We didn't have a service for my brothers. My Ma said she didn't wanna deal with the pity. Well, my Ma, she, uh... She didn't get out of bed, y'know, for weeks. Maybe a month. I tried all kinds of shit to get her up and going, but... Y'know, nothing took. Then, one night, out of the blue, she came to me, she was all dolled up. She goes, "Oswald, we're going out," she says. I was fuckin' thrilled. She took me to a jazz club on the east side. Monroe's. Yeah, it was the first time I ever heard live music. Whoa! And we danced all night.
It's what we did. How we celebrated 'em, you know? Jack and Benny. They would've fuckin' loved it, too. Anyway, after that, y'know, she started getting out of bed, she went back to work, she took care of me...
I'd like to think it was me, but I don't know. She died a few years back. I never asked. Shit like this, the pain of it, you gotta be careful. 'Cause it'll eat you alive if you let it. It's a hell of a lot more fun to dance.
We were gonna run the family together. But 'Berto was taken from me. And I refuse to let these old fuckin' men to push me aside again like I'm nothing, so I'm gonna take from them now. And I'm gonna force them to their knees. This should be fun. What do you say, Oz? You in?
And I'm not the Hangman! You see the way people look at me, right? I know you do. And what was it all for, hm? For what? So you could what? Become a capo? You're not even a made man... [throws her cigarette out]
Yeah, you're right. I ain't. I still made out like a goddamn bandit, and you know what? It was worth it. You asked, that's my fucking answer. I got the club, a Drops operation to run, my own thing. [almost sobbing] A guy like me, gettin' all that? That don't mean nothing to you, maybe, but it does to me. Meant I could have a better life. So yeah, yeah. I don't regret what I got.
Yeah, wow, but I'm sorry! I'm fuckin' sorry for everything that's happened to you. Jesus, you meant something to me. Still do. And I fucked it up. And that, I ain't never gonna live down.
Sofia
[Picks a new cigarette and offers it for Oz to light it up] I don't know where to go from here. I don't know how to trust you.
I've been thinking recently about the future... about our Family's future. Maybe it's time to break with tradition. When the time comes, I want you to take my place. I want you to run this Family, if that's something that would interest you.
Sofia
Yeah! Yeah, of course. I wo-- I would be honored. But the rest of the family, they're not--
I haven't forgotten, you know. The way you looked at me. So curious. What did it feel like, to get to watch a person unravel? And now you're numbing yourself as punishment.
My father told me I was sick. And Doctor Ventris. And then the doctor after him. And then the doctor after him. For ten years, men have lied to me. And then I come home and it's all the same. They think I'm broken. I'm not broken. I'm not the one who's sick. And neither are you. The world is. You're right. I deserve a fresh start.
As you all know, I was stuffed in Arkham State Hospital for a decade. Convicted of murdering seven women. Summer Gleeson. Taylor Montgomery. Yolanda Jones. Nancy Hoffman. Suzanna Weekley. DeVry Blake. And Trisha Becker. Their names are worth saying. Victims are so quickly forgotten, aren't they? Our stories are rarely told.
Yes? Hm? I've had a lot of time to reflect. And I have to say... I was genuinely surprised at how many of you wrote letters telling the judge that I was mentally ill. Like my mother. Not that the judge needed much convincing; my father saw to that. Still, I trusted you. I loved you. And yet not one of you tried to help me. Except for my brother. The man you all flew in to mourn. And you know, the real thorn in my side is that, unlike everyone here, I was innocent. I mean... Jesus Christ, Milos has a higher body-count than I do.
LLuca
Sofia!
Sofia
I know you're all anxious for me to leave. No one has been shy about that. I'd really hoped that it would be different, but I understand. I don't fit into this family any more. So tomorrow, I'm starting a new life. For the first time, I have hope. To new beginnings. Cent'Anni.
It's a new era in Gotham, Miss Falcone. The mayor-elect's got a mandate to put an end to the scum of this city.
Sofia
So you're here to see it for yourself, hm? And I suppose you and your boys are gonna go for beers later, to celebrate? Maybe swap photos of my dead relatives? Or are you gonna sell those to the Gazette? To make up for all the lost kick-backs.
First, I'd like to address the elephant in the room: I gassed the family. I killed them all. And I am... so glad that they're dead. My family disposed of my mother like she was nothing, then they did the same to me. And honestly, none of you are any different. None of you are made men, except for Johnny here. The rest of you... You're pawns. You're overlooked. Expendable. My mother was Isabella Gigante. Few spoke of her after she died because she was a force greater than the Falcones could handle. As of today, my father's legacy is dead and we will never speak his name again. From this point on, I am a Gigante, and this is a new family now!
Alright, okay, Sofia? Let's not be rash here, alright? These gentlemen know we got a score we need to settle.
[Sofia shoots Viti in the head and presents a duffel bag full of cash to the table.]
Sofia
This? This was my father's. But he made it off of your labor. You did the dirty work, and they kept it all for themselves. If you join me, you will have a new family. And I will pay you what you're worth, more money than you've ever seen before.
Ten years ago, some measly driver spun a bullshit story about me. He betrayed me, the daughter of the Falcone don, and he got rewarded for it. And now, here we are. Both of us suffering at the hands of that same man. But you... Would you have let that stand?
SSalvatore
I would've ripped out his tongue and left it for the vultures.
The Penguin · 88 quotes
Sofia
