Chapter 35: Does She Look Like a Witch?

Bianca makes her return to the household once her sentence is up, properly meeting the twins for the first time. But one might be more enthusiastic about her arrival than the other.

Soon after proving their mettle in the kitchen, the Lloyd twins suddenly found their schedules a lot more swamped. Not only did they have to attend school for seven hours per weekday (also resulting in up to an hour of homework), but they also had to continue their cooking lessons in between restaurant shifts, and were even expected to contribute to family discussions when it came to thinking up new ideas for the menu. They would've complained had they not found all of this rather fun; plus, like everyone else in the family, they were guaranteed Sundays off for the sake of both leisure and rejuvenation.

One particular Sunday, the two boys were in the living room, watching a cooking-themed talk show as they shared a massive bowl of red and white grapes. Charlie was babysitting them once again, sea foam green eyes moving between the TV and The Satanic Bible he was reading. Scott tried his best to enjoy the show, especially considering the food being prepared at the moment, but he found it pretty hard to tune out the ear-splitting crunching sounds his brother was making. He liked to think he didn't let things get to him too often, but for once, he felt the need to break his own personal rule.

"Okay really, can you quit eating the seeds? Or at least find a way to chew them more softly?" he asked in the most polite tone he could muster.

"Why should I? Grape seeds are loaded with antioxidants, even more so than most fruits or vegetables. Plus, they're good for both your brain and your blood pressure," Morty replied with a proud smirk, popping another handful of mixed grapes into his mouth.

"Doesn't change the fact that I can't hear the TV, though." Scott raised a clay red eyebrow, showing that sometimes he could be the more logical of the two.

"Please, you've seen this one already. I'll quiet down when the next season starts."

Before the twins' argument could kick into high gear, they both paused to see Hank silently and hurriedly pass through the living room with his eyes pasted to his phone, a rarity when it came to him. Even more rare to see him without that trademark stubble on his lower face. Hank was known to shave his beard down whenever it got too thick, but to get rid of it completely? Just what had compelled him to do that?

"Yo, Dad. What's the rush?" Morty asked, only to go ignored as his father exited the apartment.

"Uh, Uncle Hank?" Scott chimed in, before the door was shut.

"Huh, wonder where he's off to."

"And you thought my dad was the uncourteous one."

---

Unbeknownst to anyone, Hank had borrowed the family car and traveled to a prison located straight across town, entering a room filled with two-way phone booths that were split via panels of glass. He sat down in a booth near the middle; the inmate he spoke to was a woman with crimped Venetian hair that cascaded to the top of her back, complete with a bump near the front, vermilion lipstick, and a pair of alluring dark gray eyes.

"Oh, beloved… it is glorious to see you again," the woman spoke in an Italian dialect.

"Feelin's mutual, Bianca." Hank nodded with a lovestruck smile. "How've you been holdin' up?"

"Not quite as bad as I was expecting… then again, maybe it's because my heart never stopped longing for the joyous day when I become a free woman."

"Heh heh, okay, ya' can stop wit' da' old school talk."

"Sorry."

"But yeah, if I ain't mistaken, dat' day's today, right?"

"Yes! They're about to give my belongings back, and I will be out of here at last!"

"Always glad to hear it, sweetness… now are ya' gonna stay outta trouble after dis'?" Hank put on a sultry smirk.

"No question," Bianca chuckled, looking down at her black and white prison jumpsuit. "…I think when we get home, I will need to get rid of every striped garment I own."

"Even dat' one negligee?"

"Okay, well almost every one."

---

Back at the diner, Monica and Mary had just returned after a day of manning The Spin-Off, a food truck with limited hours whose menu was just as eccentric as the main one. Monica found it a bit odd that her mother had insisted on her tagging along this week, and showing her the ropes of carrying out the truck's services, but she nonetheless enjoyed herself. Exhausted, the two reached the top of the staircase and opened the door.

"Hi Mom!" Scott chirped.

"What's the haps?" Morty asked in a more emotionless tone.

"Oh, not much. Just got a taste of The Spin-Off, both literally and figuratively. Wasn't too bad, though I was initially scared that I'd be too tall to fit inside," Monica explained.

"And thankfully your old lady came prepared," Mary chuckled. "Anyways, thanks for looking after them, Charles. We can take it from here."

"Eh, it ain't a problem, me lass," Charlie replied with a stretch, walking over to the door. "You're just lucky these little scamps are so well-behaved, else I woulda' charged your arse. Ta ta!"

"Say, I don't suppose either of you two know where the car went," Monica said after he left.

"I dunno, maybe Uncle Xander took it on another one of his chick pick-up runs?" Morty shrugged.

"No, I'm pretty sure he prefers to walk to the park," Scott replied. "Besides, he told me he wouldn't be caught dead with that car."

"Hmph," Mary grumbled, taken aback when the door opened again.

In came Hank, accompanied by his long-lost girlfriend. Everyone stepped aside to watch as they made their way in, collectively surprised at the arrival of the familiar face right in front of them. Though in the twins' case, the both of them seemed a lot more miffed, completely lost as to who this random woman could be. Nonetheless, Scott remained upbeat, always happy to meet new people.

Morty in particular took notice of the stranger's body language, and how close she seemed to be with his father. Her overall appearance also caught his attention, the way her hair was styled, the cheerful grin on her face combined with her minimalist makeup, and even the way she dressed. That black elbow-sleeved blouse patterned with roses and the sleeveless white machine-knit top sewn over it, complete with the green ribbon largely hidden under her collar and tied in a bow in the front. Not to mention the way her top danced around well above the waistline of her low-rise pants, just shy of revealing her navel. Also, pink jeans? Just who would go around wearing those, especially when they were torn off at the knees? And why would someone so put-together catch Hank's eye, anyway? Morty knew everyone had a type, but could this really be what his dad was into?

While thinking it over, Morty found himself looking down a bit, startled when Scott leaned right into his line of sight, complete with an obnoxious grin.

"Ey, Mort! Quit your ogling and say hi!" he waved a hand in his twin's face, snapping him back to reality with an irate expression.

"Oh, uh, hello…" Morty blushed a bit, maintaining his suspicious scowl as he shook the woman's hand.

"Bon giorno, I am Bianca Giancarlo," Bianca greeted, kneeling down to look the twins in the eye. "I apologize if you two don't recognize me, but you were only babies when we last parted ways."

"I see… er, nice accent."

"Haha, thanks. I have equal ancestry from Sicily and Sardinia."

"Oh, you're Italian? Heh, well I can see why Uncle Hank's into you," Scott giggled.

"That's right. And for the time being at least, she's gonna be livin' 'ere wit' us," Hank chimed in.

Wait, what?! Morty almost shouted, but managed to keep quiet.

"Sounds good, but you two know the drill," Monica warned.

"Of course we do. I'd like to think I haven't forgotten too much in five years," Bianca chuckled, striding towards Hank's room.

While everyone else dispersed and went back to whatever they were doing before the surprise reintroduction, Morty remained in the living room, seeing that his father had left his door open. He kept his distance, watching intently as Hank and Bianca continued to chat, trading kisses, giggles, and fondles all the while. No longer plagued by his back problems, Hank knelt down and pulled Bianca's luggage out from under the bed, where he'd kept it for all this time as if anticipating her return. The two definitely seemed to be in love, and he knew he should just be happy for his father, but something about this woman just rubbed him the wrong way. Who exactly could she be? Where did she come from? What did the two see in each other? And she'd just mentioned that she'd met Hank years ago, but then just up and left until just now… was there a reason she'd been gone for so long? And was it a good one?

---

Hopefully, all of those questions and more would be answered at dinner that evening. Tonight, Mary and Monica had just whipped up an array of appetizers for everyone to sample from, not without some help from Hank, never missing a chance to impress his lover. The dishes included a large batch of shrimp cocktail, except the shrimp were actually prawns and were fried coconut style, and the cocktail sauce was infused with tartar sauce and Thai chili sauce, giving it a rich yet fiery flavor. A creamy, cheesy seafood dip with plenty of crostini on the side was plated next to it, but instead of the usual crab or lobster, it was loaded with clams, oysters, mussels, and scallops. A platter of toasted tortellini, a slight variation of the St. Louis classic, was stuffed with spicy Italian sausage and served with a ramekin full of Parma Rosa sauce, a mixture of marinara and alfredo.

"So when we thought up this one, we were asking ourselves, 'what's an easy way to make mac-and-cheese bites unique and interesting again?' and it didn't take long to come up with these penne alla vodka bites," Monica explained as she plated the fourth and final dish, consisting of many fried morsels piled neatly on a platter.

"…which was pretty mind-numbingly easy in retrospect," Mary added with a shrug.

"Well regardless, all of these look delicious! God knows I was missing your family's cooking throughout those five long years." Bianca put on a giddy smile, eager to once again act as a taste-tester.

"Er, yeah, about that," Scott chimed in, oblivious to his brother smirking a bit, glad that someone beat him to the punch. "Why did you have to leave for all that time?"

"I suppose I should bring those details to light. Allow me…"

And so the next several minutes were spent in near-complete silence, save for Bianca going into detail about everything that went down. Nobody dared to chime in, but everyone ate and enjoyed the feast, sometimes getting up to grab seconds but otherwise letting her have the floor. She described the lifestyle of Hank's parents, and the role she played in it, before her resignation and the start of her new life. She explained the way Giulio and Elena had tried to manipulate her one last time before their death, and the way the Lloyds had stepped in to defeat them once and for all. It was only when she got to prison that the electrical torture device was finally removed from her back, and it was there where she would remain for five years for kidnapping and murder. Monica even chimed in to offer the others' perspective on some of those events.

"…now if those deaths hadn't been done in self-defense, I can only imagine how much worse things would've been for me," Bianca concluded her tale, using her last tortellini to mop up the remaining dipping sauce on her plate.

The reactions were surprisingly diverse in spite of the small group of listeners. Most of the adults seemed neutral, having been there for most of the story and only picking up on a few extra details, but the younger generation appeared far more intrigued, albeit for differing reasons.

"Wowie, I had no clue I lived in a family of mafia-quashing superheroes! My favorite part was easily the part where Dad took out that goon by knocking him into the rose bushes!" Scott put on his usual wide grin. "Heh, wait 'till we tell the kids at school about this…"

But Morty said nothing at all, appearing flabbergasted as he stared at Bianca, his one visible eye gaping in shock. This woman, this seemingly innocent woman, was actually a former convict? And a former member of the mob, no less? He was already well aware of his father's criminal background, but was willing to shove it aside, knowing how long ago it was, and how much he had obviously changed since. But to see him hook up with someone who not only had a similar past, but had left it behind much later made him a little uneasy. How did he know she had fully reformed? How did he know she wouldn't try to get him back to his old ways? Whatever the case, he knew he'd best be on his guard so long as she was rooming with the family.

"Say, Hank? Now that we're done talking about me, I couldn't help but notice your back, it's… it looks a lot less curved than usual." Bianca crossed one leg over the other as she sat up straight, one of her grass green flats dangling from her foot.

"Oh, that? Aw, it's nothin'. Just saw a chiropractor." Hank shrugged. "To be a good dad, ya' gotta be a healthy one, y'know?"

"Yes, I suppose you're right… regardless, this meal was as fantastic as ever. As was the entire evening! I got to reconcile with the only family I've ever known, try some wonderful food, and celebrate my first day as a free woman!"

"Heh, well you're no thorn in our side yourself," Monica snarked back as her mother chuckled.

"Now who wants some hodgepodge cookies and everything brownies? The perfect way to cap off a portable, dainty meal," Mary offered, holding out a large, open tupperware containing both treats.

"Ooh, yum! I think I'll need at least four of each!" Bianca chirped as everyone started to dig in.

Yeah, you'd better enjoy those desserts while you can, Bianca, Morty thought, glaring at his father's girlfriend. 'Cause I'm onto you, and if you do anything to hurt my dad or ruin this family, I swear to god…!