Vincent lay comatose, in critical condition for nearly ten days. He was hit by fifteen bullets in a drive-by, and no one was sure who did it. When he died, Michael gave the order to have his remains cremated and interred near the Corleone monument where Vito, Mama and Mary were buried. After the services, which were sparsely attended, Connie gave a quiet recption back at the apartment. Michael assured Lucy Mancini that he would see to it that she would be financially secure for life, and the rest of the family offered their condlences.

A couple of days went by when Michael received a telephone call from B.J. Harrison in which the lawyer explained that he had been contacted by a man claiming to be Connie's son, and an associate of Vincent's. "Keep it to yourself for now," Michael told him, and see if you can hold him off for a couple of days."
"Hold him off?"
"Yes, he'll want a meeting, and I need to find out about a few things."
Michael lost all interest in the street business since Mary's death, leaving it entirely up to Vincent. He still shared in the profits, and although he knew Vincent's business was drugs, he really didn't care. The years he had spent in Sicily gave him a sense of personal security because it was widely accepted
in Cosa Nostra circles that Michael was out of their business, and for all intents and purposes was a civilian. By no means was this sense of safety born of naivete, and Michael knew well that the old families had long been infiltrated by Clombians and other non-Italians, and the old codes of omerta, honor and respect no longer held sway. He knew if a debt was not paid, if a deal failed to materialize, or even if some grudge went on too long that anything could happen. Wives and children were no longer off limits, nor were people who cooked books and made court appearances, regardless of the fact that they were not on the "muscle end" of things.

As he sat in his study a sense of rage that he had not experienced in years began to come over him. He summoned a maid and told her to find Connie and tell her he wanted to see her in his study right away.

"Did you know your son Victor was working with Vincent?"
"It's not your concern, Michael."
"Then why did he contact my lawyer?"
Connie was stunned. Michael's tone and fierce stare reminded her of how cold and remote he was as a younger man.
He went on. "You live here in my house, and your son, who has a long prison record is dealing drugs on the street and you say it doesn't concern me?"
"Michael I'll take care of this."
"No you won't. You can't it's me he is approaching, and it's me he'll want to deal with. You've never controlled him, and I have no reason to believe you can control him now. I'm gonna take care of this, and I just hope it doesnt pull us back into anything illegal."

Connie left the room quickly, and Michael picked up the telephone and placed a call to Al Neri who was living in Las Vegas.

"Michael...its been a long time. I heard you and Kay got back together and your living in New York, is that right?"
"It is Al, and I hate to interrupt your retirement, but I need a favor."
"Anything Michael, you know that. Is it connected with that Mancini business?"
"Al, apparently Connie's boy Victor was working for him. They were into dealing drugs, and I turned a blind eye. Now he's made contact with my lawyer and no doubt wants a meeting. Do you still have any contacts on the street?"
"Some Mike, not like the old days, but I can always call in a favor."
"Good. Here's what I want you to do. I want you to find out all you can about Vincent and Victor. Who they sold to, who their suppliers were, what they deal, and who provided their muscle. And I want you to do it in a way that draws no attention to you so no one can trace any of this to me. I need the information in two days."
"I'm on it Mike."
Neri put the phone down and plopped himself on to a sofa. His back was hurting like hell, and he thought again about the botched disc surgery that had left him barely able to walk. He'd grown old, sick and soft, and he didn't have the confidence in himself that he had just displayed for Michael. For about an hour he sat thinking about how he could best serve his old boss, and protector, when sudenly it came to him.

"Michael you haven't said a word during dinner...are you alrght."

"Yes Kay, I was just thinking about Mary, about us."
"Oh Michael, you have to try to move forward."
"I know Kay, I know."
"Michael why was Connie so upset earlier?"
"I dunno Kay....something to do with Vincent I think."