"Are you ready, Rico?"

Rico M— sat on a plush king-size bed in a posh hotel room somewhere in Vegas. The room was beyond beautiful, it was a dream. There was a white shag carpet. White silk curtains. A crystal chandelier. The tub, toilet, and sink made of solid gold. A million dollars a night. A room few could afford. Rico sat wearing nothing but tiger print underwear and a big fat grin.

"Rico is ready, baby." He was ready. He stared with amazement. He was spellbound.

What stood before him was a woman of divine perfection. A creation of the gods. A true Helen of Troy. A beauty only found in dreams, or in stories with ogres and dragons that began with, "ONCE UPON A TIME....IN A LAND FAR, FAR AWAY." She was a beauty men would kill and die for. Through the ages, wars had been fought for women like her. Millions of men slaughtered so thirsty kings of inbred looks could shroud their swords in the sheaths of beautiful maidens in waiting.

The goddess was tall and sculpted. A long mane of silky hair draped over her shoulders revealing skin that begged to be touched. She had large eyes like emeralds. A celestial nose. Red luscious lips. A lethal pout. Nothing enhanced, nothing needed. She captivated men with a smile, and her tender voice made their hearts flutter.

The goddess stood wearing a pink lace teddy. Nylon stocking. Matching stiletto heels. She ran her hand though Rico's hair, the tattoos on his arm, and his chiseled chest. She looked into his eyes. She kissed him deeply. She couldn't get enough. If ever there was an Adonis made for a goddess, it was Rico.

"I love your accent, Rico," said the goddess. Women always did. Rico could make a girl sweat with hello. He was a Miami boy, from Little Havana. His accent wasn't fresh off the boat, but it was enough to give women the jolt of desire.

"Come give Rico what he wants, baby," said Rico, with a smoldering gaze. His gaze moistened lips and opened wallets. He used it to get everything from cars to vacations. Rico knew all you needed was to be beautiful and opportunities came knocking. The world might have been built by men, but it was run by women. Everywhere Rico went, women opened doors for him.

The goddess playfully pushed Rico. He fell back on two fluffy pillows. She licked her lips and smiled. Rico laughed nervously awaiting. He was in bliss. He burned with desire. He was a man in heaven, but considering the situation, perhaps he was really a man in hell.

Rico's eyes rolled back. He was in ecstasy. He looked at the face of the goddess and did a double take. Her face began to change. To stretch and pull. The vixen's teeth became jagged. Her nose elongated to a snout. Her face became covered with hair. The once beautiful face of the goddess was now a dog. A chihuahua. The dog barked. It smiled. It stuck out its long floppy tongue out. Rico screamed.

"What's going on? Is this real?" said Rico.

Rico felt faint and dizzy. The room began to spin. The bed trembled and shook like an earthquake. Rico clung to the bed as if it were a runaway roller coaster ready to fly off the rails. The room became dark. There were howls and growls. A red light glowed from the floor. The face of the goddess went from dog to wolf. The wolf become demonic. A large snout. Long fangs. Blood red eyes. The body grew to something lie a dragon.

The creature growled. Rico felt the monster's breath on his face. He tried to crawl away but the wolf monster grabbed him. Its claws tearing into him. Blood spewed and splattered. The wolf monster lifted Rico. He felt the breath of the beast. He was going in. The mouth opened. The fangs came out ready to bite.

Rico screamed.

He shuddered awake gasping for air. He was drenched in sweat. Trembling. He looked around. Where was he? Is this real? Was he still in the dream? What had started out to be the dream of a lifetime, had turned into a nightmare. A nightmare he desperately wanted to forget. Though Rico was still incredibly good-looking and wearing only tiger print underwear, he was no longer in a posh hotel somewhere in Vegas with the most beautiful woman in the world. Instead, he was in a run-down room at the Bangkok Motel and Casino.

The Bangkok Motel was a low-end motel with the selling point, "We're cheap, clean, and a mile away from McCarran Airport." Cheap was an understatement. The Bangkok's casino consisted of three dilapidated slot machines in the registration office that were out preformed by the gum-ball machines. For the locals, the Bangkok Motel was a place Johns rented by the hour, or for travelers that had early morning flights. But Rico, didn't have an early flight to catch. He could have stayed at any of the fancier hotels in Vegas. He'd never been to Bangkok, and had no plans to. He simply liked the name. It had a good ring to it. Bangkok.

Rico lay on a queen-size bed with a half finished rum drink in his hand. At his crotch was Toto, his wife's puppy toy chihuahua. The dog was no bigger than a rat. It was licking the side of Rico's leg where his drink had spilled. Rico picked up the rat sized dog and looked at it square in the eyes.

"Respect, you son of a bitch," Rico said, and chuckled at his own pun. "I think Sunny loves you more than me. He sat the dog on the floor, and it scurried under the bed.

Rico looked in the mirror. He fixed his hair and practiced his gaze. He could not believe how beautiful he was. He could not believe it was him in the mirror, despite having had the luxury of looking at himself his whole life. Every time he saw himself, it was a whole new experience. He was always in awe.

***

Rico's phone rang. He couldn't see the number on the caller ID. He wondered who could be calling. It had to be Sunny. She was out shopping. He'd called her a few times, but she had not picked up. He answered the phone with his Rico charm.

"Hi, baby! When you coming home? Rico really needs you," said Rico. The person on the other end laughed.

"I'll be right-over to take care of business," said a man laughing on the phone.

"Who the hell is this?" said Rico.

"Is that any way to talk to your biggest fan, Lucky? Or are you a big shot now?" said the man.

Lucky. Rico hated the name. He felt a punch in his gut whenever he heard it. There were only a few people who called him Lucky. He realized who was on the phone.

"Hector?" said Rico.

"You ain't as dumb as you look, Lucky," said Hector.

"Hector, are you out?" said Rico

"Nope, still in," said Hector.

Hector was Rico's older brother. He ran a crew in South Florida known as the Havana Boys. Hector's crew chopped cars and made a fortune selling parts in the black market. The Havana Boys lived like kings for a while. Even had a beach front apartment on Miami Beach. After a job went sour, Hector and the Havana Boys moved to more modest accommodation at the Dade County Correctional Institution.

"How are you doing, bro?" said Rico.

"Not as good as you, Lucky. I hear LIFE'S treating real good," said Hector.

"Did you see my movie?" said Rico.

"It was okay. Not as good as your toothpaste commercial where you say "Rico" and do the Rico gaze," said Hector.

"RRRRRico," said Rico. He shot the Rico gaze at himself, catching his reflection in mirror. It stunned him for a moment. "Hey, they're considering me for the new Scarface remake. The studio thinks I'd be perfect for the role. I was born to play Tony Montana."

"You've been in love with that movie since you were a kid," said Hector.

"Pacino's great, but I'm the real Tony Montana. I'm Cuban. I have a real accent. I can talk like him. Walk like him. Fuck like him. I am Scarface," said Rico.

"What a dream. My little brother. You got women. You got power. Now, you're going after the money," said Hector.

"Just like Tony," said Rico. "Tony was a boss. Tony had respect," said Rico.

"Respect," said Hector.

"Respect," said Rico. "That's what it's all about. Some guy bumped into me at a club in Hollywood the other night and didn't show me respect. So I beat him. I made him beg for mercy. I made him give me respect. Tony didn't take crap and neither do I," said Rico.

"That's why I'm calling, Lucky. Word is your losing your cool. You're crossing the line. You have to chill, Lucky. I can't protect you anymore," said Hector.

"Since when do I need your protection?" said Rico.

"I've always looked out for you, but now I'm in here. I can't watch your back," said Hector.

"I can handle myself," said Rico. "I got heat. If they get in my face, I'll show them who's boss...Tony style." He picked up a gun from nightstand. He aimed at the mirror and pulled the trigger. The gun was empty. He grinned maniacally at his reflection holding the gun.

"Wake up, Rico. You're not Tony Montana. You're not Scarface. You're living in a fantasy world. said Hector.

"You don't think I'm a good actor? Is that it?" said Rico.

"You're not listening. Your movie sucked. You're not real."

"What do you mean real? I'm real," said Rico.

"You're not real. You think you're Superman. You think you can fly, but the moment you jump off the building, you're gonna find out you can't fly. then it will be too late. Life ain't a movie."

"I know that," said Rico. "You think I'm and idiot? I know what I'm doing. How come you never give me respect?"

"Respect has to be earned, and hard work ain't your thing. You've always had it easy. Everybody telling you how wonderful you are, how perfect you are, how beautiful you are. Little Prince Rico. But me...I was Hector the Pauper. If you got steak, I got the gristle. When you got clothes, I got the boxes. You never struggled. I had to figure things on my own, the hard way. Struggling to make you smart. I got the brains, you got the looks. Remember I used to say that? Your looks make opportunities. My brains make the money.That's how we did it. We were supposed to be a team and make our mark in the world. Together, the two brothers, but every time you start thinking, things go bad," said Hector.

""You're wrong, Hector. I'm the star. You and your crew in Miami lived large because of me. It's not my fault you're in prison, you fucked up. You're not as smart as you think you are. Ha, for a minute you had me thinking that I wasn't good enough to do it on my own. That I need you, but it's you who needs me. I make shit happen. All the cars we got, all the women, the big house on the beach, it's because of me. You just used me. Right now, I got a deal bigger than anything you ever put together, and I did it all on my own. I got a million dollar deal," said Rico.

"I'm listening," said Hector.

"One night, I'm hanging with Ravish at a party in L.A.," said Rico.

"Good old Ravish, how's he doing?" said Hector.

"Happily intoxicated. He's working on a new street drug. But anyway, Ravish collects stuff. He's got a room full of artifacts from his travels. He's got a fish that some rich guy wants," said Rico.

"A fish?" said Hector.

"It's a fish statue. Made of ceramic. It's tacky like the crap grandma used to buy at the flea market," said Rico.

"Who's the rich guy?" said Hector.

"It's T'oro Mitsubishi, the owner of the Pearl Casino right here in Vegas. I'm in Vegas right now to buy the fish from Ravish, so I can sell it to Mitsubishi," said Rico.

"So let me get this straight. You got a million dollar deal with one of the richest men in the world, T'oro Mitsubishi. He's going to pay you a million dollars for a statue of a fish," said Hector.

"Yeah," said Rico. "Can you believe it. I'm going to be a millionaire."

Hector started laughing. It was a loud uncontrollable laugh. It was mocking laugh. It was a laugh that was meant to insult. It was a laugh the came deep from his belly. He laughed so hard, he couldn't breathe. He started to choke. Rico started to join the laughter but couldn't figure out what was so funny. He didn't remember saying anything so funny. Finally, it dawned on him that Hector wasn't laughing at something funny he said, he was laughing at him.

"Lucky, Lucky, Lucky. Only you, little brother, only you. You're the luckiest man alive. You always get these great opportunities, impossible opportunities, as if god himself opens up the heavens and drops them right in your lap. Then you mess it up. This deal is exactly why you need me. It's why we work great together. This guy Mitsubishi has billions. If I was there, I would have talked him into paying ten million or twenty million. But a million dollars from a billionaire; it's a joke. He probably uses a million just to blow his nose. He saw you for the sucker you are and played you," said Hector.

Hector started laughing again. This time not at Rico, but at his own life. Tears ran down his face. Because, after all the illegal stuff Rico and him had pulled off in Miami, stuff that had eventually landed him in prison, after all the hustling and struggling to survive, here was a legitimate deal. THE legitimate deal...of a lifetime. A deal that would have spared him a life in prison. If only it would've happened a few months earlier. Rico's deal with the rich guy would have set them up for life. A life on easy street, finally—for him. Though for Rico, it would've been just another day in paradise. But now Hector was in prison, where all his smartness and wisdom would go to waste, rot in a cell, then get flushed down to Shit Land. He would not be around to guide his brother to not screw up his life. Hector laughed at the irony and also from the tragedy. LIFE was a cruel bastard.

Rico was silent. He was trying not to think what Hector said. It was rather easy for him to forget. He looked at himself in the mirror, and then he felt good about himself again. What did Hector know? Even if he did fumble the deal with the rich guy, he still had a shot at playing Scarface. One way or another, Rico would be fine. Things always worked out for him. If they didn't, he always had Sunny. Sunny was incredible. She was the most beautiful woman in the world. She lit up the room where ever she went. So Hector could laugh all he wanted, but one way or another Rico would get respect.

"Respect," said Rico.

"Don't be mad, Rico. I didn't call to upset you. I just wanted to tell you keep your nose clean. If you don't get in your own way, you'll have a great life. You got a great girl. Go make your movie, make the money, and who gives a shit if you can't act, cause hey, that's the Rico way. That's all I wanted to say, Lucky," said Hector.

"When do you get out?" said Rico.

"Twenty years, if I'm lucky. I'll look you up. Family takes care of family right?" said Hector.

"Fuck family," said Rico and hung up.