Chapter 2

The car ride back to his place is silent. Luca is in the driver's seat with Angelo beside him. Luciano sits on the other end of me, typing away on his phone. I didn't mind though, I was grateful for the silence. It gave me time to think. Truth is, I am not comfortable working with them, much less living in the same house. I was always a lone ranger and I knew that the mafia was like a family. I would be an outsider which I didn't really mind but I didn't trust them. I couldn't and that scared me a little. There would come a time where we would be on the field together and I had to not only concentrate on the mission but also watch my back. I knew how the mafia operated or rather I had a pretty good idea and there was no guarantee that I would walk away from this assignment completely unharmed. I was going to be living with them and seeing their daily dealings. Pair that knowledge with my sarcastic mouth and my general disdain for authority, I knew that Luciano and I were not going to get along well. He was the King, always in charge of everything and everyone and I was the rebel. This was going to be fun, it could possibly get me killed but what's life without a little danger, eh?

Half an hour later, we pull up at his mansion. I immediately take note of all the security in place. His home was located slightly inwards and I noticed plenty of security cameras on the road in. As we entered the gates, I had to admit I was impressed. This place was a fortress although I suppose when you were the don of the Italian mafia, it had to be. The car stops and one of his men open my door, slightly bowing his head in respect. Luciano steps out of the car, immediately barking orders in Italian to some of his men. I didn't bother listening. Instead, I grab my laptop bag since the other two were already being carried in and take in the exterior of his home.

Well, it was definitely beautiful. Although huge and luxurious, it had a homely feel to it.

"Please follow me, Alessa." Angelo said beside me and I followed him in. He opened the doors to reveal one of the most beautiful halls I have ever seen. It had high ceilings and an Italian interior, done tastefully in cream colours. It didn't feel gaudy or cold like most mansions do. Instead, I felt like this was an actual home for an actual family. One that was lived in and had seen many occasions. I could feel Luciano's eyes on me as he followed silently behind, gauging my reaction but I had just as good a poker face as he did. My eyes scanned the hall, again noting all the high tech security in place.

"Oh my god! You are stunning. Are you sure you did not kidnap her, fratello?"

I turn to see a flurry of dark hair before I feel arms around me, hugging me tightly. My eyes widen and I immediately stiffen. The brunette pulls away and I finally get a good look at her face. She's slightly shorter than me, standing at around 5"6 with long brunette hair, a shade darker than mine. She was beautiful and although she had hazel brown eyes, I could see the resemblance between her and Luciano. No doubt they were siblings.

"As if I would kidnap a la emicrania like her." his deep voice replies. I turn and smile sweetly at him,"As if you could kidnap me in the first place, Vincenzo" he glares at me and I hear his sister gasp before squealing in delight.

"Oh, I love you already. You know, I always wanted to meet a female assassin."

I stare at her in horror. What was wrong with the Moretti family? Seriously. She ignores my expression and continues chatting away. I hear Luca chuckle beside me and Angelo lets out a howl of laughter. Emilia stops talking and glares at them.

"Is something funny?"

Luca shakes his head, still chuckling while Angelo answers.

"Babe, you're scaring her. She's not scared of the Italian don but she has no idea how to deal with you." He starts howling with laughter all over again and I scowl at him. He's not wrong though. I was really out of my comfort zone here. Hold me at gunpoint and I knew what to do. Place a bubbly, chattering, happy female in front of me and I was lost. Emilia turns to look at me before smiling sheepishly at my expression.

"Sorry, I'm a little excited at having someone else to talk to around here."

"And here I thought Luciano was excellent company." She bursts out laughing at my sarcasm along with the boys, ignoring her brother's heated glare at us.

"You and I are going to get along just fine. Has he been nice to you?"

I paused as if in deep thought before replying,"Well, he broke into my apartment and then tried to kill me. I'd say he's quite the charmer."

her eyes widen as she turns to her brother."You shot at her?"

He shrugs,"I had to see if she was really as good as they say she is."

She rolls her eyes in exasperation before turning back to me.

"You'll have to forgive him. He can be a bit of a cazzo sometimes. He was dropped on the head as a baby."

I stare at her before slowly breaking out into a smile.

"I think you're right. You and I are going to get along just fine."

She smiles brightly, hooking her arm through mine.

"Come on, I'll give you a tour of this place."

We walk away from the boys and she leads me out of the hall into a hallway. We enter the first door and it turns out to be a ballroom. Who the hell has a ballroom in their house? Luciano fucking Moretti by the looks of it.

By the end of the tour, I had basically memorised the entire layout of this mansion. The first floor held the living room, TV room, ballroom, meeting room, gym, dining room, kitchen, Luciano's office, a home theatre and a few bathrooms and bedrooms. The backyard was huge and I already knew that this was my favourite spot of the house.

"If you walk down this pathway, you will arrive at a garden. Well, it's more like a mini waterfall actually. My mum added it on when she married my dad."

"I'm guessing this is a family home", noting the architecture.

Emilia nods in agreement,"Yup, it has been passed down through the generations although there have been additions and renovations done over the years."

She points towards the side of the house where I see what looks like another mini mansion.

"That is Luca and Sofia's home. Sofia is his wife by the way. She works at Luciano's company. They have a son, Francesco or Frankie as we call him. He's 4."

I take in this information silently, again noting all the security around this place. There were guards everywhere.

"We have a guesthouse a little further down for when guests come. On this wing of the house, we have the swimming pool and jacuzzi."

We head in again and this time she takes me to the basement. As we reach the foot of the stairs, she takes the first hallway, leading me to an indoor pool and what looks like a lounge area.

"we use this place to hangout or swim during winter. There's a wine cellar down the hall too."

We head back to the stairs and she points towards another dimly lit hallway. I was more interested in this one since it was heavily guarded.

"This one leads to the basement where Luciano does his..mafia stuff. "

I nod, my assumptions right. This was where interrogations were held. we head back up and she takes me to the second floor.

There are about 5 bedrooms on this floor. She points to a room,"That's mine and Angelo's room."I was right, they were a couple. It wasn't hard to figure out. Angelo had called her babe and no one could miss the loving looks they gave each other.

"This one belongs to my parents when they come visit."

"They don't live here?"We had passed quite a number of people on the first floor, mainly Luciano's men and some of the help but no other family.

Emilia shakes her head, her ponytail swinging from side to side.

"They moved out about a year ago. Said they wanted to have some privacy. They live in a lakehouse about 15 minutes away. They visit often though when they're not travelling.

She motions to the stairs leading up to the final floor of the house.

"The third floor is Luciano's. No one goes up there except him and the maids to clean. Even I barely go up there. It's his personal space."

I nod, not having any intention of going to his bedroom anyway.

She opens a door, and I walk into a huge bedroom.

"This is your room. No one comes up on this floor except the maids to clean and those living here. It's off limits to the men unless there's an emergency."

Thank god. I knew the house would have a lot of activity so it was nice knowing that I would at least have some privacy up here.

"Thank you Emilia."

She smiles,"I'll let you get settled in. See you in the morning."

"goodnight." She shuts the door behind her and I take in my room. It's spacious and beautiful.

The size of this was the size of an average New York apartment. There was a huge king size bed on one side of the room with bedside tables on either side. There was also a huge flat screen TV on the wall with a small sitting area in front of it. I walk out towards the huge balcony, immediately loving the view. There were a few lounge chairs and a coffee table and I smiled at that.

Walking back into the room, my feet sinking into the plush carpet, I open a door and walk into a walk in closet. My bags are placed in a corner but to my surprise, there are clothes hanging in the closet. I take a closer look at them, my eyes widening at the designer brands. They were all new and in my size. Now, I earned really good money with the CCC and was no stranger to designer brands or a little luxury but this level of opulence was foreign to me. I knew Luciano was rich but I guess I underestimated the number of zeros in his bank account. It didn't matter anyway, I wasn't going to be wearing these clothes.

The other door leads to a huge bathroom. Heading back into the main room, I lock the door and start sweeping the place for hidden cameras or bugs. It was a habit of mine, a necessity really with my job. Thankfully, the room was clean and I could then relax properly. Oh well, if I was going to be stuck here, at least I would be comfortable. I unpack my clothes before stripping off to take a hot shower. Changing into a pair of sleeping shorts and tshirt, I climb into bed, my gun under my pillow.

Closing my eyes, I prepare myself for another sleepless night filled with nightmares and anxiety.