A College Girls' Guide To Joining An Italian Mafia

Chapter 19

Ally pov

     I sat all night last night staring at my phone. There was no word from Cady, or Morgan saying she had heard anything. All there was was total silence. In the morning, there was a text from Angelo. When my phone vibrated next to me, my heart started racing. I thought it was Cady texting. But it was just Angelo saying we were being picked up and going to Zeus’s to try to figure things out. I huffed a sigh and rolled out of bed. I changed into a pair of jeans and a black hoodie, grabbing a hair tie so Morgan could braid my hair when we got to the bar.
      I walked down the stairs to find Morgan waiting on a couch. She’s staring at her phone, as if Cady is going to text her now. I sit next to her and hold at the hairtie out. “Will you braid my hair?” I ask her. She looks up at me and nods, holding her hand out for the hairtie. I turn my back to her and stare at my own phone while she runs her hands through my hair.    While she’s braiding, the boys pull up in the SUV they usually drive us around in. Angelo is sitting in the front next to a very irritated looking Leandro. Moran quickly finishes the braid and we stand and walk outside. She pulls the door open and climbs in behind Angelo. Antonio is sitting in the third row of seats, drinking a mug of what smells like coffee. Without speaking, Leandro reaches back, holding a bottle of orange juice out to me. I take it with a muttered “thank you,”.
     Angelo pulls out of the parking lot and onto the road. Considering how we usually have some type of noise, us talking or music, it’s too quiet in here for me. Nobody is talking. All of us are thinking about what we’re going to do, now what Kyle knows we’re up to something. I really hope Cady just hasn’t been on her phone, but as the minutes tick by, the likeliness of that decreases. The car is silent as we drive over to Zeus’s Tavern. We pull into the empty parking lot and walk into the bar. Ron is standing behind the counter looking at a laptop. Morgan hesitates and hangs by my side as we walk over. I slide into a seat, Leandro next to me, then Angelo, then Antonio. Morgan and I lean on the bar and wait for Angelo to tell us what we’re going to do. He sets a laptop bag that I hadn't noticed he was carrying on the bar.
      “We’re here because I like the atmosphere better than the mafia house. I suppose I didn’t really tell you to bring a computer or anything, so from your phones I want you looking for anything you can about Kyle on social media. Friends, family, things he likes to do. I’m going to see if I can find where he went last night.”   With that said, Angelo turs back to his computer and starts to work. Morgan and I pull our phones out and start to look for anything we can find on Kyle.
      For the next hour, all we hear is clicking from the computers. That, and silence. Next to me, I don’t think Morgan has spoken a word all day.    “Hey, are you ok?” I lean over and ask. Ron looks up and listens a bit.
     “I just feel like this is my fault. Like if I had been more careful, this wouldn’t have happened. And Cady wouldn’t be in danger, and Kyle wouldn’t know.” her voice is soft and weak. I hadn’t heard her this dejected since high school.
     “Morgan, you can’t blame yourself. This isn’t your fault,” Ron chimes in.
     “Isn’t it though? I’m the reason this happened. I wasn’t responsible enough to keep her safe and out of this.’
      “It’s not your fault!” Ron says again.    “You didn’t want for this to happen. Stop with that look, you shouldn’t be blaming yourself!”
      Unfortunately for him, she doesn’t want to hear it. Especially not from him right now. In her mind, it is her fault, and she’s not going to start thinking it’s ok until she knows Cady is ok.
      “Just shut up Ron! It is my fault, and I know that. You don’t need to try to sugar coat it for me. I know I fucked up, and I don’t need you to try to help me. You’re not my boyfriend, so just leave me alone!” She stands up and walks to a table away from the bar.
      “What just happened? I just wanted to help,” Ron says to me. He looks like a kicked puppy.
      I let out a sigh. “Ok, metaphorically, if you had a boyfriend cheat on you, and then convince you it was your fault, that metaphorically would cause some trust issues. And a metaphorical complex of everything being your fault. And metaphorically not being good enough. Especially for a person who metaphorically has their life together.
      “Metaphorically, that’s what happened to her.” I follow his gaze to where she’s sitting, scrolling on her phone. “Metaphorically, she’s going to kill me for telling you this. With her metaphorical gun. That she actually has.”
      “Should I go comfort her? Or something?”
      “No. It’s better to leave her be for a while. She’ll come apologize in a little while.”
      And so we go back to work. Hoping Morgan will be ok and come talk eventually. I scroll through my phone for hours, sipping on the water that Ron slid me a while ago. I rest my head down on the bar for a little while. Then I sit back up and continue reading the article I had found about Kyle’s family having bought a house in the richer side of town.
     “God, I wish this was vodka right now,” I mutter, taking a drink of my water. From a little way down the bar, Ron slides me a bottle. “Really?” I ask. I smell the bottle. There’s no smell. I take a sip. It’s more water. “Oh fuck you,” I say to Ron.
      Behind me from the table she had moved to, I hear Morgan mutter, “No that’s my job.”
      “Hey! You don’t get to make jokes when you’re going to be sad! So be quiet or be happy!”
      “I cope with humor!” She yells back at me.
     “So do I, you little asshole!”
      As we’re yelling at each other, my phone starts to ring. I look down at it to see Cady’s number. “Holy shit!” I yell. I reach for my phone and take the call. “Cady?” I frantically yelling to the phone.
     “Hello Ally,” Kyle’s voice comes through the phone. I look up at Morgan’s waiting face. “I’m assuming Morgan is there as well?” When I don’t answer he says, “I have your friend, so I suggest answering me. Now, is Morgan with you?”
     “Yes,” Morgan says from her table. She stands and walks over to me.
     “Lovely. Well, as I said before, I have your friend. Which sucks, she was a good lay, I didn’t want to bring her into this. But it works out nicely. Now, I suppose I should tell you what I want.”
     Morgan and I look up from the phone over to were Angelo, Leandro, Antonio, and Ron are standing.
     “I want Angelo,” Kyle continues. “He’s been causing too many problems for me and my family. So, I’m giving you a week to bring him to me, before Cady gets hurt. That gives you enough time to get that set up and ready to be handed to me. I’ll meet you at the club we were at last night.”
     With that he hangs up the phone. I look back to Angelo. He's glaring at the phone in my hand.
     “We’re getting her back. Then I’m going to kill the bastard.” He walks out of the bar. The rest of us, except Ron, get up and follow him into the car. We climb in and listen to him making a phone call. “Call a meeting.    As of last night, there’s been a change of plans with the Irishmen. I’m calling this is the heir of the mafia. Yes I’m dead serious. Get the council together.” With that he hangs up and starts driving. The drive to the mafia house is silent. When we get to the mafia house the usual chatter is silent.    Angelo quickly runs up the stairs and into the meeting room. Meatball and the rest of the uppers are sitting around the table. There are open chairs for Angelo, Leandro, Antonio, Morgan, and I. We slide into them and start talking over what we’re going to do.
     I’ll admit it. I’m stressed out. I’m scared for Cady. I’m sitting quietly, listening to Angelo go over plans.
      “We could always just try to negotiate?” someone offers up.
      “Yeah, because that’ll work,” I chime in. Angelo shoots me a slight glare. Then I go back to barely listening. I tune in when Leandro and Angelo start going back and forth with a plan.
     “It’s going to have to be a stealth type mission,” Leandro is saying.
     “Yeah. We’ll have to get Cady out and go. We’re also going to need a lot of people,” Angelo agrees.
     “We have a bunch of men who would be willing and competent.”
     “We just need to get her back. This is extremely important. She is important to me, and we need to get her back.”
     I roll my eyes at Angelo’s comment.     “Yeah, because she’s not like other girls, and is the one for Angelo." I roll my eyes again.
     Angelo levels his glare at me. “Could you fucking take this serious for one God damn moment?” he yells at me.
     “Oh fuck you Angelo!” I yell back at him. I don’t need to be yelled at by him. Not when one of my best friends is kidnapped. I stand and storm out of the room. Everything I’ve been bottling up comes crashing down on me. Joining a gang, school stress, Cady, feeling like I need to be perfect for everyone. I drop down on the top of the stairs and hold my head in my hands.

Morgan pov

     I watch as Ally storms out of the room. Leandro watched her go. I kick him under the table. “Go. Go talk to her.”
      “Me? Why don’t you go?”
      “Because she’ll just block me out. Say she’s OK. She can’t do that with you. Please. Just go help her,” I hiss at him. He considers for a moment, then stands and leaves the room.

Ally pov

      I hear someone come and sit next to me. “I’m fine Morgan,” I say with my head still in my hands.
      “It’s Leandro,” he corrects me. I look up at him. What is he doing out here?
     “You can go away too,” I say. I drop my head back into my arms and wait for him to go away.
      “No I can’t. You’re not ok, and your friend is in there, worried that you’re just going to shut her out.”
      “I’m fine, Leandro. Go-"
      “No you’re not! That’s the thing Ally, even I can tell you’re not ok. You keep blocking people out. People who are worried about you.”
     “No I’m not! I’m alright, I promise.”
     “No you’re not. Would you just talk to me? For fucks sake Ally, I’m just trying to help you!”
      “I don’t need you yelling at me, too, Leandro! I already got enough shit from Angelo. I really don’t need it from you too,” my voice breaks at the end. Maybe I’m not ok. But he doesn’t need to help me. I don’t want to be a burden. Especially to Leandro.
     “I’m not trying to yell at you. I’m trying to help you, Ally! You can’t just bottle everything up and expect people not to notice and worry about you.”
     “Can’t I? It’s been working so far.” As I speak, I feel my voice get more strained. But I will not, will not, break down in front of him.
     “Is it working though? I know you haven’t known me, or any of us, for long, just these few months, but we care about you. You can talk to us and come to us for help. We do care about you.” His voice is soft. I look up from my arms. He looks into my eyes, and I see such sincerity that I break. Tears start to flow. In front of him. I hate crying in front of people, it makes me feel weak. I drop my head back into my hands and let the tears flow. There had been so much bottles up, I had needed this.
     Hesitantly, he reaches out and puts an arm around my shoulders. When I don’t pull away, he scoots closer and pulls me toward him.
     “You’re alright. Everything is going to be fine. I promise.”
     “But what if it’s not? What if Kyle hurts her, or I fail my tests and don’t get into vet school, or Angelo realizes that I’m not good at this? What if everything goes wrong, Leandro? I’m just so scared, and now I’m telling you this, and you’re going to look at me differently,” I ramble.
     “I am not going to look at you any differently for this. I think you are insanely brave for everything you do. We’re not going to let Kyle hurt Cady. Angelo won’t let that happen. You aren’t going to fail any tests, you’re way too smart for that. And you don’t have to be perfect. That’s no what we’re asking you. We’re just asking you to try. And you do. And you’re good at what you do. Everything is going to he ok,” he assures me.
     “How do you know?” I whisper, leaning my head on his chest.
     He tightens his hold on me and whispers back, “I don’t, I just have to hope.”

Authors note

Hey! Thanks for reading! This one was really fun for me to write because I got to call my co-writer out a bit.
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