The Unknown Family

Darkness

Silence.

Once again, I was engulfed in silence.

The silence around me was agonisingly still. So still that I could even hear the quiet little breaths that were exhaled from my unmoving body.

As my tired green eyes opened to see the dimly lit room, I felt a surge of aches and pains travel through my body.

The darkness didn't falter as I sat up from the bed I laid in.

It was then I noticed, I have never seen this room before.

I stumbled out of the bed despite the unseeable in front of me, my hand searching the walls for a light switch.

Then, all events before I was knocked unconscious filled my memory.

"Shit." I mumbled, "Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit." I continued to mutter as I scrambled to find a source of light.

"Liviana?" I heard a tired voice speak in the darkness.

"Leo?" I spoke.

I heard a bit of shuffling, before a lamp in the corner of the room switched on

Sat in a leather chair, was Leo, who's brown hair was a flat and sweaty on his head. Looking at the bags under his eyes, he's clearly been awake for a very long time.

"What's going on?" I asked, glancing around the area lit by the lamp.

"Come here." He just whispered in response.

I did as he said, and sat down sideways on his lap in a hug. As I did so, he released a deep sigh, as if he'd been missing me for days.

"A person from another mafia broke into the house, and tried to kidnap you." He started, "But Dad caught him before you fell unconscious and Xavier had been following you down the hallway. Xavier shot him, but dad was too far away to catch you when you fell, so you hit your head." He explained to me.

"Is everyone else okay?" I asked concerned.

"Yeah, just little shaken up." Leo answered as he continued to stroke my slightly longer than shoulder length hair away from my face.

"Where are we?" I finally asked when I felt him become less tense, probably at the fact he could hold me again.

"We're at one of our warehouses, Vito brought us here since the house security had been compromised. We've been here for three days."

I was out cold for three days...

As I was about to speak, I heard a childish whine from the other side of the room, causing me and Leo to chuckle quietly.

"And how long has Xavier been sat in this room for?" I sarcastically asked him.

"The only time he let go of you was for the toilet or when you were being examined." Leo told me, a happy smile on his face.

"Liv." Xavier mumbled out sleepily, sitting in the chair on the other side of the bed with his head thrown back as he quietly snores. "Liv?"

Leo let go of me, and I tip toed across the room where I could now fully see Xavier as Leo put the light on.

His hair was a mess of curly black locks, and he needed a shave as a beard started to grow. He's bloody nineteen! He wore a tight fitting, sleeveless black shirt and a pair of Nike shorts.

"You're awake." He stated in a joyful tone as he pecked my lips.

"And now we're both going back to sleep." I told him with a smile.

With a deep chuckle, he pulled me closer to him, my head resting on his chest as his chin was on top on my head.

I snuggled closer and welcomed the warmth that left his body as I slowly drifted off once more.

L E O

When Liv had finally fell asleep again, I nodded at Xavier who was looking intensely at me, and left the room.

That look saying 'do what I can't at the moment'

For me, I can't comfort my sister as she is most comfortable with her boyfriend -that I have no problem with- and for him...

Find out who the fuck tried to take my sister and his girlfriend.

Once I quietly closed the medical room door of the VIP area of the warehouse, I strode down the hallways where men and women stood guard. Both French and Italian.

After climbing some stairs, I arrived outside the meeting room where most of my family were.

Heading inside, I saw Vito, Dad, Rina, Lenny and Luca all stood around the large table, staring at the security footage screen.

Andrea is with Theo at the French warehouse down the road, preparing their soldiers for a war should we come to it. But for now, just to protect their Donna.

"What have we got?" I asked once I came to a standstill beside my twin.

"Fuck all!" Vito seethed as he to threw a glass of whiskey at the wall, the shards shattering all over the carpet.

"Calm down son." Dad said, authority yet understanding in his tone.

"Don't tell me to calm down! THEY TRIED TO TAKE MY SISTER! AGAIN!"

"Vito. Calm." Rina commanded.

And like the macho man he is, he immediately calmed down and sat in the boss' seat.

When Liv was first taken, Vito blamed himself. For months, he destroyed himself with the paperwork and torture and killing he did to try and find our little sister.

Rina, as always, was the only one able to calm down the monster within him.

"Well, how has the torture sessions been coming along?" I questioned, looking towards Lenny and Luca who's job it was.

"He's not saying a word." Luca grumbled.

"All we have is a tattoo, nothing more." Lenny added.

"Tattoo of what?" Dad asked, this being news to him as Lenny and Luca only arrived a few minutes before I did.

"This." Putting down a photograph on the table top, it showed a serpent dancing in a ball of flames. No colours decorated it, only the black ink to stain it into the skin.

"What sort of tattoo is that?" Rina asked as she glanced down  at it warily.

"It's the Serpents tattoo."

All of us turned our heads to the doorway, where Xavier stood with a sleeping Liv.

Her legs wrapped around his waist and arms around his neck, he held onto her by her thighs as he stood staring at the photo of the tattoo.

The Serpents are a small but powerful organisation of assassins from around the world. No more than three from each country. They're the deadliest killers you can find, always finishing a job.

Till now.

"How do you know?" Vito questioned as he looked towards Xavier who had now fully entered the room.

"Because-"

Putting Liv on the sofa by his side, letting her settle before he let go, he pulled off his shirt, and pointed at the right side of his upper chest.

There, in the mist of all the other tattoos of various shapes and sizes,

Was the exact same Serpent tattoo as Liv's would be kidnapper.