Al chuckled. “Perhaps the only man in the world not to be married to Shirley.”
“Why did he want to kill her?” DeeDee asked.
“Guy who threw acid in his face was Shirley’s husband. But he was s’posed to be dead by then. Shirley’d gotten the order to kill him a long time before. Rumor was she didn’t do it ‘cuz he’d jes’ lost all his money gamblin’. Dude would swing up and down, make a load of money, then lose it, then make it again. She was waitin’ for him to swing back up, and durin’ that time he went and threw acid in Sab’s face over some argument or other.”
“I see,” DeeDee said.
“Guy’s long dead now, but Sab had it in for Shirley. Always thought it was her fault, and it partly was. If she’d done her job, the guy’d never have been alive to throw the acid.”
“Is he really badly disfigured?” Jake asked.
“Oh yeah. Had a lot of reconstructive surgeries, and it still ain’t good,” Al said. “Actually, it looks hideous. His wife even left him ‘cuz of it. If I didn’t hate the guy so much, I’d feel sorry for him. His whole life was ruined.”
“Seems to be doing okay for himself, though,” Jake said. “He’s certainly got a top job.”
Al nodded. “Yeah. Ain’t sure if he’s happy, though. Never remarried. Guy was a bitter, twisted man when I knew him, and word on the street is that he ain’t changed.”
“Swell, that’s comforting,” DeeDee said, looking at Jake with concern in his eyes. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Now she knew how Cassie felt.
“Yes,” Jake said. “I’ll be fine, honey. It won’t be so bad.” He grinned. “Plus, I get $100 million. I’ll be a super rich guy for the day.”
CHAPTER 18
The next morning, everyone was nervous.
Little Fingers and Joey came over first thing, with cases and cases of fake bank notes. “Fred Marino had everything we needed,” Joey said. “Thank goodness for that.”
Al arranged his tie in the mirror, secretly wishing that Benny was coming with them. As much as Benny liked to talk and complain, Al was always glad for his company, but Benny was working on another angle that he wanted to keep quiet about for now. It was possibly the most dangerous part of the plan, and Al was more than grateful to him for arranging the meeting.
He walked out into the main living area of the suite. There was a huge breakfast spread on the table that they’d ordered from room service, but Al was too nervous to eat. He drank his third cup of coffee, even though he was beginning to shake a little from too much caffeine when he poured it.
Jake walked out of his room in a designer suit and tie. He smiled nervously at Al. “Think I look credible? How did I make this $100 million?”
“He ain’t gonna’ ask questions,” Al said. “He’s the kinda’ guy who knows money can come from all kinds of interestin’ places. Any mob guy does. I know the rest of them board members ain’t mob, but if I know Sab, he’ll be the one callin’ the shots, no matter where he is in the official hierarchy. He’s jes’ that kinda’ guy.”
DeeDee, who was adjusting Jake’s tie, said, “I can imagine how humiliating it must have been for his wife to leave him. He sounds like a very prideful, powerful man.”
“Yeah,” Al said. “With a very fragile ego and a quick trigger finger. Ain’t a good combo.” He tried to laugh. “Well, ya’ know, that weren’t a very nice inspirin’ pep talk.”
Cassie sat at the table, very slowly nibbling her way through a croissant. “You need to be ever so careful.”
Jake patted the front of his waistband, where he’d put the gun. “At least I have this.”
“Yes,” DeeDee said, even though she was very worried.
The Gambinos left first, saying they’d be on call if anyone needed anything, and Al and Jake left shortly afterward in a cab, leaving Cassie and DeeDee in the hotel suite alone.
DeeDee, feeling insecure, double locked the door from the inside. She was still wearing slippers and a robe as she padded over to the table to try to eat something. “I feel so nervous,” she said. “I don’t really want to eat.”
“Me neither,” Cassie said. “But still I’m trying. I figure empty stomachs are only going to make us more anxious.”
“You’re probably right.” DeeDee took a pineapple cream cheese muffin off the plate of breakfast rolls and took a bite. “Cassie, this is delicious. Glad I listened to you. You’ve got to try this. Matter of fact, I need to tell Susie about it so we can use it at Deelish. Kind of an Hawaiian feel to it.
“Back to the guys. I just hope they’re both going to be all right. I mean, I know they’re tough and more than experienced. But neither of them is used to this kind of thing, and Surly Sab sounds like a monster.”
“He does, doesn’t he?” Cassie said. “At first I was feeling sorry for him because of the acid attack and the surgeries and his wife leaving him. But honestly, it’s kind of beginning to sound like he’s a horrible guy. I’m not going to say he deserved what happened to him, though.”
“I wonder if he was like that before the acid incident,” DeeDee mused, “or if he got that way afterward.”
“Good question,” Cassie said. Then she sighed. “If I sit here and think about it I’m going to go crazy. Do you think we could distract ourselves somehow?”
“It’s going to be difficult,” DeeDee said, “but I think we should try. I say some Netflix is in order. And when I get nervous, I like to clean and tidy. I know it’s already clean, but maybe I can find some clutter around here that I can get my hands on. That usually helps.”
Cassie nodded. “I’m going to take a shower and spend ages doing my hair. Give myself a nice blowout. I’m terrible at it, so it’ll be quite a challenge.”
DeeDee chuckled. “That’s a pretty good idea, I have to say.”
*****
Al and Jake had a long cab ride ahead of them, since Surly Sab’s firm was on the other side of the city, and the streets were jammed with traffic.
“Think we’ll be ridin’ fer at least an hour,” Al said.
Jake was feeling nervous, so he decided to change the subject. “So where do you think you’ll go on vacation next?” he asked. “The Caymans were great, weren’t they? Gotta’ love the whole island vibe, the weather, the fishing.”
“Yeah,” Al said. “Maybe we’ll do Antigua next. I’ve been hearin’ some great things about St. Lucia, too. I dunno’, maybe the Seychelles, or the Maldives. Don’t forget, we still gotta’ do that divin’ on Cayman for the underwater treasure.”
“I’d kind of forgotten about it with everything else that’s happened. Anyway, those are great choices,” Jake said. “DeeDee and I were thinking of going on a cruise. A tropical one, preferably. Maybe around the Indian Ocean, hit East Africa, places like that. I’m afraid my geography’s not up to scratch. I’ll have to do some more research…”
“Another idea I had was goin’ to the mountains,” Al said. “Somewhere in Europe. Ain’t never skied before. Neither has Cassie. She wants to learn. Think I’d rather stay in some luxury cabin in a hot tub, keepin’ myself warm with liquor and plenty of food.”
Jake laughed. “I’ve never really seen the appeal of skiing myself. I just don’t like the cold. Whenever I think vacation, I think palm trees and beaches, or at the very least some heat!”
“Couldn’t agree more,” Al said. “But, ya’ know what, ya’ gotta make the wife happy.”
They whiled away a lot of the cab ride talking about nothing much at all.
When they were about fifteen minutes away, Al got a phone call. “It’s Benny,” he said. “Yo Benny. What’s up?”
“Don’t go and see Surly Sab!” Benny said. “Turn that cab around and get the heck out of there!”
“What?” Al said. “Whad’ya mean?”
“He’s found out somehow,” Benny said. “I put someone onto watching the building, and they’ve seen all kinds of mob figures going in there that shouldn’t be there at all. He’s got wind that it’s you, it seems, an
d has got half the Mafia inside there waiting to blow you away. I’d say he thinks you’re coming there to kill him or something.”
“But how did he know? Somebody snitch?” Al thought through the people who were involved. “Little Fingers or Joey let on somethin’? Or Fred Marino?”
“Who knows?” Benny said. “All I can say is if you value your life, don’t go. Listen, I think you should just get out of town. Forget all of this. Like I said, go live in some remote South American village and change your names.”
“Man,” Al said in exasperation. His head was spinning. He leaned forward and told the cab driver to take them back to the hotel. “How’s things going with you there?” Al asked Benny.
“I’m trying to meet with someone, but he hasn’t turned up yet,” Benny said. “Hopefully it’ll go better than what’s happening with you. Listen, just let me finish up and I’ll come and meet you at the hotel. Lock yourself in your suite and don’t go outside. This is really heating up now. I’ll ask Joey and Little Fingers to come sit in with you guys, too.”
“Okay. Good luck.” Al hung up the phone and explained to Jake what was going on and what Benny had said.
Jake shook his head, his face drained of color. “I’m thinking maybe Benny’s right. Just get out of here. This stuff is too crazy if you value your life.”
“Seriously considerin’ it,” Al said. He called Cassie. “Hi, ya’ both okay?”
“Yes, we’re absolutely fine,” Cassie said. “Why? What’s up?”
“Tell ya’ when we get back,” Al said. “Be there in a half hour or so. Don’t worry, everythin’s okay. Love ya’, Cassie.”
“I love you too, Al. Hurry up and come back.”
“Will do, there’s jes’ a lotta’ traffic.”
Al was overwhelmed with frustration. He pounded the side of his fist against the car door while he watched Chicago go by at a frustratingly slow pace. What had he been thinking? He berated himself for coming to Chicago in the first place. For now, he couldn’t wait to get back to the hotel, hold Cassie in his arms, and let her know that she was safe. No more of this crazy Mafia stuff anymore, he’d promise.
But when they got to the hotel, something was wrong. Something was very wrong. The driver slowed down as he approached the entrance, and Al noticed a man standing in a black uniform, a little ways down from where the doorman was stationed. He recognized him, but couldn’t remember from where.
Then the cab driver stopped at the front of the hotel, and Jake opened the door to get out. Just at that moment, a sickening feeling made Al’s stomach lurch. He grabbed Jake by the back of his jacket and pulled him back into the cab. “Shut the door!” he hissed, then told the cab driver, “Get outta’ here. Quick!”
“What?” the cab driver said, starting to sound annoyed.
“You’re getting’ paid pal.” Al said. “Jes’ go!”
Jake turned towards Al, wide-eyed. “What’s going on now?”
“A coupla’ guys were stationed out front,” Al said. “I ID’ed the first one. They’re contract killers from the mob. I recognize ‘em. Sab musta’ hired ‘em and got ‘em to cover the hotel.”
“But what about DeeDee and Cassie?” Jake asked. “Will they be okay?”
Al was frantic. He just wanted to grab Jake’s gun, jump out of the cab, blast the Mafia guys, and then scoop Cassie up into his arms. But he knew he couldn’t. He wasn’t about to spend the rest of his life in jail. Cassie would surely leave him. He had to be smarter about it.
He tried to call Benny again, but his call didn’t go through. Next he tried Little Fingers. “Sab’s got the hotel covered,” he blurted out.
“What?” Little Fingers said. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure!” Al hollered. “Got hit men stationed outside, waitin’ fer me. How are we gonna’ get DeeDee and Cassie outta’ there? No one can go outta’ the front entrance or they’ll be a target.”
“I’ll have to see if there’s a way in through the back, through the kitchens,” Little Fingers said.
“We could just call the cops,” Jake said.
“Nah, they won’t be any help to us,” Al said. “As soon as they know it’s mob business, they won’t touch it with a ten foot pole. Fer all we know, Surly Sab’s payin’ ‘em off.” He went back to the phone call. “Find the way through the back as quick as ya’ can. Where are ya’?”
“Me and Joey are already walking there. We were at a café a block away. We’ll work something out. Don’t worry.”
“Ima worryin’,” Al said. “Wish I could do somethin’.” He called Cassie. “Listen, babe, ain’t nothin’ to worry about, but I need ya’ to do somethin’ for me. Make sure ya’ don’t let anyone into the suite ‘cept Little Fingers and Joey, okay? Not room service, not anyone. Right? And I want ya’ to keep Red right next to ya’.”
“What’s going on, Al?” Cassie asked.
“Ain’t got time to explain,” Al said. “But everythin’s gonna’ be jes’ fine. See ya’ soon, okay?”
“Okay,” Cassie said, sounding very nervous.
Just then Al saw that he had a call coming in. It was Benny. “Benny, Sab’s got the hotel covered and…”
“You need to come meet me,” Benny said. “I’ve got some news for you.”
“Huh?” Al wasn’t expecting that. “Where?”
“The green warehouse in the industrial park coming off 20th Street. Are you alone?”
Al frowned. “But you know…”
“Are you alone?” Benny asked very pointedly.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m alone,” Al said. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.” He gave the driver the directions. “Somethin’ serious is goin’ on,” he said to Jake. “Benny asked if I was alone, but he knows yer’ with me. Someone must be listenin’ to the conversation.”
“Like who?” Jake asked.
Al swallowed. “Got a pretty good idea. Jes’ make sure ya’ keep that gun close, Jake. This was a part of the plan I didn’t tell ya’ about and it ain’t gonna be pretty…”
CHAPTER 19
Before long, Al and Jake arrived at the green warehouse Benny had described.
“Wait here fer us,” Al said to the driver as he stepped out of the cab.
“Not a chance,” the driver said. “I’ve been listening and it sounds like you’re mixed up in some dangerous business. I’m not sticking around to get myself killed, thank you very much.” He didn’t even stay long enough for Al to reply.
Al looked around the area. It was an industrial area that had clearly seen much better days. Half the units were abandoned, and they were so spaced out Al knew if they screamed inside the warehouse, there was no one around that would hear them. A single old van trundled past them. The only other sound was made by trash blowing in the wind.
“Make sure to keep yer’ finger on the trigger,” Al warned Jake. “Sorry ya’ got dragged into this.”
“Don’t be,” Jake said. “Let’s settle this once and for all.”
They made their way into the compound of the green warehouse. It was fenced off, but the fence itself was rusting, as were the piles of industrial and car parts strewn around the front of the building.
“Looks like this place hasn’t been used in ages,” Jake said.
“Agreed,” Al said. “Place is like a ghost town.”
“Why would Benny want to meet us here?”
“Dunno. Your guess is as good as mine. Said he had a difficult job to do. Some kinda’ meetin’ to try and work out who wants to kill me. But why here? Weird choice.”
“Extremely.”
“Better keep our voices down. Don’t wanna’ tip anyone off that we’re here.”
They picked their way through the area in front of the building, stepping over rusted auto parts, and trying not to make them clatter with a metallic sound that would alert someone they were there.
Finally they reached a side door, which was open.
“Be careful, and go slow,” Al whispered to Jake. “
Mattera’ fact, release the safety on yer’ gun and be ready to shoot, jes’ in case. Or ya’ want me to do it?”
“I’ve got it,” Jake whispered back.
“Tell ya’ what…” Al went over and picked up a sharp piece of glass that was laying among the rubble. He wrapped a piece of cloth around the base, with the jagged tip sticking out, and held it like a weapon. “At least I’m armed with somethin’.”
They crept into the warehouse, which had a strong smell of dust and decay. So strong that Jake nearly gagged.
Al whispered, “Ya’ go that way, I’ll go this way. Be careful.”
Al made his way past rows and rows of boxes, which were thick with dust, and had cobwebs strung out between them. He thought he heard a creaking sound, but then second-guessed himself. He turned a corner to find himself facing a set of metal stairs.
Just then, there was a loud smashing sound from upstairs, as if someone had broken a window.
Al wanted to call out Benny’s name and see if his friend was okay, but he knew he couldn’t. Instead, he held his shank firmly in his hand, and made his way up the stairs as quietly as he could. It was quite a feat as his shoes hit the metal on each step, but he managed it in near-silence.
Then he had to creep forward. This was the scary part. The only way he could go was through a door, and he was sure the smashing sound had come from there. He decided he didn’t have a choice, even though he was so scared that adrenaline zipped through his body and he felt his blood pounding in his temples.
He kicked the door open, then jumped back behind the wall so no one could see him. He hoped whoever was in there would creep around the corner to find out who was there, and he could ambush them.
But it didn’t work out like that.
“Whaaaaaaaat?!” someone yelled.
Before Al knew what was going on, Rocco Rosetti was in front of him, pointing a gun at his face. Al was tall, but The Rock was even taller and towered over Al. His piercing blue eyes were animalistic in their rage.
“Aha!” Rocco said. “Just the person I wanted to see.” He kicked Al’s hand and the shank dropped to the floor with a crash. Then he pressed the gun into Al’s chest and said, “Come and say hello to your little pal.” Rocco grabbed Al by his shirt and pushed him through the door.
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