My skin was still prickled with goosebumps from head to toe as I made my way through the underground world. I was numb with fear, but alert with curiosity. A dangerous combination for a girl with everything to lose.
I was alive. I had met the leader of this...well, whatever this was I still hadn't decided, but I had met him and lived. My poor phone on the other hand was a different story but I had somehow gotten over the worst hurdle already. Theoretically, I would just have to make it through the day now. Pose as a worker for one day and then at the end of the day leave and never, ever, ever come back.
Aside from needing a new phone and likely wanting to change my name, I was given a golden opportunity here. Right? Scoop of a life time...you know...if I didn't die getting it...
I was careful in capturing every detail in my mind, when someone handed me a silver tray with drinks on it I didn't hesitate in taking them. "I'm sorry, but I'm new here. Where do these go?"
The girl who had handed them to me rolled her eyes. "Don't they tell you new girls anything anymore?" She sighed heavily and pulled a napkin from her bra, she beckoned me over to a long island bar and began scribbling on the napkin drawing me a diagram. "This is where we will be until Alessio decides otherwise. This particular wing just holds your basic crew. Drop men*, bag men*, that sort of thing. You know, The guys down here-"
"Elizabeth." I heard a voice from behind us. The voice was already permanently etched into my mind under a tab titled oh shit and filed into my worst nightmares. My teeth clamped down on the inside of my cheek.
She turned to him and smiled an earnest smile. How anyone could be so happy so see Alessio I had no clue. "Hey baby, I was just showing my new little sister around, explaining the ropes and all that."
He nodded. "How very kind of you." He glanced at me then back to her. "But, I believe Katherine is going to be working with me.
"It's Kate." I interjected to deaf ears.
She looked stricken, I could see the fight she had with herself to keep the smile plastered on her face. "Of course Alessio." She nodded, glancing at me then picking up the drink platter and moving away.
I quickly grabbed the napkin, it was the first bit of evidence I could grab so far. He waved his hand, beckoning that I follow him. I did quickly. "The men you will be working for are only my best. I expect you to be pleasant at all times." He explained as I followed him out of the heavily populated room and into a dimly lit and long hallway. My chest tightened each time we passed another crowded room and didn't enter it. "You will be pleasant looking, pleasant smelling, and I'm sure this last one will be rather difficult for you." He stopped at the end of the hallway before a set of glass doors, inside I could see another lounge styled area and bar. "I expect you to act pleasant. Friendly, attentive, like a real lady"
"Right...wait, why would that be hard?"
He ignored my question and continued. "You don't speak unless spoken to. The men back here are not like those out there. They aren't here to blow off steam, they aren't a temporary piece, they aren't looking for a good time, not that they'd be opposed to it either. We are here to work safely. You don't hear anything, you don't see anything, you don't know anything. You don't interrupt, you don't question, you don't talk back. If we look to be busy with something important, we are. If we look like we aren't, we still are. Got it?" Before waiting for an answer he turned swiftly, pulled the doors open and moved through them not bothering to hold the door for me.
He moved quickly and it took me a second to catch up to him. "You've talked a lot about what I'm not allowed to do but really haven't told me exactly what I am to do..."
He stopped abruptly, I was so caught off guard I nearly bumped into him. Thank the heavens I caught myself at the last second. He stared at me, shook his head and continued walking again. "You serve." He said simply. The look on my face must have been something terrible because when he glanced back at me his face contorted into an odd expression, initially I mistook it for annoyance but then he seemed to register what I was envisioning and looked almost apologetic. "Drinks and food. You serve drinks and food Katherine." He clarified.
"So I'm just a glorified waitress?" I said slowly.
"Nothing about you has been glorified Katherine." He replied flatly. I could have easily lost a few moments being offended at this, but I chose to rejoice instead. This was going to be a lot easier than I had initially thought.
I could do this, easy as pie. Serve a few drinks tonight and be home writing my story tomorrow. Sure, there'd be a few people who saw a little more of my tooshie than I'd prefer, but I was a reporter, we always did what we had to, to get the scoop. And what else could I do? Reveal that I was a fraud and probably get shot on spot here? No way!
I mean, I was undercover, deep into the bowels of a real life underground mafia group. This is what I had always wanted, and here I was. I just had to pull this off. Make it through the night, and go home and write the best damn story this country has ever seen.
There was just one tiny, minuscule, minor, almost nonexistence problem...we didn't fucking go home. I mean, like at all. After the night was over, a typical eight hour night, Alessio told me he would escort me back to my quarters.
"M-my quarters?"
"Yes. Your quarters. Where did we place you?" He asked sounding impatient.
"I-I-I-" I hadn't prepared for this. Any of this. I was in way over my head. Obviously they hadn't placed me anywhere, obviously he had every intention of taking me to my room, if I told him a room and it was incorrect, as it obviously would be, I would be done for.
"Oh for God's sake." He groaned. "Where is your room Katherine?"
"Oh she's with me!" The red head woman I'd met in the dressing room said suddenly coming to my rescue.
Alessio turned around the face her and raised an eyebrow. "Mia? I didn't think we'd partnered you."
"Ya didn't." She said and snapped her gum loudly. "But she seemed lost and the hoe you had her with wasn't looking to be a big sis." Alessio glanced to me, my head was bobbing up and down nodding in frantic agreement with this red bomb shell who was saving my life, and then back to Mia. "Alright you caught me, I saw you taking an interest in her and it peaked mine."
He sighed. "Fine." He turned back to me. "Don't think I don't have eyes and ears everywhere."
I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded.
Mia grinned immediately, pleased with her easily earned victory and grabbed my wrist. "Come on girl." She said and dragged me along. When we got to our 'quarters' it was practically just like a dorm room, but underground of course.
I looked around the room briefly, the beds were either a queen or full, I couldn't remember which was bigger. It was already made up nicely with more pillows than I even had on my bed and a satin comforter that I already knew would be sliding off of me all night.
I let out a world breakingly heavy sigh. "Thanks, Mia right?"
She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me. "What's your game?"
"What do you mean?" I asked as innocently as possible. Of course, failing horribly. I had tried my hand at acting once. Back in high school I had joined the drama club. It didn't end well.
"You're not from around here are you?"
"That's an understatement." I sighed and dropped onto the bed. "Listen, Mia, I really just want to leave, go home and all that, so if you could just tell me what I have to do to accomplish that." I pulled off one of my heels and rubbed my tender feet.
"You don't leave." She said sounding like she was in disbelief. "How'd you get in?"
"Same as anyone else I'm sure." I lied. "It's not like I could just waltz in."
"True." She said thoughtfully sitting down on the bed that was obviously hers based on all of the trinkets and stuffed animals on it. Her bed actually had color, a red bed spread, while "mine" was white with nothing of interest on it. She had her name above her bed in pretty script letters and heart shaped pillows and bears holding hearts and all sorts of things on her side of the room.
"Will you just help me get out?"
"Nuh uh sweet thang. I wouldn't cross Alessio like that. Y'all know he's doing us a favor letting us be here. You know that as well as the rest of us. When we're done doin our time we get a whole new life."
"And what if we clock out early?"
Her eyes met mine and I swallowed hard. "You don't."
"Understood." I muttered and looked away. "So, tell me more. What's up with the uh, what did he call it...pink girls?"
"The pink ladies. Those are the girls who put out."
"And I don't have to do that?"
"Certainly not." She lifted her leg suddenly. "The pink ladies wear some kind of jewelry with this pink P on it." She pointed to a silver ankle bracelet. A single charm pendant hung from it. True to word, it was a pink P.
"So you..."
"Where'd you think I got so much stuff?" She teased and winked.
Had she not just saved my life some mere minutes ago I might have confessed how the idea of sleeping with the guys down here sounded so utterly disgusting that it made my skin crawl. My expression must have given it away though regardless of my silence.
Told you I was a terrible actress.
"There's no commitment. Look, when I came in they offered me three years and then a new life, I figured 'okay I'll serve a few drinks, no rent, no bills, it'll be great.' Few months in, wearing all these dirty outfits, having guys looking me up and down, couple smacks on the ass and I'm like man, I'm missing sex. So I told Alessio I wanted to be pink. If I take the bracelet off I'm untouchable. It's totally up to you, and you can say no to anyone. Not sure why you'd want to, but seriously."
"This is like a prison."
"So what'd you do to get in?" She teased.
"The stupidest thing you could possibly imagine." I said in complete earnestness.
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Glossary! (Some Mafia lingo for my lovely readers)
bag man- A low-level hood who is sent on errands. He is usually either picking up or delivering money.
drop man- A low-level hood who picks up the bets from the numbers runner.