"Vincent Salvatore!" Gabriel exclaimed. "May father's original right hand man? The same man that mentored Anton? I thought you were dead!"

"No." The old man replied. "That's just what you Father told everyone. He didn't want anyone to know the truth."

"What truth?" Gabriel asked feeling extremely confused. "I don't understand."

"The truth of my ultimate betrayal." The old man replied. "In his eyes I did much worse than embezzle $10 million from him. That alone would have been humiliating for him, if that had become well known. After all I was his right hand man. But I left his organization. I had sworn an oath on my life, to him, and to the Esposito family. My leaving the family organization was my true betrayal. But I did it for Cali. I had to make it right. I had taken her parent from her, It was my fault that she was left with nothing."

"Did my father order their execution?" Gabriel asked. Although the truth was, he already knew the answer, but he was still afraid to hear it. The thought that his own father, being the reason for his songbird's misfortune all these years, caused his heart to sink.

"Yes." The old man answered him, as he solemnly looked towards the floor.

"Why?" Gabriel growled as eyes began to fill up with tears.

"Cali's parent were apparently vacationing in Palermo." The old man's told him. The were some American couple on a second honeymoon, I guess. I really don't know. Anyway, they had been walking along the beach, and close to the docks. They basically went somewhere they weren't supposed to go. It was a storage facility where your father kept some--merchandise. Your father and I were the only ones there. Besides you and Rosy, Anton, your father's doctors, and myself, no one else was allowed to know what you father really was."

"You mean a gargoyle." Gabriel sighed. "Like me."

"Yes." Replied the old man. "And as you know, it is a secret that you only want a few people to know. Anyone who found out, who was not authorized to know, had to be eliminated. The couple, Alex and Janine Russo, had accidentally witnessed you father transform into a gargoyle. It frightened the couple, and they ran away. Your father had me go after them, but they gave me the slip. He told me to find them, and get rid of them, even if I had to follow them into the very depths of hell itself. It took six months, but I eventually found the couple in New York."

"Did you know about Cali?" Gabriel asked. "When you went looking for them?"

"No." The old man sighed. "The truth is I had been a in the mafia for years, a trained killer that swore an oath to your father. After a while, one just became numb to the killing. Taking a human life, was just part of my job. I had no remorse whenever I killed someone. It was who I was, and it was what I did. I was a body guard, and a skilled assassin. But when I killed her parent, and I saw the look in her eyes, I was never the same after that."

"But you left her there, alone." Said Gabriel. "And you served my father for another eight years."

"I had used a gun silencer." Said the old man. "But all the screaming must have alerted the neighbors. Because while I was considering grabbing her, and taking off, I heard police sirens. Then I dawned on me. What was I going to do with her? I couldn't raise her as my own, in my world. And how would I explain her to your father. I as afraid if he found out about her that he would have killed, or sold to some sick pedophile. So I told her I was sorry, and just left her there. I thought maybe she might have some family, but I was wrong."

"When did you decide to save her?" Gabriel asked.

"Her teary eyes always haunted me." The old man replied. "I never forgot about her, but I continued to do my job. Then one night, I had a strange dream. I dreamt that she needed me, I dreamt that she was begging me to save her. I honestly don't think she was actually calling out to me. If anything, I think my guilt had just manifested itself inside my unconscious mind. But I had to find out what happened to her. So little by little by I started embezzling from your father. I started to keep track of her. I was horrified to find out about how she was being mistreated, in all of the different foster homes that she had lived in. There were several reports of abuse, and neglect."

"Oh my god." Cried Gabriel, as he covered his face with his hands. "Is that when you came up with your plan?"

"As I said before." The old man told him. "I had to make it right. I wired the money to a dummy account in New York, and I came up with a phony ID, Salvador Russo. I took her father's last name, so I could pretend to be a long lost great uncle. I then had reconstructive facial surgery. I guess it worked rather well, because Anton didn't even recognize me. He was my protege. If I could fool him, I could fool anybody. Well you know the rest. I used the money to take care of her, my penance for my sin. I even bribed another judge to make sure that bastard, who sexually assaulted her, went to jail for for a long time."

"Until I got him out, and brought him here." Gabriel sighed, as he looked down at Carl's dead body. "Why did you shoot him?"

"I guess killing, and revenge is still apart of me." The old man replied. "You have no idea how difficult it was to resist killing him, seven years ago. I was able to resist, because I knew that's what Cali wanted. When he was put away, I thought I had moved on, but apparently I hadn't. I didn't care that you had beaten him half to death. when I saw him today, I wanted him dead. He was the first person I had killed in over seven years."

"Why did you come back here?" Gabriel asked. "You realize in doing so, would make it easy for you to be found."

"I did it for Cali." Explained the old man. "I knew your father would eventually trace the missing money to my alias accounts. I didn't want him to find out about Cali. He would have used her to get to me. He would have killed her, sold her, or..."

"Or made her a whore of the mafia king." Replied Gabriel, "Like him, or me."

"If I made it easy to find me, then you would have just killed me." The old man told him. "I needed to die before anyone in the Esposito organization, found out about Cali. I should have killed myself. But I proved to myself that I was a true coward. I had no trouble killing others, but when it came to myself, I wasn't strong enough. So I came back to Palermo, hoping that you would do it for me. Only-"

"Only Cali came looking for you." Gabriel interrupted as he growled in anger. "And she found me instead. I don't know what to do with you old man."

"Then do us all a favor!" The old man cried. "Kill me now, I don't want to live anymore!"

"Sorry old man!" Gabriel explained. "I'm not going to do your dirty work for you. The guns on the floor. If you want to die, you'll have to do it yourself."

Gabriel then headed towards the door, and turned around to look back at him. The old man looked both shocked and confused. "Please!" The old man cried. "Don't leave me in here like this!"

"If you get lonely, I'm sure dead Mr. Jenkins here will keep you company." Gabriel replied coldly. "I'll check on in the morning, to see if you were finally strong enough to go through with it."

With that, Gabriel shut the door behind him, and locked the door with a pass code as if nothing happened. He then took out his smartphone, and called the guard who was head of Rosy's home security detail."

"Hello, Mr. Esposito." The guard answered his phone.

"Michael!" Gabriel replied. "My fiancé is going to be staying with my sister for a few days. I want up to the minute details of everything that is happening over there."

"Um, sir." Michael replied. "Your sister just called. She said she was going out of town for a few days. But she didn't mention anything about your fiancé accompanying her. She said she didn't need any of us for security, because you knew about it, and you were providing it."

"WHAT? AND IT NEVER DAWED ON YOUR PISSANT SIZED BRAIN TO CHECK WITH ME?" Exclaimed Gabriel as he could feel his enrageD heart pounding through his chest. "YOU'D BETER FIND THEM SOON MOTHERFUCKER, OR IT'LL BE YOUR HEAD! IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO EITHER ONE OF THEM, I WILL PERSONALLY TURN YOU INTO THE STUPID PIECE OF SHIT THAT YOU ACTUALLY ARE!"

With that he quickly hung up the phone, as he cried out in both fear and anger. With all of his might, he punched a hole in the wall as he kept pacing back and forth. Where the hell are they? Gabriel wondered as he continued to panic. My god Rosy, what are you trying to pull?

Without some sort of protection, they were sitting ducks. Anyone of his enemies would love to get their hands of the two of them. He needed to call Anton. Gabriel dialed the phone, as hot angry tears kept streaming down his cheeks.

"Hello?" Anton answered.

"Anton!" Gabriel exclaimed in a panic, as he was continuing to cry. "Rosalina, and Calliope have run away! I want them found before anything happens to them! I'll take the air, while you and your men take to the ground! This is all my fault. If I were to lose either one of them, I don't know what I would do!"

"Don't worry!" Anton said, in a calm tone. "I will help find them for you. They will soon be where they belong."

"Thank you, Anton." Gabriel replied. "I know I rarely say this. But I am grateful that I have such a loyal, and dedicated second in command.

"Of course, sir." Anton stated reassuringly. "And I am humbled by your compliment. But it is not necessary. I have sworn an oath to both your father, and to you. I will always faithfully serve the true head of the Esposito family."