Chapter Four

"Why did Aaron shift the closing hours upwards?" Leah asked noticing the new sign hanging on the counter and the new board at the entrance of the cafe as she walked in with a backpack

"Haven't you heard?" Matt asked his gossiping mode switching on as Leah got closer to the staff area to drop off her things and get changed into her work uniform,

"Romano and Moretti are at it again!" he exclaimed

"Who are those? The names sound familiar but I can't remember who they are." Leah returned and stood by his side at the counter, overlooking the almost empty cafe

"The two big groups in the state?"

"Ah, yes. You once told me they are rivals or something, they are fighting for something. It's been peaceful all this while why the sudden hostility?" she asked absentmindedly as she scrolled through her phone

"Yes, they are!, And you know when those big groups fight it affects their surroundings. Plus, I heard the Romano tried to kill someone on the Moretti's turf just last week" Matt explained in a whisper,

The image of a badly wounded Stephen flashed through her mind as she gave a nod in response, dropping her phone she turned to Matt, giving him her full attention.

"Why? Why are they fighting again? I thought Moretti did not like getting themselves in gang fights and stuff like that. It was last year the government registered them as a legal group bond by law, right? " she asked curiously,

"Of course, that is just a front and don't we all know it? They still very much operate in the underworld, as a matter of fact, there was another shootout close to the main district where Moretti high ranking gang members always stay. The news also reported the death of one of Moretti's board members this morning something Duke was his name" Matt explained gaily, his eyes shining brightly in excitement the more he talked about the two gangs

Leah knew he was a big Fan of gangs and the mafia world, he was just too chicken to join one.

"The news reported that he was dismembered and his body parts were scattered around his house. There is no way the underground emperor would let that slide just like that, there is going to be retaliation, Moretti had always been 'the whole face for a tooth'. If you take a tooth from him, he'll destroy your face" he added

"That sounds scary" Leah shuddered at the idea of offending such a person

"Oh, it is!, And this time, the government might not be able to do anything to stop it in time."

"Why?"

"A friend of mine who heard it from his friend who heard from a friend that is in the Moretti gang says, Bruno Moretti is handling the case himself this time" he clapped his hands as he explained

"You know you shouldn't believe that kind of thing right?"

"Oh come on it doesn't matter, any information is information. Plus Bruno coming out to handle the case? It's big news, nobody knows what that devil looks like, maybe this time we can finally put a face to the name, it was rumoured that Salvatore Moretti had a son, but no one knows what he… "

"Can I get a macchiato and peach tart?" a deep gruff muffled voice cut both of them off, they looked up to see a man dressed in a grey hoodie and a black face mask. His grey hoodie covers his head and half his face, as he locks eyes with Leah, he removes his mask and sends her a toothy grin.

"Stephen!" she exclaimed, recognising the face of the man she had saved over a week ago

"Hello Leah, it's good to see you again" he greeted, Matt looked from one person to the other, his curiosity flying out the roof as he made the coffee

"You look better now, were you able to get it treated in time? I was so worried about you " she asked looking him over

"Yeah, I was able to, thank you, I had to leave early to report to the boss what had happened and I haven't been able to properly thank you" he lied scratching the back of his head with an innocent smile.

Leah rolled her eyes at the mention of his boss, "Do they care about the life and death of their subordinate? What if you had died? "

"Died?" Matt echoed, his curiosity reaching a boiling point, as he realised he had voiced his thought, he cleared his throat and gave a polite smile "I mean here is your coffee and dessert"

Stephen, giving him a bored look, brought out a hundred bills, telling him to keep the change "Why don't we have breakfast together tomorrow, princess?" Stephen asked with a flirty smile

"I… uhm… "

"Antonio will cook" Stephen offered

"I'm down! I want almond biscotti!" Leah replied with a grin, almost salivating at the memory of the food she had eaten the previous week

"Okay, see you tomorrow princess, and don't stay out too late" he winked, placed his mask back on and left

"Spill" Matt ordered "I want every detail, where did you find a good-looking man who almost died? Who is he? "

"Are you into guys? " Leah asked with a raised eyebrow

"Of course not! But I appreciate good-looking guys alright, plus I've never seen him around. Come on, I'm curious, okay? "

"Well, this was what happened… Remember the night I had cramps and you gave me a tablet?"

"Yup, so what happened? Get on with the gossip and stop stalling"

"I met him almost passed out in the alley beside my apartment with a knife wound on his stomach, he refused to go to the hospital so I took him to my apartment, and before you say anything" she raised her hands after noticing his disapproving look

"Antonio already chewed my head off about it, so yeah I've learnt my lesson and it won't happen again. But I was able to save a life and I'm happy"

Matt opened and closed his mouth multiple times, not knowing how to voice his next words

"Fuck! You are brave Leah, not the good kind of brave but the stupid kind" he muttered