Ransom (On Hold)

Chapter 1

Miley Moretti's POV

You could say I've lived a pretty unconventional life. 

My mother passed away in the midst of giving birth to me. This sent my father down a wormhole of utter darkness. 

He created a business worth billions and enlisted the help of my older brother to bring it to the top. Moretti & Co. They were a ruthless duo, tearing down whoever to climb up the ladder of success. Behind closed doors, they engaged in numerous illegal endeavors to keep the business booming. As crazy as this may sound, their actions caught the attention of one of the few horrifying Mafia leaders of New York City. Antonio Rossi. 

My father, brother, and Antonio partnered together to make sure the business would generate unsurmountable sums of wealth. I was kept in the dark throughout all of this, but I wasn't stupid. I knew that what they were doing would land them each a life sentence. 

"Miley... Did you hear a word of what I just said?" My brother, Jackson, pulled me from my daze. 

I shook my head, smiling meekly at him. "I'm sorry. I got distracted by the view," I replied looking back out the window of his office. The space overlooked all of Manhattan. 

"I was saying that we have the gala later tonight. It's an extremely important night for the company," he huffed.

"I know that, Jack-"

"No you don't, Miley. One slip-up could land us in a shit load of trouble. You need to be charming with Rossi and his colleagues." 

I nodded in response. Antonio was always keen of me for some reason. As horrible of a man as we was, having him around meant that I was safe from my father. My father rests the blame for the death of my mother solely on me. Early on in life, he took out his anger in brutal verbal attacks. I had become a professional in tuning out voices. 

As I grew up, his anger turned into unspeakable aggressions that left me battered and bruised. Whenever Antonio was around, my father would treat me as if he had raised me as any normal, kind father would. That's why I was relieved to have him around. 

"I need to go get ready," I spoke quietly looking at Jackson. 

Jackson knew what my father did to me, but he always turned a blind eye. He was terrified of my father and of the fact that he has Antonio wrapped around his finger. The things my father could do if my brother rebelled against him were much worse than what he was already doing to me. 

"See you soon," Jackson replied. 

I left, making my way to the elevator. Antonio and his men stood in front of the elevator. 

"Rumor has it that Luca Romano and his crew are planning on making an appearance at the Gala tonight," one of his men spoke in a hushed tone. The men sensed my presence as they turned to look at me. 

"Miley, pleasure to see you," Antonio beamed.

"Antonio. Gentlemen," I nodded. "Who's Luca Romano?" I pressed, cocking my head to the side. Antonio chuckled at my curiosity. 

"Someone that you don't need to worry your pretty little mind about. We have him under control," Antonio stated overconfidently. I smiled slightly stepping off of the elevator. 

"I'll see you all tonight," I waived as I started to walk off.

"I'm looking forward to it," Antonio responded in an all-too-flirty tone. 

** A couple of hours later**

I glanced at myself in the mirror. My hair was curled loosely and my face was glittered with bits of makeup. I smoothed down my black dress that hugged my curves in a flattering manner.

My father and brother had left for the venue about thirty minutes ago leaving me with one of the bodyguards. I checked my phone to see if my father's driving service had arrived for me yet. I walked out of my bedroom and over to the large window of the penthouse that I lived in with my 'family'. Though it was dark outside, the city was bright and beautiful with the bustling night life. 

My vision jolted to the living room behind me as I heard  a grunt and what sounded like something being knocked over. My eyes widened as I saw three large, menacing men kick open the front door.  

"Who are you?" I panicked as they started stalking towards me slowly. "Take anything you want, please just leave me be," I begged as I back away from their advances. My breath hitched as my back hit the cool glass of the window.  

"We came for you darling," one of the men responded as a predatory smirk spread across his face. I didn't even have time to react before one of the men lunged at me, grabbing one of my arms. A cloth was shoved in my mouth as my hands were swiftly tied together. 

I tried grounding my feet into thee floor as two of the men dragged me towards the hallway. We passed the body of the guard as we exited the penthouse. All life had been drained from his glazed-over eyes. My cries for help were muffled by the thick piece of cloth that was lodged in my mouth. 

My attempts at resisting the men were unsuccessful as we reached the roof of the building. Another man in a helicopter stood waiting for us. I was stuffed in between the men as the helicopter took off. My chest was heaving and my eyes were squeezed shut. 

"Romano is gonna murder us," one of the men blurted out, running his fingers through his hair. My eyes opened at the mention of that name. I remembered one of Antonio's men bring it up earlier. 

"I think Romano will thank us," another man smirked, his eyes burning holes in my skin. "She'll make quite the little play thing." 

At that point I did what I was best at: tuning voices out. 

The helicopter landed on another skyscraper across the river. I was tugged out of the helicopter and pulled through yet another hallway. Huge double doors were swung open as the men threw me inside a rather boisterous apartment. I fell to the ground, my restrained hands making it impossible to catch myself. 

"Go get him," one of the men ordered another. 

I heard multiple pairs of footsteps heading towards the large room a couple of minutes later. 

"What the fuck," I heard a deep, terrifying voice growl. "I told you to bring me back Moretti's son, not his fucking daughter." My eyes remained glued to the floor in front of me. My was heart racing as the voice inside my head insisted that I don't glance up at the men in the room.

"She was the only one there, Luca," another man responded. I could sense the hesitation in his voice.

"How hard is it to follow a simple order. Have you all forgotten who I am?" The terrifying man spoke, his voice raising with each articulate word. My body began to quiver.

I watched as a pair of feet made their way towards me. Each step sent a shock of nerves throughout my being. The man stopped right in front of me, dropping down so that his face was level with mine. His finger looped under my chin, forcing me to look at him. My eyes met a set of dark green ones and my breath caught in my throat. His eyes carefully examined my obviously fearful face. I took that time to fully take in his features. A strong jawline, rough with facial hair, full lips. His eyes, oh his eyes. If he wasn't so intimidating, I might've thought he was handsome. 

"Your father owes me a lot of money, Sweetheart," he smirked. "Let's hope he thinks that you're worth the sum he owes me."

My body tensed as my eyes widened in fear. As horrible as it sounds, I knew that my father wouldn't be willing meet his demands. What I didn't know, and frankly was more afraid of, is what was to happen when the frightening man in front of me realized his ransom was worth nothing.

A/N----

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