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I continue with our history, then instruct the students to pair off with people of other families to learn more about each other’s histories and traditions.
Laney is paired with Akio, the future leader of the triads. His English is strained, but she surprises the both of us when I approach to help facilitate questions.
“Nihongo de hanashi shitahogaidesu ka?” Her Japanese is flawless.
“Sono ho ga kantandarou.”
“Anata no soshikide wa kaiso wa dono yo ni kino shimasu ka?” Her gaze flicks to mine, letting me know to back off.
Well, they clearly don’t need my help.
I move to Alexi who’s paired with a member of the American Irish mafia.
“Look man, I don’t want to end up like Bryce for pissing you off. I’m cool to just sit here and pretend we are doing this if you are.” Ralf sounds legitimately concerned about being paired with the head of the Russian mafia.
Just as I plan to interject, Alexi raises a hand to stop me.
“Bryce got what he deserved because he touched my girl. If you keep your hands to yourself, I am sure we will be able to complete our assigned task just fine.”
The kid tucks his hands into his pockets before he begins talking through the assignment, so I leave them in order to save the poor Italian kid from Damien.
“Holy shit, so you’re like the legacy of legacies. The great-great-great-great-great grandchild of the founders here?”
The kid looks confused before answering. “You do know there are many Italian clans and not all of them originate from Sicilian heritage, right?”
“Oh fuck, for real? How does that even work? Do you have territory grid lines? Have you ever crossed one just to see if anything would happen?”
I roll my eyes and check on more of the students as I make my rounds. Some need help finding new questions to ask, while others have a slight language barrier that I attempt to help them with. I don’t know all of the languages in the world, but I know enough to be qualified for teaching here.
As the clock approaches the end of the period, I gather everyone's attention.
“For this week’s assignment, you will submit your idea for the trials to me. It doesn’t have to be perfected. At this stage, we are just looking for a rough concept. We need to know it’s realistic and begin to set up times for evaluations in the arena. I will work through approvals with the board and help give you the tools you need to accomplish your goals. The only rule is that none of the families of the people in attendance are allowed to be targeted. This is not a time to seek vengeance for your father or grandfather's crimes. This is your time to prove who you are to The Mafie Society.” I look up at the students before giving Laney a smirk. “Do me a favor and don’t fuck it up.”
Students begin to file out at my dismissal, but Evie, Laney, and the guys stay seated in the back. Once the last person is gone, they move to the seats at the front—Evie in the center.
I sit in front of her. “Before we begin, I would like to apologize for keeping who I was to all of you a secret. I know I took those pictures of you all and you could feel that I violated your trust. I want to assure you I was only acting out of interest to keep all of you safe.”
“As long as you can promise not to do anything else behind our backs,” Evie says, “then we can let it go.”
“That I can promise you. So, how’s life being back on the island?” I ask Evie.
“It’s weird being back in my old room with the guys. You know, the one right across from Laney’s.” I pale slightly as she gives me an assessing look, clearly having heard us last night. “But I’m also glad to be here. I want to tell you about my idea for the trials.”
“Okay, write it down then.”
My assignment instructions were clear. Just because I was told to protect them doesn’t mean they get special credit. I see Alexi tense next to her and I prepare myself for the shit storm about to go down. I’m not one of their friends while I’m in this role, a line needs to be drawn.
“Actually, that’s the thing. I don’t want to write it down. I want you to get permission from The Society for us to use extra resources in order to pull off the trial we want to set up. We need you and Havoc and Boris on the team. I want it to be discrete and undercover.”
She holds strong under my glare and I have to give it to her, this girl has balls. I’m deeply impressed with her determination, although I refuse to let it show until she’s earned it.
“What about The Society isn’t discrete?” I ask.
Evie looks at her friends and then back at me. “Let’s not play stupid here. You know as well as I do The Shades have no limits. They have eyes everywhere. It’s what’s made them so powerful. If you want to sit here and establish dominance because you’re the teacher, I can assure you I’m not one to bow.”
I lift an eyebrow at her but already know her truth in that.
“So, if you could go ahead and start acting like a member of the team, we can start treating you like one. Or I can treat you like someone in my way. And for Laney’s sake, I really don’t want to have to do that.”
