face that told me all about how much she disapproved without her saying anything.
“Let’s get a table, so we can talk,” she said and walked into the venue. We found a table too close to the serving area, and people milled around us in a constant stream. She didn’t complain, so I didn’t either. I was starting to admit to myself that even though I was in control of this operation, I was willing to let her wear the pants in this relationship. The business relationship. Business.
After I got us each something to drink, she got down to business. No small talk with her. I liked that.
“Have you managed to get a hold of any of the brothers?” she asked.
I nodded. “I did actually, yeah. I don’t know which one he is or where he belongs. Tucci. Bernard Tucci. That’s the one.”
Alex nodded. “He’s a good start. Not exactly someone you want to cross, but then again, none of them are. He’s the brother-in-law. He married into the family and brought a lot of money to an operation that already had more than they needed.”
“That’s how these things work,” I said, knowing that the more money you had, the more fluent you were in the language of the underworld.
“What did you work out with him? Anything at all?”
I didn’t like how she said ‘anything at all’…as if I didn’t have it in me to seal a deal so quickly.
“I did a deal with him,” I said. I was proud of myself. I’d made a decision, I’d acted on it. Bang.
“And what was the deal?”
I took a sip of the Coke I’d gotten myself. The fizz was too much, and I had to swallow slowly, bit by bit, before I answered. It was a delay that wasn’t unwelcome.
“We’re under his protection, as it were, and he’ll get us into all the good games if we give him a cut of our winnings.”
Alex stared at me. “Excuse me?” she said after a moment.
I didn’t answer her because I was pretty sure she’d heard me. The way she asked that wasn’t in a way that indicated that she wanted me to reiterate myself. It was an opportunity to change what I’d said. But I couldn’t do that because it was the truth.
“We already have to split winnings, and now we have to give them a cut, too? How much did you promise them?”
Here we go. I looked around us, noting the amount of people. More people, less of as scene, right? I was suddenly grateful we were sitting so close to the queue.
“Tucci wouldn’t have trusted me otherwise,” I said. “I had to let him know that we were worth something.”
The question was unanswered, and I hoped it would stay that way.
“How much, Rip?” she asked. She said my name like it tasted foul.
“Sixty,” I said.
“Sixty grand? That’s more than you owe me!”
I sighed. “I don’t technically owe you. And it’s not sixty grand. It’s sixty percent.”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “Of what.”
“Of our winnings.”
She swore under her breath. It was so soft I almost didn’t hear, but I was sure she said something along the lines of ‘motherfucker’. Well.
“I don’t know why I trusted you to do this,” she said after a moment. Her voice was ice cold like she’d withdrawn.
“What else was I supposed to do?”
She shook her head, and I wasn’t sure if that meant that she didn’t know, or that she just wasn’t going to tell me. She stood up.
“I’m out of here. You’re so full of shit. I don’t know how I ever thought we were going to make it big playing this way.”
“Come on, Alex,” I said, jumping up, too. “You haven’t even given it a chance.”
She didn’t answer me. She slipped into the crowds, and I was left alone at the table with two half-empty Cokes and a table I wasn’t going to use anymore. Great. I needed her for my plan to work. I needed her because of her talent, and her striking beauty that would distract the right people, and her
“Let’s get a table, so we can talk,” she said and walked into the venue. We found a table too close to the serving area, and people milled around us in a constant stream. She didn’t complain, so I didn’t either. I was starting to admit to myself that even though I was in control of this operation, I was willing to let her wear the pants in this relationship. The business relationship. Business.
After I got us each something to drink, she got down to business. No small talk with her. I liked that.
“Have you managed to get a hold of any of the brothers?” she asked.
I nodded. “I did actually, yeah. I don’t know which one he is or where he belongs. Tucci. Bernard Tucci. That’s the one.”
Alex nodded. “He’s a good start. Not exactly someone you want to cross, but then again, none of them are. He’s the brother-in-law. He married into the family and brought a lot of money to an operation that already had more than they needed.”
“That’s how these things work,” I said, knowing that the more money you had, the more fluent you were in the language of the underworld.
“What did you work out with him? Anything at all?”
I didn’t like how she said ‘anything at all’…as if I didn’t have it in me to seal a deal so quickly.
“I did a deal with him,” I said. I was proud of myself. I’d made a decision, I’d acted on it. Bang.
“And what was the deal?”
I took a sip of the Coke I’d gotten myself. The fizz was too much, and I had to swallow slowly, bit by bit, before I answered. It was a delay that wasn’t unwelcome.
“We’re under his protection, as it were, and he’ll get us into all the good games if we give him a cut of our winnings.”
Alex stared at me. “Excuse me?” she said after a moment.
I didn’t answer her because I was pretty sure she’d heard me. The way she asked that wasn’t in a way that indicated that she wanted me to reiterate myself. It was an opportunity to change what I’d said. But I couldn’t do that because it was the truth.
“We already have to split winnings, and now we have to give them a cut, too? How much did you promise them?”
Here we go. I looked around us, noting the amount of people. More people, less of as scene, right? I was suddenly grateful we were sitting so close to the queue.
“Tucci wouldn’t have trusted me otherwise,” I said. “I had to let him know that we were worth something.”
The question was unanswered, and I hoped it would stay that way.
“How much, Rip?” she asked. She said my name like it tasted foul.
“Sixty,” I said.
“Sixty grand? That’s more than you owe me!”
I sighed. “I don’t technically owe you. And it’s not sixty grand. It’s sixty percent.”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “Of what.”
“Of our winnings.”
She swore under her breath. It was so soft I almost didn’t hear, but I was sure she said something along the lines of ‘motherfucker’. Well.
“I don’t know why I trusted you to do this,” she said after a moment. Her voice was ice cold like she’d withdrawn.
“What else was I supposed to do?”
She shook her head, and I wasn’t sure if that meant that she didn’t know, or that she just wasn’t going to tell me. She stood up.
“I’m out of here. You’re so full of shit. I don’t know how I ever thought we were going to make it big playing this way.”
“Come on, Alex,” I said, jumping up, too. “You haven’t even given it a chance.”
She didn’t answer me. She slipped into the crowds, and I was left alone at the table with two half-empty Cokes and a table I wasn’t going to use anymore. Great. I needed her for my plan to work. I needed her because of her talent, and her striking beauty that would distract the right people, and her
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