Chapter 4: Meeting Salvatore

Claude arrived at Momma's Restaurant, and was greeted by the one and only Toni Ciprani. Toni was glad to see Claude, and offered him a seat. "Take a seat, kid. Take a god damn seat!" Well, that was polite, Claude thought to himself. Toni was not at all the happiest person in Liberty City, but like Joey said, he can get things "fixed". "So the laundry won't pay any protection, huh? The Triads think they can mess with me!" Toni's voice began to get louder and louder. "Let's teach these would-be tough guys what it means to be a tough guy!" Toni then slams his fist onto the table, much to the annoyance. Claude didn't understand what did Momma Ciprani said, but it was sure funny to know that Toni had a weakness: his mother! "Sorry Ma." He paused for a while. "Yes Ma." He replied back to his mother, and turned to Claude, and said, "I want you to take out their laundry vans, and mangle any Triad gimp that gets in your way. 8-Ball can supply you with what you need." Claude then left the restaurant, and jacked a nearby Kuruma, and followed the directions Toni gave to find the 3 Laundry vans. Forget 8-Ball, he thought to himself, I can do this alone!

There, he saw it. A white and shiny van with a "Wong's Launderette" label on it. This must be 1 of the 3 vans Toni said. Claude wasted no time, and quickly ejected the van driver out of the car and quickly drove the van to the crushed. Toni did say to destroy the vans, but he didn't say how to do it. It's also a good time to earn some money. He took the van to the crusher in Harwood, and left it there while he "borrowed" a parked Pony nearby to find the 2nd laundry van. The 2nd laundry van was easy to find: it was parked outside Saint Mark's Bistro. Claude then followed the deed he did to Lips Forelli: arm the car with a bomb, and sit back and watch the action. It was done, and Claude got himself some good entertainment after the van, along with its driver, blew up. Claude then went to find the final van. It was located near Callahan Point. Claude jacked the van, and drove it to Portland Harbor, and left the van near the edge of the water. Then, he grabbed some wheels and pushed the final laundry van into the water. Toni would be so pleased, he thought to himself. He then drove back to see Toni for his payment.

At Toni's, there was a note, with an envelope, most likely Claude's pay, but no sign of Toni. His mother then remarked, "Toni's off making people bleed, or trying to. He'll never be as strong as his Pop, but he left you a note on the table." Claude then picked up the note. It read, "The laundry has agreed to pay – you did real good, kid. Go and collect the cash and bring it back here. Watch out for the Triads. They may be shoving a firecracker up your ass, but don't take no crap. Nobody I mean nobody messes with TONI CIPRANI!" Whoa, Toni's real serious about this, Claude thought to himself. But a job's a job, so he went behind Wong's Launderette to collect a suitcase full of payment. But before that, he'd suspected that the Triads would set up a trap, so he went to buy some Uzi ammo for the gun he picked up earlier. Then, he went to get the payment.

As he suspected, Wong clearly had asked the Triads for protection against the Mafia! 7 goons came closer to Claude. Some held guns, but most had baseball bats. Claude knew that this job was too easy, so he picked up his Uzi and started shooting at the Triads. He then went to drag their driver out of his van, and beat him up with a baseball bat. He then jumped into the beaten Triad's van, and drove it to Toni's place, and found another note, and again, no Toni. This time, the note read: "Don Salvatore has called a meeting. I need you to collect the limo and his boy, Joey, from the garage. Then get Luigi from his club, come back here and pick me up. Then we'll all drive over to the boss' place together. Those Triads, they don't know when to stop. They want a war, they got a war. Now get going." Claude placed the briefcase down, and got back into his van, and drove to Joey's Garage in Trenton to pick up the limo.

At the garage, Joey gladly gave Claude the keys to his dad's limo, a shiny, black Stretch, while he changed into his formal clothes. Claude had never driven a limo before, so this could prove a challenge. Joey then got into 1 of the back seats, and then they were on the road. Along the way, Joey explained that he'll call Claude when the job is ready. He hadn't finished planning it yet. Claude decided to skip Chinatown to pick Luigi. They drove over the Red Light District, and reached Sex Club 7, Luigi's club. Joey then directed Claude to sound the horn; it's their tradition to let friends know they're here. Claude did that, and Luigi then exited his club, greeted Claude, hopped into the limo, and sat beside Joey. Now to pick up Toni. Claude then drove over to Momma's Restaurant, and sounded the horn. Toni was there alright! He then hopped into the car, in the seat next to Claude. Here's when Toni gave Claude his money for the previous job of collecting the payment. However, the Triads are angry about this, and they'd been waiting for Toni to come out so they could get him! Claude wasted no time! He revved up the engine, and quickly got out of the way, where about 5 to 6 Triad vans collided with each other. The limo then drove on towards Portland Beach, where Salvatore's mansion is located. The Triads have set up a roadblock, but the limo cut through them like a hot knife through butter. At Salvatore's mansion, the garage door opened, and Toni instructed Claude to drive in it. This was done.

After a while, all 4 of them then went upstairs to see Salvatore. Toni, who was with Claude, was very pleased with Claude's good handling of the limo. "You did good back there, kid. Real good. Come on; let's introduce you to the Don." Salvatore was already out there, greeting Luigi and Joey.

"Hey Luigi!" he greeted. It appears that they haven't met for a long time.

"Oh my girls have been missing you so long, Salvatore." Luigi replied, while hugging Salvatore. "You've been away too long."

"You tell them, when this unfortunate business has been taken care of, we'll go down to the club to celebrate." Luigi then went inside. Salvatore then focused his attention to his son. "There's my boy!"

"Hi, Pop." Joey greeted.

"Have you got yourself a good woman yet? You know your Momma, God bless her soul, would be turning over in her grave to see you without a wife." Salvatore remarked.

"I know Pop. I'm working on it." Joey replied, a little embarrassed.

"TONI!" Salvatore greeted Toni. "How's your Momma? She's a good woman, you know. Strong, firenze …"

"She's good. Fine," Toni replied back.

"Terrific! Terrific! Now listen you guys, you go inside while I talk to your new friend here." Toni and Joey then followed Luigi inside the mansion. Salvatore had heard about Claude from the other bosses, and he was pleased to see Claude. "I see nothing but good things for you my boy …" Salvatore and Claude then went into the living room together.

Inside, Salvatore had a little job for Claude to do. He wants to test out Claude for some of the more challenging tasks ahead. "Me and the fellas need to talk business, so you're gonna look after my girl for the evening." Then he turned around and yelled, "HEY MARIA! Move your butt!" Maria was a girl Salvatore met back in Las Venturas, a city near the West Coast area. Maria and Salvatore had been in a relationship for almost 10 years, almost as how long Claude's lasted. "Dumb broad does this every time." Salvatore tells Claude. A female person in her early 30s' then enters the living room. Claude thought that this might be Maria. Salvatore then introduces his girlfriend to Claude. "And there she is, the one and only Queen of Sheba!" Then, things got a little personal. "What were you doing up there? Whatever it was, I'll bet it cost me money!"

Maria then argued back. "Well, you don't think I hang around for the conversation, do you."

Salvatore then had enough. "Get in the car, and keep your big mouth shut! Take the limo but bring it back in one piece, you hear me!" And then he turned to Claude, and said, "And watch her. She can be trouble."

Maria was a bit attracted to this new handsome guy that Salvatore was talking to, but didn't know how to address him. And he was more attractive and the rich but old Salvatore. "Yeah, yeah, yeah! I'm sure your new lap dog has everything covered, and isn't he big and strong?" Maria mocked Salvatore about his age, and then turned to Claude. "Hey Fido, let's go visit Chico and get some party streets. He's at the rail station in Chinatown, I think." The name's Claude, he thought to himself. But because he can't speak, "Fido" became his new nickname. The both of them then got into the limo and drove off to Maria's destination, the El-Train station in Chinatown. They arrive to see a Latino person standing nearby. Guess he knew Maria was coming. Claude then stopped the car to allow Maria to alight. Although he couldn't exactly hear what they were saying, but he knew that it can't be good.

"Hey Maria! It's my favorite lady! You're looking for some fun? A little … hmmm … some SPANK?" Chico introduced himself and his wares for sale.

"Hi Chico. Nah, just the usual." Maria answered.

"Here you go, lady," Chico gleefully handed the goods to Maria. "Say, maybe you should check out the warehouse party at the east end of Atlantic Quays."

"Thanks, Chico! See you around."

"Gracias, and enjoy! That's good stuff!" Maria then waved goodbye to Chico, and hopped back into the limo. There, she gave him new instructions. "Come on Fido, let's go and check out this party." Claude didn't go there straight away. He aimed his Uzi, and shot Chico. He hated drug dealers, and Chico was annoying anyway! He then drove on to Atlantic Quays, where sure enough, there was a Mafia-ran party. Claude then parked the limo carefully. There, Maria instructed Claude to keep the car running. "Alright Fido, you wait here and look after the car while I go and shake my butt alright?" Claude nodded, and Maria then went into the warehouse. While waiting, Claude pulled out a book from his jacket, and looked inside. It was the trip he made to San Andreas a few years ago. There, he and Catalina made love. Catalina, for your information, was the woman who shot him back in the beginning of the story. They met in San Andreas, and they had lots of fun hitting stores while evading the cops. Ah, good times, he thought to himself. He had hoped to get out of girl trouble after Catalina's betrayal, but it wasn't made to last. The police scanner in Salvatore's limo soon delivered a disturbing message. "Four-five to all units! Assist narcotics raid near Atlantic Quays." A Police Enforcer soon drove up near the warehouse. A second one drove up later, and both vehicles unloaded SWAT members. "It's a raid!" One of the Mafia guards yelled out, and soon some of the party members and Mafia thugs joined in the shooting against the police. Maria quickly jumped inside the limo, and said, "OK Fido. Let's get out of here! WOAH!" Claude quickly put away his book, and quickly drove back to Salvatore's mansion. However, 2 Police cruisers decided to make things tough for Claude. Despite this minor setback, Claude pressed on, and entered the garage near the mansion. This cannot be happening to me, Claude thought to himself.

After all that hassle, Claude and Maria then walked up the stairs from the garage together. Maria was very pleased with Claude for looking after her so well. "You know, I really enjoyed myself for the first time in a long while, and you treated me real good, with respect and everything." Then, she looks at her watch, and then tells Claude. "Oh, I'd better go. I'll see you around, I hope." She then enters Salvatore's mansion. Salvatore was real pleased, and gave Claude his pay for looking after his girlfriend. Just then, Joey paged. He told Claude that all the planning was ready, and he needs his help. Claude then grabbed a Mafia Sentinel near the garage, and drove to Trenton. Salvatore was very kind to lend Claude some of his cars.

Note: I've included a little Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas inside. If you remember, Claude appeared once in the "Farewell, My Love …" mission, while Salvatore and Maria appeared in Las Venturas, where you're doing jobs for the Mafia. I added those in to connect the stories together. Hope you'll like them!