“I’m not my father,” I say sternly as I keep my eyes on the desk, refusing to look over at him as I speak, “and that’s going to take some getting used to—for all of us. Everyone has a part to play in this family, and I can’t have anyone acting outside the family. I expect you all to remember that and check with me before you act. Going off on your own is why…” I pause for a second, taking a deep breath. “Well, we don’t want a repeat of the last year.”
I glance up. All the somber eyes are on me, and every head nods slightly.
“We all expected Micha to be sitting in this seat.” I glance down at the top of the desk and swallow hard before I continue. “We all feel that loss, and the family will never be the same, but Orso business in Cascade Falls, Ohio, must continue—legal and otherwise.”
Cascade Falls is a small town, and that has always suited us perfectly. The police force is small and entirely under our control, and the townsfolk on the east side are perfectly happy as long as we are providing them with jobs and security. The jobs are easy. Between our collection of legitimate businesses and the various illegal ventures, there is plenty of work to be done. As far as security goes, everyone is safe as long as they don’t interfere, and everyone knows better. The Orso name is royalty in Cascade Falls even if it’s a small kingdom.
Big fish, small pond.
“We’re going to focus on business being well-run and well-maintained,” I say to the group. “We’ll strengthen our associations and focus on trust. Blood or not, we’re a family, and I expect everyone to be loyal to this family.”
I relax a little as I hear everyone murmur in approval.
“Give me the accounting rundown, Kate,” I say. “Start with quarterly reports.”
“The casino is up four percent this quarter, and the club is up nine percent. Import-export is unchanged, but one of the freight forwarders wants to negotiate for more money.”
“Which one?”
“Quality Expeditors.”
“They ship to and from Asia, right?”
“Yes,” Kate replies. “They do the most volume there, but they also handle western and southern Africa.”
“Do we already pay them enough?” I ask.
“We pay them more than any others.”
“Antony?” I give him a sharp look.
“I can lean on them,” he says. “Try to figure out if they’re serious or not. They can’t afford to lose our business, that’s for sure.”
“Are the other forwarders in a position to pick up the slack if we drop them?”
“Not even close,” Antony replies.
“You can’t lose Quality Expeditors,” Pops says. “You also can’t pay them more. Don’t be a fucking idiot, Nate. Antony needs to do more than just lean on them.”
“Right. Of course.” I look away from Pops. As much as I might want his guidance, I’d rather he didn’t do it in front of everyone. My gaze meets Antony’s, and he raises an eyebrow at me. “You need to send a message, Antony. A strong message. We aren’t negotiating, and they aren’t dropping our business. This isn’t an option.”
“I can do that, boss,” Antony says. “Should I take Threes with me?”
“They know Threes will get nasty if he needs to,” Pops says.
“We need nasty,” I reply with a nod. “Threes, go with Antony.”
“Sure, boss.” Threes jiggles his leg up and down as he leans forward with his elbows on his knees.
“What about me?” Twos asks as she reaches over to still her brother’s leg.
“We don’t need to fucking charm then,” Dad says with a growl. “She’ll just open her legs for their manager and expect him to forget his own profits. That’s bullshit.”
I glance from Pops to Twos, but she keeps her eyes on me, not reacting to my father’s words. She tosses her long, bleached hair over her shoulder and elbows Threes again until he stops jiggling.
“Yeah, best you stay out of this one, Twos.”
“Fine,” she replies. “I’ll drive, at least.”
“She can’t drive for shit,” Pops mutters, and I glare at him.
“Twos can drive,” I say, still staring at my father. “I’m in charge now, and I’ll make the fucking calls. Everyone good with that?”
“Sure, boss.” Antony furrows his brow as he glances from me to Twos.
“Of course I am,” Twos replies. “That’s why I offered.”
I ignore her look of confusion. Pops has never cared for Twos, and I realize she’s used to ignoring his misogynistic remarks. I’m certain he only puts up with her presence because Threes is willing to do things no one else will.
I breathe slowly, trying to keep my agitation with my father’s interjections invisible to the others. I might have been in this business since I was old enough to understand what my family is all about, but I’m still the new guy in this position. I can’t show any weakness.
“Twos drives, but just Antony and Threes go inside. Antony does the talking. If they’re reasonable, then call it a day. If not, Threes will let them know the consequences of fucking with us.”
“You got it,” Threes says.
I nod back at Kate, and she runs through a bunch of numbers. Though I keep my eyes on her and try to absorb what she’s saying, I’m inside my head more than not.
I really am the head of the family empire now. Even though I’m not the one who is supposed to be sitting in this chair, even though Dad doesn’t believe I can do this, everyone has accepted me as the guy in charge.
Kate reports on legal complications, speaking partially in code about bribes to the police force and government officials to keep them from snooping around our businesses. She neglects to mention a crucial element.
“You missed an important piece there, Kate,” I say.
“What’s that?”
“Our mole in D.C.”
“Oh…yes.” She flips to another page in her notepad. “Antony has been keeping up with her.”
“Well?” I tap my fingers on the arm of the chair, realize it’s something my father often does, and force myself to stop.
“She says someone’s been snooping around the documentation business,” Antony says. “Looks like a formal investigation might happen if evidence is found.”
“The feds have tried that before. Our local cops always take care of it.”
“This time they have something.”
“What?” I ask.
“Not sure.”
“Well, fucking find out then! In the meantime, move production to the warehouse behind the lodge. Close up the office in town for renovations or something. Better keep all that shit closer to the edge of town and the highway in case we need to move it to Cincinnati.”
“You want to expand physical business to Cincinnati?” Antony asks tentatively.
“Not expand, no. Not now anyway. Just a precautionary step. The property we bought down there can serve as a backup production site if we need it. I want to make sure what we have set up down there is profitable before we push it, but it’s a good countermeasure if some fed shows up here.”