“How long do we have to be here, Uncle Benny?” Jordan asked.

Benny Church leaned forward.  “I don’t know,” he said.  “Mr. Drakos just told me to get over here and stay with you guys until his man could fly in.”

“His man?” Jordan asked.  “All of these men inside this house, outside this house, up the block and down the block are his men.  We’re surrounded by his men!”

Benny and Faye looked at each other and smiled.  Faye leaned forward too.  They were seated around the dining room table inside Alex’s Apple Valley home, and Jordan was right: security was tighter than tight.  “I think Mr. Drakos got a little spooked after what happened to your mom,” Jordan,” Faye said.  “He feels he hasn’t done a good enough job protecting her.”

“That’s because he hasn’t,” Jordan said.  “He promised me nothing like this would ever happen to her again.  He broke his promise.”

Benny and Faye took another glance at each other.  They didn’t think they’d ever heard Jordan utter a negative word about Alex.  He was spooked too!

“What time is it?” Jordan asked Benny.

Benny glanced at his wristwatch.  “It’s four am, kido.  So far past your bedtime it’s not even funny.”

“I’m not going to school tomorrow,” Jordan said happily.  “Mr. Drakos already said I can’t.  Not until he finds out what’s going on with that ex-wife of his.  So time is a nonfactor for me at this point.”

Benny smiled.  “A nonfactor, hun?” he said, and Jordan, knowing he had an odd way with words, nodded and smiled.

Jimmy Hines, who had been pouring himself a drink from the full-sized bar, came over to the table.  “You guys want anything to drink?” he asked before he sat down.

Benny looked at Faye and Jordan, and then answered for all three of them.  “No, Jim, we’re good,” he said.

Jimmy sat down.  “How’s Miss Grant?”

“Still upstairs in Alex’s bed,” Faye said.  “Last time I looked, and that was like at midnight, she looked like she was finally dozing off, so I didn’t disturb her.  But she’s okay.”

“Good,” Jimmy said.  “Another close call: that’s not good.  I guess that’s why I’m a little amped up right now.  I figure I’d better cool it before he gets here.”

Benny looked at him.  “You think he’s going to blame you for what happened?” he asked.

“Oh, I know he is,” said Jimmy.

“It wasn’t your fault,” said Faye.  “That ex-wife of his is to blame.  Why would he blame you?”

“Let’s put it this way,” Jimmy said.  “After that last incident with the car going through that diner?  Remember that?”

“Of course we do!” Faye said.  “One of my best friends owns that diner.  It’s still the talk of the town.”

“Well after that,” Jimmy said, “Mr. Drakos fired that entire security detail.  I mean every man.  He even beat the crap out of one member.”

Even Jordan was surprised to hear that.  “Wow,” he said.

“Yup.  Wow,” Jimmy said.  “So yeah, I’m a little concerned.”  Jimmy gave a weak smile and sipped from his drink.

“And the idea he would bring in reinforcements from outside of his organization,” Jimmy added.  “That’s the real wow.  I’d never seen anything like it in all my years working for the man.”

“Who is this guy, anyway?” Benny asked.  “They say he’s a hotshot.”

“A hotshot?” Jimmy asked.  Then he laughed.  “Reno Gabrini a hotshot?  Yeah, I think everybody in America would agree Reno Gabrini is a hotshot.”

“But who is he?” Faye asked.  “I’ve never heard of him before.”

“Ever hear of the PaLargio Hotel and Casino on the Vegas strip?”

Both Benny and Faye, and even Jordan were stunned.  And when Benny spoke, he spoke the hotel’s name with syllabic phrasing.  “He owns the Pa-Lar-gi-o?” he asked with surprise in his voice.

Jimmy smiled and nodded.  “Yup.  He owns it.”

“Wow,” Faye said.

“He’s been voted the most powerful man in Vegas many years running.  That’s how hotshot he is.  And that guy, the owner of what most people consider to be the cream of the crop hotel in Vegas, is coming to little Apple Valley to babysit until Mr. Drakos can make it back into the country.”

“Damn,” Benny said.  “Excuse my language,” he said to Jordan.  “But damn!  This man really loves Kari.”

“In all my years with Mr. Drakos, I’ve never seen anything like it,” Jimmy repeated himself.

“Never, Jimmy, really?” Faye asked with a smile.

“If I’m lying,” Jimmy said, his hand lifted up.  “I mean, that guy would run through women like I run through socks.  He didn’t give a fuck about any of them!”

Benny glanced at Jordan.  He would prefer he not have to listen to such strong language.  Although, Benny also knew, Kari and Alex used similar language themselves!

“He ran through women as if women were water,” Jimmy continued.  “He turned them on, he turned them off.  And then Miss Grant came along.  To be honest with you, I figured she was just another booty call to him, too, you know?  But boy was I wrong!”

“Jimmy?”

They all looked across the room.  One of Alex’s men was pointing at his wristwatch.  “It’s time to go.”

“Already?”

“Like yeah,” the guy said.

“Oh well,” Jimmy said, leaving his glass on the table as he rose to his feet.  “I’d better get to the airstrip to meet his plane.”

“He has a private plane too?” Faye asked, and then caught herself.  “He owns the PaLargio, what am I saying?  Of course he has a private plane!  These are the kind of people we’re dealing with now.”

Jimmy smiled, and he left.

 

Less than thirty minutes later, the door to Alex’s Apple Valley residence opened, and Reno Gabrini, escorted by Jimmy, walked inside.

 Benny and Faye were sitting in the living room when he walked in.  And he was nothing like they thought he would be.  Especially what Faye had envisioned.  She expected some stiff, button-down untouchable who was perturbed to have to do something this petty for Alex.  She saw, instead, an animated man in a wrinkled suit who looked like he was well accustomed to getting down in the gutter with the best of them and getting his hands dirty.  And he was handsome too.  Not Alex handsome, she concluded, but very good looking!

They both rose to their feet as Jimmy introduced them.  “Mr. Gabrini, this is Benny and Faye Church.  They’re Miss Grant and Mr. Drakos’ good friends.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Church,” Reno said as he and Benny shook hands.  “And Mrs. Church,” Reno added as he and Faye shook hands too.

Faye was such a beautiful woman that Reno couldn’t take his eyes off of her, even after he released his hand from her.  “You guys native Floridians?” he asked.

“No, we moved to Florida,” Benny said.

“Oh, okay,” Reno replied to Benny, although his eyes kept making their way back to Faye.

“So,” Reno said, rubbing his hands together as if he was wishing for luck at the blackjack tables, “where’s Kari and Jordan?  Those two are the reason I’m here.”

“They’re upstairs,” Faye said.  “Alex insists that Kari rest until he gets back.”

“Let me at least say hey to her,” Reno said.  “Will you show me the way, madam?”

“Yes,” Faye said with a smile.  “Right this way.”

Reno stepped aside and allowed Faye to escort him up the stairs to Alex’s bedroom.

As they walked away, Jimmy leaned toward Benny.  “Another thing about Mr. Gabrini,” he said, “is that he has a certain reputation.”

Benny looked at him.  “With the ladies you mean?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“He’s not married?”

“He’s married.  And by all accounts he loves his wife.  But he still has this reputation.  And from the way he was eyeing your wife, I understand why.”

But Benny was dismissive.  “Ah, every man looks at my wife that way,” he said.  “She’s hot, as I’m sure you’ve noticed.”

Jimmy smiled.  “I have, I must admit.”

“My problem isn’t that men look at my wife,” Benny said.  “My problem is that, too many times, my wife looks back at them.”

Jimmy was surprised to hear that.  They seemed like such a wholesome, perfect couple.  But he’d been around long enough to know that nobody was wholesome.  And perfection?  What was that?

“How about a drink?” Benny asked Jim, and they both headed for the bar.

 

Fine ass too, Reno thought as Faye escorted him up the stairs.  Not as fine as his wife Trina’s, he also thought, but she had some decent equipment on her.  But when Reno made it up those stairs, and entered Alex’s bedroom, his entire focus shifted quickly from admiring Faye’s ass, to concern for Kari.

Kari was sitting up, with her back against the headboard, in Alex’s bed.  Jordan was also in the room, sitting in a chair beside the bed.  Like a fucking prison guard, Reno thought.

And when Reno saw Kari’s coloring, and could see that she wasn’t the vibrant girl he remembered when Alex brought her to Vegas, he became doubly concerned.  “Hey there,” he said to her as he made his way to her bedside.

Kari smiled.  She really liked the Gabrinis.  “Hey yourself,” she said.  “I’m shocked you came.”

“To babysit you?” Reno asked with a smile.  “I wouldn’t miss it for the world!”

Kari laughed as Reno leaned down and gave her a hug and a kiss.  “How are you, Reno?” Kari asked when they stopped embracing.

“I’m as well as can be expected,” Reno said.  “How are you, is the question?”

Kari nodded.  “As well as can be expected,” she said.  “You haven’t met my son,” she added.  “This is Jordan.  My pride and my joy.”

“Good to meet you, Jordan,” Reno said, extending his hand.

Jordan rose to his feet and shook Reno’s hand.  “Nice to meet you, sir,” he said.  “My mother and Mr. Drakos think very highly of you.”

Reno was impressed with the young kid.  “Do they now?” he asked.

“If their words bespeak their heart, yes, sir,” Jordan said.

Reno laughed.  “A kid who says bespeaks.  My kind of kid!” he added, and Jordan beamed.  “You do good in school?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Jordan always makes the honor roll,” said Faye as the proud godmother she was.

“Very good,” Reno said to Jordan.  “Keep up the good work.  Alex has an entire empire he just might leave to you someday.  Be ready to receive it.”

Jordan swallowed hard.  Nobody had ever mentioned such a thing to him before.  “I will, sir,” he said.

But Reno’s attention went back to Kari as he placed his hands in his pockets and took on a more concerned look.  Even Faye was surprised at how quickly he went from flirt to serious.  He wasn’t giving her a second thought.  “You don’t look so good,” he said to Kari.

Kari appreciated his honesty.  “Yes, I’ve heard,” she said.

“Not that it isn’t understandable,” Reno said.  “It is.  You’ve had a rough couple of months I hear.”

“Things had gotten back to normal after that car incident,” Kari said.  “At least we thought things had.  Then the ex had to show up.”

“And show out,” Faye said with a smile.

“That too,” said Kari.

“Where is she now?” Reno asked.

Kari looked at Jordan.  “Babe, why don’t you go downstairs with Uncle Benny?  Faye, will you take him downstairs for a few minutes?”

Faye was surprised that Kari wouldn’t want her to hear what she had to tell Mr. Gabrini.  But she’d already realized that a part of the life Kari shared with Alex was totally off-limits to her and Benny.  It was a part of her life that Kari would not discuss no matter how much prodding and poking Faye did.  Faye accepted it.  She had no choice.  But that didn’t mean she liked it.

“Come on, J,” Faye said to her godson.  “I’m being kicked out too.”

“Call me if you need me, Ma,” Jordan said to his mother.

Kari smiled.  “I will,” she said, and he and Faye walked on out.

Reno took the seat Jordan had vacated, turned it more toward the bed, and leaned forward with his elbows resting on his knees.

“First of all,” he said.  “Alex told me about the engagement.  Congratulations!”

“Thank you!” Kari smiled.  “I was shocked, I’ll tell you.”

“I knew he had it in him,” Reno said.  “I just didn’t know he had it in him this soon.”

Kari’s smile diminished somewhat.  “It is kind of quick, I know,” she said.

Reno could see traces of concern, maybe even doubt on her face.

“I really didn’t see it coming,” Kari continued.  “One minute I went to Munich to make sure he was okay, and the next thing you know, just as I’m about to head to the airport to come back home, he pops the question.  Just like that!”

Another look of apprehension, Reno noticed.

“But he’s a man who knows what he wants,” Kari said.

“And he wants you,” said Reno.  “That much is for certain.  Any man who would get me on a plane on zero notice is a man who knows what he wants alright.  I don’t do that shit for nobody but family.  And you and Alex now.”

Kari appreciated Reno’s friendship.  Alex appreciated it too.

“You know Trina wants to have the wedding at the PaLargio,” Reno said.  “Give you guys a chance to meet the family.  I told her knowing Alex, he’s going to want to have it in Paris somewhere.  Or on the Serengeti in Africa.  Or some other exotic place.”

Kari smiled.  “I don’t know about that now,” she said.  “But we appreciate Trina’s offer.”

“So, tell me about that gun-totin’ bitch that tried to take you out,” Reno said.  “Where is she?”

“Alex’s people have her in a safe house,” Kari said.  “When he gets back in town, we’re going to go and have a conversation with her.”

“We?” Reno asked.  “What do you mean we?”

“I mean Alex and me,” said Kari.  “She didn’t come at Alex with that gun.  She came at me.  I have to hear her tell me why.”

“You’re a headstrong young lady,” Reno said, “and that’s a good thing.  But if you were my woman and you started talking about going to safe houses with me to handle my business, I’d put you over my knees and teach you a thing or two about boundaries.”

Kari grinned. “Sure you will, Reno.”

But Reno was dead serious.  “Ask Trina.  Ask my wife.  Ask her how many times I did it to her to set her ass straight.  She’ll tell you.”

But Kari was shaking her head.  She didn’t know if he was kidding or serious, and she didn’t care.  “I don’t need to be set straight,” she said.  “She came for me.  I need to hear directly from her why she came for me.”

“She wants Alex back,” Reno said.  “It could be as simple as that.”

“It could be,” Kari said.  “But not the way that heifer was talking.  There’s something more going on with her.  I can just feel it.”  Then she frowned.  “But I just don’t know what it is.”

“You think Alex, the man who’s making you stay under bedrest until he can get back to town, is going to let you go with him to find out?”

“Absolutely,” Kari said confidently.

Reno smiled and leaned back.  And he crossed his legs.  “I don’t know Alex like that, but I know him like that,” he said with a logic only he could understand.  “I’ll bet you a thousand bucks he’ll kick your ass before he lets you go to that safe house with him to confront that woman.”

Kari smiled too.  “Bet,” she said, and extended her hand.  Although she knew her butt didn’t have anything approximating a thousand dollars if she lost that bet.

Even Reno hesitated.  Not because of the dollar amount, but because of Kari.  Was this chick bluffing, or was she just that confident?  But he shook on it anyway.

 

Eight hours later, after a long and anxious flight back, Alex was home.