Altered (An Italian Mafia Story)

Chapter Four

The moment I stepped into the casino, I felt out of place. It was beautifully decorated with intricate designs on the walls and glass chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The lights were dimmed, giving it a mysterious atmosphere. Every man in the room was wearing a suit and there were women hanging off the arms of men wearing elegant cocktail dresses. I felt like I'd just walked into a scene in the Great Gatsby.

As I made my way over to the bar, a few of the men's eyes followed me. Doing as Gio had told me, I ordered myself a drink when the bartender came over to me. "What can I get you?"

"Uh, a gin tonic, please." I said, handing him a twenty. Admittedly, it was the only drink I could remember as my mind had blanked the moment he'd asked me. I'd never ordered any type of drink in a bar before. When the man returned with my drink, I sipped on it slowly, surveying the room for my target.

"Is this seat taken?" Someone asked in an Italian accent that sounded vaguely familiar.

I looked up, ready to tell him I was waiting for someone, but my breath caught in my throat when I saw his face. It was him. It was Stefano Colombo, the man I was looking for. Immediately, I noticed that the picture Francesco gave me, the one folded up and tucked in my bra, did not do this man justice. "No, go ahead. I'm drinking alone tonight." I told him with a forced smile, finishing off the last bit of my drink.

"What's a beautiful girl like you doing all by herself?"

Oh, you know, just waiting for you to show up so I can seduce you, get you alone and then kill you so that the Italian mafia will leave my brother and me alone. "I'm celebrating." I said instead, trying keep myself from giving him unnecessary information.

Stefano raised an eyebrow and smirked. "What are you celebrating?"

"My freedom. My boyfriend cheated on me, so I don't have to think about him anymore." I lied easily.

"He doesn't know what he gave up." Stefano said, his eyes looking me up and down, slowly drinking me in. "You look lonely. Let me change that."

The blush that covered my cheeks was real. That was something I couldn't fake. "What'd you have in mind?" I asked, knowing damn well what he had in mind.

"Vieni con me. You can find out for yourself." He said, standing and offering me his hand.

(Come with me.)

I had never done anything like this before and, while I was burning inside, I tried to play it cool. I gave him a soft smile and offered him my hand. He helped me down from the bar stool and put his hand on the small of my back, ushering me out of the casino. Because of the open back of my dress, his fingers rested on my bare skin and I shivered at his touch. Jesus Christ, I needed to pull myself together. I was here to seduce and kill him, not seduce and sleep with him.

Stefano opened a car door, snapping me out of my thoughts and I flashed him a smile before climbing in. He drove quickly and expertly through the New York traffic, as if he did this on the daily. Just thinking about making my way through the city by car gave me a head ache. The car ride was silent, but it was comfortable and when he pulled into an underground garage, I was a little sad.

The reality of what I was about to do started to sink in as I followed him up an elevator. "This place seems nice." I said, looking around at the hallway. The floor was marble and the walls were elegantly tiled. My eyes lingered on the chandelier on the other end of the hallway that looked more expensive than everything I owned.

"My apartment is one of the two on this floor. It's very private." He commented, bringing my attention to the fact that there were only two doors down the long hallway.