Page 79 of Cash

“Baker’s gonna decide after Tito gives him the transcripts. If so, it’ll be while he’s out of town. Next week, late, is what it sounds like.”

“Gonna be big?” I asked.

“Not as big as that diamond dealer, but it’ll be close.”

I sipped my beer and gazed out into the yard. Kimberly stood beside a deck positioned in the middle of Goose’s yard. She admired potted flowers while Reno babbled at her side.

Every now and again, she’d look up and smile.

“He’ll be fine,” Ghost said. “Don’t worry. He’s probably telling her about the money he lost.”

“Just afraid he’s going to say something stupid. He always says dumb shit when he’s drunk.”

He looked at him and chuckled. “He says some dumb shit, doesn’t he?”

I trusted Reno but viewed him differently than the rest of the fellas. He was an outsider that we’d allowed into the club. Although he’d been with us for a decade, I still felt he was earning his stripes. As the five of us had been together since childhood, I suspected Reno would always be playing catch up.

“Yeah,” I said. “He’s good at blowing shit up, but he’s bad at being subtle.”

“He doesn’t have a subtle bone in his body.”

I raised my beer bottle in mock toast. “Agreed.”

I was relieved to see Reno walk away from Kimberly, leaving her to talk to Baker and Andy. While she laughed at something Baker said, Reno meandered to where we stood.

After getting a beer, he stepped between us and took a drink. Then, he took another. Wearing a shitty smirk, he looked right at me and held my gaze the best his drunken eyes would allow.

“What?” I asked.

He twisted his mouth to the side and took another drink. “Can’t decide if I wanna tell ya.”

“Tell me what?”

He shrugged.

When everyone was drunk, it was always a good time. When one person was drunk and everyone else was sober, it made me wonder why any of us ever got drunk.

“Got good news and I got bad news,” he said. “Which you want first?”

Ghost chuckled. “Give him the bad news.”

Reno teetered from side to side while he waited for me to respond.

“Bad news,” I said.

He glanced out at the yard. “It’s pretty bad.”

“I’m a big boy,” I said jokingly. “Let’s hear it”

“Found out the gal you’re fucking is a nigger,” he whispered. “Thought you’d want to know.”

It took an instant for what he said to register. When it did, my ears began to ring.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d blacked out, but it had happened in the past. When it did, the outcome was never favorable.

When things came back into focus, Ghost had me in a choke hold, and the sound of people screaming seemed to be coming from everywhere.

I glanced down. Reno was at my feet. Goose was leaning over him. Blood was splattered all over the wooden deck.