"Holy God, son of Mary!" Vincenzo's voice squeaked.

"I'm still here," Gaia couldn't help giggling. She touched him on the shoulder, and he jumped to the side and turned pale.

"Don't do that!"

Sal, Antonio and Placido laughed. The elder Pucci clutched his side as his guffaws continued until he bent over to catch his breath.

"Best magic trick ever!"

Gaia sputtered and swallowed until she could control herself.

"Do you mind if I try something," Maria said as she untied her apron, pulling it over her head. "I think it's important. You might be invisible, but, can we figure out where you are by throwing something at you? If you haven't moved, I should be able to tell you where you are." She threw the apron and it stopped in mid arc, sliding down to the floor.

Gaia picked it up and listened as Sal spoke.

"So, you have an advantage, but you are discoverable if there is someone who knows what we do."

Harry waved his wand, and Gaia appeared, holding the floating apron. She walked over to Maria and slipped it back over her head and kissed her cheek.

"Thank you for pointing out the problem," Gaia said. "It would not do to be discovered."

Discussion skittered around the kitchen as Maria's soda bread dough worked in the mixer. Placido cut his pizza dough into portions, and Melinda chopped vegetables.

"How long does she stay that way?" Vincenzo asked as he took dry plates and stacked them beside the industrial stove in the center of the back wall.

"It depends on the power I put behind the spell," Harry answered. "I can reverse it easily as I did just now, but it will fade by itself after a certain amount of time. I think I can give her half an hour reliably."

"Not a magic trick then," Placido commented, "but a true use of power."

"So, best used where we can control the situation easily," Maria said as she flipped the power switch off on her mixer. "What do you think, Gaia. Is this the right consistency?"

She reached into the bowl and tested it with her fingers. "Just about. It needs a little more flour, or if you want to put other seeds like sunflower and pumpkin in it, that would do it too. Measure them out, though so we can put them in right away next time."

"Best use this in the bar," Salvatore suggested. "The enforcers are bound to be back again. And at a time when we are not as busy."

"How will we know when they are coming?" Melinda asked as she measured out half a cup of sunflower seeds. "I have some chopped walnuts too, Nona. What do you think?"

Her grandmother nodded and she tossed them into the mixer bowl as well. Maria turned it back on.

"My boys will tell me when, Sal," Harry said. "We have several trucks working together now. Your father and I have worked out a system. And yours too, Antonio. They might not be working here, but they are our eyes, and the warehouse is close to the docks. Eduardo's big black car has been seen entering the district, but we don't know where it disappears. Gaia will have to come with us, so she knows the streets and recognizes the buildings. Once that is done, we can set up our trap in the bar."

"Makes sense," Melinda agreed. "That way she will know what the ghosts are describing. She would draw what they show her, but she can't in the bar. Having a pencil floating over paper building a picture would give her away."

"Turn this off again, Maria. I can see the dough is right, see how it is in a ball around the paddles now? It's ready. All we have to do is shape the loaves." Gaia lifted the mixer head out of the bowl.

"When will you go with your husband, Picinna (little one)?" Maria asked. Grins flitted from face to face as Nonna used her special nickname for Gaia.

"Tomorrow, during the morning delivery run, yes?" She looked at Harry to confirm.

"Yes!" Harry agreed.

Salvatore hefted the bowl from the mixer up to his waist and then pointed to the marble slab where Maria usually rolled out cookie and pie dough. "Here?"

"One second." Maria sprinkled flour on the grey veined polished white slab. He upended the bowl, and the ball of dough rolled out.

"We should do half in the pizza oven and half in the wall oven," Gaia said. "But they need a greased sheet pan under them. Maybe a few of your pizza pans, Nonno?"

"How long do they take?" Placido asked.

"Forty minutes at three hundred and fifty degrees, I'm not sure about the pizza oven or if it will be different at a hotter temperature," Gaia told him.

"Five in that oven, five in mine."

"Show me how to shape the loaves," Nonna said.

Gaia cut the ball into two halves after she kneaded it for a couple of minutes. "Important not to over work this bread. It isn't a yeast dough. It's the vinegar and baking soda reaction that makes it rise."

She made eight inch round loaves showing Nonna how to tuck the edges under, and the pans disappeared into the ovens.

"Nonno, I will trust you to know when they are done," Gaia told him as he slid them into his brick oven.

"It's not quite as hot now, we only started the fire a couple of hours ago. Probably almost as long as those do." He pointed at the wall. "Don't forget to set the timers. One for thirty minutes and on for forty."

Melinda picked up both and set each of them beside the correct oven.

"Now we wait."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Have you seen enough, love?" Harry bounced beside her on the bench seat of the three ton Mack delivery truck turned another corner.

"This is the last section of the area," Giovanni said. "The biggest warehouses are here, and ours is the last one at the end there." He pointed over the steering wheel at a deep red brick building with sandstone accents.

"Yes. Most of the streets and avenues are number, and the Fulton Fish Market is an easy landmark," Gaia said. "It seems to be the focal point of this little harbor."

Their driver nodded. "I'm sure the Boss' car hides in these streets here. Two warehouses have doors big enough for him to drive inside. Ours is the only one with firehouse doors, so we can bring our trucks in."

Gaia nodded. "I'm ready. Tomorrow is the next time the enforcers come to us?"

"I told Salvatore yesterday. We supply Eduardo's fancy club as well as our family as well as Mama's Restaurant. He patted his lunch box then added, "I like that new bread, Gaia. Excellent! Especially with ham and cheese or Mammina's chicken."

"Thank you, it was fun figuring out the recipe. And Nonno's oven gives it an amazing crust," Gaia said. "So, are you taking us back?"

"No. Pietro will. My sister's husband is driving the next truck out. We must keep the routine correct or those watching will note the difference. Russo's thugs are observant. Different means trouble and they always seem to know when it is in the air."

"I swear I will never keep you all straight," Gaia laughed.

"Just as I would not figure out your family in Ireland," Giovanni agreed. "Hop down, I've set the brake. Pietro's truck is the blue one over there." He pointed to the other door and an identical vehicle as its engine roared to life.

Harry lowered himself to the floor, as Gaia swung her long legs down to the ladder like steps under the truck door.

"What do you think? Will you be able to tell us where he goes?"

Gaia nodded. "Now all I need is a ghost or two to show me the way."