Chapter 2

I was the only short one left, with only a pair of breasts and an ass to show for it.

"Do you remember the story about Massimo Catelli?" Ren asks, standing to his full height pacing the room.

I frown, but respond, "Yes, in the later 1800s Massimo and his 2 brothers, came to America with nothing but a fake passport and a pack of cigars. No crime syndicate wanted to be joined with the three of them. They were weak because they were only part Sicilian."

"And he and his brothers didn't appreciate that, so they slowly turned their cards, taking out every crime family that stood in their way. Until the Catelli's controlled New York, it was 40 years later when the Castellammarese war took place. And John Gotti took the fall as a Capo. A legendary story and one that can be repeated in a much more civilized manner with careful planning," Ren finishes the story, taking a seat next to me. I place one of the pictures next to the bedside table, sit up and look at him.

We all look at him. He is crazy to even consider doing what it is he is thinking. It is a suicide to all of our names. But it isn't impossible, just madness.

"What are you suggesting, Catelli?" Gabriel questions. And I wonder the same thing because it sounds like he has finally lost all senses of his sanity.

"We take over Chicago. Our Famiglia is big, but we aren't the biggest in North America. There are a lot of players on the board. If we took Chicago, we will not only cement the Catelli name further, but all of our families would benefit in the long run. Everyone would remember the 5 of us. If we manage that, we create Allies with the Di Salvo and the outfit. It'll make us the biggest crime family in North America."

"You are talking about a war, the Russo's will never play fair. They aren't going to just shut up and let a group of teenagers take their City," Gabriel warns, shaking his head in disbelief that Ren would even suggest it. I hate to admit it, but I agree with how absurd it sounds.

Us, take over Chicago? I doubt Ren is thinking logically. So I laugh and throw myself on the pillow as he gets up. His lanky body makes me want to snicker as he slides a hand through his long hair.

"No, but taking their youth out and killing Stagio is a power play they can't deny," Ren suggests.

"Too dirty. A war against the Russo's would mean their allies, which equals the Outfit. My Papa has only said bad things about the Outfit, they are ruthless," I say. It is true, the Outfit was a group of undignified Italians that didn't belong to a crime family to call their own. So they made their own family and the Sanati's ruled the Outfit with an iron fist.

"If we take out Alec, and maybe one of us marry Elisa, we could be half-way there. I know Lucca Sanati. He is next in line to take The Outfit under his command. He used to be close with Marco and Deno," Ren informs us.

"What do you think we should do?" Mero asks Gabriel, who says nothing but stares worriedly at Ren.

"Maybe wait for him to become the Outfit boss?!" Ren answers.

"No, Lucca is crazy. He hates the Catelli's too much after Katrina died. This entire plan is ludicrous. If we want to do this we are going to need a smart plan, a long-term one that doesn't involve Lucca or killing Stagio," Gabriel says finally agreeing to Ren's ridiculous plan a bit too quickly. Going by the fact that a second ago his face revealed how against it he was, I would say he had a plan of his own.

"How about getting a Russo to do our bidding? Take out Stagio, or kidnap Alec?" Michel suggests.

"You mean Elisa? No, absolutely not, she is 15 and my sister. This entire plan is ridiculous. If we agree to do this, I think we should keep our hands clean on the outside. We would have to be smart, as Gabriel says," I voice out, becoming a player too.

"So what are you thinking, Miss Capello? Play unicorns?" Mero asks with exaggerated sarcasm and I roll my eyes, giving him an exasperated sigh.

"No, I was talking about chess, dumb nut. We play allies against allies. Not just in the Russo's tight circle, but in ours too. How pissed off do you think our parents need to get before they retaliate?" I tell them, and Gabriel is the first one to smile.

"Like play the one against each other? Technically, we won't be getting our hands dirty. But we create a war. Question is, how do we use the war to take over Chicago?" Mero asks, scratching his neck, frowning at me as the room fills with the taste of power. Because let's be honest, we are spawn from the 5th State. We all want to have more power.

"We get someone to marry Elisa, one of us is better than any fucker Stagio will choose," Ren says nodding his head in agreement to his plan.

"And Alec?" Gabriel queries.

"We leave him for now, if things get really bad, then we get our hands dirty. The question is, how the fuck do we start a war?" Ren says.

"Isn't it obvious?" Michel asks with his attention on Gabriel.

We all stare at our friend, and he smiles.

"We go to our Underboss and tell him our plan, of course." A plan forms as he says those words and it is on this day that the 5 of us, the Misfits that were shoved into Chicago, decide on a plan that would cost many of us more than we could ever have imagined.