Omerta

Chapter 2

         At the same time my cousin had been talking to me, my uncle also phoned his wife to tell her the same thing. "What?! Why, where are we going?" I asked, standing from where I'd been sitting. "Look, it's a long story and I can fill you in on it later, but for now I'll just say that we'll be temporarily living somewhere else," Dominic told me. I tried fighting him on it but he used his serious tone and ended the conversation abruptly after. 

"Did Zio tell you to pack a bag too?" I turned to my aunt. Her face held some confusion, but she shook it away and looked at me to answer. "Yes, but I'll be going to Italy," she said. 

"What?! Am I?" I was still trying to piece what little information we had together. "No," Zia said plainly before walking off, lost in her own thoughts. If I wasn't going to Italy with them then where the hell was I going?

        Dominic told me to pack like I was going on a few weeks vacation, so that's what I did. I grabbed my largest suitcase and filled it with clothing and necessities like toiletries and chargers and things. In a second bag I put shoes, some personal items, etc. It was Benny who came to my bedroom door to carry my bags down. 

"Do you know anything?" I had to ask him. Looking up at his large frame I saw him press his lips together. He has the kind of compacted face ufc fighters have from years of wear and tear. "Nothing more than that I'm meant to escort you to the Luciano residence," he explained. My eyes went wide and I rushed to follow him with all my questions he didn't have the answers to.

        The Luciano's are the crime family. They're the head of the entire organization. I've never even seen them for myself. I know the Italian mob consists of them and their major allied families like the TerraNova's just under them, the Morello family, Lombardo family, and Ragusa's.

I'd met people here and there, but they were known to me at the time as 'friend's of my dad's', or more 'family'. That was obviously a lie and after my dad went to prison and all was revealed I realized I'd been dining with, sharing holidays, and befriending the children of the Italian mob.

 But of all those times I had never met a single Luciano. 

        "Will I be going there alone? Please tell me my uncle ordered you to stay in that house with me?" I asked in desperation as Benny loaded the trunk of his blacked out SUV. "Bambina, I really don't know anything more than I've already told you," he gave me an apologetic look. I nodded and sighed to myself. Why was I feeling so incredibly nervous right now?

Oh yeah...because those people scare the crap out of me. I've heard things about them. I'm not totally clueless to the things they do. I heard they were ruthless. Sociopaths. 

When my aunt met us outside another staff member was helping carry her bags. "You're coming too?" I almost breathed a sigh of relief. "For now. They'll explain everything once we get there. It may not be as bad as it sounds," she patted my cheek before sliding into the back seat of the SUV. The car that was about to take us to the residence of the family I heard I was meant to fear.

-

        When we arrived, it was to pull in front of these high walls, with an iron gate entryway that was heavily guarded. A guard approached the vehicle and spoke with Benny before radioing something in and stepping aside while the gate slowly opened for us. It was late in the evening, so the house appeared lit up when we started driving further into the residence. I could see trees just on the other side of that wall around the compound, but since it was dark I couldn't see much else. 

I practically gasped when I saw the Luciano household. It was a mansion that was for sure, and it was lined with old Italian style colossians and marble fixtures. "Have you been here before?" I looked to my aunt to see if she was reacting the way I had. "A few times over the years," she nodded, but even she still seemed to be taking in the sight of it.