Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 83755 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83755 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
“That’s one way to put it,” she replied, offering him a polite smile. “For your information, Mr. DeLuca is a made man. Mr. Knight and Mr. Winslow aren’t, due to their non-Italian descent. The Roselli family walked away from all illegal enterprises in New York and elsewhere, when Nick Roselli fell to his death, about a year ago.”
“Walked away?” I cocked an eyebrow, struggling to believe her little narrative. “I thought this meeting was all about transparency. You asked us what we were trying to do, and you got a straight answer. Why won’t you give us one?”
“That was a straight answer. Almost,” Rocco remarked, turning around to face us. “It’s true. This family stopped all of its illegal activities when Maggie took over. Just one thing about Nick Roselli. His death wasn’t an accident. I pushed him off a hotel roof.”
“So, if you’re not running anything illegal, why are you still considered part of the organization?” I asked, my voice rising in volume and nerve. “I mean, that’s what a made man is, right? Part of the mob?”
“Correct,” Maggie answered, fast. “A made man is a lifelong member of the organization. There was a twist in the story of Nick Roselli’s death. You see, at the time, Rocco wasn’t a made man but Roselli was. Killing a member equals death. To avoid this fate, we had to strike some sort of deal.”
“Exactly,” Rocco went on, his posture stiff. “Anybody who earns for the organization is considered valuable. The ones who don’t are disposable. So, after having given up all the illegal stuff, we had to provide a service to the mob: Surveillance. Someone tries to steal from wise guys? We report first and shoot later, not necessarily in that order.”
“I get it, but you warned us first,” Cesare stated, curiosity growing in his tone. “Why? I mean, we’re nothing to you.”
“Because I was able to figure out your little plan,” Maggie explained, her voice losing some of its nerve. “It wasn’t so difficult if I’m honest. Three, small-time thieves, moving on to robbing armored trucks? That is a major step up. Plus, you made a serious mistake in selecting your target. Nine out of ten of those trucks belong to the organization. So, I figured you wanted to put a dent in a family’s cash flow, so that you could take their place.”
“We didn’t know that,” I confessed, waves of embarrassment hitting me. “We knew most of those trucks belong to casinos and banks, but mobsters? No.”
“Really?” Maggie asked, her voice a little more high-pitched. “Well, you fooled me there.”
“I tried to tell you, but you wouldn’t listen,” Slater broke his silence once more. “Those amateurs couldn’t have known who those trucks belonged to.”
“Then enlighten us, hotshot,” I demanded, flashing him an angry look.
“Easy, boys,” Maggie requested, her tone slower as she stared up at Slater first, before turning her attention to me. “We didn’t come here to exchange accusations. I must admit I gave you more credit than you deserve, but we can’t change that now.”
“That truck we robbed the other day,” Leonardo began, his voice echoing across the warehouse. “Whose was it? Can you give us a name?”
“I’m afraid I don’t have one for you,” she claimed, her gaze dropping to the floor for an instant. “I tell you what. I’ll pull some strings and get you that name, on one condition.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“We work together.”
Three words.
More like three bombs.
Because that’s what it felt like in that warehouse. Like someone had dropped three bombs, not just one. Her men just stood there, side by side, gauging our reaction. I was left staring at her for a few moments, not knowing how to respond to this insane idea of hers.
“Get the fuck out of here,” Leonardo grumbled, cocking his head in a spasm of frustration. “I told you, you assholes. Coming here was a shitty idea. We should have told her to fuck off or something.”
“Work with the people who shot up an entire bar, just to get to me and my crew?” Cesare asked his wobbly voice indicating how hard he had to try to keep his anger at bay. “Thanks, but no, thanks. You’re right. We’ve made mistakes, sure, but we’re not stupid. I’m not going to be allies with the same bastards that…”
“Were almost killed in the same bar as you?” she interrupted, her face twisting into an expression of anger. “For the love of god, Cesare! You saw those pictures! You know damn well that this was a trap!”
“Damn straight,” Rocco agreed with his boss, his voice bass deep. “We received word from a certain Don. I’m not going to mention his name, but his exact words were: ‘Those three little fucks have caused too much damage. Take care of them.’ When a Don gives you an order, you obey. So, yeah. We did try to get rid of you, but the truth is, we were all targeted that night.”