What should have been 8

Chapter Fifteen

I walked down the halls of the Mafia stronghold, my every movement echoing through the empty corridors. The air was thick with the scent of cigarette smoke and old blood. I had two files I needed to give to Aram but he wasn't in his office, or Chuuya's. I wondered where he could be.

I wandered the halls aimlessly, trying to think where he might be. Chuuya's hospital room, he was always there. I jogged down the hall, my footsteps echoing through the empty corridors. I ran into the infirmity and looked for the room labeled Chuuya.

"Excuse me, which way is Chuuya's room?" I asked a nurse who was passing by.

"Down the hall and to the right," she replied, pointing in the direction.

I hurried down and knocked on the door, no answer. I hesitated for a moment before opening it. The room was dimly lit, and the bed was empty. There was only a red scarf left on the matrise. Most of the equipment was gone, leaving only a few monitors and an IV stand. They had left. I dropped to my knees, and held my head in my hands. I couldn't convince him. I didn't convince him. Fuck, the mafia had lost the greatest leader in all of the Crimson Mafia's history.

This mafia would tear itself apart from the inside out, no one to hold them together. Without Aram or Chuuya, who would even try? And who would want to, really? No one could direct or lead the mafia like Aram, and Chuuya held us together through our roughest time. I grabbed the scarf that was left on the bed folded neatly.

I leaned against the wall, feeling the weight of defeat settle heavily on my shoulders. My mind wandered to the last time saw him. He knew that he would run away tonight, he made the ranks so the next person would step up, Thais would control the mafia now. I don't think that she would want to. She loved the thrill of being an assassin for Aram, but leading the mafia? I don't think she would want that kind of responsibility.

Without Chuuya, we were truly lost. He was the one who kept us together, who made sure that we didn't tear each other apart. I couldn't help but wonder if this was all some sort of sick joke, if we were all just pawns in some twisted game of chess. I walked out of the room and out of the hospital , my steps uncertain. The halls seemed longer, the air colder without his presence.

As I made my way back to my office, I couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible was about to happen. The mafia was like a snake without its head, flailing and thrashing about, desperate for direction. I locked the door one, and sat at my office, tears dripping down my face. I knew that I had done all I could, and that Aram had made his choice. I didn't know what would become of us now.

All I had worked for, everything was shattering in front of me and there was nothing I could do to stop it. Aram had made his choice, and now the mafia was left without a leader. I'm pretty sure that I was the first one to notice that something was off, that something was wrong. I could feel it in my gut, like a cold metal knife twisting inside of me. But I never thought that it would come to this.

I want to know why I was cast into this life, would things have turned out differently if I died instead of Eliz that day? I'll never know the answers to those questions, but I can't help but wonder. The mafia was a cruel and unforgiving place, and it seemed like everyone was just waiting for their chance to stab each other in the back.

And now, with Aram and Chuuya gone, it feels like the entire world is crumbling around me. I stood up, wiped my face and put on an emotionless mask. I have to be strong for the mafia, I can't show any weakness. I walked out of my office and into Thais'. She looked up at me and smiled, "What can I do for you?"

"Aram and Chuuya are gone, they left in the night."

Thais' smile shattered and she looked at me in horror. "What do you mean they left? When?"

"They left in the night. I just found out."

She shook her head, disbelief etched into her features. "But.. The Mafia can't function without them." Her voice trailed off, as if she was trying to convince herself of something. She slammed her fist onto the table. "God fucking damnit!" Screamed, not sad but full of anger. "I don't want this, I don't want to be in charge!"

I reached out, putting a hand on her shoulder. "We'll get through this, Thais. We'll find a way." I lied, trying to sound more confident than I felt. I was dying inside, but I couldn't let her see that. "We'll just have to work together, all of us. We've been through worse before, remember?"

She looked up, "There is nothing worse than this."

We sat there in silence for a moment, both of us struggling to come to terms with the fact that the mafia had been irreparably damaged. The room felt cold and empty, as if the very air had been sucked out of it when Aram and Chuuya left. I tried to think of something else to say, something that would make it better, but nothing came to mind.

Finally, I cleared my throat and said, "We should start by organizing a meeting. We need to discuss what to do next, who will take over which roles."

Thais nodded, "Ok, let's do that. I was number three so I guess I'm in charge."

"Oh, he left this for the next leader." I took out the red scarf.

"I may be the boss, but I'm no leader."

We organized the meeting and invited everyone to come. The halls were eerily silent as people filed into the conference room. Everyone was talking in hushed tones, uncertain about what was to come. Thais sat at the head of the table and I sat next to her. "As most of you know, Chuuya and Aram left in the night. I will not go into details about why, as they have their own reasons. But we must move forward."

There was an uncomfortable silence as everyone digested this news. "As you know the ranks move up two. I as 1, Isidor as 2, Gerald as 3, Myron as 4, and Alek as 5."

Thaïs glanced at me, and I nodded in agreement. "Does anyone have any ideas on how we should move forward?" She asked.

There was a moment of silence before Isidor spoke up "I think we should focus on evading the police or destroying them. They've been getting bolder lately, and it's only a matter of time before they bring us down."

I nodded in agreement. "Yes, they've been a thorn in our side for many years, but the more we kill the more come after us. We need to find a way to deal with them without resorting to violence."

Thaïs looked thoughtful. "Maybe we should try to infiltrate them. Find someone on the inside who can give us information and help us take them down from within."

"That's a good idea," Gerald chimed in. "We could offer someone a better position or more money in exchange for their help."

Alek raised his hand hesitantly. "But what if they find out? They could use that against us."

"That's a risk we'll have to take," Thaïs replied decisively. "We need to do something, or we'll be sitting ducks." She looked around the room, seeking agreement. Everyone nodded, and it was decided that they would begin searching for someone to infiltrate the police force.

As the meeting drew to a close, I caught Thais' eye. She gave me a small smile, and I felt a sense of hope returning. We might not have Aram and Chuuya anymore, but we would find a way to make it work.