Mafia's Principessa

2

It's been two years since my 'grandmother' had me snatched from in front of Sicilia Hotel and dragged me back to Italy. I made it a point not to ever speak to her like a human being after I found out her watchdogs knew how my mother and I were being treated and despite the fact they were watching that day, they refused to intervene. We don't speak about my mother. Ever. It was the only condition for my life.

As long as she doesn't try to sell me off I'll do whatever she wants.I know what it's like to live low, and this doesn't come anywhere close to it. I'm not stupid enough to screw up the most stable living I've had since I was 4.

I  learned to shoot, to defend myself, to act at gala's and dinners. I would smile and not talk too much and only when spoken to.

If anyone asked who I was, I was to tell them I was Gio Rossi's daughter. Gio was my grandmother's first son, he ran off to America as soon as my grandparents weren't looking and came back in a casket four years later. They kept it hush hush, and now she's using it as a cover story to hide who my real father is. From the world, from the mafia, and from my father himself Michele Rossi.

After her first failure of a son, my grandmother couldn't allow my mother to make a failure of the only heir the Rossi's have left. She thinks my father would have left the mafia for me and my mother, but I can't see how a man who let the 'love of his life' slip through his fingers so easily, can be in charge of one of the most powerful mafia families in Italy.He has a new wife, a new family, a daughter and a son. He doesn't need me and I certainly don't need him.

My half sister's a spoiled bitch and even though she has no clue I'm her sister she hates me. She and my brother are only two years younger than me. He's a hell of a lot more tolerable than she is, but he only cares about his girls, guns and cars. My stepmother is the only other one in on the ruse, and not because Victoria wanted her to know, but she knew it the moment she looked at my face. She avoids me like the plague, and even though you'd think she be just a little more nice to me since I'm willing to not blow her whole family up, she thinks differently.If my father weren't so oblivious to the fact I exist, I wouldn't hold back, but he's living like my mother never existed,and for that reason alone I'm going along with the ruse. Why screw up a chance for a decent life, to have a relationship with a man who doesn't know I exist.

So I do what Victoria says 5 days a week and in return I get to be Bella Rossi, a girl with a messy origin story, but no abusive step-father and pole dancing involved.

However, Friday's' and Saturday's belonged to me.I sneak out wherever I want and it's usually to the club. Sometimes to get drunk other times to hook up with the clubs hot bartender in the nearest available stall.Tonight feels like one of those nights. After I finished zipping up the skin tight crystal silver dress that barely covered my ass let alone my chest, I was sticking my feet in heels and pulling my hair from the messy mop on top of my head. I was out the door as soon as Victoria retired for the night. The guards never batted an eyelash.

In the two years I've been here, Emma is the only friend I've made. As she made her way towards me, I wondered how I would have kept sane without her. After getting snatched away from my life I'd only briefly been able to contact Marcelie and tell her what's happened. I promised I'd fly her out whenever she wanted me to, but she's working a full time job now and it's never convenient. The truth is she probably knows exactly what happened that night and wants nothing to do with me, but that might just be my paranoia talking.

Emma sauntered up to me wearing a backless red romper that fit like a second skin, slits dragging across the sides and down the front exposing her chest.

"You look so hot." She squealed and I waved her off.

"We already know you'll have a line of horny drunks trying to buy you a drink tonight."

"And I'll except every one."

"Remind me why we're coming to this place. 'Michele's was our usual spot, I had a streak going with that bartender." I asked looking up at the obviously new club with a line that wrapped the block. Our usual spot belonged to my 'uncle' and so I never paid for the drinks, shamelessly running up his tab.

"Dante's best friend with the owner and not that you would know but he's a pretty big deal."

Dante was her brother. I'd never seen him myself  but I knew her family was respected in the crime world because of him. My grandmother only vaguely explained the hierarchy, telling me to keep my interactions limited and that I should never speak about New York or angel boy. I was supposed to be invisible in the mafia scene.

"Oh really, than I guess we should hurry inside and see just how great this place is." She grinned at me pulling me past the line and into the club.

I can't say that I'm unimpressed. The first floor was classy enough to make me feel underdressed, with high ceiling and chandeliers, a soft piano playing in the back ground amongst the soft clinks of glasses at the bar. However it was the basement that left me feeling like I stepped into a different world. The space was huge and still packed to the brim with bodies dancing and mingling. The seating area was elevated from the dance floor like a balcony, a bar on every one of the three floors. The third floor was the most exciting. From below you could see the third floor was made transparent so the dancers were visible from below.Ramps connected the levels.

"It's insane in here." Emma laughed pulling me towards the bar. She ordered four shots passing me two.

"Dante wants us to come upstairs and meet his friend." she wiggled the word 'friend' out suggestively for the third time.

"Dante can wait a little, I just want to play here for a little while." I said slipping back into the crowd of moving bodies.

"You're crazy." She laughed joining me. I spotted the pole and before I could stop myself I was pushing forward to get on. I hadn't danced since that night and it'd been eating away at me. The release I felt swinging my self up was enormous. Every feeling felt magnified from the blood rushing to my head, the brief dizziness when I was upright again, the feel of the pole pressing against my thigh as I wind down. It made me forget my surroundings for a moment. There was now eyes watching me, lustful eyes, observant, golden . I stopped, hopping from the platform. Emma caught my arm as I tried to wiggle through in his direction, other hands reaching to touch me as well.

"I've never seen you like that these past two years. Why did you stop? You're amazing at it."

"Do you really think my grandmother would let me strip and pole dance while I live under her roof. If her goons are watching me, she'll probably punish me tomorrow. She forbid it."

"Victoria's always been traditional. "

"I'm not a child that needs babysitting." I whipped around.

"Bella you know what I mean. Do we have any other choice than to take what's given to us?"she said the look of understanding in her eyes quelling my frustration and refocusing my attention.

"There's somebody I need to find." My eyes searching through the crowd of bodies.

"Who."she blinked looking around.

"Emma." A male voice called from behind me. Her face brightened up and I turned, only to come face to  face with Luca Luciano and the other handsome man from that night.

"Him." I said so low only Emma could hear me. She looked at me her eyebrow raised, before she seemed to remember the men in front of us were there.

"Bella this is my brother Dante and his best friend Luca Luciano."