20 Oct The Mafia: Chapter Two

*This rough draft is entirely a work of fictional writing*

The three brothers, Avi, Jay and D are sitting at a table in the dining hall. They each come from the same father, but have different mothers and are only separated in age by about a month – with Avi being the eldest, D the youngest. Also sitting at the table are the three lovely ladies, Mary, Maria and Jane; which in a peculiar situation are interchangeably married to each of the brothers.

Jay looks at Maria and earnestly says, “Hey Maria, would you like to go on a date with me tonight? I got two tickets to the new Romeo and Juliet Broadway play showing tonight.”

Maria smiles, “Sure. You know I love theater.”

D looks at Maria then looks at Jay, “What the fuck bro, don’t just ask my wife out on a date in front of me like that.”

Jay tries not to laugh, “She’s my wife too.”

Mary intervenes, “D, what are you doing tonight?  You want to go out on a date?”

Jane interrupts the conversation, “At least no one needs to worry about Avi asking you out on a date, he’s too busy running around with that whore Littia. I know you were with her last night, how many times have I told you to stop seeing her.”

Jay speaks under his breath, “Uh-oh.”

Avi looks at Jane, “She’s not a whore, and I wasn’t with her… I mean I was with her, but I wasn’t with her, you know? It was just real quick – she needed help with a health complication that she’s got.“

Jane squints her eyes at Avi, “I’m going to kill you…that’s what I know, you know that right?’

Avi rolls his eyes, “Say Jane, you certainly have an interesting way of painting words with that tongue of yours.”

Jane is annoyed, “Very soon I’m going to show you what this tongue is.”

Avi smiles, “Please do. I can’t even remember the last time you showed me what that tongue does.”

Jane raises her hand in an effort to slap Avi, “Don’t try to be cute.” But, before she can follow through, Lilly walks into the room.

Lilly starts to pass around some notes to everyone sitting at the table, “Here is the CRV of a potential candidate for the legal counsel. Some quick highlights; Her name is Rose, she comes from Asian heritage, extremely bright and has passed the bar in each of the fifty states.”

D looks stunned; “Wow… she passed the bar in all fifty states? How old is she?”

Lilly looks at her notes, “Twenty-nine.”

Mary skim reads the CRV, “She’s only twenty-nine? Where the hell did you find her?”

Avi chirps in, “I told ya’ll that Lilly is the best.”

Jane seems skeptical, “Did you check to see if she actually passed the bar in every state or are we just going off of her word?”

Lilly nods her head in agreement, “Yes, I double checked. She is legitimate.”

Jay raises his index finger, “Jane… you know Lilly always does her due diligence. She doesn’t let anyone walk through that door without knowing everything about them…factual information, not rumors, or through the grape-vine gossip.”

Maria signals to Lilly, “Bring her on in.”

Rose enters the room and takes a seat at the table; she speaks with a subtle nervousness, “Look… I don’t want to seem like I was intruding, or being rude, or that I was eavesdropping, but did I hear you all correctly? That each of you three girls is married to these three guys? Respectively.”

Jane, Mary and Maria look at each other and start laughing, Jane is the first to respond, “Yes. That is correct.”

Rose scratches her head, “If you don’t mind me asking… how does that work exactly?”

Avi answers the question, “To be honest with you, I’m not sure how it works, but it does work quite nicely. As abnormal as it might seem to you, it’s entirely normal for us.”

Rose slowly looks around the table, “May I ask another question?”

Mary smiles, “Please do.”

Rose takes her glasses out of her purse and puts them on, “So, I noticed that you all have the same tattoo, Live Life As A Family, what does that mean? I mean, I know what it means, but what does it actually mean?”

D eloquently explains, “Essentially… we ride together, die together, cry together, laugh together, shine together, smile together, live life together, togetherness is a bond; our word is bond. We put no one above or beneath the family… we live life as a family. Does that explanation curb your intrigue?”

Rose smiles, “Yes it does. I like that, in fact it picks my interest in quite a passionate way.”

Jay lights up a cigarette, “I like her already.”

Lilly walks over to Rose and initiates the interview, “Do you know why we invited you here?”

Rose scrolls through the emails on her phone then looks up, “Because you’re looking for a lawyer?”

Jane responds, “We actually have quite a few lawyers on our legal counsel, some of the best in the world, however we are looking for something different from you. Within you, rather.”

D quickly interrupts, “Yeah, but none of them have passed the bar in every state, that’s just crazy – you’re crazy… in a great way.”

Rose responds bashfully, “Thank you, I appreciate that. I worked my ass off for many, many years. So, if you don’t need another lawyer, why do you need me?”

Avi commandeers the conversation, “Your vast knowledge of law. If we’re doing something right, we want to know why it’s not wrong. If we’re doing something wrong, we want to know how to make it right. We’d like a precise dissection of morality from man-made laws. Our decision-making should always align with avoiding the flaws of an inherently broken system, whether men made the laws or morality is guiding us. In essence, decisions are truths, not corruptible lies. I hope I’m making sense.”

Rose looks over at Lilly, “Can I get a glass of water please?”

Lilly warmly smiles, “Of course, I’ll be right back.”

Rose clears her throat, “That’s the most beautiful thing that I’ve ever heard that is not poetry. I understand entirely and I’d like to come onboard.”

Jane giggles, “Oh please, don’t compliment Avi, we don’t need his ego boosted any further.”

Avi smirks at Jane, “Okay so why did you start blushing after you heard me say that then?”

Mary stops their banter, “We’d love to have you on board Rose, but are you sure you want to? Do you know what our business is?”

Lilly walks back into the room and hands Rose a glass of water, “I figured you’d want it at room temperature.”

Rose drinks the entire glass of water then speaks, “I’ve heard about the family, your family, but I’m not entirely sure what ‘business’ you all are in, but I’m willing to take that risk. I would like to try to live life as a family.”

Avi stares into Rose’s eyes with laser-beam precision, “Are you sure? With your credentials and qualifications you could find a great job anywhere in the world. I’m only going to say this once and I’ll never repeat it again; once you’re in – you cannot leave, ever. In due time you will understand what business we are in.”

Rose speaks confidently, “I am sure. I understand.”

Maria speaks with a heavy jubilance, “Excellent. Where would you like to get the tattoo?”

Rose ponders for a few seconds before she speaks, “On the front of my left foot, to always remind myself to watch the steps.”

Jane smiles, “Ohhh, I like that, so poetic. I’m surprised that you never asked how much you’ll be getting paid.”

Lilly looks over at Rose and winks, “Don’t worry, they pay really good.”

D concurs, “It is confirmed, this is set in marble stone. Please follow Lilly to our tattoo artist.”

Rose stands up and ties her hair into a bun, “Great! What are the next steps? What should I do first?”

Jay stands up and shakes Rose’s hand, “Lilly will then take you to the Library, there is much for you to read.”

*To Be Continued In Chapter Three*