by Ethan Egorov
“Yes. We’ve been waiting on you to come back to start it. Tommy and I here were just having a bit of a disagreement on cards.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah…he seems to think that the best strategy is the bluff. I keep telling him that you can only bluff so many times before it becomes a pattern and patterns you don’t want. That means you can be predicted. What do you think?”
“I think that it all just depends on the mood of the room. I mean, if there’s observant, smart people around then you don’t want to bluff all the time because they’ll pick up on it for sure. Though if they’re already too drunk to look at their cards, by all means bluff away and take everything they own.”
“Damn Trent, you’re vicious.”
“Yeah…I’m cranky cause I haven’t eaten dessert yet.”
“Ah… I’ve raised good sons. Not to mention an excellent daughter. I propose a toast. May our family always remain close and continue to grow strong through the years. May our enemies be eliminated one by one so we can finally find peace.” The old man then raised his glass to the table and they began tearing into the baked Alaska. Their father cracked the exterior frozen shell and then they each scooped out individual portions. As they ate the creamy goodness, they laughed and celebrated having the evening together. After dessert Kristina excused herself and gave all of them warm hugs. She promised to at least call when she landed in New Zealand and before she left, she slipped a tiny box in Trent’s jacket pocket, “Keep this safe for me while I’m away. We’ll talk soon.”
As they exited the restaurant Trent and Tommy took their father aside before he had a chance to get into his driver’s car. “Hey Pop, before you get back to the mansion there’s something you should know. There was a break in and the place is a mess. Tommy and I did a quick inventory, but it looks like whoever broke in was looking for something.”
“Fuck. Did you check our storehouses?”
“Yeah. We um…took the guns. They are in the trunk of the car. All of them.”
“Hah! Why would you two do a thing like that?”
Well, um, it was my idea Pop, I thought that maybe you were in danger so Tommy and I were going to start a firefight.”
“Jesus. Now I remember why I didn’t leave you two in charge of anything sooner in life. What were you going to do, hunt down every rival gang member in the city and shoot them with an ancient Tommy gun that probably barely fires?! Oh boys… I love you two guys. Come on let’s go home and we’ll sort it out when we get there. I’ll meet you there just leave the guns in the garage or something, they’ll be okay in there.”
Trent and Tommy looked at each other and just grinned before Tommy tossed Trent the keys. “You’re driving back….I’m not fighting that downtown traffic this time of evening. You know how impatient I get.”
“Ugh. Fine, have it your way big brother.”
They arrived back at the mansion to find their father already standing in the middle of the living room, looking around with a foul look on his face. “Hey Pop. Traffic was killer, I’m not surprised you beat us here. Of course we were at a bit of a handicap with Trent driving.”
“Hey, you asked me to!”
“Yeah, but you could have put the hammer down just a bit. I think I saw a few of Pop-pop’s buddies pass you on the freeway. The nursing home wants their checkered flag back.”
“Enough…enough already you two. I’m tired and I come home to find nothing but a mess. This is concerning. My bedroom is trashed, I don’t know what’s going on here, but I’m too old to be playing these little games anymore. I changed my mind…you two handled things perfectly. I think it’s time that we stopped playing defense and started play offense. Both of you are staying here tonight and I don’t want any static. Hell…I even have half a mind to call and cancel Kristina’s plane ticket. She wouldn’t have to know.” Trent looked at his father sympathetically. Of course he was tired, this war between their families had been going on for generations and while it was certainly good to have competitors to push you in business, he could understand his father’s want for a peaceful life. The long sleepless nights as well as the fear of having a bullet between your eyes at any given time was taxing. It made an old man out of everyone sooner or later…at least it landed their grandfather in the nursing home earlier than expected.
“Nah Pop, you know how she is, just let her be. Besides, if there’s another turf war happening, it’s probably best that she’s not around anyway. I think New Zealand is a much safer option for her right now.”
“Yeah…you’re probably right. You and Tommy go ahead and head to bed. It’s late. We’ll all have breakfast in the morning and make plans. Oh and neither one of you plan anything for tomorrow. If you have plans already…cancel them. I hate to be this way, but that’s an order do you two understand?”
They both nodded their head in agreement with their father who was slowly trudging his way upstairs. Trent and Tommy walked to the kitchen where Trent got down two whiskey glasses and put a couple cubes of ice in both. He then poured a small amount in each and set one in front of Tommy. “A nightcap. I love you, brother…it seems like tomorrow will be a long day for both of us.”
“Yes…I have some meetings I need to cancel at the restaurants and of course I’ll have to let my poker buddies know I’ll be unavailable for the rest of the week.”
“Yeah, go ahead and do that. I don’t really have anything to cancel, but I was thinking about doing some investigative work. That will have to wait though. I’m tired of this Tommy….I’m tired of living this lifestyle. I’m tired of the long nights and longer days. I need to find a different direction in life.”
“Don’t we all brother…don’t we all.” Tommy downed the rest of his drink quickly then clapped Trent on the shoulder before starting to walk upstairs. “Get some sleep Trent. It’ll be alright.” Trent scowled at the bottom of his glass and downed the rest of it, secretly wishing he was an optimist like Tommy. Tommy always believed that everything would be alright in the end. He suddenly wished he believed that as he turned out the kitchen light and walked upstairs, finding the softness of his bed waiting for him.
Trent slept deeply and peacefully. He awoke the next morning with the sun streaming through the window. He rolled over and picked up his phone. It was still early, his father would have already been up starting his day, however. His father was most assuredly a morning person, something that Trent would never fully understand. He didn’t see the point of getting up early just to do more in the course of the day. He felt as if he woke up when his body wanted him to whatever he accomplished thought the day was all that was supposed to be done for the day. Fuck. It was only a little past eight. He took a deep breath and stared at the ceiling for a few moments then rolled over and stretched his arms out across the bed. He felt a pang of pain when he realized that the only thing beside him was the extra pillows the housekeeper piled on all of the beds. He missed the mornings when he would roll over and Rachelle would be there, just staring at him while he slept. Sometimes when she was feeling adventurous she would run her finger along the bridge of his nose, or trace her fingertips down his body, waking him up in the most sensual of ways. Her dark eyes would sparkle as she would nuzzle against his neck and whisper a soft good morning. On those days, he was most certainly a morning person.
Trent raised himself to a sitting position and stretched as he sat up. He was most certainly not a morning person today. Those days were long past him. Rachelle just left without any warning, reason, or explanation. He wouldn’t make that mistake again with anyone. The only person who could ever make him change his mind about love and lovers was Kristina and by then she would have been on a plane to a far-away land. Trent stood up and padded over to the dresser where he decided to find some fresh clothes to change into for the day. Maybe if he shaved and showered he would feel somewhat like a normal human again. He always had the ability to grow a very full beard, but he seldom allowed himself to. He found it to be annoying an
d itchy, so he made it a point to shave every morning, sometimes twice a day. The stubble already was getting on his nerves. His body was lit and silhouetted by the morning sun as he stood only in his boxers, deciding what to wear. He opted to continue the casual look and knew from his father’s instructions that the day would be busy and they probably wouldn’t be having any business meetings. If anything he was excited to get his hands dirty and take the fight to his old family members. Trent had lived his entire life in a bubble and from a young age had to be careful of their interference. He felt as if were time to finally hit them back and hit them hard.
After showering and shaving he walked downstairs to find his father and Tommy already sitting at the breakfast table. There was a spread put out and Tommy gave him a broad smile as he walked slowly downstairs. “Well… quite frankly I’m surprised. I thought that sleeping beauty was going to be in bed until noon.”
“Nah. I decided that I needed to shower. I feel like a normal human now.”
“Well thank God you were starting to smell. Come on and eat, we’ve got a busy day, brother and I can’t be stopping for you to get a sandwich every five minutes.”
Trent sat between Tommy and his father. They had been reading through the current events in the paper and having their after meal coffee. Trent decided to take Tommy’s advice. His father did hire the best chefs after all. He helped himself to a generous portion of scrambled eggs and bacon. He then added a pancake with syrup, some fruit, and of course, several sausage links. “Damn Trent. You really should start eating better you know?”
“Why? I mean if I’m hungry I’m gonna eat. Besides I need the protein.”
“For what? It’s not like you’re running miles a day now or anything. Everything in moderation brother.”
“Ugh. Shut up your self-help advice is making my stomach do flip-flops here. Anything going on in the news?”
Their father seemed chipper that they were both having breakfast with him, though he was worried about the days’ events. “Eh not much happening in the world today, it seems like a bit of a slow news day. The stock market’s good though. Our stocks have all trended up this week and they may even split before the end of the month. What I plan on doing is when they split I’ll take the dividends and reinvest them in either more shares or see what else is up and trending. I haven’t made my mind up about that yet.”
“Fuck. I wish I was half as smart as you, Pop. Though I probably won’t have had the heart to actually continue growing the business. I would have just quit after the first year and retired.”
“Nah… you can’t do that son. You have to constantly keep moving forward or your competitors will overtake you. I bet as soon as I move my money around our enemies will do the same. I expect them to fall into the trap of just pulling out their dividends though and not diversifying. That’s an amateur move. I think I’ve told you boys this since you were young. Always diversify it’s the way for the future.”
Before their father could continue their business lecture, Tommy’s phone chirped on the table. Trent suddenly stopped chewing his sausage links when Tommy’s face went pale. “Tommy…what is it?”
“I just got a picture message…Trent this is bad.” He shoved the phone in Trent’s direction and the man craned his neck for a closer view. There was only a picture of the same white dress that Kristina was wearing the previous night, with a message. “Happy New Year.”
“Oh God…Kristina.”
Their father only placed his hands on the sides of his face and ran a hand over his sweaty forehead. “Oh God my little girl…Tommy who sent that?!”
“I don’t know Pop it just came up with an unavailable number. I’m going to try to text Kristina. Trent can you get on your phone really quickly and see if Kristina’s ticket was used?”
“Yeah… I’m on it Tommy. Those fuckers! Pop what are we going to do?!”
“I don’t know… oh my God. No, this isn’t happening. This ends now.”
“I just checked Kristina’s ticket number. I’m glad she felt the need to post a picture of it on social media. Jesus, people really need to quit doing that shit, they’re just inviting someone to know everything about them.”
“Focus, Trent, dammit!”
“She never checked it or cashed in the ticket, Pop.”
“Tommy has she answered your calls?”
“Nah, it’s all straight to voicemail.”
“Did she tell you anything about this job she was working on?”
“Nah, just that it was supposed to happened at the hotel she told me to meet her at.”
“Listen Trent… I know that things have been well…strained between you and Kristina since she went globe-trotting with that white bread chump she was seeing, but I want you to know that I’ve always approved of you dating my daughter. I realize that growing up it was probably an awkward situation, but I’m okay with it. I’ve raised both you and Tommy to be good men and in the end that’s all I want for my daughter is to be with a good man, you know what I mean?”
Tommy chimed in at that moment as well, his voice lowering. “Yeah… I agree with Pop. You were always the right one for her. Even growing up you wanted nothing for the best for her. That’s something to be proud of. I don’t think it makes your love anything weird or strange just because you two grew up together. There are plenty of childhood sweethearts that get married straight out of high school and have a long happy life together.”
“Yeah. I agree with both of you, but the thing is I think she has other plans. It’s true. I love Kristina, well I’m in love with her to be precise, but that doesn’t change the fact that she’s not ready yet. I just hope we can find her in time for her to realize that I’m her best option. What do you think the message means, Tommy?”
“I’m not certain. I mean what’s so special about New Years? Did anything significant happen that day, Pop?”
“Nah. We’ve actually always had pretty low-key New Years’ Eves and New Years’ Days, considering our business. They’ve been mostly quiet. You remember, we just had a small gathering and stayed at home watching Dick Clark or that new guy, what’s his name drop the ball.”
“Ryan Seacrest. That’s his name Pop.”
“Whatever. That’s not important.”
“I have an idea, Tommy… get your jacket, we can’t just sit here and wait on messages that may not come through. We’re going to take a little road trip.”
“No funny business, yet Trent. We need to be organized for our strike.”
“Oh nothing like that, Pop. I just need Tommy for a little backup. We’re going to go book a conference room. Tommy… bring your gun.”
Tommy nodded at Trent and walked upstairs returning quickly. He clutched his keys in his hands, his knuckles turning white because his fists were clenched in both anger and nervousness. “Let’s go Trent. I’m driving so you better buckle up.”
Tommy wasted no time in getting them through mid-morning traffic. They went back to the same hotel that Kristina had her client supposedly meet her at. Tommy wore his typical suit jacket over a casual polo and also had his freshly pressed Chinos on. He was definitely the best man to do the talking. Trent wore his typical tight jeans and pulled on a solid black t-shirt he wore his longer black leather jacket over top of it, and its length did a much better job of concealing his Colt than his brown one did. They walked into the hotel with purpose. Tommy didn’t take the time to even speak to anyone he may have known in the lobby and walked straight to the front desk where a thin-lipped man smiled causally at him. “Hello, sir may I help you?”
“Yes. You certainly may help me. Listen… me and my business associates are interested in booking a conference room for our annual New Years’ Eve office party. Can you tell me what’s available?”
“Oh my. Well I hate to break it to you, but the majority of the hotel has already been reserved for the occasion. Bigger businesses tend to book it not only for their parties, but also their after-parties. Not to mention this yea
r is the annual Gala and I’m not sure if you’re aware of this or not, but the Chamber of Commerce throws their dinner here as well as their party. It’s in the main lobby and well let’s just say it’s quite a posh affair. One that I’m afraid you and your um…associate, may not have been aware of.”
Tommy’s eyes flashed and Trent placed a hand on his shoulder. Nothing inflamed Tommy’s anger more than someone not only insulting his businesses but also his own ability to handle business affairs. Tommy’s jaw muscles began working and Trent knew what was about to happen next.
He stepped even closer to the counter and stared directly into the desk clerk’s eyes. His own were a pit of rage as he placed both of his palms on the counter. He lowered his voice, to a menacing growl and said, “Now… you listen to me. I own several of the largest businesses in this city. Frankly I find your tone insulting and I think it would behoove you to find us a spot. Do you know what happened to the last punk that insulted me? I’ll tell you what happened to him because he can’t quite speak for himself now. That’s to say, I took him behind his workplace beat the fuck out of him, tied him up and cut out his tongue. Do you want to keep your tongue….Gary?! If so I suggest you work some fucking magic. After you get me a room I have a few other questions? You understand?”
The clerk swallowed a lump that formed in his throat and exhaled nervously while Tommy smiled at him just as thin-lipped as before. “Yes… I understand.”
“Well good. We can both do our jobs and be happy now can’t we?”
The clerk typed in a few numbers and mumbled under his breath, “You will be in conference room C for the event. I just need your ID and a credit card now to finish booking you.”
“Fine, see how much easier and agreeable I can be if you cooperate?” Tommy handed him the information he needed to enter in the computer and then he said, “I need a little bit more information as well. I know you said the Gala was going to bring in some pretty posh customers. I need a list of every business and Chamber of Commerce member that’s going to be at that event. Let’s just say I have a presentation concerning my own business they’re going to want to see.”
