MASSIMO'S POV
The phone in my dresser won't stop beeping despite my pleas for it to stop…just stop.
I opened my eyes and could still feel the bang in my head from the hangover of the previous night.
It had been two crazy nights in a row and not even after I had misplaced my credit card had it bothered me a bit.
To speak, it was not really a bother as I had enough money and what I meant was good cash to run the city on gas for years.
Most times I tried to tell myself I was not calling bluff but the fact remains that I was a Billionaire.
Massimo Empire had been a name that ran through two generations and when it was handed over to me as its sole heir I had followed right in the footsteps of my predecessors.
I soon reached the phone that still won't stop beeping and was surprised to see who the goddamn caller was.
"My account officer?" I was puzzled as to why she was calling so early past ten am.
"Good morning, sorry to disturb you." Her voice sounded from the other side of the phone.
"It is fine." I muttered. "Why are you calling?"
"There was a huge transfer from your credit account today, May the second at about an hour ago."
I was quiet for a minute, I knew she was talking about the missing credit card.
"goddamned thieves." I muttered to myself
"What do you say Sir?"
"Nothing." I stilled. "The amount?”
“The entire money , sir.”
I ran my hands through my hair as a sigh escaped my mouth.
I would have forgiven this crime but this person seemed greedy and greed was something I took so seriously, it was a crime I treated with no levity. “This transaction already gone through?”
She hesitated. “Not yet sir. It is quite an odd amount considering your status so it got us wondering if it was genuine considering the method by which it was transferred."
I thought of what to do at that moment, if I say I wasn't responsible, the bank would be forced to cancel the transfer and block my card and this person would get away.
"Are we to flag the transaction?" She asked again. “If it wasn’t authorized. You can tell us we would have the transaction blocked and the card as well."
"Do you have the name of the person or address?"
"Anything is the problem?"
"Not really, I just want to know if it is the right person."
"Give me a minute."
I Could hear her typing away as I waited patiently, "we have here one Adriana Levine, 18 West Sussex."
"Oh it was authorized” It goddamn wasn’t. But I didn’t deal with thieves that way.
“Alright, thank you for banking with us,” she said, before dropping the call.
“That’s great to hear. . Have a great day."
I dropped the call, still staring at the name of the culprit written boldly in my jotter.
It was more shocking. It was a lady, "Adriana Levine." I said the name to myself or perhaps the con artist was using a female name.
I needed more facts about this person in a short while and there was only one person who could do so, My personal guard and confidant Marcus.
Picking up my phone dialed out his number.
"Boss?” Marcus’s cold tone crept through the line.
I guess he was just waking up as well since we both had a hell of a night.
“Remember the card that got missing,” I rasped.
"Yeah, a day or so…what about it?"
"I got a call that it had just been used and all my money was transferred."
"What?" He sounded shocked as I had been
"Will send you a name, find the person, facts, and information." I gritted.my teeth before adding, “get the guys ready too."
All I heard was silence, "Sending something in soon I just got our message give me twenty minutes."
"Twenty-five." I said.
He hung up, and I slipped my phone into my pocket.
If there was anyone I could rely on, it was him. I didn't get a message from him but heard his signature Knock on my door just as I was done dressing up.
He opened and walked in with pictures printed out in papers having her face.
"That is Adriana Levine, 22." He said before adding. "A stripper."
I stared at the pictures In my hands not knowing what I should make out from them.
She had a very sexy body and looked beautiful enough, too beautiful to steal but like they would always say looks are deceiving.
"Are the guys ready?" I asked.
"Yes, they are in the car already."
"Then let's get moving."
I took out my own pistol and tucked it to the back of my shirt as we walked out.
All through the drive down West Sussex all I thought about was her face, the thought of her body and what I might do sent an electrifying charge down to the middle of my thighs.
Soon we were stopping in front of a beautiful house after bribing our way through the security.
I walked out first and then men followed with Marcus walking right behind me.
He knocked on the door and waited for a reply…
A man opened the door and all Marcus did was pull up his jacket showing him the gun, I could see the fear in his eyes as he walked in.
A lady who did not have any resemblance was running down the stairs as well.
One of the men pointed a gun at her as she froze in shock.
After about twenty minutes they had three people sitting in the living room while I walked back from the bar with a glass of whiskey in my hands.
"Now tell me where Adriana Levine is, cause it is obvious she is not here."
There was silence in the room where one could hear a pin drop.
I looked around the room again, my attention drawn to the frail woman that looked like her.
ADRIANA'S POVI LOOKED like I just won a million dollars in the lottery as I basked all day.I had that exact amount in the account and the thought that alone made me over zealous.For one, all the debts I had were cleared and I had been getting ready to get the preparation for my mother's hospital bills in NYC.There was a saying that money makes the world go round, I had thought it to be a mere figure of speech till this moment, I could literally feel the world spinning while I stood fixed still not knowing what to do with the rest of the money in my account."Carolina, if you had a million dollars what would you do?"Calolina was a stripper as well who danced with me on Wednesdays, the thing about her was she spent her money on drugs but when she was sober and not on anything she made a lot of sense talking.We closed for the day and as I made my way home I could still hear her voice at the back of my head telling me what she would do if she had that amount right now in her account
ADRIANA’S POVIT WAS becoming so tension filled, as the time ticked. I could hear everything, every single one of it as though it was in the same phase as my heart– Heavy and slow.The sound of vodka being poured over ice making a sizzling noise. The heavy Cigar smoke that washung in the air making breathing difficult and with it came tension, a lot of it.I could see the burning gaze emanating from Massimo from behind where he was sitting– He didn't look like a happy man sitting behind that desk. As a matter of fact he looked far from it, regardless of the frown and all I still had to admit he looked quite handsome.I occupied a chair in front of him, looking not so good with the imprint of his hand on my left chin, leaning back on the chair I could see the displeasing look he gave me.He had asked earlier on if I was the only one involved in this swindle even threatened to find out if someone else was involved, probably a boyfriend but I had convinced him I had none.I looked uninte
MASSIMO'S POVLEANING back on the soft sofa with my legs crossed, my attention was divided between the thick mist of smoke floating into the air and her pretty face that was quite remarkable.Looking at her from a far off she looked incapable of this theft, but when you look at the dark side of the business she was involved in, you'd know better.Strippers were never really to be trusted no matter how gentle they seemed; it was just in their nature to do dubious things.I could feel every bit of anger trickling down my nerves, despite how subtle I might seem at that moment, but it was strong enough that I had to keep choking it down with a cup of whiskey.Despite all that, It burned in my throat, as I could feel every bit of it expanding on my chest, like a virus willing to rip my soul apart.My eyes skimmed the expanse of space as I searched across the room for Marcus, my one and only reliable guard; wiping my hand with a napkin. I was agitated at the fact that he was yet to be bac
CHAPTER 8ADRIANA'S POVI DIDN'T know what to feel about everything that was happening right now, it was all so unexplainable.Be it nervousness, anxiety or any other emotions, everything happened so fast I couldn't keep track of it.My feelings were a mixture of all the negative emotions you could think of, and in its trail, it left me feeling jittery. I didn't know how to react to the fact that I was going to live with this absolute stranger, and to be used for whatever he intended to do with me.I tried to study him for a while, his face, his looks. He did look rich– Obviously, but that wasn't the only thing that got my attention.It was this dark looming expression he had that was hard to explain, it was as though he kept it secret for a purpose.We drove in a different car from the rest, with my face glued to the glass as I watched life speed past me. A soft music played from the radio and its peaceful tune made my mind drift away with diverse thoughts plaguing it.I couldn't
Adriana’s POVThe cold water from the shower overhead trickled down my face and skin, leaving a numb chillness in its wake and despite the fact that I was bathing with clean water and I could perceive the sweet scenting soap on my skin, I still felt really dirty and stinky, like filth.“No matter what you do Adriana, you’re filth and filth you’ll remain for as long as you live!” Amy’s harsh words rang in my ears like music from a broken tape, and for the first time in my life, I welcomed it. I welcomed her insults and her down talking; and I welcomed every other negative feeling that came with being the unwanted child… the black sheep.I distinctly remembered how I used to desperately clamor for her attention and then after mother remarried, I began to clamor for a sense of belonging, for love, for care until I realized that all I had been doing for the most of my childhood was clamoring for things that I couldn’t get… things I could never have.Tears leaked out of my eyes as I thoug
Adriana's POVTHE music suddenly stopped and so did I. I knew it was unprofessional for me to stop dancing as the music stopped but I had been looking for that opportunity ever since I begun dancing.I could feel his razor-sharp focus running across my skin like trickling water and raking through every fibre of my being, it made me so nervous that when I finally got to the pole, I looked at it as if I did never danced on one before.I couldn’t even bring myself to touch it, let alone hold it due to the amount of anxiety that his eyes were making me feel. It was the kind that an entire club had not been able to me feel as I was able to do this almost every night, but with him it was different. His steely gaze was making me jittery, and this thing quite impossible.As expected, it didn't take long for him to snap and then he began to yell at me asking me if I was going to dance eventually or wait till it was finally Dawn.With trembling lips I responded that I was going to dance and the
Adriana's POVMassimo hadn't been joking when he said he needed me to dance for him every damn night. At first, I had thought that he’d been joking until he literally made me do it. He was like a walking alarm clock. Everyday, the moment the clock hits eight, he would burst right into my room like someone in a hot chase, and then sit on the couch with his legs spread, giving me a very lustful look. It was the usual… it was becoming quite a ritual.Within that look, I could sense impatience, and in most cases I could also sense danger… a kind of danger that would most definitely consume me whole if I didn't get my ass up to do what he wanted. I reluctantly got up, still holding his stare. I had already worn lingerie under, so I stripped slowly, bending over to remove my pants. The pole was beginning to sicken me now that I looked at it, but I didn't have a choice. I wrapped my legs around it, sliding down the pole to the ground.My legs, most especially my inner thighs were every s
Adriana’s POVNow I understand why people in psychiatrist hospitals found it sickening to be cooped up in a room for a long period of time. The fact that it only made them crazier related to my present situation so much that I could almost imagine myself clad in their shabby garments.I could almost think that I was fast turning into a psycho because these days, my routine was basically the same. I'd wake up, sit and stare, and then begin to think of the different ways I could give Massimo a painful but slow death. I only get food if he's in a good mood, and if he's in the best of moods, I get to eat twice.Right now, he was in my room and it seemed like he was in a good mood today. In fact, he had been in a good mood for most of the week as he hadn't even made me dance for him since the week began; moreover his look was different.It was less scornful and it was lighter. He simply sat and watched me from the couch, with a wine glass in his hands and a very heavy look in his eyes.