Bound By Honor

It's dusk. The sun draped the atmosphere with a golden-yellow hue. The estate became lively as a convoy of cars drove in. The cars came to a halt. The front doors opened and guards in black suits stepped out. They opened the passenger seats of the cars and stood by the side.

A boy lunged out from the first car and dashed to the water fountain, and a girl came out.

She surveyed the estate using her hand to shelter her eyes from the sun's glare as she stared at the horizon.

"Mummy, this is beautiful! Where is everybody?" She turned to face her mother as she asked.

"Sofia, they are inside or at work in different parts of the estate." She walked over to her daughter and stroked her head as she replied to her.

"Go join Vincent by the water fountain".

"Oh God! Mum! Do I have to? He's quite wild"

"He isn't. He's quite the gentleman." Susan Tonali retorted.

As if to prove her wrong, Vincent took a stick and began chasing a squirrel that came to quench its thirst at the water fountain.

"What were you saying mother?" Sofia smirked at her mother as she asked.

"Boys will be Boys. No amount of etiquette classes can ever take away that."

"Squirrel, why are you giving my love a hard time?" Mr. Antonio Tonali's voice boomed behind them.

"Dad, she wants me to join that brute at the water fountain! He's disgusting." She contorted her face and stuck out her tongue.

Antonio chuckled and stooped to her height.

"Squirrel, can you do it as a favor to me? I will be very happy".

Sofia closed her eyes in mock seriousness as she mulled over her decision.

"Fine dad, I would do it just because you asked."

"That's my girl." He rubbed her head as he stood to his full height. Sofia slowly made her way to join Vincent at the water fountain.

Susan walked to his side and held his shoulder. "They are waiting for us in the living room."

Antonio placed his hand over her fingers on his shoulder, " They aren't going anywhere. Look at her. Just yesterday, she was in diapers, now she's one stubborn pest."

He stood and watched for a while before he turned and went towards the house.

" Look who decided to join us". A man's voice thundered across the thick wisps of smoke that hung in the air.

Mr. Insigne Cambiasso is seated at the head of the table. He was the head of the Cambiasso mob family.

" I was making sure my daughter was comfortable. For some reasons , she seems to think your son is a brute." Antonio went to a chair and sat down.

Insigne chuckled, blew out smoke from his nostrils, and said "She's not wrong. Sometimes I think there is a Berserker blood in my ancestry."

He leaned forward and stared at Antonio. "To business matters eh?"

"Certainly. What are your terms and conditions?"

"I was thinking the we divide the territories, the Cambiasso family with the lion's share. It's only fair don't you think?"

Antonio inhaled deeply as he considered the proposal. To reject the offer would be to have war, the Tonalis couldn't afford to go to war with the Cambiassos, at least not yet.

"Well, What's the percentage split we are looking at?" Antonio adjusted his tie.

" I was looking at a 70/30 split."

"That's too steep. 55/45?

"60/40, with royalties."

"You got a deal." Antonio stood up, went over to Insigne's side, and offered him a handshake.

They shook hands. "Let's drink to our new alliance." Insigne declared.

In the next room, Susan sat on a chair and fiddled with her hands as she waited for her husband.

The door to the room opened and a woman strode in. "I'm sorry for leaving you all by yourself. I had to make sure the meals were ready. I'm Martha Cambiasso. It's nice to finally meet a woman that I can talk to". She walked over to Susan who was already standing and they exchanged hugs and kisses.

"I understand. Our husbands. They need our best. You have a beautiful home I must say."

"This is nothing." Martha responded with a wave of her hand.

"What would you take?" Martha asked as she went to the minibar.

"Scotch will do." Came Susan's reply.

Martha walked over and handed her the glass of Scotch.

"Thank you."

Sofia stood a good distance from Vincent. She was worried that his wildness would corrupt the grace of her etiquette. Vincent ignored her presence and kept trotting around the water fountain.

"Ahem! Ahem!" Sofia cleared her throat to gain his attention.

Vincent turned and faced her, his lips were drawn to a corner as he asked, "Have you made up your mind then?"

"Huh?" Sofia's raised eyebrows gave away her confusion.

"You have been standing there for quite a century. I didn't know that fun was a grave matter that required such deliberations."

Sofia quickly regained her wits and retorted, "I didn't want to influenced by whatever possessed you."

"Suit yourself." He turned his focus to the water fountain.

"Aren't you going to tell me your name?" She asked after a while.

"Now why would I do that?" He shrugged his shoulders as he replied without turning to face her.

"Because..." Her voice tailed off.

"It's the proper thing to do!"

"Proper? yes. Wise? I don't know."

"What do you mean?" She sighed as she rubbed her forehead.

"I thought you wouldn't want my wildness corrupting your graceful airs." He sneered as he kept fiddling with the objects in his hands.

"Urgh! You are unbelievable." She stomped her foot as she exclaimed.

"So I have been told". He shrugged her barbs off.

Sofia turned on and walked briskly to the house. She made her way in and went in search of her mother.

She came to a door that was partially opened, as she was about to knock, the voices she heard made her pause. Suddenly, the door was drawn back,

"Who do we have here?"

"I'm looking for my Dad and Mum. Have you seen any of them kind sir?" She asked curtly.

"Yeah. He's in there." He gestured towards another room.

"He's in a meeting. Check the room on the right down the hallway. Your mum might be there."

"Okay. Thank you sir."

He watched her go and holstered the gun he had already pulled out.

"Well, well, well. That was close. I keep you telling you that you are awfully jumpy."

"Occupational hazards. It's better to paranoid then dead. Let's get back to hatching our plot."

"Of course. This new alliance is not in our interests. It's going to derail our plans."