Chasing Stars in Hollywood

In the span of half a month, amidst the chaos within the Glorious Society, Antonio Danelli successfully took over most of the Stefano family's power left behind after their demise. He achieved this through his accumulated strength over the years and the list provided in a certain file.

However, the newly appointed family godfather of the Glorious Society never felt entirely at ease.

Antonio Danelli did not believe that the matter would end with the extinction of the Stefano family. 

Recent events in Italy over the past half month clearly indicated this. With his sharp intuition, Antonio Danelli noticed that both the political and media responses seemed to have the subtle influence of a certain young figure.

The internet's revelations about the Glorious Society's secrets were even more telling. 

It was widely known that the emerging internet industry was practically the private domain of the Westeros system, and Italy was no exception. The country's internet service providers included America Online, and the most popular portal was the Italian version of Egret.

To stay updated on online trends, Antonio Danelli, who was in his forties and not particularly fond of new technology, specifically installed a computer at home.

Antonio Danelli wasn't overly concerned about the online revelations. What he cared about was that this incident didn't happen in isolation.

He had quietly been following the movements of a certain young tycoon.

Entering September, Simon Westeros's name frequently appeared in global media, as Forbes magazine in the USA was set to publish its new annual list of the 400 richest Americans in October. Everyone was curious about Simon Westeros's latest net worth.

It was a major news highlight.

However, there was very little exposure regarding Simon Westeros's personal movements.

The most accurate public information Antonio Danelli could find was news of Simon Westeros attending the premiere of "The Dark Knight Rises" in June.

Following that, there were media reports of Simon Westeros visiting Ukraine last month, but these were not official releases and contained no photos, essentially falling into the category of rumors.

This young super tycoon seemed to be deliberately making himself invisible.

On September 9, the new Venice Film Festival opened. When Italy's paparazzi, comparable to those in the UK, revealed that Westeros had appeared in Venice, even without photos, Antonio Danelli instinctively sensed that certain matters were coming to a conclusion.

As anticipated, events unfolded accordingly.

The day after the Venice Film Festival opened, early in the morning, Antonio Danelli received a phone call summoning him to a meeting at one of the Glorious Society's headquarters in Reggio.

Like other major figures in the Glorious Society recently, Antonio Danelli left his newly acquired mansion with a large entourage, including nine bodyguards in three cars. Upon arrival, the heads of the remaining five families of the Glorious Society were all present, and the three-story office building serving as the gang's committee headquarters was crowded with guards, with lookouts even stationed on the surrounding rooftops.

Despite half a month passing, the fear among the people had not dissipated; it had deepened.

The invisible enemy was the most terrifying.

During this period, Antonio Danelli had heard that Giuseppe Tagano, the original leader of the southern three families, had broken tradition by hiring professional bodyguards to protect himself and his family tightly. Previously, such tasks were only handled by the gang's own members.

In a conference room inside the office building.

The broad conference table was divided into two distinct sides: the north and south factions of the Glorious Society. Antonio Danelli sat silently at a corner of the table, a position that signified internal recognition of his recent takeover of the Stefano family's power.

However, Antonio Danelli could feel the scrutiny and even hostility in the eyes of the veteran leaders around him.

Everyone understood a simple truth.

When a conspiracy occurs, the one who benefits the most is often the prime suspect.

Antonio Danelli was precisely that.

But Antonio was not worried. He knew the people around him should understand that if he had the capability to eliminate the entire Stefano family overnight, he wouldn't stop there; at the very least, the southern three families would no longer exist.

To outside observers, the sudden demise of the Stefano family might seem easy, but only those involved understood how difficult it was to achieve such a feat silently.

The smart ones around probably suspected internal problems within the gang.

Antonio was also unconcerned about being discovered.

There was no evidence.

Having been part of the Glorious Society for over twenty years, Antonio had long proven his loyalty.

Moreover, Horace Stefano had not considered their mission to warn Melisandre Company as a major event. He simply instructed Antonio Danelli to take a few subordinates to the USA. Antonio, wanting a break, took on the task himself and told no one, not even his family, merely saying he would be away for a few days.

Some in the gang knew Antonio had left at the end of July, but such trips were common and unlikely to be linked to the Stefano family's demise.

Even his takeover of the Stefano family's power was tacitly approved by the other families.

Because of the uncertainty of the situation, although the Stefano family left a large piece of lucrative business behind, the other families dared not rush to seize it for fear of their lives.

Antonio Danelli knew his limits. He only took over the Stefano family's private drug trafficking and smuggling operations, leaving their money laundering network untouched because it was too complicated and risky. The Stefano family had always relied on this network to maintain their status within the Glorious Society, and the southern three families depended on them to launder their dirty money, despite their alliance, which often caused friction.

This time, despite the upheaval, if Antonio dared to touch that asset, the other two families would not let it go once things settled down.

After everyone settled in the conference room, Giuseppe Tagano got straight to the point: "Everyone should have received the invitation. I've just made a few calls, and our counterparts in Palermo, Naples, Rome, and Milan received similar invitations. Now, let's discuss whether we should attend."

After Giuseppe Tagano spoke, Antonio Danelli was taken aback.

What invitation?

Asimodo Liberi, sitting next to Antonio and noticing his confusion, whispered a few words to someone across the table. Moments later, Asimodo handed Antonio an exquisite invitation, with a hint of contempt in his smile, clearly mocking him for not even being worthy of receiving the invitation.

Ignoring the sentiment, Antonio opened the invitation, which contained a brief, striking line in Italian: "Let's talk."

Apart from that, only the time and place were noted in small print below: 9 AM tomorrow at Melito Pier.

Melito Pier was in southern Reggio, conveniently within the territory of the Liberi family of the southern three families.

Dario Condiro, leader of the northern three families, spoke after Giuseppe Tagano: "I think we should first determine if this is a prank."

Giuseppe Tagano retorted, "A prank? Dario, do you think anyone would dare to joke with the entire Italian mafia?"

Dominic Imetti, godfather of the northern Imetti family, said, "Perhaps it's not a prank, but it could very well be a trap. We need to be cautious. Also, Giuseppe, haven't you found out who the Stefano family provoked? Or is it possible that your dealings with the Colombians went sour, and they sent an army?"

Facing Dominic Imetti, Fabrizio Liberi of the southern Liberi family countered, "Dom, if the Colombians sent an army, do you think they would only target the Stefano family?"

Dominic Imetti responded with a smirk, "It's hard to say. We do business by the rules, so trouble doesn't find us. You, on the other hand, might be different."

Young and impulsive Asimodo Liberi immediately retorted, "Oh, you follow the rules? What about Luca Pasotti's shipment that went missing three years ago? Did dogs eat it?"

Dominic Imetti's thick skin showed as he replied without hesitation, "Very likely. And I heard your family sent out three ships that day. Who knows if you brought back a pile of dog shit? Ha ha ha."

Seeing the argument escalate, Dario Condiro intervened, "Enough."

Giuseppe Tagano also stopped his side from continuing the verbal sparring.

Returning to the main topic, after a discussion, it was decided that each family would send a representative to the meeting the next day. In the final deliberations, while the other two southern family heads showed no interest in attending, Giuseppe Tagano pointedly assigned Antonio Danelli to attend.

Antonio Danelli understood why he had not received the invitation.

It was a form of covert protection.

However, he wasn't foolish enough to agree simply because he knew it was safe. Instead, he cautiously declined Giuseppe Tagano's request, stating he would send his brother, Paul Danelli, instead.

The next morning, at dawn, Melito Pier in southern Reggio was cleared of all non-essential personnel.

To bolster their confidence, the Glorious Society summoned over a thousand gang members to gather at the pier, prompting Reggio's police chief, Theodore Nazari, to personally call Giuseppe Tagano, half-reminding and half-warning him not to cause trouble.

Besides the six families of the Glorious Society, representatives from the Sicilian Mafia, the Camorra in Campania, and mafia groups in Rome and Milan also attended. Although all were core members, none were the gang leaders themselves.

Near 9 AM, with the sun already high, the expected guests had not yet arrived, leading many to suspect it was a poorly executed prank. Then, six heavy helicopters began to descend one after another.

These were six massive Soviet-made Mi-26 heavy transport helicopters, each 40 meters long, larger than many jet-powered business planes. The popular Gulfstream IV

 jet, for example, was only 27 meters long. The sheer size of these behemoths left a strong impression on the crowd.

Even with the cleared pier, the six Mi-26s barely managed to land.

The ability to deploy six large transport helicopters at once was enough to shock many mafia leaders.

Everyone understood this was a show of force.

However, it was highly effective.

The initial shock left everyone wondering who had the power to mobilize six Mi-26 heavy transport helicopters for a demonstration.

With official involvement ruled out, the most powerful non-governmental force in Italy that came to mind was the Agnelli family, the country's richest, behind Fiat Group.

Did the Stefano family provoke them?

However, even the Agnelli family, though they had some clashes with the mafia over the years, had always resolved them peacefully, often with the Agnelli family stepping back.

Given this, it seemed unlikely that the Agnelli family was behind it.

So, was there someone in Italy more powerful than the Agnelli family?

With these doubts, the representatives boarded the six helicopters, which flew out to sea. Watching the helicopters depart, some mafia leaders abandoned the idea of sending speedboats to follow them.

Better not to complicate matters at the last minute.

As the passengers on the helicopters speculated about their destination, after about an hour of flight, they spotted an oil tanker in the distance.

A few knowledgeable passengers immediately identified it as a 100,000-ton super tanker.

While ordinary people might not grasp the scale of a 100,000-ton tanker, mentioning a 100,000-ton aircraft carrier, like the Nimitz-class and Ford-class carriers, which exceeded 300 meters in length and covered an area equivalent to two city blocks in Manhattan's Upper East Side, gave a better sense of the vastness of a super tanker.

The six Mi-26 helicopters landed sequentially on the tanker's deck, their large frames lined up in two rows, occupying less than half the forward deck space.

Disembarking, the crowd stared at the giant ship and the numerous guards with military bearing scattered around the deck, confirming that the Stefano family had indeed provoked a very powerful figure.

But who exactly had such power?

Could it be the President of the United States?

Unlikely.

While the current US President had the authority, he wouldn't take such drastic action so easily.

As the representatives walked across the long deck towards the aft end of the tanker near the bridge, the mystery was finally revealed.

Ken Dixon, standing in for Simon, opened the meeting with, "Hello, I am Simon Westeros's representative."

Simon himself was on the tanker.

However, given that the cautious mafia leaders had not attended personally, sending only their deputies, Simon saw no need to appear in person.

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