Toni pushes her bedroom door open and freezes. Tommy sits at her desk under a small lamp, the ledger open in his hands, his pinstriped suit a sharp slash against her cramped room.
He closes the book with a deliberate click and looks up at her torn sleeve, then at her face. The room goes still except for the hum of the lamp.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
You look like hell, Toni. Come in before someone else notices.
Toni steps inside, keeping one hand near the door. Her eyes flick to the ledger, then back to Tommy.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
I was checking the numbers, and I found something off. Not about you, probably, but close enough to matter.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
Sit down. I can tell you what I know, and maybe save you from asking Don the wrong question.
Tommy slides the ledger half an inch across the desk toward her, keeping his voice low, like the walls might be listening.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn what Tommy found in the ledger
“Since when do you care about me? You and Vinny have never been good big brothers, why try starting now?”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled +2)
Antonia "Toni" Capozzi
Since when do you care about me? You and Vinny have never been good big brothers, why try starting now?
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
Tommy’s mouth tightens. “Because I’m tired of watching you get blindsided by this family.”
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
He taps the ledger with two fingers. “And because this book has your name tangled up in numbers that should not be there.”
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
“I am not doing this for points, Toni. I am doing it because somebody is leaving a trail, and I think it runs too close to you.”
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
He leans back, watching her carefully. “So, no, I’m not suddenly kind. I’m being specific.”
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
“Now tell me why you look like you expect me to lie to your face.”
“Because that's all anyone in this family ever does, is lie to eachother. And i normally get blamed for it all and it usually ends with either you, Vinny or dad hitting me. Grandpa Luca is the only one of you older guys that doesn't hit me.”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled +0)
Antonia "Toni" Capozzi
Because that is what this family does, it lies to each other. And I am the one who usually pays for it, with you, Vinny, or Dad putting hands on me. Luca is the only one of the older ones who does not.
The room goes still after she says it. Tommy’s grip tightens on the ledger, then eases.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
...Yeah. I know.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
That is exactly why I am here with this, Toni. I am not asking you to trust the family. I am asking you to trust the numbers.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
And I hate that I know how often that ends with her being the one who gets hurt.
He slides the ledger closer across the desk, open to a page with Toni’s name bracketed in ink, and keeps his hand there like a warning and an offer at once.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
Read this line. Then tell me if you recognize who is using your name.
“It doesn't matter who's using me name. Even if i had proof im being framed, I'd still get blamed for it anyway. Please just, get out of my room and let me rest.”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled +0)
Antonia "Toni" Capozzi
It does not matter who is using my name. Even if I had proof, I would still get blamed. Please, just get out of my room and let me rest.
Tommy absorbs that without arguing. The ledger lowers to the desk, his hand slipping off the page like he is letting go of more than paper.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
Yeah. I hear you.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
I am not trying to trap you in here, Toni. I brought this because I thought you deserved to know before Dad or Vinny found a way to make it worse.
He steps back from the desk and gives the open doorway a look, not eager, but yielding.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
If you want the page later, I leave it here. If you do not, I am gone.
“Thanks for trying to help Tom but... it's not gonna be worth it for either of us.”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled +2)
Antonia "Toni" Capozzi
Thanks for trying to help, Tom... but it is not worth it for either of us.
Tommy goes still by the desk, then nods once like that costs him something.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
Maybe. But I could not just sit on it and let you walk blind into it.
He taps the ledger’s corner, then leaves his hand off it, giving Toni the choice without crowding her.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
I am not asking you to trust me. Just the page. Or the numbers. Whatever you can stand.
The room stays quiet except for the lamp’s low buzz. Tommy eases another step toward the open door, waiting for her to decide whether the book stays or goes.
“Leave the book. I'll read it after I sleep.”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled -1)
Antonia "Toni" Capozzi
Leave the book. I will read it after I sleep.
Toni keeps her voice flat and does not reach for the ledger. She turns away from the desk instead, making the decision feel finished.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
He can take the hint, or he can make this harder than it needs to be.
Tommy watches her for a beat, then stops retreating. The open door stays behind him, but the room feels smaller now that she has claimed the silence.
Thomas "Tommy" Capozzi
Fine. It stays here. But if you read one thing, read the names twice.
He gives the ledger a final look, then steps aside from it completely, leaving the book on Toni's side of the room and moving toward the hall.
The door remains open a crack behind him, but his exit is no longer a question. The ledger waits on the desk, and Toni gets the room back.
“I lock the door behind Tom and lay diwn face down on my bed”
SUCCESS (Great Agility, rolled -1)
Toni waits until Tommy’s footsteps fade, then crosses to the door and turns the lock with a soft click. The room stays still around her.
She comes back to the bed, tugs off her shoes, and lets herself drop face down across the blanket.
The mattress gives under her weight, the ledger sits untouched on the desk, and the crack of hallway light narrows behind the shut door.
Antonia "Toni" Capozzi
The lock holds.
For a moment, there is nothing to do but breathe into the sheets and listen to the mansion settle.
Outside, Tommy pauses in the hall, then his steps continue away without a word.