Il Mancini Diari

[Leonardo]

The Opera

entry by Leonardo Mancini

Last weekend, one of my old friends, Don Vito Luchessi from Gravesend, came to visit me on account of an Opera they have in Bensonhurst every year.

Vito Luchessi was a very important influence in my life as a young immigrant to New York. He's nearly twice my age. I first met him in Gravesend, whenever I first got to New York. I traveled a lot, and eventually I caught up with him. He was old then, but he had gained a lot of influence and was considered a community leader. I even asked him how he had become so powerful. He told me eventually, but it took me a few months to get the entire story and put it in chronologicial order.

Luchessi, a collie mix, was born in Sicily, and moved here with his humans in 1954. He was very, very smart, and used to trick bullies and strays from outside of the fence to bring him things. Eventually, Luchessi had built a pretty extensive contact system from his own backyard. So extensive, in fact, that dogs began to try to find ways IN. This lead to problems, and Luchessi was soon jumped by 3 thugs one summer afternoon. He became edgy and distant after that, and he was so nervous that he even bit the new human baby. Of course, he was shipped off to the animal shelter almost immediately. The animal shelter workers took a liking to Luchessi because of his endless good nature, and they took to calling him 'Veto', because every time the order was passed to put him down, they'd all throw it in the trash, swearing they'd received no such order. Luchessi eventually became close friends with all the other dogs, especially the young ones, because they were most likely to be adopted. Once they were out, they started doing his bidding, hanging around his old family's house and tempting them to get another dog. Once they were sold on the idea, they rushed to the animal center, only to find their old dog from a year ago still safely inside. Needless to say, he was adopted again.

Using good nature and almost no violence at all, Vito Luchessi built an empire on the meat industry in Gravesend. In fact, once the rival Dons met him, they joined him because of his great humor and the ability to please as many people as possible. By the time I met him, he was a full fledged Boss of Bosses. I admired him. In fact, he inspired me to move to Bensonhurst and begin my own business empire. But I don't think I will ever achieve the greatness Don Vito achieved in Gravesend, because although I get many of my skills from him, there is simply no one better at the art of negotiation.

So many years later, Don Vito was coming to visit me as he did annually, being that his family had relatives in the area and he was able to walk around free. He was always so impressed with what I had going, but of course, I always felt like it was nothing that he had ever achieved. He even asked me advice sometimes, and I'd stare at him blankly as if to say "Yous serious?"

Another reason why he came to visit was because of the community Opera. A small band of actors got together every Christmas eve to throw together an elaborate production called Sofia. They find out whenever the Bensonhurst Community Concert would be playing, and would rehearse their scenes while the band practiced their scores. Animals would find a way to do anything. Me and Luchessi would go and see the play every year, but it was better every time because of the new music selection and the better acoustics. It had come by later this year due to the scheduling of the concert. Essentially, Sofia was a parody and moshpit of Romeo and Juliet, The Gift of the Magi,and..some other story. The story was set in an old Kingdom called Old Yorke, separated and ragged by war. There were 5 main characters. Markus, who was the king of Dogland. His beautiful adolescent daughter, Sofia, was princess. The evil sorceress cat queen Sylvia ruled Cattown, and had a young son by the name of Mario. And of course, the blind traveling court jester/priest, Cicero. He's a dog that thinks himself a cat. The two countries had fought a 10 year war, neither side making a difference. Cats hated dogs, and dogs hated cats. They'd kill each other on site. Anyway, Mario complains to his mother that he cannot find love in such a hateful world. She fixes up a potion that would cause him to fall madly in love with the first female he makes eye contact with (unrelated to him), and she fall for him as well. Mario finds Sofia during a scouting mission, and they begin to fight, ending in intense eye contact between the two. They fall in love, a dog and cat. The two undergo many strange and amusing adventures trying to both hide and express their love at the same time, aided by Cicero. Eventually, Mario goes to his mother and convinces her to change him into a dog so that he can be with Sofia. She reluctantly gives him a potion to take that would turn him into his opposite. Sofia accidentally finds and drinks this potion, and she becomes a cat while he has become a dog. Meanwhile, Markus has planted a catnip bag tainted with rat poison for Mario to eat. Of course, Mario is no longer attracted to catnip, and it is Sofia who dies. Agonized by his lover's death, Mario eats the poison as well and dies. The two meet in heaven after some dispute as to which one they can enter (dog heaven or cat heaven) and are eventually depicted as spirits, and they can love for the rest of time. It's a really great story and is one of the most famous romantic comedies known to Southwest Brooklyn.

I met Luchessi just outside the 'theatre'.

"Don Vito, I'm so happy to see you here!"

"Ooohhh my friend. Don Leo!" He was sooo old. It was really hard to hear him. He moved so slowly and his two bodyguards had to keep him from nearly falling. He kissed my cheeks gently. I could tell he was missing some teeth. "Thank you for making sure I could come here! I can't get around as easily." He began coughing.

"Happy birthday, Don Vito. But if you like, we can simply relax at my house and eat. I'm sure you must be really tired."

"Oh I wouldn't miss the Opera for the world, Leonardo. You should know that. Besides, I hear it's even better than last year! They have a new actor for the role of Mario. His name is Leonardo Altobello. He's simply marvelous! Everyone's talking about him. We must go inside and get our seats, my friend. Come! The opera awaaaiits! Haha!" He slowly but surely made his way to the designated area. Meanwhile, one of his bodyguards approached me.

"Don Mancini, can I have a minute?"

"Of course, what is it Maggi?"

"Don Vito is suffering from cancer. It's highly terminal. He turns 13 years old today. We fear that he might not live to see another week. If you ask me, I think this might be his last day." She was subtly crying.

"Now now, no need for such negativity. Come, enjoy the opera."

The opera was performed on a basketball court. It had a metal roof over the top and lights that were usually left on thanks to the irresponsible kids that left the place. It had great acoustics of course. Me and Don Luchessi had a reserved elevated seat. One rule about the Opera was that no one was allowed to bring any food. It was distracting. Only water was available, and that was usually for the actors to ease their voices. I never liked that rule. I liked to eat. But Luchessi took it very seriously.

"You see that fat lady down there? I saw her sneak in some pork! The porker! Did you see, Don Leo?"

"Ha! No I didn't see. But we'll smell it if she smuggled in something." I didn't believe him. No one got past the usher.

The play started.

My favorite character had always been Sylvia. I know it sounds strange, but I always had a small crush on her character. In fact, I wish she was a dog. Perhaps it was the actress I really liked...her name was BeeBee, and she lived a few blocks away from me. She was a jet black cat with captivating, big eyes. She was nearly 8 years old, but she hadn't aged a day since I met her other than one strand of silver hair that went over her eye. I always found it both ironic and disturbing that I was mildly attracted to her, and she was the main orchestrator of this play--which was about a cat/dog relationship. I watched her perform her entertaining solo about her kingdom, whenever Mario was cue to walk in.

"This is it, Leonardo. It's Altobello!"

I hadn't expected much, and I was right in terms of physical appearance. Altobello was skinny and short for a cat. But his voice! Usually Mario's parts were annoying and longwinded because he tried to hit long notes with the standard cat's 'yowl', instead of doing like Sylvia and going fast. But Altobello went just as fast or faster than Sylvia, and his voice was soft and entertaining. It had a great rhythm, and together with BeeBee it was incredible. Luchessi was absolutely delighted, and kept praising the scene with abandon.

Later on in the Opera, when Cicero discovered the two lovers, I noticed the usher sternly fussing at the fat lady who snuck in the pork. I tried to bring Vito's attention to it, but he was fast asleep. I decided not to wake him. He needed his rest. However, not even 2 minutes later, he was wide awake, complaining.

"They skipped the part when Cicero discovers their love."

"...."

"Didn't they?"

"Yeah. Shameless. We should complain later."

"After we meet Altobello. I really want to talk to him, but I'm shy. Come with me to talk to him after the opera."

I thought that was amusing. Luchessi had talked dogs bigger than me down. But I just nodded and continued watching the show. Since I'd seen it before, I'd fine my mind wondering when I wasn't laughing, crying, or cheering with the rest of the audience. Everyone here was old. We'd all been here before. Why were we still coming? Were we hanging on to some part of youth? Or perhaps we were finding a way to escape the crazy world that we lived in.

Towards the end, when the two main characters died, the entire audience began to cry. Sofia shined at this part of the show. I was happy for her, because this was her last chance to really make herself known. They always used a new Sofia to make her as young and innocent as possible. Luchessi cried like a man who'd seen his own family slaughtered. But he was smiling too. He never, ever stopped smiling.

Once the show ended, and the actors came out after the finale to receive their flowers, everyone screamed "amiamo Altobello! Encore!" I admit I was thinking "Great job everyone, but God no, please no encore". I was just about to turn to Luchessi and ask what he wanted to do whenever I found him fast asleep, that same smile on his face.

"C'mon, zio. You can't be sleeping now. We have to go talk to Altobello."

He didn't move. Not even when I pushed him a little bit.

"Vito? Vito!?"

He was dead. He died smiling.

His bodyguards sadly lay him down on the ground, away from the rest of the crowd. They wept over him, and began saying prayers for his soul.

"I'm really sorry for what happened to Don Luchessi. If there's anything I can do--"

"--No no, he knew he was going to die. He just wanted to die in his favorite place in the world."

I nodded, "This is a great Opera."

"No, Don Leo. Your side. He wanted to die at your side."

I couldn't believe that. And I definitely didn't want to start crying in front of all those people, so I began to take my leave after paying respect to Don Vito. However, I accidentally stepped on Leonardo Altobello's tail.

"Yow! That hurt! Hi! Did you enjoy the show?"

"My apologies, Leonardo. You were quite the star, I enjoyed your performance."

"Thanks Don Mancini!"

I was surprised this cat knew me. "You know me?"

"Thanks to Don Luchessi." He looked around. "Where is Mr.Luchessi? He wanted to talk to me afterwards."

"You knew about that?"

"Of course. He got me this role. I'm eternally grateful."

I can't believe I let Vito pull the wool over my eyes yet again. Sneaky bastard.

"Where is he?"

"Oh he's....he's gone. He may come back next year."

Altobello shook his head. "I won't be here next year. I'm terminally ill with cancer. I only have about 6 months left."

I grimaced and held my head low. No wonder Luchessi had picked out Altobello. This had suddenly become the most sorrowful night. The young cat before saw my sadness and smiled.

"Don't worry. I'm okay. Luchessi gave me some very special advice. He told me to give it to you."

I left that place with a heavy heart, but a thoughtful mind. I had lost one of my most respected friends, and probably watched one of my favorite plays for the last time, simply because I couldn't bear to go back after what had happened. I was so broken up, that I absentmindedly told BeeBee I loved her. I didn't wait to see her reaction. I simply kept walking. But I remained thoughful....Altobello had relayed some very important advice, and as I remembered it, I could almost hear Luchessi gleefully whispering it down my ear.

"People in our position are often burdened with a difficult psychological task. We are leaders, and we have to oversee the operation of many things. But we will not live forever. No one does. And often we forget that in our endless scramble for wealth and power. Don't forget, those who occupy themselves too deeply in seizing power often forget to seize the day!"

I will never forget.

[Leonardo]

Leonardo Mancini circa. 1963

[Leonardo]

A birthday present!

[Leonardo]

In case I ever change my sig, here is a banner created by Grave, picturing Vinny:

[Leonardo]

Redshift's answer to a test question!

[Leonardo]

Father

Entry by Francesco Sardelli

Yesterday was my day off. I'd finally found Donnie and Ralph--the two traitors who brutally mutilated a made man and took sides against the family. I brought the two mutts in for judgement, and Don Mancini gave the order to have them executed. He was pleased that I had taken care of this so quickly, so he gave me the next day off to do whatever I please.

You know, often my friends joke around with me, asking me what does a guy like me do when he isn't working. You see, I'm always working. But whenever I do get a little time off, I like to spend it at a cat bar. There are very, very few cat bars. And they shut down and reopen all of the time; Just last week, two of them opened right across the street from one another and then closed the very next day. They are usually underneath a house or apartment building of some sort. Despite their murkiness, they are quite comfortable and I like the venue.

Anyway, my friend Eddie borrowed some 'money' from the family to pay a few debts, and then he opened a new cat bar just inside the Industrial Park area. Fat Eddie was a great guy, and one of my few cat friends to date. Part of why I went to the bar was to visit with him. Nobody else would talk to me. Some people would even get up and leave. I didn't blame them, though. I hadn't come to New York to make friends. I came to do business. And what I do tends to shake people up a little bit, so they don't want anything to do with me. Some people are prejudice against dogs, so they detest me for how I associate with them. They used to call me things like butt-sniffer, and catnine, and my personal favorite: bark instead of nark. Real classy. So I started hurting people until they stopped. I have no use for these kinds of insults. I'm a grown ass man.

Eddie however had been an affiliate of Mancini since the good old days, and that's how I first met him. I could always talk to him about my problems for some reason. And today I had a very special problem. My oldest daughter Rosa had been missing for over a week, and I wanted to know if he'd heard any rumors. Well I was beyond disappointed to find that Eddie had just finished his shift, and had left for the day. It was around 6 pm, so I knew he wasn't going home. The day just starts for us cats around six, because that's around the time we start waking up. I didn't want to look like an idiot just leaving because Eddie wasn't around, so I sat at the bar and ordered the only thing they had: flat soda. I'd never tried that before, but it tasted pretty damn good, so I wasn't complaining.

Suddenly this loud mouth practically falls into the place, knocking stuff over and singing like a drunk. He's horribly off key and just by the way his voice crackled I could tell he was twice my age. Everyone kept up their conversations, but they all laughed at him on the side. I could also tell without even looking that they were eyeballing me, waiting for a reaction. However I'd react is how they'd react. Simple pecking order theory. Everyone in there wanted to stay on the toughest cat's good side so they wouldn't be targeted as well if something went wrong. If the three big cats were laughing at the old coot, the others would laugh as well. If they were not amused, the others were not amused either. Simple.

I was not amused, so needless to say the old clown didn't get much of an audience. To be honest I never even looked at him until he got in my face, breathing all over my neck. It smelled like catnip, so I knew he was high. I could also see it in his fixated pupils.

"HEY!" He shouted into my ear, "I HAD SEX WITH YOUR MOTHER"

I did my best to ignore him. Maybe he'd go away.

"HEY KID! I HAD SEX WITH YOUR MOTHER!" Then he knocked my drink into my lap. The crowd was now insanely quiet. This fool was messing with a mobster. I had no choice but to give him what he wanted. Physical attention.

I grabbed the back of his head with my paw and slammed him against the table, knocking one of his teeth out. I pinned him down on the table, too, by just his head. I was pissed. "You sunnava bitch! You picked the wrong guy to screw with!"

He struggled under my weight, but I was far stronger than him, and I mushed him on that table good. He groaned, "Is that all you got, you faggot? I'll be you think you're tough, wiseguy. Wait till I get off this table....I HAD SEX WITH YOU--"

"Maybe you didn't hear me--" I rolled him over and grabbed his face, perfectly ready to gauge one of his eyes out, when I noticed he only had one eye. Something triggered in my mind. I think humans call it a flashback or something. I rewound all the way back to 3 months old, when I was a little bad ass in New Jersey. I remember this son of a bitch being there, always with my mom, but only when she was in heat. He had like 4 wives, the no good rolling stone. And judging by the color of his fur and eyes, I knew who he was. "Pop?"

"Huh?" Once I let him go he looked me in the eye. "You...oh yeeeahh! I DID have sex with your mother!"

I knocked him smooth out.

Fifteen minutes later he woke up, groaning and swearing up a storm. "Aaaugghh you've got hell of a right hook, son..."

"Don't call me 'son'." I didn't have any respect for this guy. Technically he had done nothing wrong. Most cats pimp, it's what we do. But seldom do sons and fathers get along, and this is one of the main reasons. "What the hell are you doing in Brooklyn."

"Easy easy," he frowned. I think I knocked out his last tooth. "We haven't seen each in how long? And you want to ship me out on the next slave boat?"

"That's exactly what I want to do you old bastard."

"You asshole. You always were a little asshole." He grunted and rubbed his mouth. "I came here to see you, you little punk!"

I stared at him with complete disbelief.

"...Uh, fine. I fell asleep on a greyhound bus in Hoboken--"

I laughed.

"Eh, I old okay? I just realized that once I let a punk beat me up in a bar."

"You got what was coming to you old man."

My dad wasn't like how he used to be. Don't get me wrong, he was still a sleazy asshole. That part didn't change. But now he was a sleazy asshole who was too old to even help himself. He was forgetful and slow, and I think he even had a lazy ear. "Soooo," he barked, "Whatcha been up to, kiddo?"

"It's Frankie, Pop. Frankie."

"So you can call me pop and I can't call you son?" He scoffed. "That's not fair!"

I glared at him. "I work in the meat business."

He scoffed again, laughing this time. "Bullshit," he muttered.

"What the hell are you talking about? What do you know? You're just a dumb old man."

"Hey I still remember to kick the grass where I shit! So there!" After I had laughed at that, he continued. "Besides, slick hair, you smell like Bart Howard, and nobody here is sitting within a 3 foot radius of you." He smirked. "You're a mobster. Clear as day."

Again, my dad was sinfully old, and he had lost his mind. What's worse is that he was a moron before he officially lost his mind, so no one would believe him if he went around spilling the beans anyway. As if everyone didn't already have an idea. So I humored him. "Excellent deduction, Pop. You remind me of an old, buttass ugly Sherlock."

"You know something about you always told me you were gonna be a mobster."

"Yea right, you hardly knew me. You never stuck around."

"No I mean you were born in Jersey, Frank."

"Oh...." He had a point.

He sighed. "I always regret doing what I did, kid. I ain't looking for any kind of forgiveness, but hey, maybe it's for the best I wasn't involved in you and your brothers and sisters' lives, huh? Could have been a bad influence, right?"

I sipped my new drink, ordering one for him. He wasn't wrong about that. I wasn't going to forgive him, and I definitely thought he would have been a bad influence. "Shut up Pop."

"I mean look at you, you're big, you're bad. You've got money. Hell I bet you're a family man. All your brothers and step brothers are. Hell come to think of it, they are all doing really well for themselves too."

I didn't remember many of my relatives. I was sorry I remembered my damned dad, but I still was interested in how they were doing. "What do they do?"

"Oh they're all mobsters."

"Oh shit..." I laughed at that.

He frowned and smirked. "I don't think you are paying much attention, Frank. Hoboken, New Jersey, kiddo."

"Yeh yeh."

"You're little brother Tommy...he's a real bastard. Nobody screws with the guy. He's even a little bigger than you! And that's saying something. I'm fearless, but even I don't mess with him. I made that mistake last year, and he beat the shit out of me. Broke my tailbones, too. They've healed but they've never been the same."

"Huh...Tommy eh?" I missed Hoboken, but I knew I would never go back. Too much drama. It was why I left. Cults and harems and all kinds of shit like that...they were all over the place. Nowhere to do good business. Part of me wondered what kind of life I would have led if I would have stayed with my brothers and handled the mob. But the rest of me was thankful I had the opportunity to get the hell outta there. "How's uh...how's Ma?"

Pop kind of looked away. I could tell he was reluctant to tell me something. I could feel the hair rising on my neck, but he told me something I kind of already knew was coming. "Your mom died last year of pneumonia. I'm sorry Frank."

I inhaled and exhaled deeply. Every memory of my mother was backed up by an image of her beating me, but she was a good lady and she sure as hell didn't take any mess. I got that much from her. In fact I got everything from her. She was both a mother and father figure, and that's what makes cat moms great. But I would never see her again now. At the same time I hoped she'd remembered me, I also hoped that she'd forgotten me--so that I didn't cause her any pain. My dad interrupted my thoughts. Again.

"You okay Frank?"

"Uh yea. yea Pop. I'm fine."

"Frank can I tell you something? Something I haven't told anyone."

What was this?  My dad was trying to connect with me? Was he trying to comfort me now that I had realized my loss? Maybe I should let it happen, right? See how it goes? "Yea, Pop?"

"Well it's just that I'm getting really old and I want to get this off my chest before I die..."

"Yeah? Yeah what is it?"

"...I accidentally ate a chihuahua the other day."

"OH MY GOD." I couldn't believe that. Well, I not the chihuahua thing--well I couldn't believe that either that's just disgusting--but I couldn't believe how he could bring that up at a time like this. I started up to leave.

"He just looked so much like a rat at the time and I was just starving--hey where you going?"

"I'm going home Pop. It was really not nice meeting you." I jumped off the seat and walked to the door. "Take it easy."

"Hey!" He called out."You can't just leave me here! You gotta put me in a retirement home! Right? Is that how it works? I forgot....what am I doing here?"

"I don't owe you anything Pop. Die in Hoboken or die here, it makes no difference to me." I left the bar and then looked both ways before crossing the street. I was closer to Leo's place than I was to mine, so I figured I'd stay there the night. He wouldn't mind. I looked back toward the bar to see my stupid dad running across the street yelling at me. He didn't even look both ways! That's like punishable by death. Seriously. Anyway, I see cars coming and I dive in after him, grabbing him by the scruff and yanking him to the sidewalk just in time. A car was only inches from running both of us over. I could hear the people honking and yelling human words at us.

"WHAT THE HELL is wrong with you, Pop?" I was panting. He was heavy. "You could have gotten us killed!"

Apparently he was in shock of what just happened. "I'm....I just needed to ask you a question."

"WHAT IN THE HELL," I began, "Is so important that you nearly got ran over?"

"I just need to know what day it is."

I saw red. He risked our lives for this stupid question that he could have asked anyone in the flipping bar. "WHAT DAY IS IT?"

He shrugged. "That was what I was asking you!"

I roared, ready to kill him.

He flinched, "Hey, I just need to know so I can get the greyhound bus again!"

I settled down and rubbed my face. I was so done with this. "It's Tuesday."

"Thanks. See you around." He dusted himself off and started to walk away. I sighed. He was going in the wrong direction, and what's worse he ran into a stop sign. He couldn't even see the damn stop--

"Pop! Hey Pop! Wait up." I reluctantly dragged myself after him. "You're coming with me."

"What? Why? I thought--"

"I've got a place you can stay for one night. ONE night only."

"So you're gonna take care of me then!"

"What part of ONE NIGHT do you not understand?"

"Riiiight." He smirked, following me. "Hey, do I have any grandkids?"

I glared at him out the corner of my eye. "Three. But you can forget about seeing them or even knowing their goddamned names."

"C'maaaaaaaaan--"

"C'maaaaaaaaaaaaaan--"

[Leonardo]

A Brooklyn Tail

Entry by Vincent De Luca

I've always wanted to be a gangster.

I was born in the area they call the plaza in north Bensonhurst, right next to the run down pizza joint where they sold cigarettes right out the back to youngsters. It was the early 60s, summer of '63, to be exact. The greasers were at an all time high and still clinging onto their 1950s swagger. Of course I didn't know anything about that, only what I heard from other dogs. My mother was a wash up and eventually abandoned me. I never met my father. Growing up I would always listen to the old dogs around the block talk about gangsters and mafia and thugs. They'd say it was the only way to get a living in this town and they said names like "Sinatra" and "Brasi" and "Luchessi", all names I didn't understand at the time. But the name that caught my interest the most was Leonardo Mancini. Mancini had only been in the area a few months before I was born and already he was making a massive name for himself. I'd sit on the other side of the fence for hours, listening to the guys talk and talk. Eventually they figured out what I was doing, and began using Italinglish. I caught on to that though. They would tell stories about peddling, territory wars, and getting "whacked". That was always my favorite part. It was all so mysterious to me. My mother had told me that that was scary and taboo, but it just amazed me that dogs could have so much power and decide who lives and who dies.

By the time I was 3 months I'd heard nothing but the most fearsome tales about Mancini, and everyone said his name with a tone of respect and honor. I'd never seen him, and I was beginning to think I'd never would, until one day outside the pizza parlor when I was coming home to my house inside the trash.

Mancini was there, in all his glory. He was a monster of a dog, with big white teeth and huge scary muscles. He must've eaten hundreds of pooches. His fur was slick and clean, and he smelled like a bucket of roses--no homo but seriously that's how he smelled. Just clean. With him were two fat, mean looking twin thugs who I later found out were named Joey and Louie Luchessi. They'd come with him from Gravesend, and were affiliates with the Luchessi crime family. They had worked with Leo when he was a capo down there, and had come with him to help him establish his own outfit here in Bensonhurst. Rumor has it that even from day one, the twins had called him Boss because of his attitude and natural leadership qualities. I couldn't understand that. How could scary mobsters just fall in line behind a guy they never knew? I was about to find out.

Leo was having an argument with Petey, the watchdog. The two were obviously settling some kind of business. Leonardo never raised his voice, or showed any sign of anger against Petey. The Luchessi thugs sat around him and watched around, making sure nobody would attack him from behind. Petey was in hot water, but he didn't feel to threatened. I overheard him finally give in and promise to pay Leonardo whatever he needed. Then, suddenly, four dogs came out of no where and approached the meeting, screaming cuss words and yelling for Petey. I was scared. I thought for sure Petey was going to get 'whacked'. They grabbed Pete and started roughing him up. I started to hate Leo. Hate him for leaving Pete vulnerable like that. But to my surprise, Leo and the twins came running back, silently breaking into the fight. I'd never seen anything like it. They fought the bullies off Petey, mortally wounding two of them and dragging the others away. Leonardo stayed behind while Louie and Joey took care of the business, and he talked to Petey for a while, making sure he was okay. He even put a delay on his payment and told him he was going to stick around for a few days to make sure nobody screwed with him. It was at this point when he caught site of me spying on them. He grinned. I'll never forget the first time he spoke to me.

"Heya kiddo. What's ya name?"

"Vincent..." I mumbled. "My momma named me Vincent..." I felt embarrassed and nervous.

"Vincenzo..." he said the name with such a cool accent I was ashamed for saying it the other way. "Vinny! Do ya friends cawl ya Vinny?"

"Uh...no suh. I don't 'ave too many friends."

Petey piped in, his voice gruff and friendly as always. "'Cept me! Heheh."

Leo laughed. "Well I'll tell ya what, Vinny. I'll be ya friend. My name is Leonardo Ricardo Mancini."

"Nice to meet you Mr. Mancini." I said, remembering my manners and crossing my feet nervously.

He laughed again and tousled my hair, kissing me on the forehead before he left. I felt my heart drop when he was gone, because I didn't see him again for another month or so and I knew I had blew my chance to impress him. I wanted him to know I could be tough and cool like him and Louie and Joey. I wanted to be gangsters like them. Everyone loved and respected Leonardo. That's why the twins had just called him Boss from the Get go. It was the main reason why I was so fascinated by the goodfella's life style.

Mobsters might be bad guys, but they were often far more good than you thought. You just had to get to know one.

I started being a little rebel, doing my own dealings and trying to make a little name for myself near the boondocks. I sort of succeeded. No one really spoke my name with fear, but people knew my name here and there. Oh, and I started going by Vinny. I wanted to identify myself with Leonardo as much as possible. I started working for Petey, and earned a measly keep. I later found out that Petey was a capo for Mancini. But that was days after he died in a car accident. I was broken up to no end. They had a funeral, but Leonardo didn't show up. Turns out Leo had been injured as well and couldn't travel, but I didn't know that at the time. I hated him for not showing up. He had just abandoned us. I worshipped him, and Petey trusted him. But he didn't come. It was like he didn't care. I started terrorizing the boondocks, and one day in over confidence I bit off a little more than I could chew.

Trying to steal from this punk terrier, I started to get my ass handed to me. I didn't expect such a good fight out of that little guy. He started to really hurt me, and I thought I was a goner whenever Leonardo stepped in front, swiftly killing the terrier and saving my life. I'd never been so close to death before, I mean a killing. Leonardo tossed the dog in the trash, and then turned to me. He didn't seem as friendly.

"What the hell ah you doin' kid?"

"You? What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Eh!" He slapped me and got in my face. "You don't evah tawlk to me like dat, you unda'stand me? I just saved your life. 'Ave a lil respect."

It took every inch of courage for me to roll my eyes. But I did it.

"Eh!" He shook me. "Vinny! I'm serious."

I was shocked. He remembered me. "You rememba me?"

He was shocked I'd even say such a thing. I was instantly embarrassed. "Do I rememba you of course I rememba you what's da matta wit you Vincenzo?" He scratched his neck, frustrated.

I was suddenly so happy he came for me. I felt special. I wanted to be with him forever. "Can you be my Dad, Mr. Mancini? I wanna be a wiseguy like you."

"What?" He laughed. "What no kid. No way. I ain't ya fawtha an' I ain't no wiseguy."

I gave him the puppy eyes. It was pathetic, I know, because he laughed.

"Look, I've gotta do some things tomorrow. You can tag along with me, aright? But only for a few hours, den yous gotta go. Capiche?"

I was so excited. "YES! I mean, yeh. Capiche." I gave him a hug like a lost kid. I think that's when Leo knew I really was a lost soul just looking for some place to belong. I don't think he ever planned to ditch me that next day. He brought me everywhere from dawn to dusk, and all we did was run something he called "errands". All it consisted of was visiting people and telling me to wait over here or over there, and he would go have a private conversation with them. He'd always introduce me to his friends afterwards or during the visit as "his boy Vinny" before sending me back to my place. He'd come back, and ask me two questions. Everytime.

"Ah you 'ungry? Yous gotta pee?"

The answer varied, of course. Sometimes I'd just say "yes" and he would pull out both stops. I was fascinated how awesome the food he could get was. It was so much cooler than I thought to be a Gangster. Nobody could tell Leo what to do. He was living life the way he wanted to live it, and he wasn't stingy about it either. He wanted everyone to work for him and get a piece of the action as well.

"You know, Vinny," He said to me one day while eating ice cream. "I'm thinkin' yous could come back 'ome with me to Stone's Industrial Park. You know wheah dat is?"

I shook my head, too engaged in the ice cream. I was a young adolescent by then, but I was a big kid when it came to ice cream.

"I've gotta lotta work comin' up down south, I was thinkin' maybe I could get otha young guys like you set up. What you think?"

Leonardo was finally speaking to me like I was an adult for the first time. I was really excited, but I didn't know how to answer his question. "Good."

He laughed. "Good? Just good? Gah you knuggle'ead." He bit me playfully. "C'maan, we gotta go see Uncle Louie and Joey off. Theah goin' home to Gravesend."

"Whose gonna protect you now, Mr. Mancini?"

"First of awl, I don't need nobody to protect me. I protect myself. Second of awl, none of dis Mr. Mancini stuff. Yous call me Leonardo or Manny or Leo. Yous a man now. Tawlk to me like a man. I'm ya friend, rememba?"

I slurped the ice cream. "Can I cawl you dad? And can my last name be Mancini?"

He laughed. "No, I'm not ya fatha. I tol' ya dat. I can't steal dat title from ya real fatha. An' you gotta get ya own last name. Take pride in ya own lineage."

"But he ain't done nuttin' fuh me like you--"

"Don't disrespect ya fatha, Vinny. You don't know what he was in wit...just calm down."

I obeyed and finished my cone. I loved this ice cream. De Luca's ice cream, they called it. Real sweet, especially the vanilla. Leo realized he might have been a little rough on me, and eased up.

"I tell ya what. I'll be ya Godfatha. 'Ow bout dat, huh?"

I grinned. I liked that. Godfather. "Yeh. Sure. Sure thing, Bawss."

Leo laughed as he stood up. "C'maan, you lil rascal. Let's go say our goodbyes to the twins."

After that day I felt a connection to Leonardo like I had felt towards no other. I would take sides against my own mother for him. I would demand people respect him just as much as I do. I took on the last name De Luca, but I knew I would fight with the Mancini family until the day I died. I hoped and prayed to God that if the day should come that Leonardo had to die, he would take me in his place. I knew this was the start of something beautiful, and I wanted it to last forever.