The Mafia’s captive: love, lies and betrayal

I have always been a survivor, life had taught me not to rely on any one but myself and it was something I learned the hard way. Running away from home at 15 after stealing from my father was supposed to be my ticket to freedom, I left leaving behind the empty walls of a house that never once felt like a home. I didn’t really have a plan, neither did I know where I was going. All I had was the desperate hope for freedom, I had no idea how hard living on the street would be and I nearly died a couple of times but that was before I met Raven, a legendary hacker. She saved me and took me in just when I had lost all hope of survival and taught me everything she knows about hacking and for the first time I felt a sense of purpose even though it came from a life of crime Now 3 years later, I’ve become one of the best in the game and today I got my biggest job yet to hack into Vince Deluca’s system and steal an important file, a file containing all his illegal activities. Seeing the name alone should have been enough to make me refuse. Vince DeLuca was not an ordinary business man, people feared him and there were rumors of him having connections with the mafia. I really should have walked away but I didn’t, the pay was too good for me to ignore and come on, how hard could it be? “This is it” I whispered to myself as my fingers furiously typed over the keyboard as I worked through the encryptions my heart beating so fast in my chest and sweat covering my forehead, God, I feel so anxious It was not easy but an hour later, I cracked it, ha, i did it. I felt adrenaline rushing through my veins but just as I was about to celebrate yet another win, my screen went blank and a new message appeared in bold red letters, “Enjoy your last few moments of freedom, Mia” it read Suddenly, the room became too hot, the air around me seemed to freeze, my heart beating so fast I could almost hear it. ‘No. This can’t be happening I was careful, I covered my tracks well’, I whispered to myself nearly bursting into tears knowing that this is it, I’m f****d, he's going to f*****g kill me. I pushed myself to my feet, my swivel chair scraping loudly on the floor. I needed to leave, I grabbed my bag and ran towards the door, my heart hammering in my chest But before I could make it, the door burst open with a loud crash and two men in suits stormed inside, their faces looking cold and unsmiling ‘Stay where you are” one of them barked, his voice as cold as his face My body froze, everything in me screaming at me to run but I couldn’t, I was trapped. One of the men then grabbed my arm in a bruising grip and I struggled, panic taking over “Let me go” I shouted but my voice cracked showing my fear The second man leaned in and said “You’ve made a very big mistake” before my vision went black. When I woke up, I found myself in a cold, dirty room. My whole body was aching but I pushed the ache aside, getting on my feet trying to find a way out of here, that was when I saw him Vince DeLuca The moment I saw him, I felt my stomach twisting in fear, he sat leg crossed on an elegant looking chair, radiating danger and authority. His dark gaze met mine “So, you are the one that thought you could get away with hacking into my system” he said, his voice calm “you’ve got guts, I’ll give you that” “I...” I tried to say but my throat felt dry and I swallowed hard “I don’t care about your excuses” he says harshly, “What I want to know is who hired you” My chest tightened, Raven had told me to never reveal a client’s identity no matter what “If you’re going to kill me just do it” He smirked” oh I don’t plan on killing you so easily, Mia Riveria, do you have any idea what damage you'll have caused if you had succeeded? Hearing my name from lips sent a cold chill through my body Vince stood up towering over me, he brushed a stray stand of hair from my face “I’m not in the habit of asking twice, but I’m going to make an exception, just for you” he whispered into my ear sending a shiver down my spine “Who hired you and oh think twice before you answer this time” “I’m not telling you anything” I said, my voice trembling “Wrong answer” he tsked He sighs standing up “I figured you’ll be stubborn, let’s see how long you can keep that up when someone else’s life is on the line” He signaled to one of his men who came over and handed him a phone, Vince scrolled through the phone and showed me a picture of Raven sitting on the porch of her apartment, completely clueless to the danger “No” I whispered, starting to feel my panic rise “Just one word from me” he said, his voice cold “and she’s gone, so I’ll ask again, who hired you?” Tears blurred my vision, I wanted to be strong but I had to protect Raven like she has protected me all these years she literally saved my life, I can’t let her die because of my stupid mistake “It… it was a man named Viktor Visconti” I stuttered hating myself for how small my voice came out I looked up to see Vince smirking down at me looking satisfied “Good girl, that wasn’t so hard now, was it?” he mocked before leaving me in the cold room which I’ve now realized is a basement, I was alone and for the first time in three years, I had no way out Two hours later, Vicktor is dragged to the basement by Vince's men already looking bloody and beaten up. What happened next was a blur, Vince pulls out his gun and points it at Vicktor’s head “Watch closely” he ordered I couldn’t look away even though everything in me screamed at me to. Vince eyes were dark as he pulled the trigger and the gunshot echoed through the room. Vicktor’s body jerked and, in an instant, his lifeless body hit the floor and I let out a scream before I could stop myself “Remember this” Vince said his voice cold as he looked down at Vicktor’s lifeless body “this is what happens when you try to mess with me” I was sure he’d kill me next but he just walked away as his men cleaned the mess he made and left me in the cold basement. I curled up on the cold floor with tears streaming down my face. He didn’t kill me I thought aloud and that scared me more than anything else