Page 63 of Long Live the King
“That’s insane. That just can’t be true,” Frankie says, shaking his head in disbelief.
“It is,” Alannah chimes in, still aiming her weapon at the back of Frankie’s skull. “Tommy was totally fine with getting Dominic killed, and ended up getting himself killed instead. We had to do what we had to do, Frankie.”
“This is bullshit!” Frankie snaps. “Goddamn it, everything is falling apart. If that’s true, then you should’ve gone to the Commission with it, Dominic. Once they find out about Tommy, they’re gonna have every wise guy in the Midwest looking for you. They probably already have a contract on your head, not just for Victor to ice you, but everybody in Our Thing. You shouldn’t have killed him without telling the Commission what he did, now it’s too late. And if I don’t kill you now, they’re gonna kill me. They’ll think I was a part of this whole thing, and I can’t let that happen.”
Frankie tightens his grip on the gun, and I can feel myself waiting for the sudden blare of the gunshot and the impact of the bullet zipping into my body. My finger tightens as well, ready to fire off as many rounds as I can before my world goes dark. Alannah has tears in her eyes, but I know if Frankie pulls the trigger, she will too. Everything will end right here in this hotel room, unless I do something. I’ve got to get control of this craziness.
“Alannah’s pregnant,” I shout, hoping it’s enough to stop Frankie.
He scrunches his forehead and exhales.
“What?” he says, rattled by my words.
“Before you left, you asked what had changed about my circumstances. Well, that’s what it is. Alannah’s pregnant with our child, and everything is different now.” I repeat.
Frankie lets his eyes drop down to the floor, thinking about what I just said, and I know this is the time to continue.
“Listen to me, Frankie,” I go on. “I never let myself admit this until now, but there’s something you should know. Leo was wrong. When he chose me to be his successor, he was wrong. It should’ve been you. You should’ve been the boss of this family, not me. You deserved it more than anybody else, and I know for a fact that everybody in the room that night was prepared to back you as the next boss. I don’t know why he chose me, but it should’ve been you.”
Frankie stares at me, and I can see anger washing off of him, but he’s fighting to keep it. He has a lot to be worried about if he helps me, so I know I have to convince him. If I don’t, I’ll have to kill him.
“I don’t want this life for my kid,” I continue, looking Frankie in the eyes. “I don’t want to have to keep running for my life, and dodging bullets while holding my baby. I don’t want Alannah looking over her shoulder for some asshole who’s willing to hurt her just to hurt me. I don’t want to be the boss anymore. I want out. I want out so I can raise my child the way my parents should’ve raised me. I want my family to be safe. And I want you to be the boss after I’m gone.”
Frankie thinks on it for a second, then he lowers his gun to his side. Alannah and I, however, don’t lower ours.
“What you’re talking about is impossible,” Frankie finally says after a long pause. “This is La Cosa Nostra. You can’t just up and leave, Dominic.”
“I know that. Not without your help.”
Frankie’s eyes bounce around the room as he thinks about everything I just said. After a long moment of silence, he finally looks up at me as I lower my gun.
“Okay,” he says with a sigh. “You want out, I’ll help you get out. After all your father and I went through coming up in this game, it’s the least I can do. I think I owe him at least that much.”
“Wait a minute,” Alannah cuts in. “Five seconds ago, you were ready to put a bullet in his brain, now all of a sudden, you’re ready to help us. How do we know we can trust you?”
Frankie straightens up his body as he shoves his gun back into the holster, then he finally turns around and faces Alannah. He has a glare in his eyes I’ve never seen before, one that makes me feel uneasy about what’ll happen next.
“Answer me,” Alannah snips, still pointing the gun. “How do we know you’re not gonna shoot him in the back as soon as we walk out of here? Huh? How do we know we can trust you?”
Frankie faces Alannah and stares down the barrel of her gun without a hint of fear in his eyes as he speaks.
“You don’t, but I don’t see that you have a choice anymore.”
