Vito turned, and stared out the window at the car Joe was traveling in. He caught a brief glimpse of the back of Joe's head before the vehicle disappeared from view. Even though it hadn't been said out loud, Vito knew that his childhood friend was being taken to some remote area of the city to be killed.
"Leo, how could you do this? You know Joe's my friend. Hell, he kept me from being killed out there at the observatory, even after Falcone offered him an opportunity to be a capo."
Leo sighed. "This is the price of doing business, kid. I did you a favor because I owed you one. You kept me from getting killed by your rat friend Henry. So, I stepped in to keep you alive when every organized crime figure in this city wanted you in an unmarked grave. Joe…Joe's a hothead. If we don't get rid of him now, we'll have to get rid of him 6 months or a year down the road. He's bad for business; bad for everyone."
"But Joe…"
"He's especially bad for you, Vito. What has your friend Joe done for you? Ask yourself that question. Because of him, you got arrested and inducted into the army. You almost got your ass shot off in Europe. Then, you come home. What happens then? You spend 6 years in the can. You get out, and then what? He gets you involved in a gang war that nearly leads to your death."
Leo's eyes narrowed as he stared at Vito intensely "Joe brought you nothing but trouble. You should be on your hands and knees thanking me for getting rid of him for you."
Almost like someone had thrown a switch, the old man's mood brightened. "You'll forget about all this when we get down to the cathouse. We're going to have a great time. We're have plenty to celebrate."
Vito tried to remain calm during the car ride. He knew in his heart that Leo was right. Joe was a trouble maker. Still, the man had been almost like an older brother to Vito. If not for him, Vito would have been sent back to fight the Krauts in 1944. He would have never gotten involved with the Clemente's, and would probably have ended up breaking his back down on the docks.
Leo put his hand on Vito's shoulder. "Look, Vito. When you join this thing of ours, you take an oath to put the Family before your own family, and before your friends. That means, sometimes friends will die. Hell, sometimes you may even be asked to kill your friends. I've seen plenty of mine die. I've even pulled the trigger a couple of times. It's part of the business that we're in, Vito. If you can't accept that, get out now. Spend the rest of your life fixing cars, or flipping pizzas. If you want to continue on with us, you have to realize that you WILL see friends die."
The rest of the ride went on in silence. That evening at the cathouse, Vito drank to the memory of his friends Joe and Henry. He drank to forget about the events of the past several weeks. He drank to put up a brave front for Leo and his men. Inside, he was tormented. He had no idea what the next step in his life would be. Would he continue going down the path he had been traveling down, or would he give it all up for a normal, quiet life?
The cathouse was jumping, as usual. This night, it was full of Vinci men. They were celebrating their victory. Not only had they avoided a war with the Triads, but they had eliminated a major threat in Carlo Falcone. The Falcone's would probably be looking to retaliate, but with so many of their people dead, the family couldn't put up much of a fight.
Vito tried to put aside his worries, and enjoy himself. However, he couldn't put aside the thought that his best friend was either dead or being tortured. It made him shiver a little. He hoped that Joe's death had been, or would be, quick.
As the party was starting to wrap up, he sat in a booth with Leo and Pepe in a corner of the club. Leo pulled a key from his pocket and passed it to Vito.
"Don't go back to your apartment tonight, Vito. There are still plenty of people in this town who want you dead, so it'll be best if you lay low tonight. I got you a room at the Empire Arms Hotel."
Vito's eyebrows shot up in surprise, and Leo gave him a sly smile.
"Surprised? Thankfully, you and Joe managed not to blow up the entire building, so the hotel is still open. At least the first 17 floors are. Stay there tonight, and I'll come calling for you tomorrow afternoon. We have a few more things to discuss."
"Thanks," Vito said as he pocketed the key.
"Now, I think it's time for me to get home, and get to bed," Leo said. "I'm getting too old for a night of booze and broads. Good night, Vito."
"Good night, Leo…And thanks, again."
"Like I said, kid, you did me a favor, so I did you one. See you tomorrow." With that, Leo got up and he and Pepe left the building.
Soon after, Vito headed out, as well. He jumped in a cab, and rode downtown to the Empire Arms. He barely managed to make it up to his room before passing out from exhaustion. It had been a crazy, stressful few days, and he needed his sleep.
He awoke to someone pounding on the door to his room, and sunlight streaming in through the windows. He grabbed his pistol from the nightstand, and crept over to the door. He peered through the peephole, and saw Leo standing in the hallway. As usual, the man was impeccably dressed in a suit and tie. Vito slipped the gun into the waistband of his boxers, and opened the door.
"Hey, kid," Leo greeted him. "Get dressed; I'm taking you to a baseball game this afternoon."
Vito scratched his head. "Afternoon? What time is it?"
"It's 1pm. Now, get moving! I don't want to miss batting practice."
Vito couldn't believe he had slept nearly 12 hours. He really had been exhausted. He threw on a dress shirt, a pair of slacks, and headed out the door.
The Empire Cannons were playing the Lost Heaven Angels in Kingston Stadium, and Leo and Vito had box seats. They chatted, ate peanuts, and rooted on the Cannons. It was almost as if the turmoil of the past few days hadn't happened.
At the start of the fifth inning, the Cannons were leading 3 to 1.
"You can't stay in town, Vito," Leo said as he started straight ahead at the on-field action.
"wait…What?"
"There's too much heat on you. Word on the street is that Eddie Scarpa has put a bounty on you. He wants you dead. The few Falcone men left are more than willing to track you down."
"What should I do, Leo," Vito asked.
"The way I see it, you have two options. If you want out of the life, I can get you out of town safely. You can start over in a new town, and live a normal life. However, if you want to stay involved in this thing of ours, Mr. Vinci has given me permission to invite you into the Family. You'll still have to get out of Empire Bay, but you'll be working for us the same way that you worked for Clemente and Falcone."
The offer piqued Vito's curiosity. "Where would I go if I started working for Mr. Vinci?"
"You ever hear of Las Vincennes?"
Vito cracked open a peanut shell, and popped the nut into his mouth. "The name rings a bell. What about it?"
"It's an up and coming little gambling town out west, in the middle of the desert. Casinos are springing up all over the place in that town, and Mr. Vinci is planning on expanding out there. It could mean millions of dollars for the Family. We just need a representative out there to make sure Mr. Vinci's interests are being represented."
"And that someone is going to be me?"
"Not exactly. We're sending a guy named Nicky Damone out there to do that. He's a good guy. He would be in charge down there. You would be his right hand man."
"Sounds interesting," Vito said. "Can I have a few days to think about it?"
Leo shook his head. "Nope. You have until the end of the game."
Vito couldn't concentrate on the rest of the game. Could he really continue on as a gangster? The lifestyle was a glamorous one. It meant expensive suits, flashy cars, booze, broads, a decent living, and the respect of everyone he knew. At the same time, it had led him to a prison sentence, a sister who didn't want anything to do with him, a dead best friend, and a mother he didn't get a chance to say goodbye to.
His other option was to live a normal, law-abiding life. Could he really be Vito the schoolteacher? Vito the chef? No chance. In the end, he knew that his only real option was to take Leo's offer to go out west and learn the casino business.
The game ended with the Cannons winning 4-1. As they got up to leave the stadium, Leo was asking for Vito's answer.
"Well?" he asked.
Vito sighed. He had made his decision. "Tell Nicky that he's got his right hand man."
Leo clapped him on the shoulder. "Kid, you made the right choice."
