Jelly Bean nodded.“Did all that really happen?”
Leon nodded.“Si, child it did.This Fredo also ordered that kidnapping and his very own brother Luca was one of the victims along with my son.I just got off the phone with the Don.He told me Juno contacted him.His father Fredo shot him to try and stop him.Those men who want to kill me?They are waiting for his other grandson Giovano to arrive before they carry out the assassination attempt.”
“I-is Calderone...”Her voice faded a bit.
“He is alive,” Leon stated.“I didn’t tell...my wife and daughter about his kidnapping.I know they will worry and they shouldn’t have to.”
Jelly Bean stepped closer to him and said, “Leon, you have changed my life.Not by allowing me here into your mansion but by the things you have shown me.One of those thigs was about living in the absolute truth.To yourself and your family.”
“So this is a lecture?”he growled at her.
Jelly Bean smirked at him.“Hell, yeah.You think I get the chance to rag on you and catch you out...That I will pass that up?”
The room went utterly silent.
Leon glared at her.
John shook his head.
Nick looked a bit worried that maybe she had gone too far this time.
Suddenly, Leon leaned his head back and laughed.
They all stared at him.
Jelly Bean shrugged.“I didn’t mean it to be funny.”
“No, I realize this,” Leon replied as he chuckled.“And that is why itwasfunny.”
Nick asked Leon, “So you want to find them first and once this sonofabitch arrives, you want to take all of them down?”
Leon nodded.“I will not deny it.This is my home and my family lives here.I will protect them.If that means they all must die, so be it.Only it won’t be any of my family that dies.I also do not want innocent people to die either.”He nodded at Jelly Bean and Nick.“Let’s hope we can get the message through to this Storm before it’s too late.”
The call came through twenty minutes later...
Jelly grabbed her phone and handed it to Leon.
Leon answered the call, “Si, is this Storm?”
“Yeah, it’s me,” a brassy voice replied.“I hear you want to talk to me.”
“Si, I do.I understand that you might know the whereabouts of a group of men willing to shoot me.”
The man named Storm was quiet then he answered, “Yeah, one of my guys got close enough to the place to overhear a plan like that.”
“I want you to show me where they are so I can stop that from happening.As I understand it they are waiting on the plane from Italy and as soon as Giovano gets here, they are going to carry out their plan.”
Storm went silent again then he said, “You know we got you covered, right?”
“Si, I have seen your signals,” Leon assured him.“Thank you for that but I don’t want your people hurt trying to stop this from happening.Jelly also tells me that you might be interested in joining my team, is that true?”
Storm seemed to pause then he said, “Yeah, we talked about it.I mean you’re a big wig here, why wouldn’t we want that dream?”
“You could have just come to me and asked,” Leon told him quietly.“I would have taken a meeting with you if you were serious about it.”
“I’m sure you got better things to do with your time than meet street people,” Storm suggested.
“You never know,” Leon told him.“I’m always looking for men that I can trust and who would be loyal to me.I’m not just saying this so you will show me where these men are.I’m beginning to learn the way you people think.I’m looking for men that think for themselves and can carry on under their own steam, think for themselves and be loyal, not only to themselves but to me.If you think you can do that, then when this is over, come see me and we’ll speak.But first I need to stop this plot to kill me.Can you and yours help?”
