Page 3 of Enzo DeLuca

"Goodbye, Peter."

"Goodbye, Lorenzo DeLuca."

Peter exited the room, leaving Enzo alone with a three-page handwritten letter from his grandfather and an envelope containing some documents. He picked up the letter first. What did his grandfather have to say to him that couldn’t have been said face to face? After taking a deep breath, he read his grandfather's words.

"Dear Enzo. I know you're wondering, why is grandfather writing me a letter instead of telling me this face to face.”

Enzo smiled. The old man knew him well.

“Enzo, my boy, if you're reading this, then I've already departed. I'm sorry to leave you like this. I can only imagine the pain you're in. I'm sure it's far worse than what I'm experiencing as I write this.”

His vision blurred. Enzo blinked back tears.

"I’m tired, my boy. So tired. But I don’t want you to see me being weak. That’s why I wrote this, instead of telling you face to face. There are many things I want to tell you. And so little time to get it done. But I've trained you well. I've raised you well. I know you’ll be able to handle anything life and this family throws at you. I’ll get to the family later. First, I want to tell you why I’m so tired. It’s not just because I’m an old man now. My boy, there’s something I’ve been keeping from you. Something I didn’t want to face myself. Something I’ve told only a select few. Among those few are your Uncle Pietro, Peter, and his son Raphael. Enzo, three years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer.”

Enzo dropped the paper. Cancer? His grandfather hadn’t had cancer! If he had, Enzo would’ve known. He would’ve noticed. He would’ve...shit! Enzo swiped his hand over his face. How had he not known? Sure, he’d been busy. But he’d still stopped by for breakfast every Sunday morning.

He and his grandfather had talked all the time. In his mind, his grandfather had been healthy and fit. People had still been intimidated by the old man’s presence. Cancer? How? Why? When? Enzo had so many questions. And the man who could answer those questions was no longer with him. Tears spilled down Enzo’s cheeks. Tears of sadness, tears of anger, tears of frustration, tears of regret.

“I won’t go into details about my diagnosis. I’ve included some of my hospital records in a folder for you.”

Enzo glanced at the other folder Peter had left for him. Those must be the hospital records. He resumed reading the letter.

“I included these records because I knew if I didn’t, you’d probably burn the hospital down to get them.”

The old man was right.

“What I will say about my diagnosis is that it floored me when I first heard the news. I thought I was invincible. I was wrong. No one is invincible. Though I was training you to step into my role, I thought I’d have more years to be by your side, guiding you, aiding you when you needed it. I recently learned that I would not be able to do that. My cancer went into remission for a while. But now it’s back. And it’s spread. There’s nothing the doctors can do for me. And honestly, I no longer want them to try. Sometimes the medications are worse than the damn disease. I’m tired, son. I’m tired, and I no longer want to fight this losing battle. The doctors say I could live another six months. But anything past that isn’t promised. I’m at peace with that. When you get this letter, I know you won’t be at peace with this. I know it will take time for you to be at peace again. Just know, I’m okay with dying. Don’t sit and wonder whether or not I was in pain or whether I was sad or not. None of that matters. I’m at peace. I only have one regret in my life. And that’s the way I handled the situation with your father. I regret that the last words we spoke to each other were such harsh words. I’ve done everything in my power to make sure I raised you right, to make sure I cared for you enough to fill the void of not having your father around. I was hard on you. Harder than I was on my own sons. But that’s because I wanted to make sure you didn’t make the same mistakes your father made. I hope you were able to feel the love even when I yelled and argued with you.”

Enzo nodded. He’d felt it. There was no animosity between him and his grandfather. He knew the don had been harder on him because he’d expected more from him. Without that, Enzo wouldn’t have become the man he was today. And he was proud of who he was.

“At the time of this letter, the family’s foundations are solid. Our name, our organization, is in a good place. We’re not on good terms with everyone. But no one dares threaten us. No one dares go against us. I hope it’s still this way on the day you’re reading this letter. Our allies are important. After I’m gone, be sure to keep those relationships. You never know when you’ll need those people. And if they try to change after I’m gone, show them why I made you my heir. Show them who you are, who we are. The same goes for our family, the DeLucas. At the time of this letter, everyone is well. There are those who’d like to replace me and who don’t want you to one day replace me. Only address this if they give you problems. Our family is our foundation. We do not want it to crumble. Do not cause unnecessary disputes. A lot of them will just talk. They’ll never act on their words. Threatening to take away their territories will quieten them. But if they really give you problems, if they cause outsiders to start to wonder whether or not we are weakening, then and only then are you to handle it how I taught you. I know you don’t need me to tell you this. I’ve trained you well. Truthfully, it’s hard to come up with words to leave you. I’ve already taught you everything I know. So, I’ll leave you with this. I love you. Your parents loved you. I’m sorry we had to leave you early. We will meet again one day. I hope it’s years from now. I hope you’re old and gray with great-grandkids by the time we meet again. I was hard on your father because I didn’t agree with the woman he chose to love. I was wrong about that. To you, I say, love whoever makes you happy. And one day, we will meet again, and you’ll tell me all about her. Until that day comes, be well, my boy. Stay strong, even when you feel weak. Remember all that I’ve taught you. I leave the family in your hands. I know you will make a great don. I trust you to take care of the family and help them prosper. But don’t just take care of the family. Take care of yourself as well. Live life. Experience love. Be happy. Smile more. That’s my wish for you, Enzo. I wish for you to be happy. Goodbye, Lorenzo DeLuca. Grandpa loves you. And grandpa misses you already.”

The letter dropped from his hand. Enzo lowered his head to the desk as the pain and the anguish he’d been trying to hold back for days overtook him. Shoulders shaking, he sobbed, crying harder than he’d ever cried before.

He should’ve gone with his grandfather to the cathedral on the day he’d been shot. He should’ve noticed that his grandfather was sick. He should’ve...shit, he had so many regrets. Too many. They were overwhelming. Consuming.

“I’m sorry, grandpa,” Enzo shouted. “I’m sorry I wasn’t a better grandson. Sorry that I didn’t notice you were sick. Sorry that I didn’t go with you to the hospital. Sorry that I wasn’t there for you when you were feeling weak. I’m sorry for so many things. I promise to take care of the family. I promise to remember everything you taught me. And I promise to find out who betrayed you. I will find them, and I will end them. Goodbye, grandpa, Don Ermanno DeLuca. I love you. And I will miss you forever.”

Don Enzo DeLuca raised his head to stare down at his grandfather’s letter. Tears now blurred the ink. He pushed the letter back so that it wouldn’t get wetter. He would read over it one more time, and then he would put it away. He would remain in his grandfather’s office until the tears dried up. Then he’d leave this office and leave those tears behind. When he stepped out of this room, he would begin his life as Don Enzo DeLuca.

And a don never let others see him weak.

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