Chapter 1
Elena;
No one who dared to mess with him lived to tell the tale. Lord of the underworld. Angelo Fabian. But somehow, my father did.
His name alone was enough to cause a shiver to run down your spine. What's worse when you step on his toes? I had heard rumors about him, about the deadly things he does.
I had never met him but my colleagues at work might just have. Talked about him in fearful whispers like he is some kind of a god.
Scratch that. He was considered a god in the city. I'd heard tales of how ruthless he was especially to those who betrayed him. Forgiveness was never in his dictionary.
And as I stood before my father, whose goons had forced me onto his lair, I couldn't help but be amazed at his words.
"I don't care what you have done with your life Dad. You should know better than to mess with someone like Angelo."
He was frantic as he grabbed my hands, "You have to do this Elena. You have to help me. Angelo is a very simple man. All you need to do is to convince him."
I stared at him Incredulously, "And by convincing, you mean..? Do you expect me to grovel before him or what?"
"You might not have to. It's quite easy with him. You only need to seduce him and everything..."
"What the fuck!?" My eyes widened Incredulously at his words. "How do you even say that to me, Dad? Seriously?"
He shook his head dismissively, his tone suddenly hard, "Let's not make this harder for ourselves, Elena. I'm pretty sure you do that quite a lot at the club. So, be the little slut we both know you are and do the damn thing, then Angelo will be out of our hair."
I felt a lump in my throat making me swallow hard. My fists clenched as his words resonated in me.
"Quite easy for you to call me a slut Dad. I wouldn't be working in a strip club in the first place if it wasn't for your recklessness. And now this again!?"
He walked over to a stool, sat down heavily, he shrugged, "It's not like you're a virgin, Elena. It shouldn't be that hard. All you have to do is seduce him and he'll forget about the money."
"And you think the only way is to seduce Angelo Fabian? Not in a million years, Dad. I am not doing it."
He stretched his hand toward his men and one of them came forward, giving him a blunt, "You've always been a stubborn little brat, Elena. Just like your mother."
I felt my breath hitch at the mention of my mother. Rage surged through me and I took a few steps toward him. "You have no right to talk about Mom that way. Not after what you did to her."
I shook my head, suddenly feeling repulsed by him and the pungent smell of the lair.
"You should be rotting in prison for what you did to her. You don't have a shred of humanity in you that you're even willing to sell off your only child to a deadly man."
I knew there was no way my Dad would ever change or have a little humanity in him.
"Why the hell will you steal money from Angelo, Knowing his identity!? Why?"
Of course, I knew my question was rhetorical. That was typically my Dad, always causing trouble wherever he went. Just like he had done exactly a year ago.
After borrowing a huge amount of money, he couldn't pay back he used me as collateral, thus forcing me to work as a stripper at the nightclub until his debts were fully paid.
"I won't let you have your way this time though. I am NOT risking my life to beg someone like Angelo," I scoffed, " that would be absurd. You can do that since you got yourself into this mess."
I turned to walk away just as his next words resounded, "It's a shame, Elena," he stood up just as I turned to watch him.
He took a few steps towards me, his eyes trained on mine, "I knew this was going to be your reaction. But you should know, that the moment you turn your back from me, I wouldn't hesitate to put a hole in your boyfriend's heart."
My heart stopped at his words. Literally. What had Clint got to do with this issue? I wondered.
"You wouldn't." I sneered.
He smirked evilly, "You know fully well what I am capable of, Elena."
As much as I hate to admit, he was right. Dad has always been so sickly twisted that he doesn't care about his actions, always acting on impulse.
Yes, he is very much capable of taking the life of the one person I love so much just so he could blackmail me to do his bidding. Just like he did to Mom.
I felt tears pickle my eyes and I swallowed hard.
Looking right into my father's eyes, his cold demeanor. I was reminded of the harsh reality of my life.
Right back to my childhood, I never had what one might call a stable family. I grew up in a loveless home. Watched my Dad constantly abuse my Mom until he finally ended her.
He didn't stop there, he resulted in drinking and then I became the one at the receiving end of his stick.
I'd known Clint from childhood. He knew all I've been through and has always been there for me.
Of course, Dad knew that and now he thinks threatening his life was the only way to sway me.
However, he was right. I wouldn't let Clint take the brunt of his actions.
I took a deep breath and said, "You haven't changed quite a bit. I can't believe you would threaten me with Clint."
He shrugged, "We have to do what we can to survive, don't we?"
I gritted my teeth, knowing that I was already at a dead end. If I had to seduce a Mafia Lord to save Clint, I guess I had no choice, even though I knew it was a death sentence.
"What exactly do you want me to do?"