More doubts flashed in his mind. Somehow, the man made Noah second guess his involvement in Gastone’s scams. He had believed that both sons would be part of it just because of their family ties. But that might not be the case after all.
"Come to my office tomorrow around noon," he said and with that, he left to find Flavio.
There was an idea that came to him, and he needed to get a second opinion on whether it was wise or not. And that required his Underboss learning all about it.
CHAPTER 32
"Gastone won’t stand for it," Flavio stated, pacing the office back and forth.
He had been called early in the morning to help decide the best course of action. And as Underboss he had a closer relationship with people and was more capable of making a sound decision in certain aspects.
He regarded Noah emphatically. After years, he knew all too well that the Capo could think and act without much consideration, yet, there had always been a limit to his ideas. Or that’s what Flavio had believed until now.
The man wanted to propose that Elio Conte'd answer directly to the Capo dei capi.That wouldn’t be such a surprise by itself, if not for the fact that Noah didn’t trust anyone in Conte’s family. They were considered guilty of Gastone’s crimes by default. The whole operation, Inéz’s task and their careful planning could have been for nothing. One wrong move and many people would die. If not the Capohimself.
"Not necessarily. If Elio is a part of Gastone’s betrayal, he will gladly agree to it, because that means his son will be close to our business and give him an accurate description of all our actions. Otherwise, we can count at least one of the twins out of the conspiracy, and to make Gastone change his mind, we will give him the possibility to enlarge his reach. Just like he wanted. One less soldier won’t hurt him. Especially someone who is being giventhe most ridiculous of tasks when taking into account his birthrights," Noah said.
It was clear, with the dark bags under his eyes and exhausted appearance that he had spent most of his night weighing the pros and cons of his idea. After the talk he’d had with Elio yesterday during the engagement party, he became more and more convinced that doing this could change a lot for the better. Maybe even speed up the process of discovering the intricacies of the plot against him.
Flavio sighed, shaking his head. He was still unsure whether it was actually the right thing to do. "It might bring destruction, brother."
"I was born with an insatiable appetite for destruction. Let it be," he said, smirking. Now it was certain that the Capoonly consulted his Underboss as a sign of respect. His mind had long been made up.
"Just don’t go as far to offer Elio the position of Consigliere. That would be pushing things too far even for you. Besides, Elio needs to learn in the event that he is genuinely in the dark with Gastone’s plan."
Noah nodded. "I wasn't even considering it an option."
After the ordeal with the man who had been his father’s Consigliere, he had promised himself to only ever give the position to a person who had proved themselves as trustworthy. Elio hadn’t. Not yet. Maybe not ever. It felt like he was betraying his own principles in order to keep his Famiglia safe. And although it seemed like a necessary sacrifice, he hated changing what he had decided four years ago.
"Suggest becoming a soldier directly under your command."
"He told me that he wants to earn whatever he has rather than being handed everything on a silver platter."
Underboss agreed. "That’s probably true, but I believe this kind of thinking only evolved once Fabro was more involved by Gastone into the business. Some coping mechanism on Elio’s behalf."
There was no arguing with that. Hardly anyone refused power if they had a possibility to get it without having to work. Only fools did that.
And Flavio, who had never fully engaged in the Famiglia when Marco had been Capo, understood that very well. After being kidnapped by Severo Selvaggio, he turned down all opportunities to become a true Made Man. Even though he never openly admitted the reason for it. Naturally, the Capohad been furious but had written it down to the boy being too young to realize what he truly wanted and had given him time to come to terms with his situation. Years had passed and both Falcone brothers wholeheartedly believed that if their father hadn’t been killed, he would have eventually grown tired ofwaiting for Flavio to come around. He had been fourteen already and should have at least started taking part and learning all about the mafia business. Without a doubt, Marco would have gotten him murdered for refusing to participate. His death had been a blessing in disguise.
Noah was better at understanding his brother. Mostly because Sienna’s death changed him, too. Made him realize just how screwed up and dark their world really was. They never talked about everything that had happened at that time, just a few words here and there. Flavio had closed himself off to all the emotions and memories of those occurrences. He’d let go of his hatred towards theFamigliaas well. But he never abandoned his rationality.
"There’s one more thing. I was in charge of the shipments which were supposed to come through Sicily to us. So, I asked Lorenzo Accardi to supervise the operation. He told me that he is sick. Stage three cancer."
The Capofrowned. His mind darted to the man’s son. His friend. "Does Nicodemo know?"
Out ofall elders that Noah had the opportunity of meeting and getting to know, he always liked Nicodemo’s father. He was a cruel bastard as far as the mafia business was concerned, but also a good man - to some extent. He
