5. Sonali
Chapter 5
Sonali
I tugged the black lace of my dress down. It was much shorter than anything I would normally have worn, but Kat had promised it was exactly what I needed for this meeting. Still, I wasn’t sure why I had decided to insert myself into the situation—the glint of the man’s gun in the shadow had me worried about Paolo meeting him alone. I barely knew Paolo. In fact, the only thing I knew was that his girlfriend was going to miss him while he was gone. Hell, I couldn’t even remember her name—something like Nina or Nancy, started with an N. She was stunning—tall, lanky, with ample curves. And yet I was, sitting next to Paolo in the SUV outside Enzo’s—the Italian restaurant—about to meet a real-life mob boss. I had always thought mafias were a thing of the past.
I knew they had mentioned that the mafia was after me, but I hadn’t connected the dots. This was an actual mafia family, with the main Don leading the meeting. There was a very heated conversation between Kat, Antonio, and Paolo about if I should go. Kat and I were the only ones who thought I should.
Paolo was insistent that I not go to the meeting, because he worried I would be discovered. Kat huffed, “It’s not like we can’t whip up a completely fake ID in ten minutes,” she reminded him.
I thought that would be impossible and yet, by the time the meeting ended, CJ walked in with a Florida driver’s license that featured my picture—one I wasn’t even sure how he had gotten, since I had never posed for anyone to take a picture of me. The address they used was Paolo’s. They had even created a Facebook profile and a high school record for me. What I couldn’t figure out was how they back dated so much and even threw pictures of me and Paolo up on the internet. CJ also handed me a ten-page document outlining my entire life under the new identity.
Paolo shifted in his seat. “We can turn around. You don’t need to go through with this,” he said.
I set the pile of documents outlining my job down on the center console. “If this leads to information on the people after me, I think it’s best we both go,” I replied.
And we wouldn’t be completely alone. Paolo opened a small box. “Now, remember … everything we say from here on out can be heard by the team, and we’ll also be able to hear them. Don’t react to the chatter in your ear, because I promise they won’t shut up. There might be conversations that are funny or annoying, but ignore it.”
He leaned over, and his fingers brushed my skin as he placed the tiny device in my ear. His soft touch sent a shiver through my body—even though I reminded myself that he had a girlfriend, and that she was on the other end of the earpiece. Kat’s voice crackled in first.
“Hey, let’s test. Can you hear me?”
“Yes, this is Sonali,” I replied.
A giggle filled the air wave. “You don’t need to say your name.”
How was I supposed to know? I’d never used these things before. Self-doubt filled my stomach as Paolo’s girlfriend just pointed out how far from my comfort zone I was doing this mission.
Paolo lightly gripped my chin and turned my face towards his. “Ignore them. Don’t let anything they say get to you. The only person you listen to is me.”
“You know Enforcer we still have time for me to switch positions with her,” the bitch crackled in my ear.
“Don’t listen to them. You’ve got this.” Paolo pulled back a few inches. “Naomi if you say one more word that isn’t relevant, I will have you removed from this op immediately. We have enough going on and don’t need your advice.”
“Enforcer, you know I always?—"
“Cut her earpiece,” Antonio growled.
CJ sighed after he said, “Already done.”
Part of me was relieved that I wouldn’t hear that women’s voice, but I wondered if it would upset Paolo. He didn’t look mad. His eyes were trained on me.
“Why did she call you enforcer?”
“Because he used to work as the enforcer for the mob,” Kat answered.
“Okay, now you guys, leave us alone—we’re heading in.”
“Do you have your weapon in place?” Paolo asked me for the fifteenth time since we’d left AA Security. From the time Lance left the parking garage I was thrown into a world of basic spy training. Kat ushered me to the gym where she taught me a few moves to protect myself. I couldn’t remember ever pushing myself so hard since high school. Then I showered again, and she helped me squeeze into this black lace dress. Lastly, she helped me secure a knife to my inner thigh. AA Security had insisted on arming me, even though I protested that I had never shot a gun. I had argued I could easily stow a knife in my purse, but they claimed the mafia entourage would likely bar me from bringing my purse inside. Paolo would ensure I wasn’t patted down so I could get the knife through.
“Show me, so I can make sure it’s buckled in right,” Paolo said.
“Uh, it’s on my inner thigh,” I replied.
“I need to make sure it is secure.”
I took a deep breath, raising my ass off the leather seat and pulled the dress up my thigh. The dress was so short that I inadvertently revealed my black underwear. Paolo’s eyes were trained on my legs the entire time. His heated stare only added to how hot he already was. I just hoped in the dark car he couldn’t tell if my panties had become wet. His calloused fingers trailed up the inside of my thigh, and I bit my lip to stifle a moan. His fingers adjusted the buckle strap, pulling it a little tighter. I swear he lingered a couple of extra seconds gliding over my skin causing goose bumps to form under his touch. He reached up and helped me tug my dress back down. The connection we had a moment ago was gone. Paolo had switched to mission mode, but my body was humming from his touch earlier.
“Okay, let’s go over the ground rules,” he said.
“We’ve already gone over them,” I replied.
“Yeah, but last time I explained them to you in detail, you never listened. If I tell you to run, run. If I tell you to grab your weapon, grab it and stab anyone near you. And I mean it—if you don’t listen this time, I don’t care if you are a client. Your ass will be red with my handprint, and you won’t be able to sit for a week.”
“I don’t think your girlfriend would like that,” I grumbled under my breath.
“What did you say?” he asked. “I didn’t quite catch that.”
“Nothing,” I replied.
Kat’s voice interjected over the channel. “She is worried about your girlfriend getting jealous if you spank her ass. By the way, who is this girlfriend?”
“I don’t have one,” Paolo shot back his brows drawn together.
I wasn’t sure if he said that since Naomi wasn’t in our ear anymore. Maybe they were keeping it to themselves. Or had I misunderstood their embrace, but I didn’t have time to explore it at this moment.
“We are about to head into a meeting with Vincenzo Russo and he thinks we are dating because of what you told Lance. I’m going to have to touch you, and we’ll act like we’re boyfriend and girlfriend. Do you understand?”
I ran my tongue across my dry lips. “Should I touch you as well? We want this to be real.”
“Yes, and if at any time I make you uncomfortable or you want to leave, just say so,” I answered.
“Okay, I got it.”
Paolo shifted the Range Rover into drive and after a couple of turns pulled up to the valet stand. He jumped out and tossed the keys to a young man. By the time I reached for the door handle, Paolo was already by my side, offering his arm. My feet wobbled as they hit the pavement. I wasn’t used to six-inch heels, but Kat had insisted—raving that they were a good secondary weapon. I doubted that entirely. I would have to ditch them and run barefoot if things got ugly.
Inside the building, the aroma of garlic and olive oil filled my nostrils, and my stomach growled—I had forgotten to eat and hadn’t slept either. I was starting to become deliriously tired. Paolo didn’t stop at the hostess area; he kept his arm around my waist and guided me through the front room of the restaurant into a back corridor. He walked with determined purpose, clearly knowing exactly where to go. Near the end of the hall stood a man in a suit.
“I’ve been summoned for dinner,” Paolo announced.
“Hand over your weapons.”
“Not happening,” Paolo shot back.
“Well then, you don’t enter.”
“That’s fine. You tell him why we’re not coming.”
The young man sighed and grumbled, “Why do you always have to be difficult?”
The door opened and Lance stepped out. “Don’t worry about leaving your weapon. We have you out numbered.”
We entered a large room. A long table was set for about twelve people. Yet only one man sat at the head—with a portrait of his younger self hanging on the wall behind him. In that old photo, his hair had been brown. Now he was grayed and slightly hunched, but his black eyes were what truly unsettled me.
“It’s good to see you, Paolo. The family misses you.” He shifted his gaze from Paolo to me. “I see life outside the family has led you to find someone.”
“This is my girlfriend, Jezebel.”
Even with everyone at the office the past few hours calling me by my new fake persona, the name didn’t register right away. But Paolo was smooth and didn’t miss a beat. “Jezebel this is Vincenzo. He is the head of the Russo family.”
Paolo guided me to a chair two seats away from Vincenzo, then he took the seat closer to him.
“What was I called here for?” Paolo asked.
“You know the rules—we eat before we discuss business.”
I expected a waiter to come out and take our orders, but instead three servers arrived and placed a plate of spaghetti and meatballs down in front of me along with garlic bread. Red sauce wasn’t my favorite except I was starving. Not waiting for the others to start eating, I spun the noodles on my spoon and took a bite. It was delicious. I had heard that Italian food in the States never compared to that in Italy, yet the spaghetti and meatballs tasted just like a dish I had eaten in Rome. I was so absorbed in eating that I barely noticed Paolo and Vincenzo began to talk.
“I received intel that the doctor that raised her, had died—and she came back for the funeral.”
Paolo took a sip of wine before he replied, “Interesting. And who might have given you this intel?”
“I’ll tell you the name and how he got her back here, if you agree to come back to the family.”
My eyes lids felt heavy as I tried to concentrate on Vincenzo’s words. He had the information of the person who had sent me the Facebook message.
“If I came back and agree to do your dirty work again, what guarantee do I have that you won’t go after her as well?”
“You have my word, Paolo.”
Paolo leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms. “Except I had your word I was out of the family and Lance showed up to my job. Anyone can be an enforcer, but this girl is rare. Why give that up when you could make so much money?”
I reached over and dug my nails into Paolo’s arm wondering why he wasn’t going after the information Vincenzo had.
“Nobody is as good as you, Paolo. The other families are encroaching on my territory.”
“Tell me who she is and how to find her. I’ll need two weeks to verify the information and if it is correct I will be on the first flight back to New York to assist the family. But once you have a hold of your territory again, I am gone.”
A smile spread across Vincenzo’s face.
I didn’t trust him, and suddenly the chatter in my ear exploded—mostly Kat screaming, “You will not fucking go back! I will kill every mafia man there is! You are not going back to that life!” I wasn’t sure how Paolo ignored the outbursts, but he didn’t reply as the team yelled at him, trying to dissuade him from agreeing to the bargain.
“Now tell me,” he demanded, “what intel do you have on how to find the girl?”
“A man named Benson claims to have known her and helped get her back into the States for the funeral. She’s staying at the Ross Enterprise Hotel. My men confirmed her presence at the hotel. Once you verify everything and come back to New York and complete your task I will hand over the passport we took from her hotel today.”
Paolo reached over and placed his hand on my leg. And the touch calmed me for a second. I wanted to demand my passport back, but knew it that would place me and Paolo in danger.
“Why don’t you show me the passport, so I know who I am looking for?”
“Fuck,” I heard over the comm in my ear. “You need to get out of there. They already know it’s her if they have her passport and photo.”
Vincenzo glanced at his gold watch. “I don’t have the passport. The team went to her room, grabbed it, and flew back to New York. I’d tell your team to hurry up and look for her, because I’m not the only that searched for her today. Benson thinks selling her location is his payday. The man is an idiot thinking anyone would pay him just for her location. Now I’ve given you the information you wanted. Two weeks—I expect you back in New York.”
“And what do I have to do when I get back?”
“What you always do—make them fear us again.”
Pablo suddenly started coughing. He grabbed a white napkin from the table, pressed it to his mouth, and coughed a few times. When he pulled it away, it was stained red—and I was positive that it wasn’t from the spaghetti, since I hadn’t seen him take a bite. He quickly folded the napkin and slipped it into his pocket instead of returning it to the table. Something was off about this mysterious man.
My phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and glanced at the screen I had a new message in the, ‘Assassin Annihilation’ game.
“I’ll be in New York in two weeks. But if the information you gave me doesn’t pan out and she’s not there, and this Benson character you mentioned has no ties to her, then don’t expect me to return.”
The old man sat up straight, glaring. “You can’t talk to me that way. I am the head of the Russo family, and you will do as I say, or you will be eliminated.”
Paolo threw his head back and laughed. “I’m not scared of death. Send them, but make sure the men you send after me aren’t afraid of death—because they will be dead.”
Paolo stood. “Come on, Jezebel, let’s leave.”
I wasn’t sure if it was the exhaustion or something else, but the moment I stood, the room went sideways. Paolo swore under his breath, and then I was quickly lifted into the air. The last thing I remembered was my head resting against his hard chest.