II.The Infiltration

"White is definitely my color"My sister purred, her manicured hands running over the thick material repeatedly as she stared at her slender 5'8 form in the ceiling to floor mirror that made up one side of my room.

When pushed to the side,the mirror revealed my walk in closet that was rummaged ferociously in my feat to find a perfect dress.

I didn't know if the dress I was wearing was perfect,but it made my curves look perfect,the emerald green of the duchess material matched my fair skin,the gold bracelets and necklace adorning my features blended with the regal look I was going for,my brown curls had been styled up in a bun,soft tendrils framing my round face on purpose.

Yet,with the goddess standing beside me I didn't feel pretty enough,not with how ethereal she looked in the white strapless dress that hugged her figure like a second skin,a gold arm cuff on her slender arms and jewels worth thousands laying on her chest,the necklace was a gift from another one of the many men obsessed with her.

Elena Minsky was simply that girl she and everyone thought she was.Her new hair cascaded down her bum,pin straight unlike mine and when she strutted to my bed slightly leaning to pick up her phone that always chimed with notifications her perky bum strained the dress,I groaned averting my eyes wondering what she had done in her past life to deserve that much beauty.

"I just hit 5 million followers"She gasped placing her hand over her generous bosom in practiced shock.

My sister never showed too much emotion,especially ones that didn't make her look good by maybe cracking her makeup or thinning her bold red lipstick,she never laughed loud enough to sound boisterous,never frowned deep enough to look bad in a picture.

"That's amazing"I said dryly

She threw me a look over her shoulder and rolled her eyes before turning her brown gaze back to her phone,red fingernails flying over the delicate screen.

"Elena,we have to go,we're running late"

"Oh hush,Mirabella,we can't be seen walking in too early"

My family and I showed up to the party an hour late,my outrageous heels clicking over the reflective marble,the light buzz of conversations and warmth immediately welcomed us into what I called the rich hell,another function where people with too much money and time on their hands fraternizes in order to make alliances,know who had the latest car or shoes,giggle about sinking franchises and cheating spouses.

This time around,the reason for the posh event overflowing with designer collections that hadn't yet been released to the public was all thanks to the partnership between The Russo's and The Chan's.

"What was Russo's thinking partnering with the Chan's"Father grumbled yanking champagne off a passing waiter as we stood in a family circle.

I stifled a chuckle at my father's frustration,he was a tall slender man,dark hair peppered with white accents sleeked back to accentuate his aging face with chocolate puppy eyes.

My mother's genes hadn't influenced our appearance that much,her blue eyes softly accessed everyone else while her arm was in his"Be careful honey,the wall has ears"Her soft voice gritted out through the corner of her lips as she flashed a smile to another gathered family inches away from us,her blonde hair looked splendid in the tight bun showcasing her slender elegant neck.

My parents were an attractive pair.

Hardworking and determined.They didn't come from wealth,they worked their way up the top,took risks and battle wounds too.

My dad had been nothing but a spy at eighteen for The Russians,curling his way as a bartender through the private clubs of Italian men who ruled this city and were about to be overthrown.

My mum had been a maid at the Italian's mob boss house,serving with prickled ears latching to any piece of information she could hear and when The Russians had taken over part of the Los Angeles territory my parents were heavily rewarded.

The Infiltration wasn't that easy though,The Italians and Russians had fought vehemently for this territory,till lives were dwindling too low on both sides and there was a compromise much to the Italian's chagrin.

Los Angeles was then divided.

My dad didn't like that life,the life of blood and sacrifices,he liked the outcome of it though,the luxury and success after a job weldone he distanced from the mafia,avoided working with them and decided to focus on something else.

My dad's new chosen source of income didn't surprise anyone.

He proceeded to own several clubs in The City Of Angels,but it wasn't just your normal run off the mill clubs where teens with fake ID cards ventured in to grind on older men with their false sense of freedom cloaking the realistic face of sexual predators.

No,The Tranquil only hosted the top of the top.Criminals with bloody hands,celebrities with dirty secrets,subtle personnels with enough money and power to conquer the world and lastly staffs with a hunger for a world they could never attain.

"You know what to do kids"My mom flicked her hand at us,we did this every time,mingled among the crowd,greeted with fake pearly smiles,hugging people with perfumes saturated enough to cling to ourselves then we'd gather together in an hour time,before the event ended and leave abruptly.

In the world of the successful,connections and mystery were important.

I mingled as instructed,heels clacking,men leering at me like I was beef.

Tired and counting the minutes before an hour I lingered at a safe distance from Cassidy Crawford and her minions,my back to them,my gaze over my shoulder as I clutched my black purse with both hands to my pelvis.

"-I heard it's a Made Man thing"Emily Chan whispered sharply"They are to marry before thirty."

"That's so cute"Fiona Gallingham careened,her sweet high pitched voice made me wince.

"It's not!"Emily hissed"It's just tradition set up so they could make heirs before their death,you know they lead dangerous lives"

I imagined her short dark bob swaying with her every movement as she glared at her friends with those slitted eyes of hers,she had always been the voice of reason in their knucklehead trio.

"Well,I wouldn't mind being Luca Vitelli's bride"Cassidy pitched"That man...oh that man"

My back stiffened at the mention of his name,my form immediately feeling ten times smaller,heat spread all the way to my toes.

My gut twisted in remembrance.I pressed my hand to it blinking back the stinging tears at how cruel he was,to snuff a life like it was nothing.

Mourning Darren had been confusing,i couldn't focus on his death due to my racing mind because why the fuck would Luca kill Darren because of me?!

I hated the Cosa Nostra,father had drilled that into me and Luca was enough proof to how barbaric they were.

Like a summoned demon,I felt that prickle on my skin,like I was being watched and when I looked up scanning around there he was,on the less busy side of the hall leaning on a pillar looking like the epitome of bored nonchalance with a champagne in hand staring straight at me.

I wanted to turn around,ignore him,act like his presence was another minuscule canon event in my life but it wasn't,not with the way my heart raced,nearly exploding as my eyes raked his tall form,my lips parted slightly.

Luca Vitelli was sex on feet.

The black Armani suit stretched over his large muscles,rippling with every confident movement he made,the fluorescent lights bounced off the surface of his timepiece and illuminated the sharp planes of his face,his face belonged on a magazine cover,all lines and masculine beauty.

I was the only one checking the other out between the both of us while he regarded me with an indecipherable gaze,his tattoed fist clenched before he shoved it into his pocket.

There were conventionally good-looking men and then there was him.

And god, was he devastatingly handsome outshining the glow of perfection.

Getting closer to him felt like tittering on the edge of a cliff,my pulse spiked,drunk on the fragrance of mahogany and rich spice

"Are you going to keep on gawking or make a move?"

He scowled,metallic grey swirling with annoyance "I didn't know the youngest Minsky wanted my courtship"

Low,husky,dominant.

Like that burn of whiskey down one's throat before it slowly spreads through every crevice of your body heating you up from the insides yet cool like silk on the skin after a warm bath.

"I don't.You don't know anything about me"I spat fists clenched.

His eyes darkened as he stopped twirling the champagne flute in his hands and pushed himself off the pillar,his six-three glory towered over me.

"Wrong.I know everything about you.Even things you don't know yet,Mirabelle"My name rolled off his tongue in not just that posh accent of his but also like there was something between us,like a secret only we knew.

My breath hitched when he curled a tendril of my hair which had been brushing my cheek around his long finger,he was closer now,our scents mixed together

"It's Mirabella"i weakly murmured.

"Is that so?"

"How did you get in?Your aren't allowed on this turf"

I knew he was only here because the Asians had invited him.My people and his people were only under the same roof when the host was an Asian,the yakuza supplied the two gangs without caring about the enemies.

"This territory was ours before it was taken from us"His jaw clenched

"Exactly,taken"

He glared at me with gritted teeth,hate evident in his glare.This man would gut me and feed my entrails to the vultures without a sliver of hesitation.

Out of all the Russians,my family were the most hated by his side because of my father's role.If the hall wasn't crowded I wouldn't have approached him.

My palms turned clammy,I gripped my purse between us tighter and voiced with a whisper fanning his chest"You killed Darren"

"Indeed?"His lips flattened,head cocked

"What do you want from me?"

Metallic greys glossed over,his slender digit stopped twirling my stray curl instead it slowly inched closer to my neck.

His thumb feathered at the base of my neck,a pulse point to be exact.

All chatter seemed to turn into background noise behind us,his close proximity overwhelming me so incredibly that I felt wrapped up in him.

"I want to cut you here with my blade,Russian girl.This.Exact.Spot"His lips ghosted over the shell of my ear,stroking that sensitive spot "It'll hurt,excruciating pain that leads to a very slow death.You'll feel your very essence,your very life draining out of you and you'll claw at it,digging your fingers in your own flesh begging me for help and maybe I'll draw humanity from the cut out heart of your father and give you a quick death"He pressed the tip of two fingers to my temple then stepped back

My eyes snapped open as he emptied the contents of his flute a smug smirk curling his lips and brushed past me.

"Goodnight,Mirabelle"

I latched onto my neck,my chests heaving in fear,my mouth dried up.