"Good afternoon, Mr. Mascro."
Nodding at the butler, I kept my focus on the plan. I needed to be the stone-cold boss today. Heading into the Den of Secrets, I walked through the scanner that checked for weapons, bugs, and recording devices. None of it was allowed inside, and every member had to pass through before they were permitted admittance. It ensured our meetings were safe and unhackable.
Inside the room, there were no electronics, just a table and seven chairs. A device in the walls scrambled radio waves, disrupting listening devices from trying to pick up conversations. It was soundproof with only one entrance. The air vents were even separate from the rest of the house. The room was checked daily, and hourly on meeting days, at random intervals. It was the most secure and unhackable room. We took privacy that seriously.
It would be my best chance to illuminate the traitor. They wouldn't have an escape or be able to communicate with anyone to warn them. I just had to pull it off. All the grooming I'd had throughout my whole life would come down to this. When it mattered, did I have the stones to do what needed to be done? Even if they were ‘family'?
For the sake of my family, yeah, I could.
Marcel and Lucca were already present when I entered. Their trusted guards, Jasper and Domino, stood against the wall. Each Capo could bring in one person they trusted with what was said in here. Again, it limited access to the information and provided a level of accountability to follow through with what was decided. At the end of the day, they all had to be loyal to me no matter who they served under.
Today, we would test that loyalty.
Opting not to take my seat, I stood behind my chair, leaning on it as I surveyed the room. I watched the two as they shifted in their seats, unease in their posture. It was an odd thing nowadays to be without your phone, but it gave me great insight into them when they couldn't hide. A minute later, we were joined by Uncle Seth and his son, Joel. Hugo and Victor followed the two, taking their places against the wall. When Seth had stepped up to be my underboss until Immy came of age, Joel had been promoted to Capo.
My cousin was a few years older than me but was someone I didn't particularly like. He'd always been envious of my position and felt he deserved it as much as I did. The thing was, he could've taken it, but he didn't have the gall to do it. Instead, he whined and complained about it. He was the obvious choice for the leak, yet it felt too convenient, but I wasn't going to rule him out just yet. Joel at least had plenty of motive to want to take over the family.
"Welcome, gentlemen. Shall we get started?" Not waiting for them to respond, I started, not needing their permission. "Lucca, report in."
As I listened to Lucca detail out the gambling side, I watched everyone else. I knew Sax would remember the essential facts with his crazy memory, so I could tune it out as I took in my family around the table as I paced.
"Crash's forfeit last week was a hit to our take. A lot of upset customers over that one. Nicco said he was taking care of it, so I left it alone."
That did interest me, and I made a note to ask Nicco about it later. Nothing else stood out from Lucca's report, so I moved on to Joel.
"Joel, report."
His posture stiffened, not liking my command, allowing his frustration to leak through his voice. He'd never survive as boss, his emotions too easily riled and known. But like a good soldier, Joel heeled and gave me the details on how the clubs were doing.
"Evolve is set to open this weekend. The soft opening went well, and I think it's going to be well received. Climax continues to be a winner, with numbers increasing nightly for Illusion and Verity. The blackmail material alone is setting us up for some prime paydays." Joel sat back, boasting about his perceived accomplishment despite having no real influence on the earnings.
While I didn't particularly appreciate how he talked about the clubs, I couldn't find anything in his report that set off red flags. Continuing my jaunt around the table, I kept my hands behind my back and watched him when he didn't think I was looking. He seemed relaxed, so once he finished, I moved on to the last Capo.
"Marcel, report."
He hesitated, and I paused as I waited for him to report in. He swallowed, and when I looked at him, it wasn't me he was staring at nervously, but my uncle, Seth.
"Something I need to know about, gentlemen?" The steel was evident in my voice. I didn't like to be kept waiting or out of the loop on something. My prompt had Marcel finally beginning to speak.
"We've had some difficulties with a few shipments lately. Items have been going missing."
"And why am I only now hearing about this?" The rage was carefully contained, but I was feeling ready to let it out to play.
"I thought I could fix it before it would need to come to you."
Strolling to the back of his chair, I moved faster than he expected and slammed his head down onto the table. Getting down low by his ear, I let my words hang in the air for all to hear. "How did that work out for you, Marcel? Hmm? You're not the fucking boss. You don't get to make decisions. You don't think anything in this pea-size brain about what I do and do not need to know. Do I make myself clear?"
His whimpering made my heart race with adrenaline, and a sick part of me enjoyed feeding the monster within. Leaning down further, quieter this time for only him to hear, I whispered, "Now, do you want to tell me why you can't quit eye fucking my uncle, or should I kill you first and then ask him?"
Marcel let out another whimper, and I wondered how he'd ever made it up this high in the family. Most positions were handed down from family rank, but it wasn't the only way. Marcel wasn't a Mascro by blood, so he'd had to have worked to get to his status. Unless he was the patsy someone had put into place to give the illusion of power but was being puppeteered behind the scenes.
Things started to click in my mind as I thought through the possibilities. It made the most sense. It also explained why Jasper hadn't found anything. Marcel was too dumb to know what was really going on and, therefore, unable to slip up or leave anything for Jasper to uncover. Now, was it my father or my uncle who was pulling his strings?
He managed to whisper out one word, and I let go of the simpering fool, deciding to use another tactic. It was time to play the odds.
Nodding at Jasper, he came over and bound Marcel. It was clear to everyone he was a loose end. He would need to be dealt with in the only way the family knew how. But first, I needed to find the real culprit, and then I might be able to save his life.
"Such an interesting story, Marcel just admitted. Would anyone care to guess? Offer up their own version first for some leniency? Hmm?"