Page 40 of Drowned in Gold

They’re talking about Shadow’s daughter, Donny’s wife. Her clout grew tremendously after Donny became boss. Truth be told, she’s smart too. Ronny’s right to be proud.

“So.” Ronny slaps the table, leaning back. “What is this top-secret meeting about?”

Donny nods at me to begin.

“Speak freely?” I ask.

Ronny’s lips crack into a devious smile. He peers over his shoulder at the officers. “Twisted a man’s neck all the way around once. Buried him in the foundation of the corner house on Epson and Orono, Little Lake.”

I clench my jaw. The balls on this man.

The two officers break into a low chuckle, shaking their heads.

Ronny turns back to me. “Free to speak, son.”

“Yuri Patrovski. Mega-dealer of arms, commodities, and—”

Ronny cackles in between. “I know the Russki. My son took it upon himself to hit one of his brothers. We’ll never see eye-to-eye again ’cause of that, unfortunately.”

“He said as much. But, what if…” I lean closer, “we can make it appear that my crew is at odds with the Rigianos. There are some stray members of your son’s old crew that got absorbed into others’.”

“Who are now protected,” Shadow growls.

“I’m not suggesting anything be done—”

“You better not, you flashy Aryan-looking fuck.” His temper is getting the better of him, but I refuse to back down.

“Stage a murder, have the guy lay low on graveyard shifts.”

Ronny leans back in his chair, looking at Donny like he brought a fucking idiot to come see him. “What are we, CSI? We playing house, Donny boy? What the fuck kind of operation does this kid think we’re running?”

Donny doesn’t flinch for either of us. Instead, he lets it keep going.

“Don Shadow, with respect—”

“No, you listen here. You stage a murder, you’ll get found out. Patrovski has eyes and ears everywhere. He’s a premier fucking mobster, like us. Underestimating his intelligence, both literally and tactically, will be your undoing, kid.”

Now I lean back in the chair. He hasn’t heard what’s on the table yet. Maybe this will change his tune. “If Patrovski’s channels reopen, we have the bulk to move seventeen large per quarter, profit. That’s one-point-two big ones – seven percent – to the Rigianos, just for… playing house.”

He shuts the fuck up real quick.

Donny finally raises his eyebrows at his father-in-law.

Shadow eyes me with a serious expression, testing whether I’d fold under the pressure of two dons.

I don’t. I’m a better earner than both of them. I know it. They know it. But we can’t live without each other, now can we?

Shadow’s smirk reforms in the corner of his mouth and he starts pointing his finger at me a little too much like Robert De Niro. “You got me interested, Flash. Keep talking.”

I thought so.

“Salty Dom from Martino’s old crew – he just fucked up a simple collection that got two call-girls killed and nearly started a war with the Albanians. He’s ripe for a faux hit, and has been nothing but trouble for the family. Throw him in a basement somewhere for a few months, give him some lavish TV-dinners, and let me make you both some fucking money.”

Shadow’s mouth twitches as he considers my ask. He looks to Donny more than once. “This guy the real deal?”

Donny nods slowly, keeping quiet.

“Your father, Dario DeMatteo.”

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