Samuel didn't even quite know what took over him when he challenged Marcus. Maybe it was whatever it had been in the cigar that Richard gave him; or the fact that he'd honestly had enough of everything.
Too many people were coming in and trying to push him around in regards of what to do. Plans had already been made. Why did they have to change because someone else came in and said so? Whatever it was, he wasn't going to stand around as Marcus dictated everything and pushed people around.
Samuel's head was too fuzzy to tell if he was standing at his full height in front of Marcus. Even with barely any space between them, his eyes couldn't focus enough to judge the distance. Even if he was, he'd have had to guess Marcus stood at least three inches above him. The older cousin wasn't even standing properly, so likely, more than three. The height didn't bother Samuel, though. Size didn't always make the difference in such situations. Surely determination and mental abilities had to count for something.
"Oh? Little cousin are you trying to push your weight around? Were you unaware of the fact that that isn't how it works here? I don't care whatever anyone else said, so long as I'm here, I'm in charge." Samuel didn't even blink as he grabbed the hand that attempted to pat him on the head. A firm grip but not enough to trigger Marcus into reacting. Although, his eyes did widen a fraction at the unexpected response.
"I am not trying to push my weight around. I am just enforcing the rules that had been set in place by the family. Jovani is i charge right now. He said should anything happen to him, I would be the one taking his place." Samuel firmly forced the other's hand back down to his side. Samuel didn't bother using his second hand. He didn't want to unless he needed to.
"For once Samuel, I don't think right now is the right time to do that." Richard spoke up. His eyes remained focused on Marcus as he spoke without moving. No point i getting in the middle of a family scuffle but advice could be warranted.
"Marcus isn't like Jovani. The same kind of rules don't apply to him as they do your cousin." Being the one who taught Marcus, Richard knew that well. He even had first hand experience with how the other tossed the rules out without a second thought.
If Richard didn't think Marcus would react, he'd have placed a hand on Samuel's shoulder and forced some distance between them. The kid obviously still didn't understand what he was getting into. The electric energy coming off of Marcus was getting dangerously high. Much further, and the other would burst. Who he would decide to take it out on though would remain to be seen.
"I may not know who I am dealing with but there is no one who is above the rules. If everyone here is part of the family, the rules apply to them regardless of their position. Even the boos isn't exempt from following them." Samuel lowered his head slightly as he stared Marcus down. The determination daring the other cousin to argue with him on this matter.
Could he though? After all, if the rules weren't good enough for Marcus, why should Samuel have to follow them when it came to being sworn in?
"Though Marcus, You can say you're above the rules if you want to. That would just mean I don't have to follow them either. No sense at that point in going forward with whatever you had planned." Samuel's shoulders struggled slightly as he shifted away a moderate angle. His body posture an evident brush off that the other Vedova Nera cousin didn't take very well.
"Sammy, I don't think that you have been in this world long enough to understand how things work. You don't-" The next words didn't come out though as Samuel suddenly turned on him.
"Marcus, you don't get to call me by that name." Anger over the simple use of a name? Did it have some sort of special meaning? Oh, that could be fun to find out.
"Sammy? what is wrong with using that name?" Marcus took the innocent route as his head tilted to one side again, eyes simmering as he watched his younger cousin's reaction. Had he somehow managed to hit a hidden nerve with the other?
"Almost every Samuel I've known I've always referred to as Sammy. A good nickname Sammy is. Very much so for those you're quite fond of and I'm indeed quite fond of you, Sammy." Marcus even went so far as to pat the other on the shoulder, a gleeful smirk dancing on his lips as he waited for what he hoped wouldn't be a disappointing reaction. Could he have finally found a fun toy in his cousin?
"Leave." Marcus found his eyes widening once more. That wasn't the reaction he'd thought would come from the other. Leave? Well, that was simply no fun. Why would he leave before he found out the answer to the question he was looking for?
Or... Marcus's eyes narrowed slightly as he took another hard look at Samuel. Maybe he had been going about looking at this toy the wrong way...
"I told you once, and I don't want to have to repeat myself on either count. Leave right now if you can't maintain any form of respect." Although Samuel looked as though he were about ready to explode between his darkened eyes and clenched fists, he didn't engage with Marcus. No rough grabbing or hits. No jousting in his personal space, ready to fight the moment the other moved. No. Instead, he used words. Words to push back and deflect the other without having to raise even a finger.
What kind of exactly was his younger cousin? Surely even he had to have that dark side somewhere. It always ran through the family after all.
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