by Raven Rivers
Cassandra scrubbed her hands over her face before turning to him. “Butt out, Tony. It was just a little flirting to lighten the mood. Trust me, one look at a bookworm like me and he’ll run for the hills. Besides, he’s probably old and bald like Dad.”
Tony flipped through his smart phone, pulled up a picture, and turned it around for her to see. She swallowed hard and snatched the phone from his hand. There was a picture of a middle-aged male, maybe a few years older than her. He was standing on a beach with his daughter, wearing only swimming trunks. His body was beautiful with taut muscles that ripped down the front of his torso. His hair was dark brown and was cut in a modern and flattering style for his angular, masculine features. To top it all off, he had the most amazing blue eyes. The man was off the charts hot.
Cassandra whispered grudgingly, “My God, he’s made of pure sex appeal. You have to promise not to leave me alone with him even for a minute. Honestly, with that sexy voice and that body…I’d be naked in his lap inside of two minutes.”
Tony burst out laughing. When Tony laughed, he always sounded like an evil villain. He was cut from the same cloth as his father in that he loved his mobster persona a little too much. Staring at her, he replied ominously, “You might make it into his lap, if he doesn’t slit your pretty little throat first. He is a Vory, after all.”
Rolling her eyes at his dark humor, she began gathering up the little one’s meager belongings. “Enough talk about throat slitting. You’re just the Italian equivalent of a Vory yourself. Some would say the same about you.”
He gave her a tight little smile. “And they’d sure as fuck be right.”
“I’ll be sure to mention that to your new fiancée.”
“Don’t scare her off. Women willing to open their heart to a real mobster are rare. Don’t spoil this for me.”
She smiled indulgently. Her brother may have been a mobster, but he was also a human being. He deserved the love of a good woman. In fact, she felt he needed it more than most, as he’d suffered so much loss in his life.
Squeaking like a mouse, Viktorija held the phone straight up above her head. Cassandra cringed, hoping Viktor had not overheard her conversation with her brother. How could she have been so thoughtless? Grabbing it, she said hello.
“Will you call me when you get to your house in Aspen?”
“I can do you one better. Once we get there, I’ll arrange for you to have an open video chat.”
He stated the obvious. “If you take her to Aspen, it will take me even longer to get to you.”
“Far be it from me to tell you your business, but it’s not time that matters the most right now, it’s safety. Don’t worry, Viktor. I will care for her like she was my own child.”
“You already do. It is why she wants to call you mommy.”
Cassandra felt something in her chest tighten. “Under different circumstances, I would consider it an honor.”
He replied mysteriously, “Cassandra, don’t you know, we make our own circumstances in this world. Tell your brother I said good luck with his new fiancée. Let him know I plan to spend time alone with you when I arrive, so he may want to start gathering his men for a mob war over you.”
Cassandra’s shocked voice bit out, “I swear, if you don’t stop saying things like that, I’ll stop talking to you altogether.”
Viktor laughed. “Later, princess.”
She rang off, and Tony stood looking at her. Folding her long, slender arms over her chest, she said, “He said good luck with your fiancée, that he plans for us to spend alone time, and you should gather your men for a mob war over me.”
Tony laughed again. “You know, I’m starting to kind of like your new boyfriend, Cass. Not only does he have a mob boss’ sense of humor, but he seems like someone I might be able to really relate to.”
Cassandra rolled her eyes. “Stop calling him my boyfriend before Father hears you. He is one mob boss who has no sense of humor about things like that.”
“Are you actually starting to care about this man, Cassie? Our biggest fear has always been you hooking up with someone who couldn’t take care of you and keep you safe. Viktor is the kind of person who could do those things for you. I’m just saying…you could do worse.”
“See, this is what’s wrong with our screwed up family. Just so you know, the normal train of thought in a situation like this would be to not let your loved one marry a mobster.” Waving her hand around to make her point, she added, “It’s a dangerous lifestyle, and they might wind up dead.”
Tony succinctly pointed out, “You are the daughter of a very prominent mob boss. That already puts you at risk. Plus, you simply can’t stay put somewhere safe. You have to save the world…in a public setting no less. You can’t imagine the strange kind of shit we have to do to keep you safe on a daily basis.”
Gaping at him, she shook her head. “Wow, Tony, just when I begin to think of you as an actual human being, you say some stupid crap like this. I think I need some space.”
Stepping into the room to block her exit, he pressed his point. The man was nothing if not tenacious. “Looking after you is time consuming, difficult, and to be quite honest, it grieves me to see you slowly turning into an old spinster. You need a husband, and trust me, it will take a powerful man like Viktor to keep you safe.”
A stern voice sounded off behind Tony, practically making him jump. “Antonio, that’s quite enough preaching from the gangster pulpit today, don’t you think?”
Tony shoved his hands into his pocket and tried his best aww shucks look as he turned around to look at his stepmother.
Cassandra thought she looked every inch the medical director, standing in her hospital scrubs and starched white lab coat. She still wore a surgical mask hanging down around her throat and paper booties over her shoes. After just getting out of surgery, she was clearly in no mood to deal with Tony acting out in her hospital. Her eyes narrowed at his boyish display. “Don’t even try to play me, young man. Go out and wait with your father.”
“But—”
Folding her hands over her chest, she put some snap in her voice. “Don’t but me, get moving.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Grinning at her mom, Cassandra was thrilled to see her take Tony down a notch or two every now and then. Her brother needed it, and Dr. Lakeisha Nash was the only one who still wielded that kind of power over him, even if she did use a gloved hand.
“Thanks for the dressing down.”
“He deserved it. But I didn’t come here to talk about your foolish brother.”
“I know why you’re here. I didn’t mean to stir up a hornet nest by asking for help. It’s just that one thing led to another and before I knew it, they were in all-out thug mode.”
“Calm down, that’s not really why I’m here either. Do you know the one and only stipulation I had before marrying into this happy band of delinquents?”
“I can’t imagine.”
“It was that my two small daughters would be insulated and protected from their criminal enterprise.”
Blinking, Cassandra responded cautiously, “Well, they did a good job of that.”
“Until now.”
“This one isn’t on Dad or Tony. I got myself into this mess all on my own. They’re just trying to get me back out.”
“Maybe, but that still puts you in the thick of things. Danger doesn’t respect heritage or racial lines. Women and children always seem to get caught between men when the conflict comes, and black women are more apt to get marginalized than most.”
“Don’t start with that again…”
“I’m just trying to tell you to be cautious and use the good judgment I know you have to keep yourself out of danger. Being raised in our family, you’ve been spoon fed a sanitized version of organized crime. Most mobsters are nothing like your father.”
Cassandra choked out, “I know that. Honestly, I do.”
Nodding, the older woman continued. “I’m coming with you. We’r
e going to get to Aspen, hole up for a day or two over the weekend, transfer the child to her father, and then we’re all coming back here together.”
Frowning, Cassandra didn’t know what she was driving at. “You say that like there’s some possibility that we’re not all coming back safely.”
Looking away, her mother huffed out an exasperated breath. “That’s now what I meant to insinuate. Let’s get the little one out of here. I will not lose a member of my family over this foolishness.”
Unsure what to say to that, Cassandra just nodded. They got everything together and headed straight for the elevator. Her father had arranged for them to get picked up on the roof, and transported to the airfield with a six-man escort. For him, that was medium grade security.
Chapter 5
So You Think I’m Hot
~ Cassandra ~
Cassandra transferred the child from the helicopter to their family’s private plane and headed for Aspen. There was something about taking off in the plane that made the whole situation real for her.
The child pulled on Cassandra’s shirt and made a hand gesture for telephone. Cassandra pulled out her cell phone, dialed her father’s number, and gave her the phone. The little girl waited for her father to answer, then chatted happily to him for about twenty minutes in Russian. She then held the phone straight up in the air. Cassandra was beginning to recognize that as the universal gesture for “my father wants to talk to you.” She slowly took the phone and put it to her ear.
His deep voice was smooth and silky. It did things to Cassandra, making her stomach feel gooey and nervous at the same time. “So you think I’m hot. My people tell me that means you are attracted to me.”
She immediately walked into the food prep area for a moment of privacy.
“Me and half the women in Russia, no doubt. What’s your point?”
“I have a question for you. I have sent you a data file. Open it and tell me if that is you.”
Cassandra opened the file and gasped. She scrolled through pictures of her in a bikini. How in the hell did a mob boss half way around the world get pictures of her family vacation on an isolated beach? She cursed and looked into the back of the plane at her brother, who smiled amiably at her. Staring at the phone, she had to admit she looked really good. The tiny fuchsia-colored suit revealed miles of smooth brown skin. Her thin ankles and wrists were accented with shell bracelets and it was the year she wore her hair in braids.
Stammering to come up with an explanation that cooled his jets, she drew a blank. “That’s not me. I look nothing like that woman.” Great, now she was telling obvious lies like a child caught with her hand in the proverbial cookie jar.
He sounded perplexed. “Why are you lying to me? I thought you liked me.”
She hit end call, fuming over the violation of privacy. She stalked back, pulled her brother into the private sleeping compartment, and lit into him like no body’s business. He was shocked, and insistent that he did not send the Russian mobster anything. Cassandra had the oddest feeling that he was being honest, so she let him wiggle off the hook.
After he left the room, she stretched out on the bed, trying to think her way through the situation. She never realized how mentally stressful dangerous situations were. The morning had really taken a toll on her. Viktorija came in and climbed into bed as well. They slept for a couple of hours, waking to the soft chirp of her cell phone. She looked at the caller ID. It was Viktor, so she answered it.
“You sound sleepy, princess. How’s my daughter?”
“She’s sleeping, and she’s much more of a princess than I could ever be.”
He replied sarcastically, “She’s not a princess, more like the daughter of a mobster.”
Cassandra replied shyly, “So am I.”
“Doesn’t matter, you’re still a nice person for taking care of an innocent little child you don’t even know.”
Cassandra rolled her eyes. “I don’t know about all that. I’m getting to be quite fond of your little one. She’s fun, and quite a little fighter.”
His voice was filled with pride. “She gets that from her father, you know.”
“I hope wherever her mother is, she is fighting as well.”
“My ex-wife always manages to land on her feet. Don’t worry your pretty head about her.”
“Are you even trying to find her?”
“She’s the mother of my child. I have a virtual army searching for her, but that is not your concern. You are, however, very sweet to worry about her.”
“I know she has a problem, but she was sincerely worried about her daughter. I don’t want anything bad to happen to her.”
“Your goodness revives my hope in humanity. I can’t imagine why, but I feel my daughter is safe and happy with you, and your mobster family.”
“I promise we’ll take good care of her. I shouldn’t be talking to you so much though.”
“You have no wish to get attached to a man such as myself, is that not so?”
“I need to keep my mind on your daughter, but it’s nice talking to you.”
“I enjoy talking with you more than I should as well.”
She offered him an ounce of insight. “I’ll bet it’s not often that you let a woman in. Most men in your profession are pretty guarded.”
His breath hitched as he replied. “It’s hard to open up to people. With you, I don’t feel so judged because your family is similarly occupied.”
She snorted a short laugh. “You found a very nice way to say that. You’re an intelligent person, and you have nice way with words.”
“Miss Nash, you are causing a terrible conflict for me today. Since the first moment I found out my daughter had fallen into the hands of the Italian mafia, I’ve been planning all the horrible things I am going to do them once I get her back, but now I’m feeling more grateful than blood thirsty.”
She reminded him sternly, “I am the one who got them involved. Leave my family out of it, Viktor. If you feel compelled to harm someone, you can pour all your vengeful feelings out onto me. I have to admit, you don’t seem like the type to punish without just cause. You seem very organized and methodical in your thought processes.”
He sighed. “You can read a lot about me from a few short phone conversations, Cassandra. But hearing you say things like that out loud makes me seem more Hannibal Lector, and less like prince charming.”
Cassandra insisted, “Oh, you are much more charming than you realize.”
His voice became suspicious. “It just occurred to me to wonder if you interact with all men the way you do with me. Maybe what I feel developing between us isn’t romance at all. It could be just your niceness showing through.”
She laughed and asked, “If I was like this with every man I met, I might have gotten a date or two in high school.”
“I’m certain killing off all your suitors was a full time job for that overprotective brother of yours.”
There was a long pause and she murmured, “You’re sweet, and flirting with you is more fun than anything I have ever done with a man. I guess my life has been pretty dull.”
“I wouldn’t say that. I enjoy talking to you as well.”
“I feel more open and connected with you than with other men. I think I was always afraid to get close to guys because if my father didn’t like them, then he might end up…well, you know.”
“Not surprisingly, I do know.”
“Well, with you, I already know he is not going to like you, and he’ll certainly kill you if he gets half a chance. The only difference is I don’t think you will be quite the easy and slow-moving target he’s used to.”
Viktor murmured, “Strangely enough, that is just about the sweetest thing a woman has ever said to me. Thank you for that. I want you to know I can hardly wait to meet you. You are very easy to talk to.”
Cassandra replied softly, “You too, my friend.”
Viktor’s voice tightened. “I am not interested in a friendship with a y
oung, attractive woman such as yourself. I am interested in so much more.”
“At least you have the ability to be upfront and honest about what you want. That fact alone puts you ahead of the pack.” Hanging up, she thought about their situation for the duration of their flight.
As they neared their destination, Cassandra got Viktorija ready to leave the plane. Her phone rang again. Naturally, it was Viktor. She opened the line and handed the phone to the child as she put her shoes back on. The child talked for a bit, then handed the phone back to her and ran out to the main compartment.
Cassandra immediately called after her, “No running.”
She slid to the back of the bed against the wall and said, “Hello, Viktor. We will be landing in Aspen very shortly.”
His voice was kind of sad. “I’m sorry I overheard your conversation with your brother. He is right, you know. Not that I am saying you should like me, but you do need someone to take care of you…someone capable. I really wish you had been born into a family that left you with more choices as an adult.”
“Hey, I can tell you’ve been introspecting since we last talked. Just so you know, I think you are the only person besides my brother who really understands that aspect.”
“Of course I understand your situation. It was my own, after all.”
“Really?”
“How do you think I ended up where I am? My father was in the business and I was trying to lead a more normal life. Unfortunately, people would not let me be. One day I got tired of being a punching bag for everyone who had a grudge against him. I just partnered up, and here I am. It is what it is, as you Americans say.”
“I’m sorry that you weren’t able to get out.”
“I hate that my own daughter was targeted because of our family business. She will one day be in your situation. A young woman trying desperately to stay out of harm’s way and getting caught up in the swirl of danger going on around her.”