Update: The phone was returned and so was my license and college ID. Hallelujah! But the phone's screen is acting stupid. It turns purple and won't let me click anything so I'm still stuck with the Samsung. I need to get an IPhone soon because I hate writing on this phone. Ugh.

Mia Regina has gotten over 60k, Mio Re over 6k, and EMB over 80k. This means so much and I wanted to thank you all for reading my stupid, crazy books and having a look at my deranged imagination. I love you all and let's party down in fuckville!

It's a long chap and I apologize. Enjoy and point out my errors.

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           After forcing the last ounce of venomous bourbon down my throat, I slam the glass onto the table and declare my victory once again. "Done!" I laugh childishly, the liquor working its magic on my aching nerves. "It feels good to be an undefeated champion."

           "Oh, shut up, Athena," Augustus scowls as he places his glass down on the table. "You've been at the drinking game longer than I have."

          "Pussy," Wren mocks his brother whilst pouring more of the brownish-amber colored liquid in all our empty glasses, including Rome's, who immediately bonded with the younger Bonferroni brothers. Mr. Azallion, on the other hand, is not too thrilled. His mouth has surprisingly been shut, but his damn eyes have been speaking volumes, staring right at me.

           "I think we should call it a night," Ray yawns, stretching. "Athena, grab a room and sleep it off. You need it."

           "You want me to go because you know I'll beat you all again," I slur a bit before laying my eyes on the biggest baby in the damn room. "Give a glass to the tattoo parlor here. He needs to loosen up."

           "I'm fine," Mr. Azallion retorts, leaning back in his chair.

           Pushing my now full glass in his direction, I urge him to take a drink. "It's not laced with poison, so bottoms up."

           "I said I'm fine."

           "I smell a catfight," Augustus laughs.

           Slamming my fist on the table, I glare at him. "You do as I say, so drink the damn liquor and join the party," I spit through my teeth, annoyed at his resistance. "Or else I'll shoot your brother's head off."

           "You can't kill me," Rome whines, pointing at the little pup sleeping on the sofa with no care in the world. "I ain't letting you orphan my baby. I'm his momma."

           Wren laughs to himself. "I like him."

           "Like me all you want, but this sexy ass booty ain't reserved for you, homeboy," Rome quips in a texan accent, wiggling his finger in a no-no fashion. Alcohol does work wonders on people.

           "I take it back," Wren glances at me in distaste. "Just kill him."

           Rolling my eyes at the stupidity, I turn to Mr. Azallion who holds my gaze firmly before slowly reaching for the drink and chugging it down in one go. "Better?"

           "I should be the one asking you that," I chuckle, resting my chin on the table and looking up at him. "Stop being so scared. You don't even know anything yet, and we still need to have the talk. Your decision after that will decide your fate and your brother's, so relax."

           He scoffs, finally helping himself to the alcohol. "If I'm going to die before the sun comes up, I might as well have a little fun."

           "That's the spirit!" I chirp up, glancing around for a second. "Where's Leo anyways?"

           "Drinking and sulking somewhere as usual," Wren comments, swirling his drink before spilling it into his mouth. "That goes for Leo and Mike."

           "I miss Sirena," Augustus interrupts, sighing in admiration and putting the entire bottle to his mouth. He grimaces at the disgusting aftertaste of the fluid and shakes his head. "She was so badass."

           "One of the girls you screwed?" I query, snatching the bottle from him for myself.

           "I wish, but it's Arie," he corrects me with a laugh. "I just call her Sirena, but fuck, I miss that girl. Absolutely gorgeous and a real smartass."

           "Be careful," I warn. "Your true feelings are surfacing."

           "Maybe I'll steal her from Leo and make her my queen instead," Augustus winks smugly.

           "How did we end up talking about her?" Wren grunts in annoyance.

           "You're just mad because she busted your balls and Ray's too."

           "She did what?" I cough, choking on the bitter liquid cascading down my throat.

           "I swear," Augustus laughs out loud as I look at Wren who rolls his eyes and Ray who shifts a bit, cupping his crotch. "She didn't give a flying fuck about who they were and gave them a taste of broken nuts."

           "I'm surprised she isn't dead after that stunt," I snort.

           "Well, perks of having the king fall for you I guess," Wren mutters under his breath, leisurely walking over to the mini bar. "Not even his brothers can do anything, that's how madly he loves her. And what the fuck is love?" He retrieves a bottle of tequila from a cabinet and beams, kissing it. "Ah, Patrón is the only love I need in my life."

           "God knows you deserved it, I didn't," Ray explains, raising his hands in surrender. "Leo pulled me in his drama."

           "You got kneed because you babbled, you fucking parrot," Wren glowers before taking a swig straight out of the fat bottle.

           "Arie told me every little thing and how many times she kicked your balls," Ray counters with a smirk and takes the bottle of bourbon from me. "You're the one who pushed her to seek help and I don't think she'll ever forgive you for that."

           "I was drunk," Wren groans, backing himself up with that silly excuse. "And Leo already fucked me up for it." He points to the little scar on his forehead.

            "You're drunk right now," Ray smirks, trying to instigate the man. "Are you going to put your hands on Athena too?"

           "I think we all should move back," Augustus suggests as Wren mumbles something under his breath. He examines the bottle in his hand for a good second before throwing it in Ray's direction who dodges it just in time.

           Nonchalantly, I rise from my chair and saunter toward the archway to grip it. The pain in my feet is minimal due to the drugs Ray injected in me to subdue the aching, but it still doesn't feel good. Looking over my shoulder, I notice Mr. Azallion and Rome scurry to Augustus' side to avoid getting injured in the crossfire of the glass war between Wren and Ray who keep launching heavy alcohol bottles at one another. At this point, I'm not even surprised by the escalation of events in this family.

           "I'm going to look for Leo and Mike," I wave at them. "You all have fun and don't kill one another."

           "Your feet." My ears can't register whose concerning voice it is, but I decide to ignore it by walking down the large hall on my heels to avoid putting pressure on my recently patched up wound.

           Wincing and gnawing the inside of my cheek, I reach the doors that lead to the lake behind the mansion where the wedding took place earlier. My eyes halt on the two men sitting at the top landing of the concrete stairs, gazing at the moon and chatting in a daze with a bottle of beer in their hands. Multiple men circle the property, securing the outskirts to keep us from harm while others clear up the never-ending decorations as cool breeze blows in my face and kisses my naked arms and legs like pricking needles. This dress certainly isn't doing a good job keeping me warm.

           "I call her phone everyday," Mike confesses, cocking his head back and downing the remaining booze in the bottle before tossing it down the steps. Picking up another bottle from the case beside him, he pops the cap open and chugs it down. "I miss her so fucking much."

           Leo nods silently, taking short sips from his bottle and staring ahead at the moonlight dancing on the surface of the lake. "You shouldn't be walking." Leo senses my lurking presence behind him and scoots to the side, patting the concrete between him and Mike. "Sit, before you hurt yourself more." Wobbling forward, I latch onto their hands that are laid out to assist me. "Why aren't you sleeping?"

           "I'll go home and sleep there. I have work tomorrow anyways."

           "It's almost three in the morning. Sleep here tonight and take a couple days off from work," Mike orders, handing me a beer.

           "I can't," I sigh, swigging the poisonous fluid. "I have to get everyone ready for the big show."

           "You can't work like this," he counters.

           "Stop worrying about me, Mikey," I squeeze his forearm to reassure him. "I'm more worried about you two."

           "We're fine," Leo retorts curtly, keeping his gaze intact ahead and away from me.

           Shifting a little, I consume a tiny portion of the disgusting Corona and contemplate how to touch on the subject that I know will get him uneasy, but my curiosity and concern is too indomitable. "So," I hesitate for a second, "I heard she's back."

           Leo notably tenses from my comment, but continues drinking. His fingers tighten around the neck of the bottle, his thumb circling the rim as he gulps and releases the bottle to let it tumble down the steps. "She is," he finally answers, his hands raking through his hair.

           "How is that possible?" I question, placing my bottle aside. "Astor..."

           "I have no clue," he cuts me off with a frustrated whisper. "It's been weeks now and she still hasn't said a word about what happened to her. Today is the first day I've left her side." He swallows hard and buries his face in his quivering palms. "She has scars all over her body, Athena, just like you." I stiffen. "And I can only imagine what she has been through. Some of them are quite recent." Frowning, I run my hand up and down his back. Stress is fiercely palpable on his tense muscles and worry has an aura of destruction circling him.

           "She's home now," I remind him. "She's safe."

           "I gave up too soon," he mumbles, looking up from his palms and staring ahead with a stoic expression. "I shouldn't have assumed and believed what they said. I should have searched for her. I should have never," he pauses briefly, shaking his head. "I should have never yelled at her."

           Thick fog of guilt slowly swallows him whole, but I know it isn't the only sickening emotion drowning him and holding him captive. Arie is a major factor in all that's going on; the hurt, misery, and sadness that my brothers are dying in. "Stop feeling guilty for something none of us saw coming," I state, squeezing his hand that lays on his thigh. "It was completely unexpected and stop beating yourself over it." A couple drawn out seconds of deafening silence later, I break the redundant cycle of angst creeping on us. "Where is she right now?"

           "Back at the estate," he exhales slowly, straightening his spine. "I have doctors all around her, and I'm going to take her to Italy with me. Hopefully, she'll feel better there, away from all the ruckus here."

           With a shaky sigh ripping past the barrier of my lips, I slouch a bit, wrapping my arms around my body to shield it from the ruthless cold that's beginning to decrease in temperature, and the booze in my system isn't keeping me much warm anymore. Mike props his suit jacket on my shoulders while Leo places his over my naked legs in order to keep me warm. They return to their binge drinking while I study them. There's no doubt about the imminent death looming over their heads if they keep going like this; so broken and distressed.

           Grabbing each one of their hands, I nuzzle the jumbled mess into my lap and achieve puzzled, yet concerned looks from them. "I promise I'll make it better for the both of you," I vow, looking between the two. "I'll do anything to return those smiles to your faces."

           Mike chuckles, squeezing my hand lightly while Leo pulls away from my hold and smiles meekly at me. "What happened, happened. You said it yourself," Leo states softly before the others decide to join us out back. "Great," he groans.

           "Wren and Ray destroyed your place," Augustus snitches, taking a seat behind us. "Oh shit!" He glances down at his crotch as I turn around to face him. "I just ripped my pants."

           I roll my eyes while the others laugh. "Anderson Pooper is so terrified right now," Rome pouts, petting the dog slowly while Mr. Azallion sits down on the dusty ground next to Augustus. Wren, Ray, and Rome settle down right after, forming a circle.

           Mr. Azallion's blue eyes lock with mine which tingles my body cozily, enlightening my frenzy fingers. Compared to when we were inside, he seems a bit more relaxed now which is good. "Since we're all here, let's talk." I crisscross my legs and look between the Azallion brothers. "There's this concept called Omertà that's practiced by criminal organizations. It's basically a code of silence."

           Eerie silence to the point where I nearly hear crickets is what I'm receiving from them, beside the retarded looks on their damn faces.

           "We don't necessarily follow that," I continue. "Instead, it's more about lealtà which literally translates to loyalty in Italian. It's held highest in this empire and consequences are quite severe if you betray us in any way and break that pact. There's no escaping it either." Looking at Mr. Azallion's narrowed eyes, I smile. "I believe you have come across this before."

           "When I became an escort," he replies, looking at each one of us. "Is this some kind of a cult or mafia?"

           "Don't fret, we're not a cult like the KKK," I cringe. "We prefer to go by the latter." His face drops to a shade on the pale side. "Mafia is what the outside world views us as."

           "We're being recruited by the mafia?" Rome gasps before a massive grin engulfs his mouth. "That's so sick. I knew you were a baddie. I'm all in. Teach me how to fight like you."

           "Not yet," I put an abrupt stop to his merriment. "Omertà is just about silence, but loyalty encorporates trust. It naturally brings the maintainance of silence on topics that are supposed to be discreet. Break our trust, and you'll guarantee the deaths of the people you love."

           Laying my hand flat, I motion Mr. Azallion to lay his in mine. Reluctantly, he obliges. "This right here," I point to the tiny circle on his wrist hidden among his other tattoos, "is the tag that declares that you're one of us."

           Lealtà engraved in extremely small and intricate letterings within the circle isn't easy to decipher at a mere glance, but it still distinguishes our employees from others, whether they work in our legal departments or illegal. This states that they know about some of the illegal activities to an extent and have vowed to be loyal and stay silent on it.

           "So, I basically work for you?" Mr. Azallion shoots me a puzzled look.

           "Did your handler ever give you a name on who you worked for?" I cock a brow.

           "He said that a guy named Vince looks over all the escorts globally." Realization hits him in the face as he stares at me utterly dumbfounded. "And the drunk minister is named Vince too. Of course. It's all connected. And I'm guessing you're the big boss he works for."

           "Not me," I raise my hands and nod to Leo who is still facing the lake, leisurely drinking his beer. "Leo is the boss."

           "Leo Bonferroni," he chuckles in irritation. "I'm basically working for a ghost that nobody has really seen."

           "Pretty much," Leo shrugs.

           "You're finally putting all the puzzle pieces together," I smirk, patting his cheek.

           He grabs my hand and puts it on display without a warning. "You have the same tattoo as me," he refers to the Bonferroni tag. "Were you an escort too?"

           Jerking his hold off, I glare at him while the others laugh. "I didn't know you were an escort, Athena," Augustus fakes a gasp. "Is that what you did back in England?"

           "I can imagine her cutting off dicks rather than pleasuring them," Ray laughs.

           "Yours would be first on the list," I sneer as he continues laughing.

           "Well," Ray stumbles up to his feet and salutes. "I'm going to bed. I can't sleep on a jet." He turns his gaze to me. "You're coming to Italy for Lina's coronation, right?"

           "I have work in Italy, so I'll be there."

           "Coronation?" Mr. Azallion scoffs. "What is this? The royal family?"

           "Too much information that your pathetic little mind won't be able to handle," Ray pats Mr. Azallion's back with a laugh and leaves.

           "Did you talk to Lina?" Leo asks me with his eyes now gazing at the twinkling stars above that are quite rare under the thick coats of pollution in the city.

           "I haven't had the time to do so," I retort, rubbing my palms together to heat up my cold hands. "I think your words would be more effective."

           "I'm not the best person to give her a pep talk right now," he sighs, taking a huge swig of the beer. "I have too much on my mind and I can't deal with her stubbornness. You're one of the very few she actually likes outside the family and she can probably relate to you. Convince her that it's not just another birthday."

           "Sounds like a brat to me," Rome remarks, snickering to himself.

           "I'd keep my mouth shut if I were you," I warn the immature, drunk idiot with a stern glare. "You have no idea what she has been through."

           "Teenage existential crisis?" He giggles like a maniac.

           Shattering of a glass bellows to the side of me, grabbing our attention. Leo twirls a glass shard between his fingers and turns around to finally face the boy who was mocking Lina. "Make another snarky comment about my sister and I'll open your chest with this shard and rip your beating heart right out. After that, I'll shove it in your mouth and make you chew on it. Are we clear?"

           Mike looks around and snorts at the horrified faces of the Azallion brothers. "Or maybe I could just make small cuts throughout your lanky body and let Ray heal you only to repeat it all over again and again and again, till the end of time."

           "And perhaps I could dump salt on his open wounds," Augustus chimes in.

           "I could definitely help with that," Wren hops on the torture express, leaving me to just stare at the idiotic Azallion boys.

           "He doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut. Sorry," Mr. Azallion apologizes on the behalf of his brother and looks at me. "If we, you know, commit to this lealtà thing, what would we have to do?"

           "For starters," I let out a leisure breath, tilting my head to the side slowly, "You'd have to kill a newborn and drink its blood. After you bury the body, you have to belly dance on their grave. Maybe mix a little macarena in there and that should be good enough to join our clan."

          A bark of laughter breaks out right through the chilly air of the gloomy night, putting a smug smirk on my face. Mr. Azallion continues to stare at me in utter disappointment, but he still can't ignore the smile emerging on his pinkish lips that I absolutely don't regret kissing.

           "You think you're really funny," Mr. Azallion chuckles before wetting his lips with a quick swipe of his very talented tongue that sure did magic on me this morning. Well, technically yesterday morning now.

           Leaning forward with a quirked brow and a smug lift to the corner of my mouth, I bat my lashes at the man. "I'm just getting started, baby."

           "I think I'm going to throw up on my own puke," Augustus clears his throat, looking away.

           Laughing, I turn to Rome and grab the pup from his hold. "And Rome, you're going to kill puppies and make hush puppies out of them. Starting with this one." I rub the pup's belly and look at a gullible Rome who is literally on the brink of shedding salty, agonized tears. "What's his name today?"

           "Anderson Pooper," Rome sobs, fat tears crawling down his flushed cheeks. "No. My child."

           "The kid needs serious help," Mike mumbles under his breath while Augustus, Wren, and Mr. Azallion roll over the floor cackling as loud as they could at the sobbing man-child.

           "This is gold," Mr. Azallion pulls out his phone and videotapes his brother whining like a baby.

           "Cheer up, Rome." As soon as I lay the pup back in his lap, he snuggles the little animal and kisses its head.

           "My baby," Rome sniffles. "I won't let anyone make a hush puppy out of you. You're too dirty to be a food."

           "He's such a cartoon character," Augustus comments and turns to Rome's older brother. "I'm really curious. What's the biggest client you've ever had?"

           "My last one. Kristine Hernandez. My handler said that she was a pretty big one."

           "If she's Anthony Hernandez's wife then I think Leo banged her once," Augustus smirks at his older brother who's too busy drowning in booze or tired to care about the filthy accusation.

          "He probably did," Wren confirms. "He loves fucking those married women."

           "Loved," Leo corrects him. "In the past."

           "He's becoming like father," Augustus disguises his snarky comment with a cough.

           "This boy right here actually dated D'Angelo's daughter," I inform the lads who are too busy bickering with one another which I know will eventually lead to a full blown out argument.

           "Sophie?" Leo queries with a cocked brow.

           "The older one, Cornelia," I smile. "He caught a big fish, but he screwed up."

           "How did you grab her?" Augustus questions, slouching back on his arms.

           "Girls love me," Mr. Azallion smirks, his cockiness surfacing as usual.

           "Is that so?" Augustus sits up straight and yells at one of the men walking around. "Go inside and get me any female. Let's see who she's impressed by more." The man nods and immediately scurries in.

           "We could just try it on her," Mr. Azallion point to me.

           "Dude, she's like my sister," Augustus scrunches his nose in disgust. A minute later, the man brings out a girl that's basically built like a damn plank, but pretty nonetheless.

(Sofia Black-D'Elia as Zaya)

           "Well, if it isn't the one and only Zaya," Augustus smirks smugly, scooting to the side and motioning the girl to take a seat.

           "Sir," she bows slightly in respect, shivering anxiously.

           "Sit," Augustus orders, compelling the girl to give in immediately. "You're literally everywhere. Are you following me?"

           "Quit harassing her," Leo's stern voice rips through the air like an arrow. "Zaya, leave."

           "Yes, sir." Hurriedly, Zaya begins to get up, but Augustus' hand stops her. "C'mon, brother. It's just a friendly little competition." Augustus turns his gaze to the nervous girl who is pale in fear. "If you don't want to be here then by all means you may go back inside and do whatever you were doing."

           The girl stares at Augustus for a good second, contemplating her decision before getting comfortable next to the man. "Okay," she agrees softly.

           "Pickup lines first," Mr. Azallion cracks his knuckles with a grin.

           "You can do whatever you want. It's an easy win for me," Augustus smirks, unwilling to take his eyes off Zaya who is surely burning under his heated gaze and her blushing cheeks are a definitive sign that the girl has a crush.

           "Let's see." Mr. Azallion clears his throat and looks right at the girl. "Are you a camera because everytime I look at you, I smile." His eyes search for mine and instantly an incredible smile embellishes his sharp features.

           "Someone crown him the king of cheesiness," Wren laughs as Leo and Mike make their way inside.

           "I got one," Rome slurs, wiping away the residue of tears from his cheeks. "Are you Harambe's enclosure? Because I'll drop a kid in you."

          "Oh God!" Zaya giggles, turning as red as a beet.

          "I don't think that'll ever work, Roman," Augustus gives his opinion before turning to the center of attention. He trails his index finger along her jawline, turning her head to face him. I thought she couldn't turn any more red, but her crimson cheeks prove me wrong. His thumb swipes over her chin and then her lips slowly to part them. The show her face is presenting is quite amusing. Augustus leans forward and reaches up to her ear only to whisper something we can't hear, but the way she licks her lips and smiles meekly, one can tell that he isn't whispering anything decent.  

          "Sounds good?" Augustus pulls back and tucks her black strands behind her ear. She nods, attempting to keep her ever-growing grin at bay. "Good girl."

          "That's not fair," Mr. Azallion interrupts with a snigger. "What did you say?"

          "I'm not giving you my panty dropping formula," Augustus scoffs, rising to his feet and pulling Zaya up with him. "I just made her a promise. A very detailed one."

           He lifts her up bridal style and vanishes into the mansion without another glance back. "Well, someone won," I mutter and turn my gaze to Mr. Azallion whose eyes are fixed on me. "I'm tired. Do you mind?"

          Sticking out my hand, I indicate him to help me up, but instead, he scoops me up in his arms and saunters into the mansion, the suit jackets falling off my body. I lock my arms around his neck and watch a warm smile creep on his face.

          "Just put me in the room down that hall," I guide him and he maneuvers into the large room, placing me on the nice bedding of the comfortable mattress. "Thank you."

          "You're welcome," he huffs, lightly propping my injured feet on the bed like delicate feathers. "You're one crazy ass woman."

          I laugh. "I prefer the term psychotic."

          "I'm definitely going crazy, but in my stupid mind you've just gotten more hotter after all the has happened today and the mafia shit," he exclaims, shaking his head and sitting on the edge of the bed. "Italian mafia is supposed to be in movies, not real life."

          "Kings and queens are supposed to be in movies too."

          "So, it is a royal family," he snorts. "A royal mafia family."

          "Aren't you a genius!" I laugh. "You have a long way to go, Mr. Azallion. Your brother is ready to join us, but are you?"

          "I don't know." He looks at me and scoots closer. "It seems too much."

          "Your life will go on the way it has been. Nothing much changes. It's all in or all out, Mr. Azallion."

          Humming, he considers his decision for a good minute. "What if I say no?"

          "Life goes on, but if we find out that you opened your mouth and said the wrong thing to the wrong person then," I pause briefly. "Let's just say that it won't end well."

          "Okay," he breathes out, sighing. "I have a question."

          "Be quick. I'm tired." Pulling the covers over my body, I anticipate his question.

          "How do you know that I killed someone?" He swallows hard. "Nobody knows about this. Nobody other than Rome."

          Smirking, I silently ask him to come closer. My fingers caress his jaw in feather-like strokes while my eyes fan over his strong features. I lean forward and brush my lips against his softly. "Tell me why you killed your dad and I'll tell you how I know."

          He stiffens and pulls away from my hold. His eyes waver and burn in a dilemma in which he can't pick a side. "Goodnight, Ms. Estle."

          I smile at his response to my demand and shrug. "I might need assistance at night. Take that couch and sleep. It looks comfortable."

          "How considerate."

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Sorry for the long chapter but Yay or nay?

Now that I've posted this, time to turn the wheel back to Mio Re. I'm so excited to write chapter 7 of it, but I hope college has mercy on me so that I can get it out soon.

Will Eros and Roman be able to fit in the dangerous lifestyle?

Why would Eros kill his dad?

Much love ❤
~Reet