The knocking on the door was loud and insistent. Glancing at the others, Mr Nam took a deep breath and opened the door. Kong In Su stood on the other side, a camel coat slung across his shoulders half covering a dark brown pin striped suite and tan wingtips.

'It seems you have a guardian angel watching over you Miss Hong?' Kong In Su said, stepping into the room and handing his coat to Mr Nam. Who immediately dropped it onto the floor.

Cha young frowned in confusion. 'What do you mean?'

'A little bird tells me that last night two men visited this hotel, more specifically your floor of this hotel. I don't believe their intentions were entirely innocent.' He raised his eyebrows, waiting for the comprehension to sink in.

Immediately her thoughts flew to the cut on Vincenzo's face, and rather than being afraid she suddenly felt extremely angry that he had put himself in danger, again. She decided to use that energy and marched up to the Korean man, pointing a finger. 'You're telling me that men were coming to harm us last night and it wasn't your men who protected me?' She snarled, smacking the rabbit head hard against a sideboard for effect. 'What am I even dealing with you for? Were they from Vincenzo Cassano?'

'I was going to ask you the same thing.' He said smugly.

'You were going to ask me? I was unaware that anything even happened. if you are telling me that your security were not responsible for our safety then I need to be speaking to the person who was. You are clearly not doing the job. Are you telling me that if someone had not been doing your job for you we would all be dead!'

Suddenly Kong In Su realised he had made something of an error.

'Well I, um, I mean…' He stuttered.

'These men made it all the way to my door, and were prevented from coming inside by someone, who also managed to make it past your security detail? I came to you because you assured me that you could protect me.' She accused. 'How did you find out about the attack anyway, where were your men?'

'I... er...' He stuttered before going on the offensive once again,' 'Well you're obviously under someone's protection aren't you?' Kong In Su countered. 'I wonder who that could be?'

'So do I?'

'So it wouldn't be the boss of the Cassano family?' He said, walking around Cha young to see the reaction. 'This could all be a scam, a set up, a trap. You working with Vincenzo Cassano to get close to the boss. It would certainly explain why you are apparently the only person in Italy not afraid of gatto soddisfatto, because you know that he is not going to hurt you as you're working together.'

'That's ridiculous.' Cha young scoffed.

'If that was the case.' Antonia chipped in, 'And my cousin did save Ms Hong, it would probably be because he wants to kill her himself.'

Suddenly she rounded on the korean. 'Did YOU send people to see if they could get to us, to see if someone was protecting us?'

'I.. um.'

'How far were you going to take it? If they hadn't been stopped would we be waking up dead in our beds this morning?' She said, advancing on the hapless man.

'Of course not, we would never...' He spluttered.

'Then how do you know it happened? I don't know anything about it. DID it even happen, or are you trying to trick me?' She raised an eyebrow in challenge.

'Well we thought... I suppose it could have been the Luciano's?' He offered hopefully.

'As our friends or our enemy?' Cha young growled.

'Um... I don't know.' He said sheepishly with a shrug. 'I may have been mistaken.'

The disassembling of Vincenzo Cassano, feared mafia boss, was cataclysmic and public. In equal degrees, his rivals looked on in delight whilst the family did so in horror. There were violent drunken scenes, petty and tantrum-like. He neglected the family interests, instead choosing to focus on Attorney Cha young, veering wildly between vocal declarations of affection, and a desire to see her burning in hell. No one in the world of gangsters would have imagined the iron will of the former consigliere would unravel so spectacularly. It was the gossip on everyone's lips and as such, immediately exploited by Cha young at every opportunity.

The two had encountered each other at a restaurant in the city. Cha young, sitting with her new friends had seen the Korean mafia boss arrive looking more than the worse for wear. With Luca hovering over him like an anxious mother hen, Vincenzo had loudly and clumsily clattered his way across the floor, causing waiters to leap out of the way and patrons to duck flailing limbs. He had spotted Cha young and stopped, swaying slightly, his eyes glassy and bloodshot. He stared.

Eventually, wiping her mouth daintily on her napkin she got to her feet. 'What do you want?'

He did not say anything, just continued to stare blankly. Suddenly his face crinkled into an ugly sneer of disgust. 'stronza traditore!' He spat.

'Translate.' She said in Korean, her eyes flashing with anger.

'You don't need a translation, you know what you are.' He growled back.

'Boss, please.' Luca said, trying to steer his employer away.

Kung In Su got to his feet. 'I think you had better leave.' He said.

'YOU think I should leave?' Vincenzo swayed to the left, deftly caught by Luca who he shrugged off angrily. 'I think you and I should settle this ourselves.'

'Just go home.' Cha young exclaimed. 'You're embarrassing me, and yourself.'

'I'm embarrassing you?'

'Yes, you're pathetic. The great boss of the Cassano family. You can't do anything to me and you know it.' She said with a snort.

He lurched forwards so that they were standing nose to nose. Raising her hand, Cha young slapped Vincenzo across the cheek, a hush fell over the whole restaurant and he raised his opposing hand to rub the rapidly reddening mark. He raised his hand suddenly as if to grasp her throat. 'I could snuff you out without a moment's thought.' He said.

It had taken all she had not to flinch. Lifting her chin, Cha young glared in challenge. 'So do it then!' She jutted her chin again in defiance.

Vincenzo met her gaze, malice for malice before finally forming his hand into a fist and slamming it onto the table making everyone jump. 'You will pay for this.' He growled before turning and lurching out of the restaurant. They watched Luca helping him into the back of the car through the large picture windows.

'I told you, Vincenzo Cassano is finished.' Cha young snorted, as she returned to her meal.

Salvatore Silvestri called a meeting in the dining room of the main house on Paglizza. The assembled family members looked on, rightly concerned at the strange behaviour of their boss.

Exchanging a look with his sister, the silver-haired Italian straightened his cufflinks as he waited for silence to descend. 'Friends.' He began, serious and stern. 'I think we can all agree that there is something rotten in the house of Cassano. Our boss… The fish rots from the head down.'

There began a murmur of dissent from the room.

Silvestri raised a hand to quiet the disruption. 'Our boss, beloved as he is by us all.' He countered, trying to read the mood of the room. 'However, I think we can all agree, that things are becoming dangerous for Vincenzo and for us all?' He held his hands out expansively. 'The future of this fine family, the protection of the fine family is now in jeopardy.'

Again, there were grumblings and dissent from the floor.

'I am only saying what needs to be said.' Silvestri said, shaking his head as if the current events were the last thing he would ever have wanted to happen. 'Someone needs to be an even hand at the tiller, someone needs to steer the ship.' He looked around, waiting for someone to disagree, for anyone to dare challenge the authority he was assuming. 'I will reluctantly assume that responsibility unless anyone else feels they are more qualified?' He issued the last sentence as a challenge.

No one spoke up, although they murmured quietly amongst themselves. Silvestri clapped his hands together. Gaining the power of the Cassano family had played right into his hands after all, and without the need for the stupid girl.

Quietly, from her vantage point at the dining hall door, Mrs Accardi turned away and drew her mobile phone from her pocket.

As Luca pulled the car away, Vincenzo waited, still slumped on the back seat, until they were out of sight. He straightened up, obviously completely sober and in control, smoothing his dishevelled hair and crinkling his nose at the alcohol smell on his shirt. Luca passed a sports bag from the front seat and Vincenzo proceeded to change in the dark polo shirt inside. He shrugged on the black bomber jacket and pulled a matching baseball cap onto his head.

The latest burner phone rang, and Vincenzo picked up the call. 'Pronto.'

He listened carefully, his face a complete mask, no emotion showed what he was feeling or his reaction to the caller. 'Grazie.' He said and hung up the call.

Luca caught his eye in the rear-view mirror. 'Boss?' He asked.

Vincenzo merely nodded once in response. 'Is everything ready?' He asked.

'Yes, Boss.' The driver replied.

A steely look settled over his face. 'Then it begins.'