Chapter 1
Present day
The doorbell of the Castellano family mansion rang. Vincent Castellano, the head of the Castellano family walked to the door to receive his guests. The whole Castellano family was seated in the living room, decently dressd. Luca Castellano the eldest son of the family, Marco Castellano the youngest son and Donna Castellano, wife to Vincent and the mother of his children.
Vincent Castellano opened the doors of his mansion to his guests, the family of Mr and Mrs Pickens and their daughter Josephine. Vincent led the family to the living room and everyone exchanged greetings.
Vincent cleared his throat and began to speak.
" Mr Pickens, it is an honour to have you and your family in our humble home. We simply gathered here to formally ask for your daughter's hand in marriage to our son Luca "
" What!!" Luca exclaimed as he jumped out of his seat.
" Is there a problem Mr Luca?" Me Pickens asked Luca.
Luca turned to face his father Vincent with rage in his eyes. Apparently this wasn't the first time Vincent had tried to arrange a marriage for Luca without his consent.
" Thank you Mr and Mrs Pickens, but this arrangement has been cancelled, you may now leave" Luca said trying to hide the anger in his voice.
" Is there a problem?" Mr Pickens asked again.
" Get out' Luca said
" Certainly, there has been a mis......."
" I said get the hell out of my house " Luca yelled. Frightened by Luca's sudden burst of outrage, the Pickens left the Castellano mansion.
" Luca what the hell was that?!" Donna Castellano said to her son.
" I don't know, ask dad ! " Luca replied rudely.
" That's enough Luca, your disrespect will no longer be tolerated " Vincent said.
" How many times do I have to tell you that I have no interest in getting married!" Luca ran his fingers through his raven black hair. Luca was an handsome young man in his mid twenties. He had a striking resemblance to his father in looks and character.
" Luca, you're the heir of this family, a successor to my lineage. Everything I own would soon become yours, you would soon become the head of this Mafia. It is important for you to find a wife soon. Our reputation is at stake here, people are talking, they're saying you're not worthy. I need you to prove them wrong and to start with, you need someone by your side '' Vincent said and exited the living room, Donna followed him leaving Luca and his younger brother Marco alone.
Luca crashed into the sofa and let out a long sigh, he poped open a bottle of whiskey and gulped down half if the content.
The Castellano family had led the Mafia's for generations. They had money, power, fame, authority. Their influence extended widely through the city of New York, everyone bowed before them, they were unstoppable, they were untouchable, not even by the law. The Castellano's were known for their corrupt ways of getting things done, they were a family of crime and corruption and Vincent Castellano was the current leader of the crime community and Luca his son would soon take his place.
" You really didn't have to be soo rude, she was a pretty girl" Marco said as he took a seat next to his brother. Luca ignored him and continued drinking from his bottle of whiskey.
" Why don't you want to get married? " Marco asked
Luca sighed
'' I'm not just ready to commit myself to some girl for eternity"
Luca said
" Is that what you think marriage is ?" Marco asked raising an eyebrow
Luca nodded
" You know nothing about marriage, I believe when you find the right person, you'll change your mind" Marco said and patted his brother on the back.
Luca nodded again and was about to drink from the bottle of whiskey again but Marco took the bottle from his hands.
" That's enough brother " he said as he collected the bottle and took his Luca up the stairs.
As they approache the door of their fathers study which was left ajar, they heard raised voices . Marco and Luca stopped in their tracks and listened to what was coming from their fathers study.
" We don't have a choice, we have to partner with them!" Donna said
" We simply cannot do that, If we do it would make us look weak " Vincent said.
" We are already getting weak, this is the only way to make us strong again " Donna said
" Enough!!!" Vincent roared and it was followed by the shattering of glass on the floor.
Marco and Luca ran into their fathers study. Vincent was standing over the shattered pieces of a ceramic vase and Donna was standing across the room. Vincent stared at his two sons and then back at Donna.
" Clean up this mess" he said and exited the room.
