The cop stared at the two jittery women sitting across from him. One of them had just given her statement and was filing paperwork. It was the early hours of the morning, so the station was almost cleared out.
It wouldn’t be the first time someone would come to the station with a story or a report about the mafia. He had suggested that they keep their dealings under wraps as best as they possibly could. He was quite infuriated that he had to handle yet another of their matters, this time an escaped captive who knew so much about them, including their names. Normally, he would have picked up his phone and begun mouthing off to the guy he usually spoke to in the family, but this matter concerned Orlando, and he knew better than to lose his temper.The mafia already had the police in their palm long before he joined the police force or rose to his rank, but Orlando made certain the police allegiance to the family was sealed. He dug up dirt on whoever had dirt, danglinOrlando was about to open the car door when Sebastian grabbed his hand. “I agreed to follow you here instead of having a quiet stay at home, which of course was what I planned to do. I don’t plan on dying here, what is the plan?”“Kill them…” he answered like it was obvious. “If they are Romano’s men then they are amateurs, he wouldn’t want to get his main guys involved…”“And if they are not?”He thought for a moment. “Surely, they are no match for the two of us.”Sebastian knew it but he also knew Orlando was not being rational, he was walking with a blinding anger. All he saw was red, he wanted the girl and he would do anything including endanger himself to find her. He had tagged along to look out for him.They were parked behind a rundown, derelict warehouse building. Sebastian scanned the area. “There are no tall buildings around, that eliminates the possibility of snipers. We have an edge because they only just arrived, they would
As soon as they arrived at the house, Orlando was the first to get out of the car. He opened her door and waited for her to exit. He slammed the doors as soon as she did and then dragged her towards the house. Sebastian tried to intervene, but Orlando moved on as if he did not hear a thing.She was quite taken aback by him. She had noticed the frown on his face, but she had brushed it off as nothing. His voice when he talked to them earlier was much calmer. He unlocked the doors and pulled her in. Then he detached from her and began pacing. She stood still, terrified that if she made any move, he would lose the last restraint he was holding on to.“He asked me, you know…” he began mumbling, loud enough for her to hear. “Why are you doing this? And I did not have a good enough answer then, and even now…” then he paused in his tracks, his eyes bore into hers until she looked away. “Why am I helping you?” He took a few steps forward.She retreated."
Orlando reclined back on the chair, sitting across from Romano, whose snake-like eyes watched him intently. He casually drummed his fingers against the table.Romano stood up and returned with a bottle in his hand, pouring himself a glass and sliding another glass towards Orlando. “Any thing of note happen over the weekend?” he asked in a relaxed tone of voice with a tinge of curiosity.Orlando took a moment to think about the weekend he had just had. All of it. He had finally seen his family, after more than eighteen years. He stuffed drugs down a man’s throat until he overdosed. Elena left his home, and got kidnapped and he had to link up with his friend and old partner in what the news described as a “gun battle showdown”He had lost his temper and had shot the men more times than was necessary. All of the emotions he was feeling all weekend, the anger, the nostalgia, the brief moment of happiness, the feeling of lust was all because of one woman. Elena. The
There was a small knock on the door. She stood up almost immediately, smoothed her dress, and walked to the door. It was who she expected it to be… Orlando was leaning at the entrance of her room. The sleeves on his white shirt were rolled up, a few of the top buttons on his shirt were undone revealing his hard chest. His hair looked like he had run his fingers through it, his eyes looked tired.Surprisingly, she felt a pang in her chest, she was worried about him and his well-being. He peered inside, and that was when it occurred to her that he wanted to come in. “Hi, I am sorry…I…” She rambled and then paused.He walked inside like he owned the room, which he actually did, but it was more than that. It was the confidence in his strides, his overpowering presence, the masculine yet soft scent of his cologne as it wafted through the room. It was a large room, and she knew it did not matter if she was pressed up against the wall, she would still feel him, like he wa
Camilla looked over her shoulder, her heart racing in her chest. The park was busy at midday, and she thought the crowd of people would relax her nerves, but it only seemed to heighten them. Her eyes bore into everyone she assumed was suspicious, and every sudden noise caused her to jerk involuntarily. She clutched tightly to the purse in her hand, then felt a hand on her shoulder. She shuddered and spun around as quickly as she could.“Aunt Camilla, I am really sorry I startled you…” Imani walked up to her and pulled her into a hug.Camilla let out a sigh of relief as she clung to her. “I have a lot on my mind, mija, none of it is your fault.”Imani sat beside her on the park bench, staring at the older lady. She had dark circles around her eyes and looked like she had aged out of worry. “How have you been, Aunt Camilla?”Camilla took her hand in hers. “In all honesty, I haven’t been okay…” She peeked over her shoulder. “I don’t think it is safe
Orlando zoned out of the conversation happening around him in the conference room. The room was spacious and well-lit, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a view of the city skyline. He had his back to the tall window, and although the room was soundproofed, he was lost in the scenery outside. It all seemed calm compared to the atmosphere in the room.A long table ran down the center of the room, surrounded by comfortable leather chairs. They were all seated around the table, with Romano at the head.“From all I could gather, Doc only entered Paris a few days ago, which tells me he was somewhere else before that…” Sebastian explained. “Now, I have been able to identify two more cities he visited before then, but that does not help us.” He twirled his chair around. “As a matter of fact, it makes our work even harder. With more cities on the timeline, it means more places to look.” He turned his attention to Orlando, who seemed distracted.Romano banged t
She was deep in her thoughts and did not see or hear him walk towards her until he spoke.“Ready?”She involuntarily shuddered. She was not only startled but stunned by his voice, the way the word smoothly rolled off his tongue and reverberated in his chest. She looked up at him, and he had the same expressionless look on his face.And then his eyebrow shot up. Then it occurred to her that he had asked a question to which she did not answer, and they had been standing in the same spot for a long time. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.He walked ahead of her, and she followed suit. She noticed he did not bother with the security men on each side of her, nor did he spare her a look. He just presumed she was following him. Or could he hear the soft tap of her footsteps? She thought to herself. Or maybe it was the loud beating of her heart in her chest, maybe he could hear that and everything else. Every squeak in her trainers, the awkward no
The doors burst open, and Elena jumped to her feet just as Orlando rushed in. He stood in front of her, shielding her from the door. “Now, I don’t know what he is going to ask you, but I need you to lie, a very convincing lie. They know nothing about you or your father. Everything they will know is whatever you tell them through the words you say and the words you don’t say out loud…”“Who…who do I…”Luca strolled in at that moment, on alert when he saw them detangle from each other. His green eyes glared at both of them. “Am I interrupting something?”“Yes, yes, you were…” Orlando answered.Luca was not expecting a reply in the first place, let alone that reply. He straightened up. “I need to talk with Elena… alone,” he drew out the last word for emphasis.Orlando turned to her, his gaze lingered longer than Luca was comfortable with, but he tried not to show it. He waited patiently until he heard the door click behind him. “You’re getting a