Mouseskin in the Mafia

               Once upon a time, there lived a wealthy and feared mafia boss by the name of Marco De Luca.  This don controlled all of East Jersey with no competition and fierce loyalty from his family. Among his many henchmen were three women who had been great assets to his career, and these were his underbosses. Though they were only in their twenties, these three were the most cunning, ruthless, and street-smart allies the don had. The oldest at age twenty-seven was Francesca, who had a niche for twisting the minds of men. Then came Ludovica, age twenty-five, who had more battle scars than John McClane. Last, but certainly not least, was Rosabella. Rosabella was only twenty-one years old, but Marco favored her above the others because beneath her seemingly fragile beauty lay the strength and wit of ten tenacious tigers.

                 Over the years, Marco had begun to fear for his mortality and the loss of leadership that was bound to it. He faced the inevitable and decided he must choose someone worthy to take up the business after his death. In search of a successor, Marco turned to Francesca, Ludovica, and Rosabella.  To test their loyalty, Marco asked each of them who they would “take out” for the De Luca name. Francesca proceeded to narrate and elaborate plan to assassinate the governor of New Jersey in which she included several gallons of champagne, a small canoe, and a round of Candy Land. Quite impressed with her resourcefulness and audacity, Marco took her profession of loyalty into consideration. Ludovica took it one step further and announced that her devotion would lead her to exterminate the president using only a few feet of wire and her bare hands. This statement caught the attention of the don, and he knew that his faith was justified. When the time had come to hear Rosabella’s answer, Marco could barely contain his excitement. This is only a figure of speech, of course, because nothing would make the boss come close to showing such an emotion. All the same, he waited in anticipation to hear the response from his favorite underboss. Rosabella simply replied that she would be willing to shoot her fiancé, Rosario Mouseskin,

for the sake of her boss.

                Marco, infuriated and wounded by such an insignificant vow of loyalty, ordered one of his soldiers to “take care” of Rosabella. A seventeen-year-old boy named Bonario was chosen for the job. However, Bonario had taken a liking to Rosabella when he entered the family, and he could not bring himself to finish the job. Instead, he took her to the outskirts of the De Luca’s territory and urged her to run to the West side of Jersey, which was Salvatore turf.

                Rosabella had to make a living, and life in the mafia was all she knew. Therefore, she cut all ties with the De Lucas and her loved ones, and she pledged herself to the Salvatore family. As a soldier, Rosabella had the lowest jobs doing most of the dirty work. She didn’t mind though. She was good at it, and she knew that if it wasn’t for Bonario, she would be in a ditch somewhere. A few years passed, and Rosabella made her way up the ranks both socially and romantically. At the age of twenty-five, she had become the wife and Consigliere to Antonio Salvatore, the family boss.

                One night, Antonio asked Rosabella about her past. After listening to his beloved wife recount her tale, Antonio felt a burning resolve to get revenge on Marco De Luca for what he had put Rosabella through. This revenge was manifested in the assassination of Mrs. De Luca, who had been married to Marco for thirty-seven long years. Heartbroken, Marco declared war on the Salvatore family.  For forty days and forty nights, the two powers slaughtered each other in every imaginable way. On the last day, Marco and Rosabella came face to face. At once, Marco understood the motive behind the death of his wife, and he confronted Rosabella claiming that never would he have stooped so low as to take the life of someone so precious to her. As he uttered those words, a realization came to him. What Rosabella had vowed to do in his name, the very thing he cast her out for suggesting, was the single hardest action he could imagine. In the fleeting moment that he hesitated in comprehension, Marco was gunned down by a Salvatore soldier.