"This life of ours, this is a wonderful life. If you can get through life like this and get away with it, hey, that's great. But its very, very unpredictable. There are so many ways you can screw it up." - John Castellano*
It wasn't the end of the world, but it was possibly the end of mine. I was going through the most significant test of my life as a man. Straight to the point. My wife was cheating on me. How did I find out? My father-in-law informed me. I was lost for a bit, my father-n-law brought me back to reality.
I learned what it was to be a man by my father-in-law's example of justice.
What I learned from him brought me peace of mind and understanding. My father-n-law was the greatest man I would ever meet.
My name is Anthony Campania. My wife is Nina. Her maiden name was Nina Salerno. We were introduced by mutual friend's almost 12 years ago and had been married for nearly 10. We have two daughters (7 & 5) who are my angels.
To begin with...
Honestly, I knew her father was connected. I just didn't know he was 'that' connected. No... connected was not the correct word. In reality, her father was a 'boss' who had a hardcore design to be a 'boss of bosses'. But there was another reason for my ignorance.
The reason for that ignorance was simple. 99% of Italian Americans were hard working, solid citizens who lived a life like other ethnic Americans immigrants. Simple folk who would work for someone or run a business, go to church, put their kids through school, marry them off, and play with their grandchildren. That was the final payoff. Time with the grandchildren. Living the dream. But there was something else...
Since I was a kid, I'd heard stories, but no one I knew was involved in organized crime. And these stories were like folktales in Italian American communities. My parents warned me of any involvement with these, gangster 'businessmen' types. Involvement with these type of businessmen would lead to a life of ruin. Guess what? There were rules...
The number one rule? Never, ever, ask a favor. Why? Because that favor could never be repaid in full. You would owe those good fellas until the day you...well...you get the idea.
Believe it or not, these Italian story's of organized crime worked their way into the subconscious of non-Italian in New Jersey. Mostly with movies. Sure there was the news but go figure... stupid gangster folklore (that's what we believed) to keep the kids on the straight and narrow. We found it funny these well-educated kids, kids with parents who had enough money to send them through any University of choice, were so ignorant and believed that all American Italians had a 'mafia' connection nonsense.
Being the comedian I was, I began making jokes to mess with the heads of non-Italian kids at High School. I'd tell them, everyone was connected and if any bad came our way, our fathers would seek revenge on their fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters. Everyone would be killed.
Seemed like a joke then. Like monsters under the bed thing. Not reality. Ghost stories. Who knew monsters under the bed would come to be a real thing. But the real deal? That was just movie stuff. That was until I met Nina's father. Nina's father was a real monster under the bed.
Nina's father, Vittorio Salerno, was a standup guy who respected by his peers. Vito Salerno was a man who had risen through the ranks by making his, "bones" (completing an assigned hit successfully) been an enforcer/soldier (soldato), and a de facto street boss, later became an underboss (sotto capo) in an area of Jersey where my family lived. Not where Nina or Salerno family lived. An area of New Jersey where my family lived.
Nina's father had done it all and was rumored to be involved in compulsory prostitution (never arr), arrested for attempted murder (never convicted), charge and arrested for murder (never convicted), racketeering (never convicted), and drug trafficking (never arrested). Vittorio Salerno would put his had in the fire and never break his loyalty.
Vittorio Salerno was known among his peers as, "A Man of Honor."
Nina's family lived in a very fancy little city called, "Upper Saddle River", New Jersey.
The home of the late inventor Vincent Lamberti. The guy who made the world a cleaner place as the father of Dove Soap, Wisk, All and Aim.
Bottom line, Upper Saddle River, was number 1 in the top 10 wealthiest cities in New Jersey. You lived there; you had money.
I had met the families of other young women I had dated before and felt somewhat on a level playing field. We were all from the same neighborhood. But not here. Nina's family home was a mansion. When I entered the drive I knew I didn't belong here. This place was awesome and but was out of my class.
Sort of sicking really. It's not a very good feeling walking up to the door of the woman you have feelings for knowing you were beneath her family's status. Financially anyway.
Nina and her mother met me at the door. Nina was dressed modestly as she always did. For me that was sexy. Never underestimate the attractiveness a woman dressed modestly. She must have learned that from her mother as her mother was dressed the same. A woman in a nice summer dress with flats can be quite alluring.
Nina got her looks for her mother, Angelina Salerno. And her mother was beautiful in a natural way. Her eyes, lips, nose, chin, and cheekbones displayed her strong Italian background. She was an amazing looking beautiful woman. And Nina? Nina was her mothers younger self.
Nina's mother was easy to be with and talked a bit making up most of the conversation as we all stood in the foyer. I was just following the flow when a man appeared, "Mrs. Salerno, your husband is ready to meet your daughters'..." pausing for the right words,..."friend here." With no words spoken, he nodded his head in the direction of another room that was closed with double doors. These double doors led to the private office of her husband, Vittorio Salerno.
Nina's mother turned and smiled gently as to prepare me, "Anthony, Mr. Selareno would like to meet you if that's ok?"
Like I had a choice? No kidding. Do you want to date an Italian girl? You gonna have to have a word with her Father. Her father speaking, and you listening. It was the same speech every time. Hurt my daughter and you're dead. The end. But it was just talking, right?
As far as I was concerned, no big deal. A father laying down the law when it came to his daughter? Hey, that's Italian. That I understood. But this was something else.
That night, another whole different world became reality.
When I was first introduced to Nina's father, "Vito" was sitting behind his desk and studied me. Observing me, he allowed his daughter to do the introductions. I tried to be friendly, walked over to her father desk, slightly bent and extended my hand. He took it, but just as a courtesy. It was like I was busting his balls to be in the same room as him.
He allowed Nina's mother to carry the conversation and Q and A session that followed that evening. Small talk about my family, my father, and mother, what they did as a livelihood., etc. He just kept the same straight face-silent treatment never taking his eyes off me throughout Nina's mother interrogation of my background, how Nina and I met, and so on. When Nina's mother finished her questions, she simply turned to her husband and said so. "Vittorio, I don't have any other questions. Would you like to spend some time alone with Anthony?"
Vitto Salerno offered the smallest of smiles to cross his face, "Angelina thank you for reminding me." Then turning to me Vito smiled to me, "Anthony, would it be ok to you and me... to speak some. Alone, man to man." At that, both women stood, smiled at us, and got up to leave the room.
When Nina and her mother opened the double doors to leave, then as if on cue, two men entered the room and closed the double doors that led to the large study. I had no idea who these other men were but I didn't feel well being alone in the same room as them. Then her father begins to speak.
"Anthony, I don't know you, but we, you and I, have found ourselves in a situation where must have an understanding."
"Yes sir, Mr. Salerno."
"Anthony, do you know who I am?"
"Mr. Salerno, please forgive my ignorance. I know you are a man of importance and you are Nina's father. But please, I want to assure you all my intentions are completely honorable towards your daughter."
"Anthony, that's a very nice thing to hear."
The looking up at two other men, "Christopher...Angelo, isn't that a nice thing to hear?"
Both men, Christopher Lombardo and Angelo Castellanos, never taking their eyes off me, nodded and replied together but not quite in unison, "Yes, Mr. Salerno, that a nice thing to hear."
The silence that followed was maybe 10 seconds but felt like 10 minutes. This wasn't the 'father addressing the young man dating his daughter' talk I expected. This conversation was loaded with heat and flat out intimidating. Honestly, no woman was worth this. I wanted to get out of that house as soon as possible. My stomach was in knots.
Finally, the old man spoke up, "Anthony, look me in the face because this is very, very important."
Really? Since I had been alone with Mr. Salerno, I had not taken my undivided attention off of his face. Now I leaned forward and was screwing up my face to show him he had even more of my undivided attention.
