CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“Your boy did what ?”

“He arrested her.”

Reno Gabrini heard a lot of things in his life, but this one took the cake. He was in a booth at a lounge inside his hotel and casino on the Vegas Strip with his wife Trina, his cousin Sal, and Sal’s old lady Gemma Jones-Gabrini. “You mean to tell me that that son-of-a-bitch Brent Sinatra arrested his own wife ?”

“That’s what Ashley told Sophie,” Trina said. “Soph told me just before I walked into this lounge. She said it just happened.”

“But how would Ashley know so fast? She’s all the way in Jersey.”

“All of the younger Sinatra kids are spending spring break with her and Monk Paletti. Tony called Frankie and clued him in.”

Gemma shook her head. “But why did they arrest her? That’s what I want to know. What are they alleging she did?”

Trina shook her head. “Sophie didn’t know none of that yet. But I’m sure she’ll find out.”

“Knowing Brent’s ass,” said Reno, “Kayla was probably jaywalking.”

Trina and Gemma laughed. “Knowing him,” Trina agreed as Gemma’s phone rang.

When Gemma pulled it out and looked at the Caller ID, she answered quickly. “Hey Brent.”

Trina began gesturing for Gemma to put the call on Speaker, but Gemma wasn’t sure if the call involved the arrest, so she opted not to place the call on Speaker. “Yes. Yes, I just heard. Yes, of course.” She pulled a yellow legal pad out of her briefcase, grabbed a pen, placed the tip cover in her mouth and pulled the pin away, leaving the tip cover in her mouth. “Un-hun. Wow. Un-hun.” Then she removed the tip cover out of her mouth, tossed it on the table, and began writing vigorously with the pen. “When is it scheduled? Right. No, I agree. Okay. I’ll tie up some loose ends here and be there first thing. No, Sal’s here. I should be able to take his plane.”

She looked at Sal. Sal gave her the thumbs up. “How’s she doing?” Gemma asked Brent. “Oh, I’m sure. Tell her not to worry, we’ll figure this out. No trouble at all, Brent. Yes, I’ll be there. Okay. You too now.” And she ended the call.

“What was that about?” Trina asked her.

Gemma closed her pad. “Brent wants me to represent MaKayla.”

Sal frowned. “For jaywalking?”

Gemma exhaled. “For murder.”

Both Sal, Reno, and Trina were shocked. “ Murder ?”

“Her bond hearing is tomorrow morning. Ten a.m.” She looked at her watch. “It’s after nine pm here in Vegas, so that means it’s after midnight in Jericho. Which means I need to fly out of here in the next couple hours to be there Jericho time tomorrow.” She began standing up.

“Wish I could go,” Trina said, “but with Gem gone, one of us will need to be here for the field directors’ meetings.”

“I’ll keep you in the loop,” Gemma assured her. “Don’t worry.”

“And if Sal needs his plane, you can always take Reno’s,” Trina volunteered. “He’s not going anywhere.”

“Oh yes I am,” said Reno as he stood up. “I’m going with Gemma. Kayla’s been falsely accused of murder. Which means Brent and Big Daddy will lean into letting the legal process play out. She’ll rot in jail waiting on the process to play out.”

“For the first time in a long time, I agree with Reno,” said Sal. “I’m going too,” he added, as he stood up too.

“Alright now,” said Trina, “don’t you two get your asses locked up trying to pull that strongarm mob shit in Jericho.”

“Tell’em, Tree,” Gemma said, “because they aren’t gonna listen to me. They don’t play that in Jericho.”

“Who cares what they play?” said Sal. “We need to get her out of the clutches of that barracuda they call the criminal justice system. That’s why we’re going. After that? We’re out of there.”

“That’s it,” Reno agreed.

Gemma shook her head. “Bye Trina,” she said as the two best friends hugged. “I’ll keep you up-to-date.”

“Thanks hon.”

Then Reno reached over and kissed Trina, but Trina pulled him back. “And your ass better behave.”

Reno frowned. “What you talking behave?”

“Don’t make me come across another table, Reno,” Trina said in jest, although her face wasn’t smiling. “That’s all I got to say.” Gemma and Sal were laughing.

But tough guy Reno didn’t find it funny at all. “What table?” he asked, although he remembered full well during Big Daddy’s couples’ retreat when Trina grabbed him by his shirt and nearly dragged him across a table. By all indications, she beat his ass. “I don’t know what table you’re talking about.”

“Sure you don’t.” She pointed at him. “You better behave.”

“Fuck you, Trina!” Reno said with irritation in his voice. Then he looked into her hazel eyes. She was the love of his life and the bane of his existence all at once. He also knew she had to beat back men trying to get next to her too. “Your ass the one better behave,” he said to her. “Let’s talk about your ass for a change.”

Trina didn’t even entertain his accusation. “Boy bye.”

But Reno learned a little from that couples’ retreat. He leaned down to her and kissed her again. “I love your mean ass,” he whispered to her.

She smiled. “I love your mean ass too.”

Then he began leaving behind Gemma and Sal.

Trina continued to smile. Sal wore those double-breasted suits that made him look like the mob boss he was rather than the businessman he was trying to project. Whereas Reno had businessman vibes all over him, mainly because he was first and last a business mogul despite his extensive mob background, and he wore the most expensive suits around. But they always ended up wrinkled and hanging off of him like he’d just stepped out of bed. And his thick hair was always unruly too.

But even with all his flaws, Reno was still the sexiest man alive to Trina. He still had it in spades. And when he looked back at her just as he was about to leave out of the exit door, they didn’t so much as smile at each other. But their hearts sang. Because their connection was strong as ever despite how often they got on each other’s nerves. Especially for Trina. Many days she wanted to bury Reno in concrete and walk all over his butt. But other days she just wanted to cuddle with him and be with him and love him tenderly.

But those days, she also knew as he raised his hand in a wave to her and she waved back at him, were getting fewer and far between. But it had been that way their entire marriage. And they still had work to do.

But Trina’s thoughts were on MaKayla as she took a final sip of her wine, got up, and left the lounge too.