CS: The Cappollas (Cont.IX)
“Yeah. Crazy fuck. He was there at the fucking gunfight. Got a bullet in the chest and a knife across the face and still he marched out of there with a bunch of our fucking boys under his belt. He’s the last blood member of the Cubans left and he runs an operation that leaves no prisoners and is so fierce we can’t even blink or we’ll all be dead.”
“You make this all sound very….difficult.”
“It is, my friend. Here it isn’t just about diplomacy or violence. The real world is like that. This is the stuff that you read about in fucking graphic novels and watch in the movies. The sort of backstabbing, triple-timing shit that nobody thinks people can actually pull off. Nobody is to be trusted outside of this house, you understand?”
“I do not trust anyone but myself.”
“Even better.” Tony paced around as he listened to the clock chime midnight. “Listen. You work for us now, then. If you don’t trust anybody, then you only care where the money and the loyalty is comin’ from and that’s us. You won’t find the Gambinis knocking on your door cuz they’re aren’t the ones investing in you. Sylvestro thinks they’re invincible, but I know better. You see, we just used them to get you, and now that we have you by the bank account we’re going to milk you until we’re the only ones left. They say that you’re a one man fucking army, so I hope that they’re right.”
“If you think that I’m going to take care of the entire Gambini family along with all the others….”
“Nah nah. Don’t get ahead of yourself, there friend. This ain’t some suicide fucking mission that I’m sending you on. This is strategy here. I’ll give Reno that, he’s got me bested in that area. He may not know how to run things the right way, but he’s at least bright enough to adapt himself to running things the way that I want them to be run. He may disagree, but he’s trying to compromise. You see, it’s taken time, but I’ve finally gotten him to come around enough to where he accepts my ideas as the way it’s gonna be under me, and now that he’s workin’ with me, I’m allowing him some actual say in our plans. So really, I’m just the mother givin you the last hug before dad comes in and lays down the law.” Tony seemed pleased with the metaphor. Max knew what he meant, though it didn’t really fit.
“Now is the time to show the world what the Cappollas can do. I’m sure you already knew all this, but it helps to repeat things.”
“Yes, it does.”
Tony turned back and drew near to Max, his tone and attitude changing, “I want you to show these fuckers who is king around here. We have been around for a god damn long time and I’m not about to have them beat us down….these new fuckers. It’s always the way with the world today, the young always think they’re better than the old. Let’s show em that this isn’t always the case, all right?”
“I do whatever I’m paid to do.”
“Good. What will you need?”
“We’ll deal with that after I hear exactly what Reno has planned. I assume that’s who I’m to really report to now that you’ve had a chance to greet me.”
“For now, yeah. But I’ll be watching.” Tony waved and Max took it as his cue to leave. He rose slowly and moved for the door. “Oh, and Max.” The mystery man within the Cappolla house slowly turned around, he already knew what was coming but waited. “You fuck up and you’re on your own, ya know? That’s the two way street that comes with being a shadow.”
“I already know, Mr. Cappolla.” Max turned and stepped out. Tony Cappolla. The man seemed to talk in circles and elaborated far too much to a man who only needed to be pointed in the right direction with a result in mind. Nonetheless, Max had appreciated the breather that was Tony. Too often he had been given assignments by some cold, hard-nosed, down-to-business kind of agent who had no personality, at least in front of other agents. Tony was human–almost too human, Max thought as he passed by Louis and Hudson again and made his way downstairs.