Mick Sinatra: Now Will You Weep

by Mallory Monroe

  Mick stood up, keeping Joey’s gun, and took Roz by the arm. “Let’s go,” he said.

  Roz understood why he would leave Joey in such a state. That little fucker had just threatened to kill her. But she still felt that burden of guilt that once again she was the reason for a father and son split. But how could it be helped? She didn’t bring poison to Cathleen. Cathleen brought it to her. She didn’t pull a gun on Joey. Joey pulled one on her. Roz couldn’t apologize for being a survivor. She wasn’t going to apologize for her very existence. She and Mick left. She didn’t hesitate leaving with Mick.

  Gloria, mortified that her father would just leave his own child hurting like this, moved down to her brother and pulled him into her arms. The manager of the restaurant hurried over, asking if they were alright. Gloria said that they were, and that Joey didn’t need any medical attention. That he was fine.

  But inwardly, she knew he wasn’t. None of Mick’s children really were. And the reason was becoming a broken record.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Later that night, a line of SUVs waited as the four men exited Mick’s private jet. Reno Gabrini was first, followed by Sal Gabrini, followed by Tommy Gabrini. Big Daddy Charles Sinatra, Mick’s oldest brother, was also stepping off of the plane. Security was tight, as trusted bodyguards from the arsenal of each one of the men escorted their respective bosses from the plane and toward the transport SUV. Ordinarily, they each would have arrived in their own separate planes, and Mick would have sent his plane for his brother Charles only. But Mick sent his plane for all of them. They came to help him fight his battle. He would have it no other way.

  Teddy and Pauly Pantangelo were at the airstrip to meet the plane, standing guard by the transport SUV. Pauly smiled when he saw the men, all four in their expensive suits, heading their way. Teddy was impressed too.

  “Boss brought out the powerhouses,” Pauly said. “I can’t believe all of them came even though nobody got shot.”

  “Dad got shot, what are you talking?” Teddy reminded him. “It’s a continuation of what happened then. It hasn’t been that long ago.”

  “I wanna be just like them when I grow up,” Pauly said.

  Teddy laughed. “Your ass old as dirt now. What do you mean when you grow up?”

  “A man can still dream, can’t he?” Then Pauly looked at Teddy. “How’s your brother?” he asked. “I heard what happened at that restaurant.”

  “Who told you about that?” Teddy asked.

  “What difference does it make? I heard Joey’s in the dog house. I heard he pulled a gun on Mrs. Sinatra. I couldn’t believe it. I know Joey’s a kid. He’s a foolish kid at times. But ain’t nobody that foolish.”

  “Yeah, well, you don’t know my brother.” Then Teddy felt guilty for saying that. “He lost his mother. He was what you call distraught. He didn’t mean what he did.”

  “Your old man thought he meant it.”

  “What do you know about it, Pauly?” Teddy asked angrily. “You don’t know shit about it. So shut the fuck up!”

  Pauly was an underboss. He wasn’t just anybody. The fact that he had to kowtow to the likes of Teddy Sinatra, some upstart, boiled his blood. But he had to do it. Mick was the boss, but Teddy was now his right hand man. Teddy could cause him trouble. He shut the fuck up. And then the Gabrinis were upon them.

  Everybody shook hands and voiced how happy they were to see the young men.

  But Tommy was the first to acknowledge Joey’s lost. “I heard about your brother,” he said to Teddy. “I’m sorry it had to happen that way.”

  Teddy wasn’t sure if he meant Joey’s loss, or Joey’s behavior after his loss. Since he didn’t think the Gabrinis knew about Joey’s behavior earlier that day, he assumed it was the loss. “Yeah, me too,” Teddy said.

  “Now let’s get the fuck out of here,” Sal said. “We don’t know who’s gunning for who, and I don’t want to have to find out this soon.”

  The men agreed as they all boarded the same transport SUV. Although Teddy rode with them, Pauly rode shotgun in the front SUV and gave the order for the convoy to get going.

  They rode quietly to the Sinatra compound. When they arrived outside of the gate, it was Big Daddy Charles Sinatra who noticed the increased protection.

  “The security around this place is crazy,” he said, amazed. “Geez. It must be even more serious than Mick let on.”

  “With Mick,” Reno said, “it always is. I’ll bet you any amount of money he’s been trying to do it on his own all this time.”

  “Since I already told you he was,” Sal said, “you’d win that bet. But that’s how you get to own a casino, right? You cheat.”

  Reno laughed. “Kiss my cheating ass,” he said.

  Charles smiled and nodded. “But Sal’s right, Reno,” he said. “You’d win that bet. Even when Mick was a kid he was never a crowd guy. He always had to do it alone, and do it his way. The fact that he felt a need to call us speaks volumes. The fact that he felt a need to call us should make it clear that he’s up against a mighty foe.”

  “Or,” Sal said, “he doesn’t want to take any chances.”

  They all looked at Sal.

  “What?” Sal asked. “I’m just making a simple observation. What would I know about it? What would I know about this gangster shit?”

  They all laughed. Sal would never admit it, not in a million years, but he was one of the most feared mob bosses on the east coast. Between he and Mick, they controlled almost the entire region. And they all knew it. They all also knew that when Sal spoke about strategy in a mob war, he knew what he was talking about.

  “Keep playing dumb,” Reno said.

  “You realize you aren’t fooling anybody anymore, right?” Tommy asked.

  “I have no idea what either one of you are talking about,” Sal said. But that smile on his mug gave him away.

  “Mick?” Roz asked as she came out of the bedroom closet.

  Mick was sitting on the edge of the bed putting on his dress shirt. He was also watching an Eagles game on the bedroom TV. “What?” he responded absently.

  “Zip me up,” Roz said walking over to him and turning her back to him.

  But Mick was engrossed in a potential scoring play. “The forty, the thirty, the twenty, keep going. Keep going, boy, keep running! The ten. The five. The four. Touchdown! He got a touchdown!” He leaned back excited. “That’s what I’m talking about!”

  Roz glanced back at him, smiling. “Are you finished?”

  Mick finally looked her way. “What?”

  “Zip me up, please.”

  “Oh!” Mick realized his error and immediately began zipping her up. But as he looked at her soft brown skin. And as he looked at how that little red dress she was wearing hugged every curve of her curvaceous body, he didn’t complete his task. He, instead, lifted her dress.

  “Mick!” Roz said. “They’ll be here any minute!”

  “I know,” he said, pulling down her panties. “But first things first.” He unzipped and pulled out his penis. “I’ll be quick,” he said, rubbing it. “You’ll barely know I touched you.”

  Roz knew that was a lie, and she knew it as soon as he sat her on his lap and began massaging her clit with his fingers, getting her wet in a hurry, before he put in his cock. And if he thought she didn’t notice that he was inside of her, he was grossly mistaken.

  He felt huge inside of her, as he continued to expand with his every stroke. He wrapped his arms around her waist and slid her pussy along his cock in long, fast strokes that made them both moan with joy.

  He tried to be quick. He thought if he picked up the pace that would quicken their cum. But they were enjoying it too much. Roz leaned against him, and he kept sliding her along his rod, for far longer than they had planned.

  They came, but it would be several minutes later than Mick had promised. And when Mick was finished pouring into her, the idea that they could just wipe and go was a fantasy too. Mick had saturated her.
r />   But after they came, and the intensity began to wane, the realities of that world outside hit both of them again. Mick remained inside of Roz, holding her.

  “Have you heard from Joey?” Roz asked him.

  “No,” Mick responded.

  “Are your men out searching for him?”

  “They know where he is. He and Gloria are together. I have an army of men in their security detail. They’re okay.”

  “What’s going to happen with you and Joey, Mick? With your relationship with your son? And Gloria was upset too. She and Joey are very close now.”

  “I understand that. But my daughter has good sense. She’ll come around. Joey hasn’t the sense his ass was born with, but he’ll come around too.”

  Roz hesitated, but it needed to be asked. “I know he’ll come around,” she said. “But will you?”

  Mick pulled out of her, lifted her into his arms, and carried her to the shower. He turned on the shower water.

  Roz, with her arms around his neck, looked at him. “You didn’t answer my question,” she said. “Will you take Joey back when he comes?”

  Mick frowned. Just the thought of Joey pulling that gun on Roz. And what if his emotional ass would have pulled that trigger? “I don’t know,” was the only honest answer Mick could give.

  They undressed, showered again, and then made their way downstairs.

  The Gabrinis and Big Daddy were already in the living room by the time Mick and Roz descended the staircase. They all were standing around, with drinks supplied by the house staff, and Teddy was the only underboss allowed in the home. Everybody else were on guard duty outside, around the estate, or over to Gloria’s house, where she and Joey were holed up. But all eyes were on the gorgeous couple as they walked down those stairs, and they decided to play the Lookalike game.

  “They look like Bogie and Bacall to me,” Big Daddy said with a grin.

  “Bogie and Bacall?” Sal asked. “Who the fuck are they? That’s Bonnie and Clyde, Big Daddy.”

  “Bonnie and Clyde my ass,” Tommy said with a grin. “More like Beauty and the Beast.”

  Mick laughed at that one.

  “Wrong, Uncle Tommy,” Teddy said. “That’s Thelma and Louise right there.”

  Everybody looked at Teddy, including Mick and Roz, who found the entire episode amusing. Reno looked hard at Teddy. “Thelma and Louise?” Reno asked him. “Are you trying to tell us something about your old man?”

  Everybody laughed. Teddy at first didn’t get it. Then, when he realized his error, he laughed too.

  Everybody hugged Roz and shook Mick’s hand. Mick and Big Daddy went a step further and embraced for a long time.

  Big Daddy, who worried unceasingly about his kid brother, patted him on the back when they stopped embracing. And Big Daddy looked Mick dead in the eyes. “You’re okay, right?” he asked him.

  “I’m good,” Mick responded.

  But Big Daddy knew his kid brother. He also knew what happened earlier that day with Joey. He was the only one of the arrivals who knew. And he could see the anguish in Mick’s eyes. “Don’t let this stuff get to you,” he said to his brother. “You’ll win in the end. Right always does.”

  Big Daddy Charles Sinatra was one of the strictest, toughest men Mick knew, but he had an uncanny ability to calm stormy waters. He was no gangster like the Gabrinis. His life in Jericho, Maine revolved around small town craziness and land disputes. But Mick was glad he came. He needed his sense of calm and control by his side.

  “You are a gorgeous sight to see, Rosalind Sinatra,” Reno was saying as he and Roz stopped embracing. “You make Mick look good, and that’s virtually an impossible thing to pull off.”

  Mick smiled. “Kiss my ass,” he said to Reno.

  “But you are a gorgeous girl,” Reno said again as he held Roz’s hands and looked her up and down. “Just gorgeous.”

  “Damn, Reno, you said it already,” Sal responded. “Does Trina know you’re up here in Philly flirting your ass off?”

  Reno frowned. “What flirting? I’m just giving her a compliment.”

  “Yeah, right,” Sal said doubtfully. “I know your ass. That’s why I still ask if your wife Trina Gabrini knows that you’re up here in Philly flirting?”

  Reno became defensive. “I know your ass too,” he shot back. “And I wonder if Gemma Jones-Gabrini knows that you’re all over America doing more than flirting?”

  “Alright, that’s enough,” Tommy said. “The first thing Grace told me before I left Seattle was to tell you two boys to cut the bickering and behave. Behave,” Tommy said with a smile. “This isn’t about either one of you. We’re here for Uncle Mick. Don’t forget that little fact. Keep your eye on the ball, alright? Even Mick is keeping his cockeyed eye on the ball, why can’t you?”

  Everybody laughed, including Mick and Roz, but Roz set the record straight. “For the record,” she said, “my husband does not have a cock eye, okay? He has a sleepy eye, which is different, and his sleepy eye is sexy as hell. And you know it, Tommy, so don’t front. Jealousy is a terrible thing.”

  They laughed, especially Tommy, because everybody knew Tommy was the looker of the family. The lover and the fighter. Tommy wasn’t jealous of anybody. But it was all in keeping with the oddly festive mood inside Mick’s house.

  But later that night, after the drinking and reminiscing and joking were over, and as Big Daddy and Roz spent time with the twins in the Nursery, Mick called Teddy and the Gabrini men into his massive home office. And the mood there was as somber as the earlier mood had been gay.

  Mick sat behind his desk, Teddy stood beside him, and the Gabrinis sat in chairs in front of the desk.

  Reno leaned forward. Of the three Gabrinis, he looked the most disheveled to Mick. His thick hair was all over his head. His expensive suit looked crumpled, and his blue eyes appeared even more tired than Mick’s green eyes. But he owned the iconic Palargio Hotel and Casino on the Vegas Strip, and of all of them he was the busiest businessman. “Are we right to assume that you called us here, Michello,” he asked, “because a mob war is coming to Philly?”

  “A mob war isn’t coming to Philly,” Mick corrected him. “It already came. I brought it. They started the shit. They threw rocks and hid their hands. But I’m finishing the shit. I’m throwing bricks and showing my hands.” Then Mick exhaled, and a worried look crossed his eyes. “But when they used Joey’s mother to try to poison my wife, that changed my calculations.”

  “Too close to home,” Reno said.

  “Right,” Mick said.

  “And unconventional warfare,” Sal said.

  “And that’s the crust of the problem,” Mick said, agreeing wholeheartedly with Sal. “I didn’t see it coming. Cathleen was a mess. Everybody knows that.”

  “You should have took her ass out a long time ago,” Reno said. “We know that too.”

  Sal looked at Reno. “Who do you think you’re talking to, Reno? That’s Mick Sinatra you’re talking to.”

  “But he’s telling the truth, Sal,” Mick said.

  “But she was your son’s mother. She was no random. It was more complicated than Reno’s making it out to be.”

  “But the fact is,” Tommy said, “she was used as a way to hit Mick where it was surely going to hurt. Who knows how they will come after him next, or if they will continue along the same course. And maybe the next time, Roz won’t be as observant. Maybe next time she won’t see it coming.”

  “Right,” Mick said. “And I will not sit back and let that happen. That’s why I’ve got to end this war with a decisive victory. And I’ve got to end it now.”

  “What are you talking about doing?” Sal asked.

  “More than what I’ve already done,” answered Mick.

  “Which is?” Tommy asked.

  “I’ve spooked them. Took out some of Jake Vietti’s bodyguards.”

  “That’s a peripheral strike,” Reno said. “Makes sense.”

  “Then I took out five of S
car Parrushi’s uncles,” Mick said.

  “Well damn!” Reno said. “Five?”

  “Then I blew to bits Petty Renault’s wife.”

  Reno and Tommy were shocked. “His wife?” Reno asked. “What the fuck for?”

  Mick didn’t understand the question. “Why the fuck not? They come for me one way, I go for them a thousand ways.”

  “But you opened the door to them coming for your wife,” Reno said.

  But Mick shook his head. “That shit was already planned. They were coming anyway. But I upped the ante, I know that. And I know those families, all three of them. Scar Parrushi and Petty Renault are impatient as hell, and Jake the Snake’s a snake. Him I especially want.”

  “So you figure they’re going to drop the subterfuge and come head on?” Sal asked.

  “That’s what I figure, yes,” Mick said. “And I don’t want any second days. I want this to end in one day. With one strike.”

  “One strike on three families?” Tommy asked. “How do you plan to execute that?”

  “The same way I execute all of my strikes,” Mick said. “Overwhelming force. And brains.”

  Pauly Pantangelo got out of his car and ran through the muddy alleyway until he was in the back field. The car was parked across the railroad track, and he headed that way. When he arrived, he got into the backseat. Scar and Petty were in the front seat. Jake was in back.

  “What you know?” Scar asked. As usual, he was behind the wheel.

  “He’s planning a massive hit,” Pauly said, almost out of breath. “We got the word today. He plans to hit hard, with overwhelming force just like you were planning to hit him. The Gabrinis are in town, so that should tell you how hard he plans to strike. It’s beyond retaliation with him. It’s annihilation. He wants to take all three families completely out.”