Chapter 69 MICELI

The smell of disinfectant mixes with lavender and eucalyptus.

They are trying to make it not smell like a sick man's room, but there's no way. The odor of impending death is here.

You just have to look at the shrunken figure on the bed to know that his time is close.

I wait for Sev to speak, watching as he and the Godfather measure each other with their eyes.

Finally, Don Caruso says, "So, you have come to pay your final respects. You're a good Don, Severu. You will make a fine godfather."

"So you have said. But have you said it to others?" Sev asks, his tone hard.

"I have, yes. Not only to the don's amidst the Five Families, but to all the dons of the Cosa Nostra as they have come to pay their respects. I have made it clear to each of them that you are my choice to succeed me. For what it is worth, you have my support." He waves with a feeble arm indicating his state in the bed. "For what it is worth."

"It is worth a great deal to me," Sev says, sincerity ringing in his tone. "To have a man I admire so much believe in my strength and capability to lead the Cosa Nostra into the future."

"I am glad to hear this, my son. You have been a good and loyal friend and don from the day you took over from your father. You have brought the Genovese into the present and now you must do this for the rest of the Cosa Nostra."

"There are many that will fight me on this." Sev doesn't sound like he's worried .

He's just telling the godfather that he knows how difficult the task is before him.

"None so much as my idiotic nephew."

"He conspired with his cousin to purchase land in the Five Family territories by another Cosa Nostra family." I say this with all the contempt I feel for Henry Caruso's betrayal.

The godfather seems to sink deeper into the bed. "I have heard rumors of these things. I had hoped they were not true."

"I have brought documents to show you," I say. "If you need proof, we have a lot of it."

Including a recording of Lorenzo's testimony during interrogation.

Sev says nothing.

He and the godfather lock eyes once again.

It's the godfather who looks away. "I do not need to see these evidences. A De Luca does not lie. "

"The same could be said of a Caruso if Enrico Caruso no longer walked this earth." Severu says the words firmly.

It is clear he is not asking permission, but telling the godfather of our plans.

Nevertheless, the godfather nods and puts his hand out.

Sev walks forward. The godfather raises his trembling hand a few more inches and my brother takes it, bending over and pressing his forehead to the godfather's ring.

"The death of Enrico Caruso at the hands of the De Luca family within the Genevese mafia is sanctioned by me." The Godfather begins to cough.

It is not the cough of a common cold or the flu, but the death rattle of a powerful man on the verge of his own demise.

Don Caruso looks to his lieutenant, a man nearly as old as he is. "Send the message to all of the Cosa Nostra. I have sanctioned the death of Enrico Caruso, no longer recognized by la famiglia , no longer recognized by me."

The man nods his head and leaves the room.

This is more than Sev or I expected when we came.

We thought we would have to strong arm the godfather into accepting that he needed to name a different capo as his heir.

But he is a man of honor, and his nephew has betrayed the Cosa Nostra.

Sev straightens. "I look forward to meeting the man who will be the next don of the great Lucchese family."

"I will introduce him to the rest of the capos tonight." The Godfather knows how eminent his death is and is determined to impose his will one last time.

For the good of la famiglia .

The call comes in the early hours of the morning.

I snag my phone without jostling Róise's sleeping form. I exhausted her with lovemaking last night.

I crave her body all the time, but after finding out how she reached out to mamma, I had to show her the depth of my feelings again.

"Sev," I say into the phone.

"Caruso had another stroke. He's on life support."

"Why?"

"He gave instructions to do it and assigned me power of attorney to decide when to turn them off."

"Giving you time to finish gathering support."

"Yes."

"We're close."

"We are," my brother agrees. "Salvatore wants to kill Henry Caruso because he sanctioned the hit on Bianca."

"It is not his place. You are the don whose territory was defiled and I am your right arm. Besides, he already killed the men who touched her."

"Would that be enough for you?"

No. It would not. "I'll rock, paper, scissors him for it."

"Whatever works, but the man dies soon."

"Agreed."

I put the phone down and shift back down to lie beside Róise.

She nuzzles sleepily into my neck. "Who was that?"

"Sev. The godfather is on life support."

Róise sits up like someone hit her with one of Salvatore's cattle prods. "What? The godfather is dead?"

"Not yet, but he will be. Sev will turn off life support when the time is right."

"Why your brother and not a member of the godfather's family?"

"He's giving us time to shore up Sev's bid for godfather."

Róise yawns and flops bonelessly down onto my chest. My arms come around her automatically.

"If only the rest of the world realized how much politics is involved in organized crime." She's snoring lightly before I can answer.

~ ~ ~

I win the rock, paper, scissors, but Henry Caruso has done a runner.

I'm tracking him down, but for all his stupid decisions, he has the instincts of a prey animal to hide.

At least this time I know no one in our organization nabbed him up already.

Not like Salvatore did with Lorenzo before bringing him to The Box .

Feeling the way I do about Róise, I understand my cousin's irrational behavior, but that doesn't make me any less annoyed with him.

Which is why I call him at three o'clock in the morning to ask if he has Henry Caruso sitting somewhere on ice.

He tells me to fuck off and hangs up.

I call again to ask if he's sure . He sends my call to voicemail. Which means he's awake. That's all I want.

If I have to be awake looking for the piece of shit, Henry, he can be awake regretting pulling that stunt with Lorenzo.