ONE #4
He wanted everything to be clean and organized, but still ruthless.
The Gotti way was to appear perfect on paper while wreaking havoc in the streets.
Jio needed to map a plan out. He decided that he would kick off his day tomorrow at the bookstore with a pen and pad and a cup of coffee.
Sometimes, he had to see things written out for it to make sense.
Nina shared a scripture that resonated heavily.
“Write the vision and make it plain,” or something like that.
Jio wasn’t a man who ignored instincts, so although everything should’ve been coming together like he intended, it still wasn’t.
He paused near one of the tables and picked up a sealed brick. His fingers pressed into it slightly, testing the density and quality. His face gave nothing away, but that’s because a lot was happening in his head.
“You weighed this already?” He kept his voice sharp yet low enough to remain undetected.
“Yeah, boss. Twice,” the worker replied quickly.
His eyes remained on the brick.
“Do it again.”
Without hesitation, the man grabbed the scale. Jio set the brick down and watched the numbers increase.
Precision.
Control.
Certainty.
The three things that he built his life on all of a sudden felt shaky. He turned away before the number even settled. That wasn’t what was bothering him. It was something deeper. But what the fuck was it? The problem couldn’t be weighed, packed, sealed up, and shipped off either.
It was close enough not to doubt that it was real.
Jio decided to trust his gut and wrap up the impromptu visit.
He didn’t do well with doubt and second-guessing his instincts.
He headed towards the back of the warehouse to take a peek into one of the many storage rooms. The shelves were filled with packaged product that equated to millions and millions of dollars.
He had inventory for days, which meant shit was moving slow.
That wasn’t a good sign in his line of business.
Jio preferred the shelves to be empty, a sign that niggas were spending tons of money.
Instead of seeing emptiness and profit, he saw a problem. When really there wasn’t one… so why couldn’t he shake the feeling? Jio had to get to the bottom of not being satisfied with what he had in the moment. It felt like shit was slipping through his fingers when it wasn’t.
He dragged a hand down his frustrated face. Focus on the plan, not your mood, his Pops would say. But why today, of all days, did his plan now feel like a risk and not a new opportunity? Why did it feel like if he moved the needle, the repercussions would either bury him or make him untouchable?
Where was that faith that Nina told him he had to have?
“I gotta go.”
It was time for him to dip. He couldn’t think clearly in the warehouse.
Once he made it to his truck, he hopped in and hauled ass.
Jio didn’t take another deep breath until he hit the highway.
The warehouse was in his rearview, but mentally, he was still there.
However, this time he wasn’t a made man yet.
He was a nine-year-old kid soaking up game that he shouldn’t have been taught that young to begin with.
But his last name was Gotti and, in their family, they did things differently.
Jio wrapped his hand tightly in his grandfather’s. He was trying his best to keep up with the long and confident strides of the made man who stood beside him.
“You not tired, are you kid?” he asked, not even looking down at him, but knowing he was growing toward exhaustion.
“I am,” Jio shot back. He was out of breath just a tad but was trying to do his best to remain determined and steadfast.
How his Papa managed to walk faster than him and he was years older than him was bewildering.
They walked through a warehouse that he’d just purchased, and it was already booming, just like he envisioned. This was their last stop of the day, but tomorrow it would be the first.
Jiorgio didn’t like anyone keeping up with his routine. He switched it up daily but the cadence never changed.
“I’m going to become a very wealthy man out of his warehouse,” he shared with his grandson but was more so talking to himself. An affirmation of sorts.
The walls were brand new. Everything was structured and refined. He smelled money and success in the air.
Jio didn’t understand it at the time, but he felt a sense of power and legacy. There was something bigger taking place… in a matter of time.
His grandfather stopped suddenly and Jio almost ran into him.
“Look around,” the old man said.
Jio did. “It’s just a building,” he shrugged.
His grandfather chuckled lowly, shaking his head to disagree.
“Nooooo,” he said. “It’s never just a building.”
He crouched down, bringing himself eye-level with Jio.
His eyes were sharp… they’d seen way too much and, yet and still, he managed to survive anyhow.
“One day,” he said slowly, “All of this is gonna be yours.”
Jio blinked. “All of it?” He wasn’t too sure.
“All of it.”
The words hung in the air, sounding like a promise and a prophecy simultaneously.
“But you gotta understand something,” his grandfather added, his voice switched to a serious tone.
Jio leaned in closer.
“It’s more than just having something attached to your name,” he stated. “The hard part is keeping all this shit. Son, trust me, that will not be easy.”
Jio frowned. “Why not?”
His grandfather smirked.
“Because everything that comes with it…” he paused, tapping Jio on his chest. “It’s going to live right here, but if you’re not strong enough to carry it, it’ll break you from the inside out.”
Jio didn’t fully understand but he nodded anyway. “Yes sir.”
Because something about the way his grandfather said it made it feel important. He would try his best to remember this conversation when he was his age.
“Think you can handle that?”
“Yeah,” he said, with all the confidence a child could muster.
His grandfather studied him for a moment.
“Yeah or yes sir?”
Jio corrected himself quickly. “Yes sir!”
“Good,” he said, standing back up. “Because one day, you’re not going to have a choice.”
The present snapped him back into place like a rubber band against his skin. He’d missed his exit fuckin’ around in la la land.
“Damn,” he muttered as he switched lanes.
The weight in his chest was heavy. Jio exhaled slowly and his jaw tightened.
“One day done came,” he said to no one other than himself.
The words echoed louder now than ever…
Because now, he understood. He finally fuckin’ got it. It was more than having the last name and the power. Jio had to carry the responsibility of monitoring it all. He was the protector. The leader. The boss. The made man. The one they all looked to for the right answers.
Every decision. Every risk. Every move that could either build the empire higher or bring it crashing down was on him. He was anxious yet ready to take things up another notch. If more discipline was required, he was about to tighten up in every aspect of his life.
Jio wanted to exceed the expectations that everyone had set for him. Not just to let them know that he could handle it, but to make himself proud. Success was always found on the other side of sacrifice. Jio was prepared to give his all and then some.
And now, Jio Gotti III was ready to step up to the plate and hit a home fuckin’ run.