Without even knowing what she was doing, she ripped the note and the photographs into shreds. She wanted to tear them out of her memory and then she realized that until she held the negatives there would always be more copies of the horrible pictures to haunt her.
She gathered up the scattered pieces and stuffed them into the envelope, and then walked out into the darkness. There were no more tears in her and she didn't even remember moving through the dimly lit streets until she reached the door of her hotel.
She stumbled blindly through the dark hallway and almost fell as her foot bumped against a body at the foot of the stairs.
"Ohbhbhhhh…" The moan startled and frightened her and she fell back against the wall – then her eyes slowly picked out the crumbled form on the floor.
At first she thought it was some drunk who had staggered in from the outside and passed out on the stairs. She tried to step around and then she beard the soft mewling cries of pain. As she bent to help him, he turned and the dim light exposed his face.
It was Johnny!
She screamed, and tried to pull him to his feet. He stood for a moment and fell to his knees. "Laura… honey, is that you? Laura, I'm hurt…"
"Please, darling, get up. Lean on me." She pulled him back to his feet and together they were able to make it to their apartment. The pounding of her heart drowned out his agonized moans as she helped him to the bed.
Then she turned on the light and ran to his side. "Johnny, what's happened to you? Darling, what happened?" She searched his face frantically for injuries but there were none then she saw his clothing. His suit was filthy as if he'd been rolled in mud, and through the tears in his shirt she could see the great, raw bruises on his chest. She tore his clothes from him and almost fainted when she saw the terrible damage to his legs and chest – and around his neck on each side were two darkened swellings oozing blood.
"… They said I'd never sing again, Laura. My throat… they said they're going to ruin my…" his voice trailed off and she couldn't hear him.
"Darling, who…? Who said you'd never sing… who did it!"
"Vito's boys… they grabbed me outside… they kept kicking me, over and over… they told me that nest time they'd go for my throat."
He kept moaning, and she could see that he was almost in a state of shock. "SHhhhhhh… Darling, don't talk. I'll be right back."
She ran to the bathroom to get some hot towels to clean his cuts, and in a while he was able to tell her what had happened.
Three of Deke Vito's men had beaten him up, telling him they were delivering a message from the gambler. They'd told him Vito wanted his money, that Vito was going to take it out in trade with Laura. And that, if Johnny and Laura had any idea of running away or going to the police they'd come after Johnny one more time. Only the next time they were going to fix it so he'd never sing again.
Johnny kept rambling on, crying and holding onto her like a lost child and it was almost two hours before she could get him to sleep – and then only by holding him and rocking him back and forth in her arms.