Page 19 of Merciless Monster

“Happy birthday, Boss.”

“Thanks, Bruno. Come in. Sit. How did it go in San Luca?”

“Good.”

“Did you have to crack open some heads?”

“No. All good. Stefano’s been on his best behavior since you punched out his front teeth.”

“Glad to hear it. I’m glad you’re here. I wanted to talk to you about Kyle.”

“Sure. What’s up?”

“Elio said he wants to meet with us in LA.”

“Yes, he told me.”

“What do you think about this deal?”

“Well, it certainly sounds promising.”

“Do you trust him?”

“So, you feel it too?”

“Yeah. I’m not so sure that he isn’t trying to pass off his shit as shinola.”

“What do you think, Boss? Informant for the cops?”

“I don’t know. But I’ll tell you one thing, I don’t trust the man. Something about him is off.”

“You’ve always had good instincts, Dante. You want me to do a little digging?”

“Yeah. Do me a favor, though. Keep it on the down low.”

“Of course.”

“Thanks, Bruno. Well, I’d better get out of here. Got a party to get to.”

“I hear Elio has gone to a lot of trouble for this one,” Bruno smirks.

“Yeah, I believe so. Something tells me I’ll be up to my eyeballs in strippers before the night is out.”

“I’ll make sure to double the muscle tonight. We wouldn’t want you to worry about safety on your birthday, Boss.”

“Thanks, buddy.”

Bruno leaves the office to do what he does best, making sure I have as much intel on both friend and foe.

“Happy birthday, Mr. De Luca.”

“Thank you, Donna.”

My assistant hands me a small box.

“Enjoy your party, Boss,” she smiles.

“Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

---