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ti amo = I love you 

sorellina = little sister 

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Dino drives to the hotel and parks in front of the entrance. Scorpia looks at the building from the outside and takes a moment to take it all in. She smiles and walks in with her head held high. She looks around at the reception, the marble floors, the lobby, and the restaurant. It all looks new.

A door opens and Ciro's head pops out. "Hello! You look like you're the boss!" He chuckles and invites Scorpia into the big office. There are two oak desks next to each other, with big bookcases against the wall behind it and comfortable leather chairs for visitors. Ciro says: "We can easily take one desk out. I thought it would be a good office for you because you can see the entrance, it's posh and close to the reception desk.

Scorpia smiles and says: "Smart thinking Ciro. But why take a desk out? Where are you going to sit?" She puts her papers and laptop down on the empty desk and sits down on the leather chair behind it. Ciro looks at her with his eyebrows raised. "What's wrong Ciro?"

"You want to share this office with me?"

"Of course I do. I expect you to run the day to day business and you know more about all of that than I do. And I don't want to call you for everything. I want to be able to ask you in person."

Dino walks out of the office and comes back in with a box full of sushi. Scorpia grins and says: "Oh Dino, ti amo."

Dino laughs and says: "Yes, I know what makes my sister happy."

They sit down at Ciro's desk and eat from the sushi together. Scorpia says: "Dodge Charger from around 1970."

Dino looks up at her and asks: "What?"

She repeats it and adds: "A black one. Buy me one. And a car for Ciro and one for you. Buy whatever you like. Oh and a family car for Bruno and Lexy. Can you do that for me?"

Dino grabs his phone from the desk and steps out of the office to make a phone call. He comes back in and says: "Charger will be here in thirty minutes." Scorpia smiles and nods at her brother, no longer surprised at how fast he gets things done.

She hears the Charger before she sees it and jumps up. She walks outside and admires the car stopping in front of her. A young Italian gets out of it, furiously wiping his hands on his overalls. Scorpia holds her hand out to him and looks him over.

He shakes her hand and says: "Good afternoon miss. I hope the car is to your liking." He hands her the keys and looks at her with admiration in his eyes.

Her face holds a friendly expression when she asks: "What's your name?"

"Johnny miss."

"Did you restore this car yourself?"

The young man nods proudly and says: "Yes miss. I work in my dad's garage."

"Do you want to continue to look after it?"

He stares at her in shock and Dino, who came outside too, nods at him. "I would love to miss!"

Scorpia smiles at him and shakes his hand again. "Good, you're my go-to mechanic from now on. If you follow Dino inside, you can discuss some details with my vice president. I am off to pick someone up with this beast."

She hikes up her skirt a little and gets behind the wheel.

Dino comes running and yells: "Wait! I want to take a picture!" He looks at the excited Scorpia, wearing her business attire and seated in the tough-looking Charger with a smile and takes the picture. She closes the door and starts the car. She pushes her foot down on the gas and races off, making the tires squeak. Dino chuckles and walks back inside.

Ciro's already talking to Johnny and he hears him say: "It will all be fine Johnny. I'll take care of the overdue rent today. We do need your help with buying three more cars though. I hope you're willing to help us with that." The boy turns pale and nods.

Dino puts his hand on his shoulder and says: "Johnny, just go with it. You're a great mechanic and I know about your dad. Don't worry. If you work hard for us, we'll make sure you are well taken care of."

Johnny nods again and Ciro says: "A Mustang GT Fastback. You'll have to buy one for me with Dino. And a safe family car for a family with young kids. And a...?"

He looks at Dino, who excitedly says: "Subaru BRZ."

Johnny wipes the sweat from his forehead and looks at both brothers one by one. "R-really? And I get to look after those too?"

Ciro nods and says: "Yeah. Scorpia, the woman you just sold the Charger to is the big boss. And she trusts you. So as long as you don't betray her trust, you'll have a fun job."

Dino gets up and says: "Come, let's buy some cars. And you can drive the new ones."

Johnny gets up slowly and Ciro types away on his computer. He holds his hand up and they wait for a moment. "There, the rent for the garage and apartment above it are paid for for the rest of the year. And have you eaten yet? Feel free to take the leftover sushi with you. You can eat it on the way."

Johnny smiles carefully now that it's all starting to sink in. Ciro winks at him and hands him the box of sushi. Dino and Johnny walk out together, talking cars on the way.

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Scorpia stops in front of the hospital and sees Ricardo waiting for her. She pushes her foot down on the gas to make the engine roar, before opening the door on the passenger's side. "Hey Hulk! Are you coming?"

Ricardo admires the car and sticks his head inside. "Hot car miss!"

"Yes, this hot ass deserves a hot car." Ricardo blushes a little and folds his huge body into the car. He closes the door and Scorpia waits for him to buckle up. She races back to the hotel with a huge smile plastered on her face the entire time.

When Ricardo gets out she notices him holding his stomach and Scorpia laughs. "Sorry Ricardo."

She walks in first and walks straight into her office. Ciro looks up and smiles at her. "Johnny's rent is paid for the year. He's out with Dino to buy the cars. In short; his dad is an alcoholic and drinks all their money away. But Johnny is a good kid and a damn good mechanic."

Scorpia nods and thanks him. "Ciro? Can you find people above sixty for me, who are jobless right now? A chef, receptionist, secretary, cleaners, and so on. Do you get me?" Ciro nods and starts typing on his computer.

Ricardo looks around and stares at Scorpia. She grabs her folder with the profiles from the desk and looks at Ciro. "Meeting room? And could you also invite..." She searches through the papers in her hands and says: "Bart? I know I said under eighteen, but I've seen something interesting in his profile."

Ciro nods and says: "I'll take a seat at reception and send them to you. The girls are up first. The meeting room is right across the lobby."

Scorpia walks out of the office and says, while looking over her shoulder: "Come Ricardo. Let's see the kind of young people we've gathered."

They talk to the girls one by one and Ricardo is impressed by how strong they are. And by the effect Scorpia has on them. They believe and trust her right away. There's a girl that wants to be a hairdresser, one who wants to be a beauty specialist, a future chef, and two who want to be a receptionist. 

The feistiest one of the bunch intrigues Scorpia. She's seventeen, has a big mouth and sparkling eyes.

Scorpia says: "Manon, if I would ask you to get coffee for me. What would you do?"

The girl walks out of the meeting room and comes back with a tray filled with everything you could possibly need for coffee or tea. Scorpia nods at her to thank her and asks her to sit down. She slides a notepad and pen towards the girl. "Pay attention and write things you come up with down. I want to hear your ideas after the interviews."

The first boy coming in is Bart. "Good afternoon Bart. I would like to check a few things, so if you could answer my questions, we can wrap this up quickly. You have your driver's license, right? Did you fight for Salvatore? Did they make you win or lose? For how long? And according to Dino, you're a very good shot and you stay calm in difficult situations. Is all of that true?"

Bart answers swiftly and says he has his drivers license, had to lose for Salvatore for about three years and that he was happy when the chance arose to work with Dino. He was the one to teach him how to shoot and stay calm.

Scorpia stands up and pulls the car keys from her pocket. She throws them at Bart and he catches them with ease.

She says: "Walk with me." Bart follows her to the reception desk and Scorpia says to Ciro: "Scorpion bracelets. Fine chains ones for the girls, bigger ones for the boys. Get it delivered here. I am taking Bart outside for a bit. The other boys are not here yet, right?"

"No, we need to arrange transport for them. And everything else will be taken care of boss." Scorpia nods and asks Bart to follow her outside.

She walks over to the Charger and Bart looks from the key in his hand to the black car. Scorpia says: "Get in Bart." She opens the passenger door for herself and sits down in the car. Bart gets in nervously and puts the key in the contact. He looks at Scorpia a bit worried and she tries to comfort him by looking back at him with a calm, friendly expression on her face. 

"Bart? Would you be opposed to wearing a suit?"

Bart shakes his head. 

"And would you mind driving me around in this car?" 

He shakes his head again and smiles carefully. 

"Good, that makes you my driver, starting today. And that suit will come later. We need to rent a van that can hold a few people first. Do you have any idea where?"

Bart nods and starts the car, driving off smoothly.

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Scorpia smiles and waves at Bart, who is going to pick up the under-aged boys with the van they just rented. She gets into her Charger and drives back to the hotel. She finds two new cars in the parking lot; a bright red Mustang and a silver-grey Subaru. She gets out of her own car and takes a moment to admire her brothers' cars.

Her phone rings and she sees it's Bruno. She picks up and walks in as she talks to him. "Hey Bruno? Give me a second. I have to tell Ciro something..." She looks at Ciro and says: "Bart is picking the boys up, so that's taken care of."

Ciro nods and says: "There's a chef and a receptionist waiting for you in the meeting room."

Scorpia holds her phone against her ear again and says: "Speak Bruno."

"Sorellina, we just had a beautiful family car delivered here. What are we supposed to do with it?"

"Well, I assume there were keys too. You put the key in the contact and then you start the car."

Bruno chuckles and Scorpia says: "I'm busy. Enjoy brother."

Scorpia rushes back to the meeting room, where Ricardo is nervously trying to keep a conversation going. Scorpia walks in with a smile and says: "I'm sorry, it's a hectic day today. I hope you didn't have to wait long."

She shakes both of their hands and looks at them with friendly eyes. "You're both looking for work, right? And you can start today? Are you on top of that willing to educate young people?"

The man answers first. "I'm a chef and I would love to start today. And educating young people and getting them excited is the best part of my job."

Scorpia smiles and asks: "Can you cook Italian?"

The man grins and says: "My mom's Italian."

"Perfect! Welcome to Scorpia Enterprise. Please introduce yourself to the guy at reception, he will work it all out."

The woman answers a bit shy: "I've been a receptionist at a bank for years, but I have to admit that I've been jobless for three years now. But I can start today and would love to use my experience to teach young people."

Scorpia gets up and says: "I love that. You're very nervous, but immediately understood what I wanted from you. And on top of that you're honest. Welcome to Scorpia Enterprise. Push the man behind reception off your chair, because that's your spot from now on." The woman walks out of the meeting room with a wide smile on her face.

Scorpia lets herself fall into her chair and Ricardo applauds softly. "Wow. Respect. You don't need me at all. You look straight through everyone."

She looks up at Manon and asks: "Could you pour me a cup of coffee? With a bit of milk. Do you want some too, Ricardo? "

Ricardo nods and says: "Black please."

The girl immediately does as she's asked and Scorpia says: "Pour something to drink for yourself too Manon because I am very pleased with you so far."

Bart knocks on the open door and says: "Miss? I've picked up the boys."

"Let them in Bart. And find Ciro and ask him about a suit for you. Thank you."

Five boys enter the room, one of them looks not older than twelve and seems to be covered in bruises and scratches. Scorpia swallows and takes a moment to breathe calmly. "Okay men. Please tell me your name and age one by one." They are all fifteen or sixteen, besides the smallest boy. He turns out to be eleven. Scorpia feels a stab in her heart, but tries to treat them with respect.

"Okay, if you could choose any profession in the world what would it be?"

The boys say: "Chef, boxer, security guard and teacher." The smallest boy just shrugs. Scorpia sends the oldest boys to Ciro, so he can take care of the rest.

She walks over to the young boy and crouches down in front of him. "Matteo?" The boy looks at her with fearful eyes and throws himself into her arms, sobbing loudly. She rubs his back softly and says: "It will be alright Matteo. You don't have to fight anymore. Are you in pain sweetie?"

The boy nods and Scorpia looks at Ricardo. "Matteo? Is it okay if Ricardo took you somewhere? That big mister over there?"

Ricardo gets up and shoots the boy a friendly look. Matteo stares at the huge man for a bit and then nods slowly. "Okay sweetie, I will hand you over to Ricardo. He will take you to the hospital so they can check you over there. And I will make a phone call to find a nice place for you to stay. Alright?"

Matteo nods again and Scorpia gets up. She hands her car key to Ricardo and says: "Be careful. And keep me posted."

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And that was Chapter 40.

Another calm chapter.
Gotta set this business up properly, right?

My favorite little men are appearing in the next chapter. <3

Which will also be a slow paced, gentle one. 

See you for the next update!

Love you! XO Hankie