Mafia Obsession

Elio

“My brother asked you a question,” Luca says, standing behind the man tied to the chair. Luca places his hand on the man’s head. He’s around forty, plastered in tattoos of every color and pattern. A naked bulb lights the storeroom of the betting shop. Luca nudges his head. “Well?”

I lean down, holding the photo of Jessica Smith so the man can see better. “It’s simple. Have you seen this woman?”

“I don’t w-want any trouble,” the man stutters. “Not with the M-Marinos.”

“It might be a good idea to stop preying on innocent women, then, buddy,” Luca says in disgust, giving the man’s head another nudge. “I asked a friend about you. He said you like to hang around high schools, try to poach the graduates, get them hooked on shit so they’ll work in your business.”

Luca’s getting angry, I can tell. It’s the vein throbbing in his neck. He looks at me as if to ask if we should just end this lowlife here. I shake my head subtly.

“Have you seen her?” I growl. “Or him?” I show a photo of her dad.

His eyes snap open. He nods like a pathetic prick, happy to be able to give us something. “That’s Philip. Yeah, I know him. He was hanging around last night. Played a bit of poker.”

I grit my teeth in disgust. “With what money?” “He owes me,” the man says, “but he took off.” “Where?”

“Don’t know.”

“Did he say anything about where he might go?” I ask.

“He got real mad and mentioned a poker game that’d treat him better than we were. You heard of Satan’s Basin? That’s where he said he was heading.”

“That place is even more of a shithole than here,” Luca mutters. “Anything else?”

The man shakes his head frantically, desperately. He can probably sense how badly Luca wants to tear his head off. He’s almost drooling in fear. “N- no. I swear.”

“Okay. Good.” Luca takes out his pistol and pushes it against the man’s head. “Any last words?”

He starts properly whining now, trying to kick his legs, causing the chair to buck beneath him. “Puh-please.”

I give Luca a look. He gives me one back. “What?” he snaps.

“We can’t afford a murder charge,” I tell him. “We’ve got what we need.” “This man is filth.”

“No argument there.” “Puh-puh…”

“Shut up,” Luca snaps, pushing the gun firmer against his head, causing his head to tip forward so that his chin is almost touching his chest.Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

“I mean it,” I say.

“You’re lucky my brother’s here,” Luca says, walking around so he’s in front of the man. He kneels and pushes the gun against his throat. “If he weren’t, I’d have one hell of a time with you, buddy. Believe me. I’d turn you into goddamn soup.”

Luca places the barrel of the gun against the man’s knee and pulls the trigger. I turn away at the last moment, but there’s no escaping the noise. My ears start ringing right away. The man screams and throws himself backward, falling with the chair.

“If I see you in my city again,” Luca growls, standing over him, “I’m taking more than a kneecap next time.”

How was breakfast with Mom? I text.

It was okay, she replies immediately, telling me she was waiting near her phone. She’s a lovely woman. You were right. She thinks we’re using the singer thing as a cover story.

“We moving, bro?” Luca says from the passenger seat. “Soon,” I tell him.

“You’re doing that weird smiling thing again.”

I can’t help but smile when I’m talking with my woman. Even if the circumstances are dark and we have a lot to worry about, it feels so natural.

Luca and I have another lead. We’re going to check it out now. Aren’t you exhausted? You haven’t slept.

This is more important than sleep, I tell her. You’re more important, Scarlet.

Thank you. I hope I can repay you for all this one day.

I have to take a moment to calm myself down when I read this message. There are plenty of ways she could repay me. There’s so much my woman could do. My thoughts will never stop going there, no matter what’s happening. She’s just too damn addictive.

I made a promise, angel, I text. I want you to know… I’ve told Luca about you and me and our suspicions concerning Russel.

He’s your brother. You can trust him. I’m glad you understand, I tell her.

It’s like you said, right? Family is the most important thing. Always, I reply.

What I don’t tell her is that our family is going to be the most important thing. I’m filled with so much heat, love, and protective instincts when I think of our future children.

I should get moving. I’ll see you later.

“Done texting your lover girl?” Luca says. “Don’t belittle it,” I tell him.

He leans back, watching me with those shrewdly narrowed eyes. “I’m sorry,” he says. “Hell, you must really care about her.”

“I told you earlier,” I snap. “The minute I saw her, it was different.”

I haven’t told him everything about how I feel. I haven’t told him about my dreams for the future. The electricity that sparked between us the first moment I saw her, but I’ve told him enough for him to know my feelings for her are serious.

“I spoke to Russel, by the way,” Luca says. “What? When?”

“I texted him when we were driving out to the lead. He texted back when we were with our one-kneed friend.”

“And?”

“It was his idea to meet at that restaurant. Apparently, he had a very special reason for wanting to meet there. He even said LOL and put a winky face, which is fucking annoying.”

I smirk. “Since when are you so against texting?”

“I’m old-fashioned. I like to talk to people. Anyway, it’s looking like your lady’s theory might be right.”

“Russel chose that restaurant because he’s a sick freak and wanted to get closer to her, maybe to taunt her. Or maybe he thought we’d be impressed if he told us what he’d done.”

Luca shrugs. “Or maybe he and the Shanks are just drug-addled morons, and there’s no logic behind anything they do.”

“You’ve changed your thinking, then.”

He lets out a long breath through gritted teeth. “I still trust Dad’s judgment, but after our talk last night…” No matter how angry Luca and I get during arguments, we’re always friends right after, and we never hold grudges. “I started thinking maybe if Dad was fully Dad, he wouldn’t have rushed into this. Plus, if Russel is the one who broke into your lady’s apartment, then we’re done. We don’t do business with people like that.”

“I agree,” I tell him. “Though we already are in business with him.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Luca says, sighing. “We’ll burn that bridge when we come to it. For now, let’s get moving. We need to find your lady’s parents. By the way, you’re doing it again.”

“Doing what?”

He grins. “Smiling. Every time I call her your lady, you smile. It’s like you can’t help it.”

“I don’t think I can,” I tell him. “There’s something special about her.” “I’m happy for you.”

“Don’t be yet,” I reply. “There’s still too much up in the air. Her parents, Russel, and the fact I’ve never had a serious relationship.”

I start the engine, pulling away from the alleyway I parked us in after Luca kneecapped the lowlife. As we left the storehouse, I saw a few of his men running in to tend to him. None of them would look us in the eye. There was no damn way they were going to try anything.

“Don’t overthink it,” Luca says. “That’s your issue. Always thinking too much.”

“She’s nineteen,” I reply. “She’s so, so young.” “Why does that matter?”

“You never heard of an older man taking advantage of a young woman?”

“But that’s not what you’re doing, dumbass,” Luca says, the only man who’d ever talk to me like this. That’s one of the reasons brotherhood is so damn important. “There’s clearly something unique about her. You’ve basically been a monk for years, and even when you had girlfriends, everybody could tell you were only doing it for appearances and to keep Mom happy. Even the girlfriends could tell that.”

“I can’t argue there,” I reply. “I just wish we could’ve met under better circumstances.”

Luca shrugs. For a while, we drive without speaking. Then Luca chuckles and says, “Just think, bro. If everything works out with her, you’ll be thanking Russel. If it weren’t for him, we never would’ve gone to that restaurant, and you never would’ve met.”

“If he chose that place to put a scare in my lady,” I growl, “the only way I’ll be thanking him is with a bullet.”

Scarlet

I focus on the simple act of unpacking my suitcase, folding the clothes, and finding space for them in the closet and drawers. I’m taking far, far longer than this task actually needs. It’s the only way to keep myself somewhat sane. That’s what my life has become, focusing on the present moment, the boring stuff, so my mind doesn’t flit to Mom, to all the sick stuff that could be happening to her.

When my phone vibrates, I almost leap on it.

We’re staking out a possible location now, Elio tells me. It’s going to be a while. How are you keeping yourself busy, beautiful?

When he calls me beautiful, a warm flutter bounces through me. It lets me forget about everything else. There’s something magical about my man.

I’m having a very productive day, I reply. I’ve folded the same shirt ten times just to keep myself occupied. I’m not sure what else to do. I think your mom’s having a nap.

You could take a look at the library. Or watch a movie in the theater. This place has a library and a theater?! It’s like Beauty and the Beast. Ha, ha. Am I the beauty or the beast?

I smile, sitting on the bed, warmth flowing through me. I don’t let the nerves twist through me or let them take hold. There’s no point thinking about what happens when he comes home, the sun falls, and he wants to go further. I want it, too, even with Mom missing. I’m not sure what that says about me.

I could use Mom as an excuse to hide the real reason for the nerves.

I’d say half beauty, half beast, I reply. What about me? You’re all beauty, Scarlet, no question about that.

My smile widens even more. There must be something unique here. I wouldn’t be able to talk like this with anybody else without going crazy with guilt. It’s like this deep, urgent impulse inside of me pushes all that aside.

Where are you now? I ask.

I don’t think you want to know. Don’t worry about what we’re doing.

No, Elio, I reply. I want to know. I need to. Otherwise, I’ll imagine stuff that’s ten times worse.

Are you sure?

I’m not a little kid, I tell him. I can handle it.

Elio

We’re in a neighborhood known as Satan’s Basin. Apparently, your dad mentioned he was going to come here for a poker game. We’re currently staking out the most well-known game organizer in the neighborhood.

She takes a minute to respond. Luca leans back in his seat, eyes closed. He’s always been able to relax easier than me. Even with the Family at stake, even after kneecapping a man, he can sit there completely at peace, with no stress at all.

Oh, God, she replies. Be careful.

Don’t worry about me. I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it. What are you waiting for? she asks, then sends a follow-up a moment later.

I didn’t mean for that to sound rude. I just mean, why are you staking the place out?

You don’t have to worry about sounding rude with me, I type, then pause, rereading my message. I want to tell her that she and I are far too close for anything like that to matter. There’s far too much heat between us, destiny, belonging. She never has to question herself when we’re together. We’re waiting to get an idea of how many people are in there. Then we’ll move in.

I can’t imagine what my mom is doing right now, my angel-voiced woman texts. If she’s there with those people, what is she doing? Have they kidnapped her? Is she playing poker, too? Or maybe she and Dad have decided to go on the run and leave me behind.

I almost gasp when I read that last sentence. Do you really think they’d do that?

I don’t think Mom would, but with the pain pills, maybe Dad could convince her.

I grit my teeth. The more I hear about my woman’s father-my future father-in-law-the more I dislike him. A man should stand by his daughter no matter what. She should never even have to question if he would abandon her. It shouldn’t even enter her mind.

When we find her, we’ll get answers, I text, holding back a lot about her dad. The last thing she needs right now is for me to rant about him. Just try to relax.

Relax? Doing what? I feel like I’m trespassing just being here.

I clench my hand around the phone. My woman should never have to feel like that in any Family-owned place, house, or business. She’s going to be my mafia queen one day. She’s going to give me her perfect, curvy body, her hand in marriage, and our children. She’s going to provide me with a whole future.

Maybe relax isn’t the right word, I reply. But try not to stress. Hopefully, I’ll have news soon.

“Bro,” Luca says, tapping me on the arm.

I look up and spot a side door to the house opening. One man walks out first, holding the bottom of a bundle of tarpaulin. Another man steps out after, holding the other end.

“Fifty bucks if you can guess what they’re carrying,” Luca says dryly, classic gallows humor.

I’m not in the mood for that today. “That could be her mom or her dad. Have some goddamn respect.”

“Sorry,” Luca says, reaching for the door. “Let’s go find out before they get rid of it.”

I swallow, wondering how I’m going to tell my woman if the worst has happened.