Neil pulled up to Sal_Luciano's home at half-past six in the evening.  He got out of the driver's seat and opened the trunk.  He pulled out Aurora's overnight bag. 

Aurora had removed the bandages from her hands on the plane revealing her knuckles and to be a mess of bruises and scabs.  The fourteen-year-old girl found herself staring at from time to time.  Remembering how they came to be there and why.

She stepped up onto the sidewalk and climbed the stairs to her father's door.  She rung the bell and waited.  One of her dad's guys opened the door and he recognized her and Neil immediately.  Without delay, he looked around to make sure all was well and then welcomed her inside.

She pushed a stray bit of raven hair back behind her ear and spoke in what was barely above a whisper,  "Is my dad here?"

Sal was in his den at his home in Seattle when Aurora arrived. He had received the call earlier from Bella that she wanted to come for the night and he got the impression there was a reason for this visit instead of just social one. So Sal had finished up his work and was going to finish the day from his house. 

He got up from his desk, setting his cigar down on the ashtray when Aurora arrived and walked over to her kissing her on the cheek. 

"Ciao, piccola mia, è bello vederti. Hai fatto un buon viaggio?" he says to her as he kisses her cheeks.

Sal signals one of his men to take her bag to a guest room he had set aside for when she visited. 

"a cosa devo il piacere di questa visita?" He asked her. 

Aurora hugged her father.  It was a rare enough thing that it bore notice but for a moment, as he kissed her, she kept contact with the older man in something akin to a hug. 

Once he pulled away and asked her why she'd come to visit she responded in Italian with a dry chuckle, "Sarebbe sciocco da parte mia ammettere che mi sto nascondendo da domande a cui non voglio rispondere?"

Aurora wandered around the office looking at various things, trying to appear casual, but her normally confident tone of voice holds hints of her uncertainty and perhas, fear?  As if she's second-guessing her choice to have come here.  "Forse non dovremmo parlarne fino a quando non sarò pronto a partire? C'è una piccola possibilità che la nostra visita potrebbe non essere così piacevole una volta entrati nei dettagli di ciò che ho fatto."

Sal offers Aurora a seat and takes a seat at his desk. By the look of her hands, he has a feeling this is an advice situation, which surprises him he would have figured Aurora would have gone to Bella or to Gavin. But maybe this is something that he is better suited for, only time would tell. Sal takes a couple of puffs from his cigar before turning his attention back to the teenage girl. 

"Aurora, non c'è niente che avresti potuto fare che avrebbe reso il nostro tempo meno piacevole. Le cose che ho fatto nella mia vita dovrebbero essere la prova di ciò. Anche le domande cattive sono meglio chieste subito." he says to her. 

"Ora dimmi cosa è successo e cosa vuoi chiedere?" he asks her. 

"Non so da dove cominciare."

At first, Aurora thought her father was going to put her in the position of a subordinate but softened a touch when he put the chair beside his desk before sitting down in his high backed leather chair.  

"C'era un ragazzo. Anthony Russo."  She settled into the seat.  She stared hard at her knuckles, her mouth open slightly, focusing on the pain she was causing herself by running her thumb over them rather than the pain she felt every time she reflected upon Anthony's exit from this world and what might have become of him since she left him there in the woods.  Had the police found him?  Had animals and bugs begun to feast upon him? 

She narrowed her eyes to almost slits as she furrowed her brow with such dark thoughts.  She winced and swallowed back a bit of bile.  "Could I get something to drink?"

Sal has one of his men get Aurora a soda from the kitchen and looks caring and concerned at the girl, not a look many have seen from Sal. He waits as the drink is brought to her and watches as she takes a drink before he goes to speak to her again. 

"Comincia dall'inizio e dimmi sempre. Niente può essere così male come quello che ti ho detto che ho fatto." he says to her gently holding her hand. 

She nodded at her father's words and found the courage to speak, both because she promised William and because the burden of it was heavier than she expected.  She liked to think of herself as strong, strong enough to handle anything, but this was the hardest thing she'd ever faced in her whole life.  

"I was six when I met Anthony Russo.  He was in three grades above me and he was the tallest, strongest boy in his class even then, the son of two Sicilian immigrants... the sort of fellow that had every reason for knowing who Mom & what she was into.  Even back then he knew he wanted to work for her and I knew he only ever befriended me to get closer to that goal."

Aurora shrugged.

"I didn't much care cause, well... I've never been as good at making friends as William.  I mean, I've had a few REAL friends... but, generally speaking, I like being alone.  People only hang out with me because they know I have the money or because of what I have access too."  She didn't think she needed to spell out for her father that she sometimes got places to party, hooch, and weed for older kids.  This whole discussion was already going to tread into territory that she wasn't comfortable telling anyone without admitting to even those lesser crimes.

"Anyway, the next year my best friend in the whole world left our private school.  I was pretty alone and this bully who I'd had a few scrapes with managed to piss me off pretty bad one day.  I was overconfident and I underestimated how much he'd learned from the last time I'd kicked his ass... and he had friends with him this time."

She drew a breath, "Now before you ask where my bodyguard was that particular day... I want to admit up front that I've made something of a habit of... ditching them.  On this particular day, I ditched my guard just so I could confront this asshole."

She tossed her head back and forth as if admitting this was more annoying to her than something she felt bad about, "To be honest, the only guard I've ever liked was Kassandra.  She understood that I didn't want her telling me what to do.  She realized it was her job to keep me safe no matter what I got into... she wasn't there to be my boss, you know?  Every other guard since she left to go back to Greece has made the mistake of trying to push me around.  When I get tired of it... or I need a break... or I got plans I think they'll stop me from following through on, I get rid of them."

She shrugs.

"Well, I made the bullies bleed... but I was getting my ass handed to me, soundly.  I'd never taken a beating like that before.  I honestly was worried that my mom was going to turn out to be right - that I'd be found in a gutter after ditching a bodyguard.  And then... Anthony shows up." 

A smile grew on her face.

"The first thing he did was pull the arm of the bully so hard that it popped right out of the shoulder and hung like a limp noodle.  Then... what he did to that boy put him into a hospital for a week."  Aurora chuckled. 

"Stai bene, gattina?"

For a moment she sits there seeming to dwell on the words.

"It was the first time he called me Kitten and he said it in Italian.  I later asked him why he called me that... apparently, someone told him about how much I like lions and since I was little..."  She shrugged, blushing slightly.

"Well, mom hired him as a runner for Race Street the second she found out about what he did for me.  I wasn't supposed to know it, but she also paid him to keep an eye on me too.  Of course, he told me.  He was pretty proud of it."  She shook her head.  "I never again got into a fight with someone at school that I didn't start.  And even when I did... Anthony always finished it."

Aurora picked up her soda and took a drink before putting it down and allowing Salvatore to take her hand again.

"He's moved up each year.  He dropped out of school last year to focus on business.  He was getting real attention.  Everyone who works for Race Street knows that he and I have been sweet on each other for a while.  Some of them have even seen me cutting school to spend time with him.  I think that's where it began." 

She furrowed her brow.

"Anthony works for Gabe.  Gabe is a wise guy working for Race Street.  He watches over some hooch running and distribution.  The man is old.  He isn't likely to ever be made.  Everyone knows he has a chip on his shoulder a mile wide over it.  Everyone under him who's gone up, well he pretty much hates them."

She looked up to her father's eyes knowing he'd get this part, jealousy in the mob and nepotism wasn't a new thing. 

"We knew once mom got word that Anthony and I were serious that she'd either have Anthony shot, or she'd be pushing him up the ranks - expecting him to make a name for himself so he'd be worthy to see me.  But we couldn't be sure which.  After we were caught in an underground club getting pretty heavy... Anthony went to Gabe asking for some real work.  Real jobs so that mom might lean more towards the whole push rather than bullet route."

Aurora's face was falling, her lip began to quiver.

"Gabe sent Anthony to do this run.  A big haul.  The sort of thing you make your bones on ..."  Aurora nodded, knowing her father would understand the sort of job her sweetheart was given.  "... but he wouldn't give him any backup.  Said he wouldn't need it... but I knew better.  The run was taking him out of town.  If he messed something this big up, well, he'd have more to worry about than mom.  The Godfather would hear about it and he'd pay for it out of his backside for sure.  So... I ditched my bodyguard, took the gun, and I road along."

She watched for her father's facial reactions, not sure how he'd react. 

"We got the hooch and as expected we were tailed by some guys.  I took out the tires,"  She smiled brightly. 

"You should have seen how good a shot I was!"  she laughed. 

"I've never been in a car moving that fast before... and ... and they were shooting at us and I was so scared!"  She said smiling through barely held in tears.

"When we got to the city limits we pulled down this old two-track trail." Her smile faultered. 

"We knew the minute we got back, I'd have to go home.  We'd have no time together, not alone so we had to and we ..."

She took back her hand and, without further explanation, hid her face in her palms so her father could not see her cry.  

Sal sat and intently listened to Aurora tell her story. His mind wanders back to his own history of courting Marie and his own rise through the ranks. He also thought back to his life running with the youth gangs in New York. He noticed that Aurora in her own way was following a similar path to him. This pained him, while he loved the Mafia life and owed everything he had to it, he did not want to see Aurora join into the life. Things where different when Isabella came around, for the most part, she was already in the life and the only way he could protect her was to bring her in. But with Aurora, he wanted to see her grow into a legitimate life. 

Sal listened as she spoke of Anthony and what her mother would do when she found the relationship between them, this made him smile a little as he thought back to what he put the men through that courted Bella. He knew if Anthony was a good a man Bella would give him a chance but the fear that she may do worse was a good thing, he thought, making the men courting the young Aurora think twice about just doing it for power and prestige. 

The more she talked the more Sal realized she was not going to live a legal life but she would join in the family business. This he would have to talk to Bella about, making sure she was taught correctly in how things work and what she would be signing up for, a life of money, power, and death. 

Sal had seen many men that just did not have what it takes to rise through the ranks. Not everyone was cut out for being a made man and it was not uncommon for these men to hold grudges for those that surpassed them. But when he heard that the man then sent a young man out to do a job without protection or back up it made him furious. You protect your family that is the number one rule of La Cosa Nostra. 

He listened as she went into details of her joining the young man to protect him. He listened as she talked about ditching her protection, this would not do and Sal knew how to fix that problem. 

When she trailed off and took her hand back Sal signaled to Jack, his head bodyguard, and whispered in his ear. Then the man walked away and left the room. Sal took a pull from his cigar and turned his attention back to Aurora. 

"So what happened next Aurora? I don't think that was the end of the story?" Sal said to the girl. 

"What is it you need to know or wish to ask?"

Aurora heard her father's voice and dried her tears, trying to compose herself.  She shook her head 'no' to tell her father that he was right, that wasn't the end of it.

"I heard a noise."  she said in a hoarse whisper.  "He stopped kissing me.  He was getting up to check.  I never saw the guy ... not until after Anthony was dead."  Her words lodged hard in her throat.

Unblinking she spoke in a numb tone, "I don't really remember things too clear.  I know that Anthony was shot in the head.  I'm pretty sure twice, though sometimes when I dream about it, it seems like a whole firing squad shot him.  I know I wasn't covered in blood when they pulled the trigger, I got a lot on me after.  In my nightmares, it feels that way though.  He fell and I screamed.  I don't remember exactly how it happened... maybe I threw Anthony away... cause I think maybe I did.  I wanted to get away from him as much as I wanted to hold his parts together.  Maybe they picked him up off me?  I just suddenly could see the guy who pulled the trigger."

Her blank stare connected with her father's eyes then,  "It was Joey Nose.  One of Gabe's guys.  He didn't give Anthony any protection cause... he was going to kill him.  He sent... he sent people to kill one of his own."

Aurora shook her head slowly, still not able to wrap her head around it.

"I think he dropped his gun when he saw me.  He might have said something...

She wet her lips trying to recall.

"I don't really remember.  I was just... moving without thinking like I was riding in my own body.  Not really doing it.  I pulled my knife.  I stood up.  Joey was still saying something when I opened his stomach like I was unzipping a jacket.  His insides spilled all over the ground.  There was steam... and I remember thinking how cold my hands were and how good the heat felt."

She furrowed her brow, disgusted by her own thoughts.

"I heard another guy.  He was crying about how I wasn't supposed to be there.  I thought I was going to kill him too, but he didn't have a gun so... I didn't.  I just... got in car and drove." 

Aurora blinked.

"I was nearly home before I even realized what I was doing.  I knew I couldn't ... that the car was..."  

Aurora swallowed seeming to come back to herself, rubbing her own hand so hard she'd begun to crack the scabs on her knuckles.

"I snuck in my window.  I told Will to fuck off.  I ... showered.  I put my clothes in the burning barrel out back and set them on fire before getting into bed to sleep.  Mom came home.  She gave me hell about ditching my bodyguard.  I didn't tell her anything.  I didn't know how.  I just... screamed at her about how stupid she was."

She sighed, obviously feeling bad for having opened up on Bella.

"We left for Ireland the next day.  I just keep thinking about it, I can't stop.  I keep having nightmares and I'm so fucking angry... but I don't even know if they found him... or the car... or... anything.  It's such a mess.  Mom is gonna find out.  She's gonna find out that I was off on some hooch run and that I killed a Race Street guy.  She's gonna find out that I was making out with a boy."

And then, with a small hint of desperation in her voice, she whispered, "What do I do, Dad?"   

Sal listened and felt for what the young girl had been through. He sat and listened to here talk about her first killing. He tried to remember back to his first but couldn't remember anything about it. It was so long back, and with so much blood on his hands, it had faded into time. He doubted though that she would ever forget this one. He had decided he had to talk to Bella about this and make sure that things were taking care of properly and Aurora was protected, he did not look forward to that conversation if Bella didn't already know about the incident. 

"It looks like you did something already," he said pointing to her hands

"Why don't you finish the story and then we will talk about what to do," he says 

"Will was worried mom and dad were going to divorce."  She said quietly, knowing it would probably shock Salvatore.  "I don't think he was exactly wrong... they were going through something.  They seem to have worked their shit out though.  I made this stupid promise to William on the plane that I'd help him trying to save mom and dad's marriage and... said some shit about us sticking together through the whole thing.  I honestly had forgotten about it by the time I met Dermott."

She sighed.

"Dermott is an Irish guy... older like Anthony.  He was spending a lot of time with me while we were in the town researching Dad's family history.  Turns out he aspired to get into the Irish Republican Army."  she shook her head lamenting her choice in guys.  "He invited me to a party after mom and dad took this boat out on the ocean leaving us with Aunt Tara... and... I snuck out to go."

She shrugged.  

"But because of our oath to each other on the plane, the idiot followed me.  Apparently, he saw Dermott putting the moves on me and decided to pound his face in.  Unfortunately for William, he's got jack shit for strength in his upper body yet.  Dermott was really screwing him up so... I had to bail him out."

She looked down at her fists.

"I just meant to stop the fight but... I got into that ring of people and everything just... went red."  She drew a breath and exhaled it slowly.  

"I've never lost control of my temper like that before.  I just, haven't ever been that angry before.  Not even at Dermott really, I mean - it started that way, but by the end of it I was hitting him for my anger at mom and dad over their stupid shit, hitting him over Joey Nose, over Gabe, and... over Anthony."

She took a drink of her soda and then put it aside again when she was done, dragging her sleeve across her mouth to wipe herself dry.

"There must have been almost one hundred people in that basement and aside from Will screaming at me to stop, you could have heard a pin drop.  I ... I think I almost killed Dermot.  He was out cold and I was beating him still.  These guys in the room, some of them were killers... but no one even tried to stop me but William."

She shook her head and met Salvatore's eyes.

"I stopped.  I didn't kill him, but I could have.  I nearly did, I think." 

She sighed.

"Aunt Tara showed up at that point... she and a small army of guys.  Apparently, William impressed the Irish guys for his spirit... but I was told i wasn't welcome back."  She couldn't help but give a dry chuckle though she suspected her Dad wouldn't find any of that as funny as she did.

"Guess I won't be making a trip to Ireland again anytime soon."  Her voice trailed off.

Sal sat back and chuckled and smiled. 

"You are a Luciano aren't you," he said to her with a chuckle. 

Sal pulled out a fresh cigar clipped it, lit it and watched as Jack came walking back in followed by a couple of older Gentleman. 

"First thing you are going to do is stop ditching your protection. This is Tiny he used to protect your mother for me when she was younger. And the other man is Tim. These two men will protect you, they will not stop you from doing anything the only time they will get in the way is when you are in actual danger." he said as the men nod in agreement. 

"Now Tiny has protected Me and your Mother for a long time. I do suggest you at least listen to his advice, but you are going to do what you wish just as she did so he will protect you either way."

"Your mother is a very prominent and high ranking person as am I, and to get to us our enemies may do it through you. So they have agreed to not stop you from doing things but to protect you. Promise me you will not ditch these men." he says to her. 

Aurora stood up and looked at the two men who had been with her in Chicago when Isabella had come to get her.  She'd never met them before, though she recognized them from visits with Salvatore.  She stood up and looked at them and smiled.

"I promise.  I won't ditch them."  She offered her hand to each man and shook each in turn.  "It's good to finally meet you both."

She looked back towards Salvatore.  

"Mom will be glad you sent them.  I know she trusts them.  Dad too."   

She smiled at Salvatore, "Thank you for understanding ... though depending on how mom reacts when she learns about what happened ... I may be grounded until the end of time and never have a need for them."

"She just might," she says with a laugh

"But if I am honest I don't think there is any way that would stop you if you wanted to do something," he says giving her a look. 

Sal sat back and puffed on his cigar for a few minutes thinking about how to move the conversation forward. 

"Let's start with the temper...  Well if you find a way to keep that in check let me and your mother know." he paused

"There is a reason she is called the dragon and I am considered a devil. Hell, there aren't many conversations between me and her where guns are not drawn or someone shot," he said with a chuckle. 

"Its a perk of being a Luciano," he tells her. 

"I get mad at mom and she gets mad at me... but I can't ever imagine pulling a gun on her."  she furrowed her brow.  "I've always been told to never pull a weapon unless you mean to use it.  As a general rule, I hold to that."

She sat back down.

"And what about the nightmares?  Thinking about what happened... how do you get that part to stop?"  She asked, genuinely hoping there was some trick her mother and father hadn't disclosed yet for not thinking about the dead or the terrible things she'd done.

"That is a very good rule to follow. I have never pulled a gun on your mother and when she did to me... Let's say I deserved it. She thought I was dead, I had killed Marie and now she found me alive. I killed the bodyguard who pulled the gun on her cause no one pulls a weapon on my family. Even if they have one on me."

Sal leans forward and takes her hand in his. 

"You will never forget what happened, It was a violent and tragic thing that happened to someone you cared about. There is no excuse for what happened. The life of the Mafia has rules and that killing was not following them. But I will tell you this the man responsible will pay for it. And that I hope will help you sleep a little better."

"Time will help. And as for the man that you killed... You have nothing to feel bad about. You protected yourself. As far as you knew you were going to be next. For most, the first one is the hardest. I hope you never have to kill another." Sal said before taking a long couple of puffs on his cigar.

"Which brings me to the next thing. I and your mother do not want you joining this life. But I see your on the path that leads you to it. I see me and Bella and Marie in you. Hell, you have been running rackets since grade school from what I have heard." he says to her. 

"But you are going to have to fully understand the path you are on and exactly what that means and what you are getting yourself into," he says to her. 

"That's the other thing I wanted to talk to you about..."  She reached into her back pocket and handed a folded up envelope to her father.

Vassar College
124 Raymond Ave,
Poughkeepsie, NY 12604

 

Miss Aurora Byrne
8847 Norwood Ave
Philadelphia, PA 19118

 

Salvatore found the letter inside which read:

Miss Byrne,

We thank you for your interest in Vassar College and have reviewed the school records and test scores you have included.  While we are quite impressed with your skills, and agree that you exceed the testing scores required to enter our institution, we must at this time refuse your entry based solely upon your age.

Attending an institution of higher learning isn't just about being able to pass our courses, there are other factors to consider which your age puts you at a disadvantage to overcome.  Our sincere recommendation to you at this time is for you to finish the next two years at your private school (perhaps focusing a bit more on your attendance as well?)  Then, when you are sixteen, please reapply.  At that time, provided that your transcripts remain as remarkable as they are currently, we would be proud to see you enrolled.

Kindest Regards,

Mrs. Alberta Wentworth
Dean of Admissions, Vassar College

Aurora sighed as Salvatore put the paper down.  

"I don't intend for this to be my life." She admitted hoping it didn't disappoint Sal.

"I've already been making plans for another path... in fact, I wanted to see if you had any pull in New York.  If you knew people who could make them change their minds.  I know they think I'm young, but my test scores don't just meet the minimum to get in - they blow it out of the water."

She smiled.

"If you got no pull there, I understand.  I can wait.  It's not like I picked a college in Seattle or something... it's just Vassar lets women get degrees that some other places don't.  And, while I don't know exactly what I want to do... I ... I know I don't want anyone telling me what I can't do.  If that makes sense?"

Sal sat and read the letter. He was impressed with what she had accomplished and thought maybe there was hope of her escaping the life. He knew if she had to wait two more years she may fall deeper into the mafia to get out. 

He sat puffing on his cigar thinking to his contacts in New York. He did have some there but wasn't sure if he had enough pulled to get this done. But he decided that one way or the other he would get this done. 

"I will take care of this for you. Not exactly sure how yet but you will be accepted," he said to her giving her a smile. 

Aurora stood again and put her arms around her dad in a hug.  "I knew I could count on you."  

Pulling back she kissed his cheeks. 

"I'm gonna go take a shower before we have dinner, okay?  I think I need a little downtime.  Maybe, if you want, we could go to the picture show tonight?  I haven't seen a movie in a while."  She smiled and once Salvatore replied she went upstairs to shower and change.