Jase, Fields, J. [story reading TXT] 📗

would be here soon. Mom had no intention of spending her golden years fighting with the likes of Benito and Antonio De Luca for her family’s money, a family she had been estranged from for over twenty years. I laughed when she said golden years and she smacked me in the back of the head, typical. She was forty four years old.

Cyrus and Abe showed first.

“Abe, you look like shit,” I laughed he really did. Abe was a preppy bastard. Even when he tried not to look like it, he did. Typical blond hair blue eyed, all-American-boy, type.

“Laugh all you want, I haven’t slept since we got back, and you’ll be happy I didn’t. You have no idea what you’re in for,” Abe looked like Bella did when she saw me for the first time. Like she knew me, but never believed I was real.

“Good or bad Abe?”

“Both man, this is fucking amazing. I did a quick financial overview of De Luca incorporated and went over the will with a fine tooth comb, made notes and took it to one of the law professors. Dude-- you have no idea what Isabella DeLuca did by giving twelve percent. Her lawyer Rossi was cryptic as hell but he made sure you had everything you needed to…”

Mom walked in, causing Abe to stop. Xavier and Zandor followed.

“Abe thank you for putting this all together. I still don’t like any of this. DeLuca is a snake and I am assuming his son is worse. I’ve talked to your brothers about my concerns and they want nothing to do with this.”

I looked up and Xavier and Zandor and they hung their heads avoiding eye contact.

“You’re all crazy, this is billions of dollars, if nothing, accept the shares and sell them to DeLuca,” Abe spat, my mother gave him a look and he hung his head just like my younger brothers did, “Sorry, Joe.”

“Let’s all sit and let Abe show us what he came up with and then discuss, please Momma,” I gave her my sad look and called her Momma, I knew she wouldn’t say no. And now that I have Bella, I understood why.

Abe opened up his computer and then pulled out a projections camera which made Cyrus and I laugh. He looked at me momentarily and then continued.

“The first slide shows the largest, most profitable companies owned by DeLuca. They have their hands in everything from Art, entertainment, they own an Italian football team, food and wine, a distillery, to industry and medical, it’s far too much to get into as an intro. I have looked into the strongest and here are the top five, and then, the weakest again the top five.”

Abe stopped and gave us a chance to look things over.

“Livorno Italy is on the western coast, major import and export hub, also houses the main distillery. They just acquired this one. I like it, great potential, huge profit margin. Art buying and selling of course, iffy profit but in the right hands it could be huge.” He smiled at my mom, damn he was good, “They’re building a casino in Venice, ground breaking in a week, great one to have your hands into.”

I looked at Zandor and his eyes met mine, he was in, may take some persuading but he was in.

“There should be some movement to The United States…”

“Art and Medical research, and possible dabble in music,” Xavier looked up and Mom scowled at me.

“Abe you’re talking about two large companies in Italy, one on each coast. And now we want to add two, possibly three in the United States. You're not thinking clearly,” my Mom gave the sad, you’re a misguided boy look, trying to lure him in.

He looked away quickly, “It’s doable, Momma Joe.”

“Your wrong Abe, the distillery would take months to get up and running. The casino would be competing with many others, The art, eeh possible and music to much competition. Medical, no one here could pull it off.”

“The east coast houses some of the top medical schools. If we found the right organizations to help fund it, it would be easy Mom. ALSO, it’s important to me and Bella, which makes it important to all of us. Finding the right person to run the program would be the only time sensitive issue.” I would not back down from this one, watching Charlotte literally rot in front of me was killing me, I could only imagine what it was doing to my Little Bell.

“Alright, now the very interesting part. Your grandmother Isabella, set you up so well. Between all of you here and Little Bell, you have fifty six percent ownership in the whole thing.” I watched my brothers eyes light up and Abe smiled.

“But if I sell mine to DeLuca you have forty four,” my mother warned.

“Momma, I love you and I know how you feel about this. We also have Dominic and Valentino who own together twenty percent.”

“They will sell to DeLuca as soon as they find out.”

“Rossi promised to give us a week before going to them. He also knows where they are and that we have ninety days to decide. Grandmother insisted her will be public at that point, all major business transactions halted for thirty days, and no one is allowed to buy, sell, or make large transaction during her mandated sixty days of grieving. Mom, she did this for you. You know this. Now, you do it for us.”

“Jase, this is way too much and your father…”

“Gave his blood, sweat, tears, and life for us. He honored you Momma by never going to your family no matter what. He was a stubborn man…”

“Yes, and so are you Jase!”

“I love you Momma, and yes I am.”

Abe reached into his bag and pulled out plastic covered presentation packets, “I made these up for you all to see the key players. I am having background investigations done on all of them, the preliminary findings are there…”

“Abe how much did this cost you?”