It was night time. Tristan and Vienna had arrived at their villa in the outskirts of Rome. Their personnel and guards were residing in the same building. The O'Neils owned the residence and used it for doing business from time to time over the years. The area was secured and the place even had acres of land for the children to play in.

Vienna was unpacking her bags in her room as she could hear the children playing outside.

One of the guards came and knocked "Ma'am, you have a phone call..."

Vienna got up and left the bedroom to find her personal telephone next door. She picked up the phone. "Hello..."

Viggo's voice came "Hi... I cant believe your husband allows you to speak on the phone freely in Rome at this time of tension... I thought the guards may have orders to ignore my calls to you?

Vienna said "Well... My husband is full of surprises... And he has no problem with me talking to family..."

Viggo said "Where is he now?..."

Vienna said "That is a good question... Since we have arrived, I havent seen him... He said he will be doing business in the villa or outside..."

Viggo said "I need to talk to him... He called and then hung up the phone..."

Vienna said "Well... You called the wrong number to talk to him..."

Viggo said "No... Vienna... Thats not what I meant... I did call to talk to you..."

Vienna asked "About what?"

Viggo said "Maybe we can have dinner ...tonight.... Will you come to dine with Angelia and I tonight.... We are at the Rosario Villa. This weekend will be busy with the business matters and the church service. I juts thought some family dinner will be nice... I like to see you... You can put the children to bed and come over or you can bring them..."

Vienna chuckled "But Tristan is not invited. Right?"

Viggo said "I dont think he will come even if invited him... Will you come?"

Vienna sighed "I am not sure if thats possible. Tristan said the next time I will see the Rosarios is at the church for the communion which is on Sunday... You need to ask Tristan. Not me...."

Viggo said "I am asking you..."

Vienna said "All right... I can ask Tristan..."

Viggo said "All right. I will expect your call to tell me what he says... I will talk to you later..."

Vienna said bye and then put the phone down.

"You can ask me what?" Tristan's voice came.

Vienna turned and saw Tristan at the door. Vienna took a deep breath. Her husband did not like anyone ask her to do anything. She said "Dinner invitation..."

Tristan walked towards her "From who? Who was on the phone?"

Vienna said slowly "Viggo .... Tristan he is my brother...."

Tristan said "I know... And he talked to me a short while ago... He didnt mention any dinner invitation..."

Vienna said "Oh... He didnt mention that to you?"

Tristan said "No... So What did he want exactly?"

Vienna said hesitantly "He asked if him and Angelia can dine with me tonight at the Rosario villa...."

Tristan raised an eyebrow "So he wants to have a private dinner with you..."

Vienna "Yes.... Can I go...?

Tristan said "What do you think Vienna? The next time you can see the Rosarios is at the church.... You are not going anywhere Vienna..."

Vienna said "You know... How about you find it in you to show some good will.... How about this? I go to see Viggo. ... Its just a dinner... " She leaned closer to Tristan and ran her hands up and down on his chest "Let me go visit..."

Tristan stared into her eyes "No..."

Vienna said "Tristan... Let me go to the dinner tonight..."

Tristan stared into her eyes deeply making her nervous. "No. You wont leave tonight..."

Vienna knew he couldn't win this battle. Tristan did not change his mind easily.  "Please Tristan... I want to see Viggo and Angelia tonight... You need to let me see them....."

Tristan kissed her lips and said "Fine. I let you see them because you asked nicely.... But you cant go to them... if Viggo and Angelia want to see you they can come here... I am going to leave and meet with Vitale and Vincenzo tonight. You have two hours to dine with Angelia and Viggo at our Villa. When I return they should be gone.... I am civil with your brother but if he is nearby, his defiance and insults cant go unanswered... It will be too tempting for me to let things go if he takes me on in my own villa tonight...."

Two hours wasnt enough. Vienna knew he had to make a deal with Tristan. That was her husband. She had to compromise. Vienna said "Deal..."

*****

Tristan arrived at a Rosario villa with a long line of cars. He got off. He was immediately met with Vitale who greeted him. He offered his hand for Tristan to shake.

Tristan shook his head and said "Hello Vitale... I heard your wife and son were rescued by the help of Ludovico... I hope it's the last time your wife and son find themselves in danger.... "

Vitale was shaking Tristan's hand with a stone face. Tristan hadn't let go of his hand and was squeezing it hard. Vitale smiled forcefully. He had to be diplomatic "Thank you for your well wishes for my family... Those who put her in that situation were brought to justice..."

Tristan shook Vitale's hand with one last squeeze and let go "Tell me Vitale... Was Letizia brought to justice?... I am certain she played a centre role in putting herself in that situation to force the Rosarios and Marcianos to join forces to rescue her and your son... Tell me Vitale... Was your wife taught a lesson for all the trouble she caused and for putting herself and your son in danger?"

Vitale was wondering which insult to respond to here. Tristan was deliberately insulting his wife painting her as a trouble maker. He was also questioning his judgement on his wife... He stated calmly but with a hard tone "Its all in the past now... Justice was served and my wife and son are safe..."

Tristan said "I hope whatever actions you took, you taught your wife to not mess around with anything or anyone thats out of her league again..."

Vitale said "I taught a lesson to those who were responsible... I did send the message out that nobody is out of a Rosario's league.... Nobody..."

Tristan said "Of course... Without a doubt nobody is out of your league... or mine.... If your wife causes any danger to my wife during this trip, she wont live to see the next day's sun rise..."

Vitale sighed "Tristan... There is no need to threaten my wife... She has changed. She knows the seriousness of keeping herself safe... We need to forget the past..."

Tristan said "I have never made any threats to your wife... Only promises... I have always made promises and stated facts... She tried to drag my wife into a very risky situation before and I drew the line. I gave her one last chance.... She keeps away from my wife if she wants to live.... I am not Vincenzo... I won't forgive her for your sake the next time she tries to involve my wife in anything that can cause trouble ever again..."

Vitale said "Of course... I understand your stance... But we both know, you will have to go through me first if you ever try to harm my wife..."

Tristan leaned close and whispered close to Vitale's ear "With pleasure..." He then pulled away "Now... Lead me to Vincenzo..."

Vitale said "Follow me..." He walked away leading Tristan to where Vincenzo was inside the building. Vitale knew Tristan was right. It had taken so much diplomacy from Vincenzo to save Letizia from being put on an O'Neil hit list after her mistake of thinking she could mess with Vienna a long time ago. But he knew his wife was a changed person now. She was not going to do anything reckless and he was going to protect her.

They reached a door and Vitale knocked. Vitale then opened the door "After you..."

Tristan entered and saw Vincenzo sitting on a sofa next to Andreas Agostini.

Tristan narrowed his eyes at Vincenzo "I asked to see you... Not Andreas..."

Andreas looked at Tristan "I asked to see Vincenzo too... But I get to see you too for some reason...."

Tristan walked towards the men and sat opposite them on a sofa. Vitale came and sat on another sofa next to Vincenzo. There were three men facing Tristan now.

Tristan crossed his legs and leaned back in his sofa "So, tell me Vincenzo... What is the meaning of inviting me to see you and I get to see an Agostini in the room? This was not part of the deal... He is no friend of mine..."

Andreas looked at Vincenzo  and Vitale "Do you want to tell him about the proposition or should I?"

Vitale sighed " Vincenzo wants to call in the only favour he has with Andreas for this deal. He is sacrificing  this favour for the deal...."

Tristan said "Sacrificing? Thats an interesting choice of word. Vincenzo never has to do such thing... Vitale. Do you think it is wise to show me a glimpse of some conflicts you may have on the inside? You dont sound like you have enough faith in Vincenzo's judgement in offering me this so called sacrifice...."

Vitale said "I have no conflicts... I just think we are giving away more than we need to."

Tristan asked "What is it that you are giving away exactly right now? Insults? Thats all I can hear in your reluctant voice... You are insulting me and insulting Vincenzo's judgment..."

Vincenzo said "My definition of insults are different. Vitale has a different vision to mine on this deal... We have mutual respect between us... He has agreed to my decision... He has accepted that my decision is final..."

Tristan said "Well. Then, then this means we run our organisations differently if you allow contradictions in a meeting like this... Either way, I didnt fly here to hear about conflicts in your organisations' decision making. If Trent or Sebastiano contradict me in a final decision that I make in a meeting, they pay..."

Andreas chuckled "Classic Tristan. Always wanting to be the one in control and in preaching mode.... I think you are the one insulting all of us here by questioning what's on the table here and questioning Vincenzo's leadership. This is no hierarchy contest. I think you forget Tristan that all of us here are related. We are considered family. Vincenzo's father is my mother's cousin. And I am not be related to you but I am related to your wife.  ..." 

Tristan said "Drop the act Andreas.... Actions speak louder than words... You follow your father's path in your rocky relations with O'Neils... Surely you don't wish for this favour to be called in..."

Andreas turned to Tristan "Actually, you are wrong... My father had better relations with your father considering the state of our relations.... There is so much history between us... There are two paths in front of us. You need to take the path of redemption or I will take the path of retribution...." He turned to Vitale "I agree with you Vitale. Vincenzo shouldn't hand over this favour to an O'Neil when he can keep it for a Rosario... No favours need to be called in here for O'Neils and Agostinis to have proper relations... Tristan must redeem himself and I dont fully shut doors on family retains no matter how tempting it might be..."

Vincenzo said "Tristan... I agree with Andreas... You dont need to preach.... Let's get back to the real reason you are here which is the business deal that has caused a feud... You have heard from all of us... Its your turn to give an answer...  All three of us have agreed on what is on the table... Now, if you agree to my terms of the deal, I will offer you alliance with Andreas... He owes me a favour... Andreas and I will be even... You and I will sign the deal and our relations will go back how they were..."

Tristan looked at Vincenzo "I dont buy Andreas' family friendly speech... Why would he agree to ending his personal feud with me at any price? I dont believe he would... I dont expect him to do that for any price..." He turned to Vitale "Instead of questioning Vicnenzo's decision here, you should be questioning Andreas'. Go ahead and ask Andreas why he is willing to truly give up his personal vendettas against me over the years..."

Andreas said "Tristan..... I am a businessman... I dont like owing anyone favours.... I will be even with Vincenzo if this deal falls through... So my motivation is business related... But  my family reasons are also valid... If I sign this deal, I will make my sister happy... Amethyst fell in love with Trent of all the people and married him. Amethyst  feels that your younger brother is caught in the middle. Right now O'Neils and Agostinis dont have diplomatic relations.... That needs to change... Family is important to me... I am willing to give up my feud with you for the sake of business and family.. So I have multiple motives..."

Tristan said "You are willing to give up your feud with me? Let's say I believe your words.... But you will never put your trust in me like how you do with Vincenzo.... Thats a fact..."

Andreas said "Trust was never there to begin with between us... How can I restore something that was never there in the first place?...."

Tristan said "Finally... Some truth from the family man... I am glad we have an understanding... Peace treaties can be signed. But trust is earned... Always... I dont dispute that..." He then turned to Vincenzo "I am glad we are going somewhere here... Now you need to address the conflicts with Vitale... You know how to deal with your business partner..."

Vincenzo said "I dont need to deal with Vitale... He is on my side and has always been..." 

Tristan said "I need to know his final take..."

Vincenzo was staring down Tristan "Vitale... Tell Tristan if you have a problem with this deal..."

Vitale sighed and stated "Tristan... I am Vincenzo's business partner. I believe that offering you an alliance with Andreas is worth alot more..."

Tristan turned to Vincenzo "So what is your decision Vincenzo? Are you giving me this offer or you want to consult Vitale some more before you go head with an official offer?"

Vitale said "There is no need... Tristan, I back Vincenzo's decision... I would not have come to this meeting if I did not trust Vincenzo's decision..."

Vincenzo said "You heard Vitale. Now its your turn to respond..."

Andreas looked at Tristan "This meeting has gone for long enough... Do you want to make peace with me or not by taking the deal?"

Tristan said "Peace? With you? I am not sure if any peace between you and I will last very long."

Andreas stood up "I think I have heard enough... I am stepping out of this meeting to check on my children next door. When you make your your decision let me know. Don't expect the offer to be on the table for very long."

Tristan said "I will make my decision when I am ready... There is no time limit on any  decision I make...."

Andreas said "Really? Well, my patience does have time limit on it." He then turned to Vincenzo "I hope you know what are doing..." He then walked outside and left the room.

Vitale said "Tristan why did you shut down the talks like this? He walked out..."

Vincenzo was looking at Tristan with an unreadable expression. He then turned to Vitale "Leave us Vitale... Go keep Andreas company and make sure he does not leave... Tristan put him on edge..."

Vitale sighed "Of course. I need a drink either way..." He stood up and walked away to the door without any argument.

As the door shut behind Vitale, there was silence between the only two men in the room. Tristan was staring down Vincenzo not giving away any emotions.

Vincenzo said "Would you like to answer Vitale's question? Why did you handle the situation in this way? It's not easy for me to give up on a favour from Andreas like this. I think you owe me an explanation why you almost shut down the talks."

Tristan said "I was doing you a favour."

Vincenzo said "You were? Enlighten me how?"

Tristan said "I just did you a favour by not letting you waste that favour on me..."

Vincenzo said "I was not wasting it."

Tristan said "You were. Believe me...."

Vincenzo asked "What do you mean?" 

Tristan said "You might need that favour very soon for resolving another matter that may be more pressing than striking a deal with me..."

Vincenzo asked "What would be more pressing than our deal? Our families' business relations have broken down..."

Tristan said "Yes.. Our relations have broken down but there is chance of revival if we make a deal this weekend..."

Vincenzo asked "Are you truly after any relation revival here? I just gave you a chance of revival and you threw it back at me... Do you even want to make a deal or you prefer to declare war?"

Tristan said "Come on.... I am interested in making a deal with you Vincenzo. If I wasnt I wouldn't be here... I have no interest for us to go to war unless your actions force me to declare war..."

Vincenzo stated "I dont like your mind games Tristan... Your words make no sense... You refusing making peace with Andreas is unlike you.... Why would you say no to a good deal? If you truly wanted us to make a deal you would have said yes to this once in a life time offer...""

Tristan stood up and walked to the fire place in the corner. He looked at the flames "Vincenzo. Your offer of calling a favour with Andreas to make peace between O'Neils and Agostinis is good...  The best... But I cant accept it....I just dont wish to take away your favour with Andreas... 

Vincenzo stood up from his seat and walked to Tristan "I would not have offered you my favour with Andreas if I didnt mean it... I know what I am doing..."

Tristan was looking at the flames "You know, Andreas  is too much like his father Arturo. He views on the O'Neils is not so different to Arturo Agostini's. Andreas has never worked hard to gain favour with my people and I dont expect him to. Why force him?  I am not trying to build any bridges with him... So you keep your favour... You will need it... He is one of the most powerful men in Milan and northern Italy... You will want him on your side..."

Vincenzo said as he stood beside Tristan in front of the fire place "You still haven't given a good enough reason. Surely this is what you want. I am never wrong about my offers in business. I refuse to believe you dont want this offer as it stands... You will normalise relations with the Agostinis and sign the deal on my terms which is fair..."

Tristan turned to look at Vincenzo "Of course... Your business instincts are never wrong. I want nothing more to accept the deal and sign a peace treaty with Andreas... And accept your deal... Its tempting... Even though any peace with Andreas will be half baked and there will be tensions, it is a rare offer.... I would have taken this trade if I didnt have another in mind..."

Vincenzo said "There is another trade in mind? Lets hear it...   I just gave you a chance I would have never given anyone else and you refused it.... I am listening.... I wonder what you have in mind...

Tristan said "I will sign your deal on your terms if you do a swap with me... A man for a man..."

Vincenzo asked "What? Let me get this straight... You want to do a swap with me. A man for a man... And you will agree to my terms of the deal?"

Tristan said "Yes... Precisely..."

Vincenzo asked "What kind of swap do you have in mind that is more important than making peace with Andreas...."

Tristan said "I will hand you your cousin Austin..."

Vincenzo said " My uncle Angelo's son? But he is dead... He is presumed dead...  He is high ranking special government agent missing in action... They never found his body... So are you telling me you can hand over his body?"

Tristan said "I have him.... He is alive..."

Vincenzo was taken back. Nothing had prepared him for hearing this news.

Tristan said "He was captured when he saved some FBI special agents on his team from certain death when they ambushed the warehouse of a  business associate of mine... He got caught... But he was badly injured in the process... He has been in the O'Neil private infirmary. He is almost fully recovered... I can keep him captive and question him like how I intended or hand him over... He is presumed dead... No one will come looking for him... And he will break under my interrogation methods for all he knows.... I forfeit all the information he can give me and wont interrogate him. I will hand him over healthy to you... But you must hand over someone to me.... Alexander... I want him to work for the O'Neils..."

Vincenzo was looking at Tristan with shock. Tristan was ahead in this game.

Tristan said "I hand you, Austin. You hand me Alexander... And I will accept your terms as they are..."

Vincenzo said "I want Austin alive at any cost.... He is my uncle Angelo's son... But I cant hand over Alexander to you... I cant lose him in my organisation... Name another condition... I can agree to your terms of the deal if you hand over Austin and dont ask for Alexander..."

Tristan said "No deal... I stated what I want from you... Hand me Alexander to work for me and I will hand over Austin alive and well.... I even will accept your terms of the deal... There is no alternative..." He then walked away towards the door.

Vincenzo could not understand Tristan's obsession with having Alexander in the O'Neil organisation. To Tristan the most important man in Vincenzo's organisation was Alexander who was his uncle Antonio's son.

Vincenzo said "Wait..."

Tristan had his hand on the door knob. He turned and looked at Vincenzo "What?"

Vincenzo said "What if I say no?"

Tristan said "If you say no to my offer, I will accept the terms of your deal... I will make peace with Andreas if you really insist on losing your one favour with him...."

Vincenzo said "What about Austin?"

Tristan said "What about him? I wont have to hand him over to you... He is my captive... I will do what I want with him..."

Vincenzo asked "Are you going to kill Austin? You wont get away with it..."

Tristan said "I didnt say I will kill him... I wont... I have no reason to.... But you and his family wont see him again... I do what I wish with my captives... Maybe I should call him a hostage... He is more valuable to be swapped with someone else I may have an interest in... But I wont hand him over to you..." He then looked at his watch "I have to take my leave... We can discuss this further this weekend after the communion... Ask yourself is losing Alexander to my organisation so unthinkable? You will gain so much if you said yes to my proposition."

Vincenzo watched Tristan leave through the door. Tristan was truly an unpredictable dangerous mastermind... Tristan never failed to surprise him. Vincenzo just wondered what Tristan wanted to do with his uncle Antonio's son. Alexander surely was formidable and a born leader and fighter. Vincenzo knew that Tristan had been waiting for an opportunity to take him away and make him his employee for years. Finally he had the chance and he wanted to take it even if it meant he sacrificed his demands in their deal.