Two steps forward, in front of the mirror, I almost got spooked by the reflection on the mirror thinking it was someone else.
"Mr., Lee?" Blinking twice, I dragged my attention away from the mirror and back to the tailor with tape in hand. It reminds me an illustrations of medieval executioner.
"Yes?"
"Should we take a break or...?"
"No no, just forgot it's still afternoon, and the whiskey from earlier is wallowing in my head, nothing new." Cracking a crooked cleft on my face, I said. "Let's get on with it eh?" Despite the edge of his brow being subtly curled, the tailor shrugs and starts the procedure.
As the ruler and Maurizio's palms pressed on my collarbone to measure my shoulder, the reflexes to blind him almost took over as my right hand curled two fingers inward.
Goddamn nerves have been up to eleven since noon. I inhaled a deep breath while Maurizo moved away from my left shoulder and exhaled while he switched to the back of my neck.
Calm the fuck down you bastard.
I slowly unclench my hand and let my eyes wander off to use small details around for distraction and also to avoid making eye contact with the guy in the mirror. As Maurizio moves on to my right arm I noticed an ample part of his tattoo close to his left elbow seem to be glistening under lights indicating there's scar tissue under it, the cut of rug under the trifold mirror is pilling more than the rest, one of the red ties hanging on a mannequin has an inconspicuous sign of a round darn, the size seem familiar.....
"Sir, could you turn around? It's easier this way." The Italians' words pulled me out of the trance state I was heading, I massaged my eyes and obliged.
"Certainly."
"And uh, try to relax your arms. You don't have to squeeze your elbow into the rib cage. Nobody's gonna whack your head if you don't." He said in a chatty tone while pressing the end of the tape close to where my upper arm and chest link. I take one second to consider before taking his bait.
"You were a piel verde?" Tracing the tape down to my wrist twice to straighten the wrinkles,
"Yes."
"Back in home?"
"Depends where home is, raise your arm flat please." Again, he measures the length from shoulder to wrist and from wrist to armpit.
"Guess it would be where you were born."
"Then yes."
"They pay you?" His left cheek curls into a smirk.
"Little but few did it for the money. Now, hinge your upper arm forward, like you're resting on a couch please." Doing what he says, the tailor puts the tape end at my shoulder blade and traces the rope all the way to my elbow, then to my wrist again.
"For the pride of the country then?"
"Mainly for that uniform. Men from my hometown joined to hide from debt collectors and their wives." A short muffle came from my back, not sure if it's his comment on the matter or he's just remembering the number.
"And you?"
"I thought the uniform looked dashing... Grazie signore. Arms at ease now." I tilt my head back and see a pleased smile on his face as he bows his head and presses his thumbs on the measurement points on the tape. Nails cave in to mark them.
"That excuse is a quarter century old mate, sure you weren't dodging angry girlfriends with a belly?" Maurizio lets out a chuckle and hangs the tape around his neck like a scarf.
"That's something afterward." He strides back to the open drawer to retrieve a ..... something similar to a theme park's wristband. "Palms up now please." Binding it around my wrist, Maurizio slowly tightens it to the brim without causing discomfort before marking the point with his thumb again.
"After the army or after Faust." Releasing the wristband, Maurizio takes one last look at the marked number and sheds the tape measure of his neck. All while the glint in his eyes changes color simultaneously, deciding if this is stepping through the 'topics with customers'.
Kneeling down next to me by the side, he aligned the tape from waist to heel with head low I can't read his eyes. The silence continues for a little while till he's done with the current measuring. Then with the same enthusiastic voice from earlier, he replies.
"After the army, of course, believe it or not. Back in the days, the miss and misses still found that kind of thing amendable and, well, uniforms fit me will."
"Simple days eh?"
"Si, simple days." A mouth click later he moves behind me again. "Could you take a small step left..... there, perfect!" A shiver runs down the spine because of the unpleasant encounter with the twins earlier, and now Maurizio's taking measurements of the inner thigh from crotch to heel.
"Alright, that's the trussers and blazer done..... I'll use the same pattern for the matter and typically we'll make them more fitting than the market trend, would you like to make any changes to that?" Staring up from the ground, Maurizio ironed out the ridge on his waistcoat with his palm.
I take a moment to consider if my stuff around my ankle will be stuck and decide not to risk it.
"I prefer it to be loose, at least to make sure it won't affect my mobility." He fishes out the pen from his pocket and grab the notebook on the table before I finish my sentence and starts drafting.
"Dearly noted. Anything else for the trouser?" He raised a side of his brow while still scripting at a bewildering speed.
"Not that I can think of at the moment."
"And...." He drags the pronounced for four seconds before he closes the notebook. "Splendid. Now Mr., Lee. Please take off your shoes." Picking up the tape again, the tailor made a please gesture.
Good thing he remembered it. Wonder if I would look ridiculous or a part if I arrive in sneakers.
"Let's see, 25.5, 0.7, 26....." Crouching down in front of me, he starts another round of work. From the pinky toe to the joint, from the middle of arch to the side. The procedure is surprisingly fast considering the sets he took on both feet.
"Good, standard 10 in every way. I'm happy to inform you we have sets in stock that fit you ideally." Maurizio sings cheerfully and hangs the measuring tape on the mannequin with a red tie. "Do you prefer Chelsea boots or Oxford shoes to pair with the outfit?"
I shoot him a 'how the fuck should I know?' look to which he responds like a tutor. "Oxford fits better but boots are more comfortable."
"Boots then."
"Got it, lastly for the waistcoat." He says, delighted, and picks up a new tape measure from that bottomless drawer. "Please raise both of your arms."
As much as it feels like I'm being pinched on the street, I do as he says. Halfway done with my chest, bored out of my mind and the whiskey is finally doing its job. I pick up the conversation from earlier.
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"If you don't mind me asking, you didn't start this business in Faust did you?" Stitching with blood since 1937.
"No, of course not. It was way before I came here."
I felt the tape on my chest loosen before it moved down a few inches to my waist, a hint of pain came from the side of the second rib on the left. Three months later, three bloody months later...... Ribcage bruises and fractures heal fast in comparison to other shit. But skin cuts close to it remain sensitive for a long time after its course of recovery.
"Not contained with your part?"
"Meh, I miss when I know every customer at my doorstep's preference. Made my job much easier…..But yeah, no home's big enough for a boy who thought he was a man." The pressure and the slow pain around my waist and lower rib are released as the tailor finishes the sentence.
"But why Faust? I thought the best stage for your skills is in Europe?" A light chuckle rings behind me, but this time a sense of disappointment and sarcasm can be found in it.
Without warning, a cold metallic object taps the back of my neck. My whole body tense up before I force it to calm down. Maurizio aligned the tape from the collar of my shirt to the coccyx. I inhale deeply and tell myself to relax.
"It is, but my friend." With the touch of cold steel left, Maurizio gestures his left hand to guide my eyes back to the black and white photo. "Thought a new world in the making is more interesting...... and ripe for potential." A quick chuckle escaped his mouth, melancholy and nostalgic like rustling boats on shore.
"So you drift off to another continent just like that.....Wouldn't Milan or NW be better choices?" This time Maurizio lets out an earnest laughter.
"Milano and the states aren't better nor safer choices for me back then, Mr. Lee." Wearing the tape around his neck again. Maurizio starts adding more incomprehensible symbols to his notebook. "That was the basics done....."
Sticking the end of pen hard at the corner, a black dot along with a curved dotted line filled the last blank of the page.
"Now please gear up for the second measure sir." Turing a page, the tailor raises his head with the same witty smile and enthusiasm in his eyes to meet my addled ones.
"Sorry, didn't catch it. You said...?" With a smile unfazed, he gestures toward my violin case sitting in the corner.
"The house takes our makings' style and service values very seriously. What would a suit be good for if not to accompany you in scenarios?" Can't argue with that logic.
"Any tailor would have some preparation if a customer changes...... physiques. We just take such service further." I my hand in surrender with a bitter smile.
"Right then. I’m never the one to turn down another's servitude." I pick up the case at the corner while Maurizio leans back on the display cabinet and brings up his pad to check the previous records while giving me a certain level of privacy.
Unbuckling the straps and opening it reveal a pile of guns, blades, mags, and that bloody sheathed dagger. Feels kind of like robbing bank in broad daylight.
I strap the 45 to my back waist, then the knives around my ankle, shoulder holster, the Pardini and its mags on them. The mass is going to need some use to compared to my busted 509. Especially without my bomber jacket it feels like I'm holding a brick of iron under my armpit. I take a look at rest of my shit in it and decided this is plenty enough for him to work with.
***
Maurizio slid his notebook back into his pocket the same second I closed and locked the case.
"That's all?" He asks while taking the measuring tape off his neck again.
"The rest needs a bomber jacket or a really big inner pocket in the linings."
"I'll make sure to add it to the list." With the same professional smile, it's hard to tell if he's serious. "Now let's see. Relaxed your shoulders please."
Then came the exact procedure with the measurements. That is, until a rhythm melody of two high notes slowly grows louder. From a nuisance three walls away till the meaning behind the noise was clear to everyone. Maurizio definitely heard it too since the tape had been stuck on my right shoulder for as long as the noise rings. Sirens.
The two of us stood motionless for a few more seconds before it became distant.
"There's a small warehouse of part-timers a few blocks west of here. Been paddling the wrong stuff to the wrong people in past weeks." The tailor shrugs as he disregards the topic.
Almost forgot this part is already Little Italy. Cops in this city got some nasty habit of targeting thugs and thieves without a name to shut when being pinch into a police car and avoid dealing with affiliated personnels.
So it became a symbolic relationship between the cops and the gangs. Sacrificing the small, to feed the big. The kind of agreement no one spoke of but both understood. Few names and places per month, maybe some poor hustlers having a slow week and couldn't pay the Russians, staring at someone from the Santoro who doesn't appreciate being stared at while having a drink at the hotel.
This way the cops get their fair share of 'work' done to report to the higher-ups, so those fuckers in Congress have an answer for the press while the gangs prevent the heat at the corner or any potential rivalry in their district. The practice mostly happens in Noch and Little Italy..... and come to think of it.......
"I've been somewhat distant from the community for the past months. No troubles over the neighborhood I hope?" Maurizio lets out a smirk and dismisses the question by shaking his head.
"You're giving me too much credit mister........ You should ask your friend outside." I cough out a hum.
"Think I missed whoever that be. But I will say this, you got some fancy customer too."
"Likewise. But as I said, I'm just a tailor. Nothing less...." With the same professional smile on his face, he shakes his head again before crouching down next to me for the second measurement on trousers. Upon the tape binding my ankle, Maurizio inability noticed the daggers, he lifted the cargo pants up slightly and redid the measurement around my ankle while mumbling something.
"Good news." He gives the measuring tape around my ankle and dagger one last look before standing up next to me. "I think we don't need to settle for a loss design. Many of my clients have the same requirements. So I always make the opening at the end of trousers wider."
"Lovely." I shrug and rotate my foot clockwise, stretching the joints as the soreness slowly sinks in. "But I suppose the same can't be said about the blazer?" I lift the leather straps on my shoulder with my thumb, the slide of the 9mm made a little 'click'.
"Not really, so please. Hinge your arms forward again, sir." I let out a silent sign and complied as well. Maurizio bent down slightly and round the tape around my waist and the chunk of steel at my back.
"29, 31, .3......0.4.... Splendid" He sings moving a step behind me and pressing the tape at my nape again. Though whether intentional or not, he's using the other end.
"Fan of the classics?" The thread stops on top of my coccyx and Colt pistol.
"Of the reliable."
"We got some similar but newer models here as well." The range of services might as well include PMC contracts......
"Apprezzare, mate. But I ain't looking for a new piece in the short term." I give a nod at the 'Glasgow' on the case leaning on the table.
Edge of my sight I see Maurizio raises both his hands, measuring tape between fingers sloped across the air.
"A suggestion. That's all." The line in the air rounds my chest up. As the tape tightens around the holster under my right armpit a voice keeps reminding how sensitive the trigger of Pardini was adjusted.
I turn my head slightly again to check if it is held well in place, but at that exact moment what I see is Maurizio's eyes.
Confused and distant, almost like he’s ogling before he seamlessly tightened the tape one more time, the edge of his mouth curls back into a smile.
"There a problem?" I ask casually, drawing my eyes back in front,
"None. Though the piece is a bit bulky, I might have to pad the part of the fabric." He said in a pleased tone, words one key faster than normal.
"Save for that, everything's good! Well, Mr.Lee, I'm happy to announce that concludes the process." Maurizio throws the tape back onto his neck like it's a jumping rope and raises his head towards me. "Now, is there anything else to add, that I could be of service?" The smile on his face seems a bit..... broader than earlier.
"Actually, there is." I take a step towards my bomber jacket which's still lying on the table but the tailor beats me to it as he unfold it and help me put it on. A hint of cold brushes the back of my neck gently.
"Since you mention it...." I exclaimed while putting on a thin smile. "The...... occasion in the plan for this suit is a bit sensitive on the matter of all this." I said, emphasizing 'all this' at the case by the table. "I said you focus on the first set of measurements while working eh?"
"Well, you're full of fancy friends Mr.Lee." I let out a playful laugh and shook my head dismissively.
"None of my friends are fancy, Maurizio. I know people, that's all." Tilting his brows to a strange angle, the tailor stopped pursuing and brought up his notebook to add a few scratches.
"Any other items?"
".....Oh yeah. Come to think of it. May I ask how long will it take to finish the work?" The tailor puts his hand under his chin for a moment.
"How soon would you need it."
"Before this Friday." Maurizio's impeccable attitude shook just for a second.
Reminds me of that receptionist at jiu lou......
"I'm sure..... I'm positive that it can be done. Though I'll have to suspend other works in such period which requires a rush fee. I'm afraid." My smile blooms bigger.
"Sounds only reasonable to me."
"Very well then. We'll give you a call when it is ready, sir. And anything else?" He draws a few more scribbled lines on the book before raising his head to meet my eyes again.
"That's all. Thank you for everything, Maurizio."
"Thank you. Mr. Lee. This experience has been nothing short of.... enlightening in ways." Before I could, the tailor beats me to it again as he extends his right hand enthusiastically.
He’s almost clutching my hand though at the moment I didn’t felt a thing, I was thinking about the words engraved under the barrel.
Casus belli.