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“Absolutely not.”
“It can’t wait until day after tomorrow?”
“If need be, but I’d prefer to speak to you sooner if possible.”
“You headin’ here for any other reason?”
“No.”
“Email your flight details to my receptionist. We’ll pick you up.” I gave him the email address.
I had no clue what this was about. Stan and my pop had a friendship that went back decades. I had shit to do, I was busy, but this sounded like something that needed my attention. Yet another axe about to fall, I could just feel it. But I had no idea how big that axe was until Stan arrived and spilled the beans about my birthday gift.
At 9:30 the next night, Dex, a buddy and someone who worked for us doing security and sensitive errands, brought Stan to my place, a condo downtown, just a five-minute walk from the Ferrano Enterprises office.
I told him to wait out front and to drive Stan back to his hotel afterwards. I poured Stan a drink and invited him to sit.
“I’m a busy man. I know you are as well. You spent almost a whole day on a plane to come here unannounced for something clearly pretty important. Lay it on me.”
“Your apartment? When was the last time it was swept?”
He was talking about surveillance devices.
“It’s clean,” I told him.
“Guaranteed?” he prodded.
I raised a brow at him. “You don’t know me real well, Stan, but if I say it’s clean, it’s clean. I do not talk out of my ass.”
“Apologies. There are a few matters we need to discuss about business ventures of Tom’s overseas that he had me help him with. I’ll need some direction in a few areas from you and your brother. On top of that and most pressing, your father, rest his soul, my sincere condolences, he bought something for you before he died and paid me handsomely to arrange it. He said it was a birthday gift. Happy belated. The gift is something less than above board, so I need to be cautious. Very cautious.”
I gave the guy the once-over. He was tall, thin, gray-haired, and 60ish with a receding hairline and a ruddy complexion. He looked totally respectable. He was anything but. He handled some shady-as-fuck shit in Thailand and that part of the world for my father. I didn’t know all of what they got up to, but we were finding out that Pop had a lot going on that he’d never briefed my brother or me about. He had a small import/export business and it was mostly a front for things that weren’t exactly legit and he dabbled in some not-so-legal areas in several countries. The good news was that there were off-shore accounts with a lot of dough left to me and my siblings. The bad news? Besides the fact that there were more unsavory businesses and relationships to end slash unload … was the news of what my birthday gift was.
“I don’t know how knowledgeable you are about a certain private resort your father profited and partook from,” he said cautiously.
“Unfortunately, Stan, it seems that me and my brother were not nearly as knowledgeable in a few areas as we’d like to have been.”
“How can I reach your brother, by the way? I called his home but the number forwards to your office.”
“He’s on his honeymoon. You can speak to me about anything outstanding regarding my father’s affairs. Do you need something related to Tommy directly?”
“No, I can deal with you.”
“So, that pressing reason you’re here?”
“Right.” He sipped his drink. “We’ll deal with the matter that impacts you the most first. Your, erm, birthday gift. Your father was rather involved with a certain secret exclusive club that involves entertaining men with females, or males if they prefer. Trained entertainment.” He held up air quotes at the word entertainment. “I’m not sure if you’re aware of the association.”
“Trained females?”
“Let’s call a spade a spade, Dario. I’ll stop beating around the bush.”
“Please do.” Like I’ve got all fucking night to play guessing games.
“Your father was part owner in a resort, an extremely exclusive resort. That resort has human assets on site for erm… entertainment, but occasionally pairs men or sometimes women who want trained slaves… to take off-site. Pairs them with the type of slave they desire. Your father partook. He decided to have one of those assets transferred to you before he died. He told me when he arranged it that it was to be a surprise birthday gift for you and that you’d marry her. That transaction is nearly ready. It just needs a few details from you for that order to be completed. This was a big deal for the resort to do. It was only due to Tom’s perceived value to this organization that he was able to acquire this specific asset for you. Perhaps you or your brother should speak to your father’s business partners at this club in order to determine the best way to move forward with the partnership in Tom’s absence.”
“My father arranged a slave for me for my birthday?”
“Yes.”
