A shiny black Cadillac limousine came to a halt in front of the grand Emerald banquet hall. It was an exquisite hall. The valet, a young man, rushed to the car and opened it. Almost immediately, two burly men jumped out of the car, wearing black suits and matching shades, their hawk-like eyes scanning the area for any possible threats. A man who appeared to be in his forties was the next to alight, dressed in a black tuxedo. He smiled as he took one long look around before he turned to the door and extended a hand. A beautiful red-haired lady took his hand. Her emerald green eyes matched the dress she had on. She flashed a wide smile at him.
“Shall we, my love?”She nodded curtly and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm. He led her to the entrance.The event was underway. Guests were arriving, waiters scurried quickly serving drinks. Soft tunes filled the room from the large piano at the corner of the room.“Tell me why we come to these things again, my love?” he asked underneath his breath.She flashed a wide smile at a man she recognized from across the room. “To keep up appearances.”He shook his head. “It never makes sense to me.”She took two flutes of champagne from a waiter walking by. “That’s why you leave the understanding part to me.” He took a flute from her. “Cheers.”She took a sip and shut her eyes, relishing the taste on her tongue.He groaned. “Don’t make that face, it makes me want to snatch you up, hurl you over my shoulders, and make love to you in front of everyone.”Her eyes widened in surprise. She looked behind her to see if anyone had listened in on them. “Maximillian…”He smirked. “Tell me you’re not thinking the exact same thing, Celeste.”Their hands were intertwined as they strolled around the room. “I just find the champagne to my taste, one of my favorites actually. An NV Armand de Brignac, sold for close to fifty-one thousand dollars…”Maximillian gawked at her with awe in his eyes as she spoke. “How do you know everything?”She shrugged nonchalantly, but inside she loved how in awe he was of her.“I have nothing but admiration for you…”“Good evening, everyone,” a lady’s voice drowned out his, but he knew she had heard because she flashed a charming smile at him.“I want to welcome you all to the heart and soul fundraiser,” the lady continued. At this point, she had everyone’s attention. “It means so much to me that you’re gathered here not for me but for the underprivileged…”Maximillian drowned out her voice, his eyes fixated on something much more important, his wife Celeste. They had been married for five years now, and every day he found himself much more in love with her. She had a small smile on her face as she stared at the woman on the stage. Her delicate fingers wrapped around the champagne flute; she was perfect for him.He did not want to be here; he could care less for charities, but she took care of this part of business for him. Just like she had said, it was for appearances' sake. It did not matter…he was roused out of his musings by the resounding applause at the end of the speech.***There was a man in the gala dressed in a fine Italian suit, his long hair framed his perfectly chiseled face. His hawk-like eyes watched everyone in the room. He stayed in the background, nursing a glass of champagne. It was important that he stayed alert. He was not one of those guests who pretended to enjoy events like this; he didn’t. He didn’t like the pompous, pretentious people in the crowd, who showed up to events like this not because they gave a rat's ass about charity. To them, it was just another opportunity to showcase their new fancy car and priceless jewelry. It was only an avenue for the vilest ilk to connect with each other.However, that was not why he wanted to kill tonight. Far from it, as much as he couldn’t stand them, he didn’t usually play judge, jury, and executioner. Quite frankly, the lines of morality were skewed, and he was not going to pretend that he didn’t cross those lines one too many times, but that was beside the point.There were people who teetered on the lines of morality, and there were those who went further past those lines, and tonight he was going to play executioner. It might have been an order, but he could not deny he was going to enjoy every single bit of it.He felt his pants pocket for the small gun fitted with a silencer. He liked the quiet kills, but he couldn’t deny the thrill of killing someone out in the open. He could already picture it; he would walk up to them and maybe do introductions. If he wanted to enjoy it even more, he could make small conversations with them, even get them to laugh once or twice. He glanced at the men, dressed in black suits and sunglasses walking inconspicuously in the room. He wagered he could strike two headshots faster than the time they would need to become aware of what had just happened, leaving him just enough time to blend in with the screaming group of terrified guests. He caressed his gun, or he could make it easier for them and maybe just slip something into their drinks. It might not be an easier death for them; death by a gunshot to the head will be pure mercy in comparison with what this small pill tucked away in the breast pocket of his suit jacket will do to them. It would be easier for
Elena nodded her head to the sound of the music blasting from her headset. Her unruly black hair was tied up in a ponytail. She was dressed in spandex pants and a sports bra. She checked her watch for the umpteenth time as she jogged down the deserted streets.She halted as she arrived at the park, taking a moment to catch her breath. Her friend Imani was already there.“About time you arrived,” Imani teased. Her curly hair was pulled back away from her face with an elastic band, and her brown skin glistened with sweat.Elena chuckled. “I am only like a minute behind.”“A minute is enough time to beat a world record,” Imani stretched.“Thankfully, we are not preparing for the Olympics.”Imani laughed aloud. “I just might, you never know.”“That wouldn’t be a surprise,” Elena wiped her face with a towel. “My mind is a little occupied, that’s all.”Imani covered the small distance between them and cupped her face. “You think I don’t know that, love? That’s why it was important to me tha
“I saw the reports this morning, Orlando. It was on the front page. Nightmare in beach house. Billionaire couple murdered.” He let out a pleased sigh. “My heart did a little leap.”Orlando had an impassive look on his face.Romano stopped in his tracks, almost immediately Orlando halted. He turned around to look at him, a wide pleased smile on his face. Orlando’s expression remained unchanged.His smile widened. This was what he loved most about the boy, a mindless killer, his mindless killer. “Come here, boy,” he opened up his arms to him.Orlando hesitated. It did not matter how many times Romano tried to be affectionate with him; it always caught him off guard.“It is okay, Orlando,” he urged him.He took hesitant steps until Romano closed the distance and pulled him in for a hug. Orlando stiffened.“That was wonderful,” Romano pulled away from him. “You have done a wonderful thing tonight. Come here…”Orlando followed him down the underground elevator until they got to the lounge
Richardson watched Elena from the open door of her bedroom. Sun streaks from the tall glass windows cast a glow on her complexion. Her long raven-black hair was tied up in a messy bun, her blue eyes deep in concentration, her brows knit in worry as she stared at the canvas before her. He couldn’t see what she was painting from where he stood, but he was certain it was beautiful. She dipped her brush into a paint palette in her hand and delicately stroked the brush against the canvas.She reminded him so much of Paris, his late wife. It was a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it made her seem so much alive, like she was never dead. He liked to keep it that way; on the other hand, it was haunting, seeing her every day, the awful reminder of the fact that she was dead and how she died. It gnawed at his insides. Paris was an artist, and Elena had gotten the gift from her.They had met one beautiful night in the City of love. He had been there on an important trip. A quick detour he t
Elena lay sprawled on the bed as she watched Imani paint.“You know, there’s so much to do with so little time.”“Don’t fret, Imani, you have done so much already. Your pieces are really beautiful,” Elena encouraged her. “I promise you’re going to sell…in fact…” she raised her hand. “I’ll be your first buyer.”Imani spun around. “Are you for real? You’re going to come?”“You bet I will. If I don’t show up, it is definitely not going to happen. Why would you think for a second that I wouldn’t show up?”Imani sat down on a stool. “It is just since we got back home, we have never hung out, not as much as we used to, the past year.”Elena scooted closer and took her hand in hers, “Imani, I am sorry if I have been distant. My father has been unsettled since I got back, and as much as I understand it, I hate that it has come between us.”Imani leaned forward. “I get it, Elena, I do, and I am here if you need anything.”Elena gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “You bet I will, and get the th
Romano sipped a glass of whisky before speaking, "What is the status of things?”A tall, muscular man stood to his feet, dressed in a fine Italian suit. He was in his mid-twenties, with short brown hair. “Our shipments arrived at the docks…” he announced, “As usual, we encountered no difficulties in clearing the goods. Lorenzo and Faustino have picked up the goods from the docks and they will be dispatched by midnight at the latest.”“Luca Moretti,” Romano called out, a grin plastered on his face. “Good work.” He shifted his gaze to the big, burly man. “Colombano? my money?”“A hundred grand has been sent to the clubs. Zanetti picked it up this afternoon, and it should be squeaky clean before the end of the week.”“So it was good business, huh?” Romano asked in a cheerful voice. “Yes,” they answered in unison.“Anything else?”Orlando cleared his throat. Ricci rolled his eyes. Luca scoffed.“Orlando.”He leaned closer to Romano and whispered inaudibly in his ears. A sly smile played
Orlando tapped his fingers along the steering wheel in a rhythmic pattern. He was parked on one side of the road, overlooking the tall apartment building. Watching the people go inside and out, as time passed, fewer people showed up at the entrance.He was all too familiar with this routine. After all, he had been Romano’s errand boy for only a few years. Romano, in a rare act of kindness, had picked him off the streets and offered him shelter and food, more than he had been offered all his life.At first, he had done all of Romano’s dirty work. Even then, they might not have agreed with him, but he did it anyway. He owed it to Romano for practically saving his life. So, on most nights, he was sitting in a car outside an apartment building, or he was taking a smoke, inconspicuously blending into the sea of people. Other times, he was sipping a coffee in the park, or reading a book. It did not matter what he was doing; his hawk-like eyes were always trained on his prize. He was observ
“Did you see the look on his face, Imani?” Elena threw her head backwards and burst into laughter, “It was hilarious…” Her voice trailed off when she spotted him.Even Imani had stopped giggling. She leaned forward and whispered in her ear. “You should see the look on your face right now.”“Hello, Elena,” Luca stood to his feet, a pleasant smile on his face.Mr. Richardson turned around. “Hello, girls,” his voice was solemn.“What are you…” Imani lightly nudged her from behind. “It is really nice to see you,” she said and began playing with her fingers.The room became awkwardly silent until Richardson broke it. “Come and have dinner with us, girls.”“Thank you very much, Mr. Richardson, but I think I will have to decline,” Imani responded with a polite smile.“Why is that?” he asked.Elena turned to look at her pleadingly. “I have dinner plans of my own with my boyfriend…”“Wow, I had no…” Elena interrupted.Imani waved her phone in her hands. “And he just called.”Elena rolled her e