The following weeks, Luciano found himself ensconced in the labyrinthine world of his business, flanked by his loyal men in a room that carried the scent of calculated purpose.
The air hummed with tension as Luciano tried to unravele the tale of the thwarted assassination attempt.
” I mean it makes no sense Goddamit! We’ve got nothing but a hint that someone close to me is behind this. Who is the person trying to orchestrate this?” Luciano hit his fist on the table, his voice betraying the strain of unanswered questions of his men. Fingers drummed on the table as his men leaned in, determined to unearth the puppeteer behind this dangerous game.
“Just that? I can’t believe that fucker couldn’t divulge the entire shit” Petro inquired.
“Yes just that Petro. How many times would he repeat it?” Jose replied, his eyes scanning everyone. Not all the brothers were here. Valentine, Raffaele, Arturo and Matteo were not on seat.
“The man was trying to protect his family” Jose added with a chuckle.
“That means we have to keep our toes up and our eyes as well. This isn’t the first time we’ve faced this sort of threat though. We will get to whoever is behind the scenes” Petro said confidently.
Luciano sighed and stood up from his seat, walking in circles around the board room. “But now the targets are being made not only at me but at my wife”
“What do you mean?” Milan, one of his cousins asked.
“Jade was almost assaulted”
The confession came as a shock to the brothers apart from Petro.
“What the hell? When was that? You both just arrived” Jose asked, urgency in his voice.
“Weeks before our departure” Luciano responded. “Not only me but my dear wife is being targeted. We had to leave the country for her sake. This is no small threat”
“Maybe it could be one of our business partners. Those hungry and greedy pigs are definitely cooking up something” Petro gritted.
“I have had the underbosses led by Stefano meet with our partners in Europe. I don’t think the attacks are from them. They fear us way too much to even lay a finger on our hairs. This is from within”
“Have you been tried getting something from the hitman’s phone or… ” Luciano did not let Jose complete his statement as he cut him short.
“We can’t find his phone. And yes my men did ransack his home but it looked like it was robbed. The security cameras were destroyed, no sign of any electronic gadgets”
They all passed curious glances amongst themselves. “That is strange” Milan leaned forward. “Whoever did this knew he had been killed and got to take away any clue that would lead to him before you”
“You want to know what is more crazy? No single DNA print was left behind” Petro chuckled darkly.
“This is a planned and thought out work. From the failed assassination to the robbery of his home in such a short span after his death, everything. A real storm is headed our way” Jose said.
In the midst of the dialogue, the door swung open, revealing Arturo, Luciano’s step-brother. Luciano’s stern gaze met Arturo’s late entry, a silent accusation.
“Arturo, late as usual,” Luciano barked, the edge in his voice slicing through the room. The atmosphere soured as Arturo, a rebellious spark in his eyes, took his seat.
“Why are you late?” He asked, his tone sharp and commanding.
Arturo let out a guffaw, “Brother you still act so controlling. I had other things to attend to. Besides I was informed about the meeting in such a short time”
“Man sometimes you make me so infuriated with how irresponsible you behave” Luciano blazed in anger.
“Here he comes again! Throwing his weight around because he is the head of us all” Arturo gritted out his words, facing Luciano eyeball to eyeball.
“Can you both cut this out? We have important things at hand to discuss” Milan cut in.
“Oh Yes. I was informed you executed someone. Who is it again this time almighty capo?” Arturo smirked.
Luciano could taste the bitter sarcasm in his words but he ignored his attempt to spite him. “Yes I did. The hitman sent to kill me weeks. My men captured him and I made sure to kill him myself. One thing I regret was not giving him a very slow death”
His words caused a sinister chuckle amongst his men.
“But at least I’d be able to melt it down on whoever sent him” The words rolled slowly out of Luciano’s mouth.
As the discussion swirled around the hitman and the looming threat, Luciano fixed Arturo with an intense stare. “You’ve been acting out lately. Anything you want to share?” Luciano’s question hung heavy in the air.
Arturo, his defiance apparent, met Luciano’s gaze with a sneer. “Why would I want to harm you, Luciano? I’ve got nothing to do with this mess.”
Luciano’s skepticism lingered, but before he could press further, Arturo, a shadow of insubordination, interjected, “Maybe you’re the one attracting trouble. Have you ever thought about that?”
The room stilled.
Luciano’s eyes narrowed, his frustration bubbling beneath the surface. “What do you mean by that?” Luciano growled.
“Hey I’m just saying. Nobody gets attacked more than you do. Maybe you are the one causing troubles for yourselves. You keep on changing the rules in the mafia, laying off old business allies and getting into contracts with new ones. I mean it has not even been up to two years since father’s demise and everything, even his rules have been completely changed. You attract what you are. Trouble” Arturo spat bitterly.
“How dare you!?” Luciano gripped him by the collar, infuriated by his careless remarks. “Do you realise I am your capo!?” The air was hot, their eyes burning against one another.
“Luciano calm down please. We are brothers. We are not meant to behave this way” Jose interceeded.
It irked Arturo so much on how the rest of the brothers revered Luciano because he was the oldest and he was the Don.
“We’ve got a traitor, Arturo, and I won’t let them jeopardize everything we’ve built. I will make sure I get whoever is behind it and kill the fucker. Best believe. And you better learn how to talk to me. Just because we are brothers does not mean you should forget your place. I will not be so lenient with you next time.” Luciano sneered, pushing Arturo away.
The burning anger in his chest and heavy breathing indicated how angered he still was.
“Send word to all underbosses under your various jurisdictions. I want everyone on their toes. We are going to track down every movement of that hitman before his death. We would get something out of that. We have a traitor to unmask.” Luciano barked.
“This meeting is adjourned” he added.
As the meeting adjourned, Arturo slipped away, his rebellious demeanor intact.
He made for his car and got in.
Dialing a number discreetly, he whispered, “Luciano does not want to give up on his plans. He is so adamant in plunging to his doom”
The voice on the other end, tinged with urgency, replied, “Play along, but be cautious. We can’t afford any missteps”
Arturo’s expression hardened,”Trust me. That vain capo will never know what hit him”