Dangerous Beauty: Part One: Destiny (2 page)

Once Anya made it outside to the garden, she sat the snacks on the picnic table and set out to find the kids. The garden was large, but she knew where Nathan would be. It was his favorite spot in the entire garden, a big white gazebo decorated with flowers and a big cushy swing with white plush pillows. Her sweet baby boy had taken many naps on that swing.

As she approached the gazebo, she saw Carter sitting there alone on the swing. She was so small. Her sad eyes were locked on her tiny hands in her lap. Anya was about to move closer to ask where Nathan was when she saw her little man climb up the Gazebo steps. He had one yellow rose in each little hand. With her camera in hand, Anya stood back to see what was going to happen next.

Nathan sat up on the swing next to Carter, and she looked up at him. He smiled brightly at her, and handed her one of the roses in his hand. Carter took the rose out of his hand, and stared at it, not uttering a word. Nathan’s little hand pushed Carter’s hair away from her tear slicked face. He leaned over and kissed her cheek sweetly. Anya smiled and captured the kiss with her camera. “Don’t cry,” Anya heard him whisper.

“Here, my Mama says roses give us wishes. Do you like wishes?” Nathan asked enthusiastically and Carter nodded her head.

“To get a wish you have to kiss the rose, like this.” Nathan gave the roses a quick kiss and Carter smiled at him.

“Such a beautiful little girl,” Anya said to herself and she walked forward toward the kids. “What are you two silly bugs doing?” She asked with a bright smile on her face.

Both Nathan and Carter giggled. She snapped another picture. “We’re getting wishes!” Nathan looked up at her excitedly.

“Let me see that rose please,” Anya said reaching for Nathan’s rose and he handed it to her.

Anya kneeled on her knees in front of Carter. “Did you kiss your rose yet?”

“Nope she hasn’t,” Nathan answered for her.

“Well Carter, if you give a rose your sweetest kiss, the stars will grant you all you wish. Don’t you want that?” Anya asked, and Carter nodded.

Anya smiled. “Then come, we will do it together.” Together they kissed their roses and Anya made a wish, a silly one, but a wish. She looked at the beautiful little girl in front of her, and then looked at her handsome little boy. She dreamed of them sitting in the garden with little brown babies running around them. She envisioned a beautiful wedding in the garden with only select guests, of her choosing of course. Yes, a silly wish indeed, but after seeing the way her sweet boy behaved with the little beauty, it was one that couldn’t be avoided. Anya wanted Nathan to have everything she didn’t, and that included love. Whether it be someone she doesn’t know yet, or this beautiful little girl here in front of her —which she preferred— Anya prayed that her little Nathan would have the life and love that she could only dream of having.

Nineteen Years Later

Nathan could feel his heart beating through his chest. He was so ready for this. He both hated and enjoyed going to his father’s spontaneous meetings, but this one in particular was going to be a good one for Nathan.

He was the one that produced the evidence that led to this little gathering.

He was satisfied with himself. He had made his father proud of him. That was something he did often, but it never got old. Of course, there is still a part of Nathan that would rather be home in bed at this hour, but being second in command of the Salerno Crime Family meant that whenever duty called Nathan would drag his ass away from what he was doing, and do whatever the boss said to do. His father had been preparing him for leadership his whole life, so he knew the ins and outs of meetings such as this one. He was prepared to play the role of the silent obedient killer. Isn’t that what a son does when he’s being groomed to be the boss of a large crime family?

Nathan will be the first to admit that he has a long way to go before he was ready to be the boss. He knows he has maturity issues, and he still doesn’t necessarily take everything seriously. But he must be doing something right because his father finally gave him the title Underboss. He busted his ass for four years, since he was eighteen years old, seeking his father’s approval. When he turned twenty-two, two years ago, his father finally gave him the title. But that wasn’t before the criminal underworld had already given him one of its own.

As Nathan continued the drive to warehouse B, the location of the meeting tonight, he couldn’t help but think about the events of the past week. Nathan had felt in his gut that something was about to go wrong. So when he got the news that one of the teams transferring product to a buyer had been ambushed on two separate occasions, the accuracy of his gut feelings were once again confirmed.

Both ambushes resulted in weapons and money being stolen, which resulted in his father having to explain the situation to the buyer, which then resulted in his father going into a fit of rage. Angelo Salerno had always been known for the promptness of his deliveries, as well as the quality of his products. So explaining to a buyer that someone had stolen their order from him was both frustrating and embarrassing, not to mention something he absolutely hated to do.

When Nathan heard about the first ambush he couldn’t figure out what dumbass would have the balls to steal anything from The Salerno Organization. His father’s close friend and assistant, Mitchell (whom Nathan considered a dumbass), started dropping names of some associates he suspected were responsible for the attacks. His most frequent culprit was Andrew Reeves, an associate from Brooklyn that did business with The Salerno Organization. He, like many others, indulged in the many services that The Salerno Organization had to offer. Nathan knew that Reeves and his father were not the best of associates, and they had problems in the past, but not anymore. He and Reeves had an understanding of how things went, and Reeves wasn’t stupid enough to screw up a good thing.

The Salerno Crime Family is one of the biggest and most powerful Mafia families in New York, Las Vegas, and Italy. Very few people in the criminal underground would have the courage to step to them, much less steal from them.

That was what Nathan explained to his father.

Mitchell’s insistence for his father to start a war was suspicious to Nathan, but he held his tongue. He knew how close Mitchell and his father were, and his dad would not take Nathan slandering the man without proper cause lightly. But regardless of the bullshit Mitchell was talking about Reeves, Nathan knew that no one in their right mind would steal from Angelo Salerno if they didn’t think they could get away with it. This meant that it wouldn’t be anyone on the outside of the Organization, it would be someone on the inside, someone who had earned his father’s trust.

After his father gave him the permission Nathan began to look into the problem himself. He started by looking at the team of men in charge of protecting the shipment, and he found that both teams had the same supervisor, Michael Ricci. Michael Ricci was one of the many appointed leaders stationed near New York. They had already questioned him about the incidents, and he had given them what sounded like a logical story for both. But Nathan still had his doubt so he decided to question Michael’s men.

Since Nathan’s methods for getting information were less conservative then his fathers, it didn’t take long for him to get the answers that he needed to confirm his suspicions about Michael Ricci.

Turns out the ungrateful bastard staged both ambushes, took the products that were supposed to be delivered, sold them to an anonymous buyer, and pocketed the money. This betrayal didn’t surprise Nathan as much as it surprised his father. Nathan had always thought that Michael was a sketchy son of a bitch. The idiot had nothing when Angelo found him and gave him both money and power. Yet still the greedy bastard wanted more!

Greed,
Nathan thought,
it can really make a man do some stupid shit.

As they pulled up to what Nathan called ‘the warehouse in the middle of nowhere’, he couldn’t stop the wicked smile that appeared on his face. He glanced over at his best friend Kyle seated on the passenger’s side, and noticed his smile was just as devious. Nathan was
more
than ready to kill the traitorous motherfuckers that dare steal from The Salerno Organization. He even decided to drive his black Escalade and wear his favorite black Armani suit, deeming this meeting a special occasion.

He navigated through the parking lot with his best friend at his side, and the rest of his personal team of men (Dante, Lucca, and Mickey) following behind him in two large black cargo vans filled with some… ‘party favors’, for tonight’s meeting.

He parked the car, noticing his father had already arrived with his men, and quickly exited.

“It’s about time Son. I didn’t think you would ever get here,” his father said to him as they all began walking toward the warehouse.

“Well I’m sure you’ll find it in your heart to forgive me. I just thought you needed time to prepare yourself for the speech I know you’re going to give tonight,” Nathan said with a smirk. He knew his father had something planned for tonight because he called for this meeting. This was a matter that could have been handled quietly and without an audience, but Nathan knew his father was always one for theatrics and making a point. So he had a feeling this was going to be very entertaining.

Angelo laughed, a devious grin appearing on his face. “Bullshit, Nathan. You of all people know that I prepare my speeches the night before.” He gave Nathan’s back a loud slap and walked ahead of him. One of his men had the door open for him and Mitchell to enter the warehouse. Nathan and Kyle followed behind them.

The warehouse that usually consisted of the inventory for their many clothing and jewelry stores was empty of the usual merchandise. The room now consisted of a long table with four chairs on each side, and one chair at the head. Angelo took the chair at the head of the table and Mitchell sat to the right of him. The other men at the table were captains appointed by Angelo. They were stationed in the many different areas The Salerno Organization did business in, and Michael was one of them. They had only required the New York captains to be present at this particular meeting, the more powerful men in the Organization were far too busy.

The men came to the table once Angelo was seated with looks of confusion, not one of them understanding why Angelo had called a meeting on a weekend. It made no sense to them since the majority of business was done during the week, and meetings were held in that time as well. None of them would dare question the Boss, if he’d called a meeting they would come. Besides, it must be important if he called them to meet at this late hour, and in this location.

The light tapping of Angelo’s index finger on the wooden table was the only sound that filled the empty warehouse. All eyes were on Angelo as he opened his mouth and began to speak.

“I apologize for the short notice of this meeting, but this matter is a bit urgent, and there are some things that we all,” he pointed his finger at each of them, “need to make clear.”

Immediately, each man began to feel unease. They could already tell that this wasn’t going to be a,
you’ve all done a wonderful job
type meeting.

“I understand why you all would be confused about my tone, but I assure you that your confusion will soon end. Before I am finished with this little discussion, one of you,” he smirked, “will be dead. And by the end of this meeting all of you will understand what I mean when I tell you, I will not tolerate, under any circumstance, betrayal of any kind.” The calm voice in which he spoke caused even more discomfort for the men at the table. They were all trying to figure out which one of them would be stupid enough to piss off Angelo to this magnitude.

“I have been good to each of you. Have I not?” The men nodded in agreement. “Business is going very well, we’re making money, and I have trusted each of you in positions of power.” His eyes went directly to Michael, who was visibly beginning to sweat. “Is this true?” They all agreed once again.

Angelo stood from his chair and leaned forward, placing both of his palms flat on the table. “Then why is it that after all that we have been through together, built a massive empire that has made us richer than we could have ever thought possible, I find out that someone I loved, guided, and supported like he was my own brother has taken from me?” He met the eyes of every person at the table. “No answers?” He shook his head in disgust. “I thought so. I guess I am just going to have to show you what happens when men that I once trusted decide that it’s okay to steal from me.” Standing up straight showing his full 6’6” height, he turned to his son. “Nathan, if you will.”

Nathan motioned for Kyle to follow him and they went over to the large sliding doors in the back of the warehouse. Nathan had Kyle open one large door while he opened the other. Once the doors opened the black cargo van driven by Dante came in first with Mickey in the passenger seat. Following closely behind them was the second Cargo van driven by Lucca. The men exited the vans and walked to the back of them where Kyle and Nathan stood.

All eyes watched in shock as Nathan, Kyle, Dante, Mickey and Lucca opened the trunk doors, and revealed what they had stored in the back.

Angelo cleared his throat and the men’s attention quickly went back to him. As he spoke he kept his voice low and calm. “I do not appreciate being made a fool of, and I do not like explaining myself to others when I know I have not made a mistake.” His voice rose as his anger began to take over. “I have worked very hard to create a lucrative and organized empire. I will not have my business destroyed by the greed of some simpleminded idiots! I have always, always been able to get my products from one place to the next, and then all of a sudden, out of fucking nowhere, not one, but two times,” he shouted and held up two fingers, “I am told that
my
product and
my
money, has been taken from me.”

“We have all been doing our parts to ensure that whoever has done this doesn’t do it again, Angelo,” one of the men stated frantically. He was still trying to figure out who would be stupid enough to betray Angelo.

Angelo nodded his head, and lowered his voice. “Yes, some of you have, and for that I am very grateful, but one of you,” he said looking at Michael, “has not had the family’s best interest at heart.”

All eyes followed Angelo’s to Michael, who sat looking down at the table unable to meet Angelo’s eyes. Angelo directed their attention to the back of the room. Nathan and his team had ten men lined up on their knees with bruised and bloodied faces.

“These are the men that were instructed, and well paid, to steal products that didn’t belong to them. These men were being both supervised, and instructed by our dear friend, and brother, Michael Ricci.” Angelo stopped talking when the sound of Michael’s chair scooting against the floor filled the room. He hit the table hard with his fist. “Don’t you move another muscle you lying, filthy, ungrateful piece of shit.” His voice was menacingly low, and Michael didn’t move. The captains present at the table were shocked by the discovery that Michael would betray Angelo. Angelo had always been a good friend and boss to all of them.

“I was saddened and confused by this information when my son first brought it to me. It is truly amazing that greed and lust for power can make a man go against the only family he has ever known.” Angelo sighed and shook his head as he backed away from the table.

Everyone knew what was about to happen. There was only one reason why Angelo would have Nathan’s whole team present at a meeting such as this.

The room went quiet when Nathan began to walk over to the table. His cold gray stare told Michael that everything that was about to take place would be very painful for him. Michael began to tremble.

Nathan removed his suit jacket, revealing two chrome Glocks resting in his shoulder holster, and the vicious hunting knife he always had on hand. They’d all heard many stories of what Nathan had done with that knife, and none of them had ever wanted to know what it would feel like to be on the receiving end of its wrath.

Once Nathan made it across the room, he placed his suit jacket gently on the table. He didn’t take his eyes off of Michael for one second, and his face remained expressionless. Michael knew what they wanted him to do, and he wasn’t about to put up a fight. He wanted his end to be as painless as possible.

From behind Nathan everyone could see Dante, Lucca, Mickey, and Kyle remove their Glocks from their holsters, preparing for the massacre about to take place. Nathan put a tight hold around Michael’s arm and pulled him out of his seat, dragging both Michael and his chair to the middle of the room.

“If you resist, I’ll break both of your arms.” His deep voice was cold and empty of all emotion. “If you try to run, I’ll chase you down and cut off your legs.” Michael had no intention of doing either as he sat down in the chair, awaiting his certain death.