Debt to the Mafia

Chapter 14

I was getting so bored in this penthouse. I wanted to get out of here, even if it was for an hour or so. I was beginning to go crazy, especially since all I’ve got to think about now is how intimate Michele was with me this morning. I had to distract my mind otherwise I’m going to spend the rest of the day thinking about it. I need to keep my head on my shoulders. 

I strolled over to the elevator and took it down to the offices for the second time today. I was told that I wasn’t allowed down here unless I was given permission, but I wanted to speak to Michele. I suppose I could have rang him but I wanted to use the excuse to leave while I had it. 

Everyone stared at me in shock when I exited the elevator. They all knew that I wasn’t allowed to be there but no one said anything, they just watched me walk down the hall. I headed towards Michele’s office and I didn’t feel nervous until I saw everyone’s reaction to seeing me. It made me a little concerned as to how Michele was going to react. 

“Amelia?” Nico called from behind me. I spun on my heel and smiled at him.

“Hey Nico”

“What are you doing here? You know you’re not allowed on this floor” he reminded me. I rolled my eyes at him like a kid and sighed.

“I know, but I need to speak to Michele. Is he in his office?” I continued. Nico raised his brow at me and sniggered.

“He is, but you shouldn’t be here and if I’m honest, now isn’t really a good time” he cautioned. 

“It will only take a second” I replied and walked over to Michele’s office before Nico could argue with me anymore. I knocked on the door and entered...

“Errr... oh... sorry” I stammered as I froze on the spot. 

Every bit of happiness I felt drained from my body when I looked at Michele. He was sitting at his desk with another woman perched on his knee. She was playing with his hair and giggling at him. 

“Amelia! What the f**k are you doing on the office floor?!” He yelled. 

I couldn’t tell if he was actually mad at me for coming here or if he was mad that he has been caught with some w***e on his lap. I lifted my chin up with confidence and forced back my tears. 

“I just wanted to run something by you but I didn’t realise you were busy” I explained with a dead tone. My eyes kept flickering back and forth between the pair of them. I cleared my throat and then turned towards the door.

“It can wait” I uttered and slammed the door shut behind me. 

I wanted to burst out into tears but the hallways were full of his men. I didn’t want them to see me crying over some stupid slut that Michele had amused himself with. I walked confidently to the elevator and smacked the penthouse button. I saw Nico running to catch the door before it closed but luckily he didn’t make it in time. 

As the elevator ascended, I analysed the image of the woman in my head. She had long, dead straight, brunette hair and her tanned legs were on show bellow her short white skirt. Her skin shone in the light and her elegance was enhanced by her platformed cream high heels. She had a frilly pastel pink blouse on that showed her cleavage which seemed to be suffocated by her push up bra. Her face was covered in make up and it was obvious that her lips had work done to them. She was busty, tall and beautiful; I didn’t have half of the qualities she had. 

I felt so used and humiliated. He makes me feel incredible this morning, the desperation and passion that we shared was insane. I was beginning to let my guard down thinking he actually wanted me. How stupid can I be? Of course he’s going to be f*****g around with other women, he’s greedy and selfish. I will always be that girl he bought because he could. 

I was thought about following him to this meeting later to make sure he was okay but there is no way I’m going to do that now. He can go and get himself killed for all I care, maybe then I’ll be free. Free from him and his toxic world. 

“Ameal?” Nico called as he walked out of the elevator. 

I was sitting out on the patio with a glass of whiskey in my hand. I never usually drink but after everything that’s happened over the past four days, I think I deserve one. Nico has never call me ‘Ameal’ before. It was kind of nice that the only person I trusted had a nickname for me. It didn’t make me feel so lost. 

“Out here!” I called out to him. I heard the sound of his shoes thud against the glossy floor and then step outside. He narrowed his eyes at the bottle of whiskey and then slumped his shoulders. 

“That’s not the answer now is it?” He patronised. I flashed him a dirty look and then downed the shot of whiskey. 

“Like I give a f**k” I groaned. 

“What’s going on?” He asked me as he sat down on the lounge chair beside me. I stared at my glass and focused on the reflection of the sun as it hit the detail of the rim.

“Want one?” I ignored his question and then held the glass up slightly. He didn’t respond, instead he took my hand in his and sat forward. 

“Talk to me. If you bottle things up then that’s normally when you cause trouble” he joked but I just continued staring at the glass. 

“Why was I so weak and stupid to fall for the ‘you’re worth a lot more than you think’ line” I mocked Michele. 

It took Nico a few seconds to work out what was going on. I could tell he got it because he pressed his lips together and sighed.

“You know, me and my brother are really close. We have been through so much growing up and we got through it together. To this day, I still don’t know what goes through his head” he began.

“But I do know that he finds it hard to love. He doesn’t understand boundaries or feelings when it comes to relationships”

“We’re not in a relationship” I corrected him. He waved his hand in dismissal of my correction and continued.

“When we were kids, I always felt like I had to protect him. Protect him from other gang members, strangers, pain... even our father” he confessed and bowed his head in shame. I turned to face him him but said nothing.

“He was a good man, a strong man and he knew how to get s**t done. Everyone who knew him made sure they were on his good side because they knew what he was capable of. Our father did what he had to do when he was alive and protected his family the way he thought was best; the only way he knew. Michele got the brunt of his anger and punishments. I guess dad thought he was toughening him up and preparing him to take his place as The Don. He never hurt him badly he just ruffed him up a bit. That was until our mother was murdered by another gang who put out a hit on her. They wanted to hurt my dad badly and get revenge for a choice that he had made...”. I was completely silent but squeezed Nico’s hand tightly when I saw the agony he felt as he told his story. 

“She was shot in the garden of our home whilst she was with Michele. He saw the shooter a split second before he fired. He caught her and watched her die in his arms. Our father turned sour after that day and any hint of the kind man he was had disappeared. He wanted them to pay and he wanted to do it himself. The pain and grief had sent him insane and he took it out on Michele. I tried to stop him and take the abuse for him but dad didn’t want that. He wanted Michele to be tough and to learn that love is the worst pain you can ever feel. If he even showed one ounce of it in his presence then he would pay for it”. 

“What happened to him?” I asked hesitantly. 

“He got himself killed, trying to avenge our mother’s death” he confessed. 

My heart sank further and further the more that Nico spoke. I could hear the pain in his voice when he revealed the twisted upbringing that they both had. He didn’t go into detail about the abuse but he didn’t have to. I could tell by the sound of his voice that it was traumatising. 

“I’m so sorry Nico” I softly whispered. He took in a deep breath and then huffed. 

“The reason I’m telling you this is because I honestly think that Michele loves you, he just doesn’t understand how to love. He’s not scared of anything but I think it’s the one thing he fears without realising” he finished. He flashed me a smile and tapped my leg. 

“You never know, what you saw in his office might actually have been different to what you think it was” he perked up. 

“Don’t give up on him” he said getting up and walking back inside.