Page 59 of Kingpin
Dominic
“Where is he? I wanna see him.”
I run over to a group of people sitting in the waiting area of Mercy Hospital. My crew is there, as well as all the other capos in The Family, plus Tommy’s fiancé, who’s being consoled by Skinny Joe. Charlie sees me coming and cuts me off before I can force my way through doors I’m not supposed to go through.
“Hold on, Dominic,” Charlie pleads. His eyes are red like he’s been crying all night long, and he has blood on his shirt from when he sat with Tommy waiting for the ambulance. “He’s in surgery right now. The doc is trying to get the bullets out.”
I feel tears rushing to the surface, so I cover my face so no one can see me. Charlie knows it’s coming though, so he grabs me and forces me to hug him.
“He’s gonna be okay,” he tries to reassure me, but he doesn’t sound so confident himself.
“Fuck! How the fuck did this happen, Charlie?” I cry into his shoulder. Charlie pulls away and looks me in the eye.
“It all happened so fast, Dominic, I can barely believe it all,” he begins, wiping away his tears. “Me, Joe, and Tommy were walking to that little bar across the street from River City. We’d just crossed the road, and this black truck pulls out of the staff parking lot. We don’t think nothing of it, of course, until we reach the sidewalk and the truck slows down behind us. It’s back there creeping, so I turn around to see what the hell this guy’s doing, but the windows are tinted so I can’t see him. So, I grab Tommy’s attention and tell him to check it out, and as soon as Tommy starts to turn around, the window lowers and a hand comes out blasting away. There’s nothing we can do except run for cover, but Tommy gets hit and drops. As soon as Tommy hits the ground, the truck fucking speeds away.”
“Goddammit!”
“I don’t know, Dominic, the shit looked real fishy to me. It was like the guy in the truck was making sure we were who he was looking for before he started shooting. He was back there watching us as we walked. This wasn’t no random shooting, Dominic, I’m telling you. I fucking know it.”
My first thought is Abram Baskov. We don’t have beef with anybody else, so it had to have been him. He must’ve recognized Tommy from the sit down and thought he had to get him before Tommy came looking for him to avenge me, because Abram thinks I’m dead, thanks to Anthony. This motherfucker has more balls than I thought. This is what I get for underestimating him.
“Fuck,” I think aloud. “I bet it was that Russian cock sucker. I know it.”
“Yeah, that’s what me and Skinny were thinking. So, when do we go get this motherfucker, Dominic? First he puts a hit out on you, then he gets Tommy. This fucker has to die, now!”
“I know, and we’re gonna fucking get him,” I tell him, but I pause a second. “But we’re gonna wait until we here from Tommy’s doctor first.”
“Why the fuck would we do that?” Skinny Joe says as he approaches. His thin face is scrunched into an emotional, tear-filled expression. He looks like he’s on the verge of a full-on mental collapse. “This bitch shot at you, and then he actually shot Tommy. This is Tommy we’re talking about. FuckingTommy! We go and kill this motherfucker right now!”
“Keep your fucking voice down,” I snip. “I know we need to go get him, but we’re gonna wait a minute, goddammit. We’re gonna wait until we hear Tommy’s okay. Once we know . . .”
“What the fuck did I tell you?” a voice says from behind me. I turn around to find Frankie glaring at me with his arms folded. He looks miserable, and the scar on his face makes miserable look terrifying. “I told you to handle this fucking Russian, didn’t I? I told you to take care of this, and this prick is still on the streets shooting at you and your crew. What the fuck, Dominic?”
I’m not really sure how to respond. There’s too many emotions to pick one, and it feels overwhelming, to say the least. I just stare at Frankie, who glares back like he’s utterly disappointed in me.
“I told you to fix this. Now, The Commission has to hear about a made guy actually getting gunned down in fucking public,” Frankie says, snarling. “We don’t let this shit happen to our people, Dominic. Why haven’t you fixed it yet?”
“I’ve been fixing it, Frankie,” I snip. My emotions are running high, and respect for the acting boss isn’t exactly a top priority right now. “We found and handled the shooter this morning, for your fucking information, and we were working to find Abram, he just found us first. What the fuck was I supposed to do?”
“And where were you when Tommy got shot, huh? You’re his captain, so where the fuck were you, Dominic?”
“I was having fucking dinner. What do you want from me?”
“Out with your fucking little girlfriend who nearly gotyoushot last time. Of fucking course.”
“What the fuck is your problem with me having dinner with a woman? This is ridiculous,” I bark. Everyone in the waiting area is starting to look at us, and I know I’m walking a thin line talking to Frankie this way, but I’m fed up right now.
“You’re distracted, Dominic, and it’s making it dangerous for everyone,” Frankie yells back. “When you’re off your fucking game because of some chick, and bullets start flying at our people, that’s a problem for everyone. Do you know what I’m saying?”
“You’re fucking married, Frankie! I go to dinner with a woman, and it’s the end of the world, but you being married is perfectly fine. That’s bullshit!”
“You better watch your mouth, Dominic. You’re in enough shit with Leo and The Commission, so I wouldn’t start burning any bridges right now.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“Your father would’ve never let this happen to someone in his crew. If this was your dad’s crew, he wouldn’t even be here right now. He’d be out tracking this Abram fucker down, but you’re standing in here with tears in your eyes. I expected more out of you, Dominic.”
“And I expected you to be a better fucking boss, so I guess we’re both surprised at how fucked up everything has turned out,” I respond.
