Chapter: 52 of ?

The Apocalypse Cometh

Mickey had the disk and he had Nadia. The problem was he was already a day late in meeting with DeCorsia. He was not fooled into believing that the man was not pissed and probably sent out his goons to take his head.

As he drove, he turned to see Nadia still scrunched down in the seat, trying to be invisible. She looked relaxed, but Mickey knew that Nadia’s mind was going a mile a minute. She was probably planning her escape from him, but Mickey was wise to her tricks and deceptions. He needed her as a bargaining chip. The disk only would just not do.

Nadia turned to find Chris’ green eyes regarding her. She revised that thought, Mickey’s green eyes. She also noticed that Chris-Mickey was not looking very well. He was sweating and seemed to be holding on to his stomach with one hand, while driving with the other. She knew it was the drug. The last shot was only to help with the withdrawal symptom and slow down the progression of his deterioration. But she knew it would not last for long without another shot. She did not think Mickey would let her get close enough to do that. She had to come up with a plan to get away from him, at least until she could figure out how to bring Chris back.

Her thoughts were quelled when Mickey finally pulled the car to the entrance of Twenty-One Club garage. He took a ticket and then pulled the car into the garage, parking close to the elevators.

“We’re here,” he said smiling wickedly at her. His smile made Nadia’s skin crawl. Larabee was considered a dangerous man, but this other personality of his was outright lethal. She had to tread lightly with him.

“Why here?” asked Nadia. “This is Marco’s place.”

“I know that, darling. Go on. Get out.”

Nadia slowly stepped out of the car and closed the passenger door. Chris got out on the driver’s side, holding onto his stomach, but still having control of the gun in his hand making sure it was pointed at Nadia’s head.

“You don’t look well, Mickey,” said Nadia putting on her best sympathetic face.

Mickey green eyes were slits and Nadia knew that his eyes were becoming hypersensitive to light.

“Is something wrong with your eyes, Mickey?” asked Nadia walking towards him.

Mickey saw the movement in his fogged vision and stepped back, holding his gun higher for aiming. “Stay where ya are? Got me?”

“Sure, Mickey, sure. Anything you say,” replied Nadia.

They were silently standing there for a minute. Nadia aware that Chris was in pain and she knew it would not be long before he would succumb to it.

“So, what now?” she asked.

“Move to the elevator,” he said motioning with his gun hand.

Nadia nodded and walked slowly over to the elevator with Chris not far behind.

Once there, he instructed her to push the button and when the elevator doors opened, he ushered her inside, his gun hand never far from her.

With her on one side of the elevator and himself on the other, Mickey pushed the button for the 14^th floor. This was the floor that usually housed Roberto DeCorsia when he was in town.

When the elevator reached the 14^th floor, Mickey gestured Nadia to stand on the other side of the wall leading down the corridor. He then leaned over behind the wall and quickly peered around the corner. He found two men guarding a door at the end. He knew this to be DeCorsia’s suite.

He stood there, trying to think of way to make a distraction and finally he decided that being direct was usually the best course.

He placed his gun into his pocket and then walking over to the other side of the corridor, grabbed Nadia by the arm, pulling her none to gently with him, as he walked quickly towards the two men.

As soon as the men saw him, they pulled out their weapons and trained it on him and Nadia. Mickey only smiled wickedly at them, letting go of Nadia and holding his hands up to show he was not armed.

The two men glared at him. “You’re Larabee,” said one of the guards.

“Yeah, as a matter of fact I am. I want to see Mr. DeCorsia. I have some things he has been lookin’ for.”

The other guard said, “Keep an eye on them. I’ll inform Mr. DeCorsia.” And he opened the door to the suite and left his partner to guard the two people.

Mickey kept sidling a glance at Nadia. He did not know if she would stick to the bargain. Of course, she had really no reason to. She could easily convince her father-in-law that she was being coerced into accompanying him.

Just then, the other guard returned and motioned both he and Nadia through the door to the suite.

They both walked in and just as the guards closed the door behind them, Roberto DeCorsia came sauntering out of the bedroom.

Roberto stared at the two individuals. Both of them looked like they had a rough day, but it was no concern of his. He wanted his package back and Chris Larabee and now he had both, with Nadia as a bonus.

Nadia noticed Roberto’s look and decided it was time to play her hand. She immediately left Mickey’s side and ran with open arms towards her father-in-law. She hugged him hard, playing it to the hilt, but she felt as Roberto only hugged her back lightly.

“Oh, Papa!” she exclaimed, using their private name. “I am so glad to see you.”

“Nay, my dear. Why are you upset?” asked Roberto as his eyes held those of what he thought was Chris Larabee.

“That man…” said Nadia turning around and pointing towards Chris. “…Kept me prisoner.” She then turned brown eyes to Roberto full of tears.

“Yeah, right. And pigs have wings,” mumbled Mickey snidely.

Roberto eyed Mickey angrily. “You did not keep your promise,” he said directly to Mickey ignoring Nadia outburst.

“Let’s just say I got a little sidetracked. But I have the package for you,” replied Mickey confidently.

“You do? How?”

“Well, I just got real resourceful. Now, what about the trade?”

“First the disk. Then we can talk about your reward.”

“Unh,uh. My reward first, old man,” said Mickey.

Roberto thought about arguing with the man, but he knew by the looks of him the man was not going to last long anyway.

“Very well. Nay, go with George. I have an extra bedroom in the back and I brought some of your clothes from your apartment just in case you returned. Rest and we’ll talk later.”

Nadia looked up at him from his chest with curious eyes. She wanted to hear what they would talk about. She wanted to know if it would be something she could use to keep Chris. But first she had to get rid of Mickey.

Roberto saw the gleam in her eyes and said, “George, escort my daughter-in-law to her room and make sure she stays there.”

“Yes, sir,” answered the guard George. He then took Nadia by the arm and led her down the hall to the other bedroom.

Once Roberto was sure she was gone, he motioned for Mickey to take a seat on the couch. As soon as Mickey was seated, Roberto pulled a chair from the desk in the room and sat across from him, his other guard taking a position behind Mickey.

Roberto’s eyes narrowed at Mickey and said, “Who am I talking with now? Chris or Mickey?”

“Who do ya think?” asked Mickey smiling.

“I think Mickey.”

“Then I think ya right. Chris just can’t handle things right now so ya have to deal with me.”

“I guess it really doesn’t matter,” said Roberto ominously.

Mickey glared at him, his instincts telling him that this deal was about to go sour.

“And why would ya say that?”

“Well, first of all, let me tell you that my son, Marco has confided in me that he had hired the person that had killed your wife and son.”

“Yeah. We discussed that before. Tell me somethin’ I don’t know.”

“Well, what you don’t know is that he was not the originator of the request. He was playing the middle-man and it seems he believed with you out of the way the disk would disappear.”

Mickey could hear Chris trying to fight his way out to the forefront.

Chris had heard Roberto’s words and he was trying to break through Mickey’s hold. He wanted to scream, he wanted to hit, he wanted revenge, but Mickey was holding me back.

Mickey ignored the cries he heard in his head. He knew Chris wanted to avenge his family and to find out who was behind his family’s killing. He knew, like Chris, if Marco was only the middle-man, then the actual person who wanted Chris’ family dead was still out there.

“So, who was he workin’ for?” asked Mickey impatiently.

“That is the million dollar question, Mickey. It seems that the woman would only say that she knew you. She was blonde, I say about about 5’7” and had the most gorgeous blue eyes that Marco has ever seen.”

Mickey’s eyes rose in surprise. “She knows me? You mean she knows Chris.”

“No. I mean she knows you. Mickey from Brooklyn. Mickey who use to work for El Lobo. Not Chris.”

Mickey tried to think about who it could be. He thought about his time in Brooklyn, the women he dated and met, his actions during that time.

Then a thought appeared in his head. He shook his head. No. It could not be. She was dead, gone. That’s what Buck had told him.

Roberto saw the look on Larabee’s face and knew the man was probably trying to figure out just whom he was talking about. It gave Roberto satisfaction to see there was something that could get under the hard exterior of the man.

“Someone you know, Mickey?”

“Yeah,” came Mickey’s soft reply. “Someone I thought was dead.”

“Apparently not. She would not reveal her name. But it seems she knows you very well.”

Mickey said nothing. He was busy stewing in his own anger. She should have died that night in the city. Buck told her she died that night in the city. But it seems she was back to reek havoc on his life.

“As far as I see it, then we have nothin’ to deal with do we, Berto, old man,” said Mickey slyly.

“But we do, Mickey. You see, I know where she is. She did not tell Marco her name, but she did say that she was here in Vegas and that she would be here for the next couple of months. Especially after she found out you were still alive.”

“Where is she?” growled Mickey.

“Not until I get what I want,” said Roberto smiling wickedly. He knew he had the man just where he wanted him.

“I see,” said Mickey thoughtfully. Just then a pain stabbed him I the side, making him grasp at it. But Mickey refused to show weakness and the only sound he made was a low grunt.

Roberto took his grunt for someone who came to some conclusion. He looked at him, waiting to hear what Mickey had decided.

Mickey looked up with glaring green eyes at him. “So what do you propose?” asked Mickey.

“Let’s be honest here, Mickey.”

“Well, that’ll be a first for ya and me both,” retorted Mickey.

Roberto choose to ignore the remark. He continued, “I am in a predicament as you know. I need that disk, but I also need Chris Larabee.”

“Ya don’t need ‘im. He ain’t gon’na be any help to ya.”

“But it is quite the opposite, Mickey. He will be of great help to me. He is the only one who knows what I need from the disk.”

“Well, I can get that for ya. I know what Chris knows.”

“Fine. Then tell me.”

“Nope.”

“Did you just say no?” asked Roberto angrily.

“Yeah, guess I did.”

“And you mind telling me why not?”

“’Cause if I did, ya would kill me. Ain’t that right, Mr. DeCorsia?”

Roberto stared at Mickey in surprise, but then he started laughing hard.

“You’re a man after my own heart, Larabee. I wished I had met you long ago. I could have used a man like you in my organization.”

“I doubt it. Ya think too small for me,” said Mickey smiling.

Roberto felt the heat rising to his face at Mickey’s comment, but he knew getting angry would achieve nothing. He had put a dozen like Mickey under the ground and this man would be no different.

“You know you have a smart mouth, Larabee.”

Mickey smiled at his comment, quirking an eyebrow as he watched the man’s anger start to rise. Roberto was calling him by his last name. He knew that meant he had finally hit a nerve with the man.

“I can be a smart-ass when I want to, DeCorsia. But time is a wastin’ and I think we need to get to it, don’t ya?”

Roberto nodded solemnly, his jaw tightening at the fact that he knew the man was right.

“So, how do you want to do this?”

“Not here, that’s for sure.”

“And why not?”

“If you think I’m smart, then you wouldn’t ask that question,” said Mickey glancing around the apartment, his eyes briefly resting on the man that stood to the side of him.

Roberto noticed the trail of his sight and said, “Alright. What do you propose?”

“How about ya meet me at the Twenty-One Club in an hour?” suggested Mickey.

“We did this before and you failed to show up.”

“Well, let’s just say that I ran into some unexpected circumstances. But I am here now. If I wanted to just run away, I surely would not have come back here of my own free will.”

Roberto nodded in acceptance of this. He knew the man was very smart and if he had planned to run, he would be by now.

“Okay. So let’s say I believe you. Why the Twenty-One Club? You know that my son and his men run the place and you would be very outnumbered there.”

“Ah, but ya see, it also has a lot of people in it. Ya would have to kill me among a bunch of witnesses and I don’t think ya got to where ya are by bein’ stupid.”

“You are right, Larabee. I did not. Very well,” he said nodding to the man standing next to Chris. “One hour. Be punctual. I will not allow any unexpected circumstances from changing my mind again about killing you outright.”

Mickey sighed calmly at this statement and stood up. He then said,
"There's one thing ya need to know about me, DeCorsia. I keep my
word. I will be there in an hour with the disk and the information
you seek. Just remember, I don't take too kindly to betrayal."

"Understood, Larabee," said Roberto also standing up. He and Larabee then both walked over to door and he watched as Larabee stepped through.

"Oh, by the way," said Mickey turning around. "I don't just want the woman, I want the one who did the actual execution too."

Roberto saw the wicked gleam in the man's green eyes and knew this was a man on the edge. He would not refuse him. At least not yet.

"Very well, Larabee," he said putting his hand out to him. "I can't
say that it has been a pleasure."

Mickey eyed the proffered hand in front of him and then looked back at Roberto saying, "For me neither." He then turned to walk down the hallway towards the elevators, leaving Roberto standing there with this hand out.

Once Mickey was gone, Roberto turned back into his suite and motioned for him to accompany. He needed to make sure that once the deal was complete, Larabee was not going to walk away to act on the information he was going to give him.

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Chapter: 53 of ?

The Apocalypse Arrives

The seven men sat in the two vehicles in front of the Twenty-One Club hoping that their long absconded agent would arrive. They had to find Chris fast. Chief Travis just gave them a twenty-four hour ultimatum. It was the most he could give. The Chief’s superiors were asking questions and his answers were not to their liking. If they did not produce Chris within that time, a warrant would be forthcoming for his arrest and Chris would become a wanted man.

Lucien had convinced them that since it was at the Twenty-One Club that everything had originally started for Chris, it was logically that he would return here. It was the only other place that Nadia had that would make her feel safe and it was the only other place that Mickey would have business.

They had been waiting in their vehicles for the past couple of hours hoping that they had not missed their targets.

“Ya sure about this, Luc?” asked Vin, eyeing his askance. He had a feeling that Lucien was not telling them everything. There was something deep inside the man that Vin could not fathom.

“I am quite sure, Vin,” replied Lucien as he lifted a pair of binoculars into his hand and aimed it at the casino’s entrance.

“I just hope you’re right,” came Buck’s terse comment from the back.

“So do I, Buck,” said Lucien still looking through the binoculars.

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Jack, Frank and Devon sat in their car outside the Twenty-One Club. They were informed by Roberto DeCorsia a couple of hours ago when they arrived at his penthouse, that Chris Larabee and Nadia Diaz had arrived before them, on their own with a deal.

At the news, the men stood in the penthouse in trepidation since they knew if that was so, then they had failed and DeCorsia was not a very forgiving man when it came to failure. But to their surprise, DeCorsia had informed them that there job was not yet finished. He explained to them that Larabee was going to be at the Twenty-One Club with the disk and their job was to make sure that Larabee did not leave the club alive. He also instructed them to make sure that Nadia was a casualty too.

Devon, upon hearing this was about to object when he noticed DeCorsia’s eyes. They were ones of a burning hate and it gave Devon the shivers just looking at them.

“Mr. DeCorsia?” called Devon softly. He did not mind getting rid of Larabee. He hated the man. But Nadia, that was a different issue. He was in love with her, or so he thought and killing her did not sit well with him. “Did I hear you correctly? You want us to kill your niece-in-law too?”

DeCorsia turned glaring eyes at him and said, “Yes. You heard me correctly. What? You have a problem with that?” He then started to approach Devon with that hatred now turned on him.

Devon raised his hands in defense and said, “No, no, Mr. DeCorsia. I…I was just making sure.” He loved Nadia, but he was more afraid of what DeCorsia would do if he did not obey his orders.

“Hmphf!” exclaimed Roberto as he then stepped away from the man. Roberto could see that the man was trembling in fear of him and he thought it should be so.

“You two,” said Roberto pointing to Jack and Frank. “Make sure there is no fucking this up, do you understand?”

“Yes, sir,” replied Frank and Jack simultaneously. They both knew that their jobs and their lives were on the line with this one mission.

So now, they sat waiting for their prey outside the Twenty-One Club. Roberto, Marco and Nadia were all inside already waiting for Larabee to appear. The plan was to wait until Larabee went inside. They would follow and hopefully would not be seen.

Once inside, they would wait for Roberto’s signal and they would take the man into custody and dispose of him cleanly somewhere outside of the Vegas city limits. Most likely their favorite dumping ground which was the desert.

As they continued to wait, they did not notice the other two vehicles on the other side of the street that carried seven men whose purpose ran parallel to their own.

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The blonde woman sat at the bar of the Twenty-One Club slowly sipping her martini. The silky black dress, with the back out had the men eyeing her with want. But as far as she was concerned she wanted none of them. There was only one man she wanted and he was not within her grasp at the moment.

She was surprised when she received a call from Marco DeCorsia requesting her presence at his club tonight. She did not think that they had any more business transact. Her side of the deal was completed. She had told him who had the disk that he wanted and he had promised that he would refer her to someone who could give her what she wanted. Now with Mickey’s new life destroyed, she would step in to pick up the pieces and she and Mickey could have the life that they should have had long ago in Brooklyn.

Her blue eyes glared in anger though at the thought of the one little problem she did not foresee. It came in the form of six men, Larabee’s team and that was something she did not plan on. She needed to remove them from the picture.

She had planned on getting it done tonight, but then Marco called out of the blue, putting her plan on hold. Her men were waiting for her orders and now it seemed that Marco’s little request had thrown her schedule off kilter. She smiled gently to herself. But it was not something that would keep Etal Romanov from getting what she wanted.

Etal sat waiting for Marco to send one of his men over to her to let her know he was ready to talk. Until then, she would just sip at her martini and watch the people gamble their lives away.

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Mickey pulled up to the Twenty-One Club in the back alley. He knew that walking through the front door would serve only to get him killed and he was not about to let that happen until he had his justice.

His alter ego Chris was busily mumbling in his head, trying to come through, but Mickey was having none of it. It took all his strength and concentration just to keep Chris at bay. The man would simply not just give up and he sometimes wished he could put a bullet in his head to end it all. But he knew if he did, then he would not get to finish what he started.

The pain in his stomach was increasing and by the time he had left DeCorsia’s apartment earlier, he had vomited several times until there was nothing left but dry heaves. His was hot and tired, but he kept going because he knew the end was near. After tonight, either the two people who took his family from him would be dead or he would be and then it would not matter anymore because he would be with his wife and son once again. That was the only point of the whole plan that he and Chris could agree on.

He sat straighter in his seat and checked the weapons he carried to make sure they would be in easy access. He knew Roberto was no fool and he would not deal likely with him. Marco was different question. The man was a complete idiot as far as Mickey was concern, but Chris whispered in his mind for him not to discount him. And then there was Nadia. She was the unknown factor in the equation. Mickey, like Chris, knew that Nadia was selfish and as such did nothing without her own ulterior motives.

But the worst of them were not the ones that were part of the organization. She, the blonde woman that Roberto had spoken about was his nightmare coming true. He thought that by leaving New York and the east coast he had gotten away from her, but it seems she did not give up easily. In fact, if what Roberto said was true, she was the one who had initiated the attack on his wife and child and she alone held the true blame for all of this.

Her name was never forgotten, only put away into the back of his mind where Mickey once existed. Now, like him, she was out and causing him excruciating pain and anguish. Etal Romanov. The woman’s name brought fire to his mind. She should have died along with El Lobo. But Mickey was strong enough then. He wondered if he would be strong enough now to put the bitch away finally.

Chris started his mumblings again and Mickey tuned them out. He wished the damnable man would shut the hell up. Mickey then laughed hysterically at that thought, as he knew that he was asking for the impossible. Chris was just as much part of him, as he was of him. The only way to cease the noise of the man would be to die and right now he knew that was not option.

At the thought of that, the Chris noise in the back of his mind grew louder. “Shut up, damnit!” screamed Mickey aloud.

A wondering prostitute who was taking the back alley heard the noise from where she was walking on the other side of the street and stopped to stare at him and his vehicle.

“What the hell are ya lookin’ at?” yelled Mickey at the woman.

She shook her head and continued to walk onward, after taking only another quick glance at the man in the car. She thought she knew the man or at least seen him before, but she could not be sure.

Once she was gone, Mickey sighed in frustration and looked at his watch. It was time. Grasping his stomach, trying to quell the pain there, he exited the car and started for the back entrance of the Twenty-One Club. He laughed as he opened the unlock door and walked in.

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Sukia turned the corner and entered the busy front street of the Twenty-One Club. The strange man had unnerved her and she was glad that he had not got out of the car to pursue her.

Work had been slow tonight and her last john was such an asshole that she knew she could not do another. So instead, she decided to walk the streets and see if she could find any of the other girls that were part of her group. Working for Queen Bea, although she was a woman, was just as hard if her pimp was a man. The only difference was that Queen Bea would let no harm befall her employees and she would do no harm, unlike a male pimp and for that Sukia was grateful.

She was about to continue walking down the street back to where home was when she noticed what looked like Vin’s truck sitting across the street from the Twenty-One Club.

She crossed the street and came from the back of the truck to the passenger side and promptly knocked on the car window.

Vin, who was seated in the passenger side of the vehicle, jumped at the sound and turned to face her, smiling wide. He rolled down the window and said surprised, “Sukia? What ya doin’ here, girl?”

“I was just coming back from a john when I saw ya car. What ya doin’ around this part of town, sweetie?” Sukia asked curious.

“You know this woman?” asked Lucien from the driver side of the car.

Sukia peered at him through the window and noticed that he looked very familiar but she could not determine where she had met the young blond man.

“Yeah. Me and Sukie go a long way back,” said Vin to the man next to him.

“And I thought ya was too shy to meet women,” came Buck’s comment from the back.

Vin turned around annoyed. “Fuck you, Buck!” he retorted.

“Not in this lifetime,” laughed Buck.

“Who’s ya friends, Vin?” asked Sukia teasingly.

“No one!” exclaimed Vin curtly.

“Aw, Vin. Come on,” said Buck moving in closer so that he could get a better look at the woman. “My name is Buck Wilmington and this here is Lucien Caymen.”

“Nice to meet ya,” said Sukia nodding at them. “Ya still haven’t told me what ya doin’ here, Vin.”

“We’re lookin’ for a friend. Ya wouldn’t by chance have seen ‘im?”

“And what’s ya friend’s name?”

“Chris Larabee,” said Lucien interrupting the conversation.

“Archangel Michael?” questioned Sukia.

“Yeah. Ya seen ‘im,” asked Vin noticing the change in her face.

“Well, I don’t know. I think I have,” said Sukia thoughtfully.

“You think you have?” said Lucien. “Have you or haven’t you?”

“And just who are the hell are ya?” asked Sukia defiantly. She did not like how this man had jumped into their conversation.

“I told you my name,” answered Lucien.

“No. Who are ya,” emphasized Sukia.

“The man we are looking for is my brother.”

“Ya brother? Archangel Michael is ya brother? So that’s why…”

“Why what?”

“Why ya look familiar. I can see the resemblance. And for if I saw ya brother or not? I saw a man a few minutes ago. He was sittin’ in a black truck. He looks like you. Like Archangel Michael, although I did not think he was at that moment,” explained Sukia.

“Where?” cut in Buck’s exclamation.

Sukia eyed him carefully. “In the back alley, behind the club.”

“Luc?” queried Buck.

“I got you,” replied Lucien picking up his cell phone and dialing Ezra’s number.

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