Page 31 of Tommy
“What do they want?”
“Don’t know. They just showed up. They’re sitting at a table right now, watching one of the girls onstage.”
They wouldn’t be there for entertainment. Kings do their own entertaining. And my place is too mild for their tastes. Having them show could mean a variety of things, all of which involve me meeting with them.
If I were still at the club, it would be easy to send them up. But I’m not. And it might seem like an easy thing to just go meet them, but I won’t. I’m not about to leave Payton in my home alone.
Unprotected.
I drum my fingers on the coffee table in front of me while I think through my options. Only one seems the clear choice.
“Give them my address.”
“You sure?”
Him questioning my decision is more bothersome tonight than it should be. But with anger already brimming in my system, it irritates me more.
“Yes. I’d rather they come to me than make them wait and risk them taking it as a slight,” I say, then hang up.
I swallow the rest of my drink in one gulp. The burn is stronger than before, as I’ve only been sipping on my drink. I wait for the feeling to die down, to push my anger down before I call Danny.
He picks up on the second ring.
“What?”
Typical. Never “hello” or “nice to hear from you.” Just down to business. I do the same with my team, but I’m his brother. I should get more than that.
“Hello to you too.”
He huffs. “Hello. Now, what?”
I roll my eyes. At least I got that much from him.
“Kings are on their way over.”
He waits a beat. “Location?”
“My place.”
Another pause. “Time frame?”
I shrug, not that he can see. “Not sure. They’re at the club now. Twenty minutes, maybe?”
That’s pushing it. All Dante can do isaskthem to come. They don’t have to. But they also know that not coming, especially to the home location of someone in thefamiglia, would look bad for them.
They might show, but they can take all the time they want. They came tomyclub, after all. I didn’t go to them. If they have something for me, or want something, they have the upper hand till I know what they want to discuss.
“I have a team headed there now.”
“Thanks.”
He just grunts and hangs up.
Typical bastard. Good thing I love him. Cold heart and all.
I stand and head to the bar. Another drink is in my future.
The Kings don’t travel in the same groups as the Leone family, but we know of one another. There are four of them who run it, but there are more than that connected to them. We aren’t stupid enough to think they do what they do on their own. They’ve got people—lots of them—we just don’t know who they are. The Kings grew up on the streets,and those who grew up with them are now part of them. Or so the rumor goes. But like their life on the streets, they’re tough and don’t admit to shit. Which makes getting a head count difficult.
