The last week had been odd, to say the least. His mob boss was made proud by his and Manako's million dollar race win about a week ago, and therefore he was certain he would be getting a call just a day or two after to set up another race night. That call never came, all that he received was a message detailing where to pick up his reward car and his money.

He felt mildly stupid taking a cab down to where the address instructed. This was a classic way a mob would bring someone into a trap to get rid of them. But what if he didn't go? What message would've that sent? Plus he was in this for the money and cars, and if this is what he had to do to get it, so be it. The taxi took him to a fairly wealthy neighborhood, to his surprise. He paid the driver and stepped out, looking for the small parking lot he was told his new Corvette would be. After a couple minutes of searching, he saw a brand new fire orange Corvette ZR1 in the far corner of the parking lot, just how he requested it. This guy was good, however he got that thing.


The instructions told him that the key fob was in the glove compartment. That's about the first place anyone would look if they were to steal it. He gazed over the beauty for a second and then got to business. The keys sure enough were in the glove compartment and there was a black dufflebag in the back. He grabbed the bag and opened it to find stacks of cash, totaling to around $380,000. It felt good to be rich for a change.

So far there was no sniper shot heard or the car didn't randomly blow up, so he figured this must've been for real. It still very much puzzled him though why Stephano wasn't in contact with him. The only explanation he had was some dire mob business came up and he had to disappear for awhile. If that was the case, then maybe he should take this opportunity to get fixed up.

Regardless, he was going to enjoy this moment. He pushed the starter button on the vette and heard that magnificent supercharged LS9 growl to life. This is what made mob work worth it. He carefully pulled it off the lot and made his way down the street with it.

After a bit of driving, Cole decided it was time for lunch, and so he stopped at an Olive Garden and found himself a nice booth. He hadn't heard from anyone else either lately. Not Brian, Bayleigh, Mira, Manako, no one. Maybe everyone finally got smart and chose to keep their distance from him...or maybe he was keeping his distance from them. Either way, he really wished he knew what was going on in the world beyond him.

As Stephano's 1970 Lincoln Continental rolled up to the curb of the Olive Garden parking he took a deep breath. Being a man of certain tastes there were some things that are never done, one of those being entering a chain Italian restaurant. The smell of processed cheese and canned sauce made Stephano heart sink for a minute though he knew this had to be done.

Entering the building of false food Stephano scanned through the misguided persons in search of one, Mr. Peyton. Mr. Peyton wasn't hard to find, his hair was a dead give-away and the grin on his face could only be from receiving a gift of great importance. Slipping pass the hostess, Stepahno joined Cole in his booth against the wall.

"Well Mr. Peyton it has been a while. I hope you received your provisions without error? By the way, out of all the restaurants in this damn area you had to choose this! Obviously, I am a fan of Italian eating but this is... embarrassing. I feel that most of these people can't even speak a word of Italian. Regardless I hope you don't mind my incursion? We have much to discuss"

Cole was toying around with his iphone when suddenly an all too familiar voice caused his eyes to dart up towards none other than Stephano. So much for a vacation, he thought. "I have, I must say that for not being particularly well versed in modern sports cars, you got exactly the Corvette I had in mind, same packages and everything." He took another glance at the car through the window he had parked it by. Then the thought of how the hell Mr. Dieseli knew he was here crossed his mind. "Speaking of which, it's tracked, isn't it?" He smirked.

The waitress finally came to take their drink orders and then whisked off to carry them out. "Well, in modern American culture, this is considered upperclass. Besides, their breadsticks are quite good." He took one and offered the basket to Stephano. "What's on your mind, Mr. Dieseli?"

Grabbing the basket of breadsticks Stephano set them to his left. He took out one of the breadsticks and examined it. Bringing a breadstick close to face, he then retracted his arm and placed the breadstick back into the basket.

“You know those breadsticks are probably from a box right? That goes for all the food they serve here as well… No matter, back to what is at hand. I complement you for realizing that we bugged your car. You pick up on these things quite fast and for that I’ll cover this tab. Now please don’t feel so distort over this, surly you can understand. I have been gone for the past few days for ‘business reasons’ and I still needed to get in touch with you, so this was the only logical solution. After this meeting I’ll remove the GPS and we will continue our normal workings. I need you to be straight with me, since my disappearance what have a missed? Have you miraculously made me trillions of dollars or have you run me so far up the wall that I need to kill you? ” Chuckling to himself for the mildly grim joke, Stephano waited not only for Cole’s reply but his beverage he order from this so called Italian eatery.

"I'm quite sure they are boxed goods, but sometimes you gotta enjoy even the little things." He grinned and dipped the bread in what was probably canned marinara, not that he really cared, it still had taste.

He wasn't sure exactly how the mob boss would react to his observation, but he was glad when he was commended for it and relieved when he said the tracker would be gone after this, though he couldn't say he 100% believed him. No matter, he knew the ins and outs of that car, and he'd be able to tell if it was tracked. He found it interesting how Stephano would constantly reward him even for small things, he didn't expect it. Maybe it was his way of trying to lure him into the family.

"To be honest, hardly anything at all has happened within your absence. During that million dollar race last week, I set the boost setting a little too high and ended up cracking the head." Seeing that Stephano wasn't exactly following him, he elaborated. "The engine blew up, in short. So I've been without a competent car until just now." He nodded over to the Corvette outside.

The waitress brought them their drinks and then offered to take their order. "I'll have the shrimp fettucine alfredo, please." He handed over the menu and waited for Stephano. Cole half expected him to not order anything.

"As far as Manako, I have no idea what he's done. Maybe you've talked to him already." He added. "I'm ready to go this weekend if you wish, just need to add a few touches to that car and she'll be a winner."

As Manako walked out of his house his but began vibrating it was a message telling him where to find his new car. Manako smiled, called a cab and told the cab driver where to go. As they head to the location there was a traffic jam on the freeway which slowed to a crawl.

As Manako sat in the cab which went slower than a snail. As the traffic cleared up they finally got to the location and Manako paid the cab driver and walked up to a white Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX MR Edition and hugged it.



He entered the car and turned it over sat there listening to it purr. He then Drove to an Olive Garden where the message also said to meet. Manako walked in and noticed Stephano and Cole sitting at a booth. and he joined the Manako then ordered a Pepsi and some shrimp Fettuccine. Then said with sincerity in his voice "Sorry, Stephano, traffic on the highway was murder. there was a five car pileup."

Stephano briefly scanned the menu but to no avail. Though the images related to the meals made them look enticing, it was a ruse. Finally Stephano decided. “I’ll have the Bruschetta please. Also does this establishment make their own bread?”

Confused the waitress answered “Well… ummmmm… I am not sure but if I get the chance I will tell you.”

As the waitress walked away Stephano looked towards Cole. “She isn’t going to answer me you know. Anyway I am sorry for your car. Considering that is now one of my assets I can I have that fixed soon enough if you want me to.” Waiting for Cole’s answer Stephano took a sip of his drink and spied quite the unfortunate site. Walking towards the booth was none only than Manako Sora. As Manako sat down next to Cole and greeted Stephano, Stephano’s face turned to disgusts and anger. Grabbing Manako by the neck he spoke.

“You slimly piece of shit, what the hell do you think you are doing here, and with that fucking car! How in the world would you have known that Cole, yet alone I was here? This entire time, I have been forced to watch over you like a child due to your incompetence and it is time for retribution. That car I promised you, gone. The money I planned to give you, gone. Let this be your final goddamn warning! Pull anymore shit like this and I will make you wish you still lived in japan. Your reporter I had to dispose of was more of a problem in death than in living and I am going to give you ten fucking seconds to explain how the hell you are here!”

Taking a breath Stephano realized that this had been one of the few times he swore in English. Not caring he added. “You’re down to eight seconds, start talking!”

"I'm sure you would be disappointed in the answer anyway." Cole lightly laughed and took a drink of his ice tea. "I'll take care of the car, all work done I want to be done by me and me only. There's a distinct advantage for the few that tighten their own bolts, they know their horse better."

Manako's entrance wasn't much of a surprise, he just assumed he was told to be there. Stephano's reaction however, was to his surprise. Was there a communication breakdown among Stephano and his men? He looked at towards the parking lot to find the car Stephano was citing. An Evo 9, good choice, he thought.

Maybe there was something or a series of events that lead up to this, but Stephano was royally pissed off, that he knew, and he did not want to be in Manako's shoes right now.

Manako looked confused and said "but you..." then he looked around and realized and whispered loud enough so that only Cole and Stephano could hear "Get out of here now." then Manako walked out of the restaurant and entered the Lancer and drove off.

A mile down Manako noticed three police cars coming towards him. They passed him as they passed Manako looked in his rear view mirror and watched as the cops turn around with sirens blaring. "HELL!" Manako yelled as he shifted down and drifted in to a turn cutting traffic. As he sped through traffic the cops kept up except one which wrecked into a flatbed truck. As Manako drove past each car he then drifted into a four way intersection and cut off each car going through causing an accident which the cops had trouble getting through. As Manako drove he then turned down an ally and hid the car and exited it. He then walked away from it leaving it there.

Counting down in his head, Stephano waited for Manako's response. "Seven. Six. Five..." Then Manako did the only thing Stephano didn't expect, he ran. Exiting the booth, Stephano marched out just to see Manako pulling out of the parking lot. Stephano reached for his Mauser, but refrained realizing that this was a public site. In anger, he shouted a flury of curse words in Italian to the vacanting car.

Re-entering the restaurant, Stephano joined Cole back at the booth. "Well that could have went better. The kid is an idiot though, and this was a long time coming. As like your car, his is bugged and there isn't an angle in heaven that could help him find that thing. We will catch him after this meal. Actually, while we wait for our orders, let us see where the bitch is." Pulling out a small tablet from his inner pocket, Stephano loaded up the GPS program. While the two waited during their food's preparation, they watched Manako's car's every movement.

Cole remained motionless as the events unfolded, mostly because he had no idea what to do. Manako may have just signed his own death warrant, unless he had a good reason for bailing. All he heard him say was something like "get out," whatever that meant.

He bit his lip as he watched the Evo launch out of the parking lot and hustle down the street. Kid had some balls, that was for sure. Stephano didn't seem too terribly concerned when he came back, but a group of words he said caught Cole's attention, what did he mean when he said this was a long time coming? Was there other business there between them that he wasn't aware about?

"You don't particularly like him, do you?" He asked. Cole watched the dot represented the Evo on the screen, then noticed several distinct dots following him. "Is he getting chased?" He furrowed his brow a little.

Soon enough, their food arrived, and to Cole's relief, it looked good enough even for Stephano's standards.

As the food arrived Stephano scanned it. He thought to himself “Bread: looks soggy. Tomatoes: from a can. Cheese: Decent, not fresh though.” Letting out a slight sigh he thanked the waitress and set his food aside to the corner of the table. Looking at Cole he spoke. “Once again you pick up on these things fast, granted that one was obvious. From the minute I brought the both of you into my car a few weeks ago I sensed that kid was going to be a torn in my side. This entire time I have been forced to watch him like a child because of his ignorance and stupidity. Tell me, what do you think of Mr. Sora?”

Cole thought his pasta was quite good, Stephano obviously thought otherwise. But no matter, his loss. He would hate to ever have to cook for him and his men, and couldn't imagine the pressure on the chefs at any given restaurant they chose to eat.

He thought the mobster's words towards Manako were a little harsh, especially since Cole himself hadn't really witnessed many interactions between the two that would justify such opinions. "He's a talented driver, no doubt about that. But, he's quite cocky, and I think that holds him back."

“That is just the start of it, Mr. Peyton. He is naïve and that is what makes him such a big problem. I don’t know if you know this, but the last race I sent you to, Mr. Sora decided to find himself a reporter to record his ’triumphs’. Now you know that what we do is outside of what the law considers legal, and if the possession of those tapes was given to certain individuals, then our entire way of life would be compromised. I had to spend the last week running damage control because that reporter’s family was the type that asks too many questions and now Mr. Sora must pay for his sins.” Looking away from Cole, Stephano glanced over to the Bruschetta then back to Cole. “I am not going to eat that you know. You’re welcome to have it.”

Cole cocked an eyebrow as Stephano told him about Manako's reporter. Some of those reporters were legit, but they tended to be heavily persuaded with the dollar, and thus they were a serious danger to racers everywhere. Cole was about to ask how they were going to contain this reporter, but as soon as Stephano mentioned his family, he could piece together what happened, poor guy. "How do you plan to deal with him?" He asked.

Stephano's tone made Cole think Manako may be in serious trouble, he would have to warn Manako when he could, his life was potentially in danger.

“Mr. Sora will receive the proper punishment for his crime. Now, if you don’t mind Mr. Peyton, I will be on my way to meet with him myself.”

Reaching in his back pocket Stephano retrieved his wallet and grabbed a 100 dollar bill. He set it on the table and began to walk away.

He his passing he spoke. “Keep the change, you might need it.”