Page 16
Story: Requiem
She wasn’t in Vegas. She cleared out hours to days before I got there. It was her apartment all right. I found handwritten to-do notes in her script in the trash, along with a picture of me and Lucille from my cousin’s wedding. I smirk remembering the holes made form the tip of a blade she made in the photo. I still got under Little Red’s skin. That knowledge goes to both my heads. I whistle a tune under my breath as I dress in my tux for tonight’s charity gala. I might have a rep for being a mafia playboy but my charitable contributions keeps me in the good graces of upper society. Like I give a fuck about that. I know she’s still watching me and the more I’m in the press the harder it’ll be for Romina to keep her distance. Baiting her out into the light is the next move in our game of chess. Smirking at myself in the mirror one more time, I turn on my heel, snap my cufflinks into place and call my driver.
I’m gonna have fun tonight, even if I’m playing alone.
***
From the corner of my eye I glimpse a flash of red. Not just any shade. Under the crystal chandeliers it’s alive. Crackling like the sparks from a flame.
Ignoring the many manicured hands that try to stop me by resting on my forearm, I stride through the crowd, trying to find my fire.
My fists clench.
Only one woman I know possesses that unforgettable shade of red. I feel so many things for her. They all bleed together, turning me upside-down. Hate turns to love. Love turns to raw obsession.
“Roque!” Gabriella clutches my arm. Her petite frame blocks my path.
“Not now.”
“When?”
“How about never?” I don’t even glance down at her upturned face as I scan the edge of the room for exits.Where did she go?
“Roque…I -I have feelings for you. I thought—”
“You thought wrong. Excuse, me.”
I detach her hand clinging to my sleeve and walk away. Her hurt gasp echoes around us. The elite of Chicago are in attendance tonight and all of them just witnessed me walk away from Gabriella Castellione for the second time. The first was years ago when I left her the night of our wedding to chase someone else. Her family who left me to burn in Palermo finally realized I was a formidable opponent. Marriage to me was the ultimate power grab. Although making Gabby my bride would assure me the unofficial king of Italy, my turf was America now and her…she was nothing compared to the woman I craved by my side. The girl I had wanted has hair the color of a red sun with ends streaking into the sunset. That same someone who now, years later still manages to slip from my grasp.
I feel the heat of Gabby’s wrath at my back. But I don’t care. She might try to make me pay for the public insult, but I’d hit her back harder every time. Afterall, I did learn from the best, her very own uncle no less. I am king, master and commander—the most ruthless enemy you’ll ever meet and every under lord, kingpin, mob boss and cartel leader knows it.
Murmurs slip past me like ghosts and I hunt for the glimpse of perfect that keeps eluding me.
Lifting my watch to my mouth I press a button that links me to my men’s earpieces. “Block the exits, check all the cars. Although I suspect she’ll be on foot.”
My Romina is like cat woman, with the ability to blend in while being perfectly spectacular. I smirk, shoving through the emergency exit door with the hair ribbon tied around the handle.
It was her.
She left me a trail of breadcrumbs to follow. I finger the ribbon between my fingers, imagining wrapping it around her wrist while I have her pinned beneath me.
I took it from her hair once, almost over two decades ago. I kept it as my token treasure. But my spitfire turned the tables. The hunted became the huntress. I’m her prey as much as she’s mine.
This never-ending game of ours is the greatest dance. A courting and foreplay but who knows if the endgame will be a crime of complete passion. My Little Reed wants me dead as much as she wants me as her man.
I took an oath to kill her. She’s my one failure. The one life I couldn’t snuff out. How can you kill the one thing that makes you feel the most alive? She’s the one stain on my soul a thousand Gods could never forgive.
“Romina!” I bellow into the stairwell. “Come and get me.” I splay my arms wide. “You know I’m all yours.”
But she doesn’t show.
With the grace and agility of a world-class athlete I sprint down the stairs without even breaking a sweat in my designer threads. My fists punch the door open. The cold bite of January hits me in the face. It’s a quick punch that I barrel right through.“Which way did you go my Little Red?”
I cock my head while the icy air invades my lungs. It’s hard to breathe in minus two-degree weather. The wind alone would knock a lesser man to the ground. Chicago in winter is not be fucked with. But neither am I. There’s no way she’s going to escape this time. She’s getting sloppy, overconfident.
“Did you want your kiss at midnight,bella?Is that it?” I taunt, confidently walking into the shadows in the alley behind the grand hotel where tonight’s New Year’s Eve ball was being held.
My blue eyes focus like lasers on the redhead scrambling around the next corner. The beast in me rises. My prey, my woman is in my sights. Her pace quickens, I’m hot on her heels. I grab her by the elbow, swinging her around to face me.
The roar that emanates from me conveys years of pent up frustration as I stare down into a face that I’ve never seen. My hands angrily rip the expensive wig from her head. She cries out in pain, but my ruthlessness knows no bounds.
I’m gonna have fun tonight, even if I’m playing alone.
***
From the corner of my eye I glimpse a flash of red. Not just any shade. Under the crystal chandeliers it’s alive. Crackling like the sparks from a flame.
Ignoring the many manicured hands that try to stop me by resting on my forearm, I stride through the crowd, trying to find my fire.
My fists clench.
Only one woman I know possesses that unforgettable shade of red. I feel so many things for her. They all bleed together, turning me upside-down. Hate turns to love. Love turns to raw obsession.
“Roque!” Gabriella clutches my arm. Her petite frame blocks my path.
“Not now.”
“When?”
“How about never?” I don’t even glance down at her upturned face as I scan the edge of the room for exits.Where did she go?
“Roque…I -I have feelings for you. I thought—”
“You thought wrong. Excuse, me.”
I detach her hand clinging to my sleeve and walk away. Her hurt gasp echoes around us. The elite of Chicago are in attendance tonight and all of them just witnessed me walk away from Gabriella Castellione for the second time. The first was years ago when I left her the night of our wedding to chase someone else. Her family who left me to burn in Palermo finally realized I was a formidable opponent. Marriage to me was the ultimate power grab. Although making Gabby my bride would assure me the unofficial king of Italy, my turf was America now and her…she was nothing compared to the woman I craved by my side. The girl I had wanted has hair the color of a red sun with ends streaking into the sunset. That same someone who now, years later still manages to slip from my grasp.
I feel the heat of Gabby’s wrath at my back. But I don’t care. She might try to make me pay for the public insult, but I’d hit her back harder every time. Afterall, I did learn from the best, her very own uncle no less. I am king, master and commander—the most ruthless enemy you’ll ever meet and every under lord, kingpin, mob boss and cartel leader knows it.
Murmurs slip past me like ghosts and I hunt for the glimpse of perfect that keeps eluding me.
Lifting my watch to my mouth I press a button that links me to my men’s earpieces. “Block the exits, check all the cars. Although I suspect she’ll be on foot.”
My Romina is like cat woman, with the ability to blend in while being perfectly spectacular. I smirk, shoving through the emergency exit door with the hair ribbon tied around the handle.
It was her.
She left me a trail of breadcrumbs to follow. I finger the ribbon between my fingers, imagining wrapping it around her wrist while I have her pinned beneath me.
I took it from her hair once, almost over two decades ago. I kept it as my token treasure. But my spitfire turned the tables. The hunted became the huntress. I’m her prey as much as she’s mine.
This never-ending game of ours is the greatest dance. A courting and foreplay but who knows if the endgame will be a crime of complete passion. My Little Reed wants me dead as much as she wants me as her man.
I took an oath to kill her. She’s my one failure. The one life I couldn’t snuff out. How can you kill the one thing that makes you feel the most alive? She’s the one stain on my soul a thousand Gods could never forgive.
“Romina!” I bellow into the stairwell. “Come and get me.” I splay my arms wide. “You know I’m all yours.”
But she doesn’t show.
With the grace and agility of a world-class athlete I sprint down the stairs without even breaking a sweat in my designer threads. My fists punch the door open. The cold bite of January hits me in the face. It’s a quick punch that I barrel right through.“Which way did you go my Little Red?”
I cock my head while the icy air invades my lungs. It’s hard to breathe in minus two-degree weather. The wind alone would knock a lesser man to the ground. Chicago in winter is not be fucked with. But neither am I. There’s no way she’s going to escape this time. She’s getting sloppy, overconfident.
“Did you want your kiss at midnight,bella?Is that it?” I taunt, confidently walking into the shadows in the alley behind the grand hotel where tonight’s New Year’s Eve ball was being held.
My blue eyes focus like lasers on the redhead scrambling around the next corner. The beast in me rises. My prey, my woman is in my sights. Her pace quickens, I’m hot on her heels. I grab her by the elbow, swinging her around to face me.
The roar that emanates from me conveys years of pent up frustration as I stare down into a face that I’ve never seen. My hands angrily rip the expensive wig from her head. She cries out in pain, but my ruthlessness knows no bounds.