Broken Hearts On Boulevard Unirii novel Chapter 48

The bill was then presented on a small tray by the waiter, and Velcho indicated that he should put it in front of Angelo. No one dared to look at Angelo's face.

Velcho ordered coffee for everyone and pointed out that he was paying for it. Proudly patting himself on his chest, shouted, "Velcho invites everybody for coffee."

When Angelo looked at the bill he said, quietly "Gentlemen, bring out your money. The amount due is four hundred and eighty dollars, "which wiped the smile off our faces.

Each one of us put his share on the tray and we left the restaurant humiliated that we were once again taken in by a Bulgarian sting.

We were dumbfounded that the topic of the car hadn't been mentioned at all.

The next morning we decided to go to Sunny Beach because it was not far from our hotel. I made two trips with the van in order to get everybody there. I parked the van in a designated parking spot near. I didn't think it would get stolen since it was old and it belonged to a rental company. "They steal only new and expensive cars," Elena said. I again wondered at the extent of her knowledge on the subject.

Sunny Beach is very touristy, due to its white sandy beach. There are restaurants and stalls selling souvenirs all along the boardwalk. There are also clothing vendors where one can buy a Versace T-shirt for five dollars or Armani jeans for ten dollars. Of course, everything was an imitation.

The western music that blared from every corner gave a carnival atmosphere, but it was also an arena of the pitiful side of life. There were children and adults alike, with distorted bodies and missing limbs, sitting or walking around, displaying their defects and asking for money.

Walking among the people were gypsies offering entertainment, showing off bears walking and dancing on their hind legs. The bears had their nails clipped and snouts muzzled and were led by a gypsy holding on to a leash attached to the bear's nose with an iron ring, which I marveled at.

Another phenomenon that we had to beware of was pick-pocketing, which was rampant. We had to hold our wallets close to our bodies, otherwise an invisible hand would take them from us.

We found a relatively quiet spot and grabbed some lounge chairs with shades and settled there. Oana and Elena lay down to roast in the sun. Claudio and I sat down at the makeshift bar and ordered beer. Angelo and Elia pulled over some chairs and joined us. Gert spread a large towel, which he had taken from the hotel, on the sand and sat on it with Sofia. I was glad they had found a common language.

A young girl of about thirteen, maximum fifteen, suddenly came up to me and showed me her open hand of five fingers. "Mister, only five dollars," she said, and put her finger into her mouth and sucked on it. I was shocked, she was only a child, and could have been my granddaughter. "Go home to your mother," I said to her. That was when she showed me "the finger." As she walked away she turned around and barked, "Fuck you."

Later on, I saw her in the company of men her grandfather's age.

"Angelo, what are you going to do about your car?"I asked.

"I have no idea. The maniac didn't suggest anything," he answered.

"Perhaps he will come with a proposal tonight." Claudio said.

"If he wakes up from his drunkenness," I answered.

"We will wait and see," Angelo said.

"I would advise you not to talk to Elena about your plans. You never know, she may be passing on the information to them," I said.

"Don't you do remember that I once told you that I was twenty-one," she answered.

"Oh, come on. You don't look like twenty-one. You are much older," I replied.

"How old do I look?" she asked.

"Like thirty years old," I answered.

"I accept," she replied.

"Are you older than thirty?" I asked.

"Yes," she responded. "I will be thirty-four in a few days."

"Hallelujah. They won't be able to accuse me of pedophilia," I remarked.

"I am considered a grandmother. In Romania girls at the age of eighteen are already mothers," she responded.