The sunlight coming in through a curtain may as well have been a jackhammer, but at least it was a jackhammer with a pillow under it this morning. As William adjusted for about the hundredth time on the couch he was sleeping on he decided it was time to give in and get up. It had been a rough night, less because of his injuries which were beginning the process of healing and more because of the dreams of Godfather Salvatore Luciano and Tyler Durden taking turns beating him to death. The second was bad because he had a pretty good idea how it would feel. The first was worse because his mind had to fill in the details and each time he saw the look the man had given him the day before. It seemed that neither was bound to happen quite yet, but he'd probably see both return for a few nights more. It was better than the alternative of seeing them only once during the day.

A little voice in the back of his mind also couldn't help but think that he'd woken up better yesterday morning. He'd been in far more pain and the world was spinning but he'd had something...no, someone...worth focusing on in front of him that reminded him why it was all worth it. As much as he tried to silence that voice, the stubborn thing hung on for dear life and he made do with telling himself he'd squashed any hope of that repeating itself from the moment he'd met her father. Still, he couldn't shake the thought of what she'd said before the party, and what she told her father before she left them alone. Everything was all mixed up for him when it came to Isabella and he wasn't sure what to do in this new territory. No woman he'd met had been half as complicated as her and some part of him just couldn't stop thinking about her. The problem is that there was so much he just didn't know. He still wasn't even completely sure what had even happened that night at the fight club, though he at least had a suspicion now.

He stood up and stretched out before pulling on his clothes, which were in a sorry state but had at least been laundered, and he headed towards the kitchen he'd seen the night before. A cup of good strong coffee would be welcome right about now to let the bitter taste distract him from his thoughts and clear out the last vestiges of the haze over his mind. It would give him a chance to think through what he was going to say when he got back home. And how he was going to say goodbye.

Isabella sat at her window looking out across the Detroit river and the Windsor shoreline as the morning sun rose over the horizon, the wind flowing through her sheer curtains into what was once her and Elias' bedroom.  She wore nothing but a silk night gown and the cold breeze made her skin prickle and light up. 

To her side was her vanity, a desk of sorts which held all her make up and fixings... and a large mirror that she wished she could cover at times.  While her face still held all the beauty she'd relied upon so much of her life, her body was a wreck of scars and discolorations which would turn the strongest of stomachs... at least in her opinion.  She ran her hands across them at the thought, but dared not to look.  

Already, at this early hour, the Tower was a hive of activity.  Some were cleaning up from last night's party - some were coming in from last night's black market workings on the shore... others were just starting their day.  From this vantage point, she could see them all, and felt the weight of the responsibility she had to them all.  Her father, damn him, was right.  She'd been horrible to consider what she had ... even briefly and not just for what it did to poor William... but what it would have done to all of them.

Will.

Isabella turned around and looked at the box on the floor at the foot of her bed.  The wedding dress that had started it all.  She couldn't bear to look at it.  It had to go.  So, Isabella got dressed in slacks and a sensible shirt before picking up the box and heading down to the kitchen with it in hand.  She'd get some coffee and then decide how to handle it so she could move forward.

There, in her kitchen was the Irishman to whom she'd owed much.  She smiled at the sight of him.  She stood in the door way considering how she'd bring up all that had gone on between them and how she could make the most of this new friendship she's literally pounded her way into having.  

"Good morning, Will."  She said softly, careful not to trouble any hang over he might still be having.  "Mind if I join you?"

Coffee had been in no short supply in the kitchen and it was good, strong stuff. The kind you make after a long night of drinking when you need something rough enough to draw your attention away from a crushing hangover. Wiliam was fortunately not suffering from such a thing, but he still had some soreness from the concussion that had left him nearly immobile the day before. Today it was a dull ache and the dizziness had mercifully left. The coffee was doing its trick and getting his mind to other things, like what he was going to tell people back home. Of course that all went out the window when the better half of the reason for his aches walked into the room and greeted him.

"Feel free. It's your place so I'm not sure I could say any different if I wanted to." He put on a wry smile and winked. "I think I'd say the same either way though." No sense worrying her about the bumps and bruises any more than she already had. Besides, he could even see out of both eyes this morning! The package in her hands drew hit attention, but he decided it best not to ask. They both had their work for their own families, and he had no business nosing.

"It must have been nice to get home to your own place after all that's happened. You feeling any better this morning, angel?" His playful tone faded off as he asked the question. He'd been worried about Salvatore, about what he'd seen in her room, and about whether she'd come to her senses about a man who'd laid hands on her the way he had. Surely once things calmed down a bit and she looked at things rationally she'd realize she didn't want to see him around.

He caught her off guard by calling her angel.  She tilted her head to the side and smiled at the poor idiot who really didn't know what he was getting himself into.  She put her package on the table.

"I feel like I owe you some explanations."  She said, avoiding his question.  "Nails?"  The large bodyguard wasn't far - as she expected.  The mid-western born, simply looking wall of a man peaked into the room.

"Yea, boss?"

Isabella noted he had one hell of a shiner.  She suspected that was the doing of her father's goons.  So, they sent the youngest to tell her father.  She made note of her bodyguards' cowardliness and decided they would pay for that later too.  Neil, his real name, was a simpleton and a good-hearted one.  Even if they blamed him for her disappearance, they never should have made them their patsy.

"We will talk later today about Omerta.  All men are on duty.  Let them know... but first, no one comes into this kitchen while Will and I talk.  Understood?"

"Yes, Miss Luciano."

She nodded and Nails disappeared.  She poured a cup of coffee and sat down next to the box.  She motioned to a seat near her and when Will sat she offered her hand.  "I'm Isabella Luciano.  I'm the Don of the Ivory Tower, Detroit.  I'm the daughter of Godfather Salvatore Luciano and the Step-Daughter of Godmother Marie Lucania.  My uncle is Joseph Ligambi out of Las Vegas."  She smiled.  "And while you might not think much of it, or might not think I need to, I do very much owe you a debt of gratitude for how you saved my ass the other night; because you did.  You literally saved me.  So... thank you."

She knew he knew who she was now, the whole of it, but she felt like everything important had been avoided on their first night together.  Nothing that mattered by the light of day was spoken about and maybe the most important things in her life really were shelved in lew of her reckless antics.  She felt slightly ashamed of herself... but more than anything she felt she needed to make things right with Will by the light of day and that meant breaking her own first rule.  They had to talk about what happened in New York and why.

William appreciated that Isabella wanted to talk in private. It gave a chance to say what they needed to say without worrying about it being turned around on them. He gladly took her hand when offered and listened to the veritable who's who of mafiosi that were in her immediate family. To say that the list was intimidating was a bit of an understatement, like saying that a charging rhino is a bit of an inconvenience. It was a proper introduction though and Will felt the need to return the favor. To his embarrassment, he realized his would be a joke by comparison.

"It's good to properly be introduced Don Luciano. I'm Boss William Bowden of the Race Street Operation, Philadelphia under Don Jack Mezzo. I'm the son of an Irish father and an American woman, a no account iron worker and his wife both deceased. No other family except the folks I work with now. As far as any debts go I consider us even. You saved my life too after that lousy bastard dropped me and without what you did, whatever it was, I would have been one more body in a river somewhere. Besides, what kind of man sees a woman in that kind of spot and just watches her get hurt?"

He could have said so many more things, but this wasn't the moment. The rush of adrenaline and panic had faded from both of them and now they had to face the real world again. No sense complicating things more.

"Your father told me he'd be looking to talk to me in private after he spoke with you, but he booked it out of there pretty quick. He also said he had contacts that told him about what happened and how I 'helped'. I didn't say a word to him just like I promised, but I'm sorry I couldn't warn you when you came back. I couldn't think of a way to do it without upsetting him."

"My father has turned my own bodyguards into his personal spies."  She shakes her head.  "You can't be blamed for an over protective father who is worried about his daughter, and it would seem - rightly so."

She sighed.  "First and foremost, you need to call my father if you intend to be friends with me.  My father is very old school Sicilian as is my Uncle Joe - neither man is known for foregoing respect when it's due.  But, as a Godfather, my dad thinks everyone views whatever is his as HIS."  She stressed the final word to indicate he had ownership of her, in some manner of speaking. 

"And, if you spend time with or interact with something that belongs to him without his blessing... well, he worries that the world will view that as you having gotten the better of him.  That's something he would kill to prevent... or at least maim."  She chuckled to make the whole thing a little lighter, but she was serious.

"It's not that he doesn't trust me to find nice men to keep the company of, but he thinks anyone who is REALLY the sort of person I should spend time with would be the sort of man who wouldn't do so without talking to him first.  My late fiancee tried to do things the right way but slipped up and didn't do as my dad told him and, well, he caught a pistol in the teeth for it."

She shrugged.  "So... call him.  Don't wait for him to come find you, unless you plan on telling him you won't be visiting with me in any capacity ever again... and that would be a shame, because I think I would like to see you again ... under less suicidal circumstances."

She sipped her coffee and watched his facial reactions and body language to get a gauge on where all this put his head.

"I'll do it right away then." A slight tinge of red found its way to his face as he realized how quickly he'd spit that out. It wasn't that he was ashamed of wanting to see Isabella again in the future, it's just that he didn't want to push before he was sure what kind of meeting he wanted.

"I mean I do want to see you again in better circumstances and if that means I got to face up to him then that's what I'll do. I get that he thinks he needs to do what he's doing. Vela gave the impression last night that it's a sort of test he puts guys through to scare them like that when they're around you. At least he can't be worse than facing Durden." William gave a chuckle to try to show a brave face. In truth he was more than a little scared to be facing the powerful Sicilians on their terms. He'd done well for himself in this life but he knew that his Irish blood made him stand out from them as different. It meant he'd have a lot of proving to do to gain acceptance with these men. If it were anything else he'd probably cut his losses and run, but this...this was different.

"I'm sorry to hear about your fiancee by the way. He had to have been one hell of a guy." One worth dying for, he thought to himself as he thought back to the fight club and the lead up to it. And one worth living for if those scars were anything to go by. He just hoped she'd see the second part from here on. He suspected the man would have wanted it that way.

Isabella opened the box and revealed the most beautiful white wedding dress anyone had ever laid eyes upon, in her opinion at least.  "This came by post the day I met you."  She shook her head.  "I ... wasn't myself after I opened it."  She shrugged.  "I forgot that it was coming, you know with the funeral and all?"

She sipped her coffee.  "Can you do me a favor?"  She said looking up from her coffee.  "As a friend - I ... I can't do anything with it, but it's too pretty to burn.  Someone should have some small bit of joy out of it.  Can I ask you to take it back to Philly with you and give it to some young woman without means?  Maybe someone who could stand for a bit of good fortune but could never afford such a thing?  She doesn't need to know where it came from... but Elias came up poor and I know he'd think the gesture a nice one so, maybe tell her the dress is a gift from Elias Landucci."  She forced a smile and drank again.

"He was funny.  Sweet.  And a little stupid at times..."  She laughed and the smile touched her brown eyes.  "God but we fought like two cats in a wet bag.  I'm not an easy woman to be around - as I'm sure you've guessed."  She shakes her head.  "You have to be a bit thick in the head to want to spend time with me I think."

Putting down her cup, "I started out the night thinking I'd seduce you in order to try and forget my pain for a bit - to fall asleep without the nightmare that plays out in my head every time I go to sleep." 

She shook her head,  "I'm sorry I thought about using you like that, it was wrong. And  I'm even more sorry that I did end up using you, only in a different way.  You're a really good soul, I can see that Will, and I'm glad we met."  she chortled, "How's your head holding up today?  Still dizzy?"

William felt his hand clenching as Isabella talking about the dress and her fiancee. Concern was evident on his face but he didn't say a word. He just nodded when she asked him to do something with the heartbreak that was sitting on the table. He wasn't sure he knew anyone offhand that was in need of such a thing, but he'd figure something out. He could understand her feelings towards it but deep down he was worried about her throwing out the good with the painful.

"I don't know if I ought to be insulted at that comment about a guy who'd want to spend time with you right after I said just that. Then again I did survive a beating and the concrete to the head so maybe my skull isn't too thin after all. The dizziness is gone today, just a little bit of an ache staying around." For a few moments he looked down and seemed to study the table intently. More pieces of the night were falling into place and still he couldn't be upset. After all, he hadn't exactly hesitated at any point so wasn't it just as much his fault that he was in that position?

"I'm glad we met too, angel, but I wasn't going into the whole thing from a better angle. I went into it treating you like any girl off the street and you deserved better than to be just some dame that isn't worth remembering. It wasn't until I saw your scars that I realized there was more to you than I thought at first glance. It takes a lot to leave that kind of mark and even more to be able to live through it. You've had a rough go of it and nobody deserves that much hurt. If I was able to help make something good of that night then I'm glad I did it and I'd do it again."

Lifting his gaze back from the table, William looked Isabella straight in the eye and a bit of playfulness stole over him again. "I gotta admit though, I still haven't figured out what I'm gonna tell Jack when I get back to Philly. Going on a bender with Godfather Luciano's daughter probably isn't the best reason to be out of town and out of touch for two days."

She winced.  She hadn't meant to call him stupid.  He wasn't stupid... or maybe he was for wanting to be around her, but she should never have called him that.  It was cold.  Damn but she was good at stepping in it sometimes.

She ran a hand through her raven hair as he went on and eventually made a joke of not knowing what to tell Jack Mezzo.  "Tell him the truth.  To most of the upper structure in this thing of ours they know about Elias Landucci's death.  It shouldn't be shocking that I might be in a bad way.  Tell him you found me out on a bender without my bodyguards and escorted me back to Detroit.  You stayed as my guest after.  If he asks for specifics... tell him.  Don't lie on my account.  Jack's a good man.  I don't suppose he'd think too much less of me for what I did, though he may advise you to steer clear of me."

She smiles.  "Could be worse.  Imagine if we had just gone back to a hotel room like I thought about doing.  My father would be ready to kill you and instead of Durden trying to cause the war between our cities; I would have likely been the cause."  She shrugs and stands up.

"If you're up for it, we can take a walk down by the river before you go.  I'll have my plane fueled up to take you back, whenever you want to go.  Just say the word."

"I figured as much with Jack. He's always been fair with me and I trust him entirely." William didn't go on to say that he would make his own decisions about Isabella though. Some things are better left unspoken. He couldn't help but feel glad he'd ended up in a place like Race Street.

He bit his tongue as best he could on her next comment. A part of him still wouldn't have minded if things had gone that route even if he knew the kind of trouble it could bring. That and he was pretty confident that all parties could have avoided a war by simply agreeing that his dumb ass had it coming from Salvatore. Again, best left unspoken.

The last bit perked up his ears. A little more time before he left would be just the thing. He had ways to make up for the lost earning time and would gladly put in the extra work for a few days. "I think I could manage that. It'd be nice to get out and see some of this place when it's not out of focus. It'd be the right sort of company too." Cheerfulness was coming back in equal measure to the pain that had faded. He stood up and drained down the remainder of his cooling coffee before leaving the cup by the sink. This time the bitterness wasn't distracting him from anything. He fought off the urge to tell her that the plane was the last place he wanted to be going today. After all he really ought to get back and let all of this stew for a bit. He had been in the middle of all of this for long enough and he needed time to clear his head and look at it all objectively. There were always plenty of planes coming this way for the next visit.

"Maybe a quick tour at least. I'd be appreciative if we could stop by a proper tailor's too to get something that fits a little better."

If there had ever been a more beautiful afternoon for a walk, Isabella had not seen it in all her life.  She took Will around the Tower - including to the top 'widow's walk' to view the full grounds.  The wind whipped in off the lake blowing strands of her dark hair into her face from time to time.  She found herself wishing she'd tied it back instead of letting it hang long, but the wind was refreshing and looking out across the river left her feeling refreshed and lighter.

She showed Will the recreational facilities she'd had put in for her crew, as well as the offices and private places for those who chose to live in the large house attached to 'the tower' ... which she explained since the time of Lucky Lucy Fazzone had always been a lighthouse.  "It serves a practical use for smuggling in goods for the Godfather's operations... but it also is a symbol of education in the face of ignorance, and something a small bit of good in a world so full of darkness."

She took him to walk around the shoreline so he could see some of the places boats put in dock with blackmarket items from Canada... and on the shore they ate a picnic lunch together and talked about her hopes to open a business on the Race Street Pier... a venture she'd been hoping to be a gift to her late Fiancee for their wedding; but now she'd have to make new plans for it.  Which, considering present company, might not prove to be a bad thing.  After all, a reason to come to Philly wasn't anything to frown over when she had friends there.

Eventually, she made her way into town with him - though she was reluctant.  Will felt like he was at home here, as if he were as much a part of her Tower as she was.  It felt odd to think she was preparing to send him away and that there was some other place he fit better.  "You know," she said as they walked across the tarmac headed to a plane bound for Philly.  "I was thinking that with our experience maybe we should consider opening a chain of gyms."  She smiled

"Maybe get into the prize fight business together?"  she paused her walk, turning from his side to face him directly, "If you'd be open to it that is?  I'd be happy to front the cash and with your knowledge we'd make a killing... this time in a good way."  She laughed.  

"What do you say Will, will you home home and give some thought to being my partner?"

Being this close to the lake reminded William of the time he had spent in Los Angeles by the ocean. Something about it was different of course, but the calm feeling of serenity, that everything was somehow bigger than yourself and would be alright no matter what, that was the same. He could have gotten lost in the beauty of the soft waves kicked up by the wind and the peaceful shoreline that seemed to extend forever. The view from the top of the tower should have taken his breath away.

Instead he was distracted by what was right alongside him. He couldn't shake the feeling as Isabella showed him through all the workings of the Tower and its surroundings that this place just felt right. This was something that belonged here and somehow he felt like this place was welcoming him every moment he spent here. It was an odd sensation but not one he could quite understand at first. There was nothing in this place that was unfamiliar in and of itself and none of it had ever had this effect on him before. When they sat down for the picnic though, and he listened to Isabella talk about her hopes for a business on The Pier he started to realize that it might just be because any place this woman was with him felt like home.

The first steps on the tarmac to leave this place felt like he was dragging a great weight behind him. When Isabella turned to him and began to speak, a part of him hoped she'd ask him again to stay a bit longer. He might have even agreed. Instead she asked him a question that while innocent on its face, raised a thousand new thoughts.

"I think a gym would be a great addition to the pier. Let me talk things over with my family back home and I'll think about being your partner." Perhaps in more than just business, he thought to himself. Though at least the gym would be a reason to see her again on its own. "Maybe next time you're in town we can discuss it over drinks at the East Cat Cellars? That or we could catch dinner somewhere, there's been some good looking places opened up recently. Hopefully I'll get the chance to talk to your father before then so we don't have to sneak around."

It seemed as if his feet weren't listening to him. He knew he needed to walk to the plane. His home was back in Philadelphia after all, not here in Detroit. Maybe if he let out some of what he was thinking it would help him. William smiled at the woman who had so nearly killed him only two days before and heedless of the people around them he took her hands in his. "Maybe the last couple of days haven't been all good, but I'm glad I got to spend them with you. If I get a say in it they won't be the last I see you either. Take care of yourself and stay safe, angel." 

In the moment he'd wanted nothing so much as to lean in and kiss her right then and there, but it just didn't feel right. Not yet. So he turned and slowly let go of her hands as he walked to the plane. He didn't want to look back for the chance of losing his nerve at the last moment and doing something they'd both regret but he turned and smiled again at the door of the plane, craving one last look at the woman he'd risked his life for before he left.

Not for the first time he reminded himself that he'd only known her for a short while and always under the threat of mortal danger. Surely he couldn't expect to feel the same once he had gone home and looked at this through fresh eyes...could he? He resolved to talk it over with some of his trusted family and see if he had lost his mind once he got home to Philadelphia. If this feeling still held after that, then he was going to be ready to face Salvatore Luciano just as he'd stood up to Tyler Durden. This time though, he wasn't about to let himself be knocked out.

William's plane lifted off the ground and the weight of everything came back onto Izzy's shoulders.  She hadn't realized that she'd been really enjoying herself today instead of wallowing in the self-pity that had been consuming her.  Perhaps, she thought, I  should make a surprise trip to Philly and see about these business possibilities myself.  It could prove JUST the distraction I've been needing and if I should happen to run into Will... all the better, right?

She smiled at the plane disappearing into the clouds.  He was sweet.  So painfully sweet, it hurt how much he reminded her of Elias... and yet, it also felt comforting in a way.  Rushing into a real and dedicated relationship so soon though - it seemed to spell doom for anything that might be there for sure.  

No.  She'd take it slow.  She had regretted it with Elias but ONLY because he'd died.  You couldn't live your life waiting for folks to die.  You had to do the best you could with the time you had.  She'd let Will take his time... cross the Ts and dot the Is.  If he was going to be a serious part of her life somewhere down the line, it was how things had to be done.

With that thought in her head, and decision to visit Philly tomorrow made, she got into her car and took the short trip back to The Ivory Tower.

As I was walking out I almost ran into Don Isabella. Trying to make heads or tails of it, I assumed she was heading to her office. I am sure as always she had a busy day ahead. I thought I saw a huge box in her hands. and offerfed to help carry anything or otherwise be of any service to her. I am of course always at service to her, as part of her family, a proud member of course. She really, like the others felt like family, much like the other parts of this family, under GF Sal.