FOUR: WELCOME PARTY

Elena’s POV

 

“There will be a welcome party for you tonight. Wear any of the blue open-back Versace gowns in the wardrobe. I made sure the porters kept everything intact, just how you like it,” he says, then plants a soft kiss on my cheek.

 I’m frozen on the spot.

 “The party will begin at 8 p.m. Don’t be late. After that, you have questions to answer.” He walks off with this last sentence.

This man is not what I expected. I expected a heartless, brutal cartel boss, but this one opens car doors, offers to take me shopping, and issues commands that make my knees grow weak. 

There’s no doubt that everyone else fears him, but whatever my sister did to charm him must have been the biggest charm of the century.

That is why I’m so scared. I don’t know how long I can keep this up. So far, no one has noticed that I’m not my sister. But that’s why I will avoid situations that make anyone suspicious. Like that shopping he offered on our way back from the auction. Clearly, he loved seeing my sister in blue, open-back gowns. Meanwhile, I don’t even like blue! If we had gone shopping, I’d have chosen something so different from what he and my sister were used to.

Sh*t! Elena, what have you done? I’m beginning to rethink this mission my sister made me embark on. I liked my little quiet life. In the past 48 hours, I have been nearly shot, bought by the Mafia for a stupefying amount, traveled three countries, and exposed to more luxury than any pediatric nurse would see in a thousand lives.

God, what am I going to do now? Do I abort? I don’t know how my sister escaped this house; it’s a fortress! Mean guards with terrifying guns (I think they’re AK47s) stand watch at every corner. There are two right outside my door now.

Sh*t! 

Oh please, get yourself together, Elena. Have you forgotten what he did to your sister? You must finish what you’ve started.

I sigh and stare at the giant, gold-plated Clock on the east wall. It’s about four hours till the party.

I’ll try to get some sleep. As I lie down, I realize how exhausted I am. Not just bodily; my mind is fried from all the thinking and lying, and it’s been just two days.

The sheets are too soft, and the bed magically caresses my back. I imagine my sister lying on this same bed. I reach for the letter hidden in a tiny pocket of my gown and just caress it. 

Thinking about my sister makes me fall asleep faster than expected.

 *** *** *** *** *** ***

I overslept by twenty minutes. He was standing outside my room when I finished preparing.

His smell, rich baritone, firm jaw, and muscles that seem to flex even inside his suit, can make any girl bend over for him. But that’s not why I’m here.

I’m here to make them all suffer, but him especially. All my revenge plans have evaporated, but I think it’s just nerves. This life is a far stretch from mine. But when I’m better settled, I’ll think of something. For now, I must ensure that no one finds out my true identity.

“I told you not to be late”, he says with his back to me.

I don’t know how my sister could put up with this. He gives commands so casually. And what was that he said to me on our way to the airport: “I own you, Serena. Don’t ever forget that again”.

“Sorry, I overslept. Long flights make me sick”. I say that as a gamble, hoping my sister must have said the same thing too.

He doesn’t flinch.

Thank goodness. He turns to face me, and all his meanness melts away. His lips are full, and when they curve into a smile, it makes his face look like something straight out of Vogue magazine.

Focus, Elena!

“There are no words to describe how you look, Serena. Now, I think your auction price should have been higher”, he grins.

He waits for me to laugh. Oh, that was supposed to be a joke? I chuckle lightly.

“Are you okay? Do you want the party canceled?” He asks as he tilts my head and pulls me closer to himself. I suddenly feel too hot.

I also don’t know if that’s a trick question. What kind of guest asks her host to cancel her welcome party? So many thoughts rummage through my mind.

His gaze is still fixed on me expectantly.

“Oh, I’m fine. There’s no need to cancel”.

“You’re sure?”

“Mm-hmmm”, I nod like a frightened rabbit.

“Good. Everyone is waiting downstairs. My Mama is still in her quarters. She will join the party shortly; she just hates parties”, he adds quickly and laughs.

His Mama.

 Damn, I totally forgot about her. Serena’s warning in the letter rings in my head louder than fire alarms:

"You must be careful around his Mama. I mean it, Elena. He cares intimately and sweetly for me, but if there’s anyone who may find out who you really are, it’s his Mama. Affection for me or not, he wouldn’t hesitate to inflict unimaginable pain on you if his Mama finds out and tells him."

God, I’m in way over my head. I squint to remember if there were any peculiarities Serena had that I don’t. Something anyone who is paying attention would notice?

Ambient opera fills the air as we enter the party hall, disrupting my thoughts. We pass by the longest buffet tray I have ever seen, and… who are all these people?

With the way they all look at me, I doubt they are all here to say welcome. They look at me like I’m some exotic animal that only the boss can have.

I’m relieved when he finally leads me to my seat beside his. He immediately takes charge of the party.

“Ladies and gentlemen! A toast”, he shouts, clinking his champagne glass with a fork. My eyes caught the price tag on one of the champagne bottles: $420,000. That’s more than my annual salary!

“Not too long ago, many of you know how distraught I was. Because I lost something precious, something most dear to me, it felt like something out of a nightmare. This minute, she was here; next minute, she was gone. We searched all over Italy, and many of you brought clues to help. All to no avail.”

You can hear a pin drop. I scan their faces; they all have their eyes glued on him. He’s like their god.

“But finally, I have her back!” He bellows, and they all cheer loudly.

He gives me his free hand, inviting me to stand. Then, he turns to me in front of everyone, and I feel he can see into my soul.

“My Gazelle, my diamond. Welcome back home. I’m never letting you go”. I’m thinking he's going to finish with a kiss so I get nauseous. But thankfully, he didn’t. He just pecked my cheeks.

No way he is always this sweet and considerate. Or is he?

The claps and cheers suddenly grow still when a wheelchair rolls into the hall. The crowd at the back prevents me from seeing who’s in it, but all my years in the hospital make it impossible not to recognize the whirring sound wheelchairs make.

“Mama”, he says when the wheelchair comes into view just a few feet from where we stand.

Sh*t, it’s his Mama. Serena’s warning goes off like fireworks again.

“Welcome, the party just got started”, he bows curtly.

She doesn’t look impressed, not even one bit. She gives me a burning once-over, then tuts dryly.

“Well, now that she’s back again, you can finally get married, and I can go back to planning the wedding of the decade—just like we arranged and agreed to before she disappeared.”

She says it loudly so everyone hears, despite her shrill voice. The hall erupts into loud cheers again.

The nausea is back, strongly this time.

Did she just say get married? Wedding of the decade? Serena didn’t say any of that in the letter! She agreed to marry him, so now I am to get married to a Mafia boss at 24?

Oh my goodness!

“I need to use the bathroom”, I whisper to no one in particular.