Mafia Connections

Katherine

I can see his car waiting a little bit down the street, headlight illuminating the road.

Idiot, he's going to get us caught.

The window doesn't creak as I open it, I made sure it wouldn't last week before I snuck out for the first time.

I swing my legs out and drop down onto the flower patch. Fuck, I spent hours perfecting the arrangement. Better than landing on the gravel and alerting the guards I guess.

I turn and close the window over but don't lock it, the last thing I need is to be locked out.

"What are you doing sestra?" His voice is low and vicious. I wince, he caught me. "It's two in the morning, what could you possibly be up to?"

I sigh and close my eyes before turning to the brute that is my big brother. "Art" I greet him "I'm going out"

He raises an eyebrow and folds his arms. "Are you now?" A smile plays on his lips. "You see, I think that your going to turn around and climb back through that window before Viktor, or even worse, mama finds out that you're out here"

I growl at him "It's not fair!" I hiss at him "You get to go out all the time and I'm stuck in the house. All I want to do is go out with my boyfriend for one night but one of you meatheads are always ruining it for me?"

He stares at me, look down at the long jacket I'm wearing and bare legs before signing. "Fine. I don't tell anyone you left, but you're putting trousers on first"

****

Once I've changed and climbed back out of the window because Art is too big of an arse to let me out of the front door, I'm in the passenger seat of Georgio Frances's car.

He's your classic bad boy in a leather jacket with his black hair slicked back, a good chain around his neck and piercing blue eyes.

"So, Katie Smirnov, how did you escape tonight?" He asks me.

I smooth out the creases in my trousers and smile at him. "Art caught me but he let me out anyway" I stare at him, at the way his hands clench on the steering wheel, the way he rolls his shoulders to loosen the muscles.

My family don't approve of him but I really don't see why. I mean, so what if he sells drugs, we're the fucking mafia.

He doesn't reply and his jaw ticks "You seem stressed, you okay?" I ask him.

He shrugs "Got a big deal going down tonight. Could push us up in the world"

I bite down on my thumbnail "What is it? New shipment, or a completely new business"

He gulps "Trafficking" he quickly checks me to judge my reaction. I dotn show anything on my face, I've gotten good at that. "We're to pick up the kids and then pass them on"

"Kids?" I ask him, the slightest hint of emotion catching my voice "How young?"

He doesn't answer me. Trafficking shouldn't bother me, I mean I was taken to a ring at ten years old by that monster Elijah after I saw him do something unspeakable. It was a warning of where I would end up if I opened my mouth.

Slaves are owned by the majority of people that walk through our doors and I know that Elijah takes great interest in it.

"Don't worry Katie" he finally says "You'll have no part in any of it, none"

****

He left for the deal an hour ago and I'm bored. I get out of the comfortable desk chair and head over to his bookshelf. Mostly classics, a few more modern tales, it was all so Georgio.

I hear a thud and jump, my hand going for the gun on my hip that Art forced into my hand before I left.

A loud female scream has me running for the door but whoever it is reaches it first. The door swings open and a young girl with long brown hair skids across the floor as she struggles to get away.

Her hands are bound behind her back and the side of her face is starting to bruise. She's one of the kids.

Her eyes are covered with a strip of material and the gag has fallen to her throat, she's breathing heavily as she fights her bonds.

Benny runs in and grabs her from the floor, ripping another scream from her throat. She starts to sob painfully and I'm frozen as I watch him lift her into the air as she kicks and fights.

She's wearing her school uniform.

"Get off me!" She screeches "Please, just let me go!"

I don't know what to do. This is Georgio's business, I can't ruin this for him. But they've hurt her, they'll hurt her again.

But they're gone. He's dragged her from the room and her screams have died down. I walk out into the hall and spot a sheet of paper lying on the ground.

I pick it up and quickly scan it. It's the names of ten children and where they're going.

One of them is going to Elijah.

My breathing catches. I can't let that happen, I may be mafia, but I'm still a human being, I can't let one of those poor girls end up in his clutches.

I grab my bag from the desk and fish my phone out from the bottom. I'll tell Artie, tell him everything, he'll fix this.

"Art" I say after he picks up on the first ring. I'm crying and he knows instantly somethings wrong "You need to know something"

I hear the click of a gun and I stop. "What does he need to know Katie?" Elijah says. I freeze and Art is shouting on the other end of the phone. "Put down the phone little girl"

I hang up and place the phone on the desk. "Turn around" he demands. Georgio will come for me, he'll save me.

I do as I'm told and my heart breaks as I realise that Elijah is standing behind Georgio, and he isn't the one holding the gun. "Georgio" I say staring down the barrel of the gun he's pointing at me. "What are you doing?"

Another man steps into the room. I've never seen him before. "You let a Smirnov in?" He says to Georgio. "You trying to get yourself killed?"

Georgio has a hard look in his eyes and refuses to look away from me "She wasn't supposed to get involved"

Elijah smirks "Shoot the bitch. She knows far too much and if this stops me from getting what I want, then you'll pay Frances"

The other man watches Georgio "I think we should leave the lovebirds to it. They clearly have some issues to sort"

The two men leave me and Georgio to face off. My hand goes for the gun "Stop!" Georgio barks "Hands up"

I drop my hands to my sides and glower at him. "You're not going to shoot me. You're not that stupid"

A tear slips down his cheek and his hands shake "Elijah's right. I can't have you telling anyone about what you saw tonight, I never should have let you come tonight"

"So now you're going to shoot me?" I say "My brother will come for you. He'll make you wish for death, he'll make you pay"

He purses his lips. "I hope he does"

BANG.