Page 40 of Family Secrets

Chapter Seventeen

Gino’s day had been one shit-show after another. First, he’d spilled coffee twice on his shirt, then found his car with a flat tire. He’d run late to every meeting due to traffic or his GPS giving him bad directions. To make matters worse, he’d had limited contact with Elizabeth, the secret he vowed to keep from her eating at his heart.

Reaching for his phone to call her, he wanted to see how her lunch with Lisa had gone. Despite how much he assured her everything would be fine; he couldn’t shake the sound of worry in her voice. Before he could unlock his phone, it began to ring.

“What?” he answered irritated.

“Gino, it's Tony. You need to get to your father’s house, it's urgent.”

“What’s wrong, old fuck take too much Viagra?”

“Just get here as fast as you can, man.”

For the first time in his life, the line went dead on him, something Tony and his fist would have a meeting about.

Glancing at the clock, his frustration increased when Gino realized he wouldn’t have enough time to drive out to his father’s house and back to the city for his weekly time with the kids from the neighborhood. Blowing off his father wasn’t an option, and with no other options, he placed a call to a man who owed him big time.

“King,” the man barked into the phone, the familiar sounds of the gym echoing in the background.

“Dude, it’s Gino. I need you to do something for me.”

“It’s a bad time, man. Can I ring you back later?”

“Too goddamn bad, you’re on my clock motherfucker. Or would you rather Kane knew about you and his sister?”

Gino made it point to know everything he could about the people he associated with, especially the little secrets they hoped would never see the light of day.

“What do I have to do, Gino?”

Smirking, Gino rose from his chair, heading toward the elevator. “In about half an hour, a group of teen boys are going to come in. You need to tell them about a special surprise I’ve arranged for them, by having Kane teach them some boxing fundamentals.”

“Kids, you say?” Gino could hear the dollar signs flashing in Brody’s voice. The dirty motherfucker was as twisted as a fucking pretzel and would do anything for a profit. “How about I arrange for the press to be here, snap some photos of the kids—"

“If I find out one fucking photo of those kids was taken, I will make sure Kane’s sister gets a video of you fucking Holly, the red-headed Ring Girl.”

“You wouldn’t,” Brody whispered.

“Try me and see. Now, make sure Kane knows this is a favor for me.” Gino didn’t wait for an answer. Ending the call and jumping into his car, he tore out of the garage as if he were being chased by the devil.

Gino couldn’t shake the feeling something bad was going on as he pulled into the circular drive of his father’s house. The normal couple of men who stood sentry were now several dozens, all with somber faces and eyes focused on the ground.

He spotted Tony immediately. Throwing his car into first, he jumped out of the car, his fist pulled back and ready to strike. “The next time you address me, you better—"

“Giovanni!” Niko shouted, gripping his elbow, preventing Gino from landing the punch to Tony’s jaw. “You can deal with him later, but we need you inside.”

Niko was one of the handful of people he told Elizabeth who could call him by his first name. Fear gripped Gino, Niko kept his use of the privilege to more pressing matters. “You need to prepare yourself for what you’re about to see in there, it isn’t pretty.”

Gino felt numb as he stood staring at the body of his father. While he was no stranger to crime scenes involving gunshots, this time felt different somehow.

“I’ve put ears to the ground and a hefty reward for anyone who knows anything,” Niko spoke from behind him. “Whoever did this, Gino, knew your father’s routine. Knew where the cameras—”

“Let me see him,” a strangled cry rang out down the hall, interrupting Niko and forcing the pair to draw their guns. Sully burst through the door, his eyes wide in disbelief as he saw his father dead on the couch.

“He’s dead!” Sully cried, his eyes locking with Gino’s, his hands diving into the hair at the top of his head. “Gino, Dad is dead. Who the…?” Sully trailed off, wrapping himself around Gino, his sobs jerking the two of them.

“I just talked to him this morning, Gino.” Sully pulled away, his face red and wet with tears. “We were going to catch a hockey game tonight.”

Pulling Sully in for a hug, “I know, man. I had something to tell him later, too.” Gino looked across the room to where Tony stood apologetically. “Hey, Tony, take my brother to the kitchen and fill him up with some liquid courage. He’s gonna need it.”

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