Million Dollar Mafia

Chapter 50

Antonio pulled a chair out from beside me and down. " What'd I miss?" He asked. Mrs. Brambilla sighed and whipped a tear from her eye. We'd been laughing so much, she started tearing up. I smiled at Antonio, " oh, nothing," Mrs. Brambilla said. Antonio raised an eyebrow at me, " your mom was telling me about your childhood." Antonio scoffed and leaned back in his chair, " what part, the trauma or when I was actually happy?" Mrs. Brambilla shook her head at Antonio, " what's your definition on trauma?" " Dad forcing me to kill innocent people as a kid," Anthoio answered immediately. " Does that count as trauma?" Mrs. Brambilla sighed, " Thalia, what did your father do when you were a kid?" I smiled, " uh, I trained with my brothers at a young age." Mrs. Brambilla nodded, " see, your not special Tony." Antonio held back a smile as I chuckled.

About thirty minutes later of Mrs. Brambilla talking with me and Antonio having a conversation about work with the men seated at our table, a man walked up onto the stage and tapped the microphone. " Hello, hello?" The man tested the microphone. Everyone immediately stopped their ongoing conversations and averted their attention to the now starting work dinner meeting.

" It's lovely to see you all tonight!" The man exclaimed into the microphone. Everyone clapped, Antonio kept one hand on the table and the other on my upper thigh. " I'd like to start by thanking Mr. Brambilla for donating $10,958 to our local funding to businesses in need of help." I scoffed softly and looked at Antonio, " how much money do you have?" " Enough," Antonio said keeping his eyes on the man on the stage. " As in?" I asked, unsatisfied with Antonio's answer. Antonio looked at me, " enough to satisfy us and everyone in Italy." I raised my eyebrows, " are you serious?" Antonio couldn't help but smile, " yes."

" Now, who's ready for some bidding?" The man on the stage asked. Everyone cheered and clapped, Antonio held a smug look on his face. I looked at him before looking around the ball room then at the man on the stage. " Ready?" The man asked. The hall room cheered again and clapped, I shifted my position in my chair.

" Okay, let's start with a hundred dollars," the man on the stage said. " A hundred dollars?" A man in a dark blue tuxedo held up sign that had a number 8 on it. " A hundred dollars to the man in the dark blue suit, anyone else?" A man in a black tuxedo held up a sign that had a number 12 on it. " Hundred dollars to the man in the black tuxedo!" A women in a flowy red dress held up a sign that had a number 13 on it. " A hundred dollars to the women in the red, anything higher?" The man on the stage asked. A man with a clean cut beard held up a sign that had a number 34 on it, " twenty thousand dollars!" The ball room cheered, Antonio held back a smile and rubbed his jaw. " What?" I asked looking at him. Antonio simply shook his head and sat back in his chair. I stared at Antonio in confusion, before looking back at the man on the stage. " Twenty thousand dollars, do I hear anything higher?" A women in a short white silk dress held up a sign that had a number 56 on it, " fifty thousand dollars!" Mrs. Brambilla chuckled, " I've always enjoyed coming to these things?" I looked at him, " why, what happens?" Mrs. Brambilla looked at Antonio before looking at me, " as fancy and expensive everyone in here may look, they all run out of money soon." I frowned, " what do you mean?" Mrs. Brambilla smiled, " just wait."

Antonio sat back in his chair, his face calm and still. Mrs. Brambilla just smiled, I was the only one confused on what was going on. I leaned over to Mrs. Brambilla, " does this happen every year?" Mrs. Brambilla nodded, " people come with huge amounts of money, thinking they're impressing people." I stared at Mrs. Brambilla as she held back information. " How rich, exactly is your family?" I asked. Mrs. Brambilla sighed, " we never talk about money unless it's about business. My husband is very strict about work and money, Antonio is more loose about it." I nodded, " so what's going on right now?" Mrs. Brambilla nodded towards the man on the stage, " you'll find out." I frowned, what was going on. I turned my attention back to the man on the stage. " And for a sum of seventy billion, four hundred and thirty thousand dollars, from an unknown giver," the man said. I gasped as my eyebrows rose, who the hell had that much money? " Anyone able to top that?" The man on the stage asked. Chattering erupted about the ball room, my heart rate picked up hearing how much money was just donated. " I'll pay more!" A man in a grey tuxedo exclaimed. The man on the stage nodded, " what's your price?" " Eighty billion, six hundred and eighty dollars!" the man in the grey tuxedo yelled out. Antonio chuckled and shook his head, I looked at Mrs. Brambilla, still confused. " And again, our unknown payer has gone higher!" The man on the stage said. " With a sum of eighty billion dollars!" The ball room cheered louder than ever as cheering and laughter increased. Mrs. Brambilla had a huge smile on her face, I looked at her, " who the hell is the unknown payer?" Mrs. Brambilla nodded her head, " you'll find you soon."

Antonio pulled out his phone and began texting someone. I eyed his phone before looking back up at the man on the stage. " The funding of the money has been donated to someone in this room," the man informed. My eyebrows brushed together, what did the man mean by all the money was donated to all the money to someone in the room.

" Thalia Galonos," the man on the stage. My heart skipped a beat at the sound of hearing my name through the microphone. " The money has been donated to your account from our unknown payer," the man informed. I scoffed as the blood in my face drained out, I looked as white as a piece of paper.

Everyone in the room stared at me, my breathing picked up and my nerves were bouncing erratically inside me. " Antonio was is going on?" I asked trying to maintain myself. I looked at him, the corners of his mouth threatened to rise into a smile.

" Can we all bring our hands together and thank Mr. Brambilla for his donation?" The man on the stage exclaimed. I looked at Mrs. and Mr. Brambilla, my eyes averted to Mr. Brambilla. I wondered why he gave me so much money. Mrs. Brambilla looked at me and smiled, suddenly I realized Mr. Brambilla wasn't the unknown payer. " Oh my god," I said softly. I slowly turned my head and stared into Antonio's pure green eyes. " What did you do?" I basically whispered. Antonio chuckled, " I do it every year." " For every girl you sleep with?" I teased. " Uh, no," Antonio said. " I do it for the cause, some business need help and I help them." I stared at him, still not being able to believe what the hell just happened. " Antonio, do you realize that you just gave me eighty billion dollars?" Antonio stared at me, his eyes held awe and appreciation. " And I'd do it everyday for the rest of my life," Antonio said. My eyes filled up with tears, " what am I going to do with all that money?" Antonio tilted his head, " that's for you to decide." I stared at Antonio, " you just gave me eighty billion dollars." Antonio smiled and fixed his suit jacket, " you deserve more than you have." I scoffed, " and what exactly don't I have?" Antonio looked at me, " I know exactly what you've been through even if you didn't tell me." I stared at Antonio, it was at that very moment everything seemed to stop. I gazed into Antonio's beautiful green eyes. " You are my world Thalia, and I will give you more of what I have every single day," Antonio promised me.