Saorsa

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My hand shakily knocks on the decrepit door of the old warehouse, my other hand tightly clutching the strap of the duffle bag hanging over my shoulder.

The girl at the restaurant, who I now know is called Veronica offered me a deal. Her cousin is a distributor for a small cartel in an isolated area of Sicily and his job today was to bring the money he made to the warehouse and then collect his new batch of drugs to sell.

However, her cousin was recently shot in the leg, making him unable to make the journey to this warehouse out in the middle of nowhere. 

She had been doing his drug runs for him but she expressed to me how much she hates it, telling me the paranoia of carrying tens of thousands in cash and pounds of cocaine was unbearable.

I immediately denied taking her place but after she told me her cousin's cut of the money would be ten grand and I can have half of it, I reluctantly agreed.

Which is why I'm currently here, clutching a bag filled with no less than forty grand whilst standing under the starry night sky, the breeze blowing through my curls.

It took me hours of walking and bus rides to get here so I'm currently fighting the urge to collapse to the ground, my body exhausted.

I wrap my jacket around me tighter, desperate to preserve as much heat as possible as I wait.

The sound of multiple locks unlocking rings out from behind the large metal door, causing me to suck in a harsh breath as I stare at it in anticipation.

"Erm hi I'm here in place of Veronica," I awkwardly repeat what she told me to say, staring at the large tattooed man glaring down at me.

He looks at me in confusion, looking like he didn't understand a word of what I just said. "Oh," I realise, being so used to speaking English because James didn't understand Italian. 

"Sono qui al posto di Veronica," I translate, causing a look of realisation to form across his features.

He looks me up and down before eyeing the heavy bag across my shoulder. The door creaks open as he motions for me to come inside. 

I reluctantly oblige, stepping into a pitch black hallway. I step slowly, trying not to trip over as he leads me into the dark abyss.

Another door is opened, the sound of it creaking reverberating through the silent hallway. I stumble into a much larger space, a huge warehouse with tall metal shelves all adorning piles and piles of drugs.

There's also a large table in the centre of the room with four menacing looking men surrounding it, all putting stacks of money into a small machine on the table.

"Capo," The man beside me grunts, causing the man in the centre of the table to look up. He looks me up and down, cigar in hand as a sardonic smile spreads out across his face.

"Now what do we have here?" He smiles, causing the rest of the men to look in my direction. "Sit down darling," He says friendlily, motioning towards the chair in front of him.

My fear slightly dissipates because I'm just thankful to be able to sit down, not wanting to faint and be unconscious in a room full of these men.

"How has a girl like you ended up here in my presence," He chuckles, holding unflinching eye contact with me.

"I'm here in place of Veronica," I repeat, not knowing what else to say. "Mhm," He hums in understanding, finding my nervousness amusing.

"Well let me see," He says, nodding towards the duffle bag. I lug it up onto the table, the sound of the heavy bag thumping against the metal echoing throughout the room.

He nods in approval before handing the stacks of money to the other men who immediately start putting it into the little machine.

"See this thing here tells me whether or not this money is counterfeit," He explains, taking a drag from his cigar.

The room is plunged into silence, the tension thick as I watch the money come out of the machine. The man looks up, making eye contact with his boss before slowly shaking his head.

His once amused smile drops, his face now completely expressionless. "What a shame, I would have liked to keep a beautiful woman like you around for longer," He sighs. 

"What?" I question urgently, frantically looking back and forth from him to the money. "It's fake?" I ask, my voice cracking.

"Yes but I suspect you already knew that," He mutters, reaching towards the gun in his waistband. "Wait, wait," I rush out. 

"I was just dropping this off for Veronica, I had no idea," I tell him honestly, desperate for him to believe me.

"That's what they all say," He sighs, making the other men chuckle. "Please, I'll do anything," I cry as one of the men grabs me by the shoulder and throws me to the floor.

"Anything?" He smirks, hovering over me. He goes to reach out for me but retracts his hand when the sound of gunshots rattle out from outside.

"Capo?" The man who originally opened the door for me questions, looking at his boss for guidance.

"Go check it out and deal with her later," He instructs, seemingly unbothered by the gunfire outside.

He nods before grabbing me and pulling me across the room, throwing me to the ground and causing my head to slam against the hard wall.

I groan in pain as he pulls out a pair of handcuffs, cuffing me to a hot metal pipe that immediately scolds my skin. "Please uncuff me, I'll stay still I promise," I cry, the searing heat being unbearable.

He ignores me, turning around and leaving me huddled in the corner.