The Name of the Game

Chapter 11

As Ray drove down the quiet little street, Frank stared silently out the window. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon, and the warmth of summer had Ray in a wonderful mood. The same could not be said for Frank.

"Hey, is something wrong?" Ray asked, turning off the music.

"Hm?" Frank snapped out of his trance and looked over at his friend.

"What's the matter?" Ray asked again. "You seem upset about something."

"No, n-nothing," Frank said. "Swear."

Ray shoved his tongue into his cheek. He wouldn't pry any more, but he knew that Frank was lying to him.

-

Gerard walked down the steps, watching his feet as he went. He wasn't paying attention to anything else, which caused him to nearly run into his father.

"Oh, good, Gerard," Donald said. "I was just coming up to get you. We're having a meeting of the council, and you're coming with us."

Gerard, taken aback, opened his mouth, but nothing came out. After a moment, he managed, "B-But I'm not a member of the council!"

"Not officially, no," Donald said. "But you do one of our most important jobs. Besides, this is about the money you found out was missing. That means we need your input on this."

"Oh." Gerard blinked. "I thought you all already had that meeting."

"We had one meeting," Donald explained, "But that was just for informational purposes. This is for actual planning."

Gerard thought for a moment, then nodded. He didn't want to argue any further; it was an honor to be considered welcome in a council meeting.

Gerard and Donald climbed into the family's black car. Gerard had no idea where they were going, but Donald seemed to know exactly what he was doing. They drove along the edges of their territory, eventually coming to a tiny, worn, brick building at the edge of town. Gerard squinted at it, reading the print on the front window.

"Becker and Sons Moving Company," he read as he stepped out of the car. "Is that something I should remember?"

Donald shook his head and slammed the car door. "No," he said. "Look, I'll let you in on a little secret, but if you say anything to anyone, I'll have your head on a stick. Got it?" Gerard nodded, and Donald stepped closer to him. "If you ever see a building with the name Becker on it, we use it," Donald said, voice lowered significantly. "But that's only information known to the council. Understood?"

"Understood, sir," Gerard said. Donald nodded and the two walked inside.

Just like the exterior of the building, the inside felt like it hadn't been used in somewhere around fifty years. The walls were grey concrete behind torn and faded floral wallpaper. The floor was cold, even through Gerard's shoes. The ceiling was low, and there was a single lamp hanging from it as it dangled over a long, ovular, dark wood table. Already, several men and one woman were sat around the table. Gerard recognized all of them from previous functions and greeted them accordingly.

It was a few more minutes of waiting before the door opened and Sir entered. He greeted the rest of the council before taking a seat at the head of the table. One of the men placed a cigar box and a lighter in front of him. He inspected the box's contents for a moment before picking a fine cigar from the box. He nodded at the man in thanks. The man took the cigar box and lighter set them down at the other end of the table, the box now open to anyone.

Donald reached for a cigar at the same time the woman did. She pulled her hand away, but Donald gestured towards the box. "Ladies first," he said. She thanked him softly and took a cigar before lighting it with care.