A Mob Boss's Heirs (Book 3 of New York Mafia Trilogy)

103. The Past Times

Days later

Vincenzo was sitting at the bar at one of Rome's prestigious hotels.... There was a ballet show happening behind him but he didnt spare any glances at the show girls as he was drinking soda.

It was time for Emanuelle O'Neil and his father to meet with a client at the hotel that was owned by Arturo Agostini. The hotel was one of the safest places to meet. No police dared even come in the street next to the hotel, let alone inside it. The place was packed with criminals... He watched from far how the other boys were playing billiard at the side or having food at the restaurant section while watching the performance... He was not hungry. Neither was he in the mood to watch ballet... It reminded him of her too much when he glanced at the show happening at the stage... It reminded him the first time he felt he wanted no one but her.

Vincenzo remembered that day clearly when his heart warmed up for her.... She was singing at the school production standing out from the band. She was taller than others. She sounded much better than the others too.

Vincenzo chuckled to himself as he picked the soda bottle and took a sip. He remembered how he went around the back and sabotaged the electronic wiring that connected to the microphones of others in the band... That helped... He only wanted to hear her voice and no one else's. He didnt like the kind of music she was singing... It was for hippies but he loved to hear her voice that was the only voice he wanted to hear that night... He even went onto complain to the principal after the performance... He complained that they had to let the performance happen again after the wiring got fixed. He did the same of course again.. He sabotaged the wires and only liked to hear her voice one more time.

Vincenzo waved his empty soda bottle at the waiter who quickly gave him another one. He popped open the new soda bottle and took sips from the cool liquid still not sparing a glance at anywhere else in the room but the walls that had his favourite paintings on them from Italian artists.

Vincenzo was having one of those nights with a nostalgic feeling. He wasn't sure what had brought this on. Maybe it was because he was sitting at the same hotel he played hide and seek with her years ago.

Vincenzo looked at the roof. It still had a mirror. He remembered being here years ago and using the mirror on the ceiling to find her easily after he finished his count down. He remembered looking at that mirror and teasing her once he spotted her. He warned her " Run... I give you ten seconds and I will hunt you down..." She did run and hid somewhere better listening to his warnings as she always did.

Vincenzo ran his hands in his hair thinking about how much he wished his life had turned out differently. He had a first love. He only had one love but he couldn't be with her... Not when she didn't even glance at him or any other boy for that matter. She was in her own world. She was not interested in any boys yet. She was not ready for him to overwhelm her with his confessions. But part of him was not so optimistic that she was going to return his affections when the time came to admit to loving her. What was he to do if she said no? Kill every man who came close to her or hit it off with another girl? He used to think that the second option was best but he had thought wrong. He recalled clearly how it felt when she was once dancing with his own brother... When they had been at the O'Neil mansion weeks ago, Viggo had danced with her and he had fought the urge to storm the dance floor and claim her like the wild wolf he was. He thought he could look the other way but he was wrong. He had ended up questioning Viggo about if he had feelings for his beloved. Viggo had sworn that he didn't. He could never kill his brother but he was going to hurt him if he confessed to loving her.... But if anyone else had eyes for his beloved, they were going to meet a painful deadly end. He didn't share. Not that his beauty cared for boys. She didn't glance at boys to his relief. It didn't matter if she wasn't ever going to love him. He was willing to live alone but was vowing to himself to kill anyone who could have what he couldn't.