Even though I’d agreed to this, I still wasn’t comfortable about the whole situation but I couldn’t back down now. I’d already said I would and going back on my words would make me look filthy in Alessandro’s eyes. “You’re what? Nearly seven feet tall and you’ve got over 150 pounds on me. What do you mean by bullying you into silence?” “That’s not the bone of contention, Gianna. You’re diverting and trying to gaslight me again.”“What do you mean by again?” I scowled, my eyes fixed on the road ahead. Syrius was simply the most annoying person I had ever met. He knew how to get to me without even breaking a sweat and I hated it. Things had to change and they had to change fast. “Surely you know what the word means, right?” Syrius asked. “I mean, it’s a simple word that even a child understands.”“I wasn’t asking you for the meaning, Syrius!” I practically yelled. “But, you—““Are you always this annoying?” I asked. “You’re baiting me and you’re having fun while at it as well.”“Do
“I saved your life, Gianna. The least you can do is be grateful that I was in the right spot at the right time. Do you know what would’ve happened if I wasn’t there?”Whatever he did, he was only trying to justify his actions and make it seem like I’d be indebted to him afterward. The truth was that he was a narcissistic piece of shit who would do anything to benefit him before anyone else. “I need to see Maya, Syrius. You’ll take me to wherever she is and you’ll let her go after I confirm you’ve done no great harm to her.” I said.Syrius stared at me with an unreadable expression plastered on his face. Whatever was going on made me scared but I was struggling to maintain my composure. “If you want to see Maya, I’ll bring her to you.” Syrius eventually said as he snapped his fingers twice and a man appeared. He mumbled something, out of my hearing and the man bowed before walking away briskly. “What was that all about?” I asked, wanting to stay abreast of the situation at hand.“H
“We aren’t done speaking, sweetheart,” Syrius drawled, making my skin crawl. I hated the sound of his voice, I hated his pale skin, I hated his sinister smile, and I hated that I had to do whatever this was with him. I hated everything that had to do with Syrius and the reason this plague was unleashed on the world was because of my father and he was going to pay dearly for it. I knew I couldn’t let Syrius get away with this and anger wasn’t going to yield a lot of results right now. I had to be strategic and think about the possible loopholes that would manifest and use them to bring him down. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was playing one of his stupid games again. Trying to throw Alessandro off-balance, bringing him crumbling to the ground, and then taking me to be his wife. “There’s nothing left for us to talk about, Syrius. You fucked up and the worst part of it is that you don’t feel remorseful about what you’ve done.” I said. “I can’t believe you’re spiraling out o
“Tempers are rising and I don’t think it’s best we continue this conversation any longer. You said you wanted to go home and I think that it’s a brilliant idea, we can continue this later when you’re in a more relaxed state. What do you think?” Syrius was trying to make me seem like I was the crazy one with the way I snapped at him. This was what he did best, emotional manipulation, and he was a master at it. He had the words to say and he knew how to execute them to perfection. It wasn’t going to be easy doing this but I had to see this to the end. I wasn’t doing this for Maya, I was doing it for myself because Syrius had crossed a line and the thing is that, he isn’t going to stop. Maya was the first of his victims and Mike would follow soon after, and then he would turn his focus elsewhere and spill more blood until he got close to home. “You’re right, Syrius. I’m done with this conversation and I’m not saying anything about it anymore. So you need to take this platter and get
David Totti shot up from his king-sized bed as he heard the door to his bedroom being opened, his hand immediately reaching for the gun he kept in his drawer. He turned to his wife, she was soundly asleep, totally oblivious to what was happening. The bedroom was relatively large but he could feel someone staring back at him from the shadows. His feet hit the plush carpet in a hurry as he moved towards the switch. It was a risky move which could put his wife in danger but he was willing to take it. It was better to fight an opponent you could see. Just as his hand hit the switch, he heard his wife scream. He swirled round to see the intruder put a bullet between her eyes. He tried to move his arm but he couldn't, his whole body went stiff. The last thing he ever saw was the intruder's right arm as he struck him with the sledgehammer.According to the police report, they found blood-spatter stains, consistent with blunt force trauma, near the south of the bedroom.Forensic evidence sho
Alessandro’s POVI listened to the police officer as he spoke. Two months ago, Maya had set off in her car and made her way to the private art studio I bought in her name when she turned eighteen but she never returned home.The police were yet to find any credible lead or her body either and only the people in the mafia knew the truth but we were all tight-lipped about it. We didn’t need to spill anything to the police because we could handle the situation and take revenge by ourselves.I just wished they’d drop the case and never bug me about it again but I didn’t want to act rude and give them any incentive that I was trying to cover up something so putting up with them was the best thing I could do right now. Before she died, she begged for a meeting and after several weeks of delay, I finally gave in but when she never showed up, I knew something was wrong. I tried calling her but her phone went straight to voicemail. I called her friends but no one had seen her, Mike was nowhe
I closed the door of my pickup truck as I scaled the stairs, two at a time, and made my way into the conference room. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the large screen. I briefly glanced at Syrius, his face was set with concentration and anger as he chewed on his bottom lip, his eyes narrowed into slits."I got here as fast as I could. Has anyone traced the E-mail with which the video was sent?" I asked.To apologize after scarring me with Maya’s severed head, Syrius had brought me into his circle much to his associate’s surprise but they didn’t dare argue with him. "We hit a dead end. But, it doesn't matter anymore. They made their intent clear already, this is a statement of war." Syrius bit out."I know for certain that these same guys are the ones behind the constant attacks on our businesses. They couldn't have done all these without having an inside man.""If you believe there's a mole in your organization. Why haven't you taken him out yet?" "How do you know we're not?" Abel, Sy
The war between both sides of the Mafia began, and the war shook the whole state. Eventually, Alessandro's side won, but that was because of Gianna, who used Syrius's obsession over her to play him and lead him to his death.I could feel that sharp pain again, intensifying with each passing second. It was getting difficult for me to breathe and I decided it was because of the eagerness coursing through my body. The docks were quiet, you could only hear the sound of the sea as they rocked the boats, swaying them gently.I checked my watch once more as we hurriedly walked to the motorboat Syrius had arranged a few hours ago with a former business associate of his and a friend of mine.Five o'clock.We drove for nearly two hours to get here. Naturally, it should’ve been a little close to three hours but Alessandro did it in record time. We spotted Syrius on a motorboat that was yet to take off. "I wouldn't do anything stupid if I were you." Alessandro’s voice rumbled.I watched Syrius
I walked briskly into the large room, it was a typical, bleak coffee-stained room with dirty walls. The scent of sweat, cigarettes and musky cologne hung in the air like a chandelier, there were pictures on the wall which were some kind of modern art, the furniture looked plain, uncomfortable, leather and black. My eyes landed on a large man sitting at the center of the room. A long metal table with paper strewn across the surface, separated me from who I assumed to be the boss, he was flanked by men holding mean-looking guns, some I hadn't seen before in my life and that said a lot about the kind of people I was dealing with here. I took a close look at him as I approached the table, my gaze wary as it darted from face to face trying to pick up a hint. The skin on his body looked like grade-three sandpaper, the consistency was unreal. He lifted his face and pushed away his bowl of cereal as he saw me coming towards him. His face was badly burnt, the hair on his head was charred an
Lying down on the raw concrete, I could feel the walls closing in around me. I felt the vicious pounding of my heart banging repeatedly against my ribcage.I shut my eyes tightly. I could still hear myself yelling their names over the cacophony of a billion shards of glass as my head slammed into the mirror. I couldn't bring myself to bask in the pain I felt. I had little to no time to do what these men wanted or my son would be dead. Instinctively, I touched where a shard of glass had cut me. The wound had been bandaged expertly. I had to give it to them, they had thought everything through before they made their first attack. I was like a recruit thrust into the heat of a raging war, I needed to find a safe place before I was blown to bits out here in the open.I groaned as I struggled to sit up, I had no idea on how I got here but I didn't care about that right now. I had more important things to worry about, I needed to be up on my feet, thinking. I needed my brain working overt
I had lost my touch. That's what happens when you become docile after years of being on guard."Do exactly what I say or you die." I could feel my heart racing despite my best attempts to compose myself.I knew I was walking into a trap but I had no choice. I wasn’t entirely sure that the letter came from Syrius, maybe it was only a silly joke being played by some crazy maniac but what I was certain of was that whoever sent the letter had my son and I was willing to do anything to get my child back. The accent was masculine and Eastern European. There was no quake or tremor in the man's voice. His tone sounded calm and detailed. This was no hoax, if I went out of line, I would die.I tried to remember if either Alessandro or myself had any issues with any mafia from that part of the world but I couldn’t come up with anything. "What do you want?"I asked fearfully as the cold steel of his gun pressed into the small of my back.I needed a distraction. My first instinct was to lean
I felt dejected as I searched each room hoping to find him in there but I knew the truth, he was gone and I had no idea where he had gone to. The wardrobe was empty as well, he had packed his bags and he was probably halfway across the world for all she could know. Despite sitting in our room for hours, I knew I missed him and I could feel the tears stinging the back of my eyes. This wasn’t how I had envisaged my life a few weeks and it hurt now that I was faced with this shitty reality. Our first conversation after he’d been discharged from the hospital didn’t go too well. I couldn’t stop myself from blaming him for the disappearance of our son. I categorically told him that I believed our son was kidnapped because of the ties he has to him and the mafia. Alessandro had tried to reason with me but I didn’t want to hear any of it, all I wanted was my son. My phone rang and I retrieved it from my pocket, it was Tiffany. She had promised to call back after a couple of hours.“Hey
I had lost my touch. That's what happens when you become docile after years of being on guard."Do exactly what I say or you die." I could feel my heart racing despite my best attempts to compose myself.I knew I was walking into a trap but I had no choice. I wasn’t entirely sure that the letter came from Syrius, maybe it was only a silly joke being played by some crazy maniac but what I was certain of was that whoever sent the letter had my son and I was willing to do anything to get my child back. The accent was masculine and Eastern European. There was no quake or tremor in the man's voice. His tone sounded calm and detailed. This was no hoax, if I went out of line, I would die.I tried to remember if either Alessandro or myself had any issues with any mafia from that part of the world but I couldn’t come up with anything. "What do you want?"I asked fearfully as the cold steel of his gun pressed into the small of my back.I needed a distraction. My first instinct was to lean
I felt dejected as I searched each room hoping to find him in there but I knew the truth, he was gone and I had no idea where he had gone to. The wardrobe was empty as well, he had packed his bags and he was probably halfway across the world for all she could know. Despite sitting in our room for hours, I knew I missed him and I could feel the tears stinging the back of my eyes. This wasn’t how I had envisaged my life a few weeks and it hurt now that I was faced with this shitty reality. Our first conversation after he’d been discharged from the hospital didn’t go too well. I couldn’t stop myself from blaming him for the disappearance of our son. I categorically told him that I believed our son was kidnapped because of the ties he has to him and the mafia. Alessandro had tried to reason with me but I didn’t want to hear any of it, all I wanted was my son. My phone rang and I retrieved it from my pocket, it was Tiffany. She had promised to call back after a couple of hours.“Hey
It’s been a week since the ugly incident and Alessandro hadn’t woken up yet. I was struggling to pull it together but I knew that I didn’t have any other option, I couldn’t afford to break down right now not when I had to look after myself and Alessandro as well. I needed him to be up and running if we were going to get to the bottom of this tragic incident that had befallen us. The doctor urged me to give him time and be patient till he decided to come around. His vitals were good and his condition was improving, he was going to wake up any moment from now, the doctor would always say giving her a warm smile in return. The conviction in his voice always seemed to calm my nerves so I waited calmly until Alessandro decided to come around.I was in his hospital room, sitting on a chair next to the hospital bed, my knees were pulled up under my chin with my face buried between the latest reports from the investigators who were handling the case until Alessandro took over. Reading help
“Are you sure it’s safe to go on this trip?” I asked, nibbling on my lower lips as I shuffled from one foot to another, unable to be at peace. Alessandro had offered to take me on a three-day trip while Tiffany and the maids we hired would look after our son until we were back. “I had to spend three days convincing Ethan to let you go, Gianna. Do you think I’m not going to take you out to celebrate accomplishing the biggest goal I’ve ever set for myself?” Alessandro chuckled. “Tone down with your flattery, dude.” I laughed, playfully smacking his arm. “I’m only worried about the safety of our son and I hope you can understand that.” Alessandro pulled me close and I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I understand why you’re worried and you have every right to be. You’ve never been away from him for more than a few hours and now, I’m asking you to spend three days without him.” “He’s been through so much already, I don’t want him to suffer anymore.” I sighed, placing my head on his
I didn’t exactly know how long it had been but a few hours had passed since Alessandro left the house after our heated argument about him going out despite the doctor’s advice. Unable to bring myself to do anything tangible, I had spent the rest of the afternoons wandering around the house and counting the hours until he would return while taking care of Ethan as well. He had called me earlier but I wasn’t in the mood to talk, else I would break down and I didn’t want that to happen. For my sake, it would be best if I remained silent until I regained every trace of my composure before tackling everything Alessandro had disregarded. I couldn't be worried about him and our son simultaneously, my poor heart wouldn’t be able to take it. Alessandro had assured me that he would be back early enough and I couldn’t wait, the suspense already had me in a chokehold.As soon as she heard Alessandro’s car pull up in the driveway, I bolted off the couch where I had been sitting and rushed out