“Do you still earn money the unconventional way?” I asked.
I suddenly felt like Alan when he couldn’t stop asking inappropriate questions.
“We have an escort service and run a sports book. We aren’t into drugs. The price of protecting that business is simply too high. I want to see my son grow up, if you know what I mean.
“We also have a movie studio,” he said.
“Oh, really?” I asked with interest, thinking this could steer the conversation to safer ground.
“Adult films.”
“I see,” I said, knowing it was past time to stop asking questions.
“We’re always looking for actors of your caliber,” he teased.
“My mom is right over there. You should go ask her,” I suggested.
He laughed.
“I might have someone who’s interested,” I said, thinking of Maria. “She’s not 18 yet, but she wants to get into porn.”
“Does she have any talent?”
“Yeah … well, shit. I guess I walked into that one,” I admitted.
Tony must have thought I was a comedian. His laughter brought Nancy, Kendra, and Melinda over to see what was so funny.
“I just stuck my foot in my mouth,” I said to explain it away.
I looked around and realized that the middle of Monical’s wasn’t the best place to have this discussion. Then an Italian woman walked in and stepped up to Tony. She told him something, and the joy left his eyes. It was clear that Tony had a hard edge that was easy to miss if you didn’t know him well. I should have figured that out, but he seemed like such a nice … I don’t know … normal guy. When I saw the look in his eyes, I found myself focusing and getting ready for a fight, like the first time I had met Fritz. Tony was a dangerous man.
“David, this is my sister Pia. She is who you’ll call if you ever need anything. I’m sorry, but something’s come up. It was a pleasure meeting both you and Melinda. Next time you’re in New York, call Pia. I really enjoyed getting to know you,” he said and began to leave, only to turn back. “If your friend wants to get into the business, let us know. We’ll make sure she’s treated right; you have my word on that.”
I felt like this was a man of his word. If he told me something, I could take it to the bank. I filed that away. There weren’t many people who were good for their word nowadays. Most people put their self-interest first. It was a shame, actually.
◊◊◊
Chapter 24 – Lists, Plans, Decisions Saturday March 19
We packed ten people into my SUV to go to the party at State. Jim explained that since I had a driver, namely Paul, it meant they could drink. Jim was a senior who would graduate in two months and already had a full ride to Alabama. He didn’t really care if Moose kicked him off the baseball team for drinking. It would just give him more time to work out and get ready for football.
Melinda was excited to go. She’d gone from being a freshman in high school to full-time modeling. Melinda didn’t go to many parties because of her age, and when she did go, all she found was older men who perved on her. Going to a high school/college party was something Melinda had missed out on.
I was happy she’d borrowed one of my Lincoln High sweatshirts to wear. It hid what a killer body she had. I didn’t want to spend the night in fights. I suspected that most of Kevin, Magic, and Luke’s friends were football players.
The party was at an apartment complex for football players, close to the practice facilities. It would be a pain in the ass to get to campus for classes, but if your focus were football, it would be perfect. When we parked and got out, I waited for the other car to pull up and six guys get out. Seemed Johan was their designated driver. I warned them about their responsibilities.
“You all know what will happen if Moose gets wind of any of you drinking. I’m not your mom, but you should think about what you getting kicked off the team would mean to you, the team, and me personally. I say that not to be selfish, but because I’m trying out for the Under-18 Team for USA Baseball. No offense to the younger guys, but I don’t want to have to play with all freshmen,” I said, smiling at Milo and Dan.
Moose had actually let the two freshmen dress for varsity games because we didn’t have enough players. Milo, Johan’s brother, was our right fielder. Dan was Jim’s cousin, and he was pretty good with his bat. He needed to work on his defense, but the kid could hit.
I thought Moose might just give up his big ‘line in the sand’ talk each year. The last two years had found freshmen and new players on varsity. But Moose was Moose. He had been doing this forever, and it seemed unlikely he would ever change.
“There are going to be players from Wesleyan here. Jim has a score to settle with Mike, and I’m not about to tell him not to do it. He held off in the fall, because of football, but Mike transferred before Jim could get his revenge,” I said.
“What about yours?” Jim asked.
