Alexandra Marchetti turned heads. She had thick dark blonde hair that draped over shoulders, dark Italian eyes and a strong firm body. No longer the spoiled rich brat, she oozed confidence and determination. She was not someone to be tinkered with, even if her father wasn’t one of the most powerful men in the country. But he was. Alexandra gained her looks from her mother but her intelligence and confidence came from her father, a mirror of the man who held Las Vegas and much of the Western United States under his sway. Frank Marchetti, sitting at a booth in his private club atop one of several casino-hotels that he controlled, lit a cigar and took a long admiring look at his daughter. She was now 25 and had grown into a woman of quality. He felt sure she was bound for greatness in some field of business, faraway from the life he had led as the Godfather of Las Vegas. He had worked hard to see that. She had surprised him at first. He had sent her to Notre Dame strictly hoping that she would meet the right boy from a rich legitimate Catholic family and be taken away from Las Vegas forever. But she had surprised him by graduating with honors in business. Then she had gone on to Harvard, earning her MBA again with high grades. Now she was ready to take on the world. Now they would meet to decide her next step.
"You have done well my dear" Marchetti said, through a plume of smoke." I am very proud of you".
"Thank you Poppa" Alexandra said, sipping her Cutty Sark.
"I am proud of you too. I have never told you that but I am". Marchetti felt himself squirm just a bit. She had been sheltered growing up, thinking of her father only as a casino operator. But certainly a woman as smart as her, going to Notre Dame and Harvard, would hear things, read things, be told things about her father.
"There is nothing to be proud of" he said. "I’m just a man trying to get by, to carve out the best I can for my family..".
"Oh I know Poppa" Alexandra said. "I understand. You too have done well". Alexandra paused to light a cigarette, a long white B&H menthol. She let the smoke waft seductively from her mouth as she eyed her father. "I understand things much better now about you" she said.
"There is nothing to understand" he said quickly.
"Do not believe everything you have heard".
"About what?".
"Me".
"One hears much" Alexandra said.
"Do not believe it" Marchetti said.
"The press makes up much".
"There is nothing to hang your head about" Alexandra said.
"You are a man of honor and respect and I am proud to be your daughter".
Marchetti took another deep puff off the cigar.
"We are not here to talk about me" he said gravely.
"We are here to talk about you..". A silence hung in the air.
"How was Europe? he asked casually. As a reward for her performance in school,
Marchetti had sent his daughter on a three month vacation to Europe.
"It was wonderful" she said.
"Thank you so much Poppa. I loved every bit of it...London, Paris, Venice,
Sicily..".
"Sicily!!!??? Marchetti said sharply.
"Yes" Alexandra smiled." Sicily especially".
"I did not know you went to Sicily" Marchetti said, looking at his daughter
carefully. Alexandra took a drag off her cigarette.
"Yes I went to Sicily" she said.
"And why not...that’s where the family is from". Marchetti felt his unease
grow. Sicily had not been on the itinerary. The dark secrets of the past he had hoped
would remain hidden forever, especially from his children.
"That was a long time ago" he said.
"We have been in America for along time".
"But your grandfather was from there" Alexandra said.
"And Mommas side as well".
"We are now Americans, not Sicilians" Marchetti emphasized.
"Our blood runs deep" she said.
"Perhaps" Marchetti said.
"And what did you learn?.
"That Sicily was much conquered and occupied by foreigners" Alexandra said.
"And to combat these invaders, the men of Sicily formed a secret society, their own
government if you will, bound by honor, tradition and respect. They were men to be
respected and feared".
"Perhaps" Marchetti said.
"And" Alexandra said.
"That tradition, that life, that society, was carried over to America".
"Yes it was" Marchetti said.
"But as I said, that was along time ago".
"But" Alexandra said.
"It lives today does it not". Marchetti sat silently for many moments.
"Poppa? Alexandra said.
"What?.
"It is true is it not?.
"Is what true?.
"The Mafia still lives today, as strong as ever" Alexandra said.
"My dear, I have told you. The Mafia is a figment of the media’s imagination. We
are businessmen, not the thugs the newspapers and television shows would have you
believe".
"Al Capone? John Gotti? Luciano....Genovese....Valachi?.
"Valachi was a loser. He knew nothing and made up much to save his own skin".
"And Marchetti?. Marchetti smiled, but inside he felt dread. Alexandra knew and no
amount of false persuasion would change the beautiful young woman sitting across from him.
Her dark eyes burned into his soul.
"Again, we are here to talk about you and what you want to do" he said.
Alexandra paused and took a last drag off her cigarette. She smiled.
"I want to join the family business" she said, looking directly at her father.
"The casino business" he said wishfully.
"The whole business" Alexandra said.
"All of it".
"There is only the casino business and if you want to help me there, perhaps..".
"Poppa" she said.
"I am not a child...".
"No you are not" Marchetti said, returning her stare.
"You are a beautiful woman. An American woman. A smart woman with an MBA from
Harvard. The traditions of the old country are long past, if they ever even existed here.
You must start a new life away from that.
"I will not lie to you" he said.
"I have done many things in my life, some I’m not proud of. I was handed many
responsibilities. I had a duty to my family and my people. Many people were dependent on
me..".
"Poppa, I know...". He cut her off.
"No, you listen. I did what I had to do. I apologize for nothing...".
"Poppa I don’t want an apology. I want to be a part of your life. Your whole life".
"No" he said.
"I have worked too hard to gain my position as a respectable businessman. That part,
you may be a part of. The ways of the past are over, for you, for your family, for all of
us. It is time the Marchetti family took its rightfully place in the mainstream of
America. I have done much, you will do the rest".
"And what of the rest of your enterprises". Marchetti winced.
"They will be looked at by others" he said.
"Why not me, Alexandra said. Marchetti grew angry.
"No!!! he said.
"I would kill myself rather than to see you follow that way. It is not for you.
Never".
"And if I were your son?
"I had a son" Marchetti said.
"And did he go that way?. John Marchetti had not. He too had been intelligent and
handsome. He had gone to the Air Force Academy and become a pilot. He had been doing well
until Desert Storm and the fatal crash in Iraq.
"No" Alexandra said.
"He did not. He did not wish too. I do".
"No" Marchetti said.
"The subject is closed".
*******************
Dana Morris laughed.
"So you’re daughter wants to be in the Mafia" she said, sipping a cognac
Frank Marchetti’s penthouse suite.
"It is not a source of amusement for me" Marchetti said. ."Frank you are
getting old" Dana said.
"The world is changing. A woman’s place is no longer in the home. We demand our
rightful place in society".
"I don’t think crime is a rightful place for my daughter" he said.
"It was for you" Dana said.
"I had no choice. I was bound by the honor and traditions of my family. She is
not". Dana laughed again.
"Frank you are bound by nothing. You could have abandoned that part of your life long
ago. You choose not to".
"Dana my dear. If I abandoned that, chaos would reign. Too many responsibilities have
been placed on me. Too many people depend on me".
"Nonsense" she said.
"You worked hard to become a Capo. It was your life’s ambition. Admit it. You
enjoy it. You have done spectacularly well. My sense is she would too". Marchetti was
still uneasy. The conversation of yesterday with his daughter had left him unsettled. But
the world was changing. The Mafia was no longer a secret. He had many partners in his
enterprises. One was sitting with him drinking cognac. They had murdered her husband and
ruthlessly taken over his corporation. The money was being used for many things, not all
of them legal. Marchetti looked at Dana Morris. She was a lioness, as cold and as ruthless
as her husband, but infinitely easier to work with. Their partnership was lucrative for
both. He thought of two other young ladies, almost the same age as Alexandra, two women
who were fearless. His association with them had also been lucrative. And dangerous.
"You are right Dana" Marchetti said.
"I am growing old. But business must be attended to. I am meeting with the Chinn Lee
brothers today".
"Frank" Dana said.
"Be careful".
*****************
The Chinn Lee brothers were young and ambitious. And dangerous. Marchetti knew that.
They had to be dealt with. Marchetti had long enjoyed a lucrative association with the
Bamboo Curtain. Together the Curtain and the Cosa Nostra had enjoyed a monopoly on the
heroin trade, importing it from the Southeast Asia poppy fields through West Coast ports
and into the streets of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas and other American cities.
Marchetti hated to admit it but drugs were still a tremendous source of revenue, for both
him and the Family. He and his soldiers lived a life of ease at the expense of their
wretched customers. Heroin from Asia. Cocaine from South America. Marijuana from Mexico.
Marchetti supervised the entire operation from his Las Vegas headquarters, raking in a
million a month as the head of all illegal drug smuggling on the West Coast. The Chinn Lee
Brothers were a threat, young thugs who had risen in the Bamboo Curtain and now poised to
overthrow the leadership, the men who had done business honorably with Marchetti for many
years. They sat across the table at the restaurant, eyeing Marchetti carefully. Alfonzo
and others stood by watching for any signs of trouble.
"Mr. Marchetti" said Huan Chinn Lee.
"We see your point. But you have to understand ours. Chang, Lai....the others. They
grow old. Our organization needs new leadership". Marchetti nodded.
"And you are prepared to take on this new leadership? he asked.
"Of course" Chou Chinn Lee said.
"You will not be disappointed.
"I better not be" he said.
"How do you propose to do this".
"I think they will see the writing on the wall" Huan said.
"We have the backing of many who wish to see changes. With you on our side, those
changes will be made".
"I see" Marchetti said.
"And what is in it for my organization".
"Business as usual" Chou said.
"That must be assured" Marchetti said.
"We can" Huan said.
"We will deliver more heroin than ever before. The old ones grow stagnant. New
dynamic leadership will streamline the operations".
"Lets get to the point" Marchetti said.
"You’re going to stage a bloody coup, kill off many, take over the Bamboo
Curtain and do business with me. Correct?.
"Correct" Huan said.
"And if we refuse" Marchetti said.
"You would not want to do that" Huan said.
"Are you threatening me? Marchetti said, with a cold smile.
"Come" Chou said.
"We are all businessmen here. The important thing is the heroin still flows into the
country. Does it matter who you do business with". Marchetti smiled.
"No it does not" he said.
"But you are right. It is only Important that the merchandise be brought in without
interruption. And your bosses have done that for many years without a problem".
Marchetti looked at the two thugs. He detested both. He would never do business with them.
They would have to be dealt with efficiently.
"We can do it better" Huan said.
"Trust us. We can bring in more heroin than ever before. You will not be
displeased".
"I better not be" Marchetti said. But Huan and Chou’s attention were
elsewhere. A young lady had walked into the restaurant and she was quite beautiful. She
wore a long black leather trench coat and black boots and leather gloves. Dark sunglasses
covered her eyes. She walked over to the table.
"Hi Poppa" she said with a smile.
"Alexandra" Marchetti said, trying to catch his breath.
"What are you doing here. You should not..".
"I’m here on business" she said curtly.
"What business?".
"Family business" she said with a smile.
"What...". Marchetti stopped short. Alexandra reached inside her trench coat and
pulled out a Beretta F2. A silencer was screwed to the end of it. Huan and Chou just
stared at her. Alexandra pointed the gun at Huan’s forehead and squeezed the trigger.
Phhffttt!!!!! The bullet ripped through his brain and he fell face first on the table. She
aimed at Chou, who was scrambling to get up. The rest of the room was frozen in shock.
Phhfffttt!!! The bullet tore into his temple and blood exploded on the side of his face.
His limp body crashed to the floor. A heavy silence filled the room. Frank Marchetti
stared at the two dead thugs. He stared at his daughter. Smoke wafted from her gun. She
reached into her pocket and pulled out a cigarette case, selected a cigarette and placed
it in her mouth.
"Poppa, can I have a light? she asked. Marchetti pulled out a gold zippo and
flicked. Alexandra lit her cigarette and smiled.
"Thank you Poppa" she said.
"You’re welcome my dear" he said. Marchetti closed his eyes for several
moments. Nobody in the room said a word. He opened them again.
"Alexandra" he said with a heavy sigh.
"Yes Poppa".
"Welcome to the family business".
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