Opening Remarks
Opening Remarks[edit]
Thursday, 18 June 1925
- Corner office
- Former Residence of the Finnucci Brothers, New Orleans
- 2245hrs, Central
The grandfather clock in what has been Giuseppe’s office was well oiled and obviously closely cared for. It occupied a place of honor in the room and when Orlando had arrived three days ago it was still within 10 seconds of accurate. One did not need psychic powers to know its importance to its former owner.
Orlando carressed the mahogany side of the timepiece. ‘We start here then.’
Ornella entered and left quietly leaving a tray of candles and a glass of fresh blood. Though she said nothing, Orlando felt her presence strongly and it provided him with a lingering sense of her strength. Though she lacked the training or inclination for Necromancy, Ornella well understood the process and knew that it was best done without distraction.
He drank the blood and lit the candles clearing his mind to focus on the clock and on the owner that had taken such care of it. He began the Chant of Summoning, in Ecclesiastical Latin.
He continued the chant until the veil between the lands of the living and the dead was quite thin. “Giuseppe Finnucci, you are summoned to my presence,” Orlando said ominously.
There was a subtle chilling of the air and then, lingering as if the spirit itself was recalcitrant, Giuseppe appeared, faint and wavering. "Why?" came the wispy voice with an ounce of annoyance.
Orlando’s voice betrayed no small amount of anger. “Because you have unpaid debts to the Giovanni family. Because you stole from the family and thought you could get away with it.” His voice flattened, “Did you think that death would release you from your obligations?”
A slight smile cast over the ghost's features. "We never assumed that we could get away from our obligations. Death is not enough to cut the ties to the family."
Orlando sat in one ‘guest’ chairs in the office, and faced Giuseppe speaking conversationally “Good, a proper understanding of your situation will make things move forward more easily. This will likely be the first of many talks we have.” Orlando grinned wolfishly, “Is there anything you’d like to say before we begin? Any information you’d care to volunteer?”
A thin eyebrow rose. "Such as?" He shimmered a little, whether in fear or amusement, wasn't apparent.
With his mind, Orlando grasped the tethers that tied Giuseppe’s spirit to the Ghostlands and gave it a yank. “Let’s start with why you decided to sell off Family property and who you sold it to.”
There was a tremor and the spirit grimaced. "Money," came the sandpaper whisper. "You can never have enough. And Bugs Moran out of Chicago."
Orlando tcched, “Nicola Morello will not be pleased and your families will pay the price. No payment you could have received will make up for what you or they will suffer.”
"But I enjoyed what I received in life for quite a while. And it gave me favor with Chicago." The spirit floated a little closer. "Why was it bad to make ties with the Outfit? They wanted a foot in New Orleans. My brother and I were willing to make a deal or two. The Family would have benefited in the long run." The shrug was nonchalant. "It was business; A favor for a future favor."
“It was not your decision to make,” Orlando growled. You inbred two-bit bastard idiot. “And the fact that you did not inform your superiors tells me how much concern you had about the greater ‘good’ of La Familia.”
Orlando tightened the chain just a bit more so that Giuseppe’s manifestation visibly jerked. “Understand that until I decide otherwise your existence is an eternity of painful servitude to the Giovanni. Your brother and your families will join you if you do not cooperate.”
"So why go through the pretence of being reasonable?" Giuseppe asked bitterly. "I am doomed. You asked me questions as if you were reasonable and yet my fate was sealed from the moment you called me." The empty orbs narrowed. "I won't tell you any more. You want the money? You may find it."
Orlando’s tone dropped any pretext of amicability “I don't think you understand the way this relationship works. You do what I tell you and answer the questions until I say otherwise.”
He pulled the wraith's tethers until it noticeably distorted. “and I will keep summoning you and we will keep doing this until I get every piece of information you have.”
The wraith contorted in pain, barely holding corporate. "Rot in hell," came the dry hiss as it glared helplessly. It began to fade, its energies exhausted.
Orlando whistled the overture to Rossini’s "Barber of Seville" as he picked up the tray and left the room. He left the tray on a sideboard in the hall as he proceeded to Vincenzo's office. It isn't like Giuseppi or his brother have any where to go.
Return to Vampire: The Big Easy
