Omertà

Chapter 17: Broken

The universe has always had a strange habit of making my life more difficult. Like the way I couldn't walk into class without tripping and falling flat on my face in high school. Or even like the way I would always seem to lose my keys or wallet at the most inconvenient times. Due to my history, I couldn't fight off this bad feeling about this dinner. Dimitri's arm was wrapped tightly around my waist, securing me to him as we march down the dark, dank corridor with Marcos in tow. Dimitri stops us in front of a door and quietly wraps his knuckles against the peeling white paint.

I hear the lock disengage before the door swings open for us. I swallow hard, suppressing the impending feeling of disaster.

"Ciao, Dimitri, Marcos." A man greets them with anything but friendliness.

"Ciao, Leonardo." Dimitri responds and Marcos nods curtly.

Leonardo gives me a look over before nodding and leading us through another door. This time, when the door opens, were greeted with a brighter, livelier atmosphere. A group of important looking men all dressed in Armani suits laugh together around a table. Almost all of them have a woman draped across their laps.

"Dimitri! Marcos! I didn't think you'd take my offer!" A man sings happily from the head of the table.

Dimitri gives the man a tight smile. "Sì, well we do have important business to discuss, Francisco."

The man smiles again and motions for us to sit. "Sit. We will discuss this business." Dimitri sits stiffly and drags me down onto his lap. "But first, you must tell me where you got this girl."

I feel Dimitri tense underneath me and I lean into him more. "Leo, I really think we should just stick to discussing our borders and the drug bust issue." Dimitri forced through a clenched jaw.

Leo let out a hearty laugh. "She must really be a good fuck for you to get so defensive. Wanna let me take her out for a joy ride?" The man winks at me and I look down, disgusted at his suggestion.

"Leo, you know I have a short temper, so I suggest you shut the fuck up." Dimitri's tone chills me to the bone and his grip on my hips is turning painful.

"Now, now, calm down. You can't really blame me for wanting to see what's under that dress." In a flash, Dimitri is on his feet and I'm stumbling to regain my balance. I look up in time to see Dimitri point his gun at Leonardo. The other men around the table quickly pull their guns, everyone pointing their gun at someone different. Leonardo is the only person in the room, other than me of course, without a gun pointed at someone's head.

"Bad move, Dimitri." He says calmly. "How is your father going to get you out of this one?"

"This meeting is over." Dimitri's voice is shaking dangerously with anger and his free arm is holding me protectively behind him.

"This meeting is not over until I say so." The man states calmly once again. "Now, everyone here, put your guns away and sit back down."

Slowly, the men around the table slowly and reluctantly tuck their guns back into their waistbands and sit down. Dimitri is that last to do so. He pulls me back down to his lap, his fingers fanning out on my sides, holding me to him.

"You know, I was hoping you'd get angry. This just proves what your father said to me. We came to an agreement that you could be of use to me." Leo rests his elbows down on the table, his hands meeting in the middle.

"Did you now?" Dimitri asks coldly.

"Sì. The terms of our agreement were that you go do a job for me in Italy for a few months while we help your father out of this drug bust situation." His grip tightens even more when Leo mentions a few months.