The Alpha Mafioso's Prey

Chapter 2: His Prey

 The first hour in Chinatown was for a breakfast of purple rice porridge.

Aurora poked at it doutbully, eyeing other patrons at the restaurant slurping it down with gusto. She took a hesitant spoonful. It was alright, she supposed, and more importantly, it was cheap. She plopped the spoon in the bowl and sighed.

A few notes of a too-peppy song filled the air before Aurora fumbled through her purse, silencing her phone. The missed call notification popped up on the screen, then a text from her boss, Lauren, who was somehow always an hour late. Where are you? Aurora switched her phone back to silent and dropped it back into her purse.

Now that she was away from Valentino, her heightened state was gone, leaving her drained and tethered. What was she doing here? What was she, some kind of stupid vigilante who was gonna face off against the mafia to save some random nobody then disappear forever? She might as well skip to the last part.

She took another bite of porridge. Well, she was already here, sticking out like a sore thumb in the sea of Mandarin and a little Cantonese around her.

The second hour was for walking around aimlessly, turning in lazy circles around the district and finding herself passing the same landmarks over and over.

The third was for coffee, an iced vanilla latte from Starbucks--even in Chinatown, she couldn't avoid them. After the heights of the morning, normal awareness felt painfully low.

The fourth was for jitters. Her fingers bounced on her leg as she walked briskly, feeling as though ants crawled up her back and through her veins. It was a Starbucks latte, for God's sake. It wasn't actually supposed to have that much caffeine, just sugar. At least she was awake now, like she'd been in the morning.

The fifth was for lunch. She'd scouted a place earlier, a restaurant with pictures of dumplings and wontons plastered to the windows. Sure, she couldn't read a damn thing on the menu, but if worse came to worst, she could just point and pray.

She set off for the restaurant, nerves itching to move. Maybe that coffee had been a mistake.

The city passed around her in a flurry of color and noise. Even in the day, signs of stores and restaurants flashed with neon colors. Conversations and arguments bounced across the streets in harsh, foreign sounds. People weaved through traffic on foot, skateboard, or bike.

It was all almost too much. The city was always like this--bustling with too many people who cared too little for everyone else, so why was she still here? She could be five hours away--a couple states away, at least, from Valentino Maledetto and whatever this business was with the mafia and the triads.

Damn it all. Why was everything so loud? Why was the loudest thing her heart, thrumming through her chest like a bass drum?

Aurora heard a roar in her head just before calloused hands wrenched her to the side, sending her reeling into a shadowed alley only a couple blocks from her destination. She tried to right herself, only to be met with another shove that sent her sprawling.

"Help!" Aurora screamed. "He--"

The same rough hand covered her mouth, tasting of salt and faintly of lavender, and pulled her against something--someone--solid. She flailed out, scrabbling behind her with uncut nails, but her attacker restrained both her arms behind her with his single free arm.

Help. But nobody noticed. If they did, would they even care? Her whole life, Aurora lived in the shadows, out of notice. Why should that change now, just because she was getting--