Of volume lineage

XIV

Isabella

Onirico was an entire new world.

As soon as you walked through a nightmarish hallway, you stepped into a universe light-years away from our own. Purple and blue strobe lights illuminated the huge space, fashioned with square-shaped levels like a sci-fi opera theatre. People looked over the balconies at the huge dance floor, which was overwatched by a glowing blue sphere, which had little bolts of electricity dancing off it.

The furniture and bars were all modern in design, with cube-shaped couches and barstools in the shape of a Z. Everywhere I looked, I was bombarded with lights and people, and the deep sounding bass that shook the walls with each pulse.

Giova

“Isabella,” Giova

I turned to find him gesturing.

“We have a meeting.”

“Can I go dance?”

His brow arched slightly. I was quickly learning all Giova

“We’re here on business.”

“After?” I casted a longing look back to the dance floor. I had never liked crowds but I had never seen one like the one below us. It didn’t seem as fake as the people that surrounded me at mob events.

“If you insist.”

Giova

Two men were already waiting, their bodyguards lurking against the walls. Eyes latched onto me, roaming over my exposed arms and legs.

My dress had the shortest hemline I had ever worn–even compared to the dress I wore when I was eighteen and following Lisa Gruenfield around the clubbing district. It was red silk, the fabric like water to the touch, and held up by two straps. The fabric was so tight I had had to individually put in each boob into the bodice.

Giova

Yet something about Giova

Now, he pressed a hand to my lower back, the touch scorching through the silk. Unlike our wedding, I didn’t try and scootch away.

“Gentlemen.” Then to my surprise, he said, “Isabella, meet Conor Rogan and Sweet Paddy. They work for the Ó Fiaich mob.”

Introducing me to them instead of the other way round was an insult. A harmless one but one all the same. Both men knew it too, as did their bodyguards who shared looks. They didn’t say anything; it was clear to me that my husband was the most powerful man in this room.

What did that make me? Second most powerful? I laughed to myself.

Giova

“Thomas sends his regards,” the one called Conor said. He had a mouse-ish look to his face, with a button nose and beady eyes.

“Has he given a reason as to why he’s not here?”

Conor and Sweet Paddy shared a look.

“Business, sir.”

Giova

Conor reared back in offence. “Yes, sir.”

My husband inclined his head. I had also learnt that in Giova

It took a minute but eventually Conor and Sweet Paddy realized Giova

Perhaps they should’ve.

“We’re having trouble getting shipments through Long Island. The Tarkhanov Bratva and the Chen Triad are stretching their territories as you well know, and while it is…amicable, their presence has caught the attention of the Feds–who are making it very difficult to get shipments through.”

Giova

When he was the king of Maine, Giova

I didn’t realize he had brought that over to Manhattan, and in extension Long Island.

“He does.”

“How much does he care about these shipments?”

Conor and Sweet Paddy shared a look. “A lot, sir.”

A waiter slipped into the room, shaking so much the ice cubes in the glasses rattled. He placed tumblers of bourbon in front of the men and a glass of wine in front of me before scurrying away.

Giova

“If Thomas cares so much about these shipments,” he said finally, “then why did he send two soldiers to negotiate the terms?”

Insulted, I realized. Giova