Part Nine

The four men were led into the small meeting room adjacent to Dominic’s study. His men took up their positions, as did his brothers. Dominic had given them each a slice of the proverbial pie, and they had their own responsibilities under his watchful eye.

Casio Robustelli reported directly to Gage, and he had a hand in the gun trade. Their guns were bought from the Russians and distributed for personal use in their territories.

Giovanni Manso reported to Eris, and they kept a firm eye on their strip clubs. Eris was good with the women, and washing their money was second nature to him.

Santino Conti reported to Faro, and he was a genius when it came to their gambling rings. He never misplaced a cent, and handling money was what he was good at.

Dominic watched Elmo Larussa and the many escort clubs they owned. Prostitution was easy money, and Michael De Santis, an Elder, also owned a few escort clubs. At first, the Elders voted against Dominic’s escort club, but he soon showed them that the two areas wouldn’t be in competition.

Dominic’s clubs were high-end, and the women that worked at those clubs weren’t your average working girl. They were high-class escorts, clean, and drug-free. Dominic paid them well, and their clients were people like the mayor, cops, lawyers, politicians, and celebrities.

The De Santis clubs were the kind where men paid by the hour, went to a room in the back, and the girl wiped her pussy before the next client came in. It was cheap and low-class, and Dominic wanted nothing to do with it.

His brothers reported everything to him, and twice a week they held a meeting to discuss problems and solutions, throw around ideas, and so forth. Dominic always held the meeting early on a Monday morning, before their official work day started.

Coffee and croissants were served as the men took their seats, and once the door closed, Dominic cleared his throat before looking at each man in turn. In front of them were briefcases, stuffed with cash.

“Good morning, any complaints?”

Elmo shook his head as he pushed the briefcase closer to Dominic. “Business has been good. We’ve got four more girls on payroll. They’re doing well, and health certificates have all been updated.”

Dominic nodded his head. “That’s good, Elmo.”

“We’ve exported twice as many guns since last month; the Russians are working overtime to import,” Casio said with a smile, and Gage nodded.

“I need more bodyguards; we’ve had two attempted robberies at one of our warehouses, the one where we hold the poker tournaments. I’m beginning to think it might be an inside job, probably one of the dealers,” Santino said.

“Speak to Gage to set up a trap. Announce a big stakes tournament with the regular dealers, letting it slip that the prize money will be doubled. We’ll put in our own people with a few of the regular players,” Dominic said.

“I’ll have my men in place as players, and when the shit hits the fan, we’ll take them all out,” Gage said.

“I’ll get started on that,” Santino said.

Getting hit like that was common, although people rarely hit a Vittori business, which meant that either these guys were desperate or new players were in town. Dominic didn’t like it. Nobody touched Vittori money.

“I’ve heard rumors that the Bianchi Elder is moving in on the drug trade; are we getting involved?” Casio asked.

“No drugs. The rules still apply; the Elders can get involved in whatever they want, but my demands were voted on. No drugs in any of my territories,” Dominic replied.

Eris shifted in his seat, and Dominic turned his attention towards his brother and Giovanni Manso. “What?”

“We have a drug problem at the strip clubs; three girls have gone to the hospital in the last month for overdosing. I’m afraid that the drug trade has already infiltrated your territories,” Eris said.

“When did you realize this?”

“Giovanni told me last night,” Eris said as Dominic’s gaze went to Giovanni.

“I was trying to sort it out,” Giovanni said.

“And how exactly were you trying to do that?”

“I’ve questioned two of the three girls; they’re not talking. The third girl hasn’t been back to work; I can’t find her,” Giovanni admitted.

“Fucking Albanians and their drugs,” Faro murmured, speaking up for the first time.

“Get Hamil on it. I want to know where she’s hiding or where her body is. She’s either dead in a ditch somewhere or holed up in her apartment getting high, turning tricks to buy drugs. Either way, I want to fucking know,” Dominic said.

“What about the two not talking?” Eris asked.

“I’ll handle it; deliver them to Warehouse Four for questioning,” Dominic said.

“Fuck,” Casio said softly.

“Fuck’s right. I won’t have my employees dealing or snorting. They can fuck right off with that shit.”

“I’ll deliver them personally,” Giovanni said, and Dominic nodded his head.

“Good, meeting adjourned,” Dominic said as he stood up from his seat.

Ethan and Cooper gathered the four briefcases as they followed Dominic back into his study, while Austin and Hudson showed the four men out. He wasn’t happy with Giovanni or Eris. They knew how he felt about drugs, especially when it concerned his businesses.

“He has been sitting on that information for a fucking month, and you don’t know about it?” Dominic’s glare was directed at Eris now, and he could feel his temper rising.

“I’ll handle it,” Eris said, fixing his own glare on Dominic.

“See that you do, Eris. This shit is unacceptable.”

“I said I’d fucking handle it, and I will,” Eris said as the two brothers stood glaring at each other.

“If you don’t, I’ll assign Hudson to that particular club, and we both know how that’s going to end,” Dominic said.

Eris smiled and shook his head. “I’ll fucking handle it, Dominic.”

Between Ethan and Cooper they’d stacked the bundles of cash on Dominic’s desk, and he walked over to it as he started separating the bundles. He handed each of his brothers their shares, distributed a smaller share to each of his men, and stacked the rest of the cash in his safe.

“Don’t spend it all at once,” Dominic said.