Uncovering The Boss

CHAPTER 3: SHUT UP AND BOW

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, I assume you are all still putting into consideration my offer in regards to the expansion of our company to places in Asia like Singapore and South Korea?"

The old geezers in the meeting room looked like they wanted to argue with me, but my presence alone was enough to put their tongues into place. The only respect I had for any of them was my respect for the money they were willing to invest in my company.

"We are sure, Mr. De Angelo, that you did not intend to be late. Therefore, we all have agreed to give you the benefit of the doubt and allow you to be late for your company's sake. You are rest assured that your tardiness will not cause us to leave early, but our decision might be affected due to your lack of professionalism."

I laughed sarcastically at the words of the old geezer. I saw the annoyance and shock that reflected in the eyes of those who were present, except my assistant Alex. He knew that I was only beginning to enjoy the meeting, and I would enjoy the rest of it.

"I'm sorry for my laugh Mr. Finnigan. I assure you, if you wanted a career in comedy, you would make a great stand-up comedian.

The look they all had was no longer angry but shocked and disbelief that I would be bold enough to say such words. I looked straight into Mr. Finnigan's eyes, and the fifty-three-year-old businessman was turning red with anger and embarrassment.

"As for my company, I assure you that whether you invest in this business venture or not, the company can still go through with the project. If my memory and the reports that I have gathered are correct, your companies need my company to stay afloat. The threats of bankruptcy and low sales that all of you have is enough to be comical."

The tension inside the meeting room was thick, and you could visually see the anger and fear that every investor had. Even Alex was caught off guard for a moment and lost his stupid composure. He straightened his back in shock at the words that I had uttered.

"I assure you all that my company does not need any other companies for it to remain afloat and growing. However, I was raised to help those in need. So, I am offering this contract to all of you and your companies. I know that all of you need this project more than I need your investments."

These men and women were in their late forties and fifties, and I could see the visual shock and embarrassment that they had to be schooled by a twenty-eight-year-old billionaire like me. Current problems like this deserve modern-day solutions from a modern-day businessman like me.

"My assistant Alex will provide you with the contract for this project which contains every detail that you will need to know and all the answers to the possible questions that you might have. I expect an answer from all of you by tomorrow morning."

 I saw them look at each other and whisper to themselves, not bothering that I heard every word.

"You can deliver the contracts to my office, whether it's signed or not. I assure you, none of your choices will affect my company in a major way. However, I am positive that the result of this meeting will greatly affect your own companies."

With that, I left the meeting room and proceeded to my office at the top of the building. I had another meeting, and this time, it was a meeting regarding the De Angelo empire in the underworld.

"Alex told me that you burned every investor in the meeting room, boss. If you keep this up, the Alpha & Omega group of companies will grow, but so will the number of people who hate your guts. As your head of security, I would like to say that it was an impractical decision, boss."

I raised an eyebrow at Stephanie's words, but the glimmer in her eyes made me release a genuine half-smile in her direction. She had something in her mind, and knowing my right hand in the mafia world, I knew I could trust her decision.

"As your head of security and your employee, I am worried about your choice and your safety. However, as your best friend and your partner, I expected more of a harsher approach, Michael."

"You told me to be a bit kinder when I'm handling the legal businesses I have so people would like me. I believe that I was kinder this time than I was last month. At least now, I gave them a thorough explanation and a time limit to think about their decision to sign the contract."

"Yeah, yeah, I know what you mean, dummy. However, you better make sure that they don't hate you enough to do a full digging in your background. Ruling the business world above the law and ruling the underground business world would make it even more difficult to conceal your true self Mr. De Angelo. If you stress me this much, I might grow old early and not find the love of my life. If I stay single forever because of your shenanigans, Michael, I swear, I'll kill you."

Stephanie and I were both trained assassins by the time we reached our twentieth birthday. I was able to get to where I am now because I worked for the same mafia family that adopted Stephanie. I owed my success to her and her family as their ex-capo, or simply put, I was the head of their security.

Stephanie was the heir to their small mafia family, and when I met her at the age of fifteen and trained with her, I knew she was my family. The Dela Mayor family was not a big mafia family. Still, it gave me the money and influence I needed to start my own mafia family, the De Angelo empire.

"I still can't believe that you left the Dela Mayor to be the Capo of the De Angelo family, Steph. You would have made the Dela Mayor a greater mafia family in the underworld with your abilities and mind. Your adopted brother is not nearly as good as you in running your family's business."

"Despite him being my father's bastard, he is still the true heir of the Dela Mayor family. He is a Dela Mayor by blood, and I am only a Dela Mayr by paper and adoption. Let's just be thankful that my younger brother still comes to me for the majority of the decisions of the family, so it's like you have an extended family."

I laughed at Stephanie's logic, but I could not deny its truth. I took out my laptop and showed her the plans that I wanted her to see.

"A ball for all mafia families around the world? Are you sure that this is the best way for you to get more connections? If you do this, you also give other families the leverage to form their own bonds with other powerful mafia families. If a strong alliance is formed, you might just fall from the top of your game, Michael."

"I know that, Steph, but this is also a way for the world to see that the De Angelo empire is the new king sitting on the throne. The Mondragon empire might have been the head for a long time, but even the oldest dragons need to retire back to their caves. It's time for the world to embrace the new power that I offer them. I will make sure that at the end of the celebration, I'll be able to form an alliance that can pull the Mondragon empire down."

"Does this have anything to do with the men that killed your brother that night?"

"Yes, Steph, I know that the Mondragon also had something to do about my big brother Gabriel's death. I'm sure that you realized that when you saw the dragon tattoo on his left hip."

I looked at her intensely, and I saw pity in her eyes that were directed towards me. I hated that look she was giving me, but even I had the same feeling towards myself, so I decided to ignore her eyes and looked at the plans I made on my laptop.

"I wanted to reach the top because I knew that it would give me all the connections and power I needed to give justice to my brother's death, Steph. It has been years, and all you were able to find was his body and the burial site, but not the murderers themselves."

"I'm sorry if I don't have anything else for you right now, Michael, but if your guess is true, then we have to bring down the Mondragon empire. That family has been making it hard for my father and other families too. But, boss, we need to play this game as carefully as possible. You might be ruling now, but remember that Mondragon has been in this game longer than you. Never let your emotions hinder your plans, boss."

"My brother used to tell me the Italian quote, il rimoroso e la peggior punizione in vita, which means 'regret is the most painful thing you can experience in life.' I saw that same quote in a movie called Vincenzo. I guess that saying is famous because of its truth and depth. I won't let my emotions cloud my judgment, Stephanie. I would do anything for justice and make sure that I regret nothing."