Page 84 of My Mafia King

I enter a corridor when a woman approaches me.

“You’re Carmina, right?”

“Yes,” I say, smiling.

“You’re not going there. Here. Take this.”

She hands me a smooth golden card similar to the one Damaso gave me when he met me. This one has nothing on it, and it’s definitely not a credit card or a keycard.

“You show this to the security. They’ll guide you.”

Frozen, I look at the card.

“Is there a problem?” she asks, as I don’t move.

I lift my gaze.

“No. Is it a different type of place? The room I’m going to?”

“No. It’s just quieter than the others.”

Whatever that means.

“It’s the same. Go,” she says sternly.

I have no choice, so I spin around and move.

Pacing that way, I realize I have my phone with me. I reach inside my pocket and turn it off before running into the first security guard.

He looks like one of Damaso’s men. He is broad-shouldered and expressionless. No surprise there.

He checks my card, runs it through a reader, and gives me a quick pat down that is not invasive.

He shows me to a different hallway, and I pull away.

The more I walk, the thicker the silence is, and I get spooked a little.

It’s like a tomb.

A second man greets me at the end of the corridor.

By the time I talk to him, my skin is cold, and I quiver inside.

If anything––and I mean anything––goes wrong, I don’t even know how to find my way back.

His lips move, giving me instructions, and I can’t hear a word. Wide-eyed, I bob my head like a human-size doll before he gestures to his right, where I’m supposed to go.

I pull away from him, moving mechanically, my eyes hovering over the doors.

I have no idea what he has said to me, and now I regret not paying attention.

Eventually, I make it to a big door and pull to a stop. Is this the one?

I move my fingers over the lock and shift the handle.

It’s unlocked, so I push the door open and walk in. It’s a large room with massive sofas and armchairs, a crystal chandelier, an old bookcase, several lamps, and a desk.

It’s cold inside. Colder than in other parts of the hotel.

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