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I started walking in the direction of my apartment. At first, I practically ran, and I had to remind myself to slow down so that I didn’t bring too much attention to myself. I made it at least two blocks away before a blacked-out sedan pulled up beside me. I continued walking, moving closer to the store fronts on the other side of the sidewalk.
I stopped at a corner, waiting for the lights to change so that I could cross. In a matter of seconds, men in black coats surrounded me. I tried to find a hole so I could slip away. There were none.
All at once, a horrendously bad feeling poured over me, cold as rain.
Arms reached for me. I tried to scream, but something covered my nose and mouth and a sweet flowery scent overwhelmed my senses immediately. This was sinister. Dangerous.
These men might kill me.
My eyes rolled back in my head.
My last thought was that I was being taken and it wasn’t Silas.
I woke up feeling groggy. It was pitch black and a hard jostle knocked me to my senses. It felt like I was in a coffin and when I heard the sound of the engines and car horns outside, I recognized that I was actually in someone’s trunk.
My hands were tied behind my back, making it hard to move. I heard voices talking and when I pressed my ear against the back of the trunk, I realized that I could hear them more clearly.
“See, boys? All it took was a certain patience for Silas’ man to give us the signal. Now our family has Chloe Genovese right where they want her. Nick could even marry the bitch and take over the Genoveses or he could kill her and still take them over. Fuck. This is going to put us on the map in front of all the other families,” a man said.
“I still don’t understand why she’s so important,” some dude replied with a thick Long Island accent.
“God. I swear you have fucking snot for brains, you fucking goon. I’ll tell you one last god damn time. Next time you ask, I’m just going to punch you right in the face and knock your dumb ass straight out,” the first man growled.
“Listen, Matt, it’s complicated,” the other man whined.
“No, Billy. You’re just fucking stupid.”
I rolled my eyes and moaned softly at the stinging headache that followed. I closed my eyes and leaned against the carpeted wall, just focusing on listening to the men speak.
“The chick in the trunk, her name is Chloe Banks, but that’s not her real name. You see, Vittorio Genovese had a wife, Isabella. He never got her pregnant, but his underboss Tony did. All three of them are dead now though. Vittorio knocked off his wife and Tony, before he got knocked off himself. Chloe here is Isabella’s daughter and she doesn’t even know it,” the first man explained, sounding rather exasperated.
I stilled. That couldn’t be true. That wasn’t possible. No way.
“How do we know it’s her?” the dumb one asked.
“We just do. Why else would Silas Romano be interested in a singer like her? He’s not the type of guy to really show interest in a woman pretty much ever, and ever since the meeting last week, he’s had her under his wing,” he continued. “It’s awfully suspicious how much attention he’s given her. Honestly, it’s a dead fucking giveaway.”
What? That couldn’t be true.
I had parents. They lived outside Burlington. We’d lived a simple life. I’d gone to school and they’d supported me. They loved me and I loved them.
They kept talking and I couldn’t stop myself from listening.
“She’s the right age. She’s from a place that wouldn’t take more than an afternoon’s drive from where Isabella wound up dead. Even her birth certificate seems a little shady. Born at home. No hospital bills. It all seems a bit sketchy. Screams of a forgery, ya know?” the man continued.
I listened in silence and certain things began to make sense even though I didn’t want them to.
I didn’t look like either my mother or my father. They’d both had ashy blonde hair, green eyes, and features that didn’t quite match up with mine. When I’d decided to forgo college and come to New York, they didn’t much care about the fact that I wanted to be a singer, but they were especially concerned with the fact that I was planning to live in the city. They had always been evasive when I’d asked them to tell me where I’d been born, and I’d never met any other family except for the two of them.
The city where mafia families reigned supreme. The city where they were looking for me. Without even knowing it, I’d walked into the most dangerous situation I could have imagined.
I knew enough about the big five of New York to recognize just how perilous my current position was. If what they said was true, I was poised to inherit the role of mafia boss of the entire Genovese family. The other four families wouldn’t stand for that. If one of them killed me, they could lay claim to the Genovese territory, power, and family name. With my death, they would secure power.
“That’s not all though. Silas’ man Damon confirmed it. Said Silas did a DNA test and says that she is Isabella’s daughter without a shred of a doubt,” the goon continued.
Silas knew. He’d probably known from the moment he’d first laid his eyes on me, but he probably didn’t know of Damon’s betrayal.
A soft whine left my throat.
