Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 56831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
“But then you had to do all the driving, and I didn’t even keep you company.”
“That’s fine. It gave me time to think, and I needed that.”
“Were you thinking about your dad?”
As I focused on some kids climbing on a play structure across the parking lot, I said, “Yeah, for the last part of the drive. Last night was definitely upsetting, but I’ve realized it didn’t really change anything. He made the choice to leave my mom and ignore the fact that he had a kid. I already knew that. Whether he ended up moving back east like he said he would or staying in town, the end result is the same—he didn’t want me, and I didn’t need him. I just have to get past the shock of realizing my dad had just died in front of me…”
When my voice trailed off, Marcus took my hand, and we sat in silence for a while. I liked the fact that he gave me time to get myself together, and that he didn’t try to make me feel better with a bunch of useless platitudes.
After a while, I decided to change the subject. Processing what had happened with my dad would take time. Right now, there was no solution to be found, no thought or idea that was going to make it any easier. So I made a conscious effort to set it aside and said, “I was also thinking about what you’d told me about your time in prison. How did you survive, Marcus? You were so young when you went in, and that must have been such a hostile environment.”
“At first, I survived by fighting like a rabid dog. Any time someone tried to push me, I pushed back with everything I had.”
“Did it work? Did they leave you alone after a while?”
“Hell no. All I succeeded in doing was pissing off pretty much everyone. That got me beat up, stabbed twice, and nearly killed. The only reason I survived was because a man named Arturo Giannopoulos, better known as Artie the Greek, took pity on me. It turned out I reminded him of his only son, who’d been killed at twenty-three. Art took me under his wing, and from then on I was untouchable. That was the kind of power he had, both inside that prison and on the outside.”
I asked, “Is he the man you referred to as your mentor?”
Marcus nodded and shifted his gaze to the grass beneath our feet. “I’d be dead if it wasn’t for him. I know that for a fact. I got out four years before he died of cancer, and I kept the promise I made to him by taking over the empire he’d spent a lifetime building.
“I was the only person he trusted to carry out his wishes. It wasn’t easy. It still isn’t. But I owe him. He not only kept me alive, he gave me the money and resources I needed to succeed on the outside. When he died, it turned out he left me a fortune, including an art collection that’s worth millions. It’s not my taste at all, so I’ve been selling off a few pieces here and there. The challenge is finding collectors who actually appreciate it, instead of just seeing it as an investment. That’s what Art would have wanted.”
“It’s incredible that he left you so much.”
Marcus frowned. “Yeah, but there were definitely strings attached. One thing he wanted was for me to make my mark in Las Vegas. He was a New York gangster, born and bred. But when he came to Vegas, he fell in love with it, and running its criminal underground became his ultimate goal.
“The problem is, times changed while he was locked up. These days, the power is spread out across numerous gangs, mobs, individuals, and organizations, so there’s no way anyone could actually take over. It’s like a hydra—cut off one head, and two grow back. I made a few inroads, but even with all the resources Art left me, it was an impossible task, especially because I wasn’t willing to kill anyone to show I meant business. The same can’t be said for the type of people I usually dealt with.”
I murmured, “That all sounds incredibly dangerous.”
“It is, but it helped that rumors spread about me. People believed I was a ruthless killer, and for a while, that reputation was enough. But things started to get messy, especially when I realized I didn’t have full control over my own crew. Finally, I decided to pull back and let things settle down.
“At the same time, several of Art’s former associates have decided they’re entitled to the money he left me and have been trying to track me down. I’ve managed to stay a step ahead of them, but eventually, my luck’s going to run out.”