AlceoI desperately kept my anger in check, I needed to let it out at the right time. I calmed myself down in the sitting room, steadying my breath and taking my time.I signaled for one of the guards stationed in the sitting room. “Go upstairs, knock on each door and call me everyone including Aleksi.”“Yes Master,” he bowed and walked away.I awaited the whining and mouth running of Uri but if I ever found out that he had something to do with Marianna's disappearance, my father would worry if he did the right thing by dying now.Aleksi walked in first with a tired, sleepy face. It wasn't nice of me to ask him to be woken up but whatever was going to happen, he needed to see it and be present. Seeing my current state, he chose not to say any word, he knew me too well.The rest filled in one by one, with Uri being the last person. His eyes were red and swollen, and he dragged his feet from the top of the stairs right to the sitting room.“Why would you ask him to wake me up? Can't you
AlceoIt's been close to a week, finding Marianna had proven more difficult than I expected. I was neither sleeping well nor eating well. Dark eye bags, almost competing with the black color itself, sought refuge under my eyes. Day after day, the food brought in was replaced without me touching them.The curtains in my room refused to go up, I had no idea where she was or what she was going through. All I could do was punish myself in my own little way.I sat on the bed, drowned in my own misery. A recurring knock forced me back to the surface. Not giving a response, I laid back and ignored whoever it was.The door opened. “God of heavens, open the fucking curtains Alceo.”“Don't Aleksi, let it be the way it is,” my voice was gruff and scary. It sounded like a scratched cassette.The bed deepened due to his weight. “What about we turn the lights on?”He took my silence for a no and went ahead. I braced myself for the impact, shutting my eyes for that moment.“You haven't been eating,
Marianna With a scarf around my shoulders, I waited patiently outside for Diego. It was going to be early in the morning and I couldn't help but worry about his whereabouts. He always came home early, the latest by 10pm but today was different. It held an unsettling feeling. The air was stoic and I could feel my heart in my mouth. Something didn't feel right, but then I tried to calm myself, believing that it was because of my recent loss.Diego made sure I laughed and played around the house. For days, he refused to leave me all by myself and gradually I was recovering. Today was the first time in a long while since he stepped out, that was even after so much cajoling that I was fine.“Maybe I shouldn't have forced him out,” I said, as my worry raised a bar.I was beginning to doze off from where I sat when I heard a loud bang. I froze at my spot thinking about what was happening. Was someone trying to break in?The gate kept giving out a loud creak, groans and whimpers followed sui
MariannaThe light streaming in from the open window shone directly on my face, waking me up in the process. I wanted to believe that whatever happened last night was a dream but the pain on my butt disregarded everything. I looked to my side and saw Diego's stiff body. My fingers were still interlocked with his white hands.My mind was void of what I should do, no strength, no anger—at least not so early. All that coursed through my vein was pain. I was in so much pain.The entire situation from last night made me forget to properly lock up the house.The door pushed open at once. There was no strength to stand or try to run and hide. I believed whoever it was, was here to finish the last line of the Santo's bloodline.“So it's true?” The voice made me turn, it was Rosco. He looked like he ran from wherever he was, sweat drenched his body and he looked disorganized. He was still in his pajamas, the news must have forced him away.He came closer, reducing his height to my level.“Mar
MariannaDays after Diego's death, I spent the rest of the days working out, building my confidence and aim. Sharpening the blunt skills taught to me by my father. I would wake up very early in the morning and take a long walk or even a jog around. I could feel the heaviness of my breast wearing away.Every exercise I needed to do was done in the house. With every pain I was going through, the hatred for the Russians and Javier kept fueling. If I dared try to stop, the last image of Cael and Diego would force me back to work. My baby was denied the pleasure of living his actual life.I cleared the room, arranged my clothes and wore a facecap over my head. The phone given to me by Rosco was sitting on the center table. I grabbed it at once and dialed the special code that would request for an emergency meeting with the elders. It was going to be shown as an unregistered device over their end but the curiosity of who it could be would force everyone down to the house; including Javier.
JavierThe show playing on the TV didn't make me recognize that someone else was inside with me.“So this is all you use your time and power to do?” I turned back to the familiar voice and muted the TV.“Hello father, what do you want?” I said so casually.He motioned forward, wearing a stupid smile on his face. “Can I at least sit?”“Please help yourself,” I signaled him.I called for one of the guards, asking him to bring a glass of water for my father.“Didn't you get the emergency message that came in earlier today?”“I did,” I shrugged my shoulders and relaxed in my chair. “I just chose to not attend. Who dares summon the lord of the Italian mafia like a dog?”“It was your wife, Marianna,” he said with a lingering smile on the corner of his lips and instantly, I met his gaze properly.By now, I sat properly. “Which Marianna? Marianna came to the house? Are you sure about what you are saying?”Unfazed, my father gulped down the glass of water brought to him. “Do I look like I'm jo
MariannaI couldn't help but wonder if I did the right thing by showing my face to the house. Inasmuch as I knew he wasn't around, word would have definitely gotten to him about me coming. My window was slightly open and I couldn't find sleep. I kept tossing and turning, hoping to find a comfortable spot to drift off. The night breeze was magical, it should have been enough to get me to sleep but I'm pretty sure it's wondering why I'm immune to its spell.A rattle from the living room had me sit up at once on the bed properly. I reached for the gun given to me by Rosco and carefully got out of bed. I gently opened the door, allowing me to see what was going on in the main room.“Check all the rooms, make sure you find her,” I heard the one who seemed to be the leader say.“Javier,” I muttered under my breath and grated my teeths together. From where I stood, I could see each man taking a room and some standing where I couldn't make them out completely. As one walked towards my direc
AlceoHer breathing was frantic, she was desperately holding herself back from losing it. I could see it, I could see her. Irrespective of how many stupid mistakes I had made, I still knew her. The few days away from the house gave me enough time to have a rethink about us. That made me realize how much I still loved her.I sat outside her doorstep, promising myself not to go anywhere until she gives me a chance to explain myself.My mind raced back to her last question. Did I lead them there? Hell why would I do that?I was just lucky to be where I was at that time. I noticed some unusual gathering beside the table I sat to eat. My beards were full and I was back to looking unkempt and dirty, I guess that was why I couldn't be recognized so easily.My ears happened to catch a few words like Javier, the Italian, Santo's daughter. Right there, I knew that was my ticket to finding Marianna. I had spent so many days on the streets with no lead. It's like she went off the radar. All I did
AlceoWe knew exactly how dangerous wasting was but it was our only choice in order not to mess things up. I tried so hard to believe in my head that it was Javier that was with Marianna and not that bastard that I just heard about today. For like a week, we stopped every street tracking and went silent, keeping the most vital information to ourselves. Just between our circle, making whoever else Javier has on us to believe that we have given up.Rosco's call came in, I jumped from my seat and had it placed on speaker. “We've gotten Lanco’s position, I'll hold him off till you get here. I'm sending the address to you. And have some of your trusted boys go join mine at Renzo's house. I don't want a repeat of the trouble I carried.”The line went dead and without being told much, my brother's grabbed every piece of gun they could find, fixing silencers onto some of them. We weren't in our city, we had no reason to have the cops on our tail.Every one of us wanted to be there when we fou
AlceoHaving an inkling about how much he despised the so-called Lanco, I decided to know what exactly must have transpired between them. I poured wine into his glass cup and watched him down it at a go. “What happened between you and Lanco?”He sighed, shutting his eyes tightly, as if trying to shut out a bad memory. “He is a hitman or someone you call a mercenary. He's devoid of any human feelings and does things that are out of the norm. Once a girl was stolen from her home and the girl's mother came to beg me to help look for her child. I searched everywhere and information later reached me that she was taken by Lanco.“I tried to reason with him about how we were both Italians and how he should honor the bond between us, so he'd release her to me. Lanco told me that she was his plaything and vowed never to let her go. I let my ego down and promised him whatever amount he wanted, he still wouldn't listen. All of a sudden, he asked me to go back home and be at peace, that he'd sen
AlceoHis leg was wrapped up in order to avoid him bleeding to death before could say what he needed. We didn't start anything yet, he just sat in the middle of the room, sweating profusely with each of us watching him intently.“I heard the latest news,” the last person we were waiting for showed up. Rosco was in the most casual clothing I had ever seen him in, he was probably taking a nap when my call came in. Seeing Rosco had him drag his bloodied leg uncomfortably on the floor.Rosco settled beside Uri, making me wonder why. Another excuse that came to me was the fact that it was far away from where the guard was. Knowing how bad his temper was, he wouldn't want to kill him before he gave up the information we needed.He relaxed back, crossing his legs over one another. “What I hear, is it true? Is it true that you were caught speaking with the one person that has been troubling both the Italians and the Russians for months now?”Ashamed to face us, he knew very well the cost and
UriJust like that, 4 months in total had gone by since the death of Diego and the disappearance of Marianna. Alceo looked a little closer to death everyday, the house was gloomy and nothing made anybody smiley. We all admitted and accepted that we had treated Marianna in a bad way, most especially me. Not knowing that she was a top asset to us. I imagined that, only if father was alive, he would have fought tooth and nail to make sure nothing comes in between their love. It would only make him so much more protective irrespective of whatever bad blood is between him and Santo.The picture of the late Lady Del Vecchio hanging boldly on the wall in our living room gave me a little bit of hope anytime I walked past it. It was a way of reassuring me that we would find her and properly I'll tender my apologies. The way her cheek lit up and a part of her teeth showed, it was obvious, Marianna took her mother's face.For my father to have fallen in love with this woman, it meant a whole lot
Alceo2 weeks laterThe last meeting with Javier's father was relieving and at the same frustrating. Everything went silent, no new information or anything to keep our asses on the street. Rosco was busy helping us to comb the street but since he was a lot more used to it than us. My brothers have welcomed him gladly into our home but he wasn't one to cross his boundaries. Something was tying the Italians and the Russians together now, it was best we work together.The elders of the Italian house too couldn't find anything on Javier, not after the last threat I gave them. Javier was pretty stealth and I was sure that he had help else he wouldn't be able to pull this off by himself.It was late at night, everyone sat alone, moody and pissed. The door swung open and in came Rosco.I was the first to go. “You look like shit, have you had a bath recently?”“There's little or no difference between us, so wrap it up boy.”His muscular frame made him look like my older brother, so him callin
AlceoI managed to make myself a little bit neat, shaving my beards and taking a cool shower in order to help me think. My phone chimed and I got out of the bathroom, locating it immediately. It was a message from Rosco. We've combed every place we knew but everything ended in futile. There was a place we could try out, this time, it was just going to end in talks not the usual bloodshed.I dressed casually, tucking a pistol behind me. I met my brothers waiting for me downstairs.“You got the location?” Uri asked, loading the guns in the back of the car.I nodded my head in affirmation. “But we might not be needing that. We are just going there to have a talk, we are hoping he might have an idea where he is.”“Hmmm,” Uri said, still ignoring everything I said. “You never can tell what will happen. To be on the safer side, I'll just keep them here.”I didn't argue with him anymore and just found a spot to settle in. My mind was clouded, my vision was starting to become blurry due to th
JavierReality was starting to dawn on me, I thought kidnapping Marianna and having her whenever I wanted would fill the empty space in my soul. Instead it just made it wider, seeing her lose herself made me lose myself too.I sat outside in the cold, lighting a cigarette to keep me warm. One single drag in, and I felt so good, having the feeling of euphoria. This continued for a while and I threw my head back to relish the feeling I was getting.It was a quiet scenario with just the cottage in the area. A call from my other phone shattered my blissful feeling. I stared blankly at the caller ID before picking it up.In a straight, stern voice, I answered. “How can I help you Arico?”“Where are you boss? The Russians have been going berserk, killing whoever they find affiliated to you. Are you safe where you are?”“So what should I do about it? You are my boys, so it is necessary you die for me,” I didn't think twice before I said what I said. If I was in Arico’s position, I'd be quite
Alceo Everywhere went silent after the call, no one dared say a word. My anger could make a whole pasta go from raw to finished. I grabbed the phone beside me and threw it against the wall.“AARRRRRRRGH,” I destroyed everything that was in my way. The guards rushed in, trying to see if an intruder was in the house and I decided to transfer my anger on them. Going physical on them was doing little to nothing to my anger, instead it enraged me more.Before I could say jack, a real heavy punch lodged itself in my face. Turned around to see who it was and lo and behold, it turned out to be Aleksi.“You want to let off some of that heat, let's go,” he took his stance in front of me and that angered me more. He was more strategic, I was fighting blindly. Most of my punches missed him but his punches were hitting me in sensitive places, making me go weaker faster.“You bastard,” I spat out blood. “You think you can handle me?”The others stood at a corner watching the drama happening betwee
Trigger warning ⚠️ Marianna1 month later I don't know what day it was or how long I've been there but to me it felt like months. I was plunged into the dark and the only time I had any companions was when my master came in. Either to serve me or to relieve himself using me. I crave for the sun, I crave for the morning light, I crave for a particular touch but I didn't know who it belonged to.All I remembered of him was his distinctive features; full eyebrows, dark skinned with a different shade of blue eyes. His face was starting to disappear and I desperately sought to keep it. Master told me he was the one that caused all my misfortune but his face failed to give off that vibe. His face was the definition of peace, it gave me all the tingling I needed. The door opened and immediately I went on all fours. It was in the same position that I was fed and used as a tool to satisfy master's cravings. If I failed to do so, I'll be met with master's anger and I wasn't ready to face tha