We all pull up a seat around a bunch of sticky-topped tables, and a barely-dressed waitress appears to give out drinks. She’s trying to smile, and that smile is the saddest thing in the room. One of the younger Capos—Russo, the loudmouth who runs the Red Hook crew—grabs at her and tries to pull her onto his lap.
“Get your hands off her,” Seb growls at him. Big Gee was chuckling along, but now waves at Russo, indicating agreement.
The woman hands out the drinks as fast as she can and then scurries away. I take a sip of mine and almost spit it out. Vodka?Since when the fuck did Big Gee develop a taste for vodka? Might as well be paint thinner. But everyone seems to be knocking it back alright, or pretending it doesn’t bother them.
Finally, we begin. Big Gee wants the Capos to report on their crews. The accountant gives us the quarter’s numbers, which are strong. I give a heads-up about underperforming crews, and Big Gee sits there grinning away like he has something in his back pocket.
He’s in a good mood. Expansive, confident, his chest puffed out. And I know him well enough to know it means he’s made a decision. He thinks it’s a good one.
And at last, we get to it. “Everyone’s been doing real good work,” Big Gee says, looking around the circle. “But I think we can do better. In fact, I know we can. What’s holding us back? These pointless alliances we got tied to by my old man. He was doing what he thought was right at the time, God rest his soul, but we all know who should be running this city, and it ain’t the damn Morellis.”
A murmur of agreement runs through the room. Seb and I find each other’s eyes.
Whatever else the Morellis have done to New York, they’ve kept the soil fertile. Grass doesn’t grow on rocks, and right now, we’re looking at a fucking jungle out there, just ready to harvest.
If we get rid of D’Amato and his people, there’s no guarantee that will continue. In fact, it’s a guarantee that itwon’t, because the Rossis won’t stand by idle, and who knows what the Alessis?—
“I’ve been having meetings around town,” Big Gee goes on, before I can even get the lay of the land clear in my head. “Talking to people who feel the same way we do. And so here’swhat we’re gonna do. We’re gonna take down Luca D’Amato and the rest of those Morelli fuckers, and we’re gonna restore how things used to be. The Giulianos and the Clemenzas ran this town before them, along with the Vicarios. Now the Vees and Cees are gone. And the only thing stopping us from taking over is that motherfucker who set up the New York Commission without even asking us.”
The more I hear, the more my gut tightens. Seb’s face tells me he feels the same.
Everyone else? They look like kids on Christmas morning. Maybe they don’t remember what it cost the Morellis and the Clemenzas when they went up against each other. There’s a reason the new Commission was established after the old one blew up, and we have plenty of enemies in this city outside the Italians.
And then things get worse.
“So I been talking with the Bratva,” Big Gee announces. “I know a lot of us don’t love ’em,” he says, glancing at Seb, “but they have the same goals we do. And one of them in particular has offered to help us. Guy called Daniel King.”
Daniel fucking King?
I hear Tiberius Vicario’s voice again, the curious, almost pitying look in his eyes. “Oh. Don’t you know?”
Thisis what that asshole was hinting at. Big Gee and King have been talking. Cutting a deal. And if King was looking to get into bed with the Giulianos, he might not have wanted to jeopardize an alliance by openly interfering with me at the auction.
Seb leans forward, thunder in his face. “Brother,” he says, and there’s a warning in the word. “We made vows to the Commission. We can’t just throw them aside because it suits us better to partner up with someone else. And besides, the Bratva have no honor. They’re not the kind of allies we?—”
“This ain’t a fucking discussion,” Big Gee says heavily. He expected cheers, not pushback. He looks around the circle, disgust on his face. “What are you all, a bunch of cowards? A bunch of queers and women got you hiding and crying? That’s all the Morellis are these days.”
“Boss,” Seb says sharply. “It’s not about courage. Allying with the Bratva against the other Italian Families is inviting outsiders into a conflict that should be settled among ourselves. If you’ve got a problem with D’Amato?—”
“Of course you’d be on his side,” Big Gee sneers. “You probably sucked his dick yourself.”
The room goes silent. Big Gee has never said anything so openly about his brother’s sexuality. Never so insulting, either.
Even Seb seems taken aback, but he goes on doggedly. “It’s not about the Morellis. It’s about the Bratva. They don’t have allies, they haveassets. We wouldn’t be a partner, just a tool. King is looking for cannon fodder, and when the dust settles, he’ll step in to take over everything. I don’t trust them, and neither should you.”
You could hear a pin drop in the silence that follows. Seb has never challenged his brother so openly. He’s done it with respect, but he’s done it in public.
I think that might be where he fucked up.
“He’s right,” I say, because someone has to back him. “I hate D’Amato just as much as you do, Boss, but the Bratva can’t be trusted. I’ve seen how King operates.”
Big Gee gets that obstinate look on his face as he pushes his chin forward and glares at me. “I don’t fucking pay you for strategy, Orsini. Stick to what you’re good at.” He looks back at Seb. “And I won’t tolerate disrespect, even from you, Conti. I don’t give a fuck what you two think. I don’t give a fuck whatanyof you think. This is what’s happening. So get on board.”
He looks around the room, and the first one to speak is Russo. He’s always hated Seb and me, so it’s no surprise to hear him say, “I’m with you, Boss.”
The next one follows fast, and then the next, until the whole room is nodding and agreeing.
Big Gee’s ego is satisfied, and he’s grinning again. “Looks like the rest of them know a good deal when they hear it,” he says to Seb. And then he turns to me. “As for you, Orsini, you should be thanking me. It’s your lucky fucking day.”