Awakening the Mobster (Book 2)

By Amy Rachiele

A breathtakingly beautiful man is standing right next to me-holding me, reassuring me, protecting me. Antonio is my savior. Having him with me makes the ickiness that’s stuck in my stomach tolerable.

Megan, Awakening the Mobster

Loving Megan and caring for Erin like the sister I never had is dangerous. These feelings cause you to think. But I was raised, Don’t think, just do!

Antonio, Awakening the Mobster

What draws and binds people together-circumstance, experience, blood? Can you change what you’re made of or is it predestined? If you fight it, will it just come back to you ten-fold?

Antonio and Megan are running. Running away. Megan’s father told them to. Antonio and Megan fly to South Bend, Indiana. They are hiding out at Notre Dame until it’s safe to come home. But will it ever be safe with the line of work Antonio and Megan’s father do. There is no escaping the mob. It’s part of your existence.
MATURE YA (underage drinking, strong language, sexual content)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amy Rachiele
• Release date: Sep 9, 2012
• ISBN: 9781479286959

Book preview

Awakening the Mobster

By

Amy Rachiele

*****

Copyright © 2012 Amy Rachiele

Edited by Summer Marston & Kimberly Korioth

Cover Art Indie Designz

Smashwords Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without the prior written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or deceased, is entirely coincidental.

Mafia is a process, not a thing. Mafia is a form of clan-cooperation to which its individual members pledge lifelong loyalty. Friendship, connections, family ties, trust, loyalty, obedience—this was the glue that held us together.

Joseph Bonnano, Mob Boss

Chapter 1

Scumbati (scoom-bah-dee): Messed Up!

Megan

The airport is crowded. Travelers rush to and fro with a solid purpose, each of them trying to get somewhere. The wheels of their bags make whirling sounds across the floor. A monotonous female voice echoes through the terminal giving instructions for what to do about lost bags and gate changes.

Antonio is beside me holding our carry-on bags. I can feel his free hand caressing the small of my back as he guides me and my sister, Erin, towards security. I look up into his dark brown eyes to reassure myself that this is all real. That we’re running away. That we’re running away, and we’re together. He glances down at me, and his gaze has a powerful effect. His eyes shine with strength and confidence. I smile.

With my sister’s hand clutching mine, I take my place in line...a line that will take us away from Palmetto, New Jersey. I face forward to stare at the backs of heads in front of me. There are so many different types. Long flowing hair, short crew cuts, even bald spots. Each person has their own design, their own destination. Each person has their own hopes and dreams.

My hopes and dreams were simple up until a couple of weeks ago: finish my senior year at Palmetto High and start college at Notre Dame. Simple. Normal.

Antonio’s strong hand rubs my back in small circles.

You okay? he asks.

Yeah. Trying to sound normal and unaffected is hard. Antonio’s question sparks me to turn to look at my sister. Her typical pale complexion is almost gray. It’s like her soul has been sucked out of her. Her once consistently bright blue eyes are bloodshot and outlined in red.

I release her hand and put my arm around her shoulders, holding her to me. This close up, our fiery red heads of hair mingle together. I gaze down at her, and despair coats her face.

In less than twenty-four hours, our world has fallen apart. My family was held hostage in our kitchen. A man died on our back steps at the hand of our father. Another man would have killed us all.

My father’s hidden life — assassin, murderer, and, what the mob calls him, Cleaner — surfaced and rattled our lives. For my entire existence, I never suspected anything. My father went to work every day. We never owned anything flamboyant or ritzy. No expensive vacations or a big fancy house. We only have one car, for God’s sake, and it’s a mini-van.

The mini-van fit my harp, but I didn’t have the space to bring it with me now. I really need my harp right now. If I could step out of this insanely slow moving line and sit on a bench and strum my fingers across the strings, I’d feel at home.

Just the thought of home...it’s a strange and foreign place. Now more than ever. I already felt like I didn’t fit into the all Italian city, but now I feel like I don’t fit in with my own family. At least I started spending time with Antonio Delisi, Jr. — the Palmetto mob boss’s son – just before this all blew up in my face. Getting close to him is the only thing that’s helping me through this transition.

The breathtakingly beautiful man is standing right next to me — holding me, reassuring me, protecting me. Antonio is my savior. Having him with me makes the ickiness that is stuck in my stomach from last night tolerable. He’s smart and strong. I know because I have witnessed it first-hand on more than one unpleasant occasion.

I was supposed to be visiting Notre Dame at the end of the week anyway. I’m going to college there next fall. My father had wanted me far away from Antonio, but recent events sped up the trip...and I have three additional passengers with me now — Antonio, Erin, and Vito, Antonio’s friend. I bet my father never saw this coming, even if he was the one who arranged this escape, or whatever you want to call it. He’s sending us away early in hopes of protecting us.

Dad sees Antonio as dangerous because of his lifestyle. I was comatose on my bed for a week after seeing Antonio brutally attack someone who owed his father money – a viewing my father set up.

My father wanted me to see Antonio for what he really is. It was a cold and cruel beating, but I don’t know what my father thought I would see. I see Antonio as a man raised to be what he is. He is what he was taught and trained to be, nothing more, nothing less.

We’re next, Antonio says softly to Erin and me, as if we’re fragile and breakable.

I remove my shoes and place them in the blue bin, gliding it over the rollers. Erin follows. A security officer waves a wand up and down my body, checking to see if I’m dangerous. After what I did to my family’s attacker, I’ve learned that I probably could be, but I think that part of me only came out of my desperation.

Leaning against a cement pillar and watching us navigate through security is Vito. His dark hair brushes the top of his collar, and a leather shoulder bag hangs on his side. His face is impassive. It’s only been a couple of hours since Antonio called him and asked him to join us. By the sound of the conversation, Vito didn’t even hesitate to agree. He’s a large, intimidating guy.

Erin’s eyes are glued to the floor as she walks with effort towards the entrance to the gates. I rub her shoulders again as Antonio and Vito say their hellos.

Hey man, Antonio slaps Vito on the back. Thanks for doing this.

I observe Vito. The hard slab of muscle underneath his shirt shifts when he moves towards us. I think he’s looking at me, but he’s not. His focus is solely on my sister.

Hi, I choke out past the dryness and misery lodged in my throat. Vito nods at me.

Erin moves with automatic motions, not acknowledging anyone. She hasn’t spoken since we left the O’Connell’s house and her cheating ex-boyfriend, Connor. I clutch her hand. I’m worried about her.

We make our way through the long passageway to the gates. I study the large blue numbers jutting out above our heads, searching for gate twenty-nine.

Antonio is attached to my other side and Vito trails behind.

Over here, honey. Antonio steers me. The endearment surprises me, but I don’t hesitate. I allow him to lead us over to a seating area.

A sea of fake black leather chairs faces the large glass windows. Airplanes line up outside. People sit in chairs here and there. Erin releases my hand and lies down across an empty row of three seats.

I hear Vito whisper to Antonio as I sit across from her.

What the fuck is wrong with her?

A lot of shit, Antonio says in a low voice. Then he sits down next to me and takes my hand. We both stare at Erin, who seems lifeless. Her face is covered by her arms.

I’m going to get a coffee, Vito announces. You guys want anything?

Yeah, I’ll have a coffee, I say. Cream and sugar.

Me too, Antonio responds. Black.

What about her? Vito asks.

Her name is Erin, I say crossly.

I know her name, Red, Vito states. Does she want anything? Antonio stiffens at Vito’s words. He always calls me Red, and apparently Antonio doesn’t like it.

An orange juice would be great. It’s the only thing I can think of. When we’re sick, my mom always gives us orange juice. It’s the electrolytes, I guess.

I take my bag from Antonio and rifle through it, looking for a hair tie. I find one. I lean over my sister and gather up the hair that has spilled all around her and that’s threatening to knot up. I gently pull her hair through the elastic. Erin doesn’t budge.

Sighing, I sit back down with Antonio. We both stare at her, probably thinking the same thing. What’s wrong with her?

Antonio leans in and kisses my temple. Electricity jolts through my body. She’ll be better when we’re away from here.

I hope so, I say, trying to believe his words.

Seemingly from nowhere, Vito hands me a cup.

Thanks, I take it. The warmth of the coffee through the paper cup feels heavenly. A gloomy coldness has been fighting to consume me since yesterday.

He hands a coffee to Antonio, too.

Unexpectedly, Vito then takes two short strides over to Erin. He squats down with his back to us.

He’s talking to her. Erin leans up on her elbows. Her face is splotchy and red. Lines have formed across her cheeks from where she was leaning on her arms.

Vito pops the top off some high-priced organic juice and hands it to her. Erin sips it slowly, and then hands it back to him. He takes it and brushes some loose strands of hair I missed from her face. I almost tell him to back off, but he seems to be the only one Erin will respond too, so I let him be.

Flight four-thirty-two to Indiana is now ready for boarding.

That’s us, Antonio confirms. We gather up our stuff. Vito helps Erin to stand.

My legs are like lead. I’m so tired and numb. It’s as if a four-hundred-pound boulder is resting on my shoulders. I ignore my discomfort and head towards Erin. I pull her to me, my arm around her shoulder, and we make our way to the gate.

A crowd quickly forms in the small area in front of the catwalk entrance. Kids, bags, and people huddle around us. It’s hard to breath with everyone so nearby. A tickle of anxiety crawls its way into my chest.

Antonio and Vito are right behind us, thankfully. They’re talking softly to each other. They’re examining our plane tickets when Erin is pushed from behind. The blow affects me as well, since I’m holding her. We stumble forward a few steps. Antonio steadies us.

Vito’s arm immediately flies out and shoves a tall guy wearing glasses. I assume he’s the culprit. He appears just as startled by Vito’s reaction as I am. The guy, obviously intimidated,

Reviews for Awakening the Mobster (Book 2)

[azacia · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a good short story. The mob background was fun and the characters were interesting. I liked the definitions at the start of each chapter. The story had a well developed plot, even though it was only a piece of a larger narrative. I'm interested to see where Antonio and Megan go from here ...


Disclosure: I received this book for free from Goodreads, however this had no impact on my review. I rated the story for the quality with which it was written.

[saders18 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

You can't help who your family is, what they've done, or what they still do. You can't help who you've been raised to be or what you should have been raised to be.. just like you can't help who you fall in love with.. all you can do it protect them. I adooreee how much Antonio loves Megan, and the way he'd do anything to protect her, and how insanely jealous he is over her because he wants her to be his and only his. I think Tony is kinda weird and different but I love him and kinda feel bad for him because I know he greatly loves Megan, they're just not meant to be. I find myself routing for Vito and Erin like soo insanely much. I loovee Vito and it's so obvious he's got it bad for Erin. Erin is so sweet and innocent, it's hard seeing her have to go through so much. After learning the truth about her family, Megan finds herself lost and confused, but mostly just completely numb. Erin is absolutely terrified and suffering from severe nightmares... Vito is worried she has the beginning stages of PTSD. Antonio and Vito are fighting to do everything they can to solve this web of lies and betrayal while keeping their girls safe. Throw Troy into the mix and Megan feels like her world is crumbling.. can Megan, fix her sister, keep Troy as her friend, come to terms with who her father is and the lies he's told, keep everyone she loves safe and keep her sanity? The love story between Tonio and Megan is perfect while the love between Vito and Erin is so precious.. and the way Tonio quickly become protective over Erin as if she was his own sister is beautiful.

[srfeike · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The second book of the Mobster series picks up right where the first left off. I love Megan and Antonio! Their story is fun and romantic. I also loved getting to know Vito. He's a fun character and adds some laughs to the story.This is a great series. The author does a great job of getting into mobster mode and making the thoughts, actions, and even the vocabulary seem real. There were many twists and turns in the story to keep me captivated. I just wish the books were longer! I am very much looking forward to see where this series goes.

[bookwhisperer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love this Mobster’s series. Each and every book is action packed, and thrilling from start to finish. More of the story continues to unravel in this second book just mounting the obstacles and dangers ahead of this young group. As Antonio and Vito struggle to keep Erin and Megan safe; the bonds between these four character will grow and transform into something much deeper. The addition of Vito and Erin was an added bonus to the romantic suspense of the story. Still a mystery readers will be eager to see what will come for these two characters. The motto no one is safe when it comes to the mob, and this is proven time and time again in this series.Greed and Power is a dangerous combination in this world, and their always seems to be an abundance of power hungry vultures just around the corner. Just like the first book I was very happy with the nicely formed conclusion, but I am anxiously awaiting the continuation. Amy Rachiele stories offer a powerful and addictive story that is more than just a budding romance; the violence and mayhem pulls me through the stories will lighting speed.~BookWhisperer Reviewer Jo~