C7 When I want what I should not

"I hope that you guys aren't drinking the shit this bar stocks?" A rumbling, laughing, arrogant voice echoes' through the four walls from behind us forcing our heads to turn to put a face to the voice, but not before I noticed the look on Madelaine's face. She wasn't scared before, I did not nearly have the effect on her like this prick did. What has this fool done to her? This must be Roberto. He near us, waving his men to stand by the door. He was dressed in an expensive navy suit jacket which hung past his hips, probably because it couldn't fit around his fat stomach. His beige dress shirt was barely tucked in and I suppose that was thanks to his stomach as well. Not even a corset could keep that beach ball in place. The jeans he wore hung loosely at his legs and god... The fucking Italian shoes were scarfed at the toes. I wanted to beat him up just for looking like that.

He takes a seat on the un-level bar stool next to me placing a bottle of Kentucky Straight on the bar counter, which I almost thanked him for. I couldn't take another glass of the piss I almost poisoned myself with earlier, but I decided against thanking him as soon as he opened his mouth again.

"Sweetheart, come pour these gentlemen a real drink before I cut off those skimpy arms and feed them to my dogs." Madelaine immediately did as she was told. I watch her closely as she place three glasses on the counter with trembling hands, before she slowly lift the bottle into the air tilting its mouth over the first glass to fill it and then she moves on to the second one and then the third. She has done it without spilling any, which seemed to me was mere impossible as I watched her tremble as if she was freezing, but watching her struggle wasn't enough for Roberto. He was depending on her to mess up and when she didn't he knocked the glass out of her hand when she tried to hand it to him. "Good god!" He barked, as he slapped her through her face with the back of his hand, but she didn't make a sound, instead she apologized for her mistake and cleaned it up, before pouring him another drink. Her pleading eyes fell on mine for a brief moment before she turned her back to us and I could see her in that moment. She was begging for help, but couldn't utter the words. She looked at me and then to my brother, judging us for not intervening. She believe that we were all the same and I might have just given her the reason to lock in that thought of hers.

"Do you see what I have to deal with?" Roberto points his nose in madeleine's direction. "I bet the service is better in Italy." He snares brushing his fat fingers through his salt and pepper hair. I wanted so badly to shove the better end of my .327 into his mouth so he could shut his fucking mouth, but that wouldn't do any of us any good. There were five men standing guard at the doors. All of them wearing the same suits, they are much better dressed than him though, their hands already situated on their hips and I can bet my life that there might be about ten more of those clowns outside.

"Let's just say in Italy we prefer to employ a woman with a little more experience." I answer. By this, I actually mean woman, not children, but I couldn't say those precise words without starting a full blown war. These men expected to be respected and I was on his turf, like he referred to it, if I liked it or not. I did not yet have the man power on this side of the water to demand anything from him, but soon.

"That is why America is the greater country. We train them from early on." This conversation would have gone way differently super-fast if the lives of my brother and this girl weren't threatened by these men. I didn't have time to waste. I was a busy man and my attention was needed somewhere else, anywhere else.

"Exactly why I do what I do," I state. "Now tell me what it is you want from me?"

"Diving directly into business then, I see." He clears his throat. "I want in on your operation. I have noticed that more and more children board these plains these days never to return. I also noticed that 80% of these children American decedents. He states withdrawing a small white envelope from his shirt's pocket and place it on the bar counter before sliding it over to me and I pick it up removing the content. It was pictures of Gian and his crew boarding a plane with one of the nurses cuddling a small child. The other photos were basically the same act from different angles. If he was trying to blackmail me it wasn't working.

"These means nothing." I throw them onto the counter, watching Madelaine sneak a peak of what was on the photos. No wonder she was always in trouble. She was fucking relentless; I didn't even notice her turning to face us. "So you have photo's of my men boarding a plane with a mother and her child? There really is nothing unusual about that." They would never be able to prove anything else than what I just said.

"I didn't come here for a shakedown." The fat fuck chuckles. Good, because I wasn't paying him anything. "A child is worth a lot more than these whores." He again points towards Madelaine. For fuck sakes, he doesn't even know a child when he sees one. "I am here to offer you my services. I have many associates who can boost your profits. How does double the merchandise for only half the shipment sound? I will be taking 30% of the profit of course, but this way you will be making more than you are now and you won't even feel my cut." This wasn't a too bad deal. The only problem was. I didn't trust him; I didn't want to do business with him and I hand-picked every child myself. I couldn't let him do this. Look at him; He wasn't even capable of properly dressing himself this morning.

"How about you don't waste your resources and time on my matters and rather invest them in your own doings and I will give you a 5% profit on each shipment anyway?" I could hear Achille's sigh, but he didn't say anything, he thinks that I am making a mistake. Five percent of each shipment is a hell of a lot of money, but we weren't short of money. We still made more than enough.

"You don't want my help? I get that, but son what you don't know is that you already received my help. I have been generous. Nothing happens on my turf if I don't give the go-ahead." He grins. He wants me to know that he knows about the Resort. He is probably the one delaying the licenses of the Casino.

"That is all legitimate businesses. There are no illegal activities at my Casino's." I point that out first. He is not getting his hands on that and if he tries to even poke a finger into that pie, I will cut it off and feed it to his dogs.

"I do my homework." He chuckles. "It surprised me that a man like you would be such a law-abiding citizen." He pats me on the back. I swear if he touches me again I will break every finger in his hand. "You see the problem is you are making money on my grounds causing me to lose money. My guys on the street tell me that you have some kind of no drug rule and you know... Narcotics are my main income." He shrugs.

"I don't care about the narcotics in its name. I just don't want them sold on my property. It attracts unwanted attention." I lie. I fucking hate narcotics. If you want your life ruined I will be happy to burry a piece of lead in your head, if you are looking for a high go jump off your precious Empire state Building, but do not fuck around with any type of drug if your objective is to gain my respect or propose a business opportunity to me.

"How about that 5% and you ship a few Kilos for me with your shipment costing the both of us nothing. Two of my guys will ride along and their paths will split from yours at the destination. You would be my personal courier service. You tell me when and where and my men will do the rest plus I sign for your Hotel to open." He was good, but not that good. I didn't come this far to start answering to someone.

"Three percent of my profits. I will take two loads of 2500 kilo's a month to anywhere you desire at no extra charge. You sign for the Hotel and give me her..." I point to Madelaine. "As a parting gift." I add non-chantingly. I am done negotiating with this retard. He had nothing on me, except maybe for his friends in higher places that was dragging out the Casino's paperwork, but everything was legit and they knew it. They could not keep it up forever, but I will give him this win... for now. Achille sighed again from the other side of me. I was going to get an earful the moment we leave this shitty building. I bet asking for Madelaine pissed him off much more than the pay-cut.

"I can get you a much prettier girl than her." He wrinkles his nose offering me exactly what I was contemplating in my head for the better part of the morning, a hired girl. Only problem was if he gave me one she would not be hired. I would actually be responsible for another person. What if she was a child as well? The thoughts alone made my stomach turn. I needed air, but I resist the urge to leave these four walls right at this moment. I wanted Madelaine first. "She isn't much of a looker." He is testing the waters. He saw me keeping an eye on her. He thinks I am intrigued. I don't want him to know that I was interested in her specifically. That might ruin my chance for her and place her in a very dangerous situation. "Fuck it. I will take it." He roars, before I could reason with him. Maybe he wasn't on to me at all. His words came as a massive surprise to me and by the way Achille blew out his breath I believe he was surprised as well, but what happened next surprised me more.

"Stupid, bitch." Roberto rumbled through his chest. "Shoot her." He ordered to his men and they all withdrew their guns, pointing them at Madelaine as she swiftly slide over the bar on Roberto's side and sprint pass him. If I was the one in that seat I would have caught on to her, but Roberto isn't able to move that swiftly. I quickly jump up glancing over as Achille push pass me to his feet, gun already drawn and he rounds the corner of the counter causing her to run right into him. And with a quick twitch of the wrist he clogs her with the backside of the gun right at her temple sending her to the floor with a hard thump. Blood immediately start to pour from her head creating a pool on the floor.

"Take her to Mister Damian's car. Be sure to shoot her up first. We don't want her waking up and start running again." He chuckled like this was some bad joke. "Sorry, no returns." He adds shrugging his shoulders. What the fuck was wrong with him? Surely his mother must have dropped him as a child.

"I will take her." Achille takes a step forward holding her in his arms. Her blood seeping through the material, of Achille's white dress shirt. "Give Benvenuto the injection he can do it in the car." He orders as he pushes past the minions in their twin light blue suits before disappearing through the exit.

"Yeah... I will do it." I grab the injection from the man's hand carefully to cease it from puncturing my own skin; my eyes caught the needle marks on his hands. "Give me more." I point to his pocket knowing that he probably has another stash of Cocaine hiding in there. "For if she wakes up again." I explain.

When I get to the car Achille is already waiting, engine running and I get in at the back next to Madelaine. "What the fuck are you doing?" He barks as he steps on the gas and my body shift back against the seat. He was mad as hell. I open the window slightly getting rid of the liquid inside that plastic tube before regarding the syringe into the back of the car where it could pose no further immediate danger.

"Just drive," I order him opening the bag of cocaine and placing my left hand on her temple, slowly moving it to find the opening. I pour the white powder right onto the open flesh, pressing at it slightly. That will stop the bleeding, I sit back in the seat watching her unconscious body react to every turn and bump in the road. The both of us covered in blood and white powder, greatly credited to Achille and his driving skills. "Why the fuck did you hit her that hard?"

"Where the fuck were you?" He questioned, although I knew he wasn't expecting an answer. "They wanted to shoot her. She would be dead if not for me." He points out. "You are the one who got her into this mess." That was true. If I kept my mouth shut she wouldn't have been in this position. My brother saved her from my own stupidity. I hated this place and I hated the fucking Gambino's.