Athena"Raven!"Somewhere, far away, someone was calling my name."Raven!!!"The room blurred into a burst of moving colors around me, a ringing in my ear as in the distance, I could only barely hear the sounds around the room, the people screaming, glasses shattering, tables and chairs toppling."RAVEN! GET DOWN!"A second loud bang, hitting the table and shattering it jerked me out of my trance, sending splinters of wood flying across my face, narrowly missing it.I threw myself to the ground immediately, taking cover and toppling the table to provide extra cover for me and Luciano.The shooter was obviously targeting us, for some reason I was not entirely sure of, and he had shit from behind me, hitting Luciano.I crawled over him, not caring about the broken glass tearing at my clothes or the floor, wet with wine and soggy pasta. He lay they, clutching his bleeding shoulder and grimacing."Luciano! Are you okay?"He nodded, "Yeah, I am fine," but as soon as I reached out to touch
AthenaI was confused, totally. And for the second time that night, I had no idea how to react, "Luca? What? How?"Luciano hobbled over to the table at a dark corner in the room, pulling out a knuckle ring and putting it on his left hand. "I figured he would need a little bit more time." He said casually, like the man he was trying to beat up wasn't an assassin sent by his worst enemy and had damn near succeeded too.I turned to look at him, understanding dawning on me, why he wasn't panicked at all, why he was so calm. There was only one reasonable explanation. "You knew this was going to happen." I said quietly.He stopped his rummaging, turning to look at me, "Raven-""Did you?"He let out a deep breath, "Yeah, well, kinda. I only sus-""You did!" I said, my voice getting louder. The man had shot from my back, he had to be facing Luciano, and given how close the two buildings were, it was impossible Luciano hadn't seen him walk in and set up his little nest. "That's why you aren't
AthenaWe were on a plane back to Sicily the next morning. No need for disguises, we took of from a private airfield in New Jersey.As soon as we touched down, ten hours later, I saw a black limo by the tarmac. Luciano smiled as he saw it, "Our welcoming party is here."I raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean welcoming party?""Don't get your hopes up," he said, "It's just Giuseppe."The old man was standing by the car, smiling widely as we walked towards him. He first greeted Luciano, pulling him into a giant hug, like he was his father, patting his back, pride in his eyes.He then turned to me, "Welcome back to Sicily, Raven," he said, extending his hand. "How was your flight? Was it good? Are you too tired?""I am good." I said as I shook his hand, feeling a surge of pride at the way he addressed me. It was clear that Luciano had already told him about me, and that I was already considered a member of the mafia."Thank you, Giuseppe," I said. "It's good to be back."Giuseppe smiled,
LucianoThe police man standing guard at the gate didn't even bother to check my face, I took it that the warden had done his job and informed them I was on my way, I drove quietly into the compound, packing in front of the administrative building and walking in slowly."Good Evening Signori Luciano" The officer standing at the table greeted as soon as he saw me, tipping his hat. His English was broken and heavily accented, but I could understand him enough."Good evening," I reached into my coat, fishing out my cigarette and lighting it. "How is it going?"He smiled appreciatively, apparently pleased I took any interest in his day to day activities. "It haz been quiet Signore." He smiled, revealing a row of tobacco stained brown teeth.I nodded, "Good, I am here for inmate 474.""Oh," he opened up the computer in front of him, "Would you be going out with him?" He asked, peeking at me from over the desktop, "Do you need an escort?"The look on his face told me he thought I was going
AthenaThe FBI was a rather busy place. With the legalization of guns, drug trafficking, and a lot of other shit that made the world a terrible place, they had their hands full. It was easy then, for me to slip through their crowd of agents unnoticed. I walked into the headquarters, dressed in black pants and a blue shirt that half the agents present wore. A few nods here and there would make it seem like I belonged there- and maybe I did. I caught my reflection on one of the glass windows of a unit. My caramel brown hair was tied into a strict ponytail, leaving my green eyes to pop out. I narrowed my eyes and pressed my full lips into a thin line. Maybe I didn't fit in there at all. "You in?" Frederick's raspy voice reached my ears through the earpiece stuck in it, breaking my reverie."What do you think?" I asked, climbing down a set of stairs into the basement. "Last I checked this earpiece thingy doesn't work if I am not in the vicinity, Freddy," "Cheeky as always, kiddo," He
AthenaSure thing, Bastard. Holding his steely gaze, I plopped my ass on the chair before him. My nerves tingle, itching with an impulsive desire to use my hairpin. He was simply a few meters across. All it would take was one swipe at his carotid artery and he was gone.My eyes drifted down to his bulging bicep stretching the Italian suit he wore and mentally shook my head. He was the Lord of the mafia for goodness sake. I doubted he would be that easy to kill. Besides, he was wary of me at the moment. He might hide behind a blank face, but personally interviewing me showed that he wanted to assess my reactions. He wanted to know who he was dealing with. "Mrs. Emile Mourinho referred you," He spoke, fishing out a file from the numerous that occupied his table. "She says you're capable enough to handle being my assistant." "Yes Mr. Moretti," I said with a grin. "I had my MBA in Brunswick. Though it's such a less prominent place, I have worked with professors who have the tightest s
AthenaI checked my makeup once again in the rearview mirror of the Audi I sat in, a queasy feeling nestled in my belly. I was so anxious, it was fucking ridiculous. I had taken down powerful men by infiltrating their very lives. I had fought gangs and bad guys ever since I was taken in by Frederick at sixteen. I could fight my way through booby traps, through deathly lasers, through a fucking prison gate, and yet... Yet I was anxious. Perhaps there were enough reasons for me to be. I wore a dress I had sworn I would never get caught in. A cream-colored body con. It clung to me like a second skin and while I admit that I looked amazing in it, I wasn't comfortable strutting through the building like that. Especially with the rather open neckline. Heck, I could see the mounds of my breasts propped against each other like two hills. I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew Luciano liked his women bold, willing, and pliant. However, considering this was my second day as his PA, coming on to
AthenaWhen the Elevator doors slid open on the first floor, a group of men dressed in blue shirts and black trousers in the hallway looked at me like I was a foreign object. A very interesting foreign object. Taking a deep breath and straightening my back, I walked slowly towards them, flipping my hair for effect. "Hello pretty lady," One of them grinned, rushing to meet me first. "Are you lost?" I giggled and shook my head, holding my hand out. "I'm Raven. I'm the big guy's new PA." "Really? You the one who spoke on the phone some minutes ago?" One of them grunted, joining his friend to look at me while the others kept their distance. "Boss is a fucking lucky man." "So damn lucky," his friend agreed, nodding. Dammit, I couldn't waste time talking. If I took too long, Luciano could begin to suspect me. Or even worse, he could meet me here trying to get his security men to talk. "So... I had a question that was bothering me," I mumbled, pouting my lips. "I was hoping you good