As I sat down at the table across from the Don, I knocked on wood. Just in case.
“Worried, Indro?” Don Maloik said to me.
“No, sir. I just figure, why tempt fate? Am I right?”
He nodded.
“You’re right.”
One of our guards opened the door and nodded his head.
“All right,” Don Maloik said, standing up, “let ‘em in.”
The guard opened the dining room doors wide and in strode Don Loggia and his crew.
He walked over to the table with a confident air. He was dressed sharply in a gray suit, a white scarf around his neck. Enzio was with him, his arm in a sling from where I’d shot him. He glowered at me with a barely-contained rage.
“Hey Enzio,” I said cheerfully, “how’s the arm? Back to bowling soon, I hope.”
“The sooner I crack your head open like a five-ten split,” he said.
I took a step towards him and Maloik put his hand on me.
“Easy now, Indro,” Don Maloik said to me.
Loggia did the same with Enzio.
“Boys will be boys, am I right, Don Maloik?” he said, as if discussing a Little League game.
“Right you are,” Maloik answered.
“Don Maloik,” Loggia said with a pleasant formality, offering his hand. “It’s so good to see you again.”
Maloik took his hand and drew in Loggia for a hug, kissing him on both cheeks.
“And good to see you, Don Loggia. We appreciate you joining us on such short notice. What can we get you? Coffee? Tea? Something to nosh on, perhaps? They make a beautiful antipasto here.”
Loggia waved his hand.
“I couldn’t, thank you so much. The damn doctors, they tell me I need to watch the salt intake, can you believe that? Salt! As if there’s anything better in this world than salt!”
The two of them chuckled at that and Maloik gestured to the chair across from him. Loggia nodded and sat down, Maloik following suit.
“So what can I do for the Maloiks today? I know things are busy, especially now, am I right, Indro?” he said to me with a slight smirk.
“Right you are, Don Loggia. Time is tight, that’s for sure,” I replied.
“Time is tight, Don Loggia,” Don Maloik said, “and I don’t want to waste your time. So, to that end, I’ll get right to it, shall I?”
“Please,” Loggia said. “I like getting to the point.”
Maloik lit up a cigar and took a drag.
“Cuban. The best. I will get you some if you’d like,” he said. Loggia nodded gratefully.
“Most kind.”
“The issue here, Don Loggia, as evidenced by the… tension… between our two boys, is that the Loggia family is making moves without sanction. Acting unilaterally, in ways that could threaten the peace in our families.”
“I don’t know what you mean, Don Maloik. The Loggias would never act in such a manner.”
“I see. So, you deny that you threatened Indro’s defense lawyer? Kidnapped her and took her to a scrap yard? Showed her a shallow grave dug just for her?”
Loggia started to laugh then, and I could see the subtle shift in Don Maloik’s body language. He wasn’t pleased.
“Don Maloik, with all due respect, the Loggias couldn’t be bothered with such cheap theatrics. When we want something done, we just do it. Being direct is so much better, don’t you think?”
Loggia let a smug smile slide across his face and it was all I could do not to reach over there and slap it off.
“And this business with Indro?” Maloik said. “You’re telling me there’s nothing to it?”
“Don Maloik, I would never presume to tell you how to conduct your family and your business, of course, but can Indro really be trusted right now? The kid fucked up, got caught and is probably desperate to not end up in the joint. I’m sorry that he’s not made of sterner stuff for you, but it’s hard to get good help these days, am I right?”
I started to say something, but Maloik held out his hand and stopped me.
“You’re right about that, Don Loggia. Good help is hard to find these days.”
He stood abruptly then, extending his hand.
“I appreciate your time.”
Loggia looked at the offered hand a moment, a little unsure, then stood up and took it.
“Always available to help out the boss,” he said warmly and then, with a gesture to his men, he turned and swept out of the room.
Don Maloik stood there a moment, chewing his cigar.
“Well,” he said finally. “He’s a lying sack of shit. And we’re gonna nail his traitorous ass to the wall.”
I grinned.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Sophie
It was going as well as could be expected. The DA was smart and prepared, there was no question about that. His examination of witnesses and experts was precise and assured. And Miller was articulate and personable. There was a reason his conviction rate was so high. And the jury liked him. You could feel it in the room. And Miller knew it too.
All good then. I just had to make sure that they liked me more.
Indro had made it back from his meeting just in time. He looked a little harried but otherwise pretty good. He had dressed in a tasteful gray suit, nothing too flashy, clean-shaven, and he was following my instructions about appearing contrite and humble. So far, anyway.
Today was the day when Indro would be taking the stand. I leaned over to him.
“Cutting it a little close, aren’t we?” I whispered.
“All that matters is making it to the church on time. And I have. So let it go.”
“Want to tell me where you’ve been?” I said.
He shook his head slightly.
“Trust me. You don’t want to know.”
“Fabulous.”
“Ms. Vercetti?” the judge called out from the bench.
“Yes, Your Honor?”
“Is the defense ready to proceed?”
“Yes, Your Honor. Thank
