Page 5 of Killer Daddy (Fendi Mafia Daddies #2)

Benjamin

Even after what happened the previous day with the two most unwelcome visitors to the store, Benjamin felt like he owed it to Mrs. Ramos to open as normal and keep the business going.

After all, there were orders that needed to be fulfilled and the last thing that Benjamin wanted was to let down the loyal customers who had put their trust in him and Flowers on Fifth.

Even with the threat that the horrible men might return, Benjamin was trying his best to focus on the work at hand. Of course, this was easier said than done and it felt like each and every time the door to the store opened, Benjamin’s heart jumped up into his mouth.

What was almost as worrying as the threat of the men returning was the fact that Benjamin hadn’t even managed to make any contact with Mrs. Ramos.

Benjamin had even tried to call but it had rung out without even giving the option of leaving a voicemail.

It was far from the ideal situation and all Benjamin felt like he could do was keep his head down, think happy thoughts, and hope beyond all hope that the men didn’t come back, and Mrs. Ramos would get in touch with him sooner rather than later.

‘Okay, Tricksy, let’s get busy doing what we love to do,’ Benjamin said, his mood lightening as he started picking out the color scheme for a display that was due to be picked up later that morning. ‘Now I’m thinking we go bold. Like, seriously bold.’

And it wasn’t long before Benjamin’s mind was far, far away from all bad thoughts as he lost himself in the fine art of floristry. With his nimble fingers working in overdrive, Benjamin found a perfect flow-state and was soon enough working toward putting the finishing touches on the arrangement.

As Benjamin took a step backward to admire his work, his mind went to Mrs. Ramos and her current whereabouts.

Mrs. Ramos would be proud of this one.

I’m so lucky to have her as a mentor.

I just hope everything is okay with her and her poppa…

Benjamin decided to take a short break before applying the final-final touches. This was a tip that he had picked up from Mrs. Ramos, and one that had come in handy on more than one occasion.

But as Benjamin was walking over toward the compact refrigerator behind the counter, he heard the store door open and the sounds of the city flood into his tranquil haven…

‘Good morning, and welcome to…’ Benjamin said, his voice trailing off as he saw the sight he feared the most. ‘W-w-w-what do you want?’

‘Relax, we’re not going to trash the place,’ the thug said, looking around. ‘Not after you spent so long getting it neat again.’

Benjamin cast his eyes quickly toward the door.

For a brief moment, Benjamin considered making a run for it.

There was something genuinely unsettling about these men.

They looked mean. And Benjamin had already seen what they were capable of.

He didn’t want a repeat showing. But any thoughts of cutting a running were ended when the second thug shut the door and placed his heavy frame in front of it.

‘Just in case,’ the thug said, his golden tooth shining as he grinned.

‘As I was saying,’ the lead thug said, stepping toward Benjamin and towering over him. ‘We’re not going to trash the place. But just in case there were any doubts that we were serious about our very reasonable request for protection money…’

Benjamin looked down to the thugs waist as he opened his jacked to reveal a hefty looking pistol tucked into his trousers.

‘Don’t worry, as long as you keep up with the payments, you’ll never need to see that sight again,’ the man said, a cold, menacing tone in his voice. ‘And when your boss gets back, you can tell her how well you handled the situation. Okay?’

Benjamin could tell that the man expected an answer. And as sick to the stomach as he felt, Benjamin nodded his head and muttered his response.

‘Got it,’ Benjamin said, doing his best to sound as brave as he possibly could. The truth though was that Benjamin felt petrified, almost to the point that he was close to entering a state of shock. ‘I… I… I understand.’

For a moment, Benjamin felt certain that the two thugs were going to see through his nervousness and decide to let loose on the store again. But fortunately, it appeared that they were satisfied with his response.

‘We’ll be back,’ the lead man said. ‘Oh… and there will be a ten percent extra charge this time. You know, just to make up for the confusion yesterday.’

With that, the two men burst into laughter and left the store.

‘Be brave,’ Benjamin whispered, doing his best to control himself. ‘Y-y-y-you’ve g-g-g-g-got this…’

But Benjamin didn’t have this. And it wasn’t even close.

Benjamin simply dropped down to his haunches and rocked backward onto the wall. Suddenly, the full severity of the situation hit him. And without further ado, Benjamin burst into tears.

What am I going to do?

This is so, so, so bad.

Money. Guns. This just isn’t right…

An hour passed and Benjamin finally managed to get the courage up to move from his spot on the floor. Fortunately, no customers had come in during this time and Benjamin had now taken the decision to shup up shop for the day and spend some time trying every way he could to get hold of Mrs. Ramos.

But just as he was about to leave, the store door opened – and by the looks of things, Benjamin’s ordeal was about to go into a brand new round of hell…

‘No! Please! I said I’d pay!’ Benjamin said, almost breaking down yet again as the man stepped inside.

Just like the thugs, he was dressed all in black and had the look of a man who did very bad things on a daily basis.

‘Excuse me,’ the man said, his ocean-blue eyes contrasting dramatically to his olive skin and dark, neatly trimmed beard. ‘I think there’s been a mistake. I’m here to enquire about some flowers.’

Benjamin tried to respond, but the words simply wouldn’t come out.

The relief of knowing that this intimidating but dashing stranger wasn’t there to extort money, trash the store, or hurt him was so overwhelming that he found himself bursting into tears once more.

‘Okay,’ the man said, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around Benjamin. ‘You’re safe. Try and calm down. No one will hurt you, least of all me. Take a deep breath and then take another one. And that’s an order.’

Benjamin found himself doing exactly as he was told.

This man might have been a total stranger who had stepped in off the street, but there was something about him that made Benjamin feel safer than ever since his fist contact with the two horrible men the previous day.

‘My name’s Michael,’ the man said, allowing Benjamin to gather his composure at his own pace. ‘You don’t need to say anything right now. But I want to know exactly what had happened that led you to this point. Is that understood?’

‘Yes, Michael,’ Benjamin replied, his voice still unsteady but his heartrate beginning to return to something approaching its normal level. ‘It’s something I should probably talk to the police about though.’

‘I very much doubt that,’ Michael said, a hint of humor in his voice. ‘But we’ll see. Now, how about I fetch that charming little green creature for you while I make us both a drink.’

‘Yes please,’ Benjamin said, watching in awe as Michael walked over toward Tricksy and brought him back for him to cuddle. ‘He’s called Tricksy.’

‘Sweet name,’ Michael said, a hint of a smile on his face. ‘Wait… don’t I know you from somewhere?’

‘I… ummm … I don’t think so?’ Benjamin replied, only to suddenly put two and two together. ‘Wait. You’re not related to Matteo Fendi are you?’

‘Yeah, that’s it,’ Michael replied. ‘You’re one of Kyan’s Little friends. I must have seen you over at Matteo’s townhouse. Well, God damn. This must be the biggest small city in the world.’

Benjamin felt his heart skip a beat.

On the one hand it felt comforting to know that he had at least some kind of tangible connection with Michael.

But on the other hand he figured that if he was related to Matteo Fendi then there was an almost guaranteed chance that he was involved in Matteo’s world too.

And that only meant one thing. Benjamin’s savior might just be even more dangerous than the two men who came into the store and scared him so much.

And while all this was whirring around in Benjamin’s head, it was clear from the look on Michael’s face that he knew precisely what he was thinking…

‘As I said, you’re safe with me,’ Michael said, handing Benjamin a glass of water. ‘Drink this. And when you’re done, I want to find out who the hell scared you. I meant what I said. I want to help you. And I will do. But I’ll need you to be a big boy and tell me everything .’

Benjamin nodded and nervously took a sip of the water.

He didn’t know whether Michael was a Daddy or not, but as far as Benjamin was concerned, he was certainly showing all the typical characteristics.

Part of him wanted to get on the phone and speak to Kyan, just to make sure that Michael was exactly who he said he was.

But at the same time, Benjamin felt a level of certainty about Michael that was hard to put into words.

And while Benjamin’s head and heart might have been all over the place, there was no denying that Michael was incredibly handsome.

He might have had the same edge and darkness to him that Matteo had, but Michael was showing that he had a caring side.

After all, Michael could simply have walked right out of the store when he saw him there, clearly upset.

But Michael hadn’t walked out.

And Michael didn’t seem like he had any intention of walking away from Benjamin’s problems either.

‘Okay, you’ve had enough time,’ Michael said, taking Benjamin by the hand and walking him over toward the wicker chair in the corner of the store. ‘Sit down and start talking…’

Benjamin took a deep breath and began to explain everything.

In fact, Benjamin surprised himself by just how many details and nuances he could remember.

From the small scar on one of the thug’s cheeks to the red stitching on their suits, it seemed like Benjamin had suddenly developed some kind of photographic memory – and Michael was impressed too…

‘Good. Good…’ Michael said, putting his hand on Benjamin’s shoulder and sending an electric charge of excitement through his whole body. ‘I think we’re looking at two Inzaghi men.’

‘Is that… good?’ Benjamin asked, more in hope than expectation.

‘It’s neither good nor bad,’ Michael answered. ‘It’s simply two pieces of shit who are about to meet their maker. But that’s for me to worry about. Now, listen… I’m going to make a proposal to you. I know what I want the answer to be, but it has to be your choice. Do you understand?’

‘I think so,’ Benjamin replied, his mind working overtime trying to guess what his apparent new protector was about to say.

‘This might seem like a quick fix,’ Michael said.

‘But we’re talking about Inzaghi men from the Inzaghi family.

It’s rarely as straightforward as it might seem.

So if you want help, I’ll do it. But you’re going to need to follow my instructions.

You might not like these instructions, but they’ll be important and they’ll need sticking to.

This isn’t a game. So… do you want to try and talk to the police?

Or do you think you can trust me enough to allow me to take care of this for you? ’

Benjamin took a deep breath.

This was a big moment, and there was no denying that.

‘Okay,’ Benjamin said, his heart working at triple-speed inside his slender but soft body. ‘My answer is…’