Snippet #2092195

Detective Tony Winters thought of his family as he approached the ship, having hugged his children and wife goodbye, leaving them to return home to her parents. He loved them all . . . which is why he was ashamed to be grateful for this trip, while equally dreading his purpose here. Even if he was going to Italy only to smuggle back newly designed drugs ready for the hot street market, the time alone would be nice. His family believed he won the money for his ticket at a casino. To cover his ass Tony had reported a hefty sum to the IRS as earnings to be taxed. If a man covered his tracks, his chances of getting away were increased.

He passed through all the inspections and boarded the ship, glancing around at all the other passengers, many of them happy families or couples. None of them deal with the kind of shit Winters did on a daily basis. Regardless, the cynic in him kept an eye out for shady characters. With all the crazies these days it was up in the air who would crack next. Hell, Tony almost went down that path himself; the barrel of his service weapon cold against the roof of his mouth a few years ago. Those thoughts were scratched out in his mind as striking women caught his eye, reminding him how long it had been since he had sex with his wife. A slow death to cancer was a bit of a turn off at times, making cheating an act the detective was familiar with.

The room on his ticket was easy enough to find, after what felt like a few miles of walking. He put his bags up and turned around, to a young man in a white chef uniform standing stiffly in his doorway, one hand behind his back.

"Can I help you with something?"

The man stared at him, then back in the hall searching for anyone who may be in earshot.

"I'm Gio, part of the family, just stopping by and wishing you a warm welcome." The hand came from behind him, holding a bottle of expensive looking wine with an opener. "Extra stock, compliments of DeLuca." Tony took the bottle from him, grateful for it. Gio sat the bottle opener on the dresser near the door.

"I'm more of a liquor man Gio, but this will do." Gio didn't leave the room, continuing to stare at him. At least it was a semi-polite stare, the guy was still stiff as a board. A few more moments of silence prompted a response from Winters, "Can I help you at all?"

"I'm legit, I have no official part of any criminal activity up to this point with my family, they asked me to mule. I refused of course. My job is simple; to make sure you reboard the ship after we dock in Italy, possibly helping you offload the shit later as a favor to my uncle. Please, don't create a problem. If I have to call our guys in Italy to track you down, you will be found and I don't think the resulting actions will be pleasant." A smile crept to the edges of Tony's mouth.

"Look kid, I don't have the resources to go run off and start a new life. You don't need to worry, I'll make your little babysitting job easy. And thanks for the bottle, I suppose I'll be seeing you around?" Gio didn't answer, but he seemed to relax before he turned and left. Anthony shut the door after the chef exited, glad to give the kid peace of mind. Then he threw himself onto the plush bed, staring at the ceiling as he regretted every choice that led him to this ship. The detective was determined to get some enjoyment from the cruise, so he would drink and eat himself into oblivion. He hopped out of bed and retrieved the bottle opener.