Subsequently

"Update me on the progress of the I 600-A forms." I repeat myself once more, for the second time today, but this time I drag my eyes away from the numbers scribbled on the neatly stacked documents on the table in front of me to closely watch Elena, who was seated to the left side of me as she always was, sat rumbling through the mess of papers in front of her, that seem to be scattered all over the table.

Elena has never been this unfocused or unorganized in all of the 22 years that I have known her, infact I have never before met a woman that has taken so much pride in her work. This was a first for me to have asked her the same question twice and that two times in a row, something seemed off, but this wasn't the time to get into the personal life of the Head of Social Services in Italy. "I have five 'projects' that have to be dealt with by the end of the day." I nudge on the woman I felt so appreciative off of giving me my brother 22 years ago when my parents decided to adopt. I might have only been 5 years old, innocent and stupid little Bambino who never imagined the type of man that I would be today, but I now know that unconsciously that day is when the seed for my future was planted.

I have never been a man with a lot of patience and the silence the Boardroom was driving me up against the walls. "Why is this taking so long?" My voice was cold and hard, as was the dark oak wooden table beneath my palms, as I slowly placed my hands flat on either side of the stacked documents lying in front of me.

"I am sorry, Ben." She apologizes as her hazel eyes meets mine. She looked tired, but not in the way one would look caused by the lack of sleep, this was something more... emotional? They seem so much like my Dear old mother's eyes when she was worried about me for supposedly not eating enough. "I uh... only need a few more... things before I can close the dockets." She stutters halfway through her words, but recovers quickly once her eyes jump all over the place, but locks with mine once more the moment she was finished speaking and I immediately knew there was something not completely honest about her excuse. I wanted to call her out on the bullshit she was spewing right there and then, but rather decided against it, I knew that she wasn't able to keep that up for too much longer. She is not a very good liar and too much of an honest person. "I just need..." She tries again, but pauses mid-sentence and her eyes instantly fall to her now fumbling hands. She faced defeat.

"It is Adamo." She finally breaths and her words vibrated through my ears and crashed into my eardrums like small paper cuts, they might not have hurt, but they were irritating as fuck. That was one piece of shit that I could never stand to have in my presence. The mere thought of him made homicidal thoughts seem like a good idea. I wanted to strangle him with my own hands.

###

Adamo is Elena's son, her only child. He is also the person whom she insisted on handling the new birth certificates. Now usually I wouldn't have even considered it, but she was desperate and for once my brother convinced me to make a decision based on emotions. I regret it to this day, but I am nothing if not my word. "He was caught on some possession charges three days ago and I haven't heard anything from him since he called to get him a lawyer, but the problem is that when his lawyer went to the 'Policia' he was no longer in their custody. Apparently they moved him, but no-one can tell me to where." Elena finishes quickly before taking in a big breath of fresh air and the the waterworks began. Tears of worry or/and being afraid, I wasn't completely sure, streamed down the sides of her face and with good reason. This could have been dealt with already. She should have come to me the moment she received the phone call.

"Why the fuck am I only learning about this now?" I spit flames as I lean back in my chair raising my hands up in the air before dragging my hand through my silky black hair. 'I need a haircut.' I mentally remind myself. I slowly take in a cool deep breath of air to simmer down the burning sensation in my throat before continuing. "Possession of narcotics?' I breathe out, my voice almost feather-like and Elena nods her head, confirming my suspicion. Did I mention he was a coke addict? The fucking piece of shit.

"Achille." I straighten my back as I address my brother who is seated on my right hand side, watching me with intent dark blue eyes. "Track him down and get Angela on board so she can get this mess sorted out. I do not need this..." I pause as I bite down on my teeth trying to come up with a word to describe the situation, but unable to find one so I just continue not wasting another second. "...to become a thing and bite us in the ass." I state angrily.

"Right away." Achille nods taking his phone from the table and walks towards the door. I fold my arms over my chest as I watch him taking big strides as he does what he is told. If only everyone was so fucking great at it, I mentally roll my eyes at the irony. Achille might always do as he is told when it comes to the business as he is also seen us the 'underboss', but he knows as good as me that he is my equal. After all he is my brother and the only person I can trust with my life and I would lay down my life for him any day. Besides, he is the only one with the back to call me out on my opinions, I wouldn't call them mistakes.

"This is only a petty crime." Elena's voice twirls softly into the air drawing me from my thoughts and I turn my head to face her. "It was a stupid mistake. He didn't mean you any harm." She leans forward placing her elbows on the table as her hands support her head on either side. I wasn't sure if she was trying to convince me or herself. "He is my son." She whimpers through tears, pleading, that was where we were at right now.

"You vouched for him." I remind her. "You begged me to put my trust in him. You argued that it will help him and that it was his only hope of staying clean." I scowl. I suppose she thought that he would be too scared of me to go back to drugs, but addicts couldn't be scared like that, the only thing that scared them was the absence of more drugs. This wasn't getting me anywhere.

"I will take full responsibility for his mistakes." She pleads, showing no trust in her own son, making me more on edge. If she couldn't trust him how the fuck was I supposed to do that? What does she even mean by taking full responsibility for his mistakes? What kind of man allows his mother to do that? And that is when all the gears in my head turned and snapped at the conclusion. This was a mother pleading for her son's life.

"If he doesn't talk to the cops about any of this or his connection to my business no harm will become of him." I remark rising to my full 5.8 inches and turn my back to her. "Now leave." I order as I near the table at the back of the conference room, where a bottle of Old Armour is showcased on top of the dark oak wooden cabinet, matching the table, it probably came as a set my thoughts dwelled for a second before I pour myself a drink. I listen to Elena's footsteps growing soundless. I do not usually chase anyone out of a meeting, but her pleading and crying was distracting.

###

"Anyone else have anything for me?" I turn around after gulping down the smooth golden liquid that helps to tame my raging inner beast. With all the commotion of a crying and pleading mother and then the possibility of having a snitching junky in captivity who will probably sing like a fucking canary when bribed and threatened with his own addiction by a cop somewhat worthy of his salary, I almost forgot about the other men sitting at the table who is waiting to update me on other matters.

"Boss." Tomasso starts to speak as he rises a manila folder up above his head. "These are the books for our latest club. They are finally start looking like worth the hassle." He smiles, pleased with himself. I have to admit; I was pleased to, but I would never praise him aloud. The club was starting to work on my nerves as it hasn't shown any profit since I bought it four months ago. My clubs in Italy has always been doing great, but the first one in New York started out to be a loss cause, but as always Tomasso has shown how valuable he is.

"That is good to hear." I nod in appreciation of him doing what he gets paid for. Tomasso is a wild party animal himself and although I wasn't into any of the shit he was it seemed good for business. He knew what worked and what didn't and that is why he is in charge of all the clubs. He is also a very attractive man or so it seems by the looks of all the young girls he usually wear like jewelry on both his sides. Tomasso isn't much younger than me, although he acted like a teenager for the most part, especially after hours. His long black hair is usually munched up on the top of his head with a piece of rubber, he calls it a man-bun and his face was always shaven clean. Who knows where he got the time. He even looked the part of a teenager with a few rings puncturing his earlobes and a stud pierced through the skin above his right eye. I assume that his tattoos covered most of his upper body by the colorful skin peaking from his neck and sleeves.

"There is one thing." He starts and I already knew what he was about to say, in fact I knew this conversation by heart as we discussed it to many times already. I wasn't even sure why he always brought it up.

"Do not start this shit again." I warn my voice stern as always and my mind not changed.

"The people that visit the clubs are not like us, they want it. If we don't start selling, they will." The fuck, they will.

"I do not care if they come in as high as the fucking clouds, but if there is even a remote chance of anyone selling or in possession I want them thrown out!" I declare, not wanting to discuss this any further.

"My eyes must have spoken volumes causing Tomasso to immediately sit back in his seat as he realizes that the conversation was over or at least for today. In the back of my head I knew that sooner rather later he would revisit the same boring subject. I swear if it wasn't for the mandatory drug tests being done on my high-ranking officials, I might have accused Tomasso of using himself. With this guy, his noticeable amount of energy and his afflictions to the clubs, it always seemed that we ended up discussing the drug trade. I know money was a big attraction for him, but we made enough money. We didn't need drug money. Besides we were making enough enemies as it were and I do not see the need to put the whole firm in jeopardy because of a few extra bucks; and by that basically granting permission for drug use. Addicts could never be trusted and I needed to be surrounded by people I could trust.

"Antonio, Piero?" I question the only other two people at the table with high hopes of good feedback, alone. These two gentlemen are both heads of my hotels and casinos. Antonio taught Piero almost everything he knows as they usually worked together, but it was now Piero's job to run The Damian Hotel and Casino as well as The Grand Naples Hotel and Casino in Italy, because Antonio was in charge of building and running The Casa Resort and Casino in New York City.

"No problems at The Damian, Boss. The Grand is being circled by Policia, but I am working on that. There is nothing for them to be suspicious about." He states peacefully leaning back in his chair and folding his arms behind his head. I trust Piero and I know that I will be the first to hear if there was anything that needed my attention or if I needed to be worried. Except, of course, if he rather confides in Antonio, which won't bother me either. Antonio is a master in his trade and knows exceptionally well how to handle any complications.

"Keep me updated." I nod at Piero before switching my attention to Antonio. "How long?" I question him. He initially said one year for the construction of the Casino as most of the original building was still standing and then a four months to resort and open the Resort, after that only maintenance is needed at yet t each meeting there was some problem causing a delay.

"The Casino will be up and running in two months' time, at most."

"Another two months?"

"There is problems with the licencing, but for most of the resort it is up and running, only the small VIP Hotel's furniture needs to be delivered and then it will also be up and running." Antonio declares. "I have my people on it, sir." He assures me.

"Wait!" My voice rises a little. "Are you telling me that the Casino is finished, but not yet operating?" I glare at him. "This must be costing the firm a shit-load of money!" This time I shouted. I have spent too much money on that fucking place already. I hated losing money.

"The Resort is keeping the profits up, Boss." He tries to calm me, but it wasn't working.

"Two months, Antonio." I warn him. "If I need to fly out myself I will." I hated the idea of going there myself. I wasn't a fan.

"I am handling it, sir. There will be no need for your assistance." He assures me pinching his nose as he speaks.

"That is what I want to hear." I nod and the three of them get up in synchronization. "Until next time." I nod in a manner of greeting.

###

I always knew that this business was going to be hard as it grows, but god, if only the people who worked for me sometimes could use their own fucking heads my life would have much fewer complications. I pay them enough to do so. I pour myself another drink as the room clears out and I am finale left alone with my thoughts.

I did threaten to go to New York before; maybe I should go and get to the root of the problem with the licensing, find out who was not doing their job. I take another sip of whiskey, contemplating if I should go now or wait for another two months, which really was a long time for such a big Casino not to operate. If I do go now, Antonio might feel that I do not trust him and that was simply not true.

"Ciao" I bark into my phone not glancing at the screen as I pull it from my white dress shirt's pocket to answer it. Talking over the phone was mostly my brother's niche. I hated the fucking thing; I preferred the old school way where I talked face to face with someone. In that manner one could easier see when someone was lying, hiding something, scared and honest.

"Ben." Madre's soft voice carried through the speaker. "Am I interrupting?" I never wanted my mother to feel like she was a bother to me or that I haven't got any time for her, her timing was just always off. It was as if she was waiting until I was in the middle of something then she calls, catching me off guard, in a tight spot or fuming with anger. I wasn't sure why, but this always made me feel like that little boy getting scolded for bringing home someone else's homework. I didn't use to be like I am today.

"I was just wondering what to get for dinner." I lie knowing that this would excite her and she would completely forget that I just barked at her like the shiity son I was. I believe that Madre knew what I did for living or at least mostly. I haven't ever sat her down and told her and she probably mostly assumes, but I believe she knows most of it. I can see it sometimes when she looks at me, she hides it well, but I can see how she wishes for me to be a normal son. A man who had a normal life, a normal nine-to-fiver and probably a man with normal interests; like going out to clubs, dating, getting married and having children, but my life was never intended to be like that.

"Then I am so glad that I called at this exact moment. Why don't you and Achille come over for dinner?" It was always my clothes or food when it came to my mother and this time I opened that door, which probably means I couldn't back out now, even if I really wanted to.

"Only if you are making your famous Ribollita." A genuine smile crosses my face at the memories burnt into my head. When we were growing up my father was a maintenance worker which means we didn't grow up with a lot of money, but we were happy, was what my mother used to say and I guess we were for the most part. Anyway, my mother's ribollita was and still is one of my favorite dishes to this day. Basically it is a bread-soup; made from leftover bread mixed with cheap vegetables like carrots, onions, potatoes and so forth, but one should not diss it until you tried it. It is delicious.

"Not what I had in mind to spoil my boys." She sighs. "I bought swordfish, was thinking steaks with lemon? Maybe some veggies and Arancini?" She softly giggles over the phones microphone into my ear. My mind's eye could see the small lines forming in the corner of her eyes as she smiles. "And Tiramisu for dessert." She pushes. This was a full blown traditional meal and that could only mean one thing; She was setting me up, again.

"Madre?" I question her with a sigh. "Who is going to be at this dinner?"

"Just us, Ben." Her voice trembles a little. She never was a very good liar. "I will see yu at seven, don't be late and wear something comfortable. Ti Amo." I listen to her mumbling something to someone else before she ends the call.

I should probably get a bottle of Valpolicella Ripasso, if there was one thing my mother taught me was that one should never show-up to dinner without a good wine and what better wine to bring than the most famous party pleaser, a perfect sweet red to compliment my mother's hard work. Preparing dinner for us and trying to find me a girlfriend at the same time, I mentally roll my eyes. Dinner...shit. Red won't do, I'll take a bottle of Librandi Critone as well.

"Brother." Achille interrupt my thoughts. "We have another problem." He adds to my already problematic day. Yes, brother why don't you just keep them coming, add them to the pile of the pile of problems hanging over my head like a dark cloud.

"What is it?" I turn to face him feeling a bit agitated, but the moment my eyes met his I knew that this was serious. What the fuck Achille spit it out. I locked eyes with him waiting for his lips to start moving.

"It's the Gambino's. They have Gian and his men captured in New York. They want to negotiate a deal." That motherfucking Gambino family has been rubbing me the wrong way for the past few weeks now, they were like an irritating rash, but now they are starting to fuck with my money, my business, my familia. "They are still going on about us operating on their turf."

"As I see it that is not their problem, it is their excuse. They don't give a shit about what we are doing in what they believe to be their city. The real problem was that the lazy shitheads weren't making a dime of my work." They should be glad that I was investing in their darn shitty city, I assume the foot traffic is making them a fortune in its own right. More people is always good for business. Threatening me with turf like a territorial pissing dog, wanting to negotiate a deal and proposing how they can accommodate me? "They can go fuck themselves! That is how they can accommodate me. Get that piece of shit on the phone." I bark.

"You need to calm down." Achille warns as he start scrolling through what I believe might be his contact. "Brother, that man is dangerous and unpredictable." He adds placing his hand on my shoulder and giving it a hard squeeze. So was I, I glare at him. "I know that look, but he has you by the balls here, Ben. Do you really want all those people's death on your hands?" I hated it when he was right.

In no longer than three seconds and two rings later the prick was on the phone. "Ciao, Benvenuto." Roberto Gambino's voice echoed through the line. "You are a hard man to get hold of." He chuckles in a mocking voice, but he wasn't wrong and I know that it irritated him that since all his attempts to get me to talk to him failed until now. Not many people has my personal number and like I said before Achille deals with the people I do not care to. Especially people like this bastard.

"I heard that you were accommodating my men." I slowly breathe, maintaining my anger as best possible. Those cunts won't hesitate to start killing my men. I needed to stay calm, Achille's words pop into my mind. This was not in my nature.

"Straight to business then. I like that." He chuckle again before clearing his throat. "Your men and their five possessions are safely in my company, yes. But for how long will be up to you." He is trying to intimidate me.

"What is it you want?" I question him cautiously holding my temper in check as I cling to the fact that he has the upper hand, or at least for now.

"I want to meet." His voice is calm, cold and to the point. I knew this was his intention all along and I also knew that it was inevitable, but I was hoping to do so on my terms, with the opening of the Casino, and if Antonio's men were doing their jobs it would have happened when I said so.

"Done." I agree, but not without my own conditions. He wasn't the only dangerous player on the board. The quicker he realized it the better for him and quite frankly for my temper to. "Let my men, together with my merchandise go and then we will meet. Tomorrow, I will give you a time and place in New York of course."

"This time Bennie-Boy. Next time I find something on my truf happening without my knowledge or approval you better be prepared to lose it." He ends the call.

"Mother fucker!" I throw the phone with all my force watching it fly through the air and bounce of the white wall, landing on the polished wooden floor, in bits and pieces, as my overwhelming anger burst through my body. Checkmate, He got me this time, but I will not let him get me again. That piece of fucking shit... My heart almost skips a beat when a sudden rush of vibrations pass against my chest. "What?" I answer without looking at the caller Id.

"Boss, we are coming in tonight. I don't know what you said to Roberto, but he gave us two cars and all our belongings and set us on our merry ways." Gian almost sang through the speaker. I was glad to hear this and maybe if I wasn't in such a foul mood I would have said something, but all I could do was tell him to get rid of the cars and stay put, wondering what type of game Roberto was playing. Holding onto them was his only security that I was actually going to show up, maybe he is testing me. I am a man of my word, but he doesn't know that.

"Not throwing your phone into shreds?" Achille questions me when I safely tug away my phone into my shirt's pocket.

"Mother invited us for dinner." I glare at him without answering his question, when was he going to learn not to give me his phone when I am raging. I know that he wasn't really complaining. I heard him and Tomasso earlier when they were talking about some new smart phone they wanted to try out. Only difference now was that I was the one who were going to pay for it. He was just a smart ass.

"Ribollita?" He questions with almost sad eyes. He hated it.

"No." I shake my head. "Seafood and Tiramisu for dolce." I add.

"Sounds serious. We better stop by your house to pick up some of that fancy wine of yours." He chuckles. Already ahead of you brother. "This is going to be fun." He grins before turning on his feet to go get the car. Fun for him, yes. Madre doesn't make a point of setting him up on blinds at least once a month.