The Rock Star and The Mafia

Chapter 70

It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that they'd been tricked into coming to New York.  When they surrounded the room Lantana was supposedly staying in, they busted the door down and found no sign of him but what they did find, made everyone's blood run cold.

"Alessio!" shouted Lorenzo.  "You need to get in here now!"  Running like a bat out of hell, Alessio's frame darkened the door to the dirty, little room, his mouth now agape at the sight before him.

It was like a wall of surveillance/shrine to Cheri and Tommaso.  Pictures of the two of them together, separate pictures of them out doing various things and what scared Alessio the most was some of these pictures were old, capturing Cheri at music venues, etc. and some were very recent.

They'd been led away on purpose and a deep fear seized hold of Alessio's heart as he realized that he'd left his family unprotected and in harm's way.

"Renzo, you get a hold of Tommaso now and tell him to get their asses to the safe house and to do it now!" Lorenzo recognized the fear in his boss's voice.  He was afraid as well and he knew what was at stake.

Cheri dressed in a royal blue baby doll dress and matching sandals, her hair in a pony tail and minimal makeup she was ready for her day of relaxation with her brother.  Heading downstairs, she heard Mas on the phone and it sounded urgent.

"Renzo, I got it!" he shouted.  "I will make sure she's safe and I will call you when we get to the safe house, okay?"  He hung up the phone when he saw his sister standing there.

"Cheri, we have to go now.  Grab what you want to take.  We have to get to the safe house.  Frank used New York as a way to get the families away from Jersey.  It was a trap.  Not for them but for us" he said indicating to the two of them.

She wasted no time in grabbing the essentials.  Clothes, a couple of pairs of shoes, toiletries, chargers, electronics, pads and pens.  She was ready within ten minutes.

Meeting Tommaso back in the kitchen, they were on their way out of the house when Mas pointed to a couple of soldiers.  "You two will be in the follow car, capire?" he asked them.  They both nodded in acknowledgement.

Opening the trunk and throwing their items into it, Tommaso went and opened Cheri's door and reminded her to buckle up.  She smiled at him, trying to keep her best face forward but deep down inside, she was scared shitless.

Everything went smoothly until Tommaso noticed the follow car was no longer behind them.  "Cheri, open the glove box" he instructed his sister.  When she did, she gasped.  It was a pistol.  She didn't react because it was a gun, but instead because she knew something else was up and Mas was now as scared as she was.

"Mas?  What's going..." she never got to finish her sentence as their car was broadsided from both sides on the back passenger's sides of the car.  Tommaso and Cheri both started to fall into darkness as the vehicle was approached by several men.

Before Cheri passed out, she heard one of the men talk into something on his wrist.  "Let the boss know we have them."  That was it.  Total darkness after that.

When she finally came to, she was bound to a chair and not just bound but trussed up.  The rope was around her thighs, her belly, under her breasts, on top of her breasts, around her neck and lastly around her arms.  

"Daughter" his cold, emotionless voice cut through the air and her heart.  Slowly lifting her eyes, she saw Frank Lantana, sitting in a chair, smoking a cigar as if conducting an everyday conversation with someone.

"Where's Tommaso?" Cheri asked weakly.  Frank pointed to a monitor hanging from the ceiling in the corner.  She gasped at what she saw.  Tommaso was being beaten, savagely.  Cheri began to whimper as Lantana just laughed at her.

"Please, what do you want?" she asked tearfully.  He stood up, walked to her and lifted her chin.  "What do I want, dear daughter?  I want what Castellano has.  I have two of the three things and the third thing is his empire.  And I'll get it to.  He'll trade and give up anything for the two of you" he gloated.

"And when he does, he'll be just as dead as you and that bastard in there" he was hatefully speaking about Tommaso.  "Don't you dare call my brother a bastard, you prick" Cheri challenged.  Frank hauled off and smacked her hard, drawing blood.

"You'll keep your fucking mouth closed or I will close it for you...permanently" the threatened and then walked out the door.

"God please" she started praying in earnest.  "Please let my husband find us before it's too late.  Please keep the three of us safe as well.  Amen."  She tried to stay strong because if she knew anything about her husband was, he wouldn't give up until they were home and Frank was dead.