Mesmerizing Mr. Mafia

10

I had everything but a restful sleep last night and it probably had something to do with the fact that I didn't have my sleeping meds but it also didn't help that I had to sleep a mere five feet away from a mafia boss. It didn't matter why I didn't get any sleep, the point was that I was extremely exhausted and I was being forced to accompany Angelo and everyone else as they ran errands.

I had never been to Italy in the summer so when I was packing clothes it completely slipped my mind that it would be boiling hot. My god, California summers were not fun but at least there were moments of reprieve.

I started waving my hand in my face as Dom guided us to the one place he insisted on going today. I didn't know what the name of it was but it was some ma and pa shop that tailored his favorite suits. It sounded like he would only get his clothes from this one place.

What a sad life that must have been.

I started to lag behind the group and Angelo quickly took note. He stopped walking and turned to look at me as Luca and Dom kept going. "What is wrong with you?" He looked me up and down with just the smallest hint of concern. Maybe it wasn't concern though, maybe it was my eyes starting to go fuzzy from dehydration. "You're sweating."

"Yes, I know," I pushed past him and tried to catch up with the others but a few more steps became too much all too quickly. I could feel the summer heat piercing through the Italian sidewalk underneath my shoes. I moved over to stand under an awning, turning my back to the street so that I was looking inside the conveniently placed boutique. Perhaps I could convince Angelo to buy me some cooler clothes and shoes that wouldn't obliterate me in the heat.

"Why did you wear all black?" He questioned and I couldn't help but laugh at the hypocrisy of it. This man was dressed head to toe in black and actually, I don't think I've ever seen him not in the color.

I just gave him the look of death and continued to stare inside the store window. If I looked hard enough, a pair of shorts would magically be put on my body. That's how it worked, wasn't it?

I gave up and turned to face Angelo. I couldn't see what his eyes were doing because he had just put his sunglasses on but one could only imagine he was probably pretty amused by the dying girl in front of him. "Can we go in?"

He walked past me and opened up the glass door, "After you." I wasted no time in shimmying past him and into the little, nicely air conditioned shop. There were a few ladies shopping around and I was quick to copy them, I needed some better clothes. "I'll be right back, don't even try to run," he said quietly before walking into the back of the store as if he owned the place.

He probably had some weird connection, isn't that how the mafia worked?

Anyways, I decided that I wouldn't run because I knew from past experiences how far that always got me.

I found various pairs of shorts and some cute shirts that I didn't even feel bad about because I wasn't going to be the one buying them. Just to add a little spice, I got some flowy dresses too.

I watched as an older, heavier set woman came up to me frantically. She softly placed her hand on my arm and looked around the room for something, "Come, come," she started leading me to the back where Angelo had walked off to. She poked her head around the corner and then pushed me into the hallway and ushered me into a changing room. She came in behind me and closed the curtain violently.

I still had all of the clothes clutched to my chest, not really sure what was going on. "You're that millionaire's daughter," she said quietly, her accent heavy.

I just nodded.

"That's a bad man you're with. I can help you."

"How do you know Angelo?"

"My son Renaldo works for him. I know someone. They can get you out of here."

I wasn't so sure I trusted this lady either but I wasn't even going to get the option to investigate further as the curtain flew open and Angelo and some other man (I wouldn't be bold in assuming it was Reinaldo) stood on the other side.

"Mamma," the guy said, "What are you doing?"

The two of them started to bicker in their native language as I quietly danced around them and walked back out into the main shopping area with Angelo, "You're lucky you didn't go anywhere with her," he reached over the unmanned check out desk and grabbed a few of the paper bags before he started to put my clothes in them.

"I couldn't have been any worse off with her than I am with you," I mumbled, our eyes meeting for the briefest of seconds before I started to help put everything else in a bag, not questioning why he hadn't paid for them.

"That woman has been allied with the Russians for years, Chloe. She will do anything or sell anyone to make a penny. You might think you have it bad here, but at least you don't have to work for anything...and you're not dead," he arranged the bags so that the handles were sitting on his arms comfortably before he started heading for the door.

"You're not going to pay for those?"

"No. These people pay me," he said as we both walked back into the Italian heat.

He walked ahead of me, his strides long and meaningful. The man was on a mission but I couldn't have told you what it was. I would catch him glancing over his shoulder to see if I was still there every few minutes so there wasn't a point in running now either.

It seemed like he knew everyone in this city anyway.

"Did you mean like the Russian mob? That's who that lady was trying to get me to go with?"

"Yes."

Well then.

~_~_~_~_~

I laid on the couch in Angelo's mom's house, pretending like I knew what was being said on the tv. I knew it was some news channel but other than that I was completely clueless.

Angelo was on the floor underneath me, wrapped up in a blanket with the hood of his sweatshirt over his head as if he were freezing. I looked much the opposite. I was wearing a tank top and shorts, with one leg sticking out from underneath my blanket because it was starting to get a little too toasty.

"Does this tv have Netflix?" I asked.

"Does it look like this tv would have Netflix?"

Ok, fair but he didn't have to be so rude about it.

"Why do you let your mom live in a s**t hole if you're so rich?"

I didn't even think before the words left my mouth, I certainly never imagined he would have been as triggered as he looked now. He stared at me in disbelief and I legitimately feared for my life right then.

I could see my gravestone now. Chloe Cruise - didn't die from anything else that should have killed her but insulted Mr. Mafia's mommy and got chopped up into tiny pieces for him to later feed to his beloved pet piranhas.

I didn't know if he had piranhas but it seemed highly likely. He probably would have thought of them as his kids too.

Instead of answering the question he grabbed the remote and turned the tv off, the room now completely dark. Silent too.

And...don't forget awkward.

"You don't have to answer the question," I rolled my eyes as I said the words. If he was going to kill me, I would have been dead a long time ago, I've taken that fact and I've ran with it. I knew I wouldn't be sleeping any time soon, so why not pester the mob boss himself?

"I don't want to talk about my family with you."

"What's wrong with me? You practically have me glued to your hip now. We might as well get to know each other a little bit. Although, I'm at a disadvantage because I'm sure you don't have a whole Wikipedia page."

I laughed to myself a little bit.

"Go to bed, Chloe."

"You go to bed, Angelo."

I let him think that I was going to stop talking by giving him a few quiet moments, just enough time for him to hit a somewhat sleepy state.

"When are you going to let me go home?"

"Jesus f*****g Christ. Stop talking."

He was on the verge of yelling so I stopped talking. I was in for another long night.