapped.

"Now, let's discuss your next job shall we? A young man by the name of Joseph Martin-"

"No. I'm not doing it." My father said firmly.

"Reyes-"

"No! I refuse. I'm not doing it. I'm out. I won't go to police, I won't tell anyone. Puedes confiar en mi."

The second man began to speak.

"Unfortunately, Reyes, it's not that easy to get out.

"Well how do I get out"

"Death."

The moment mother heard him say death, she swung the door open, and ran to my father.

"Death?! Michael what are they talking about?" My mother asked frantically as she looked at the men, not wanting to break eye contact.

My father struggled to find words to explain the situation. He sighed and looked down the the ground. He raised his head to look at me and my mom.

"Madre mía .." He muttered before turning back to look at the 2 men, both of them still standing in the living room.

"Hello, Lucrecia. It's so nice to finally meet you." The first man extended his hand out to my mother. She looked at his hand, and took a step away from him.

"Ah, that's no way to treat a family member, hun."

"You are not family. You are criminals!" My father shouted. The man looked at my father, while the second one cracked a smile.

"Criminals.. Sir, have you forgotten that you joined this family so you could come to America? Without us, you'd be no where. This house wouldn't even be yours. You'd have nothing to your name.