Chapter 2
"So, what are we doing today?" Feliciano asked his brother as they walked through the halls of their base.
"Today we welcome the new recruits." Lovino simply answered.
"Great!"
"It may sound great but remember new recruits are often the ones to get caught faster."
"Oh, c'mon don't be so pessimistic, maybe we'll get really good recruits this time."
"I doubt that." They both walked in a room full of their newest recruits. "Who do we have here?" There were about four new recruits. Newbies were rare. It was hard to find people who fit their specific criteria. Even less have someone with the heart to do the grueling work. One of their men that was in the room started listing out the names of the four.
"First we have Kiku Honda," The first man in the line looked short and of Asian descent. He had a straight face similar to that of soldier; emotionless. "Next we have Gilbert Beilschmidt," He was taller than the first, a slight smirk played on his face proudly. His red eyes and snow white hair would certainly stand out but his mischievous face showed he had something to offer. "Then we have Elizabeta Héderváry," A rarity among the mafia was women so it was nice to see a girl want to fight. She looked relatively plane and quite pretty. Perfect for outside work. "And lastly Matthew Williams." This man looked like someone Lovino couldn't quite remember who. His familiar face could certainly work in their favor.
Both the brothers inspected them for a minute, the recruits tensing up as if they were going to be shot down right where they stood. A clear fear made from rumors. Feliciano gave them a warm smile, confusing them quite a bit. "Welcome to the mafia!" He chirped.
"Psh," Lovino scoffed. "Lighten up we're not going to kill you." He chuckled. "Those are just rumors, we're actually really nice people. Unless you cross the line, of course."
"It makes me a bit mad that people think we're so evil, all we're doing is trying to stop the corruption in the country." Feliciano then added with a pout. "So, tell us bit about yourselves. Kiku you go first."
"Well, "The man started awkwardly and quietly. I'm known to have sword skills."
"Useful. Gilbert?"
"I have incredible strength and interrogation skills!" Gilbert boasted.
"Great, but don't be so cocky about it. Elizaveta?"
"I can use just about anything for a weapon and I have sources for great information."
"Wonderful! Matthew?"
"I have great skills with guns." Matthew practically whispered.
"Great!"
"Now," Lovino began, pointing at Kiku. "Kiku go with my brother and practice your skills," Her pointed down the line. Gilbert we have a man you need to interrogate for us." His hand moved again. "Eliza you gather information, I'll give you a list of what we need specifically." His hand finally landed on Matthew, last in line. "Matthew work on making your voice a little louder, knowing that it will take long, I want you to go along with Kiku and Feli."
~
"You have any info?" Eliza asked the Finnish man.
Tino shook his head, "There hasn't been much information being passed around lately."
"That's too bad." She pouted.
"I know I shouldn't ask this but why do you need info on that specifically?"
"Buisiness."
"I knew you'd say that." Tino smiled fondly. Suddenly, he noticed Alfred walking into the bar. Eliza followed his gaze, knowing full well who the man walking in was.
She stood up, "Well, thanks anyway!" With that she was off. Alfred seemed to watch her go as he sat down. He looked back to Tino after a moment.
"Who was that?" Alfred asked.
"Just a friend." He smiled at Alfred. "What's up?"
"I'm stressed about this stupid case." Alfred groaned. "Do you have anything that could help me?"
"No, there hasn't been much being passed around." Tino set a glass of scotch down in front of Alfred. "Sorry."
"Why is everything so hard?" Alfred whined.
"Well, as they say not everything is easy." Tino couldn't help the chuckle as he saw the childish pout on Alfred's face.
~
Feliciano watched Kiku as he worked with a katana. Not necessarily the Mafia's weapon of choice but Kiku picked it up without a word and Feliciano didn't question it. He watch Kiku's every move carefully. They were almost perfect with a few rough movements that could easily be smoothed out. There were about four others in the room but they paid no attention.
"Kiku, fix your posture and widen your stance just a bit." Feliciano casually instructed. Kiku nodded in response. With that Feliciano walked out and to shooting range a few doors down. Once there, he watched Matthew in there closely. He noticed quite quickly that Matthew had a hesitation after each shot with the gun. Yet his shots were perfectly aimed. Feliciano poked Matthew shoulder startling him. "Matthew, you shouldn't hesitate." He mouthed at him. Matthew nodded and went back to shooting.
Feliciano felt a bit cocky at the moment so he took out his gun and aimed. He sent out three shots. Each bullet hit a different target straight on in a line straight down. One on the head, another on the chest, and the last one on what would be the groin. Matthew gasped in astonishment. Feliciano simply smiled innocently. Matthew continued with noticeably more confidence.
~
Alfred was at his desk searching for more clues through the piles of reports and photos of evidence. He kept finding dead ends and no clear connections as to what it all meant. The Mafia's movements were almost erratic. They picked seemingly the best strategy not to get caught with it essentially being not having a strategy at all. But it was definitely thought out and meticulously planned. If it were erratic, there would be mistakes.
"You're going to hurt yourself if you keep obsessing over this." A voice told him, knocking him out his thoughts and almost his seat.
"Yeah, well it's not easy especially when people are dying each day." Alfred said with a gasp, looking up at person who just happened to be Arthur.
"You think I'm not worried about this?" Arthur crossed his arms, leaning on the doorway.
"It kind of seems like it." Alfred furrowed his brows.
"You know, sometimes it's best to stay calm rather than obsessive."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Just some advice you might need in the future." Arthur rolled his eyes. "Also, I have a letter that someone told me to give to you." He set the letter on the desk and walked off. Alfred rolled his eyes and opened the letter.
Watch your back. We wouldn't want such a useful thing like you to die.
Anyway, we just wanted to inform you that you have no need to worry about us. We have our reason for everything. You'll find out what that is, eventually. We just wanted to send you this letter to tell you that a storm is coming. A storm that will make this city safe.
I swear on my heart.
Confused and surprised Alfred froze. What storm?
~
"The letter has been delivered." Gilbert reported to Lovino in his office.
"Good."Lovino smiled, satisfied.
"Don't you think this a bit risky?"
"We've done this before." He deflected Gilbert's worries as if they were nothing. Gilbert chose not to question it further.
"What do I have to do now?"
"Simple, blend with the crowd and gather information, you can train if you want." With that Lovino shooed him out of the room. Gilbert ultimately decided on training. Best to get the practice while he still could. Something in his gut told him that he would need it in the near future.
He looked at the guns thinking on which one to choose. There were so many it was quite hard and honestly a bit ridiculous. It had him wondering how and where they got all these guns. Almost immediately, he dropped the questions that popped in his head. It's best he didn't ask.
He ended up picking a nice hand gun. He went to shoot, aiming and then firing. The recoil was oddly strong with the gun. It seemed like he hit the target spot on he knew his aim was just a bit off due to the lag.
"I'm starting to suck!" He whined to himself. A sudden giggle could be heard. Gilbert jumped a bit and turned around to see Matthew.
"You don't suck, you did way better than I could ever do." Matthew smiled at him. Gilbert was confused for a second before going back to his regular prideful self.
"Of course, I'm just awesome like that!" He boasted earning a giggle from Matthew.
~
"You know, our new recruits are a lot better than the last ones." Feliciano casually said to his brother, spinning his chair. He watched the ceiling swirl above him.
"Eh, I say they're about the same." Lovino threw a ball at the wall. It bounced back and he caught it easily. "Especially that stupid albino with a massive ego."
"C'mon fratello, think positive for once." Feliciano stopped and looked at hisbrother.
"Never, I was born this way." Feliciano laughed knowing the humor in Lovino's words. The ball made a small thump against the wall again. "Well, I have to go do something." Lovino stood up from the sofa.
"Going to see Toni?" Feliciano teased.
"No." Lovino protested as he walked out of the room. A smirk played on Feliciano's face. Knowing his brother, it was most likely that he was going to go see Antonio.