The Don: Sebastiano (Stud Mafia #1) (20 page)

I reached the bar and leaned over to be heard over the music the girl on the stage was dancing provocatively to. “Ronnie?” 

She made a show of looking me up and down before a grin spread across her face. “So, you’re the sweet thing that has The Don all in a tizzy. I wondered if I would ever get to meet you.”

“Hi, I’m Sierra. Sebastiano said I could help you out with some of the paperwork a few days a week. I’m not sure where to start.” I offered her my hand to shake and she took it with a firm grip.

“Let me serve these few punters and I’ll show you where everything is in the office.” She didn’t wait around to see if I would agree; she dashed to the other end of the bar and started serving. 

I could feel eyes boring into the back of my head, so I quickly glanced around the club to see who was watching me so closely. My eyes had travelled over the majority of the club before I found the culprit. 

He was an average-built, dark-haired man, who at a guess in the dark bar would be in his mid-to-late thirties. He was openly staring at me, not caring I had caught him. He wasn’t one of Sebastiano’s men; I would have remembered his sinister smirk if I had seen it before. Sebastiano wasn’t the only man with a monster lurking within him. This monster didn’t look like he had a soft side to him, however slight. No, his vibe was pure evil.
 

turned back to the bar and was relieved to see Ronnie had finished with her customers. I wanted to get away from that man and the evil lurking behind his eyes; eyes I could still feel fixated on me. 
 

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

SEBASTIANO

I was livid.

Ever since that day at the church, when my uncle
accidentally
let it slip that I killed my own father, he’d been nothing but trouble. He was rude to my men, crude to the women in the family, especially Sierra, and a fucking disrespectful pain in my arse.

I needed to do something about him before the problem escalated and caused more issues in our family. I had called a meeting with my uncle, his eldest son, Aldo, and Riccardo. One of my uncle’s biggest issues was the fact I was handed the title of Don in my father’s will. I was the one to put him to the ground yet I got his goddamn title.

My uncle was up to something; I could feel it. I called for this meeting because Zio Joey thought I might be able to ‘induct’ his son, Aldo, into the Morassi mafia family. There was no way I would welcome anyone into my family and my business unless I trusted them completely.

In this situation, I don’t trust either of them. Not one little bit.

I hadn’t seen my cousin, Aldo, in years. He had always been one of those deceiving and lying little shits when we were growing up. I doubted much had changed.

The meeting was scheduled to start soon at the mansion, outside on the patio so I had the beautiful views to look at. I didn’t want to conduct this meeting in my office. I needed the fresh air, especially being around my zio. I asked all my men to be present. I’d already warned Riccardo that if either my zio or my cousin so much as set a foot wrong, I would not hesitate to take the both of them down to the basement.

“Boss, they’re here,” Riccardo announced.

Great, now the fun begins.

***

My cousin Aldo was Zio Joey’s eldest. He’d been living in Melbourne ever since he was married, which was over fifteen years ago. I hadn’t seen or heard from him for years. Aldo had married into money and worked for his father-in-law until this point.

He was back in Sydney and my troublesome Zio thought I’d just hand over one of my clubs for his son to manage. I never trusted my cousin Aldo when I was young, and I wasn’t going to trust him now.
If he is anything like his father, I don’t think much has changed. They were both made from the same mould as my father.

Pure evil and pure greed.

But for
la famiglia’s
sake, I had to make decisions which would benefit my business. I clasped my hands behind my head as I watched them approaching. My men had been warned this meeting could go sour, so they were all prepared.

Aldo greeted me with respect, unlike my uncle who took his seat with only a nod of acknowledgment coming my way. Aldo kissed me on both cheeks and grabbed me by my shoulders, making sure he was heard by all my men. “
Ti amo,
cugino
. I love you, cousin. It is good to see you after all these years. I have missed living in Sydney.”

What a fucking suck.

I greeted Aldo with the same respect but I returned my uncle’s nod with a deathly glare. After we all took our seats, I addressed everyone. I hated to fight with my uncle in front of my men, but his continual disrespect and his divided loyalties were becoming a real problem. Problems which could cost me, so I needed to sort this bullshit out, immediately.

“I’m going to discuss this once and once only. The only person who controls and makes any decisions about the Morassi clubs is me. I decide how my clubs are run. No one else.” I stood and circled the table as I walked, stopping near Aldo and my uncle. “I understand violence occurs from time to time in clubs. That’s fine. The violence is the least of my worries.”

My uncle sniggered at my comment.

I eyed Riccardo, silently letting him know I was on the verge of losing my shit. The fact Zio Joey could disrespect me in front of all my men, including his son, rattled me.

I cast my gaze directly on him. “Shall we discuss your lack of respect and disloyalty now or later?” I asked. “You have failed me.”

I’d heard from Vincenzo that Zio Joey and Aldo had recently frequented Antonio’s restaurant, and they were becoming allies. Antonio was nothing but a serpent and he only intended to feed my uncle’s greed. Zio Joey obviously needed more ammunition, which was the reason he was involving his son, Aldo. I knew exactly what he was up to.

Zio Joey and Antonio had bartered an agreement, which would allow Antonio to conduct his illegal business deals within my clubs. In return, Antonio would help Zio Joey with his bid to acquire more properties in and around Sydney. There was no way I was going to allow anything illegal to occur inside one of my clubs. Not after I had worked so hard to legalise prostitution and eliminate drugs. I would never permit this deal to go through. I needed all my loyal men at my side if I was to present a strong family front. And I was certain the return favour for my uncle from Antonio was not all about him purchasing land, but more to do with his vendetta against me.
I will find out exactly what it is and if I have to, I will end him.

“I have failed you? No, nephew,
you
have failed me!” He stood and spat his words at me. Riccardo instantly rose from his seat, ready to pounce. I remained calm. How long I could control my Sicilian temper, I had no idea. All I knew was the longer I held it in, the worse it would be when it erupted.

“Let him speak, Riccardo.” I held up my hand to keep Riccardo from moving toward him and attacking the fucker. “I want to hear what interesting things he has to say. We all do.”

“I am your blood. I am your family, and so is my son. You have no idea how much I worked this business with your father. While you were off in your fancy schools, I was here, working my arse off. I should have been your
consigliere
at the very least. The men you have are out of practice and you seem to rely more and more on Riccardo. He’s just a fucking kid, your father and I both raised. What of me?”

“You fucking stupid old fuck. You never raised me!” Riccardo yelled at him as he charged after him, but Vincenzo and Stefano managed to hold him back.

“I can’t trust you anymore, Zio,” I told him. “I know this disappoints you, but it’s the truth. You continually offend my men and are disrespectful to me, The Don. It is unacceptable.”

“But…but I have earned my place at your side. It is only fair you give me and my son a place in the family business!” his voice boomed.

I merely shrugged, unaffected by his outburst. “Drugs and illegal prostitution will never be going forward in any club of mine. Let’s be clear, though. Part of you thinks we’re equals and I owe you and your son something because we’re blood, but you are wrong. The day I earned my title as The Don, we all took an oath. I run this family. You never will.”

I faced the both of them, father and son, planting my hands firmly on the table and warning them. “If I ever hear of you meeting with Antonio or any other enemy of mine again, I will be forced to make an example of the both two of you,
dear
uncle and cousin. And I will enjoy it. Just like I enjoyed killing my father.”

My uncle’s eyes were filled with fear, as he stood there, dumbfounded.
Did he really think I was going to give in to him and succumb to his pathetic little threats?

“Nothing will get past me. Do you think I do not know every move the both of you make. You will both obey me. You will both show me and treat me with respect. You will both address me as The Don or Don Sebastiano and nothing else. Is that understood?” I asked the two of them.

Aldo drew his lips in, and his jaw quivered with restraint. We were the same height, the same physical build; we even had the same black, piercing eyes. At first glance, apart from my scarred cheek, we could easily be mistaken for brothers. But we were as different as night and day.

Aldo spoke for his tongue-tied and uncommunicative father. “Yes, I understand, Don Sebastiano. Of course, of course, you are the boss of all bosses.
Basta
, we must stop fighting and enjoy our afternoon.” He stepped back with acceptance.

“My decision is final,” I affirmed. “There will be no forgiveness for your betrayal. If I have to close the club you work in, I will do it. If you want to be a part of this family then you will not survive if you hold a grudge against me; either for being The Don or for avenging the death of your brother.” This I directed solely at my uncle.

“We will do as you say, Don Sebastiano. I will make sure my father behaves himself and respects you.” He glared at his father, not liking that he had made a fool of them both.

My uncle rose from the table, and as an act of forgiveness, he pulled me into a hug. Uncle Joey’s display of affection didn’t fool me. I didn’t trust him or his son. “I am not planning anything which will shame this family, and never with Antonio. Never. I understand what you did for your mother and why you did it. I will not bring it up again.” He kept with mafia tradition and kissed my hand as he turned to leave but not before I had the last word.

“You may be my blood, but if your betrayal and disloyalty continues, I will not hesitate to end you. After all, the blood that flows through my veins is Morassi blood. It is just as evil and poisonous as yours.”

***

The first life I actually took with my own hands was the life of one of my father’s enemies back in Sicily. My bastard of a father wanted me to experience the thrill of slaughtering the enemy. He believed it would make me stronger, prove I was a man, determine whether I was worthy of being the future Don.

I proved it by taking
his
life. I killed Don Giovanni and I made many of his enemies very happy. The
famiglia
in Sicily were quick to cover up my mess and ordain me as the next Don.

Even now, as The Don, I didn’t take any satisfaction in revenge, in killing.

It was my own fault I’d become the man I was. I carried my father’s blood and I had indeed become a monster.

I couldn’t really blame my uncle for despising me, but I had done what I had to do. My father had been beating my mother for years and nobody, not even Zio Joey, had stood up to protect her. As for the men, it wasn’t their business. It was between my father and my mother.

No one questioned Don Giovanni. No one. But she was my mother, my angel, and I couldn’t follow the unspoken rules. I had to end it.

End my father and his reign as The Don.

I would never forget that day. I had been at church that very morning, praying for forgiveness for the murder I was forced to commit. When I walked home after the service, I found my mother at home, in her bedroom, trembling in the middle of her bed with mascara trails running down her cheeks. Her body was covered in angry bruises and blood was trickling from her eyes. Her jaw was most probably fractured as she was in agony holding her chin in agony.

I’d called for help, organising one of the men to call our family doctor. The doctor almost didn’t want to treat my mother in fear of my father’s repercussions. I promised the doctor he would never have to fear my father again. I took it upon myself then to care for my mother on my own, like a broken bird. I wanted to give her sanctuary from my monster of a father.

A week later, when my father returned from his business in Rome, I sought my revenge.

I found him in his office, puffing away on those Italian cigars he had imported every few weeks. I wanted to burn a hole in his eyes with his precious cigar. I wanted to break his jaw like he had broken my mother’s. I wanted to taunt and abuse him as he did with my mother.
Instead, he taunted me.

“What are you here for, Son? Are you here to kill me because of what I did to your mother?” he laughed. “You are still only just a boy and a weak one at that. If you were strong, you would never have allowed the enemy to give you that scar across your eye a few weeks ago. I told you to kill him, not play with him. Weak is what you are. Weak!” he shouted at me.

My father obviously didn’t think I would go through with it, but his taunts angered me more and I wanted to hurt him. I jumped, climbed over the desk and punched him several times in the head.

The bastard felt no pain. He grabbed the small flip-knife he always carried with him from his pocket and sliced into my face, gouging deeper into my existing scar.

I screamed in agony.

“You little
stronzo
. Do you think you’ll win, that you will be able to outwit and outsmart your own father, Don Giovanni?”

With blood streaming down my face from my open wound,
I somehow pulled the hidden butcher’s knife from behind my back.
I held the knife in both hands and raised it toward my father’s head.