Reno Gabrini: A Man in Full (25 page)

“Who took her, Lee?” Reno asked him.

Lee frowned.  “Nunzio,” he said.  “I didn’t know who at the time, but I later found out it was Nunzio Bucardi.”

Reno frowned.  “Nunzio?  He used to run with Frank Partanna.”

Lee nodded and gave Reno a knowing look.  Frank Partanna was the very mob boss who had killed Reno’s mob boss father years ago.  Reno had ordered a retaliatory hit, taking out Partanna and most of his lieutenants, and he ordered those deaths on the day he married Trina.

“But I heard Nunzio died recently,” Reno said.

“He did,” Lee said.

Reno stared at him.  “You did it?”

“I paid to have it done, yeah.”

This hurt Reno to his core.  “But why didn’t you come to me?” he asked him.

“Why do you think, Reno?  You nearly killed me even when you wasn’t certain I had something to do with those allegations.  Imagine what you would have done to me if you knew I was behind it?”

Reno frowned. “You were protecting your child, Lee!  I would have done the same thing you did if somebody would have grabbed Jimmy or Dommi, what are you talking?  I’m not heartless!”  Reno said this in such a heartfelt way that it broke Jimmy’s heart. 

Then Reno thought about it. “Nunzio Bucardi?” he asked.  “What would he have against me?”  Then Reno’s face lit up.  And he remembered Monk Maretti, and how he was one of Frank Partanna’s lieutenants too, and how he was one of the ones killed that day on Reno’s orders.  And how his girlfriend at the time, the same girlfriend who left Reno to be with Monk, was . . . Reno looked at Jimmy.  “Melita,” he said out loud.

“What about her?” Jimmy anxiously asked him.

Then Reno remembered what she said to him in that mall parking lot. 
You took my heart,
she’d said,
but one day somebody’s going to take yours
.  Monk Maretti was her heart, and he was killed on Reno’s orders. 

Tree was Reno’s heart.

He hurried from behind that desk. 

“Pop, what is it?” Jimmy asked, astounded by his father’s sudden movement.

“Get Boz, Lee!” Reno yelled as he ran. “Tell him to get a crew to Champagne’s!”

Lee quickly stood to his feet to do Reno’s bidding.

“Champagne’s?” Jimmy asked as he hurried behind his father.  “Why would she be at Champagne’s?”

But Reno wasn’t answering. He was too busy running and on his cell phone at the same time.  He was calling the guard he had watching Trina, so that he could make sure she was alright, and with his second phone he was calling Tree herself.  But neither picked up.  Both phones just kept on ringing.

NINETEEN

Five minutes before Reno had phoned Trina’s bodyguard, Melita Murphy was driving into Champagne’s parking lot.  She spotted the bodyguard’s car easily.  She’d already scoped him some time ago, when she ordered Comp to have Jody Parks take Trina out to dinner.  The bodyguard started taking pictures of the twosome as they entered the Carlton, then he apparently fed those photos to Reno, and Reno suddenly showed up.  So Melita already knew which car, and the man in that car, belonged to Reno.  She parked her car behind his. 

She got out, like a normal high end customer, and began walking pass the bodyguard’s car.  He had his window down, and was watching her threw his car’s mirror, but as she approached him she dropped her gloves, turned around to stoop down, and revealed her panties as she picked them back up.  When she continued walking, she knew she had his undivided attention.  But not on her.  On her body.  And that was why, when she pulled out her silencer gun, and shot him in the head, he didn’t know what hit him. 

As his body slumped over dead, she placed the gun back in her purse and kept on walking.  She walked swiftly toward Champagne’s.  His phone started ringing before she entered the door.

Inside the store, Trina’s cellphone was ringing too.  Only it was in her bag, and her bag was upstairs, locked in a drawer, in her office.  She saw Melita walk in, and it surprised her to see her there.  But there were two other customers in the store, and Trina was assisting them both.  As usual this early, she was the only person in the store.

“Hi, Mrs. Gabrini,” Melita said with a grand smile as she entered the small store. 

Trina looked up, from a customer she was assisting, and waved without any grand smiling, and she continued to assist her customer.

Melita walked around the store, as if she were looking at clothes, but really she was checking out the personnel.  Nobody was in there but Trina and the two customers, from what she could see although she wasn’t sure if anybody was upstairs.  And the cameras were all over the place.  But she didn’t care about detection.  She wanted Reno to see her killing his wife.  She cared about doing the job and getting it done.  Then she was going to disappear.  She’d done it before.  After Monk died she dropped off the face of this earth.  Didn’t want to have anything to do with anybody.  But she kept up with Reno.  She watched him from a distance, studying her boyfriend’s killer, and she learned his weakness.   She was standing at the counter watching his weakness right now.

But as she stood at that counter, she reached over and pulled the plug on the store phone.

“I’ll be with you in just a moment,” Trina said to  her as she hurried behind the counter to ring up her customer’s purchases.  The other customer was leaving without buying anything and Melita knew, as soon as this last customer left, she had to make her move and make it fast. And afterwards, from a safe distance away, she would watch Reno mourn his beloved’s death.  And his son, Jimmy, would mourn too and grow bitter about how she so easily manipulated him.  And Reno would be even angrier, and would track her down like an animal, but he’d never find her.  He’d never rest, because he’d never find her.  And then, and only then, would Melita feel as if they were even.

The store phone upstairs started ringing as the customer grabbed her bag of purchases, said her goodbyes, and left.  Melita knew now was the time.  She had to strike now.

Trina wondered why the phone on the counter wasn’t ringing, but the one upstairs was, but Melita distracted her.

“Back away from the counter,” she said before Trina could reach for the unplugged cord.

Trina looked at her.  “Excuse me?”

Melita pulled out her gun, pointed it directly at Trina.  Trina immediately backed up.  “Oh.  So you heard me after all?”

Trina’s heart hammered.  Her eyes stared, not at the gun, but at Melita.  “What are you doing, Melita?”

“I’m pointing a gun at you, that’s what I’m doing.  I’m about to murder Reno’s heart, that’s what I’m doing.”

She began walking behind the counter.  Trina’s eyes were moving from side to side, to see what she could grab, what she could turn into a weapon, as she came.

“Just like Monk was mine,” Melita continued, “you’re Reno’s.  I loved Monk.  I loved him so much.  And he loved me.  We were going to get married.”

“But you’re going to marry Jimmy now,” Trina said, although she couldn’t care less about what she was saying.  It was all about stalling, all about searching for something she could use.

“That’s right,” Melita said.  “I was in love with Jimmy and going to marry him.  Give me a break,” she said as if she was offended.  “Even your dumbass should know better than that.  What would I want with some kid like him?  Jimmy got me in the door.  That’s all.  I could have gotten in through Reno, trust me on that.  Reno still wants to fuck my fine ass.  You saw how he was looking at me.  But I hate the sight of him now, and couldn’t bear him touching me.”

She was face to face with Trina now.  “We were going to be married,” she said.  “Monk loved me and we were going to get married.  But on the day Reno married you,” Melita said, pressing the barrel of the gun against Trina’s temple, causing Trina to wince, “he ordered the murder of my beloved.”

Trina shook her head.  “No.”

“Yes!” Melita screamed.  “Yes he did!  Monk was working for Frank Partanna and Reno ordered the hit on all of them!  Including the man I loved!”

“Who’s Frank Partanna?” Trina asked.  She knew exactly who he was.  She knew he murdered Reno’s father.  But she had to buy some time.

“He was marrying you,” Melita said, ignoring her question, “while Monk was being shot down like a dog!  And that’s why,” she added, pressing the barrel harder, “I’m going to shoot you down the same way!”

“No,” Trina said, shaking her head, tears in her eyes.  She had nothing.  Nothing she could grab.  Nothing she could fight with.

“Yes,” Melita said.  “Oh, yes.  I’ve been waiting for this too long.  I wanted Reno to worry about you.  About Jimmy.  About that big-headed baby of yours.”  Then she smiled.  “Jimmy thinks I’m dead.  I set it all up this  morning.  And he thinks Reno killed me.  So I assure you, Reno is very occupied right now.  Jimmy loves me and he’ll kill his father if he thinks he harmed me.  But Reno will beat him to the punch.  You don’t just shoot down Reno.  So he’ll probably have to kill Jimmy this morning, which would be like icing on the cake.  His son dead by his own hands.  It’ll be fantastic!  And then you will be dead too. His wife.  His heart.  You are going to die this morning, Mrs. Gabrini.”

“No,” Trina said again, crying but thinking, wishing she had a busier store and a customer would come through that door.  Anybody to distract this fool!  And where, she wondered, was the guard Reno had watching her?

“You’re going to die this morning,” Melita said again.  “Yes, you are.  And I’m going to dance on your body after you fall.”  She was just about to pull the trigger.  But Trina screamed and bum rushed Melita like a bull, throwing her body against her and immediately dislodging the weapon.  Melita scrambled to pick it up, but Trina knocked her down and went for the gun herself.  And they started fighting.

Melita was no match for Trina.  She was pulling Melita’s hair and kicking her and knocking her in the face every chance she could.  Trina was fighting for her life and she knew it.  But she had to get that gun.  She couldn’t let Melita get that gun!

But Melita was closer and more agile, and she got it.  She snatched up the gun just as Trina was about to and, scrambling on her back, she pointed it at Trina.  “Try me again, motherfucker!”  Melita yelled.  “Now get your ass up!”

Melita got to her feet.  “Get up!” she yelled at Trina, and Trina slowly stood up.  She fought gallantly.  She knew she kicked Melita’s ass.  But Melita ended up with the gun.  Melita ended up with Trina’s life in her hands.  And Trina suddenly felt, for the first time, that it might be over after all.  For the first time in her life, she felt hopeless.

“Reno!” she cried.  “Reno!” she screamed.

“You want Reno?”  Melita asked, glad to exploit her weakness.

“I want Reno,” Trina said, refusing to deny it.

“Beg for him,” Melita said.  “Beg all you want.  But you’ll never get him.”  She cocked her pistol.  “You’ll never see him alive again!”

“Drop it, Mel, or I’ll blow your brains out!” 

Trina couldn’t believe it.  It was Reno!  He and Jimmy had just ran into the store and his weapon was drawn.

But Melita was quick.  She grabbed Trina, put her in front, and pressed the gun against the side of Trina’s face.

“You’ll have to blow her brains out first!” Melita yelled.

“Drop it,” Reno said, walking toward the counter, refusing to drop his weapon, refusing to take his eyes off of her.  “You will not harm my wife.”

But Jimmy was stunned.  “What are you doing, Lita?” he asked her.  He could hardly believe his eyes.  “What are you doing?”

“What do you think I’m doing?”

“What are you doing?”

“Stay out of this!” she yelled.

“Stay out of . . . what are you talking?  That’s my mother, Melita!  Why would you hurt my mother?”

“The same way your father hurt me!  He killed my man, the love of my life!  Now I’m killing the love of his!”

“But you said you loved me, though,” Jimmy said, still confused.  “You said you wanted to be with me!”

“I wasn’t thinking about you!”  Melita said with purposeful hate.  It cut Jimmy like a knife.  “I wanted to hurt your father!  I tried everything!  But I  knew nothing was going to work until I got her!”

And Melita cocked her weapon again, and Reno didn’t hesitate.  He shot Melita.  He shot her in the only part of her body showing, her shoulder.  And as she grabbed her shoulder by reflex, the gun dropped from her hand.

Although Trina was traumatized, and terrified, she wasn’t so thrown that she couldn’t grab that gun Melita had dropped.  She grabbed it as quickly as it fell from Mel’s hand. Reno jumped over the counter, and pushed Trina out of the way just as Melita was about to rush her, to take the gun away.  The door to the store flung open, and Reno’s men rushed in.  They had left the PaLargio just behind Reno, but Reno was driving like a wild man and left them far behind.

Melita, still in pain, still holding her bleeding shoulder, looked at Reno with pure hatred in her eyes.  “You should have killed me,” she said.  “You’ll rue the day you didn’t kill me.  Your wife will rue the day.  I won’t rest until I do to her what you did to my man.  I won’t rest, I tell you, until I see her sleeping in her grave!”

Reno stared at her.  And he didn’t blink.  “I’d much rather see you sleeping in yours,” he said, and shot her between the eyes. 

She just stood there, as if she couldn’t believe this was her end, and then she dropped down hard, with a powerful thump.  As if she was dead, and there was no doubt about it.

Reno exhaled.  He felt like a brutal animal sometimes, having to do this unspeakable thing over and over.  But he had to do it.  Nobody was going to make it their life’s work to end his wife’s life, and live to tell about it. 

“Clean this shit up fast!” Reno ordered his men, and they hurried to collect the body, to clean up the blood, and to remove all cameras.

Reno looked at his wife.  She hated, too, that that painful last step always fell on him, and she hurried into his arms.