“He’s gotissues,” Giovanni said, finally waddling toward us. “His father told me all about it. That’s why he shouldn’t be a fucking Don. That’s why he’s getting the hell out of my territory!”
“He hasn’t got issues, you fat fuck.” Adriano’s loud defense was unnecessary and caused my muscles to involuntarily tense.He always defended me with expressions and vocabulary that suggested anger, though I did not experience this emotion and found it unneeded.
I did have issues; that was scientifically correct. I did not have an ordinary brain or normal dispositions, but I had developed these traits at such a young age that I did not need to be defended from the truth. I had lived with it long enough.
You are capable, Milano.
You are capable, Milano.
You are capable, Milano.
My mother’s voice repeated three times before my mind permitted me to say, “I cannot be a Don, you are correct. I will be your Capo instead.”
Silence indicated surprise.
Oratio stared at Adriano’s grin before he copied it, though his brother and father did not appear to find the same delight. Otto’s eyes simply widened as Giovanni laughed loudly, robotically.
“Don’t be a cunt, Father,” Oratio said after a moment. “I’d rather he were our boss than you.”
“Oratio,shut up,” Otto warned under his breath.
Oratio shrugged. “No, if Father cares more about fucking whores and spending all our cash, I’d rather we had someone new take over.”
Oratio Gioffre appeared to have a measurable amount of intelligence. I could associate a degree of unexpected respect toward him.
I straightened my spine, making myself feel taller as I said, “Adriano and I simply walked into your territory and into your penthouse. You have spent all of your money on prostitutes and gambling, not on paying soldiers who would secure your family’s safety.” I held onto my tie, preoccupying my hands. “You desire money and a lifestyle. I require theCosa Nostrato function securely. You can keep your money, make more with the connections I will secure, but you will report to me, and you will do what I say without question.”
“Can you teach me?” Otto asked instantly, his eyes becoming wide, but this did not align with the emotion of surprise. I could not name this.
My face tightened as a frown involuntarily pulled on my brows. “Teach you what?”
Otto’s focus turned to his empty plate. Avoiding eye contact indicated that he felt intimidated, but from what Adriano had once taught me, this action could also suggest nervousness.
“I want to be an enforcer.”
“Bullshit!” Giovanni shouted, his fist smacking against the wall. “We’re not entertaining this clown, and you aren’t being an enforcer.” The Don gestured to me with his chubby fingers. “He doesn’t even have a wife! He’s probably never fucked either. You don’t want to follow someone who can’t even fuck. I certainly don’t.”
Enforcers were integral parts of theFamiglia. They ensured order, they were strong, and they were fearless. For a son to become an enforcer was an honor, so Giovanni’s reaction was unexpected. Otto could be an enforcer if he were given the opportunity to train; he certainly had the body for it, and I needed enforcers for my leadership to function.
I squeezed Adriano’s shoulder to stop him from pulling his gun on the Gioffres as I replied, “I have had sexual intercourse on many occasions. My lack of a spouse is not an indication of my status or intelligence.”
“But it isa status,” Oratio stated through a bite of bread. “You know as well as I do that being unmarried, even without being Capo dei Capi, is an issue.” He leaned back in his chair, a smile that reminded me of Adriano’s on his lips. That told me he was soon to break boundaries. “Tell you what, Milan Lucca. My father is going to die, probably soon. His health is fucked?—”
Giovanni growled, “You little?—”
Oratio held up a middle finger to his father. “Imake the calls around here, and we need some help to sort this shit out. You teach my brother to be the best enforcer you’ve ever had, you get yourself a wife, and we’ll take your oath.”
A wife?
That was a suboptimal decision to be forced to make. I was not capable of fulfilling a woman’s emotional needs, nor was I able to sustain an emotional connection. I did not feel emotion to be able to connect anything or anyone to it. To have awife would be cruel, and I was attempting to save women and children from cruelty, but if theCosa Nostrarequired this of me, perhaps it was sacrificial to cause one more act of cruelty in my life.
“As you have witnessed,finding a wife seems to have become a requirement for me to be Capo dei Capi,” I stated as I pulled away from the Gioffres’ penthouse, my hands tightening against my car’s leather wheel.
Adriano simply stared at the street passing by the window from beside me. This typically indicated his extensive thinking. Finally, when his thinking had ended, he replied, “Do you think it’s a good idea to bring a woman into the house? I mean?—”
“She would be unharmed.” I frowned. “My diagnosesmay suggest that I may be susceptible to instability when faced with emotional environments, but I assure you, I would not damage her.”
He made a quiet, strained sound. “I didn’t mean that. I just meant that women can be emotional, and you get overwhelmed with trying to understand emotions. I wouldn’t want either of you to be miserable.”
