The floats were lined up down Division Street. There was a giant pink crepe paper cake made by the sodality of Saint Rocco in Martins Creek, a gaggle of small children dressed head to toe in red, white, and green who, when in formation, became the Italian flag, and a float of a model of an enormous sewing machine, in honor of the millworkers. People had fussed, but of course they felt obligated, since the ambassador had made a sacrifice to come all the way from Italy to be with them.
Nicky wore his uniform and sash, and Hortense wore her Sunday suit, hat, and a commemorative sash along with her Venetian beads. The dignitaries joined them on the grandstand, along with a contingent of mayors from neighboring towns and the borough council, who also wore official sashes.
Rocco went to the microphone to give his welcome.
“We have been honored to have Ambassador Carlo Guardinfante as our guest for the Jubilee in honor of the incorporation of our town. The ambassador is a resident of Roseto Valfortore, the village in the province of Apulia where our forebears are from, which makes us family. He is married to Elisabetta, and he promises to bring her here the next time he visits our newly incorporated borough, the only incorporated Italian American town in the United States of America. Ladies and gentlemen, our ambassador.”
Nicky reached into the pocket of his uniform to retrieve his notes, standing before the microphone. As he was about to read, he tore the speech in half and stuffed it back into his pockets. The crowd was aghast.
Mamie slipped into the crowd to listen.
“I am a very lucky man. Fortunato! I came to Roseto, Pennsylvania, how do you say, a nervous wreck-uh. But I have my secret weapon-i, Mrs. Mooney, attaché to Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt, populare First Lady.”
The crowd applauded politely. Hortense nodded.
“Mrs. Mooney reminded me that I was bringing you something that you needed. I brought you Roseto Valfortore, the place your ancestors called home. I couldn’t pack the village in my suitcase, but what I could do was bring you the story. Sometimes when we prosper, we forget the struggle, the sacrifice, and even where we came from. You see, for those too young to remember, and those who have never been, Roseto Valfortore is a village, just like yours, of great beauty. It is situated on a hilltop in Apulia between Roma and Napoli. Our place on the map has put us in a perilous position throughout history. Every army since the Greeks has trudged through our hills. We have been conquered, attacked, ransacked, and pillaged. But we persist. That is the stuff you are made of. That is what you brought to America, and that is why you have found safety, prosperity, and a good life here. You are Rosetani!”
The crowd cheered, blew horns, and whistled.
“Let’s move this along,” Hortense whispered. “I got a black feeling.”
“Sit down, Mrs. Mooney.” Emboldened, Nicky waved to the cheering crowd.
A forest-green Studebaker, followed by Car No. 2 from the Palazzini Cab Company, pulled up to the police barricade.
Peachy DePino jumped out of the Studebaker, followed by her nervous mother and her angry father.
“Nicky Castone!” Peachy shouted. “We’re going to talk!”
The men in the crowd moaned. The crowd buzzed with the name Castone.
Peachy climbed up the steps to the stage. “What is wrong with you? Why are you wearing a Penn State band uniform?”
“I knew it.” Eddie Davanzo shook his head.
“Who is he?” Cha Cha was baffled.
“He’s Nicky Castone. From Philadelphia,” Peachy confirmed.
“What is going on here?” Rocco was perturbed.
“She—she’s not what she says either.” Peachy pointed at Hortense. “She’s the colored dispatcher.”
“They can see I’m colored,” Hortense grumbled.
“How could you do this to me, Nick? You left my picture behind in your drawer with your mending. Do you think so little of what we meant to each other to leave me stuck in a drawer with your stained and holey underpants?”
“I’m going to kill you with my bare hands.” Al DePino, five foot six, lunged for Nicky.
Concetta dabbed her tears. “Nicky, just come home and marry Peachy, and we’ll forget this horrible nightmare, this grim incident, this sick situation.” She pulled a stray thread off Nicky’s lapel. “Remember the love. I beseech you, remember the love.”
“I’m gonna kill the son of a—” Al swung for Nicky. Eddie Davanzo grabbed Al by the arms.
“Now the law is involved! Al, you dope!” Concetta yelled.
Dom and Jo rushed the stage. “Don’t touch him!” Jo shouted.
“Who are you people?” Rocco asked.
“Family,” Dom barked.
“Let’s take this discussion off this stage. Out of town,” Hortense said softly. “Let’s go.”
Peachy pointed at Nicky. “I want the whole world to know what he did to me.”
“What did he do?” Cha Cha probed.
“He ended our engagement after seven years.”
“There was physical contact,” Mr. DePino bellowed as he was being handcuffed.
“My daughter is unspoiled,” Mrs. DePino insisted to the crowd.
“But there was physical contact?” Cha Cha queried.
“He’s a wolf!” Rosalba shouted.
“He did pull me very close when we danced last night,” Cha Cha piled on. “There was grinding. But I figured, an Italian from the other side, they get a little fresh. It’s in them.”
“Please, Cha Cha.” Rocco glared at his wife.
“You see what’s going on here? This impostor came to town to woo our women and take advantage of them,” a man shouted from the crowd.
“Just like he did with my daughter,” Al DePino said, egging on the crowd.
“He gave the Cadillac to an Ameri-gan from Alabama!” a man hollered. The crowd went wild.
“I don’t know anything about the Cadillac car. But, he did not take advantage of me, Pop. Stop it. I don’t want you to kill him for that.” Peachy dabbed her forehead with her handkerchief.
“How do we know this impostor wasn’t here to steal our money? Did you check the take from the sausage and pepper stand?” a woman shouted.
“Where’s the money?” A man pointed at Nicky.
The crowd grumbled, and the rancor grew. Individuals stormed the grandstand and demanded action from Rocco.
“Check the kitty! He probably stole the money!”
“He’s a brute!” another woman shouted.
“Hold it!” Nicky was furious. “I have never chiseled anyone in my life. I was only trying to help.”
“I told you. Put your hand out to help somebody, and when you take it back, all that’s left is a stump.” Hortense fanned herself. “He who is without sin cast the first stone. Castone. Nicky Castone! That’s a sign. We need to leave right now.”
Nicky frowned at Hortense and turned to Peachy. “And what did you think you would accomplish by coming here? Did you think I’d change my mind?”
“Did you think I’d just let you go? I put in seven years being nice to you! Are you crazy? I’m an Italian girl. Italy isn’t shaped like a mattress. I wasn’t going to lie down. It’s shaped like a boot. I came here to kick you in the . . .”
The women in the crowd cheered.
Rocco turned to Eddie. “Take them in before I have a coup on my hands.”
“Arrest them?”
“The two of them.”
“For what?”
“Impersonating important people.”