Epilogue 2: American Gangster

Seven months after the wedding

The cigar ashes almost dropped before he noticed. He casually flicked the greying end over the heavy glass ashtray that was on the table next to his chair. He was getting increasingly absent-minded, and knew he didn't have enough years ahead of him to do everything he now had to do. Damn her! Her weakness had destroyed all his plans, and dumped decades of hard work and training down the drain.

Oh well, he would start over, again. There was still time and his new protégé was sharp as a tack and loyal to the Family. She had no weaknesses. He'd had her vetted in every way possible. She was his one last hope.

He heard voices outside the door. She was here. He sat up a little straighter and smoothed his remaining wisps of hair over his nearly bald scalp.

"Welcome, my dear. Thank you for coming," he said, extending his hand, not trusting his weak legs to stand.

"Good morning, Uncle," the woman smiled as she approached the old man and warmly clasped his hand in both of hers.

"That's Great-Granduncle to you," he contradicted her, a softness to his voice indicating no real dispute with her title for him. He waved his arm over the chair next him and she sat down, expelling a deep sigh as she settled in. "How are you feeling today?" he asked solicitously.

The young woman unconsciously rubbed her hands over her expanding belly. "Admittedly, I'm a little tired. Your great-great-grandnephew-to-be kept me up most of the night. He's an active little boy and is eager to greet the world."

"And I am eager to meet him. You have no idea how much," he said. "He is the future of our families."

She nodded. "I will train him well, Uncle. Have no fear. I want this for him as much as you do. But you have to take better care of yourself," she admonished, glancing at the still smoking cigar laying in the ashtray. "I wish you'd quit that filthy habit. It takes years off of your life, and those years are going to be precious to your heir. I want him to get to know you, to learn from you, to have fond memories of you. That will help sustain him during the rough times that are sure to come."

"Your great-grandfather and I have trained you well, my dear, and we have imparted all we know to you. It is your responsibility to share that with your son."

"I miss Great-Grandpa Reggie," she said. "I only hope I can make him proud."

"You will make both the Romanos and the Grizzolis proud, my dear," the old man said. "Our Sicilian blood runs through you. You are the best of both of our families. And your unborn son will be the best of our three families." He leaned his head back against the chair cushion. "I can still see all three of us, getting off the boat at Ellis Island in 1952. Tony Salerno, Reggie Romano and me. We were young, cocky and ready to conquer the New World. We were going to take America by storm."

"And you did," the young woman avowed, smiling at the hint of the old man's memories. "The three of you conquered New Jersey and made it yours. I still marvel at all the stories you and Great-Grandpa Reggie used to tell, of how you three divided the state and each built your own empire. And yet you still remained friends."

The old man snorted. "Enough so that I allowed my dear sister to marry your great-grandfather, and my other sister to marry Tony Salerno. Those marriages cemented our ties and our families together."

"And my marriage brings things full circle. My son," she stroked her bulging belly again, "will be the perfect blending of those three families, and he will bring those three empires together into one glorious whole. I promise you, Uncle, I will see that future become reality."

"Your husband must never know the full extent of your mutual heritage. If he knew he was descended from the Salernos, and that you are from the Romanos, and both of you have Grizzoli blood coursing through your veins, I fear he would not be as receptive to our plans for his son."

"He will be a good father, unlike the other men in his family. I love him and he loves me," she smiled. "He is kind and thoughtful, and he will bring our son up with a strong work ethic and an unwavering sense of family loyalty. When the time is right, I will make sure our son knows his family history and the family business, and I will train him to take his rightful place as our new head."

"You fill me with joy, my dear. You are the new future of our combined families," the old man said.

She reached over and patted his hand. "I know I wasn't your first choice, and I hate how my rise came about. But I will never let you down, Uncle. I love you."

"Oh, my dear, and I love you." He exhaled, a sad and tired expelling of breath. "I had such hopes for Terry; she was smart and ruthless, but she had one fatal flaw. There were glimpses of her problem early on, but she learned to hide it well. I thought she could overcome it, but I guess I never knew how strong her inner demons were. I spent years grooming her, and I could see the steadying force that her relationship with Joe Morelli provided. Joe has my blood in him, through my sister, even though her daughter Angela refused to tell any of her children—my own grandnieces and grandnephews—of their true heritage," he exclaimed, saying the last few phrases with vehemence. He glanced over at the young woman sitting next to him. "Your mother raised you right. You always knew where you came from."

"And my children will know their real heritage, I promise you that, Uncle," she said.

"Thank you for that, my dear. It is reassuring," he said. "My brother had his only daughter, Terry, late in life, and he did everything he could to make sure she had a place in the business, and I embraced my niece and trained her as best I could. But Joe never knew his own family history. Maybe that was a good thing. I don't know." He rubbed his hand across his mouth. "I encouraged Terry and Joe, and I always thought they would marry and give the family heirs who could take over the business. But that dream died when Joe came back from the Navy and joined the police force. I knew he would never marry my niece then. At least he managed to keep her focused and on track for years. But when he broke it off with Terry that last time, I could see her going off the deep end. I never thought she'd kidnap that Plum woman, but when she took Ranger Mañoso, I knew it was over. I struggled with the thought of having her ... removed; she's family, after all. But that decision was taken from me when Terry went over that railing. Her death was a blessing in disguise."

"I'm so sorry, Uncle Vito, but it's over now and we need to look forward, look to the future. We have a new heir to love and to train." Again, her hands smoothed over her swelling stomach.

"You are right, of course, Alison. Family always comes first."

The End

AN: The End ... but is it really? We appreciate everyone who has read, reviewed, and followed us. This collaboration started out as a whim and now is something more. If you enjoyed the story please be sure to follow us, because we will be back. Stephanie and Ranger are well on their way down the road to happily every after, but that road has some speed bumps, potholes and an occasional detour, and you won't want to miss any of the details! Thanks for reading and thanks for all the thoughtful reviews. While you're waiting for The Pardo Girls' next offering check out some other awesome stories by jago-ji and sonomom. ;-)