The House Always Wins

Chapter 18: New Hire

Freddy was surprised when he saw that Maxi was walking out with Eli. He walked toward Maxi with a puzzled look on his face before speaking. "What is this? I get a gun waved in my face and all of a sudden you two dummies are buddies? Who is this twerp anyway? Some cowboy yuppie who still lives with his mama?" Maxi glared at Freddy and said, "No. He is our new hire. See how forceful he was? I wish you could be like that, not some out-of-state schmuck who thinks he's smarter than me." Freddy instantly blushed with embarrassment and looked away. Maxi told Eli to get in the car and wait. Eli obliged the order and got in. Freddy was then pulled to the side by Maxi and given a stern talk. "Listen, Freddy. You have to get used to it. We need workers, and so far, he's the best we've got. It's nothing personal." Freddy stared at Maxi and blew up. "Maxi! Grow up! He is a criminal. He stole money, carjacked us, held us hostage, and nearly killed us. I ain't working with him!" Maxi gave Freddy a hardened look before going off. "You gotta it in your head that no one's playing house out there. It's never going to be me and you traveling around the whole damn continent doing jobs and running casinos. This is no longer peaceful. This is personal. If you don't want to end up like Stevie, I suggest you keep your Goddamn mouth shut!" Freddy backed down and asked what happened to Stevie. Maxi replied. "He's out in Florida sipping a margarita and feeding his fat face. How dumb are you? He's dead! Didn't you notice him on the floor in the backseat? The only reason Eli ain't seen him yet is because of the adrenaline rush. He'll see 'em now though." As soon as Maxi finished his sentence, Eli let out a blood curdling scream. He yelled, "Who is this?" Maxi chuckled and said, "Right on cue. Eli, that's Stevie. Just lay him down next to you so no one sees him. Actually, hold on. I'll do it." Maxi ran over to Eli and helped him. Eli asked Maxi, "What did he do? What was that all about?" Maxi laid down Stevie in the backseat and said, "He squealed. Don't worry about it. Just doing business. Get in." Eli obeyed and got in. Freddy and Maxi got into the front seats before taking off and getting out of sight.