by Ethan Egorov
When Trent awakened the next morning there was already some activity downstairs. The housekeepers had prepared a rather large breakfast at his father’s wishes but the only thing that Trent wished for in his groggy state was black coffee. “Hey there, birthday boy! You’re up awfully late this morning aren’t you?”
“Ugh. My head’s killing me pop. I do believe I had way too much to drink last night. Can you pass me the coffee and do we have any Tylenol here?”
“Yeah, in the top drawer. See…this is just a sign you’re getting old son. Trust me it gets worse.”
“Thanks for the words of encouragement. Say have you had any word yet on how Saul’s wife is doing?”
“Yeah, I got a phone call from him about an hour ago. The doc says she’s making pretty good progress. He still is insisting on staying by her side though, which is the type of dedication I can respect in a man. What are you plans for today, Trent?”
“I’m going to go back to the apartment and organize a couple things. I also thought that I’d go snoop around downtown and see if I can get a solid lead on who stabbed Saul’s wife. I need to go check our property and see the damage for myself. Of course we know the Mikkelsons’ did it, but I’d still like to find out which dirt bag actually did the deed. That’s going to be the one I off first, just so you know.”
“Trent, I know that you’re angry about it. Hell we all are, but please just be careful. This feud…well it’s taken out a lot of our people. I really don’t want to bury one of my sons.”
“Oh trust me pop, I’m not the one you need to worry about. It’s time that this stopped, don’t you think?”
“We’ll just see how it all shakes out. Take your time with this one dig around a bit before you go in guns blazing, do you understand me?”
“Sure thing pop.” After their conversation and of course a breakfast that Trent really didn’t have an appetite for, he made his way back to his apartment. When he was safely inside he checked his messages. No one had contacted him. He was a throwback to a different era when it came to communication. Sure, he had a cell phone for business purposes, but he still insisted on having a landline as well. He even found an answering system at a thrift shop and ordered tapes for it online. He checked the machine and the tape to find that no one had even left him a birthday message. It seemed as if the only people in the world who actually took notice of birthday was his family. That was the good thing about family, they always found a way to both comfort and surprise him. He took off his overcoat and threw it on a chair he kept in the hallway just for his dirty laundry. He did do a good job with keeping up with the housework himself, but it was mostly haphazard until he made a point of laundry and cleaning at least once a week. Trent decided that he still reeked of the previous night’s scotch, so he decided a shower was in order. He pulled out his favorite soft t-shirt from a drawer and also found a pair of beloved sweats waiting for him. He threw a towel over his shoulder from the hallway closet and turned on the water, allowing it to reach his desired temperature before getting naked and stepping into the hot spray. Steam filled his tiny bathroom and covered the mirror above the sink. He thought to himself that his father may have been right. It was getting increasingly harder to stay up all night and day. Despite his youth, he still found it difficult to stay up after midnight. He usually found himself in bed ready to fall asleep by 11pm. As the water and clean smelling soap relaxed his tense back muscles he uttered a silent prayer that one day soon he’d be able to retire from the mobster lifestyle and have a semblance of a normal life. Maybe he’d buy a house in the suburbs, find a wife, and maybe even have kids. If not kids, he knew he definitely wanted a dog.
Trent stepped out of the shower, not bothering to wrap himself up in the privacy of his own apartment. He picked up his fresh clothes and crossed the hallway to his bedroom. He busied himself with towel drying his hair. His heart dropped though, when he saw a woman standing by his bed. “Oh fuck! Fuck! What the fuck are you doing here?! I definitely wasn’t expecting company.” Trent quickly covered himself back up with the towel. The woman’s eyes had inadvertently roamed over his body and the redhead smiled coyly at him.
“Hello stranger. I just thought I’d drop in for a birthday surprise. I brought you a little something.”
“How the hell did you get in here?!”
“Pfft. Trent… you know just as well as I do, we learned to pick locks as soon as we could walk to the doors. How have you been?”
“Wow. I’ve been doing okay just considering how life is for us. Though I believe you took about seven years off of my life just now by sneaking in like that. You could have called ya know.”
“Oh I know I could have, but there’s no surprise factor in that. Put your fucking pants on already and I’ll give you your present.”
“Fine.” The woman turned around for modesty’s sake as Trent quickly pulled on his sweats and t-shirt. He swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat. It had been many years since he’d seen the woman that never failed to make his blood boil with want and desire. Trent thought to himself as he pulled his shirt over his head that there was probably a bit of love mixed in there too. “Okay. Turn around, Kristina I’m good here.”
She turned around to see that Trent was fully dressed in his sweats and his t-shirt. Her eyes ran down his body and he noticed her assessment of his figure. “Kristina… damn you look good. It’s been forever. I thought that you were off in Italy with what’s his name? Jake?”
“John. It’s John. We did go there for about a week then we came back from his vacation and let’s just say that John isn’t in the picture any longer.”
“Oh yeah, what did you do? Did you take him for everything he’s worth?”
“No! You know I’m not a gold digger and I never have been. No me and John broke up because he was cheating on me.”
“You found proof of that?”
“Yeah in his phone. Sending these nasty messages to these Instagram hoes. I told him after that we were through.”
“I give it two months.”
“Two months until what?”
“Two months until you two kiss and make up, that’s what. It’s a pattern, Kristina.” The young woman flopped down on the bed beside Trent, letting her long red hair splay out against his grey comforter. “Trent! I can’t believe you. You know you don’t have any better or a track record. What happened to what’s her name that waitress you were seeing, what’s her name, Roxanne?”
“Rachelle. Her name was Rachelle. She was actually a hostess not a waitress. We both knew it was nothing serious, and it just kind of I don’t know I guess it fizzled out or something. She eventually quit calling.”
“Was it because you made yourself super available like you always do….”
“Kristina! No, that’s not it. I’m sure she went ahead and found some other dude to knock boots with. Probably one with a lot more money than me.”
“Oh Trent. When are you ever going to learn? Money has nothing to do with it.”
“Oh yeah, I’m sure. I guess that you didn’t end up staying with John because of the exotic vacations and the expensive jewelry he bought you.”
“I’ll admit for a while it was a nice perk. In the end though, he was super boring and I’m glad it ended when it did.”
“Oh yeah? Is that why you’re back now to lick your wounds and recuperate?”
“No I’m actually back for a couple reasons. One is of course I had to deliver your birthday gift. The second reason is pop messaged me saying he needed my help? Apparently things are bad again.”
“Well…there’s been a few issues here recently. I’m sure it’s nothing we can’t handle though.”
“I don’t know seemed pretty grave to me. I just don’t know how they expect me to help.”
“Beats me. I got my own stuff going to too to worry about though, but yeah you remember Saul?”
“Sure I do. How could anyone not remember him? He’s just the best guy ever. He’s a teddy bear.”
“Well someone on the other side felt the need to stab his wife. I’m going to get to the bottom of it and get Saul a little justice.”
“Oh man. That’s a damned shame. I always like his wife. I can remember her baking cookies for my school sales and things. Well we’ll find them and take them out.”
Trent looked at her and smiled. The woman he’d secretly been in love with all of his life had aged well. There were smile lines around her lips and the crows nests had just started mingling around her eyes. She always had beautiful eyes. They were the very first thing that Trent always looked at when he saw her. Blue eyes and red hair was the rarest combination of facial features and Kristina got them both. She was an overall unusual woman though. She had a heart of gold about her, though some people described her as having a lack of patience or being flighty. He definitely understood where people were coming from with the flighty. Kristina always had the temperament where she would just fly by the seat of her pants. In high school, she decided that she was going to sing lead in a rock band. Her father, of course, didn’t approve at all, but despite his discouragement she did it anyway. The band had some limited success and even played at the Governor’s ball before some creative differences broke them up. Kristina heavily contributed to those differences, refusing to change how she sang to fit in with any prescribed genre. She even played some of her own things and was cut an independent album but was only distributed online. She didn’t get rich or famous from it. Her father couldn’t have been more thankful for that.
“What’s wrong Trenton? You are getting gloomy again? See this is where you lose your girls right here?”
“What are you talking about? I’m a fun-loving guy.”
“MH. Sure you are… I mean, what’s not to love about a sulky, brooding, mysterious man who won’t say more than five words after you make love?”
“I talk when the moment seems right. Hell no one wants to have a full blown conversation after that anyway. They just want to fall asleep cause they’re tired. At least I do.”
“Ever the romantic. Anyway, what are you thinking about slugger?”
“Eh, the past. You remember when you were in that band? What were you called the Freeloaders?”
“Freemasons. We were the Freemasons. We rocked it though. Made a good run of it. I still can’t believe that bassist ended up being such a douchebag. I really thought we had a good thing going.”
“Along with all of the other good things it seems.”
“Why are you judging me like that…you’re no better. I don’t see you all settled with a white picket fence yet ya know.”
“I think we both know that the distance between our front door and a white picket fence is the same as the distance from our front door to the gravestone.”
“Geez, fuck Trent. You’re fucking depression anymore.” She rolled over and slapped him on the shoulder and she rewarded her with a smile. His eyes had a boyish amber glow about them when she was in the room. Sometimes when he thought about her for just a few seconds he was light-hearted and felt alive again. He felt like he did during those first few nights with Rachelle, when the promise of having hope danced in front of him. He could never grab it when it was right in front of him, though. He just swallowed a lump that formed in his throat. It seemed like the still couldn’t.
“So quit jerking my chain and tell me the real reason why you’re in town.”
“You know why I’m here. I told you.”
“There’s something else. I know you just wouldn’t come here at pop’s request. What else is in it for you?”
“Let’s just say I stand the chance to be a very rich lady here soon. I have a job to the tune of a cool two million. It really shouldn’t take me long. I’ll be in and out of town before you know it.”
“Jesus, fuck! Kristina! Why can’t you just go live a normal life. Go marry some boring dickhead for his money and set up housekeeping in some suburb. Why do you insist on doing it your way?”
“Because I don’t want a boring life Trent. I think you know too that I can’t stand the thought of being a kept woman. I’m obligated to suck the same dick for the rest of my life then, and I don’t think that’s a chance I’ll willing to take to be ‘safe,’ in my job.”
“Speaking of safety…you know we worry, not I’m going to have to worry about looking after you making sure you don’t fuck up and get caught while I’m looking for Mrs. Pennini’s attacker.”
“Oh Trent. Don’t worry about me, I can take care of myself you should know that by now.”
“Yeah….that’s what worries me.”
“Hah! You know I’ve got this. Besides I’m always cautious. Well, it’s been nice chatting with you, but I guess I’ll be going now. I have a lunch meeting with my potential client. Happy birthday again… your present is in the kitchen. Later!” With that the young woman stood up and quickly made her way out of the bedroom and Trent could hear her slam the door on the way out of his apartment.
He smiled and ran his hands along the spot which was still warm from where she lay in his bed. It had been years, but she was always made him feel like home. He rolled over and grabbed his pillow. It still smelled of her perfume. It was an odd scent that he would have recognized anywhere. He didn’t know if she special ordered it, or if it was just a combination of something and her body chemistry. He shut his eyes then, recalling the time they were teenagers. There was heat on the family and their father had been accused of money laundering. He’d imagined the Mikkelsons’ had something to do with it, of course, so their father decided that going away to their camp in the wilderness upstate was a good idea. They packed up for a month and headed to their cabins by the lake. Of course, as kids they all loved the fact. As a teenager, Trent liked the freedom it offered him. He could walk in the woods and think about all the things he wanted to be when he grew up. That summer though, it offered him something a little less innocent.
Of course there were other families adjacent to their camp and sometimes Trent would hang out with the other teenage boys. They throw rocks in the lake or even go fishing. Fishing was a pursuit that he enjoyed even as an adult. He would even take initiative to clean and gut his own bass or trout and cook it over the campfire for his siblings. This was something they looked forward to every year. That year, though was a banner year for Trent. Kristina decided she would go fishing with him.
The moon hung high in the sky and was bright and full. Its beams illuminated the lake and Trent and Kristina paddled their way to the center. When the moon hit her just right, Trent could see the red in her hair shine. She looked at him curiously as he busied himself preparing a pole with a hook. He bit his bottom lip in concentration and then deftly put a hunk of cheese on the end of it. She smiled almost mockingly at him and asked, “Why aren’t you using a worm.”
“I don’t like the feel of them when they wriggle on the end of the hook. It’s like they know they’re going to die and they do everything they can to fight it.”
“I thought you were tough, Trent. I know that in our family that’s something that would be frowned upon, using the cheese and not live bait.”
“Besides…I mean think about it. There’s so many people who fish in this lake, don’t you think the fish would get used to getting the same bait and know what to expect? The smart fish would just avoid any worms not to get caught, right?”
“I guess you have a point.”
“Yeah…so I’m giving them an opportunity to try something different. We’ll see if it works.” She turned and looked at him with a sparkle in her eyes. “You know… we could try something different too.”
“Um…what are you talking about, Kristina?”
Without warning, she suddenly lifted up her dark gray baseball tee and revealed herself to him. She wore a skimpy blue bra which barely covered her chest and he swallowed a lump that formed in his throat, his heart beating quicker in his chest. “Kristina… what are you doing?” His words came out in almost a whisper. He couldn’
t believe his childhood best friend was undressing in front of him. Sure he’d had a crush on Kristina for years, but he never acted on his impulses because he was afraid that any romantic involvement would destroy their friendship. Still, it crushed his spirit when he would see other guys flirting with her. Sometimes she would flirt back, but normally she was dismissive, not seeming to realize the power that she possessed.
She walked over to him and smiled coyly, “What does it look like I’m doing? Come on, Trent. Let’s have some fun. You know you’ve wanted to do this for years. I have at least. “Kristina…are you certain?”
“Look, it’s a full moon out. We’re completely alone and I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I don’t think the fish are biting. So we have to do something while we wait don’t we?” She shot him a smoldering gaze as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She pulled him to her, feeling the stubble on the sides of his cheek. He had the beginning of a beard forming and had yet to shave. Kristina liked feeling the scratching sensation against her smooth skin and wondered if he would let it grow out at some point. “Trent…”
Trent didn’t resist. He couldn’t any longer. He felt his hardness growing and knew that despite their friendship he couldn’t resist the heat between them any longer. He pulled her into him and their lips met in a kiss. It was his first. He knew somehow though, it wouldn’t be the only pair of lips he kissed through his life. He parted her mouth gently with his tongue and felt the smooth underside of her lips with it. She was soft and her lip gloss tasted like strawberries. He wondered how other parts of her tasted and suddenly found himself very hungry. She quickened their pace, deepening their kiss and pulling herself closer into him as well. There was so much that Trent wanted to tell her, but instead he remained silent and allowed himself just to trust in that moment. The magic of the evening was upon them and he knew that if he opened his mouth that he would spoil the perfect moment. She bit his bottom lip and pressed her hips into him and his breath hitched. No one had ever moved against him like that before and he felt his erection grow. He didn’t want her to know that he was visibly aroused, but she seemed to realize it and as he moved his lips further down her neck in soft kisses and even a tiny nip, she moaned in his ear. Hearing her arousal and feeling that warmth was all it took. He wanted her and he knew that he couldn’t wait for her any longer. He paused and took off his own shirt. She placed her hands flat on his chest and scraped her long fingernails against its hardness. She bit his lower lip again and twirled his chest hair in her fingertips. She then dropped her hands to her side and unexpectantly tugged on his belt loops. She pulled his lower half toward her as he slipped his arms around her back and deftly unclasped her bra. He just let it fall to the bottom of the boat with the rest of their articles of clothing. He heard a faint pop and realized that she had made the effort to unsnap his jeans and had proceeded to kneel in front of him as she slid them down his legs.
