You are such a trouble-maker… ;-)

well lets review the continuity here:

Nick Baretta was invited by Maryanne Stone to The Topaz.
The Topaz is owned by Vincent Otellio, who is also Maryanne’s husband.
Otellio is expecting Mr. D as usual every Friday night at The Topaz
Baretta used to date Stone, but since she hooked up with her sugar Daddy, Otellio, he is off the radar.
Stone has ripped off her husband’s nightly take and put him in jeopardy with Mr. D.
She has set him up by coming to his club the night after they broke up, WHY!?
How will it play out? Will she use Nick as a shield against her husband?
Will Otellio try to force her to give back his money?
Will Mr. D. put the squeeze on Otellio for his nightly take?
Is Mr. D. sweet on Maryanne? Who isn’t?
What about the reporter hack?
How will Tugger react to what goes down? Who will be caught in the crossfire?
It is almost 8:00!! here we go!!

I applaud your boldness in setting so many elements into place in relation to one another. It works quite nicely with all that has gone before and sets up for a rollicking time at the Topaz. Thanks for the recap as well!

Good God, someone is actually tracking the continuity in this story! This is probably a good thing – we need someone to keep us on track as we bumble along or else we’ll end up with one of those movies where everyone’s hair and cigarette stubs are different lengths in every shot.

I like the characterisation of Otellio – can’t help but feel sorry for the guy, and his panic is palpable.

BTW I have given Mr D a name (DeSibio) but then carelessly suggested that his appearance at the Topaz is a big deal, rather than a weekly event. Perhaps we can gloss over that and hope the readers don’t notice, in time-honoured serial-writing fashion.

I know you gave Mr. D. a name, and I like that, but Otellio, and the other associates do not use his name. It is is like ‘Don’, without copying Mario Puzzo…

Also, the difference between how Otellio perceives Mr. D.’s visit and what the other characters see is perfectly good, because not all characters know everything, right?

Setting up Vincenzo for Mr. D. to cut him down. Very emotional.