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“When Trina told me what happened,” Reno said, “I had my people look into that Alice broad she was going on about.”

Sal frowned. “What do you mean look into her? She’s Zam’s widow.”

“That ain’t all she is,” said Reno.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“She was Zam’s widow, alright, but she still is Markie Peterman’s woman.”

“Chainsaw Pete?” Sal was floored. “Alice is Chainsaw Pete’s old lady?”

“And has been for years,” said Reno. “And guess who those goons that iced Zam worked for?”

Sal frowned. “Chainsaw? You gotta be kidding me. Where’s Robby? He told me those assholes weren’t mob!”

“That’s because they’re independent assholes from a nothing town in Arkansas.

Your organization don’t do small towns. But I run a casino.

The people who think they can play that golly gee, lil’ ole me act and get away with cheating my tables blind without being noticed almost always come from those small, backwater towns.

I have an extensive network of spies all around those small spaces when we need to find those bastards.

Besides, my son Dommi lives in one of those small towns now too.

Robby and your goons have gotten too sophisticated. My goons cut to the chase.”

“So Chain had Zam murdered for what reason if he was already banging Alice?”

Reno gave Sal a hard look.

Sal frowned. “That same shit?”

“What same shit?” Gemma asked.

Sal didn’t want to even talk about those dark days of old. But Gemma and especially Trina wasn’t going to let it slide. “Me and Chain got some bad blood between the two of us.”

“What kind of bad blood?” Gemma asked.

“Back in the days when I was a cop, I didn’t protect his old man like I protected some of the other mobsters around town. His old man ended up going to prison for murder.”

“For a murder he didn’t commit?” Gemma asked.

“Oh his ass committed it and more besides that one,” said Sal. “But his kid, Markie, or as we call his crazy ass Chainsaw, never forgave me. Like all that shit his old man did was my fault.” Then he looked at Reno. “But why is this an issue now? That happened years ago.”

“Old Man Peterman died in prison last week,” Reno said.

And he didn’t have to say any more about the timing. As mob men and mob wives, they all understood.

“But why take it out on Zam and not take it out on Sal when she drugged him?”

That was news to Reno and Trina. “Who drugged Sal?” Trina asked.

“That so-called grieving widow,” said Gemma. “Sal didn’t even know how he got naked or got in that bed.”

Trina looked doubtful. “That’s what he told you?”

“It makes sense now,” Gemma said. “It was all planned that way. But again, why would they kill Zam and not just take out Sal?”

“Because it wasn’t about that kind of revenge,” said Reno.

“What do you mean?” asked Sal.

“Zam’s death brought Sal to his widow. To Alice. Because that widow, with Chainsaw pulling all the strings, has every intention of taking Sal straight to the bank.”

Sal frowned. “The bank? What are you talking, Reno?”

“Show him, Tree,” Reno said and Trina pulled out her phone, pulled up a video, and handed her phone to Sal.

“What’s this?” Gemma asked as she looked over Sal’s shoulder.

“That heifer sent it to me and as soon as we saw it, we hopped in the car and headed over here.”

Sal pressed Play and he and Gemma watched an empty chair in a room.

Then Alice Manetti sat in the chair and spoke directly to the camera.

Her hair was wild and her clothes were torn.

“He came and told me that my beloved husband Zam was dead. He was supposed to be consoling me. But then the next thing I know he says he need to protect me from the men that killed my husband, although most of them were dead too. But I didn’t question it.

I trusted Sal Gabrini because my husband trusted him.

So I went with him. But to my surprise he didn’t take me to a safe house.

He took me to his own personal lake house. ”

Tears appeared in her eyes and she dabbed them with her Kleenex. “And that’s when . . .” She acted as if she could barely speak it. “And that’s when he raped me. He violently raped me. And I have the proof,” she said defiantly.

Then her crying voice was gone, and she was all about the business.

“If he don’t deposit fifty million dollars in my bank account by close of business Friday, which is in two days, then I am going straight to the cops.

And they’ll be glad to put his Italian ass in prison for the rest of his natural life.

I’ll text Trina the account number. And Trina you and his wife caught him with me.

You was right there. If you’re honest, you’ll stand by me, woman to woman.

But that don’t matter. I have proof of what he did to me. I have proof!”

And then the video ended. And everybody was looking at Sal. “What kind of proof she means, Sal Luca?” Reno asked him.

But Sal was replaying the video, but without sound. He was staring at that video.

“Sal, you heard me? What kind of proof could that dame possibly have?”

But Sal was frowned and preoccupied. “When was this video taken?”

Trina grabbed her phone from him and checked. “About half an hour ago. Why?”

“I know where she is. I know that room she’s in.”

“You know it?” asked Gemma.

“I know it.”

“Then let’s go get that bitch,” said Reno and he and Sal began hurrying for the exit. But Trina and Gemma began hurrying too.

Both men turned around. “You must be out of your gotdamn minds,” Reno said.

“Robby and Gemma’s security detail are outside,” said Sal. “They’ll take you two to the house until we get back.”

“No way, Sal,” said Gemma. “This is about me too. I have to see what’s happening for myself. I want to know what proof she’s talking about.”

“And she sent that video to me,” said Trina. “Not none of y’all asses. Oh I’m going.”

“Think so?” said Reno. “I want your ass to try it.”

Trina knew Reno could put his foot down and stop her in her tracks. But Sal was showing signs of wavering.

“I have to see it for myself, Sal,” Gemma said to him.

Sal knew Trina’s desire to go was just her nosiness.

But Gemma had a right to go. She had a right to see what other tricks this woman still had up her sleeve.

And to tell Gemma, face to face, what she did to Sal.

He almost lost Gemma once with his ducking and dodging.

He wasn’t making that mistake again. He reached out his hand to her. And she gladly took it.

But Reno wasn’t feeling it. “Bro, you gonna lose your bro card. What are you doing?”

“She has a right to go,” Sal said as he and Gemma hurried out the door.

Trina looked at Reno. “Well?” she asked.

Reno didn’t like it. But . . . “Bring your ass on,” he said and Trina, smiling, hurried out of the door in front of her husband, kissing him as she hurried past him.

Because Sal’s Bugatti was a two-seater, they all piled into Trina’s Bentley with Sal behind the wheel because he was the only one who knew where they were going, and Sal sped away.