When Orlando descended the stairs the next night, he met her at the foot of the stairs. He checked his watch; it was a few minutes past 11 pm. She had on a sky-blue sleeveless dress, her hair was tied up in a ponytail. She had a wide smile on her face as he approached her.
Merrill rushed in at that moment, “Sir, she said she had to come with you. I tried to convince her.”“What is this about?” he inquired.“I would like to speak with my father,” she answered in an eager tone.“It is late…”“I need to speak with him,” she cut him off, “I know you plan to talk to him already, but my father wouldn’t speak with any of you if he does not hear my voice. If he truly has taken something from you, he wouldn’t give it back without speaking to me. I am sure it will be beneficial to all of you if I can talk to him earlier so we can come to some kind of agreement…”“Elena.”“Please...”***He let her come, the drive ther“What did you do, father? What did you do?”“I am sorry, my princess. I am really sorry. I did not mean for any of this to happen. I never wanted you to get hurt. I wanted to protect you…”“I think it is a little bit too late for that, isn’t it?” She replied in a solemn voice and wiped a story tear from her eyes.“What did they do to you, princess? Please tell me, are you hurting? Did they hurt you?” With every question, there was an increasing urgency in his voice.Instinctively, her hand went to her head. When she looked at her hand, she saw that she was bleeding. “I am fine.” she answered in a bland tone.He broke down. “I am really sorry, Elena. I did not mean to put you in harm's way. I tried my best to protect you from this part of my life. I really tried…”“They are the mafia, Dad!” she yelled. “You’re a part of the mafia!”He began to sob.“How could you? Why would you?”Tears began to flow unab
Elena flipped through the pages of the book in her hand, a blank stare on her face. There was a knock on the door, and then Luca’s head popped in. He flashed her his warm smile. If it were a few weeks back, she would be stifling a blush, her mind conjuring racy images of him.A lot could change in a few weeks, she mused.“How are you, Elena?”She did not respond.He pulled out a chair and sat across from her. “How long are you going to keep ignoring me?Surely you blame your father for this, but this is not my fault.” He leaned forward, his face barely inches away from hers. “I wanted to tell you, I always did, but it was not my secret to share. Your father warned me to keep quiet, and there was no way I could tell you my part in this without mentioning your father. He is an important member of the family.”“What do you want, Luca?”He smiled and bowed his head, his finger tapping rhythmically on the table.“You, I want y
Ricci Russo, swiped the key card on the door, he smoothed his dark hair. When the door opened up, he walked in. He took in the luxurious room, the pristine white sheets. There was a table and chair on the other end. Every accessory was plated in gold. There was a large glass door with the balcony on the other side. Then he turned to the tall blond man who was standing with his head bowed in front of him. “Good day sir.”“Why did you pick a hotel room for our meeting?”“I figured you needed privacy. I signed the register under a fake name.”Ricci did not respond. He crossed the length of the room and walked up to the glass doors. Just beyond the hotel was green vegetation, there was no building within sight. It was indeed private. He loosened his tie, “Tell me you have some good news at least…”The man walked up to the table, opened up the briefcase and pulled out his laptop, “It was almost impossible at first, we were able to pin down his location
“You’re tensed” Celio observed.Ricci opened his eyes. “Now is not the time, Celio. I need you to get back to work. This is important to me.”Celio scooted closer to him, his lean fingers moved Ricci’s unruly curls away from his face.Ricci’s whole body tensed from the small contact. His touch was light as a feather.“Definitely, not as important as how you feel right now.” His voice was barely above a whisper.Ricci shuddered as his soft breath caressed his neck, goosebumps spread across his skin. “I…I...I need to find the Doc, I need to do it for my father…” He stuttered.“Shh” Celio placed a finger on Ricci’s lips. Then proceeded to unbutton his shirt. “Did it turn you on when I called you sir?”Ricci swallowed but he did not answer. His whole body felt lax, he couldn’t protest.“Did it turn you on when you lost your temper and shouted at me?” he unbuckled his belt, “Did it? Did it make you excited to bark orders
“Can I ask you something?”Orlando looked up at her. He did not hear her walk in.She was barefoot, dressed in a cotton floral nightgown that was much bigger than her. She was fresh-faced, like she had just gotten out of the shower, her long dark hair tucked behind her ears, her deep blue eyes evading his gaze, and she was biting her lower lip…Orlando willed himself to look away from her and back to his laptop. “Yes.”“I want to know how Camila, my nana, is doing.”He drummed his fingers on the table, contemplating whether to tell her the truth or not.Elena stared at him. He had not answered. “Luca told me she was in really bad shape,” she blurted out. “I just want to know how her health is, how she is faring. Is she okay?” She rushed the words.Orlando had been itching to know what Luca had discussed with her a couple of days ago. “Your nanny is in good health, she has been cooperative.”“Can I speak with her
Her chest was heaving, her thoughts were running wild.“Your father is yet to make contact.”“It has been two days,” she interjected. She took a while to steady her breath. “I just, can we call him?”“With how your father arranged it, it would be impossible to reach him.”She closed the distance between them without giving it a thought. She grabbed his hand.He was surprised, but he did not let it show on his face. He looked down at their entwined hands.“Please…”He swallowed. He had never been more tense about anything in a long time. “There are rumors that your father, well, that he is dead.”Elena stilled. It was like time stopped, everything halted, she stopped breathing. When she caught her breath, she was exhausted. She doubled over and fell to the ground, gasping for air. Her world was crashing before her, everything she had held dear, every dream she had, every hope she had felt. Her eyes welled up in tears,
Orlando tapped his feet rhythmically against the marble floors. “The Doc is dead,” he announced in a flat tone. The words hung in the air as his eyes moved from one face to another. There was no distinct expression on their faces that he could pick up on. Silence filled the room for a moment until Colombano broke it.“Have you at least recovered the briefcase?”At first, when he had met them, he had been taken aback by their lack of sympathy, but not anymore. He was used to it.“Sadly, no, Colombano…” Romano answered. “I fear my briefcase is still out somewhere in the world, or worse, in the hands of some lowlife thief.” The distaste was clear in his voice.“How are we to recover it?” Luca questioned. “Do we know Doc’s last location?”“I am on it.”“It is taking longer than expected,” Luca’s tone was curt.Orlando’s piercing gaze was met with the same from Luca.Romano looked between the both of them. “Finding the briefcase is primary, see to it that it is done…”“Or we put an end to t
Orlando peered at the house across from where his car was parked; the blinds were open, so he had a clear view into the house. It was a small house in a nice suburban neighborhood. The people in this neighborhood were nice and friendly, and the police actually cared about checking crime.A woman in her sixties came into view. Her dark curly hair was tied atop her head in a messy bun, with streaks of silver on the side. Her eyes crinkled as she smiled at something someone said. Her eyes were tired, but they still managed to gleam when she smiled. She moved away from the window and emerged again, this time her laughter was a little loud. He could hear the faint sounds of her laughter, and although he did not hear what was said, his lips cracked into a smile of his own.All his life, he had never seen her carefree; he did not remember what she looked like when she smiled. Although she still bore the telltale signs of what she had been through in the past, he could tel
They walked around the store picking out a few items from the shelf; the basket was half full. When they got to the snack bar, he went wild. He threw in every snack he could lay his hand on, from sour to too sweet. She stopped protesting a long time ago because it was futile. He picked out a random jean short, two big t-shirts. Then he went to the underwear section; he stared at the underwear on display on the mannequin and then back at her. At that point, she was convinced there couldn’t be any day more embarrassing than today was. Her face was flushed; she avoided eye contact. He glanced at her and then back at the mannequin. He grabbed a few of them and then pulled her toward the bathroom. He whispered to Andre and handed him the rest of the other items. Andre nodded and walked away, and then they were finally alone.“Thank you,” she said to him as she extended a hand to take the items she needed from him, but he was still holding on. She glanced at the sign that said la
Elena jumped up in fright as the doors flung open. Orlando rushed in, worry etched on his features. His eyes scanned her body repeatedly.“Are you okay?” he asked as he closed the distance between them.She was taken aback, she merely nodded.He didn’t look convinced as he took in her appearance again. “What is the matter? The security guy at your door came to me…” He trailed off.“I…” She began playing with her fingers and avoided his gaze. “I…, I got my period,” she blurted out and averted her gaze. Her cheeks burned from embarrassment.It took him a moment to understand what she meant. He let out an inaudible sigh. The urgency with which the man had relayed the message, even interrupting a private meeting he was having with Don Russo, had caused him to panic. Well, he couldn’t blame him, he had put him in a chokehold over an open window, twenty stories high and threatened him to make sure Elena had what she needed at all times.
“I heard the tale of your epic failure…” Romano poured two glasses of whisky. “I am surprised you got out of that situation without Orlando having your head.” Sebastian took the glass from him. “I hope it stays that way,” his tone was threatening. Romano raised his hands in surrender. “I won’t say a word. What happened with the men you sent?” “I took care of it,” he exhaled and leaned backward on his chair. “I regret sending out the men to his home.” Romano took a sip from his glass. “You couldn’t help it, Sebastian. You need the art as much as I do, maybe even more. You have never been the type to overlook things like this…” “It wasn’t about the art.” Romano chuckled. “Pray tell then, what was it about?” His jaw ticked as he glared at him. “I wanted to show him he was reckless…” Romano shook his head. “Don’t sweat it, Sebastian. You’re not convincing anybody.” He
When she walked into her room that morning, she did not know what she was expecting to see, but she definitely was not expecting her room to be redecorated into a mini art station. The space near the tall glass windows overlooking the garden had a lot of items. There were canvas pieces of different sizes, arranged side by side. In a large cup holder, there were a variety of different brushes, including small detail brushes and flat brushes. There was a stool and a chair. A small apron was neatly folded and laid out on the stool. There were different buckets and palettes of paint; it was hard to identify which was which in one glance. There was a stack of sketchbooks and pencils on the tables and lots of other things she did not even realize she needed.Her hands went over her mouth as her lips curved into a wide smile. She chuckled lightly. It reminded her of old times. The first time her father went shopping for art supplies on her behalf. He had gotten all these random th
Orlando rubbed his eyes as he descended the stairs. Sebastian was in the living room, talking to two men. They tipped their heads at him and walked away carrying large duffel bags. “Sebastian, I told you I was going to handle this.”“The same way you handled the threat on Elena’s family,” Sebastian scoffed. “I don’t consider it handling when you divert all the troubles to your direction.”“What else would you have me do? They wouldn’t relent.”Sebastian shrugged. “I don’t know, anything else that’s not suicidal!” he snapped.Orlando sighed and plopped down on the chair.“Why do you even care so much?” Sebastian asked as he walked up to him. “Walk me through your thought process with this? What is your end game? What are you hoping to get out of this? What does this get you in the end?”He genuinely thought hard about those questions but he had no ready sensible answer to give Sebastian. “I don’t know…”“You’re going to g
Elena leaned back and burst into loud laughter. It didn't matter that they had been talking for hours, they never ran out of things to say. Camilla sat with them for a while until she began to doze off on the couch.She watched with a big smile on her face as Imani tried to help her to her room. She had protested, and after so much back and forth, Imani agreed to let her rest on the couch as long as she was comfortable. At first, Camilla was actively contributing to their conversation, then it turned to one-word replies, and later on, she was just staring at them. It didn't matter that she had assured her that it was okay to fall asleep.Camilla battled with sleep, it was like she wanted to watch over her, with a fear that as soon as she shut her eyes, she would go away. Elena had given up on trying to convince her to sleep. It didn't take long afterward she fell asleep on the couch. Imani moved away a bit but not too far away from Camilla. They were catc
Orlando opened his drawer and pulled out his burner. He dialed a number and put the phone in between his ear and shoulders as it rang. He continued rummaging through the drawers and pulled out a black latex gloves, putting them on.As soon as the line clicked. He spoke into the receiver. “Sebastian…”“What is it Orlando?” Sebastian asked, his voice tinged with seriousness. He knew Orlando wouldn’t call him on this line unless there was an emergency. “So I might need you to speed up the delivery of my shipment.”Sebastian was on alert. “Why is that?”Orlando exhaled and massaged his temples. “I don’t have much time. Can you just..."“If you’re not going to divulge, I will enlist the help of the family.”“Okay fine” Orlando cut him off. “My house was attacked and I just need…”“Wait…what?”Orlando resumed massaging his temples. “Yes. I will be needing a lot of the shipment.”
He rushed into the house, brandishing a gun in front of him, and pulled her behind him. He inputted the security code at the entrance. As the door opened up, he saw Merrill at the entrance. She rushed towards him, tears gushing out of her eyes. “They attacked the security men at the entrance, there was a lot of gunfire…” He pulled her into a hug. Merrill buried her head in his chest and began sobbing. They stayed that way for a while. Elena was terrified. She was with him when the call came in. The house had been shot up. The thought terrified her; those gunshots had been for her. They had come after her. One of the security guards walked in. He was a tall, burly man with bloodstains on his face and clothes. “What happened?” “They somehow managed to breach through the gates unnoticed,” the large man explained. “They came in a black van with no license plates. They took the men at the gates unaware…” “Any casualties?” Orlando cut in. “Three of our men were shot, Blake, Gun
Orlando was anything but calm as soon as he walked out of the door. He paced from one end to the other, then halted. He loosened his tie. Despite the strong air conditioning, he felt sweaty. He hated this feeling, the vulnerability he felt, why did he care so much. It was just a light interrogation, nothing could go wrong, nothing could go wrong, he chanted in his head, yet his fears wouldn’t go away. He decided to occupy himself.He went down to the lounge, soft sultry music playing in the background. The place reeked of booze and sex.The light was dim, but he could make out the few people dancing on the dance floor. He walked up to the bartender, who left the other guests he was attending to and handed him a drink. He murmured his thanks, took a sip of his drink as he took in the length and breadth of the room. There were silhouettes of people in the background going at it. It was wild, maybe this was what he needed. One wild night to purge himself of whatever it was