Chapter 2

Pokerface

Matteo

Palermo, Sicily – August 28th 2020

"A man was shot and killed at private event in Capo d'Orlando last night."

It's the fifth channel in a row that's reporting on what had happened last night.

"What do you think happened?" Aurora asks no one in particular.

Great, now it's a topic of discussion. And everyone is pretending like eating breakfast together because mom thought it would be nice is completely normal.

"Probably some random gangs." Marco pipes in.

I look at my dad to see how he reacts, but his eyes are skimming over the paper like it's the most interesting this he's ever laid eyes on.

"Does anyone want more juice?" our mom asks.

We're sitting at the table in the kitchen on a fucking Friday morning of all days. I haven't seen her in over a few weeks, and I'm not sure if she was even in Palermo.

Why does no one think this is weird?

Dad places the paper on the table and reaches for his espresso.

"What are the papers saying?" I ask him.

He hands it over to me without saying anything, and Aurora leans into me as soon as I put my hand on it.

"They're saying that the police are checking the security cameras."

My heart starts beating faster but I refrain from looking at my dad again. My brain goes into a spiral, from the thought of someone seeing me on the cameras all the way to being arrested and charged for premeditated murder.

"Didn't he have a family?" Aurora asks, like it's nothing.

"They're going to bury him tomorrow." Our mom answers.

"What was he even doing in Capo? What did he tell you?"

Dad answers her this time. "That he's going to be with family."

"Police are already looking for a suspect, and we expect the security footage by 5pm."

"Looks like police already forgot about the virus." Marco laughs.

I pretend to laugh along, but in my mind I'm climbing the walls.

"The government advises people once again to stay inside and leave the house only if completely necessary. We can't tell if it's a premeditated attack or a terrorist attack."

I laugh without really intending to.

Palermo, Sicily – September 25th 2020

"When does your school start?"

We're sitting in his office with the door locked. It's not unusual to have meetings in his office anymore, compared to how it was the first time after the incident.

"Next week. But I think it's going to be online."

"Can you be in New York for that?"

"Why?"

"I want you to be the supervisor."

"For what?"

"Everything."

What the fuck does that even mean? He always talks in code like I'm supposed to understand.

"Luca is also in New York."

I've nearly forgotten about Romeo's nephew, and how he asked to be transferred after the burial.

"So?"

"One of our associates in New York is hosting a Russian fundraiser for one of his business partners, in one of his hotels. Luca is going to be part of the security, and I want you to go with him."

"Why are we supposed to supervise these men?"

"They're connected to the Russians that tried to rob Francesco's store."

"So? We killed one of them, not the other way around."

"It's not about that man from a few months back. Romeo was working for them. I don't know how much they know, whether they're aware of him being a rat or if they think that we intended to kill someone else but missed."

I want to ask about Valentina, why and how she is connected to these people. The last time he mentioned her, he used the term 'Russian whore' though, so I keep my mouth shut. I know that if her family is in any way involved with that gang from Russia I'll inevitably find out eventually.

"Either way." dad continues. "We have to keep an eye on them until we have more information so we can make sure they don't try to pull anything at this event."

"What would they even do?"

"Seek revenge."

"And you think that out of all people who can do this, I should be the one at the event?"

And Luca is going to be there too."

My mind can't understand the logic. "You want me and the nephew of the guy I had to kill working together in the same room as the people whose friend just got shot? In what universe is that a smart and safe move?"

"You get to keep an eye on Luca as well. As far as he knows, we don't know who murdered his uncle and why, but we're looking into it."

"What if he checks the cameras at the theatre? Or the roads? Or the-"

"It's been taken care of a month ago."

The answer doesn't surprise me at all, but I am calmer knowing this.

"What if he thinks the Russians did it and will try to go after them?"

"I told him at the funeral that we're doing our best to catch the guy. Don't worry about that, I will make sure you're safe."

The news had switched their narrative a two days after Romeo had died, saying that he was involved with dangerous people from Eastern Europe.

I'm 99% sure that my dad had something to do with it.

New York, United States – September 30th, 2020

Isabella sends a link in the group chat as I'm getting ready to start work.

It's a video from a news channel in Italy.

"A suspect has been apprehended by the police in Sicily for the killing of Romeo DeCosta back in August. His name is Alfonso Lombardi and he was on parole when the shooting happened. His fingerprints were found on the scene, as well as a footprint matching his shoes."

Matteo: ok

I call my dad through our private line.

"Yes?"

"Who is the guy who got arrested, Alfonso Lombardi?"

"He's a friend. And we pay him to go to prison. His family is taken care of, my family is taken care of, everybody wins."

The word 'family' means nothing to me when he says it this way.

"Does that mean they closed the case?"

"Not yet. There's going to be a trial, and then it's closed after they sentence him."

"What if the guy tells the truth?"

"It's not the first time he's gone to prison, Matteo, and it's not your job to worry about this. You did what you had to do, now you have to let it go."

"Okay."

He tells me to take and I hang up, still doubting the fact that any trace that I was at the theatre has been erased.

I look at myself in the mirror as I adjust the cuffs of the shirt I'm wearing. I look fucking ridiculous in the dress pants and shirt I was given to wear for today's event. The way my hair looks gelled back makes me think of my dad, and I hate it.

Isabella asked to see a photo of me after I vented to her about it, so I send her a picture once I put my suit jacket on.

Isabella: omg hahahahhahaha

Isabella: you look like a 1920 mafioso =)))))

Matteo: * middle finger emoji *

The gun that was already in the room when I arrived is in the holster hanging on my side. It feels heavy as it brushes against my suit when I walk towards the elevator. Something tells me I'll get used to it though.

Luca is waiting for me in the lobby, looking indifferent when I greet him.

"Who do we report to?" I ask him as we watch the mass of people going through the security gates one by one. They're all talking in Russian amongst themselves, so we can't understand anything they're saying.

"I report to you." He mumbles, obviously not okay with the arrangement. "You're supposed to say where we go and-"

Before he gets to finish, a tall guy who's built like a wall approaches us.

"Matteo Giudice and Luca DeCosta?"

We nod and he extends his hand to me first. "I'm Richard Anderson, but you can call me Rick. I'm the hotel manager."

He's obviously American, judging by his accent and mannerisms.

"Where do you need us?"

"In the main hall for now. Some guests usually book private rooms after lunch, so I'll let you know where to go and supervise."

He hands us both an earpiece attached to a small device through a chord, telling us to attach it to our belts so we can communicate through them hands-free. We watch him walk away as we clip the receivers to our belts as instructed.

***

We take two seats at the end of the bar, looking out into the giant room once we have ordered our drinks. I'm not sure what their policy is on drinking on the job, but I couldn't care less if I'm honest. I've been here for over two hours and I'm already bored. Lucas is on his phone and barely makes any conversation, so there's nothing for me to do but stare out into the crowd.

The bar is a good place to be at, because you can see all the drunk men coming back, and they're the ones who usually may cause problems.

Every person my age attending looks to be on the same wavelength as I am; looking like they'd want to be anywhere but here right now.

I see someone who looks familiar with the corner of my eye. It's Raisa, leaning over to talk to someone who looks like her mother.

My eyes immediately drift from her to who she's sitting at the table with, and sure enough, I spot Valentina.

Before I have time to react, she looks over at the bar as if she could sense me looking at her.

Her eyes meet mine, and my first reflex is to smile at her.

Finally, something interesting.

She looks confused to see me here out of all places, so I raise my eyebrows to let her know that I'm just as surprised to see her here as she is.

Luca looks over at her then back at me. "Who is she?"

"She's a friend."

"She's hot."

The way he says it makes me grit my teeth. "Yes, she looks good."

"Is she single?"

I want to say yes, but the truth is, I don't know. And I also don't want Luca to get any ideas. It would make things too complicated; it's like there are two worlds that shouldn't collide.

When I look back to see what she's doing I don't find her at the table, and she's close enough to hear us when my eyes meet hers again.

She's wearing a black dress that goes right above her knees and definitely hides the body I remember from a couple of months ago. Her dark brown hair is a little bit shorter than the last time I saw her, but she still looks beautiful up close.

"Hi." she says, checking me out. I still can't process the fact that I know her from school and she's here in this world, associated with shootings and billionaire hotel owners.

I have no idea how to act around her given the circumstances and given the fact that she was right next to Romeo when I shot him, so I look at my shoes.

"You look handsome."

"You look good too." I say. She looks at me with a sarcastic look that says 'really?', so I add "and I'm not saying it just because you said it."

She smiles. "I know."

Luca leans over to me. "I'm going to the bathroom."

"Who is that?"

I look at Luca as he walks away.

"It's my partner. Luca." I notice that her glass is full "Looks like you're struggling."

"I don't even like champagne. It doesn't taste so good and it takes liters to get drunk."

"You're drinking it though."

"What am I supposed to do? Not drink at these events? It's the only way I get through them."

"Do you go to these types of events often?"

"My parents make me go."

I lean against the bar so we can be at the same eyelevel. "What are you doing here?"

"I told you, my family."

"I meant, why did you come over?"

She rolls her eyes and tries not to smile. "I want to get a proper drink, and to say hello."

The bartender is already looking in our direction so I whistle at him to get his attention, waving him over when he acknowledges me.

"What does the tattoo mean?" she asks.

I don't want to lie to her, but I also don't want to open the subject. I'm about to order two gin and tonics when I remember that I called him over for Valentina.

"What do you want to drink?"

"Gin Tonic, obviously."

Turning back to her, I take a moment to read her face. The way she looked when Romeo started spitting up his guts all over her is something I can't forget. She didn't look shocked or scared, she looked like couldn't understand what was going on. Then she (...)

I'm curious to find out how it affected her, because it's not what I would've expected from someone in her situation.

She fidgets. "What?"

The way it comes out with her accent makes me smile inside. "How are you?"

"I'm good, why?"

"I haven't seen you since-" I catch myself before I slip "Since your birthday."

Valentina squints at me in a playful manner, and I'm not sure whether I'm playing it cool or not.

"What?" I smirk, trying to mimic the exact way she said it.

"How are you?"

I laugh at the way she just tried her best Italian impression.

"Also good. A little bored."

"What are you even doing here? I thought this is a Russian event."

I uncomfortably shift. "My dad's security company was hired for the event a while back."

"So, you're supposed to be from security?"

I nod.

"Do you have a gun?"

The nonchalant way she poses the question takes me by surprise. "I do."

"Have you ever shot someone?"

My stomach sinks. "No."

"Why are you lying?"

"Because it's not something I like to talk about."

"I think it's interesting."

I tilt my head. "Why?"

"I don't know. It's just interesting. The circumstances, the story behind it."

"Why do you think there's a story?"

"There's always a story."

"I'm not going to talk about it though."

"That's alright."

Any normal human being would be terrified to talk about guns after someone got shot right next to them, right? Although I remember being alright after seeing Luca's dad get killed right in front of me more than a decade ago.

"Anything interesting happen to you?" I ask, unable to let it go.

"Not really. We had to stay inside for the past month."

"Why?"

I want to see if she tells me about it.

"Covid."

Luca appears in my line of vision.

"What does she want? Why is she still here?"

"Do you have a problem with her? Be nice." I tell him, eye drifting to Valentina to see if she's paying us any attention. She pretends to be doing something else while I talk to him.

"Are you going to fuck her or can I do it?" he grins.

I don't like it when guys talk about Isabella like that, and I'm not enjoying him talking this way about Valentina either.

"I think that's up to her." I tell him, a little harsher than intended.

"Nice seeing you here."

We both turn to look at a very smiley Raisa before she leans over to kiss both of my cheeks as a form of greeting. Her lips linger on my cheek longer than they should, and I remember Ariana telling me that she has a boyfriend.

"What are you doing after this?" Luca asks them, and I can see that he's looking at Valentina. She doesn't look impressed as she opens her mouth to answer, but Raisa is quicker.

"Nothing yet. Why?"

"Maybe we can get some drinks after?"

Valentina and I make eye contact.

"Maybe." Raisa smiles, then turns to Valentina. "Your father is looking for you."

"I'll go." She looks at me again. "Have fun."

"You too."

We watch them walk away, and I can't help but notice how Valentina's hip sway with every step she takes. I peel my eyes away from her when Luca leans into me.

"She's hot, who is she?"

"Which one are you talking about?"

"The one in black."

"They're both in black."

"The one who came up first."

My jaw clenches. "Valentina."

"Valentina." He repeats, drawing out the last syllable. "She looks like she has a room here. Do you know the other one?"

"Yes, I've slept with her before."

"What about Valentina?"

"We haven't had sex, if that's what you're asking."

"I'll take her then."

"She's not yours to take."

We both look back towards their table, and I spot her talking to a man who looks familiar.

"Who is that?" I ask, trying to change the subject.

"I don't know." I really don't, but I know I've seen him somewhere before.

"Matteo and Luca, you can move to Room 28 in the basement."

The voice in my right ear nearly startles me. I press the button on the receiver. "What's going on?"

"There's a private poker game scheduled, and the host requested security."

I spare one last look at Valentina and the man as we move across the room towards the door leading to the basement.

The room is dimly lit with a poker table in the middle. There's a guy arranging bottles at bar in the corner who asks us to set nine chairs around the table.

The first three men who come in as we arrange the chairs are smoking cigars and loudly talking in a foreign language. I've been around enough people today to know that they're Russians. The one in the middle is the loudest one, his head in the shape of a pear, face red from all the laughing he's doing.

Two other men are right behind them, also not bothering to look in our direction as they head directly to the bar. I notice that there's five of them but there are nine chairs.

The door opens after a few more minutes, and the man from earlier walks in, followed by Valentina. The way she's holding his arm means they're either related or dating. He looks old enough to be her young-looking father if I'm honest.

"What is she doing here?" pear-face asks in almost perfect American accent.

Does the man Valentina's with not understand Russian? Who is he?

He answers pear-face in Russian, which makes my father-theory even stronger. The guy doesn't like the answer because his back straightens.

I take a step in his direction. "Is there a problem?"

"No." they both answer.

As they take their seats at the table while the dealer comes out, I notice that two seats are still empty.

The man sitting next to Valentina looks at us. "Would you like to join?"

The question is music to my ears; it means I can play poker instead of just standing around for God knows how long.

"No, thank you." Luca answers.

I grin. "Sure."

I take the seat right across from Valentina. It's incredibly fun to look at her face, which has shock and surprise written all over it. She looks at me so I mimic her expression.

Let's see what you can do.

"There's a ten thousand dollar buy in." pear-face tells me in a condescending tone.

I don't look away from Valentina as I reply. "That's alright."

"You're a security guard and you have ten thousand dollars for a poker game?"

My head turns to look at him now that his tone annoyed me. "It's worth it if I end up taking more home, isn't it?"

"Cash or card?" the dealer asks.

As I hold my phone against the card reader, I'm excited to see how the game is going to turn out. And most of all, I'm curious to see how Valentina plays.

***

By the time another hour goes by there's only four of us left: Valentina, the man she came with, pear-face, and me. Pear-face is obviously stressing because he's almost out of chips, while the rest of us have piles upon piles of them. I haven't bothered counting the cards yet because it seemed like too much work, but right now I've tripled my buy-in and the rest of the people left are pretty fucking good at playing poker, including Valentina.

"Yuri, you're the small blind."

Pear-face apparently has a name.

"I raise to $500." he says after the fourth card has been laid out. One all five cards are on the table, he goes all in.

I know I have nothing this round, so I fold along with the other man at the table.

Valentina looks at the pile in the middle of the table and asks something in Russian. I don't understand the words, but I figure she must be asking how much money is on the table.

"Eleven hundred." I answer.

"Alright. I'll match it."

The way Yuri/Pear-face is ignoring her makes me think he's bluffing.

He turns to talk to the two guys who pulled out of the game early and I try to understand what they're saying. Everything he says seems to be accompanied by an aggressive tone, or maybe that's just how the Russian language sounds.

Valentina asks him something, and he nearly spits his response without even looking at her. The way he speaks to her is disgusting, and it makes my blood boil. I still can't understand what they're saying, but I can tell out of context that pear-face is being unnecessarily rude.

Why isn't the man she came with saying anything?

"Calm down and just take the chips man." I tell him.

"Who do you think you are kid?" he raises his voice.

"Someone who wants to continue playing."

"Do you think you're smarter than me?"

"Do you think that?"

"Watch your mouth."

The man next to Valentina finally speaks. Whatever he says must have an effect, because Yuri mumbles something before placing two $1000 chips on the table.

"Alright. You can reveal your cards now."

Yuri reveals a Jack and a five. "Three of a kind." He smirks at Valentina.

I watch her place her cards on the table. "Flush. Actually, it's a Full House even."

My happiness is short-lived when I see Yuri standing up and reaching for something in his jacket pocket, so I stand up out of reflex and reach for my gun.

"I was just taking out my cigar." He nervously laughs. I look at Valentina's face expecting to see her scared of the sudden energy shift, but she doesn't react in any way.

He's lying because there's a cigarette in his mouth.

I sit back down, my eyes still trained on him. "Alright."

"Alright." Matteo says and sits back down without taking his eyes off Yuri. "Where's your cigar?"

"Watch your mouth." Yuri warns as he takes out a cigar from his left chest pocket.

"Three are left, so the small blind will be a thousand, big blind two."

Valentina's pile looks the biggest as we continue playing. It's clear, at least to me, that I will be the next one to pull out of the game. They're both competitive, but she's definitely better at making a poker face than he is.

I can tell whether he has a good hand or not based on the way his forehead creases every time a card is laid out. But her...I can't read her face at all. After twenty years of trying to understand what my dad is thinking without it showing on his face, I should be better at reading her.

Every time I look at her, her eyes are on the table and her face is motionless, except for a small smirk playing at the corner of her lips. It's always there, unmistakably.

There are two aces, an eight, and a three on the table. I have an ace and a three, which already makes this a Full House.

Valentina's dad (the person I'm 98% sure is her dad at this point, based on how they interact with each other) folded before even seeing the fourth card.

Her face is expressionless as she looks at the fifth card being laid out. It's an eight of hearts. I look at her again, to see if anything changed.

She's looking at her cards, her cupid's bow turned upwards as usual. There's a playful glint in her eyes that wasn't there before.

Maybe that's her tell when she knows she has the upper hand.

The only way to test it is by going all in and seeing if she folds.

She doesn't miss a beat to match my bid.

"Four of a kind." she says as she lay out her cards. She has two 3's.

Her grin is obvious now and I can't help but smile.

That's your tell

I watch her take the chips from the middle of the table. The careful way she arranges her chips into towers based on value makes her look like a little girl playing with her friends.

"Two are left, small is five thousand, big is ten."

I can't help but watch her for the rest of the game. She has a great poker face, beautiful even. I feel like I can already tell when she has the hand or not, without having to count the cards.

"Raise you eight thousand."

My eyes go back to the table. She matches his bid, which leaves her less than enough money for the next round.

I'm surprised and not surprised at all at the same time. The way she took out every man at the table and always pulled out at the right moments lets me know that her mind works incredibly well, which makes her even more attractive right now.

Our eyes meet when the fourth card is laid out. Her face doesn't turn away from me when her eyes look over at the card. I can see the exact moment she realizes that she won.

"All in." her dad says.

She takes a few moments before uncertainty crossed her face.

"I fold." She says, throwing her cards upside-down on the table.

"Good match." Her dad says to her as he collects his chips and hands them over to the dealer.

She looks genuinely happy that her father praised her.

"I'm happy I got two thousand out of it."

"Should we takes this to the conference room and continue our discussion?" one of the men asks.

"Sure, you go ahead, I need to talk to Valentina about something."

I stand up along with everyone else and go over to Luca at the bar. My eyes are fixated on Valentina and the man I now know for certain is her father. I can't place him, and yet he looks incredibly familiar.

"Bring some ashtrays to the conference room."

Pear-face is looking at me and Luca.

Is he serious?

"We're not part of the service personnel."

His eyes nearly pop out of his head and his face reddens as he points at me.

"One day that smart mouth of yours will get you killed."

I feel the urge to roll my eyes but I refrain myself. My anger issues are acting up because of this drunk rich guy.

"And today can be the day where too much alcohol will get you kicked out and banned from the hotel."

"Do you know who I am?"

"Fortunately, no."

"I'm going to talk to whoever made the bad decision to hire you."

"Do you need the number of my supervisor or can you figure it out?"

I see Valentina smile with the corner of my eye.

"Do you know where the conference room is?" Luca asks him, trying to ease the tension.

Valentina and her dad are talking in Russian now, and I don't know where to look so they can't tell I'm listening in.

I decide to pull out my phone, my brain still trying to understand what they're saying.

She says something about Yuri as a response to something he asked her, which means he values her opinion.

Who is this guy?

Valentina told me once that he was a businessman, but I can't remember anything else. Everyone's a 'businessman' these days.

They pause for a second and he asks her something in a lower tone than before. It makes me think they're talking of me. I understand the word 'university', so I'm 90% sure they're talking about me now.

I look at them when they start walking towards the door. Her dad turns around to look at the two of us.

"Thank you."

This makes me instantly relax as Luca answers him.

Valentina and he seem to be playful with each other, like they have a healthy father-daughter relationship. The fact that he was the only one to thank the people working here makes me like him even more.

I watch her back as she leaves.

"She played well." Luca tells me. "That's kind of hot."

I resist the urge to roll my eyes for the second time in the span of five minutes.

"She's smart."

"Who's the other guy?"

I shrug. "I don't know, but he looks familiar."

"The angry one?"

"Oh, no. I don't know who that is."

"What a dick."

"Yeah. I'm going to the bathroom, be right back."

I exit the room and immediately spot Valentina further away.

"You had the hand."

It's a long shot, maybe, but I'm curious to see if she tells the truth.

"How did you know?"

I am unable to hold down a smile.

There it is.

I lean against the and pull out my cigarette pack, completely forgetting that I came out to go to the bathroom. What I want to do right now is talk to her. She looks at me expectantly.

"You just told me."

She obviously doesn't believe me, rolling her eyes. "How did you really now?"

"I counted the cards."

It's the half-truth. But I can't inflate her ego by saying I watched her face for the most part of the game.

"Of course you did."

"So, why did you do it?"

"One of the games we play together is poker. I know I'm better than my father at a limited number of things, and winning at most games I play is one of them. Winning against him makes him appear...human. I'm not sure if I want to stop seeing him as my dad just yet. And I know he hates losing to his daughter because I can read it on his face. Plus, I didn't want to embarrass him by making him lose against his daughter."

The reason seems very noble and somehow weird coming from her. She didn't strike me as the type to compromise.

"How uncharacteristically nice of you."

"I am nice."

"You looked like you were about to punch that Yuri guy every time he opened his mouth."

"Wouldn't you?"

I offer her a cigarette.

"Are you allowed to smoke in here?"

I haven't thought about smoking rules (or any other rule for that matter) in I don't know how long. I haven't thought about something not being possible ever since I realized that even the police can be influenced.

"Everything is allowed."

I watch her cigarette dangle from her lips so I light it.

"If you know how to count cards, why didn't you win?"

She takes my glass before I even have time to think of an ingenious reply.

"I didn't need another Russian mad at me in that room."

"My dad doesn't get mad if he loses. I've rarely ever seen him angry."

Something I said made her energy change. I don't know what, but it's like her tone and mood shifted.

I feel the urge to ask her what she's doing after this, but the moment has passed.

She hands me back the glass when her phone rings. "I need to go back to my table now."

"Okay, have fun."

I watch her walk away for the third time today.

"I think I just had the most fun I'll have tonight." She jokes.

I smile at myself as the door shuts behind her.

***

Raisa inevitably finds me when people start leaving, including her own table once her father comes from the meeting.

It's all a little bit too similar to my childhood in Italy, but I've never seen these dynamics in anyone else's family before.

"What are you doing after this?"

It's already 10pm, and to my surprise, I've made it so far.

She's leaning against her elbows on the bar, in a way that makes her boobs pop out.

"I have no idea."

I shamelessly look at her chest before back at her eyes. I already know what she wants judging by the way she's looking at me.

"What about you?" I ask, trying to keep the conversation alive.

She shrugs and bites her lip. "I thought we might go somewhere together."

I look over to where Luca is standing by the door.

"Without him." she clarifies.

I don't ask about Valentina because I saw her leave.

"Alright. I just need to change out of this, where do you want to go?"

"Yours."

I order an Uber while I change, then meet her downstairs in the lobby right before it pulls up.

We get into the car, and she gets straight to the point by spreading her legs and pulling her dress all the way up to her hips. It brushes up against her tights in a way that makes her very sensual. She's hot, so what the hell.

I kiss her, and as it turns into a full blown make-out session, I can't help but think that this is the first we've kissed sober.

She never made it to the 'Ariana stage', as Isabella had said.

"I thought you had a boyfriend."

She smiles, her tongue running over her lower lip. "So? Aren't you dating Ariana?"

"No."

The answer comes out fast.

She avoids answering by kissing and straddling me. The driver is pretending to be very focused on the road.

Why am I thinking about the fucking driver right now?

My hands grip into the back of her thighs, bringing her closer so I can grind our crotches together. She shamelessly moans, and I'm not sure if it's a turn on or a turn off, but I kiss her anyway.

It takes me less than usual to come, probably because I've only had two or three drinks and am basically completely sober.

She falls asleep after the second round, so I check my phone to keep myself entertained.

Luca DeCosta: met valentina in the lobby, she asked about you

I check the time. It's less than an hour ago, which means Luca knows I left with Ariana

Matteo: What did you tell her?

Luca DeCosta: That you left

I don't reply, and I also try not to overthink why I even care if Valentina found out.

Since when am I afraid of being judged?

Why am I even thinking about this shit?

***

New York, USA – October 2nd, 2020

I meet my dad in his New York office two days after the charity gala. It's in one of his buildings near Central Park, with tinted glass windows and twenty-two floors. It's only the second time I come here in my life (the first time I was thirteen and he had to pick up something, but he didn't want to leave me in the car alone).

He asks me for a short debrief about how the event went.

"And how was Luca?" he asks after lighting up a small cigar.

"He was okay, he did everything asked of him."

"Did he bring up Romeo?"

"No." I pause, remembering Valentina's dad. "Speaking of, do you have the surveillance videos from that night at the theatre?"

"Why?"

"I want to see something, or someone."

"I don't have the ones of you entering through the back, those have been deleted forever."

"What about the ones from inside? I want to see Romeo and the people he was with."

He hesitates at first but leans forward in his chair to reach the computer. I go over on the other side to watch the screen.

"Pause."

The shot pauses right before Romeo gets shot. He's leaning over to say something to Valentina. On his other side are the women that were at the table two days ago, Valentina's brother, and two men. One of them I don't recognize, but I see the one from the gala immediately.

I point on the screen.

"This man was at the gala yesterday. Who is he?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because he was with Romeo, which means that they were the 'enemy' you were talking about. He betrayed us by telling them something."

I also want to know because he's Valentina's dad, but I don't tell him that.

"They are..." he's struggling to find the words, which means he's about to lie.

"Are they connected to the Russian Paulo killed?"

"Yes."

A chill goes through my entire body at the thought of his death affecting Valentina. I haven't even thought about her relationship with Romeo.

"Were they related to him?"

"Those two were soldiers."

He's referring to the hierarchy in their organization, and the reality of it being a criminal one slowly sinks in.

Is Valentina's dad the head? Is he exactly like my own father?

"And who are the people with Romeo?"

"Looks like the man's family."

My eyes are pinned to Valentina as I press play. Romeo gets shot two times, and she doesn't panic once.

"Are those his children?"

He pauses the video to look at me.

"Why are you pretending like you don't know her, Matteo?"

--

I hope I can stick to one chapter a week, so Chapter 3 (Sirens) will be up next week! I've already wrote 30% of it :D

Let me know if you enjoyed by voting !

xoxo,

Ronnie