Page 44 of Once Upon a Villain

Crime families sounded too much like mafia stuff. It made me think of bloody weddings, severed appendages, and machine guns. I braced my elbows on my knees and let my gaze sweep across the way toward the shiny glass counter. The bright lights overhead made all the dresses sparkle a pretty blue and pink. I shifted my attention to the elegant woman sitting next to me. For all her perfect complexion and fancy clothes, her secrets were as dirty as my family’s. She was mafia?

“No,” I answered honestly, “are you? I mean, is that what you are?”

She nodded. “Your father made a deal with Don Michael Alfera. I don’t know the details of their arrangement. All I know is that now Stefano Vitali is Michael’s second-in-command. That’s an important position within our organization, which is why I’m here to help with your transition.”

“I’ve seen enough movies to know that getting in bed with the mob never ends well for the little people. Is it too late for Dad to walk away? I mean, we just got here.” I should’ve fought harder when Dad announced we were moving to New York City for his big job promotion. But I had been too distracted by the idea of Columbia to protest too much.

But now that I thought about it. What job had Dad been talking about? He hadn’t worked in months.

“I’m afraid so.” She shot a glance behind her to the limo waiting for her at the curb. “That includes you. You signed the agreement and, as they say, now you know too much. You will attend Midtown High and remain under our supervision.”

“You mean your control.”

“They’re the same word, dear. There isn’t a place in the world where our organization won’t find you or your family, if any one of you chooses to betray us.” She stood and smoothed out her pencil skirt, looking all prim and proper, as if she hadn’t just threatened my entire family.

A tiny voice in the back of my head told me to run, to get away from her. This woman wasn’t just terrifying. She was lethal. I believed she would do us harm if we didn’t comply. But it was as she had said, too late to get out.

I had a million questions. Like, was there a time limit on Dad’s job promotion, or were we in it for life? What about my little brothers? They were too young to understand what happened, but in time, they would be old enough to notice things.

When she made to leave, I shot to my feet. “Is this like a forever thing?”

“Sweet girl.” She touched her cold finger to my chin. “Like your parents, I promise, soon you won’t want to leave. Everything you ever wanted is now yours. Including Columbia.” She cocked her brow. “Your mother mentioned it this morning. I’d be happy to give you a recommendation. You’re behind in the application process, but I can help.”

“Rory, look at this dress.” Mom practically pranced into the lounge area outside the dressing rooms. “You should see what Signoria Vittoria picked out for you.”

The gleam in Mom’s gaze melted my heart. She was happy. Maybe it was the perfect lighting or the expensive perfume in the air, but she seemed younger, so much younger than she looked last year when the five of us were crammed into that motel room.

Signoria Vittoria was right. Mom wanted this. All of it. Where did that leave me? “You look beautiful, Mom.”

“Too bad I don’t really have anywhere to go.”

“That was the original reason for my visit earlier. That is, before I found you had children.” Signoria Vittoria shook her head in disapproval. “Michael Alfera is hosting an end of summer cocktail party in the Hamptons. It’s this Saturday. I’ll send a car at two in the afternoon.” She met my gaze. “Do join us. There will be kids your age there.”

“Thank you.” Mom closed the space between her and Signoria Vittoria. “I can’t believe I finally get to meet Mr. Alfera. He’s been so kind to my husband.”

“Of course. Wear the gold rose dress. It suits you better.” Signoria Vittoria pointed toward the dressing rooms. “I’ll see you soon.”

Mom wrapped her arm around my waist. Together, we watched our benefactor gracefully stride the length of the store and then climb into her waiting limo.

“I like this one better.” She glanced down at the silky fabric. “The blue makes my eyes bluer.” She giggled. “I feel like we’re in one of those eighties movies. You know the one?Pretty Woman. When she gets rejected by all the salespeople then she returns to rub it in their faces.”

Who wouldn’t want this level of acceptance? I had to agree with her on that one. Back home, the Vitali family had nothing. More than that, we weren’t part of anything. Here, even if the circumstances were questionable, at best, we were welcomed.

I turned to face her. “Mom, they’re mafia.”

“Shh.” She clasped her hand over my mouth. “Not here.” Her face turned bright red, and suddenly, she looked like she couldn’t breathe out of sheer panic.

“Okay.” I reached for her hand and squeezed it. “We can talk when we get home.”

“Rory. Be careful what you say.” She freed herself from my grasp and ushered me toward the dressing room with my name on it. “You signed the papers, right?”

“Yes.”

“Oh good. So that means you decided to stay?”

“I got the impression bad things would happen if I didn’t sign. So yeah, I did. Some choice.” I crossed my arms over my chest. Mom’s nonchalant act scared the hell out of me because it was obvious she didn’t understand how dangerous these people were. Or maybe she did, and she didn’t care—too blinded by all the sparkling things. “Even if we wanted out, it’s too late now. Do you realize that?”

“Why would we want to leave?” She grabbed my shoulders and turned me to face all the pretty clothes hanging along the wall—skirts, dresses, blazers, and fur coats. “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, Rory. Come on.” She flashed me the brightest smile.

---