KIDNAPPED BY THE SILVER MAFIA DON

My father is at gunpoint. "You owe us a total of 102 million dollars. Do you have the means to pay, or are you ready to die?" The bald, 6 foot tall henchman clicks the gun, tapping my father's forehead with he metal.My heart is racing and I don't know what to do.Earlier on, father had been rejoicing to me about the new scam he had pulled on a gullible project manager of a big firm.He had good skills- commiting crimes that no one could trace.To him, this was the easiest scam he'd ever pulled.Father had even gone ahead to purchase an exotic home worth 70 million in Milan.We were both rejoicing- well I was joining in because that's the only way he can be happy these days- before our door was broken down.Father pushed me to the closet and made me hide while they rushed in.Now, I'm sweating in the midst of coats and boots, watching these men with criss crossed knife tattoos on their necks point a gun at my father.Black Silver.The only gang I know with these tattoos belong to th

I haven't stopped shaking since he left. The contract sat on my lap like a stone, its weight pressing down on me even as my vision blurs. My tears have soaked the edges of the paper, but I don't care. My mind spins with the words I've just read. Three months. That's all my father has to pay back the money. And if he doesn't... I clutch my stomach, trying to will away the bile rising up my throat. The dimly lit room around me suddenly feels like it's closing in, the air too thick to breathe. I stumble off the bed, my bare feet hitting the cold marble floor. My legs are weak, but I force them to move, pacing back and forth in the small space. I can't stay here. I glance toward the door. It's heavy and made of some kind of reinforced steel. There's no handle on my side... just a keypad, its tiny red light mocking me. My fingers dig into my scalp, tugging at my hair as I try to think. There has to be a way out. A window. A vent. Something. I scan the room, desperate for any sembl

The entire gathering is silent for a moment. As I watch Raymond's face turn cold, I realize my awful mistake.No one in the legal business world knew who was behind the Black silver cartel.Opening my mouth and screaming this in an event where important dignitaries are present is a mistake.Detrimental for him, though. After my initial shock, I can't care less.He's brought it upon himself. There were other ways to handle my father's debt.Kidnapping me as collateral was just stupid.Raymond gives a signal to one of his men and in an instant, I'm whooshed off the floor and carried off to the car outside.The guard dumps me inside the black audi and locks the door.I wait inside, heaving and panting. For a while, I'm left to my own devices, even dozing off once.Then the other backseat door flies open, startling me. It's Raymond.His demeanor is cold; that ever present mocking smile of his is gone. He stares at me and I glare back."Tarnished your image, didn't I? Did you think I'd jus

The sterile scent of antiseptic lingers, clinging to my skin long after Dr. Sharma and Nurse Agnes have left. I sit on the edge of my bed, with my legs dangling, my fingers curling into the thin sheet beneath me. The room feels too quiet, too cold, the weight of their verdict pressing down on me. "Healthy enough."That's all I am now... fit for the task. Nothing more. I exhale sharply and push myself off the table. I can't sit here. I need to move. The polished floor is cool beneath my bare feet as I step toward the door. I hesitate for a brief moment, listening. The house is quiet. No voices, no footsteps. My pulse quickens. Just a walk. Just some air. I slip out into the dim hallway, keeping my steps light. The silence is different here, heavier. The walls, the doors, everything feels too perfect, too controlled. Like a place meant to hold secrets. A cool breeze brushes against my skin as I push open the glass doors leading outside. The garden stretches before me... tall hedge

The helicopter lands after three hours. We arrive at the countryside; at a manor that looked liked it spanned on for miles even from above.For a moment, I forget my uneasiness and take in everything. The sprawling gardens, the forever fields, the main mansion and the smaller buildings about.A real paradise.However, if the people in there are anything like my kidnapper...like Eliana...I'll be done.The helicopter lands on a helipad on top one of the buildings and shuts down.Raymond has been silent the whole ride. Once we stop, he simply removes his seatbelt then leans over to do mine. His hands brush my waist and a bit of my chest. I shift on my seat, uncomfortable."Keep your head down when you come out," he says and then comes down from the other side.I do as he says, even having to hold my hair down as the blades above blow it over.Raymond moves quickly, giving instructions to his men on the roof. I can hardly keep up with him.We take an elevator down to the ground floor an