"The ones who don't arrive, are never welcomed."
Mr. Daichi asked, "You did what? You fucking killed a mediator of the High Table and have fled here to seek refuge here." Vikram said in an irritated tone, "I am not talking to you, Mr. Daichi. I have come to my friend's house. It is not your opinion that I am seeking." He looked at Shinzo who remained silent. Mr. Kaminari said, "Look, we are currently in a very bad situation here, Vikram. We think you should leave and go back to whatever shit hole you call home." Shinzo said in a stern voice, "No. He is my friend and at present my guest. He will stay here for as many days as he wants." He looked at Vikram and said, "You go and take some rest, brother. We will talk about it tomorrow morning." Vikram smiled and walked away.
Mr. Daichi said angrily, "Are you mad, Shinzo? He just admitted that he killed a mediator of the High Table. How can you give him refuge in spite of knowing that his presence here will bring the wrath of the High Table on us. And don't you forget that he is also a wanted criminal. If the police authorities come here sniffing his scent, don't expect help from us. We are already deep sunk in our own regional shit and we won't foreign shit on our territory." Mr. Hiroshi said, "UCID is already on our tail. They are pressuring the PM to take strict actions on the illegal and unauthorised entry of drugs and ammunition in Japan through the docks of Osaka. The PM is currently on his tour of the U.S but as soon as he returns, he will seek proper answers. VPS might be your good friend and brother, but right now we cannot let him stay here in Japan. Don't mind me, but he has to go."
Shinzo said, "Enough talking for tonight, gentlemen. We will resume the talk some other day. Right now, I have a guest to attend." Mr. Daichi said, "Think about it, Shinzo. Time passed away is time lost forever. VPS is a good friend but right now your duty towards your country is bigger than your own relationships." He patted his shoulder and walked outside the room. Shinzo looked at the wall and said, "Gonchi. Come inside." A fat man wearing a kimono entered the room and bowed before him. Shinzo said, "Prepare the hot tub for Vikram and prepare some food for him. I will have my dinner with him." Gonchi bowed and walked outside. Shinzo looked at a picture on the wall. In the picture, he and Vikram were standing in front of the Eiffel Tower. He smiled and walked outside the room.
Vikram and Shinzo were sitting on the floor with food kept in front of them on the dining table. Vikram looked at Shinzo who smiled. Shinzo asked, "So, how's Giovanni? Did he lose some weight?" Vikram took a bite of his fish and said, "He's well. He eats a lot and cooks a lot. Keeps both of us happy. I left him in Tokyo. It will be better for him if he stays a little away from here." Shinzo smiled, "How's your girl, Nafisa?" Vikram smiled, "Good. She's good. Recently we had a fight and now we are currently not getting quite well."
Shinzo said grimly, "Sorry to hear about that. Why did you fight?" Vikram poured some rice wine and said, "Oh, many things. She just needs some excuse to fight with me. Apparently she is not very happy with the distance you keep with me. She wants you to stay with me and move wherever I go." Shinzo said in a dead tone, "If you want, I can send Anbu to stay with you for a couple of months. He is currently quite stressed with Haruto's recent activities. Haruto's indulgence towards defaming our family name is increasing everyday. I might kill him someday."
Vikram smiled, "Young brothers are born to irritate elder brothers. My brother, Bhushan is no sweet boy either. His madness worries me. I am not a good person, at least not right now. But, he had an evil mind since childhood. The antics he did were extremely evil than the mischief of boys around his age. He is angry with me because I don't pet him, but you know that I don't like keeping pets and certainly won't make my brother one." Shinzo smiled, "You killed a mediator of the High Table. It is hard to say which of you two is more reckless."
Vikram gulped his wine and smiled, "Reckless? No, no, no. I won't call it reckless. It was a sign. A sign saying that we had tolerated enough. If Hutch wants to continue harassing us for some trinkets of respect from a marginalized group of bottom-feeders who call themselves dons, then it won't be long before we put a bullet inside his head like I put one inside his puny mediator's head." Shinzo smiled, "Power is deceptive, Vikram. Who is better than you to know that? Hutch may be insignificant today but he is catching pace and it doesn't look like he won't be stopping anytime soon." Vikram said grimly, "I understand your concern, Shinzo. You have a daughter and you don't want to endanger her life more than it already is. But, tell me one thing honestly, do you think guys like Hutch deserve power? What did he do to deserve it?"
Shinzo said grimly, "Hutch is not someone for whom I am the most worried about. It's you, my dear. Everyone wants to either win you or end you. But, I want to save you. You have reached a very high point in the world of crime, Vikram and the saddest thing about this is that you will be alone here. I have seen the world a few years more than you and I know how the world works. So, now you tell me honestly. What do you really desire?" Vikram smiled and said grimly, "Home. A family. Kids and the warm embrace of a woman's arms. I never even in my wildest dreams thought I would be a criminal or that I will have to wander places seeking refuge. You have a family, Shinzo. You know there are people behind your back who would stand up for you in tempestuous times. But, I don't have that luxury unfortunately. I have to fight my battles alone."
Shinzo hugged him and said, "It will be wrong if you say that you are all alone. You have me, Anbu, Giovanni and many others whom you have saved at different intervals of time. God gives you family, but you make your own friends. And you are the greatest friend of mine." Vikram smiled, "Then, why do you want me to go away?" Shinzo said grimly, "Because, this is not the right time. I gave word to some people that I have to honour. Your arrival is welcome but right now it cannot be appreciated." Vikram smiled, "I understand. I will go. I don't need to hide from that Dutch bitch anyway." Shinzo hugged him and said, "Don't mind me, friend. If it was in my control, I would have turned the world upside down to keep you here."
Vikram smiled, "No worries, friend. I know you would have. Giovanni will stay here till I think otherwise. I need to talk with an old friend of mine somewhere in my motherland." Shinzo asked, "Are you planning to return to India?" Vikram smiled, "Don't worry. There's still time for it." He hugged him and walked outside and went inside the limousine and drove towards the airport. Shinzo looked at his friend going and sighed in sorrow.
Mr. Massino was sitting in his living room, smoking a cigar. Mr. Farman Demmola, the legal advisor of Mr. Massino, Mr. Coppola and Sonny were sitting there too. Mr. Massino looked at his son and said, "I heard that you showed mercy on a goon of the Valentina Family when he threatened you in a drunken state." Sonny said, "He was not in a good state and didn't know whom he was threatening. I just did what a good citizen would do." Mr. Massino smiled, "Oh, yes. A good citizen. Do you know what a bad citizen does?" He whistled and two men brought the goon of the Valentina Family who threatened his son.
The man started pleading, "Please. Don't kill me. I was heavily drunk and didn't know who I was threatening. Please, let me go. I will never touch alcohol again. Please, I have a wife and two children waiting for me at home." Mr. Massino put the barrel of his gun on his head and said, "If I was a good citizen like my son, then you would have returned home today to your wife and two children. But, unfortunately for you, I am not a "good citizen" like my son." He pushed the trigger and the man fell on the ground. Massino said, "Take his body and dump it in some gutter. The rats will be more useful to me than my own son."
Mr. Coppola said grimly, "You shouldn't widen the gap between the two families further. The two families are soon going to be tied in a matrimonial alliance. These insidious acts will only prove fatal for you." Mr. Massino smiled, "I don't give a fuck. Valentina is weak and currently bed-ridden. He doesn't have any male heir and that's why he ployed to make my son his heir. I won't let him fulfill his dream of subsiding my legacy." Mr. Demmola said, "We are losing quite a lot of money fighting with Valentina. If it persists any longer, we will soon turn bankrupt. The alliance is the only thing that can save us from bankruptcy and bring a fat amount of wealth. VPS himself has ordered this alliance and I don't find it wise to oppose the decision of someone as powerful as VPS."
Mr. Massino asked grimly, "How much money do we have now?" Demmola said, "Almost five and a half million. But, it will not be enough to maintain our prestige and finance our wars against the Valentina Family. The way I see it, we have only two options right now. First, we can agree to this alliance and as Mr. Valentina is quite ill and presumably will die soon, we will become rich without any hard work. But, it will not be good for our reputation. The second option is to marry Sonny to Rico Martinez's daughter, Albuela Martinez. She might be two or three years younger than Sonny but Rico will not hesitate if we offer him something that he desperately needs now. Rico is not someone who can be trusted so easily but he might not kill any of us. An alliance with Martinez means animosity with VPS. So, this option will not ruin our reputation but will surely put us under a lot of danger."
Mr. Massino sighed, "I don't know what to say now, Demmola. Both options are not to my liking. On one hand, it will mean the death of all the age-old legacy my forefathers spend building and on the other hand, it will mean the end of our family. I know what kind of person that Rico is. He will not like to be inferior to me and will do everything in his power to humiliate me." Mr. Coppola smiled, "Don't stress so much, Mr. Massino. The alliance will boost your legacy to new heights. Mr. Valentina is on the brink of death and after his demise, only your dominance will stay in Italy. Just think about the amount of power and wealth you will have with the combination of both families. You will be the supreme of the Italian Mafia." Mr. Massino thought for some time and said, "I will make a decision after meeting with Mr. Valentina. Send a word that I expect him tomorrow morning in my house. If he wants to marry his daughter to my son, then he has to come here personally." He rose and walked outside the room....