Jio wasn’t a man who ignored instincts, so although everything should’ve been coming together like he intended, it still wasn’t.
He paused near one of the tables and picked up a sealed brick. His fingers pressed into it slightly, testing the density and quality. His face gave nothing away, but that’s because a lot was happening in his head.
“You weighed this already?” He kept his voice sharp yet low enough to remain undetected.
“Yeah, boss. Twice,” the worker replied quickly.
His eyes remained on the brick.
“Do it again.”
Without hesitation, the man grabbed the scale. Jio set the brick down and watched the numbers increase.
Precision.
Control.
Certainty.
The three things that he built his life on all of a sudden felt shaky. He turned away before the number even settled. That wasn’t what was bothering him. It was something deeper. But what the fuck was it? The problem couldn’t be weighed, packed, sealed up, and shipped off either.
It was close enough not to doubt that it was real.
Jio decided to trust his gut and wrap up the impromptu visit. He didn’t do well with doubt and second-guessing his instincts. He headed towards the back of the warehouse to take a peek into one of the many storage rooms. The shelves were filled with packaged product that equated to millions and millions of dollars. He had inventory for days, which meant shit wasmoving slow. That wasn’t a good sign in his line of business. Jio preferred the shelves to be empty, a sign that niggas were spending tons of money.
Instead of seeing emptiness and profit, he saw a problem. When really there wasn’t one… so why couldn’t he shake the feeling? Jio had to get to the bottom of not being satisfied with what he had in the moment. It felt like shit was slipping through his fingers when it wasn’t.
He dragged a hand down his frustrated face.Focus on the plan, not your mood,his Pops would say. But why today, of all days, did his plan now feel like a risk and not a new opportunity? Why did it feel like if he moved the needle, the repercussions would either bury him or make him untouchable?
Where was that faith that Nina told him he had to have?
“I gotta go.”
It was time for him to dip. He couldn’t think clearly in the warehouse.
Once he made it to his truck, he hopped in and hauled ass. Jio didn’t take another deep breath until he hit the highway. The warehouse was in his rearview, but mentally, he was still there. However, this time he wasn’t a made man yet. He was a nine-year-old kid soaking up game that he shouldn’t have been taught that young to begin with. But his last name was Gotti and, in their family, they did things differently.
Jio wrapped his hand tightly in his grandfather’s. He was trying his best to keep up with the long and confident strides of the made man who stood beside him.
“You not tired, are you kid?” he asked, not even looking down at him, but knowing he was growing toward exhaustion.
“I am,” Jio shot back. He was out of breath just a tad but was trying to do his best to remain determined and steadfast.
How his Papa managed to walk faster than him and he was years older than him was bewildering.
They walked through a warehouse that he’d just purchased, and it was already booming, just like he envisioned. This was their last stop of the day, but tomorrow it would be the first.
Jiorgio didn’t like anyone keeping up with his routine. He switched it up daily but the cadence never changed.
“I’m going to become a very wealthy man out of his warehouse,” he shared with his grandson but was more so talking to himself. An affirmation of sorts.
The walls were brand new. Everything was structured and refined. He smelled money and success in the air.
Jio didn’t understand it at the time, but he felt a sense of power and legacy. There was something bigger taking place… in a matter of time.
His grandfather stopped suddenly and Jio almost ran into him.
“Look around,” the old man said.
