And we're back in business with another, more manageable chapter! It may not be as exciting as the last one, but be sure to let me know your thoughts!

For almost a week CJ had done everything she could manage to avoid Pino, and lucky for her, he was kept busy enough to make her task simple. With the current shift in the crime families' power, Pino found himself trying to fill his father's shoesㅡhe was trying to keep all of his dad's former men around, trying to convince them not to go off and join the Penguin and effectively prove their father's efforts through the years pointless. But from what Umberto had told her, it wasn't going so well. CJ wasn't all that surprised, really; Pino had all of their father's temper, but none of the man's credibility. Pino's temper was even less stable than Sal's, and he carried an air of arrogance that was rather off-putting to other mobsters. They may have shown Pino respect when his father was still alive, but now that Sal was gone they weren't nearly as cooperative as before. That, at least, brought CJ some joyㅡPino needed a few solid blows to his ego.

Umberto was doing his best to help CJ out when he couldㅡhe had reached out to a couple of her friends back to Brooklyn to collect some of her belongings from her old dorm and send them in an effort to make her feel a little better, and she couldn't thank him enough for that. She knew that she didn't want to be dependent on Pino and his control of the family money anymore, and so CJ decided she had to try to find a job, an idea Umberto completely agreed with. So, he offered to make a few calls to businesses he had a relationship with and help her build a résumé.

CJ realized very quickly how inexperienced she was in lifeㅡnot only had she never had a job, but she also didn't have a driver's license and was unaware of the way a workplace functioned. She was undeniably ignorant of things that seemed like common sense to most people, but she wasn't most people. She was sheltered while growing up, told their was no need for women to work, raised to only ever be dependent on the men in her life for nearly everything. When she came to that realizationㅡthat she always depended on her father and brothersㅡCJ swiftly insisted that Umberto stopped making phone calls, that she wanted to find a job on her own. The last thing she wanted now was to continue using the Maroni family name to get her things she otherwise couldn't on her own; CJ was done riding on her father's coattails, and she certainly didn't want to continue that same pattern now by using her brothers.

As CJ was busy visiting business and filling out applications, she was lucky to have remembered that the East End Thai restaurant that Victor took her to last week had a hiring sign posted in their window. She was also lucky that she was good at putting on a friendly face, and lucky that the shallow owners deemed her attractive enough for a hostess positionㅡthe other few jobs she applied for weren't interested in giving a girl with no experience positions with their companies. If she had used her family name instead of her mother's maiden name on the applications, CJ was sure things would have gone differently with those companies, but she knew she had to find a job on her own; she didn't want the Maroni name to forever dictate each area of her life.

After filling out all the necessary paperwork at the restaurant, she was able to start the job training within a few days. She made an agreement with Umberto to only take the afternoon shifts, since he wasn't comfortable with the thought of her by herself at night if he was ever unable to give her a ride. CJ could understand his concern, as she too was a little nervous about working over in the East End.

Hosting was easy for her, CJ found after her first couple days on the job. She was well rehearsed in putting on a pleasant face, so the customers she could manage without a hitch. She could handle answering the phones no problem, even if she did want to complain about their terrible connection, and she managed to quickly learn the table charts and reservation process. In fact, the job surprised her with how easy it was that she was already growing a little bored by the end of her first week. But she reminded herself that, for now, the job was goodㅡit was a nice restaurant in a more or less decent part of town, things could've been much worse.

When Pino found out CJ got a job, he wasn't happy. She avoided telling him for nearly two weeks, but she knew he had to find out eventually. She was just lucky it didn't turn into another big fightㅡif it weren't for Umberto being there, she probably would've been hit again.

"Pino, if you don't want her to be a burden, then it's a good thing she got a job." Umberto defended after he and CJ had just returned home from her workplace.

"Why the hell does she even need a job, the family's money is already paying for all her shit." Pino's eyes were harsh as he looked over Umberto's shoulder at his sister.

"He just told you why, how about you use your ears." CJ crossed her arms with a raised brow, "Wouldn't you rather I not dip into your money."

Pino rolled his eyes, "Okay, sure, I get it, but why the hell would you get a job that has you dressing like a total whore?"

CJ gapped as he indicated toward her little black dress and make-up fully done (including her deep red lipstick her father so hated). She very well wanted to mock him for such outdated thinking, "Pino, I'm a hostess."

"It don't change the fact that you look like a streetwalker!" Pino threw up his arms, "What if ma sees the way you're dressed, huh? If dad knew you were going out and looking like thatㅡ"

"Dad's dead." CJ cut off, though her eyes immediately widened as Pino's expression twisted. But Umberto acted quickly, resting a hand onto his brother's shoulder and stepping between them.

"Hey, Pino, she's just being dumb, don't worry about it." He managed to maintain an even tone as he spoke despite fearing the worst from his brother, "Come on, don't waste your energy."

Pino glared for a moment at CJ before taking a deep breathe and backing up while muttering, "Just being a stupid bitch…"

He briskly walked away, leaving CJ and Umberto to exchange a silent glance.

It was halfway through CJ's third week of work, just after their Friday lunch rush, and she stood at the hostess station with her coworker Amber and shift manager, Jose. CJ hadn't yet become close to anyone at work, but she was nonetheless good at being friendly, and admittedly she was hoping to find someone she could call a friend (since being stuck in Gotham, she really didn't have much interest in getting back in touch with any of her friends from back in her school days).

As Jose told a story about a recent outing with his friends, the door chimed and in a rehearsed tone CJ and Amber began to greet the guest almost simultaneously.

"Hi, welcome toㅡ" But CJ cut herself off as she met the customer's eyes and realized it was Victor. He gave her a confused look that quickly became amused, "Oh, what are you doing here?"

CJ's coworkers looked at her, shocked by her tone; meanwhile, Victor simply smirked, "I've been eating here since you were in diapers; a better question is what are you doing here?"

CJ nearly rolled her eyes, "I work here."

"Dropping out of school to become a hostess?" Victor's lower lip jutted out as he raised a brow.

"That's not exactly what happened…" CJ trailed off, looking between her coworkers who watched the interaction as if it were a bizarre spectacle. CJ sighed, picking up a menu, "So, table for oneㅡ"

"What makes you think I'm eating alone?" Victor gave a mock look of offense.

"Do you even have friends to dine out with?" Amber and Jose must not have understood CJ's tone, because their jaws practically dropped in shock; meanwhile, Victor's jaw clenched, but his eyes nonetheless looked entertained.

Jose realized then that he, as manager, had to step inㅡthis was Victor Zsasz after all, and he couldn't let one of his employees talk to the man like that.

"CJ," he nearly hissed while stepping forward to meet her eyes, "that's no way to talk to our guests."

CJ couldn't help the amused expression on her face as she let out a laugh, turning back toward Victor who had a similar look of jest on his face. The bald man took a step forward to clap a hand onto Jose's shoulder, which was intimidating regardless of how humorous Victor was being, causing the other man to slightly start and turn.

"She can talk to me however she wants." Victor's tone was in no way menacing, rather it was nearly comical as he met CJ's eyes again.

"So, table for one?" She repeated teasingly, and Victor gave a faint smirk as he stepped away from Jose while giving the manager's shoulder a couple of well-meaning pats. Victor followed after CJ, who began to lead him away from the front desk and through the restaurant, Jose and Amber continuing to watch them in surprised confusion.

"So, why are you still here?"

CJ's eyes hardened just slightly as she threw a glance over her shoulder, "I'm at work, that's a story for another time."

"Hm." They came to a stop near a lone table, CJ meeting Victor's eyes with a familiar look, "So, there's going to be another time?"

She gave the slightest of smirks, shaking her head, "Not likely."

"Shame." Victor sat down suddenly, "And here you had me thinking you wanted to be friends."

CJ stared briefly before giving a practiced smile while setting down his menu, "Your server will be over in just a moment."

CJ quickly walked back to the host station where now only Jose stood. The man gave her a concerned look.

"You know who that was, right?"

"No, Jose, I talk to all strangers like that." CJ deadpanned with a sarcastic smile.

"You had me scared, CJ; Zsasz isn't a guy I'd want to mess with." Jose lowered his voice slightly.

"Trust me, Victor isn't going to do anything to me."

Jose's gaze was doubtful, "How the hell do you even know him, anyway? You two seem friendly."

CJ barely paused to consider her answer, "My dad introduced us."

"So, how the hell does your dad know him?" Jose urged, reminding CJ that she hadn't used her family name on her application.

CJ eyed him for a long moment, "Don't worry about it." Her tone was firm as she looked away from her coworker, hoping to end their conversation.

"Just don't talk like that with him in front of anyone else, got it?" Jose insisted, "If it were anyone other than me, you'd be in real trouble."

He finally walked away, leaving CJ to glance back around the restaurant, her eyes falling onto Victor for a moment as he ordered with his waiter. A few seconds later, his eyes met hers, and he gave the slightest of smirks as they stared at each other.

It had been just over a month since Salvatore Maroni's passing; Pino was still convinced that the family would make a comeback in the mob, Umberto continued to play the role of the neutral mediator, and CJ, though adjusting to being stuck in Gotham, was still upset. She was getting grief no matter what she didㅡif she went out, Pino said she wasn't around to support their emotional mother. If she worked, Pino gave her shit for trying to distance herself from the family. And if she ever even wanted to talk money with Pino, he'd then go on to call her a mooch. Being trapped at home was just thatㅡtrapped. CJ felt suffocated and controlled, and it was pissing her off.

For the most part, she was lucky to avoid Pino. He was often caught up with trying to get the family back on its feet; with the Maroni family empire almost completely toppled by the Penguin, he had to figure out a plan. He shot down Umberto's suggestion of joining in under Cobblepot, saying that would be an insult to their father. And when CJ mockingly suggested they start looking for work as busboys, Pino was the furthest from amused. That, unsurprisingly, led them into another fight, and only reminded CJ of why she was trying so hard to avoid him these last few weeks.

Oswald Cobblepot had officially become "King of Gotham," as he had taken to calling himself. CJ found humor in the idea that her self-important brother may have met his match for egocentrism in the underworld's newest kingpin. Aside from that, CJ knew very little about the changes within the mob and criminal underworld. What she did know was that many of the men previously loyal to her father were now moving to follow Penguin, and that Don Falcone was officially retired and preparing to leave Gotham for an unknown stretch of time. CJ hadn't seen even a glimpse of Falcone since her father's funeral, though that was expected; after all, it wasn't as if they really had any kind of a relationship. In fact, she was almost sure she probably wouldn't see Falcone again any time soon.

It was another lunch shift for CJ when Victor entered the Thai restaurant again, by himself once more. This time, CJ was working with a host named Jameson, who recognized Victor immediately, though unlike her other coworkers, didn't look worried. In fact, he gave an almost friendly look that was genuine rather than the rehearsed one they all typically wore.

"Missed me?" Victor greeted her and CJ narrowed her eyes just slightly, though nonetheless he managed to make her grin a little.

"Sure." She answered simply as the man looked her up and down curiously, as if her working there was still a shock.

"Just you today, Zsasz?" Jameson asked from beside CJ, grabbing their attention.

"As if he comes here with anyone else." CJ joked, to which Victor quirked a brow with a smirk.

"He used to come in here with this one blonde chick all the time. What was her name again; Katherine, Karina?" Jameson's words caused Victor to bite the inside of his cheek, a motion that didn't go unnoticed by CJ, "Ended it with her, huh? She did seem a little… strange, even for you."

Victor's eyes hardened, his expression insisting an end to the subject, and now it was CJ's turn to raise her eyebrow curiously. She grabbed up a menu, nodding her head toward the dining area and began leading silently.

"Haven't quit yet, huh?" Victor asked from behind her.

"Gotta get out of that house somehow." CJ glanced back at him as they stopped at a table, "So, blondes your type, huh?"

Victor's eyes again hardened, and CJ knew she wouldn't get anything on the subject out of him. He silently took a seat, and for a moment she stared before setting down his menu and beginning to walk away.

"You have a break yet?" The man spoke up, and CJ paused curiously.

She turned to him with a furrowed brow, "Why?"

Victor studied her face for a few long moments, "… Lemme talk to one of your managers."

"Excuse me?" But Victor simply raised his brows, an expectant look in his eyes. With a sigh and a shake of her head, CJ walked toward the kitchen doors, stepping in and searching the room for a moment. She quickly spotted the manager in conversation with one of the busboys, "Sandra?"

The interruption caused the two other staff members to glance over curiously.

"Whatcha doing back here, CJ?" Sandra turned to face the young woman, briefly instructing the busboy to get back to work.

"Table twenty-six wanted to talk to you."

The manager sighed, immediately assuming the worst, "What did you do?"

Sandra began leading the way out onto the dining floor, CJ following with a slight eye roll, "Nothing, I swear."

"Go back to the front, I'llㅡ" Sandra paused, realizing who was sitting at table twenty-six. CJ waited for just a moment to see if the manager would finish her sentence, but when no more words left Sandra's mouth, the younger woman silently walked away to join Jameson back at the host stand.

For a couple of minutes CJ waited, she and Jameson both glancing back a few times toward Victor's table. The man looked calm as ever as Sandra's surprise was still present in her eyes, and at some point Jameson nudged CJ's shoulder to tease her about what kind of trouble she started. She simply rolled her eyes at him, and as Sandra began to walk away from Victor both hosts turned back forward attempting to act nonchalant.

"CJ…" Sandra started slowing as she approached, and the younger woman looked over curiously, "Go on a break."

CJ couldn't help the surprise on her faceㅡdid Victor really insist on talking to a manager just so he could talk to her for a few minutes?

"But I had a break an hour ago."

"Just take another." Sandra nodded toward Victor's table, "Mr. Zsasz wants to talk to you."

The older woman didn't hide the scrutiny in her expression as CJ walked past her with a sighㅡshe really didn't need this right now, she could only imagine the gossip it would stir up.

Soon, she came to a stop at Victor's table, and he looked up at her with amusement in his gaze, "I don't need you drawing this kind of attention to me." CJ practically felt as if everyone in the restaurant were staring, even though she knew it not to be true.

"You'd draw attention regardless." He responded casually, staring at her a beat longer before nodding to the chair across from him. CJ paused, brow slightly furrowedㅡwhat exactly did he mean by that? Was that some roundabout way to compliment her, or was it intended as a jab? Whenever Victor spoke, CJ could never quite tell if his words were said in praise or insult.

After she remained on her feet for a few moments too long, Victor motioned his eyes toward the chair again more insistently, and slowly CJ sat down.

"You going to be at Falcone's this weekend?" The man asked simply, receiving a curious look from CJ.

"Should I be?" She cocked her head.

"Well, your family was invited, so…"

"Invited to what?" The corner of Victor's lips tugged upward as CJ followed his eyes questioningly.

"I'll take that as a 'no,' then." He picked up his menu then, and CJ sighed with a slight eye roll. For a moment, they were both silent.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on or not?" She finally asked, to which Victor sucked in his lips as if in deep thought, "You didn't insist I take another break just so you could be annoyingly vague with me."

"No." He said almost dismissively, his eyes turning back up as he studied her expression for a beat, and CJ sighed through her nose, crossing her arms expectantly, "Don Falcone is having a dinner party before he leaves townㅡhe sent your family an invite, though I expected Pinot Grigio wouldn't tell you."

CJ couldn't help the amused look that crossed her face as she huffed out a laugh at the lame joke she'd heard from people more than once before, "Creative; come up with that one yourself?"

The corner of Victor's mouth tugged up as he continued, "You wanted to say 'goodbye' to Falcone, now you'll get the chance. Don't let your brother tell you you can't go."

CJ stared back at him for a few moments in consideration, "What makes you think I'd even want to go?"

Victor shrugged while pushing out his lower lip, "Anything to get outta the house, right?"

As a waiter finally walked toward the table, curious eyes unabashedly staring at CJ as he approached, the young woman sighed and stood.

"Thanks for the extra break, Victor." The bald man looked on with a trace of amusement as she turned and began to walk back toward the front, brow knitted slightly as she considered their conversation.

When CJ arrived back home later that afternoon, Pino and Umberto were both out. The last couple hours of her shift she kept thinking back to what Victor had said to her, and now that she was home her curiosity was piqued again.

So, CJ wandered back toward her father'sㅡwell, now Pino'sㅡoffice, sure that some kind of invitation would've ended up there, unless it otherwise made it into the garbage already. As she pushed open the office door, her eyes wandered over the dark furniture and messy desk; rarely had she ever been in this office these last few years, and the only difference now from what it was then was the clutter created by Pino's laziness. But CJ spent no time dwelling on it and immediately began sifting through the paperwork, carelessly dropping all the items that weren't an invitation.

After a minute or so, the office door creaked again, and CJ's heart nearly leaped out of her chest as she quickly looked up with widened eyes. But it was only her mother, and the young woman let out a long sigh, relieved it wasn't Pino she'd have to deal with.

"Camila, what are you doing?" Josephine's tone was soft, not one of upset or concern. She stepped further into the room, a fragile look on her face. Ever since Sal died, his widow was often depressed or in a daze; there was a dullness to her, a lack of a glow, and it had only been in the last couple of days that she had begun to even slightly resemble a former version of herself. Admittedly, CJ and her mother hadn't spoken much these weeks, neither exactly feeling like themselves recently. If CJ were being honest, she didn't know how to handle Josephine's emotional state, and in turn, Josephine had sealed herself off from her family.

CJ walked around the desk, fingers tracing along its top for a moment before she leaned against it.

"I'm looking for the invitation to Don Falcone's dinner party this weekend." She said plainly, and Josephine gave a surprised look.

"I didn't think Pino mentioned it to you…" Josephine tugged at the sweater wrapped around herself.

CJ knew she could've lied, maybe tell her mother it was Umberto that mentioned it to her and not Victor, but she couldn't bring herself to. CJ was growing tired of lies and secrets, and she certainly didn't want to keep things from her mother anymore.

"Victor Zsasz told me." CJ's voice came out softer than she expected, but Josephine nonetheless heard, and the older woman's brows rose in surprise, a subtle look of unexpected warmth in her eyes. For a few long moments, the pair stared at each other silently, CJ waiting for her mother to speak as Josephine thought for a few long moments.

The older woman's eyes turned from CJ, staring out a window, " You two keep finding your way to each other, don't you?"

Now, CJ's brow furrowed, a confused huff of a laugh escaping her, "What do you mean?"

"You had dinner with him last month, you had his coat at the funeral," those last two words made Josephine choke for a moment, "and I remember last Christmas."

CJ shook her head, "Ma, none of that means anything other than he and I keep unintentionally crossing paths."

"And what about this last time, when did he tell you about the dinner party?" Josephine crossed her arms, though not in upset.

"He's apparently a regular at my work." The response seemed to actually amuse the older woman, much to CJ's surprise.

"And you knew that when you took the job?"

CJ nearly rolled her eyes, "No; he and I are not friends or anything other than very casual acquaintances."

"Hmm…" Josephine hummed as her gaze turned away again while she slowly walked toward the leather couch sat under the window.

"Pino doesn't want us to go to the dinner, does he?" CJ redirected the subject as her mother shook her head.

"No, but he still knows we should be polite."

Josephine motioned for her daughter to come sit beside her, "Why didn't he tell me about it?"

"Pino's angry, Camila." CJ glared at the statement as she sat.

"At me?"

"I didn't say that." Josephine's eyes were stern for a moment, "He's angry at everything, at the world."

"I haven't noticed…" CJ rolled her eyes, causing her mother to give her a disapproving look.

"He's trying to fill your father's shoes, make decisions the way he would have." Josephine took a shuddering breath, closing her eyes for a moment as she thought about Sal, "He thinks its better you don't go to Falcone's; he doesn't want you around there."

"But that doesn't make sense." Josephine shook her head silently, "I want to go, he can't stop me just because he thinks he's the boss."

"Bring it up with your brother, Camila." The women rose to their feet one right after the other. CJ sighed, jaw clenched, but she nodded nonetheless, following her mother out of the room. She felt a stiff energy slowly rising between them, debating whether or not to try to spend more time with her mother, "Why are you so interested in going to Falcone's?"

Her tone was knowing, as if she were actually saying "you want to go because of Victor," but it nonetheless caused CJ to pause. Her mother turned around to eye her deliberately, waiting on an answer as the young woman recalled her last conversation with Victor, and that caused her to begin to wonder the same thing.

"…Wouldn't dad have us go?" CJ finally asked, noticing the immediate way her mother's eyes softened, "It wouldn't be very respectful of us not to."

CJ already knew the tactic was working, that she could see on Josephine's face. Was she manipulating her mother? Maybe a little. Put "dad" and "respect" in the same sentence and CJ was almost guaranteed a positive result. And she was hoping that the same tactic with a little more persuasion could potentially work on Pino as well.

"Ma, would you try to reason with Pino? He'll actually listen to you." CJ gave pleading eyes, to which Josephine gave the slightest of smiles as she reached forward to fondly brush her thumb along CJ's jaw once.

"I can't make any promises to you, Camila."

"Then don't. Even if Pino says no, he can't stop me from going anyway." Josephine's gaze was obviously concerned by the statement, but CJ simply stepped back to begin walking toward the stairs, "I'm an adult, and he can't control me."

It wasn't until the day of the party that Pino finally told the family that they would attend. He caught Umberto just as he and CJ were heading out the door to leave for the Thai restaurant, and as Pino spoke to his siblings, his eyes had warning to them; he had an expectation of everyone's behavior, CJ's in particular. His gaze lingered glaringly on his sister as the conversation came to an end and she quickly disappeared out the door.

CJ allowed herself to smile about the news; she was glad to have the chance to see Don Falcone once more before he left and, admittedly, she was also looking forward to seeing Victor. CJ had felt so suffocated this last month, and she wanted to take every opportunity she could to feel some sense of freedom; sure, a party for a mobster seemed like a funny choice for that, but it was certainly better than nothing.

Karina? Who's that? 👀👀 I don't think y'all will be finding out any time soon lol