Page 12 of Reign of Commotion

“No,” the man finally says, and I let out the breath I was holding.Not until the final two men give their assent does the tension ease from my shoulders.Niccolo comes over to us and hands us some wet towels to clean up, murmuring, “He’s a fucker.If he hadn’t been one of the original underbosses, I would have killed him myself.”

“He’s trouble,” Julian mumbles, looking over at the older man.He must be in his late sixties, if not early seventies.He’s still got a full head of hair, albeit gray, and he does look like he stays in shape for a man his age, but his face is menacing.He must have a permanent scowl, and the others seem to be avoiding him as well.

“We’re watching,” Niccolo replies.“Wrap your hands and come join us for the final toast.Fausto can take Milana home.We need you to stay to discuss business.”

Niccolo leaves us alone as we move off to a quiet corner of the room.“You did well.I’m proud of you,” Julian says.

“Thank you.But why did you have to shed blood?”I ask curiously.

“Because I’m sponsoring you.I’m responsible for your actions.Take care, Milana.What you do reflects on me and my family.”

“I won’t give you a reason to worry,” I tell him.He wraps the gauze first around my hand and then his.“I’ll have Fausto drive you home.I’ll be there early tomorrow morning to pick you up.We have some errands to run.”

“I’ll make breakfast.Your mom says you love pancakes.I’m learning how to cook,” I say proudly, and he grins.“I think I’ve mastered pancakes.”

“I look forward to it.”He waves his brother over.“She’s in your care, Fausto.Take her straight home.”

“You got it, bro.Great job, Milly,” Fausto says.“The only other time I’ve seen a blood oath was my own.This was cool, except for that dickwad.He tries to complicate everything.”

“Not so loud.He’s still an underboss and has influence.We do not disrespect the elders,” Julian warns.

“Fine,” Fausto grumbles, but his mood quickly changes when we’re handed a glass of champagne to toast the ending of the ritual.

SIX

A Place to Call Home

JULIAN

Iwait for Milana to leave before going over to speak with my father.“What the fuck was that all about?”I grumble, jerking my head toward Angelo Corso, the underboss who was taking his sweet-ass time moving Milana’s induction along.

“He’s an old man who liked it better when women were seen and not heard.He comes from the old school, and he was very close to Alessio’s father.We need to tread carefully.Alessio has his eyes open.Niccolo assures me of such, and he would never let anything happen to our capo,” Dad tells me.“Still, he will be invited to the wedding, and we will treat him as a respected member of the family.No matter what he does, we do what we need to do.”

“Maybe he’ll have a heart attack and bless us with his death,” I say snidely.

“Then first rights go to his son, and from what I hear, he’s not ready to be an underboss.He would rather be out of the family altogether,” Dad says.

“Doesn’t he know there’s no way out?”

“He knows.He’s nothing like his father.He’s a good man with a shitty role model.He doesn’t want to become his father.”

“Has he had his first kill?”I’ve never spent much time with Tommaso, but he always seemed like a good guy but quiet and reserved.

“Yeah, he was out with his father, and his car was attacked.They were forced off the road.His father was pinned, hence he walks with a limp.If it weren’t for his son taking his father’s gun and holding the enemy off until help arrived, they’d both be dead.”Dad gives a shrug.“It was a tough lesson for a kid.That may be the reason for his apprehension.”

“He needs someone like you to guide him,” I say.

Dad grins.“Let’s join the others.”

The rest of the evening is all business.The Russians have hit three of our warehouses, and we’ve lost four men because of it.They never got to the shipment, mainly because we reacted so quickly.Alessio is livid.

“This is our territory, and we’re being bested.It’s an embarrassment.We need to find out how they’re getting their information.How is it that they always know which containers are holding our merchandise?”Alessio paces the room as he speaks, seething with anger.

He then defers to his consigliere, who divulges the plan to get the problem under control.What comes to light is that these attacks are happening in Angelo’s area, which only infuriates the old man further.When it comes to business, Alessio doesn’t back down.

“This is not the blame game.This is about ensuring that our men stay alive.I have to go to their families and tell them we let them down,” Alessio snaps.

“We take care of the families,” Angelo bites back.

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