The Caporegime's Song (4)
The killer slipped into the Academy under Darius Lusso's orders, a menacing shadow sent to strike. But for all the threat he posed, the effort was wasted. I wasn't at the Academy at all. I was staying at the Rufus Carlton Hotel in the port district.
I had brought Viola Carmen to Elena anyway. There were things I needed to confirm in person.
"...."
The moment Viola and I reached the top floor, Felicia naturally joined us.
"It's been a while, Viola."
"I can't help but wonder why you're here."
It seemed the two already knew each other.
"Call it a marriage alliance. Old-fashioned, but effective."
Viola looked at me with a slightly surprised expression after hearing Felicia's words.
"I see."
She accepted it without needing further explanation, as if it all made perfect sense. That mannerism reminded me a little of her older sister.
"Let's get moving."
"Yes."
Felicia stuck close to my side, while Viola followed a step behind the two of us.
"Come in, all of you."
The instant we entered the luxurious suite that Elena and I shared, she appeared. Scattered throughout the room were members of her organization, standing by in case of any trouble.
"I didn't call for you, Felicia."
"It's fine. I don't mind."
It wasn't a question of whether Felicia minded. It was whether Elena did. Every time the two spoke, Elena looked like she was having her patience tested.
"It's been a while, Viola."
"...Yes."
The words were exactly the same as what Felicia had said moments ago. Viola hesitated slightly, as if experiencing déjà vu, before answering.
"Miss. Or should I call you the Dark Wolf now?"
"If we're doing that, you have a name too. Little Spider."
Somehow, Elena and Viola had exchanged titles in a strangely natural way.
The reason Viola Carmen was called the Little Spider was simple. Just as I had once been regarded as the successor to the Wolves, there had been a time when she was seen as the successor to the Spiders.
Long ago, the Five Families each had various subordinate groups. Among them, those with the deepest history were the Wolves, the Spiders, and the Poison Snakes.
Of those three, the Wolves and Spiders had bitten the hands of the Five Families. The Wolves became the Fellini Family, and the Spiders seized control of one of the Five Families. The leader of the Spiders was none other than Rita Carmen, the current Boss of the Carmen Family.
The reason the Wolves and Spiders had turned on their masters was because of the horrific fate that had befallen the Poison Snakes. They had realized they were nothing more than disposable tools to the Five Families—nothing more, nothing less.
"I've already heard the general situation from Luke."
"Then this should be quick."
Elena and I quickly summarized the current state of affairs. The people and goods Viola had brought were currently in Carini territory. The forces I had pulled from the port, routed through the Academy, were keeping a close watch on them to ensure they didn't try anything foolish.
"So what wind blew you here?"
"There's no loyalty that requires me to stay aboard a sinking ship. Above all, I was in a position to monitor the Lusso Family under the Godfather's orders."
Our father's death and the internal power struggles within the Lusso Family. Those were the two main reasons Viola had attempted her great defection toward us.
Of course, there was one more reason she didn't mention. She must have judged that the momentum of our Fellini Family wasn't as bad as it seemed.
"Now everything has finally taken its proper shape. It is an honor to be able to stand with the two of you—the Dark Wolf and the Little Wolf."
"...."
Elena seemed quite pleased that Viola had grouped the two of us together in her words.
"As the Boss of the Family, I welcome you."
"Thank you, Boss."
The one Viola truly wanted to welcome her was probably neither the Dark Wolf nor the Little Wolf... but my father. The Wolf himself.
"You haven't forgotten, have you, Viola?"
Simply having Elena welcome her and Viola expressing gratitude wasn't enough. Instead, upon hearing my words, Viola kissed the back of Elena's hand—the one wearing the ring engraved with the Fellini family crest.
Viola's oath of loyalty had been sworn to my and Elena's father. In other words, she was now pledging that same loyalty to the Family's new Boss.
Viola Carmen pledges fealty to the new leadership of the Fellini Family.
In that brief moment when Viola kissed the back of Elena's hand, both I and every organization member stationed around the room stared at her with piercing eyes. There was always the possibility that her surrender was a ruse.
However, it wasn't the kind of move Darius Lusso would think of. It was far more the style of her older sister, Rita Carmen.
"If I may say one thing, I am merely the beginning."
"What do you mean?"
"Because I'm not the only one inside the Lusso Family who holds grievances against the Boss."
Viola was hinting at how events would likely unfold from here on. At the same time, she naturally emphasized that she was the first spark of that flow.
"Well, there's no harm in that."
I answered Viola's statement. We were short on manpower, so having the Lusso Family's forces turn into ours was something we could only welcome with open arms.
"And there is something else I must inform both of you."
Viola Carmen began to reveal what she had learned while staying with the Lusso Family. It wasn't appropriate to disclose everything in this meeting, but she intended to share the most critical information.
"It may be hard to believe, but the Lusso Family does not have the capacity to wage war."
"For someone without the capacity, last night's attack was quite thorough."
"The only ones capable of installing and detonating bombs that quickly... would be the Granada. But if the Lusso Family had truly intended to go all out, they would have deployed other forces alongside the Granada."
And we had mistaken Viola and her people for those other forces. The plan had been to strike Lumini's territory to draw our strength and attention, then attack Carini's territory.
"So what do you mean when you say the Lusso Family lacks the capacity for war?"
"Every one of the Five Families is under attack from both inside and out. And the most threatening force from the outside... I believe it will surprise both of you."
"...."
A force powerful enough to surprise both Elena and me. I wondered what it could be.
"Would you believe me if I said the Poison Snakes have returned?"
"...Didn't the Spiders wipe out all the Poison Snakes?"
Elena asked the question with a puzzled look toward the Little Spider, who had once stood beside Rita Carmen and led the Spiders with her.
"Yes, that is what happened. But there were a few we missed."
Viola added her personal opinion that she had honestly not expected them to become a major threat. But her prediction had been spectacularly wrong. In such a short time, they had grown strong enough to threaten the Lusso Family in northern Hevilly.
What mattered more, however, was that we had only now learned of the Poison Snakes' return. Our intelligence network had weakened considerably, but there was a reason Viola had called their return critical information.
Wolves, Spiders, Poison Snakes.
If the Wolves had been the executioners of the Five Families and the Spiders their ears and eyes, then the Poison Snakes had been their lethal dagger. After the Five Families purged the Poison Snakes, that role had passed to the Spiders.
The most distinctive feature of the Poison Snakes was that most of them possessed venomous hands, or were monsters whose blood had been replaced by poison. They were living weapons, plain and simple.
"The enemy's enemy is my friend."
⟨ Status Window Message ⟩
The letters floating above the book near me transformed into something plausible. As if it wouldn't miss this opportunity, it seemed to have something else to tell me.
The enemy's enemy is my friend?
The status window rarely helped, but this time it felt like it didn't even understand the situation properly.
After Viola finished speaking, Elena and I naturally turned our gaze toward Felicia.
"Why? Because I'm a Marinelli?"
"Yes. After the Poison Snakes deal with the Lusso Family, the Marinelli Family will be next."
When Felicia asked, Elena simply stated the truth.
"And they'll probably come after me and my damn sister as well."
That made sense. When the Spiders had purged the Poison Snakes on the orders of the Five Families, the leader of the Spiders had been Rita Carmen, and the successor had been Viola Carmen.
"They might have complaints against our Wolves as well."
The Wolves had not been heavily involved in the purge of the Poison Snakes. At the time, my father—the leader of the Wolves—had been absent on other business. Still, some of the Wolves on standby had assisted the Spiders in the matter.
I didn't know how broadly the Poison Snakes had drawn the line for their revenge, but the Wolves seemed to be sitting in a rather ambiguous position.
"Then the best scenario would be to crush the Lusso Family and crush the Poison Snakes as well."
"Yes, that would be ideal."
Viola agreed with me but added that it would by no means be easy. If the Lusso Family and the Poison Snakes joined hands during the process, it would become a massive headache.
"I don't think those two will join hands."
"Even so, no one can predict exactly how the situation will unfold."
Despite Elena's words, Viola spoke as if they needed to prepare for the worst-case scenario.
After that, we discussed how to treat Viola. The first order of business was deciding where she and her people would stay—in other words, assigning her a new district.
"There happens to be an opening in River West."
Replacing the existing Caporegime position felt awkward. The current arrangement had only just stabilized. Elena seemed to agree with my suggestion.
"The district between Carini and Vannela would be appropriate."
"Anywhere is fine with me."
I wondered if Viola truly meant that. Even considering that, unlike her sister, she had an honest personality.
With both Elena and me agreeing on the district, and Viola accepting it, her new territory was decided.
We were about to move on to other topics when a call came in from the Academy.
"Boss, it's Cambara."
"Ah, yes. What is it?"
Cambara calmly reported that he had captured the killer who had sneaked into the Academy. No matter how many forces had been pulled away to Carini territory... the Academy had essentially become a den of Wolves. That killer really had no fear at all.