"Boss, I think you made the wrong decision this time". Antonio declared as he pushed a trolley full of food into Bruno's office.
Bruno squared his brows in question "What are you talking about?" he asked, removing his jacket as he noticed it was lunchtime.
"I'm talking about Leah, of course, she is too innocent to get involved in our world. She is just not fit for you!" Antonio complained for the nth time that week
"And I told you, you are just reading meanings to it. What else do you want to hear? I'm only repaying her for saving my life. " Bruno argued
"Maybe you should have thought more about it. If the other gangs notice our frequent activities around her you and I both know they'd read meaning into it and that's not good for her" Antonio complained
"She's Henry's daughter, how innocent to anything can she be? " Bruno asked casually, the name sent a sore taste to his mouth
"Either way no getting her involved in her father's business is the best"
"That's not for me to decide now Is it?" Bruno asked, handing over a brown envelop to Antonio,
Antonio peeled open the envelope and read the documents in it, his eyes turned dark with anger as he clenched his fist around the envelope.
"Fucking son of a bitch!" he swore in anger at the content, "And you agreed?" he asked the indifferent-looking Bruno
"Would you rather he goes to the Romano with the same offer?" Bruno asked as he dug into his meal
***
"What are you doing here father?" Leah asked her voice monotonous and cold, she took her seat in front of the middle-aged man dressed in a white strip button-up shirt, his hands fumbling the brown envelope as he tried to avoid his daughter's eye.
Leah watched silently, her eyes showing curiosity and surprise,
Her father was sober.
He wasn't drunk or high, or delirious
His eyes are clearer than the last time she had seen him two years ago.
"I found someone I like" he announced catching Leah off guard, since the separation of her parents, her father had done nothing but wallow in more debts, alcohol and drugs, but now he found someone he liked? She was curious, his words got her full attention
Was that why he was sober? 'So love does so many things to people' she chuckled darkly to herself
"Well, that's good news. It was high time you moved on from mum" she remarked, her voice genuine "Was that why you got sober?" she asked
"Well., uh… yes. She said she won't be with me until I got help and I want to be better for her, I got into rehab six months ago, and she helped pay for it" he explained, his hands going to go brown hair roughing it up before stretching it out to hold Leah's hands.
Leah removed her hands from the table and away from where he could reach it,
"That's good news, Father," she said emotionlessly "Are you here to invite me to your wedding?"
"No, I came for something else" he replied, taking back his hands from the table, Leah watched a glint flash through his eyes and she prepared herself for his next words.
Only she was not fully prepared.
"She won't marry me because of my debts Leah, I tried talking to her, I got a job even and worked to pay back but it's too slow and she… I can't wait" he complained,
"I don't have money if that's what you came for, I can barely take care of myself, how do you expect me to get such huge money to help you?" anger bubbled in her heart as she remembered all that her mother went through to make sure his debts were paid
She worked jobs Sunday to Sunday just to make sure the debts were cleared off and they had food to eat and all he did was spend his money on drugs and alcohol
"Of course not! I'm not here to beg you for money!"
"Then get on with it! As you can see I'm at work and I need to get back to it" she snapped, her voice showing her irritation at his presence
"You see, I found a way to pay the debt" he drawled out
"Then congratulations, I wish you the best in your new marriage" She could tell from the way he was beating around the bush that whatever he came for wasn't anything good.
His dubious and mischievous attitude which had been with him since Leah could remember was slowly seeping out of his facade, making her skin crawl with anticipation
"Just so you know, if your way of paying pack debt includes me signing any kind of documents as your guarantor, I would never do it. Remember what I told you before I left home? You can fucking rot in hell for all I care!" she gritted out,
Henry's face morphed into anger from his pretending soberness, "Watch the way you talk to me, bitch!" he seethed, his hand itching to slap her
"Or what? You'll hit me? Go ahead!" the more she was before him, the more the buried memories of her childhood surfaced making her skin crawl in anger
He laughed and a smile appeared in his eyes "I don't need to hit you and whatever that needs to be signed has been signed" he said and threw the brown envelope at her
She looked at the envelope and back at his smirking face, with dread in her stomach and shivering hands she pulled out the documents in the envelope.
The more she reads the more appalled she is at her father's behaviour, she couldn't help but whisper
'Thank goodness I had stayed instead of younger ones' amidst the misery she is about to face.
"Bruno Moretti, he takes the whole face for a tooth, not the best person to cross"
"Bruno Moretti? Not any kind of wimp can get to be called the underground emperor you know?"
"Not even the government will be able to save the situation this time, the emperor of the underworld is getting involved himself"
Those words floated through her head as she read the words on the paper, signed by her father, and a tear slipped down her face.
"You don't look too good" Stephen pointed out as he walked into Leah's apartment, followed by Anthonio who decided to tag along. Anthonio as usual, was carrying two brown bags filled with food. He dropped them on the table and sat beside Stephen in front of Leah."Are you okay?" Anthonio asked, concern laced his voice as he took in Leah's dishevelled state, her hair looked like it hadn't been combed in days and her face looked red and swollen from how much she had cried. "You look… homeless" he added"Did your boss send you to get me? I'm not done packing my things yet. Can you wait a bit?" Leah asked, her voice sounding hoarse and tired as she was about to head back into her room to complete her packing."Why would the boss send us to get you? What's wrong? You are not in danger are you?" Stephen asked pretending to be unaware of what was happening."Has someone been stalking you? Did someone threaten you? Did those Romano scum come to look for you?" Antonio asked and she shook her
Knock! Knock!All four of them turned to the door at once and asked, "Are you expecting someone?" Amanda asked as she walked towards the door, "No, I'm not expecting anyone." Leah shrugged and turned towards Anthonio, who gave her a scrutinising gaze."You didn't do another dangerous charity again, did you?" he asked as Amanda pulled open the door to see three handsome men dressed in suits standing at the door. She whistled and licked her lips with starry eyes. "Damn, it's my lucky day or something? Why am I meeting handsome guys today? If I can't have all, can I at least have one of you?" She asked innocently."Are you Leah Watson?" the leader of the group asked, and Amanda stood straight with her hands crossed over her chest as she gave him a once-over. "And who might you be? Why are you looking for Leah Watson?" she asked sceptically as she remained in a protective stance."I'm DiCarlo; I have a message from Miss Leah, which isn't you," DiCarlo pointed out as his eyes met Leah's.L
“Your name?” The stern-looking middle-aged woman with curly blonde hair demanded as Leah stepped into her office. She had been so focused on her work that she only glanced at the younger woman before returning to the pile of files before her.“Leah Watson” Leah provided nervously, her eyes roaming the minimalist yet expensive-looking office decorated with framed pictures of dresses, suits, and models.“You are one hour early; do you live close by?” the older woman asked without taking her eyes off her work. Her hands scrambled on the paper as she signed a document.“No, ma’am. I live forty-five minutes away,” she explained.Stephen had come to get her this morning to make sure she wasn’t late for the appointment, as he repeated to her that her boss hated tardiness and that as long as she followed instructions she would enjoy working there.Leah's eyes landed on the nameplate on her table, and she silently read out the name “Kylie O'Connor." Her eyes widened as the name rang a bell. Ky
'Bang, Bang'Bruno pointed the gun at the fat man's head, the man's face a mask of fear and panic. Bruno laughed with a cold and mirthless sound. With a flick of his wrist, he cocked the gun and fired at one of the fat man's underlings, dropping the man to the ground in a pool of blood. The fat man trembled, stammering, "I didn't do it! Please!" Bruno's lip curled into a sneer, his eyes cold as he looked at the terrified man."You expect me to believe that when all the evidence points at you? What do you take me for a fool?" Bruno asked as he gestured to Dicarlo; the latter moved close and handed him a stack of pictures and documents.Bruno spread the pictures out in front of him and quirked his lips as he noticed the man in front of him shiver in shock and fear. "Doesn't this picture serve as proof of the crime you committed? The bank statement also proves that you have been receiving money from unknown sources. Now tell me, Senator Maverick, do you still insist that you are not col
"This is your monthly pay, but due to the agreement between you and the Morettis, you will only get twenty per cent monthly for your expenses, and eighty per cent will go to Moretti to pay off your debts until it is fully paid," Lily explained as they went over the employment formalities. Leah looked at the document she was meant to sign, and her eyes went wide at the figures that were written as her salary.She looked from the document to Lily, who had a smile on her face. "Are you sure this one is for me? The twenty per cent is what I would normally make in three months at my old job; shouldn't it be less now that I'm repaying a debt?" Leah described making sure that she was reading the right document.Lily chuckled lightly, her eyes twinkling in amusement at the confused look on Leah's face. "You are working for Moretti now; there are lots of risks in the job as well as exhausting long and stressful hours of work, so the pay isn't much. Besides, it will increase after you become a
Bruno sat on the wooden floor with both his legs folded under him and his back in a straight posture, his face held no expression as he watched the older-looking man sitting before him make a pot of Japanese-styled tea with his brows furrowed in concentration.Ray Salvatore served two cups of tea and placed one in front of Bruno, he raised his head to acknowledge the man sitting in front of him for the first time, "I'm getting old and it takes so much time for me to brew tea nowadays even my old injuries from when I was a youth in the street are resurfacing recently" he laments and Bruno's eye twitched while trying to maintain his coolness.'Who are you trying to deceive old man? ' he thought to himself with a subtle eye roll.He had seen that the man had intentionally slowed down the process as a way to test out his patience he said nothing as he picked up the tea and took a sip. "Even if my old age had affected the timing I can guarantee you the taste is still just as good, I got th
"Mr DiClaro, is it true that the Moretti group will be in charge of the new state project?""Mr DiCarlo, will President Bruno Moretti be making an appearance during the opening of the project?""Is it true that there will soon be a change of power inside the Moretti group? Will you be taking over?""We heard the Moretti group took the project from some other people using underhanded methods, how will you answer to that?""How does Bruno Moretti plan to deal with the obvious provocation from the Moretti group?""Will your group be working with other small groups in this project?""There is a rumour circulating that you plan on entering the technology market, is it true?"Reporters swamp the front of the magnificent Moretti group, blocking the stoic DiCarlo's way, Bruno Moretti dressed in a casual outfit like a lackey trailed behind him enjoying his peace while DiCarlo and the rest of the bodyguards deal with the reporters."It's really stressful being the face of the Moretti group isn'
"There is a new club in town, let's check it out together tonight" Amanda announced excitedly when she heard Leah come in but her excitement quickly dimmed immediately she noticed the large bags her roommate was holding with an exhausted look on her face. "Why do you look so worn out? You were never this tired even when you worked at a cafe and you had to stand most of the day" she pointed out with a disapproving frown.Leag sighed and mentally apologized to Lily fit making people have a bad impression of her team."It's mostly the school project that is making me busy these days not g new job" she corrected and Amanda snorted as Leah dragged herself into the kitchen to get a cup of water, "We got a new professor in my year and he is too strict on his projects and practical. We get at least two dresses to work on from his class this month," she explained "If it's not done well, we will have to start over again, so frustrating""Sucks to be you" Amanda commented giving Leah a pitiful lo