“You must admit it’s weird: 'the only downside is students'. Come on, that's not normal. She‘s hiding something and she can‘t be trusted.”
“Alice has been careful not to let Sam eavesdrop on any business conversations. That‘s one of the few causes of tension between them.”
“Because the woman wants to find out what we‘re up to.”
“Because the woman wants more attention paid to her than Alice gives. Bit childish but not sinister.”
Mary Lou crossed her arms and sulked. She didn‘t understand why Bobby couldn‘t view things as she did. He was blind sometimes. Almost like he could see no wrong in people or he had a soft spot for young beautiful women. Men were useless.
“How can you be so sure? Nothing she‘s done since she arrived in this house today signals you‘re right. All we‘ve seen is she‘s a cute ass from Boston... I bumped into them in Malibu too.”
“What? Why‘s this the first I‘m hearing about it?”
“I forgot it had happened after I returned. Besides it was only a few hours. I popped by, we ate and I left. Finito.”
“What the...”
“Don‘t give me a hard time over this. Was just after the Coby Ingham thing and as you know, it took me a while to get my head straight after that one.”
“And here we are again deciding whether we have another stool pigeon.”
Bobby was silent. He had no idea why he hadn‘t mentioned the dinner to Mary Lou. Probably because he reckoned it only right that she should meet Sam before he did. If he‘d been playing his A game, he would have said. Hey, life‘s a bitch and then you die.
“When I met her before, she gave me chapter and verse on the marketing industry. Could have been well-researched patter, but it didn‘t feel like it. She cared too much for it to have been a rehearsed speech.“
“Unless she‘s a good actress and practiced the spiel.”
“True, but that doesn‘t change how I felt - or the amount of time Alice has spent with her and not suspected a thing.”
“How were you when you discovered muff the very first time? You reckon Alice was any different?”
“Harsh, Mary Lou.”
“Perhaps. No matter what you say, I can‘t trust her.”
“Fine. She‘s not getting access to anything important - apart from the hand of the fair maiden Alice, of course.”
“It‘s not her hand that either of us are considering right now. And that‘s doubly worse for you, dirty old man.”
The noise from the girls‘ bedroom picked up again at that precise second. Mary Lou and Bobby looked at each other and laughed.
“Full of energy, those youngsters.”
“Let‘s see if we can beat them at their own game.”
They buried themselves under the covers and tried to find new ways to make the other breathe more deeply than they‘d ever done before.
17
ALICE DROVE SAM around Palm Springs in her soft top sports car. She pointed out its sights - few as they were - and stopped outside Montgomery High.
“Best days of your life?”
“Nah. Loved the classes, but I was never one of the popular kids. Tried to keep myself to myself, but with Frank in the same place, it was hard to hide for very long.”
“Geek girl?”
“Yep. If Frank hadn‘t been my brother, I‘d have had on okay time.”
“Did he seek the limelight and drag you along too?”
“Er no. He played the fool, got into heaps of trouble. Teachers expected me to somehow be responsible for his nefarious activities. Kids thought I was cut from the same cloth as him because we are twins. Frank believed every day was party time. Still does.”
“Pain in the neck but fun to be around.”
“That‘s Frank, through and through.”
“Any happy memories at all?”
“Prom night. Peter Hatheway gave me a corsage and picked me up in a stretch limo. We danced and drank the fruit punch laced with hooch. He took me by the hand and we went round the back of the buildings and out onto the running track. Lost my cherry on the pole vault mattress. Biggest bounciest bed I‘ve ever been on.”
“Was the sex any good?”
“Not for me. First time anyone gave me an orgasm was you. Before that, I was flying solo.”
They kissed to reinforce the special bond Alice felt for Sam.
“How about you? Any man been worth it for you?”
“One or two, but that doesn‘t matter because I‘m with you now.”
Alice squinted at Sam, not knowing what to make of that last comment. Against her better judgment, she let it alone. This was neither the time nor the place.
“Hungry?”
“Ravenous. Where do people go to eat in this town?”
THE WOMEN SAT down at a circular booth in the Palm Springs Country Club. By association, Alice was known there although she hadn‘t visited the place for a while. The red leather seating was threadbare when her mother first came there in the Seventies and nothing much had changed - the menu had been reprinted. The restaurant and bar continued to have a mixed clientele: it was the golf course's nineteenth hole, there were ladies that lunched and a meeting room for local businessmen. Nowadays, it had gained a reputation as a cool drinking hole for the children of the wealthier members of the community.
Alice ordered linguini with clams in a white wine sauce and Sam tried the steak. Their cosmos arrived and they chinked their glasses to toast their first drink of the day. As expected, the food tasted wonderful. The decor was shabby chic, but the proprietor cared about his guests‘ palates.
Once their plates were empty, they ordered more cocktails. Before the waiter returned, a pair of dudes came by and introduced themselves as Brad and Martin. They chatted for a minute or two.
“Mind if we sit down?”
“By all means.”
Alice and Sam glanced at each other. The way the boys behaved, they clearly were something in this town - or thought they were. Both were clean shaven and wore designer casual wear, so they had money if nothing else. Alice leaned over and whispered in Sam‘s ear.
“How much do you think we can scalp them for?”
“Few hundred. Whoever screws them over the most: loser buys dinner.”
A nod by way of contract and they switched on their smiles.
“Shouldn‘t you boys be out working? In a supermarket or however you earn your living.”
“We have investments that do the work for us. Let the chumps toil - we prefer to play.”
“What‘s your handicap?”
“Huh?”
Sam sighed disdainfully and pointed at the eighteenth green outside.
“Oh, golf. Not my idea of a game: chasing after a ball you‘re always hitting away from you. Makes no sense.”
Alice laughed at Martin‘s comment. Bobby said the same thing, but it didn‘t stop him from teeing off every week.
“You like games, Brad?”
“Sure do. I‘m a gambling man so I prefer the odds stacked in my favor, but any card game floats my boat.”
“Me too. There‘s nothing like the thrill of taking a leap into the unknown.”
The waiter arrived with the cosmos and Brad put green on the table for payment. He looked at Alice and she nodded consent, so the waiter picked up the cash and walked away.
“Thanks for the drink, Brad.”
“My pleasure.”
“If you don‘t play golf Martin, how do you spend the hours between waking up and falling asleep?”
“I keep myself busy: hosting pool parties, hanging with beautiful people - like yourselves.”
Sam and Alice smiled and fluttered their eyelids. These saps were one hundred per cent ego with no space for anything else.
“Haven‘t been to a pool party in years...”
Martin heard Alice‘s cooing and got the hint.
“Fancy coming over now? I can make some calls and get the gang over later.”
ALICE AND SAM
stood opposite Brad and Martin with martinis all round. Martin had made a big deal about how to concoct the perfect vodka martini, so he‘d set himself up to fail. The cocktails only disappointed but the women weren‘t here to critique his bar tending skills. Alice had parked her soft top at the front of the house next to Martin‘s Italian beast of a sports car.
“Here‘s to partying on down.”
“I‘ll get some music going.”
Once Martin returned, electronic beats poured out of the PA pumping onto the poolside veranda. All four tapped their toes and a minute later, the boys had grabbed the girls by the hand and encouraged them to dance. Five or six tracks on - who was counting? - and slower rhythms hit the air and the couples paired off for more intimate moments.
Alice wasn‘t too happy with Martin‘s octopus hands but when she glanced over to the other couple, Sam didn‘t appear to be annoyed that Brad‘s hands were clamped to her ass, squeezing her like a used sponge. To her surprise, Alice minded though. The point of being here was to rob the overgrown kids and her jealousy spurred her on to go for broke.
As Martin kissed her on the neck, she undid his shirt and put a hand on his belt buckle. Sam saw what Alice was up to and followed suit. Neither of the boys objected and their egos bloated a little more than was usual as the women undressed them down to their shorts.
“Now you‘re turn, but don‘t get fresh. I‘m keeping my undies on... for now.”
The warmth of Alice‘s whisper against Martin‘s earlobe was more than enough to get him to follow her orders to the letter. Brad copied his friend with a similar warning from Sam, who then walked him over to the base of the diving board. She sat down, legs apart, and reeled him in toward her until she was able to wrap her thighs around him. Christmas was coming early for Brad it seemed.
Martin stepped forward, within an inch of Alice, who embraced him again and shoved a hand down his shorts to maintain his interest. She twisted the two of them round so she could see the diving board and monitor what was happening with her Sam. The sight of Brad‘s pure white ass nestling above the waistband of his bermudas told her he was at the same level of excitement as Martin.
The women winked at each other and made their move.
“Let‘s get naked and then we can fuck in the pool.”
Martin nodded and whipped off his shorts then called over to his friend while Alice slowly undid her navy and white striped bra.
“Come on guy! Get with the program.”
Brad kept a hand on Sam‘s breast as he looked around, assessed the situation and grinned.
“You up for some more fun?”
“The sooner you stop talking, the quicker we‘ll be fucking.”
His smile was so broad, Sam saw his teeth. Her bra was already on the floor. She took her time, putting her hands on her hips to avoid undressing further. Five seconds later, Brad and Martin were in the water with their hard-ons. Alice and Sam reacted fast by grabbing the boys‘ clothes and throwing their own back on before the guys could do anything.
Alice palmed Martin‘s car keys he‘d dropped on a patio table and turned to face the pool.
“Sorry boys, we‘ve changed our minds now we‘ve seen your equipment.”
Sam laughed to emphasize the point. Then they both dashed to Alice‘s soft top.
“Take my keys and follow me. Don‘t ask questions: there‘s no time.”
As she spoke, she looked back and saw Brad and Martin heading toward them. Neither man was in a particular hurry so they didn‘t know about the car. Sam appeared flustered but hopped into the driver‘s seat nonetheless. Alice unlocked Martin‘s vehicle and they sped off, leaving Martin to swear at them in the distance.
Alice kept a steady pace below the speed limit until they arrived at the airport parking lot. She drove to what she hoped was its furthest corner and carefully parked. Sam sidled over and let Alice take over the wheel.
“That was hot.”
“They deserved it.”
“I could get used to the criminal life.”
“Stick to grand theft auto and you‘ll be fine.”
“You‘d better get me home fast before this buzz goes away. I don‘t want to use a drop of this rush on anyone but you.”
“Why wait? There‘s an airport motel coming up just about... now.”
AN HOUR LATER they left the motel and headed back to Mama‘s to pack. In the coolish light of the early evening, Alice reckoned not being in Palm Springs would be a good idea. Martin would be unlikely to want to tell the cops he got stiffed by a couple of out-of-town broads, but he‘d have to report his car stolen to have any hope of getting it back. Alice had wiped her prints off every surface just to be sure. The vehicle retailed at north of quarter of a million and Sam pointed out it might have a tracker so he'd need no police help. She was probably right.
“I stole the car so you are definitely buying dinner when we get home.”
“Worth every penny.”
Alice hugged Bobby and kissed her Mama goodbye while Sam stood patiently by. Handshakes and adios for her, then into the soft top and away. On the way back, Sam mused about their trip.
“I like your folks. They come across as warm and welcoming.”
“Bobby is a good man. Says little, but he watches and learns.”
”He‘s always been chatty with me.”
“The man can be charming too.”
“Switches it on for the ladies, does he?”
“He‘s a man with a dark past from what I see, but neither Mama nor Bobby have ever told me what he got up to before they hooked up.”
“Sordid and dirty - all free love and squirming naked bodies?”
“Bobby? I don‘t think so. More likely to be a tragic death and unconsummated passion.”
“Shame. I was hoping for a tale of bondage and a secret dungeon where he tortured leather-clad souls within an inch of their sexual deaths.”
“You lost me at bondage... I need to decide where you‘ll take me for my prize.”
“Almost forgot about that. When will we get in?”
Alice glanced at the clock on the dashboard and added numbers up in her head.
“Nine at the latest.”
“Do you mind if we stay in tonight? We‘ll have more time to think of somewhere real special for your prize. Besides... I‘ve got some other ideas about how we could spend the evening instead of sat in a restaurant.”
Alice needed no further explanation as Sam reached over and placed a left hand on her crotch.
“Take away pizza will do just fine.”
She parted her legs slightly and pressed down on the gas pedal.
18
MARY LOU AND Bobby decided they needed to find more opportunities to sidestep the heroin racket. And as much as they wanted to stay local, they knew there was money to be made outside LA. They were not turning their backs on the City of Angels so much as spreading their wings.
She‘d had her eye in San Francisco for some time. The place had never been under mob control and as a small operation, Mary Lou thought they‘d be able to make their mark quickly given the muscle they‘d bring.
With November fast approaching, Bobby wanted to get lottery card production up-and-running although Alice preferred to keep control of that end of things. Logistics resolved that argument in Alice‘s favor: it was cheaper and quicker to truck over the fake cards than build a new plant.
A fresh batch of sales representatives were hired and cash poured in, just as it had in LA. The state‘s finances might be in disarray but Mary Lou and Bobby were almost literally printing money in Bakersfield. The sudden influx of green made Mary Lou want more out of San Francisco.
“What else would be easy to set up?”
“Girls... and boys for that matter.”
“It‘s not a gay city - just has a gay area.”
“Anyway. The answer to your question is sex. Let‘s ship in some girls from our LA clubs to begin with until we can recruit local bait. If we use the gentle art of
firm persuasion, we could run three lap dancing bars before the weekend.”
Bobby and his enforcement crew spent two days driving round town to locate suitable venues. He was searching for the rare combination of relative success and weak management. If you possess a knowing eye and are prepared to sit in enough dive bars then you can find almost anything. His gang were under strict instructions to drop a few notes on the girls but not lose sight of the prize: to check out security arrangements and how much muscle was hiding behind closed doors. He told them he‘d let them have a weekend pass with any of the floozies they wanted once the Lagottis were running the joints.
Three locations were selected and his crew split up and attacked each at the same time. Existing management was offered a cash payment to leave that night. Given the size of the offer, two accepted in an instant and walked out immediately with a brief case crammed with money. The third venue contained a more reluctant host.
His perspective was that he‘d built the Booty Bar from nothing and a bunch of out-of-towners weren‘t going to get him to shift just because they asked.
“I understand you have not planned to exit this establishment but I can assure you, it would be left in safe hands.”
“You don‘t appear to be listening too well. The place is not up for sale.”
“We have offered you money, which you have rejected. I heard you say that clearly. So I won‘t embarrass you by making the offer twice.”
“Finally, you get the picture.”
Bobby laughed. This small-time operator stood before him thought he‘d walk away with his tail between his legs.
“The best thing I can suggest you do now is to give me the Booty Bar as a gift - man to man. And because I am a businessman at heart, I will find other ways than cash to show my appreciation.”
It was Anton Markov‘s turn to laugh.
“You been smoking the whacky baccy before you came in here or the sight of all that pussy outside has made you crazy. Watch my lips: I will not give you the joint and I will not sell it to you.”
The Lagotti Family Series Page 75
