CHAPTER TEN

But outside, as Mick walked out of the warehouse and as the four capos that were waiting out there stood at attention to hear their next orders, it was anything but a laughing matter. They were in the room, before Mick arrived, when Jonah first mentioned the name of one of the most notorious gangsters that ever lived. Now they were outside of the warehouse, at the docks, waiting to hear if they were going to take on that bastard, or leave it to others.

They would prefer to leave it to others.

Mick’s big Escalade was parked in front of the warehouse, but the capos knew it was serious when he didn’t immediately head to his SUV. He waited for Teddy to come outside. But they were also struck by how calm Mick seemed. They were on pins and needles. He wasn’t breaking a sweat. But Teddy was concerned when he came outside. They could see that too.

“I want you to get an A-team to Europe,” Mick said to his son. “Make sure they talk to everybody who claims to have seen him. I want our experts to follow in his footsteps. See if there’s a pattern.”

“You trust what Jonah Tella saying to you?” Teddy asked.

“It’s not a question of trust. Our people will confirm or not confirm everything he told us. If it’s bullshit to save his life, we’ll find that out. And then un-save his life. I want direct information from our guys and our guys only.”

“And those bodies Jonah claim has the proof?”

“Exhume every one of them and examine those nails. I don’t care who they have to bribe. Just get it done.”

“Yes sir,” Teddy said as they all suddenly heard a fast-moving car driving onto the property. They all turned to the sound.

It was Roz in her bright-white Lexus two-seater sportscar with the top down. And she was flying past the office and toward the warehouse. Although the capos and Teddy moved out of her way, Mick didn’t even flinch when she drove to within inches of him, as if she was ready to run him over, before slamming on her brakes.

“What the fuck ?” Teddy asked, surprised by that close call, and by his stepmother’s sense of urgency. Were the twins okay? Was Gloria?

Nikki and Jonah were just coming outside, too, when the car slammed on brakes. Nikki had just left Roz at a restaurant at the mall to come deal with this Jonah Tella situation. She had no idea Roz was going home, getting her own car, and coming over too. That was why she was watching, like everybody else, as Roz got out of her car and hurried over to her husband.

“Everything okay, Ma?” Teddy asked her.

But Roz only had eyes for Mick. “Let me see your phone,” she said to him.

“Why?” Mick asked as he studied her face. She was pissed, alright, but he knew instantaneously that it wasn’t because anything had happened to the children. She was pissed with him.

“Let me see your phone,” she said to him again.

“Why?” he asked her again.

“Give me that got damn phone,” she said angrily as she reached into his pocket and snatched it out. The capos looked at each other in astonishment. They knew Boss gave his wife more latitude than any other human being alive, but damn ! Had that been one of them snatching anything from the boss they would have been dead.

But Roz immediately hurried to his text messages. If he was bold about that shit the way she knew he could be sometimes, those messages would still be there. They were still there. Every one of them. Even the most damming ones were still there. Her heart dropped like a rock. It was a gut punch for her.

And when she looked up into Mick’s eyes and saw how sexy he still looked with that sleepy eye, and how easily it would be for women to throw themselves at him, women far younger than she was, it was a sucker punch for her. Because she also saw how much she still loved that bastard so much that it hurt. And it made her so angry that she lost it. She threw his phone at him, which he tried to catch but missed, and then she slapped him so hard across the face that even he staggered back a step. Then she went to slap him again, but he grabbed that hand and stopped her.

Teddy and Nikki hurried over to them just in case Mick tried to break that hand, and the capos stood there so stunned that they could not move. Was this the day Mick finally got tired of her bullshit and murdered his wife? Was this the day???

But Mick and Roz just stood there, staring into each other’s eyes. Mick was still holding her hand as she continued to apply pressure to loosen his grip so that she could slap him again. Tears stained her big, beautiful eyes.

When Teddy saw how hurt she was, he knew his father had disrespected her in a way that was too much even for her strong-willed self to handle. It was too much for her. Even Teddy saw that.

Mick saw it too, but his poker face gave away nothing. His heart was hammering. He loved Roz just that much. But he’d be damned if he was going to show it in front of his men.

But Roz didn’t want him to show her shit. Those text messages showed her all she needed to see. There was no explaining that shit away. And she felt embarrassed being there. Why did she have to see his phone to confirm it? Why was she still giving that bastard the benefit of the doubt when he wouldn’t even give her the benefit of his faithfulness?

She snatched her hand away from him, got back into her car, and sped away.

Everybody wanted to look at Mick, but nobody had the guts to do so.

Except for Teddy. “What was that about, Pop?” he asked his father.

“Do your job,” was all Mick would say as he walked around to his SUV, got in, and drove away.

Jonah Tella, a mob boss of more esteem than most, was smiling again. He looked at Nikki. “Like I said,” he said to her, “Cupid ain’t got no bows around here.”

But Nikki failed to see the humor. “Take your ass on,” she said to him bitterly.

He began walking away, but not before sneering at the capos who had beaten his ass as if they were his equal. When even they knew they were not.

But Teddy and Nikki didn’t give Jonah the time of day. They were still worried about Roz and what on earth she was going to do next.

They looked at each other. But they could offer no advice to the man and woman they respected more than anyone else in this world because they were in a bad place too.