His Corrupt Mafia Queen

Chapter 10: And so it begins..

Raina

I remember the first time I stepped foot on a plane. It’s only been four years. Why does it feel like a lifetime went by in milliseconds? The last thing I wanted to do was think about him, but I couldn’t help but envision him sitting down in the seat in front of me. I saw the plane as the same jet we rode in when we went to Boston together. Was all of it a lie? Am I truly angry with Sebastian? Did I really try to kill him that night?

“You okay?” Isabel interrupted my session of reminiscing as she sat down in the seat in front of me. Regaining my senses of the present, I took a quick glance around. Aaron was a few seats ahead of us, fast asleep with his mouth hanging open and snores escaping. The jet was small, nowhere near luxurious, and dimly lit. I took a deep breath and looked out the window to the night sky littered with faint clouds and twinkling star lights.

“Yeah, I’m fine..” I said with an unintentional sigh, my words were more for myself than Isabel, but they fell short. Trying to convince myself was pointless. A tender touch was placed on my knee and when I looked away from the window, Isabel had placed a gentle palm on my knee.

“I’m not scared, just the thought of being back in Italy, possibly seeing him again, is nerve wracking” I admitted. I didn’t know what to think when it came to Sebastian, it was all too mind-bending for words.

“I can’t kill him because Carmine forbade it. How am I supposed to protect myself if something were to happen?” Isabel sighed at my dilemma, she removed her hand and leaned back in her chair.

“You have us, Aaron and I will do nothing but protect you. Besides, you aren’t that defenseless girl anymore. You’ve trained endless hours. I don’t know if you know but you’re pretty badass and I’ve seen you in action” Isabel said with a smirk. I shook my head with a small laugh. I was underestimating myself. I didn’t plan on coming across Sebastian when we do land in Italy, but if I do, he won’t know the woman I’ve become. That’ll be my advantage.

“Get some rest, we won’t be in Italy for the next few hours” That was the last thing she said before parting ways with me and retiring back to her own seat to also get some rest. I took in a sharp breath and slouched in my seat. It was impossible to predict what could happen in Italy. Best case scenario, I wouldn’t even see Sebastian, and my presence would go unnoticed.

It felt like as soon as I closed my eyes, I was awakened by a frantic Aaron. At first I was confused, his words weren’t registering in my mind. I straightened myself out from my deep slumber and looked out the window. Instead of clouds and a beautiful night sky, we were on land on a runway in the middle of a grass field, the sun was beginning to rise, ridding the nighttime from existence.

“Ray! We gotta go! Come on!” Aaron hollered, lifting me up from my seat. Once I finally pulled myself together and registered my surroundings, I was finally able to come to the conclusion that we had landed in Italy. I grabbed my backpack and scurried off the jet. Isabel and Aaron were waiting for me, more than ready to go. The area seemed abandoned, there were no other planes in sight, only ours. I knew Carmine wanted to keep things discreet, but landing us at an abandoned airport in the middle of nowhere was extreme. Luckily, I knew where we were.

“We have to go, the wedding is going to be in a few hours” I screamed over the roaring sound of the airplane engines. We stood there and watched the plane take off. The three of us stood there looking at one another. Being back here in Italy was a violent strike of the reality of the situation I was walking into.

“Do we even have a plan?” Aaron asked in a softer tone once the plane was far from our vicinity. Refreshing my mind on our whereabouts, I took a look around the area and it hauled in a bucket load of memories I wasn’t ready to confront.

This is where Drisco took me the night he came to rescue me in Italy. I was high off emotions, gallons of adrenaline pumping through me, not knowing if I was going to survive the night. The thought of killing Sebastian caused conflict in my heart but victory in my mind.

“Yeah we do” I said, marching down the runway. The only way I was able to fall asleep was to calculate an elaborate plan in my head.

Christina Ace

There we were. In a Cathedral in Amalfi for the wedding. My family always liked the coast. They said that water cleansed the wedded couple, and showed unity. A crowd of voices surrounded me but I kept a wall up around my presence and lost a sense of reality. Staring in the mirror, looking at the girl who stared right back at me. She looked tired, in vain, the feeling of betrayal burned her mind and only made the bruises her cousin left behind even more painful. Everyone around me was eagerly getting dressed, but I couldn’t find the amusement, knowing soon after Sebastiano’s wedding, it would be mine.

“Jesus Christ, can someone please get Christina a shawl! We can’t have her walk down the aisle looking battered”. Somehow, Sabrina’s hollering broke into my headspace and pulled me back into the events unfolding in front of me. While I was lost in my thoughts, artists tended to my hair and makeup, and after that, they attempted to conceal the marks on my arms from last night’s ordeal but failed miserably. Aggravated, I lifted up my hands and stood up from my chair. I couldn’t look at myself anymore, nor fathom the touch of someone else. Sabrina was in the center of the room being catered to like a queen. Tara was making sure all the other bridesmaids were in check . Everything about her was perfect, sometimes too perfect. I look at her and have confidence that she is what my cousin needs in his life.

“Christina, I know you have a lot on your mind, but do you think you can put on your dress? Just make it one less thing I have to worry about?” Sabrina asked. I hadn't realized that I was completely staring at her in awe. She was marrying the man she loved, and couldn’t have been happier on her wedding day. Sebastiano robbed me of that.

“Yes, of course” I said, nodding faintly, I turned away to see my dress, the only one still hanging up. It was a simple sleeveless marigold dress, with a plunging V-neckline, and an open back.

I couldn’t seem to focus on anything, I was slipping in and out of reality while Tara zipped me up in my dress. The thought of marrying into the Romano family made my stomach turn. I couldn’t face the facts. I wanted all of this to go away.

“I need to step out, I can’t breathe in here”, I pushed Tara’s hands away, and proceeded out of the chaotic bridal room.

The halls were a maze and I could barely move in my heels. I picked up the fabric that dragged along the floor and picked up my pace. As much as I so desperately wanted to curse to let out my frustrations, I was in a cathedral, already my family had disapproved of Sabrina’s provocative dress and the bridesmaid’s dresses.

A staircase revealed itself in front of me, and I chose to descend it. I had no idea in the slightest clue about where I was going. My family chose this place, and ordered that the entire plaza be cleared out for the wedding. Sabrina was being pampered and treated like the next matriarch of this family. Once I got to the bottom of the stairs, I released my dress from my grasp and took a deep breath of fresh air. The hallway was exposed by the arch windows, overlooking the vacant plaza and the distant blue ocean. Everything was serene, the segals swaying in the blue sky, the sun burning bright rays of warmth down onto us, but still a slight breeze to refresh the soul and ease the mind. I leaned out of the window trying to bring myself closer, a foolish attempt to rid myself of this day. I wanted to stay like this forever.

“f**k-” A voice from a distance hissed, my body jumped, startled by the sudden intrusion. My eyes pulled away from the view and my body did the same. As I stepped further into the hall, there was a young man whom I hadn’t seen before. He wore a suit and tie, but the execution was messy, his tie was loose, pants unbuckled, shoes untied. His blonde hair was thrown about. Sebastiano had ordered all the guards to upkeep a groomed and flawless appearance for today.

“Che stai facendo? Dovresti fare la guardia alla cattedrale” I crossed my arms over my chest, when my voice had finally reached him, the young man looked shocked and dazed. He stumbled in his steps before standing still. I took a few more steps towards him and sighed gently.

“What group were you assigned to?” I asked out of frustration. The young man looked down and smirked, rubbing the back of his neck. I looked past him to see if there was anyone else with him that was lost.

“I was sent to check the perimeter, Ms. Asso” He said, bringing his eyes back up to mine. His hand dropped from his neck and he straightened himself out, folding his hands behind his back.

“After you do that please tidy yourself up, you look a mess” I breathed, brushing past him, not wanting to deal with the help. Taking a few steps approaching the opposite end of the hallway, something didn’t stick with me, it wasn’t his messy appearance. But the fact he didn’t answer me back in Italian, and his accent, his American accent. I knew for a fact that my family didn’t hire any Americanos to guard the family, especially after what happened with Raina.

“Wait-” My body halted with suspicion, and turned around swiftly. I stumbled back with terror when I found the young man standing inches behind me. My first instinct was to scream. As soon as I opened my mouth, he slipped his hand over it, muting any sounds I made and cupped the back of my head firmly to make sure I couldn’t go anywhere.

“I’m sorry princess..” He growled with his menacing brown eyes.

Raina

Isabel and I were precisely five minutes away from the cathedral where the wedding would take place. We stationed ourselves in the backstreets of Amalfi to avoid drawing any attention to ourselves. We had taken sport bikes from a warehouse Carmine had not too far from where we had landed, and there were countless resources that we needed for this mission. The plan I had conjured up in my head was intricate, but messy, filled with holes, but our only chance.

Before the ceremony would start, Aaron would go in, take out just one guard to steal his attire and infiltrate his identity. He would then scout the area for Francisco and the rest of the bandits. Isabel would pose as an invited guest, since Sabrina was dull enough to give us actual invites to the wedding, she would just walk right up and show her invitation. She would need to sit close enough to Sabrina to stop her from any tactics but far away enough so Sabrina wouldn’t spot her. Sabrina was also dumb enough to tell us Francisco would be her acting sniper, which meant that Aaron would need to search the higher grounds to get Francisco and leave. All I had to do was monitor the situation from my tablet, from the outside. I wouldn’t need to step foot inside at all. That was the plan which quickly spiraled out of my vision when Aaron stopped answering.

“Aaron? Aaron??” I said frantically into my earpiece. With no response, I looked at Isabel, who shared the same look of concern as me. Isabel, who also had an earpiece, called out to Aaron and became frustrated when there was no response. I had Isabel put on a long-sleeved floor-length silk purple dress with a scandalous hidden slit. She paced the narrow street in her heels, already becoming a nervous wreck. I kept a cool head while leaning against the bike, but I slowly started to lose my patience.

“I’m here, I’m here!” Aaron’s voice rang through the intercom, which eased Isabel and halted her pacing. We both took deep breaths, easing the tension pumping through our veins, but it was too soon for that.

“Guys listen, I took out the guards, there were two . I hid their bodies in some broom closet and took the dudes' clothes but then-” Isabel locked eyes with me, I pushed my body off the bike, trying to keep myself level headed.

“Then what Aaron?!” I hissed, trying to keep my voice at a calm volume. Aaron kept silent, I could feel his nerves through the sound waves.

“I came across Christina Ace, don’t ask me how, she wasn’t in the bridal room as we anticipated. I tried to keep minimal contact but somehow she figured out I wasn’t supposed to be there-”

My eyes slowly closed, knowing that the first part of my plan had gone down the drain completely. I couldn’t be mad at him. I made the poor assumption that Christina would stay in the bridal room until the ceremony started.

“I knocked her out. I had no other choice. I’m standing in the lot in the back of the church with her in the backseat of a car belonging to one of the guards. Should I just leave and continue to look for Francisco?” Aaron asked. Isabel combed her fingers over her face. My body tensed up and froze. I had to withhold myself from slamming the tablet onto the floor and having a full mental breakdown. I took the earpiece out of my ear and took a deep breath. I turned away from Isabel so she wouldn’t see the look of panic on my face. A few moments of reassessing is all I needed. After taking those few seconds to myself, I slipped the earpiece back on and brought the tablet up to my face.

“No, your responsibility now is to make sure Christina is far far away from the ceremony. We can’t risk you getting caught. You’re going to take her to where the reception and after-party is going to be held. Hotel Villa Cimbrone is a fifteen minute drive. I just checked and no guards are currently there. Just a few people setting up for the wedding but they won’t ask you any questions. Make sure you keep her hidden and do not, under any circumstances, hurt her. Is that clear? I’m sending you the location” I breathed. The last thing I wanted was for Christina to get caught up in this.

“Got it, heading there now” Aaron responded. I tugged the earpiece out of my ear and turned off my tablet. I paced the narrow cobblestone street reassessing my plan. Isabel followed me with her eyes nervously waiting for me to speak up. The wedding was only two hours away and a small tiny point in my plan I had accounted for became huge endless holes that I had no time to fill.

“Raina, what are we going to do??” Isabel asked in a trembling whisper. I couldn’t register her voice in my mind, as it began to slowly started to fill with panic.