Mafia Queen

Meetings

Aria's POV

I stand in the room, smoothing the coat of my jacket for the millionth time. I'm not good at public speaking, but I want to do my best today. Teela walks in and touches my shoulder.

"Are you ready for this? To step up and let the world see you? To let them know there is a new boss in town?"

"Yes, I'm ready," I say with a determined look on my face. "I've waited years for this."

"Then let's not have you wait any longer," she says, leading me to the doors and the waiting reporters outside.

I stepped to the podium and cleared my throat, "Thank you all for coming. My brother Kenji has been found dead in a gang area. The members of the council of Mafia bosses he was on will be looking into what happened. I am the new head of our family. I am formally announcing it to the world."

Teela steps to the podium and turns the mic to her. "You know the allied Mafia royals, I, the Mafia Queen, give my full backing to our newest and final princess. If you come for her, you come against the royal court, and those who know what that means will tell I am not lying when I say we will end you."

Flashes go off, and the reporters murmur amongst themselves. I take a breath and continue. "With the backing of the Queen and the rest of the court, I am confident we can make this city better than what it is right now. We will make this city safe and healthy again."

"We will now take questions," Teela replied.

Questions came flying at us.

"What's your name, ma'am?" one asked.

"Who will you be aligning with?" came next.

"Can you confirm the rumors of how your brother died?" came from the back of the hall.

Teela can see I am getting overwhelmed and holds her hand up. The questions stopped.

"Her name is hers to keep. If you want to know her name, then learn about her family. We are still investigating the death of her brother. As information is found, it will be shared. She is the final head of the great Mafia families. You know about the work of the Royal Court, she will have a hand in that work as well."

"Did the Royal Court arrange the death of Kenji and the rest of the heads of the family?" came a question from the back again.

"The Royal Court is made up of second-born children who had to take over after the firstborn was brutally taken away from the family. You would do well not to mock our pain. Family is close, and to suggest that we would have a hand in our own brother's death is sick," Teela shot, venom dripping in her words. "This is about letting people know who the new head of a family is, let her shine and ask her what she plans to do."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. This is about a new era for my family and about what we can do to improve the city. As the new head of my family, I will extend our holdings overseas and in outreach programs here for troubled youth. I will help fund projects that will improve the city and renovate historic buildings. Are there any questions that have not been answered?"

A middle-aged man raised his, and I called on him, "What other alliances will you seek aside from the Royal Court?"

Before I could answer, Teela stepped forward. "All alliances are between the head of the family and the family itself. No one on the Court will disclose that information, unless they choose to announce it."

I nod, "I will make that information known when I see fit to share it."

A reporter raises her hand and I call on her. "And the gangs? It was said that your brother was killed by a gang member. Will you move against them when you find out who it was?"

I look at Teela and she nods. "At this time, until we know more about what happened, we will not comment on that situation."

A hand came up in the back of the room, "What message do you have for those who might look at you and be skeptical of your knowledge and ability to lead your family properly?"

I square my shoulders and say with a clear, strong voice, "I would say to them that I earned this. I bled for this long before I stepped up and sat on the seat. I will defend it with every fiber of my being. I'm not asking for approval, I just demand respect."

"Respect for her is respect for the Mafia Royal Court. Give it willingly, it is in your best interest to do so. We are done here," Teela says, finality in her voice.

Once we were off the stage and in another room, I looked at Teela.

"You did well," she said. "Very controlled."

"Thank you! It was a little intense. I am glad I didn't disappoint. So what is next?" I asked her.

"Now you meet the rest of the Royal Court," Teela replied.

She leads me down a hall and to a room. "This is where we meet. It's soundproof, bulletproof and swept for bugs every hour. We are safe here, no one will be able to take us out."

"You leave nothing to chance, do you?" I ask her.

"That's why no one has been able to take me out in the three years since I took over. I always look over my shoulder and I keep my enemies close," she explained.

"Who will be present?" I asked.

"You have already met Jade, Ruby and Sophia. Inside you will meet: Pearl, Anne, Jewel, Donna and Rose."

"Got it," I replied.

We stepped through the door.

Teela's POV

I watch our new girl's face as she enters our council room. She is genuinely surprised by what she sees. I smile. "Take your seats," I say to everyone.

The room sits, and our newest member takes the remaining seat. I call the meeting to order, watching Rose tap her laptop to start on the notes for the meeting.

"Jewel, how are we with the technical algorithms you have been working on?"

"I have almost finished them. They should be in effect by the end of this week. It will greatly improve our communications as well as keep those on the outside from getting ahold of our files. There is also a new prototype for a tracking system. We will be able to monitor our territories more efficiently. I will need to run a few more tests, but I am certain I can have it ready by the next meeting."

"Very good, please send your drawings and write-up at the moment to the members of the court so they can understand what it is you are building. Anne, have we secured the new trade partners we reached out to last month?"

"Yes, they have signed the contracts and are eager to expand our trade between them. There has also been an idea brought forth. One group suggested we extend to as far away as Australia and New Zealand. We have already extended our holdings in Europe and Asia."

"Good, work with them to make that happen. Rose, has your cousin been silenced? And I do hope you didn't have him killed. He was a very good time in bed."

Rose stops typing and looks at me, "Yes, I have dealt with him. He is still very much alive, and he will be kept quiet."

"Perfect, I am glad you are working on your strength and confidence still. You deserve your seat, and he needs to know his place."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Rose says, beginning to type again.

"Good. Sophia, have you secured a meeting with the president?"

"The meeting has been set for tomorrow afternoon at the Whitehouse. I've also taken the liberty of preparing a dossier on the President's current policies and potential areas of interest. Just in case."

"Very good, always thinking ahead. That shows true leadership."

"Thank you!" Sophia says, blushing.

"Donna, have you finalized the deals with our new weapons provider?"

"The contracts have been finalized and signed. We will have top-of-the-line weapons at a fair price." Donna slides files around the table. "Here is what everyone needs to know about our new dealer. Rose, I have also emailed the file to you to place in our encrypted file. Our first shipment should be here by the end of the month."

Rose nods her head and opens her email. Finding what she needs, she downloads it and moves it to the file.

"Very good. Pearl, where are we on the overseas outreach program?" I continue.

"We have made significant progress. Our embassies in several key countries are now fully operational. We have also established connections with various influential figures, and our agents are gathering valuable intelligence. The groundwork for potential alliances and business opportunities abroad is set. This is the crucial step in expanding our global presence.

"Excellent. Ruby, have you finalized everything for our youth center?"

"Yes, the youth center will open next week. We should talk about who will go and represent the court at the ribbon cutting."

I look around the table and put it to a vote.

"Ruby has been working on this from the start, along with Sophia, Jewel and Jade," Donna suggests.

The ladies all murmur their approval and those members are set to be there. I have been keeping one eye on our newest member. She seems a little overwhelmed by all of this.

"Our youth center will do a lot for the city and the troubled youth. With any luck, we will wipe the gangs out by taking away their potential members. I see uncertainty in our newest princess’s face. Please speak freely."

"It's not that. When Kenji came back from these meetings, he said that the Mafia had gone soft. What I am hearing is that not only is this body powerful. We use that power to better the world. That is nothing to laugh at."

"No truer words have ever been said. So lastly, Jade, has the gang leader turned in the member who is taking the fall for Kenji's death? As for the rest, do we need to move into any territories and neighborhoods?"

"Bulldog is supposed to turn the member over today. He will let me know when he does it. There's been chatter about the Southside Gang attempting to move onto our territory. They are trying to gain some traction. I don't think there is an immediate threat, but I'd recommend keeping a close eye on them. May I suggest sending a message? Remind them who controls these streets."

I nodded and looked at our new boss. "We will have you do that. You will need to show the gangs that you are just as strong as we all are. You will need to come up with a way to get your name out there. Come to think of it. What is your name? You never gave it."

She takes a deep breath, "Aria."