The Four Mafia Men and Their Prize by M C

52 - Tale as old as Terror - Part 1 Aurora POV | was escorted down to breakfast the next morning arm in arm with Kai. He chose a forest green full pant romper with a small gold belt. It had pockets which madehappy, I love pockets! He paired it with brown open toed sandals and asked if he could brush my hair and then to my utmost surprise put my hair in the most beautiful, perfect Prench braid.

Breakfast was the usual gang of men. Grammy was nowhere in sight but to everyone's surprise, a servant cup towhile | was eating my fridt bowl with a small letter on a silver tray. | took it cautiously and it read: Please meetin the lavender parlor next to the music room for morning tea and a chat. We have much to discuss, Grammy I smiled at the note and held it close to my chest.

“What do you have there darling?” Jason asked, looking atskeptically, “Your grandmother wantsto join her in the lavender parlor after breakfast.” | answered him without much emotion.

He nodded in response and gavea small smile.

Once everyone was done, the guys got up and each kissedon the forehead before leaving the room. Draco and | developed a little secret signal the other day so he made his gesture and | sent mine back as | smiled shyly while he and Carson followed their bosses like the good little dogs they are.

1 slowly made my way to the lavender parlor on the other end of the estate and knocked gently. A faint “Cin” was heard and | entered the light and airy room. And shockingly it was painted a lavender purple and all the Victorian style furniture was cream with a lavender print. Lavender flowers were scattered over the room and the fresh floral smell hit my senses hard.

“Cmy dear, sit with me!” Grammy said politely, tapping the cushion next to her. There were little treats like an carly morning high tea and a lavender porcelain tea set with which Grammy held a steaming cup in her hands.

We exchanged pleasantries and spent the first hour just talking about each other like we were old friends. Then she askedabout my there, saying she heard what the guys had to say last night and now she wanted to hear my side of the story, For the first tin years, | let myself/feel everything, | told her everything including my mixed feelings and how | was physically attracted to them. I did not tell her about my wet dream | had of them thought, that would have been awkward. She was very wise and really funny. She was candid and it was clear she was a no-nonsense woman.

She then cleared her throat and grabbed my hands in hers. “My dear, I'd like to tell you a story. Not even my grandson or any of the men know the whole truth and I will take it withto my grave. Jason knows a little but not the whole truth. You see, | was once like you. Gerald, my late husband, didn’t outright kidnap me, but he did forceinto a 1/3 52- Tale as old as Terror - Part 1 relationship and he did spretty despicable things. And this was in the 40's! I lived in a small suburban town on the outskirts a major city. | was sixteen years old, working at the local diner.

The war had just ended. Gerald and his six buddies started coming in every day for lunch. They were ten years older than I. They were handsmen. Women were always trying to hang with them. I didn’t know what they did but people in the town would certainly be frightened of them whenever they were around. | was never scared of them, though.

The O'Donnell men have this special crazy charm about them, it is undeniably irresistible, no matter what you say to yourself. They are like the lights that moths can’t resist. | know you have the sfeeling because | see the look in your eyes. | was the sway.

Well, Gerald started sitting in my section every day | worked and he was a helpless flirt. He wasn’t shy in complementingand callinghis ‘baby girl’. | was always tickled pink and | thought it was cute.

One day a fellow classmate of mine, Justin, cinto the diner and broughta single rose. | didn’t know he even knew who | was, let alone that he liked me. | was the anti-social, nerdy kid and Justin was Mr. Popular and on all the sports teams. And | had had a crush on him for ages! He askedto join him for a drive-in movie that Friday night and of course | accepted. Gerald saw the whole thing.

The next day at school Justin wasn’t there. And then the next day he had returned with a black eye and scrapes on his face and his arm was in a cast. When | tried to ask him what happened, he ran away from me, sheer terror was in his face. The kids in my school started running away from me, even my best and only friend Charlotte stayed away. | was so sad.

That Friday night caround and | was working as usual, tears brimming my eyes because | had no one aroundwhen Gerald cin just like clockwork. Instead of sitting at his usual booth, he hopped up on one of the barstools and talked withthe whole night. He stayed until closing and insisted on walkinghome. When he tookto my door, he leaned down and kissed my cheek and whispered in my ear ‘no one gets to see this pretty face except for me.’ To say | was mortified and angry was an understatement, but | soon learned a very valuable lesson in that Gerald O’Donnell’s word was law. And sure enough, for the next five months, the only people that would even try to talk toor lookin the eyes were Gerald and my family. He would bringgifts and insisted on walkingto school every day and walkinghfrom work.

If any boy tried to get close to me, they ended up in the hospital or disappeared the next day. Girls who whispered behind my back beclike walking zombies; Charlotte would be cordial but she becdistant.

One day | cornered her and asked her what was going on and her only response was “Gerald” and then | knew.

That snight, a lovely pearl necklace was delivered to my hand a note that read “You are the pearl of my eyes. You are mine forever’.

But | had enough. | knew where he lived so | went that night to his hto give back his necklace and tell him that | was not interested. | was a sixteen-year-old girl for heaven's sake! So when | arrived at his home, | found his door open slightly. | pushed it open after knocking and there was no reply. | thought something may have happened and well what | did see changed my life forever.

| witnessed him kill a man. He had a pocketknife and slit his throat without batting an eye. His friends just watched with smiles on their faces.

1 2/3 13:47 52 Tale as old as Terror - Part 1 I naturally screamed and when they noticed me, | ran. | dropped the necklace he gaveand ran. | was so scared. | almost made it back to my house when he caught up toand tookback to his place and up to his room.

He tiedup with cuffs and gagedand sat withuntil | calmed down. He took the gag out of my mouth when | agreed not to scream and to talk to him. He keptbound so | couldn’t run from him and then he toldeverything. He was in the Mafia. They did a little of everything except they didn’t do anything with slavery.

That was no for them and still is today. Gerald was about to take over for his dad’s best friend who was like a second dad to him. He and his buddies usually roughed up men who couldn’t pay their debts but the man downstairs tried to flee with sof the drugs and that was not acceptable. He was so, what is the word you kids use, chill? Then he toldthat he wantedto be his girl and | had a choice to make. | could either willingly be his and do what he said or he could keeplocked up and be his prisoner. He should have killedbut he lovedand wanted to spend the rest of his life with me.

It tooksix days in chains and no food to finally give in to him. He letgo back to my family but | was to be guarded at all times. | got back to school but again, but he still keptguarded. A few of my classmates becmy protection detail. He then persuaded my parents to give up guardian rights and | was forced to move in with him shortly after my seventeenth birthday. He took over the Mafia and we moved to the bigger city and he paid a private tutor to finish my education. | wasn’t allowed out of the house without an armed escort.

He insisted that we get married once | turned eighteen. He held my parents prisoner for two years so naturally [ agreed and four days after my birthday, we tied the knot at the courthouse. He was naturally dominant and had a hot head, but he never outright hurt me. He did spanklike | was toddler, quite often the first few years to be honest. Pretty sure | had a permanent bruise on my backside. He putin timeouts too and took away privileges. A few times when | was really rebellious, he tiedup in the bedroom. Eventually his punishments for when | was a bad girl’ becmore sexually based.” Chapter Comments POST COMMENT NOW LIKE < SHARE