He never talked back and he obeyed his superiors as he learned to do in the army, but he refused to bow his head.
-- Narrator (chapter 1)

Importance: The narrator says this as she describes Giuseppe Onorato. The quote helps explain the behavior of the Gucci family. Just like the members of the Gucci family, Onorato may have looked as if was easy to deal with his job, his pride kept him from bending to the will of others. The Gucci family members are the same.

For me, he was a corpse, just like any other.
-- Giancarlo Togliatti (chapter 2)

Importance: Togliatti, who is in the homicide division, says this later when he talks about arriving on the scene and seeing the corpse. The quote shows that no matter how much people do to become rich and great, in the end, they are just like everyone else.

They were simple people with an incredible humanity, but they all had...
-- A former Gucci employee (chapter 2)