Renzo watched the life fade from Carmine’s eyes as he slumped in his chair.
“You’re not family. No favors.”
He slipped gloves on and wiped down the surfaces he touched, which wasn’t much.
He looked at the photo on the table and picked it up. So, this was the cunt who offed his family. He’d probably be pissed or feel something for their deaths if he had normal emotions. As it was, he studied the woman’s features until he’d memorized them. If he saw her, he’d kill her for taking something that belonged to him. He folded the picture and stuffed it in his pocket.
He took Carmine’s and Dante’s wallets. Looking inside, he saw both were filled with cash. Fuck, yeah! He was going to buy a nice suit for his dinner tonight. He’d order a good meal with wine, as well.
He also took Dante’s watch as it was better than his. Carmine’s was a cheap knock-off, but he had a nice ring.
Now to sow some chaos.
Renzo lit some candles in the living room and then got the gas stove filling the kitchen with gas. He let himself out of the condo, took the elevator to the lobby, and casually walked outside, keeping his face turned from the camera as he had on the way in. Fucking surveillance was a nuisance.
He was halfway to the car he’d parked down the street when the muffled boom echoed off the nearby buildings. Glancing back, he saw a fireball rolling up the side of the building. He smiled to himself.
He loved this part. The anticipation before a kill. It was certainly helpful of Carmine to make all the preparations for him. He supposed the punk had his uses.
Smiling, Renzo drove away before the cops and firetrucks arrived.
He had shopping to do.
-=-
Phil smiled as Ben walked toward his table with Ashley on his arm. His eyes widened in appreciation of the woman’s lovely dress, which showed off her shapely legs.
His eyes were distracted by the leer on the face of the man eating by himself at a booth against the wall four tables away. It was pretty clear that the man was undressing Ashley with his eyes and making no effort to disguise it. Phil cleared his disgusted expression before Ashley caught it.
“Good evening, Phil!” Ben said as he shook the man’s hand.
“Good evening, Ben! Ashley, you look amazing in that pretty dress!” Phil said with a wide smile.
“Thank you very much. My, aren’t you the gentleman!” she said as she smiled at him with rosy cheeks.
Liliya and Evelyn were directly behind Ben and Ashley. The Russian beauty smiled at Phil and nodded as she moved to the right side of the round table Phil had reserved. Evelyn stepped left to take a seat across from Liliya so they could cover the restaurant with their eyes. The Sergeant spared a moment to smile at Phil. Her eyes went to the empty sixth chair with a woman’s sweater over the back. She looked to him.
“Ah, yes. We have another dinner companion,” Phil said awkwardly, then looked at Ben. “I hope you don’t mind, but Lorraine was quite insistent she be given the opportunity to apologize for the little theatrics back at the Community Center with her costume. She’s just powdering her nose in the ladies’ room.”
“Ah! They’re here! Phil, you didn’t say they’d be early!” a woman’s voice called out behind them.
Ben turned to see a sandy blonde-haired woman rushing toward them with a distressed look on her face.
“They’re not early. They arrived on time. Some people believe being punctual is courteous,” Phil responded in exasperation.
“Oh Phil, you’re so old-fashioned!” she teased, and he rolled his eyes.
Lorraine turned to Ben and turned on the charm. “I’m so sorry I confused you earlier with my performance as Gabriella. I never meant to upset you.”
Ben shook his head. “You didn’t upset me. At first glance, you certainly did look like Gabriella.”
“Let’s sit so we can continue in comfort,” Phil suggested. Ben nodded, and they took their seats. This forced Lorraine to leave Ben’s side and move to the opposite side of the table. She flashed an annoyed pout at Phil, and once more, he silently thanked his younger self for having the wisdom to step back from their relationship.
The waiter arrived, and Phil knew Ben and his security people wouldn’t be drinking. He looked at Ashley. “Will you be joining us for a glass of wine?”
“Oh! I think I could have one,” she said with a grin.
“Don’t be rude, Phil. The other ladies and Ben might enjoy some as well,” Lorraine insisted.
Phil gritted his teeth and gave her a stern look. “Liliya and Evelyn are working. They don’t drink when they work, and Ben doesn’t drink. I’m not being rude.”
Lorraine blinked in surprise. “Working?” She gasped and leaned closer to Phil. “They’re working girls?”
“Geezus! No! They’re his security detail!” Phil exclaimed in shock.
“Oh! I’m so sorry!” Lorraine gasped in embarrassment.
Ben looked uncomfortably at Evelyn, whose face was turning pink. After a brief glance at Lorraine, Liliya continued to scan the restaurant.
Phil quickly read the wine list and then looked at the waiter. “We’ll take a bottle of-”
“Merlot!” Lorraine said with a snort.
“Funny, Lorraine.” He looked at the waiter again. “A bottle of your house white, please, and a large bottle of still spring water.”
When the waiter left, Lorraine made another attempt to win Ben over. “You mentioned Gabriella was the Goddess of Love. Could you elaborate?”
Ben locked eyes with the woman. “No.”
Ashley looked at Ben with a smile, then turned to Lorraine, who looked like someone had popped her favorite balloon. “What Ben means is he won’t help with the production of your movie in any way.”
“Why not?” Lorraine asked.
Ben answered her. “It’s not your story. It’s not the movie studio’s. It’s mine. It belongs to the people I love and me. No one asked for permission to portray my loved ones or me, and if they had asked, I would have said no.”
Lorraine looked confused and upset.
Ben shook his head and looked at Phil. “This is something that makes no sense to those who crave the attention. It’s almost impossible to get them to empathize.”
Phil nodded and looked at Lorraine as he thought for a moment. Then he put on a smile for the woman. “Hey, remember that Christmas party at the producer’s mansion in ninety-two? Remember how you accepted those pills then went down on-”
“PHIL!” Lorraine shrieked.
He looked at her curiously. “What?”
“You can’t tell that story!” she exclaimed angrily.
He tilted his head, gave her a puzzled look, and he held her eyes with his. “Why? It happened in a public place in front of several of my friends. It’s not like it was private or personal. What harm is there in sharing it?”
Lorraine’s eyes were widening as her mouth moved silently at first. Then her expression clouded with outrage. “It’s embarrassing! It’s also deeply personal and-”
“And now you know how Ben feels about having the intimate details of his life exposed to strangers,” Phil said with a sad smile. “And maybe you know how I felt that night, too.”
Lorraine jumped to her feet, and her chair fell over. The eyes of the other patrons turned in their direction. “You’re a fucking bastard! I’m so glad I broke it off with you.”
She stormed out of the restaurant, and Phil watched the solitary diner enjoying his view of Lorraine’s body in full jiggle mode.
He looked back to Ben. “To be truthful, not that it really matters, I broke it off with her.”
Ben smiled at him. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine. I’m sure she won’t start a spiteful smear campaign on social media that I’ll be defending myself against for the next five years.” He sighed. “I didn’t want to bring her tonight, but she’s just so damn pushy. Maybe she’ll stay out of my life permanently now.”
-=-
Renzo watched the angry bitch’s tits bounce in her tight dress and thought this was as much a sign to get moving as any. He’d enjoyed a glass of excellent wine and some of his delicious steak, but now it was time for the main course.
Dabbing his mouth with his napkin, he slid from the booth and made sure not to look at the target as Carmine insisted. The washrooms were off to the right, and he stepped inside as another patron was leaving. They exchanged polite nods, then he was alone in the room. Three toilet stalls, and the last one had a maintenance access door on the ceiling, as Carmine said it would. He stepped into the corner, climbed on the toilet seat, and opened the cover. Reaching inside, he felt the handles of a bag and dragged it out. He closed the maintenance cover and sat on the toilet seat. He unzipped the small gym bag, and half a dozen handguns were inside.
Renzo smiled again as he spotted two Desert Eagles, his favorite!
“Nicely done, Carmine,” he muttered quietly.
He confirmed they were loaded, then opened his jacket and slid the other four guns into the holsters he’d put on before arriving at the restaurant. He added the extra clips to his jacket pockets as well. Standing in the stall, he looked down at himself, and the clean lines of his suit jacket were badly distorted by all the hardware underneath. He shrugged.
It didn’t matter. It was time to kill.
He felt his mind slipping into an almost Zen-like state, where all the noises faded, and he was in total control of himself and his environment.
Leaving the bathroom, a quick glance showed no one was looking in his direction. Good.
Stepping around the corner, he came into view of the target’s table. He knew the Russian bitch would be watching. She had to die first.
The Desert Eagle in his right hand boomed, and her surprised expression vanished in a red mist, splashing patrons three tables away.
His eyes shifted to the left to see the Army cunt moving, hand reaching for her weapon. The big gun in his left boomed, and she also lost her head. Her body dropped limply to the floor.
The target was known for his speed and was already on his feet, turning to face him with a look of shock and rage. Putting bullets through both knees negated him as a threat. He crashed to the floor.
Because Renzo didn’t care for Phil DeMonte’s movies, he also made a big hole through his chest.
As the target screamed in pain on the floor, his blonde bitch was on her knees, clinging to him. Renzo roughly pulled her up by her hair to stand next to him. She had nice tits and amazing legs, but this wasn’t the time for that.
It was killing time.
Smiling at the big man begging at his feet, he blew a hole through the bitch and let her fall.
The look of horror on the man’s face was the dessert Renzo’s meal needed.
Now for the digestif.
Aiming both weapons at Ben Shepherd, he smiled.
“For the families,” he said aloud as he squeezed the triggers to hear the thunder again.