Orphaned With the Prince: A Mafia Romance Novel

By Raya Black

They should be Arch-Enemies but fate bonded them together. Because of  Vanessa Shackler, Luca Dannero had once lost everything; his father,
his Mafia Empire and his childhood. And now, Luca and Vanessa are going to be bonded forever ! ! !

Luca is
in the dark that it's the same Vanessa that trampled his
life into bits, a few years ago ago. Vanessa now fears her
secrets will be revealed to Diren, and
right before
the Mafia War, all the skeletons are out.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dream catcher LLC
• Release date: Jun 8, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201775872

Book preview

I

Part One

One

Chapter

Chapter Separator

The Last Car Ride

Diren had no idea that it was the last time that he rode with his parents. For he was only a twelve-year-old kid. Diren’s father, Douglas, could buy anything. Their family car seats were made of a fabric that felt like the softest velvet fabric ever, the dashboard was luxurious smooth wood, and warmth radiated from the surface even in winter. In short, that car was the best that money could buy.

Neither the firearms nor the gold business was ever a walk in the park, and Diren understood this when he was still a child. His father taught him that not all dealers have to be cold-hearted and ruthless. One can be kind and humble and still get things done. And many people called him the King.

They were on the way to the cinema theater. Two identical cars were following them to confuse any possible sniper attacks.

Little Diren was sitting on the back seat between Maria and Douglas. There was a glass partition in between the back seat and the driver’s seat.

"Did Accra call?’’ said Maria.

Yes, Accra reached Mexico on time and he did a splendid job with the Mexican party. said Douglas.

I think you could have done better.

Douglas stopped playing mock shooting with Diren and threw a glance at Maria.

Not like that. I just felt Accra is best for our local dealings.

No, Maria, he can deal with anyone. Do you remember our last deal? We got that deal only because of his connection.

Yes I know, Maria didn’t believe it and it showed in her tone.

Maria, Douglas took a deep breath, then paused before speaking again. There was a time I wouldn’t go out of the house until my shirt dried. Because I had only one shirt. Even at that time Accra was there with me. He was there with me when I was a nobody. He was there with me when I wasn’t yet Marcello the King. He was there with me in my every step toward success.

Maria kept quiet.

Douglas continued. Do you remember that day Accra came to us? All broken and sobbing. If I hadn’t made that decision Accra would have lost his son. Would I risk such a thing for someone if he wasn’t that important to me?

Douglas was referring to a liver transplant for Accra’s son Mateo. Mateo had a liver condition and it had to be replaced. Douglas was a perfect match and he readily agreed to the surgery. But the doctors had warned that Douglas had a heart condition and that the operation was too risky.

Maria objected to the surgery.

But Douglas didn’t even listen to her. If something happens to me, I am sure Accra would take care of my family. Besides, he would do the same for me.

The surgery was successful. Mateo was perfectly all right after the surgery. But Douglas took six months to recover.

Accra and Mateo were not among the casual visitors. They were always in the house. One day on their way home Little Mateo asked, Dad, what happened to Douglas’s uncle? He is always in bed.

Son, he went through a surgery for you. Accra said.

What it means.

Accra hesitated to explain the liver transplantation surgery to a six-year-old boy. Son, you don’t remember. He gave you his favorite chocolate and you got healed from the boo boo.

And he got the boo boo.

Yes, kind of like that.

I want to help him.

Ha ha ha, what will you do my little dragon?

I will make him alright.

How?

I will give him all my chocolate and all my toys to him. It’s so sad to see him in bed all the time.

The evening was calm but Diren wasn’t. The twelve-year-old boy had waited for an entire week to go to the cinema with his parents. Now that it had finally arrived, he could not contain his excitement.

Douglas Marcello, Diren’s father, was a man of the people who could not go more than three steps without someone stopping him for a word or two. And Diren was impatiently waiting next to Douglas while he finished his interactions.

They had arrived fifteen minutes before the movie’s starting time. Maria Marcello managed to convince Diren that his father would be done talking to his friends before the movie started. Don’t worry, my sweetie pie, Dad will come soon. I promise we will not miss even a second of the movie. Maria knelt down and patted his cheeks, Son, it’s alright, trust me.

Diren, though still filled with anticipation, half-heartedly agreed. He stood between his mom and dad as they talked. The smell of popcorn and popcorn oil, and the smell of people and their friendly perfume, outside the cinema hall greeted Diren. He could almost taste the fries he had reserved for eating after the film started.

His father did not have a cap but he was indeed a superhero. Some of the commoners thanked his father Douglas Marcello for helping them escape from goons of the opposing underworld who were obviously ruthless. They had an issue of unpaid loans. Those goons, led by the Vitteli family, were delegated to seize back the money. Legally or illegally. Blood or no blood.

A woman, along with her child, was thanking Douglas for recommending her for a job. I had no other means to survive and no one to go to. I don’t know what I would have done if it wasn’t for you, my King.

Shortly after, Diren noticed one of their bodyguards stopping a girl and a man. They had exaggerated piercings as well as tattoos. These were probably what made the bodyguard stop them. But they looked like a nice couple in their late twenties.

We want to meet and thank the King. Let us through, said the lady.

Upon setting his eyes on the sight, Diren’s father told the bodyguard to let them through. Douglas was, however, wrong as the couple’s aim was not to thank him like everyone else.

Diren watched as the couple bowed in front of his parents and when they stood, each was holding a suppressed gun aiming it at each of his parents’ hearts.

* * *

Holding their weapons, the couple stood across from Diren’s parents for a second. And they did not hesitate to shoot. A few gun shots were fired from many directions. But by the time the bodyguard made a move, it was too late. The park lighting was low and the young couple’s faces were in darkness but Diren could make out their faces. Their eyes were wide and their lips were turned into a circle of an eager smile. The girl wore a white dress that was below her knees and a pair of white heels and the man wore a black suit with a white shirt and tie to match the girl. Diren turned his head and rushed toward both his mom and dad, who had two bullets in their hearts and were lying on the ground facing one another.

The smell of gunpowder, the smell of blood, the smell of fear.

Diren stood numb between the sound of the screaming crowd running helter-skelter without a destination. He was not hit by the crowd as they kept a safe distance from an invisible circle around the bodies on the ground.

Diren was physically unhurt but emotionally, he was wrecked. His heart had crashed into a thousand pieces and his mind was numb. His parents lay right in front of him, looking at each other, unblinking. They were just lying down, unmoving. They would be fine and they would come back to the cinema to watch a movie with him. All he wanted was to be laid down with them on a comfortable bed like the one at home. This is what Diren told himself as he looked at his parents. They both stared back unblinking at Diren.

The murderers of his parents, who had been shot by the bodyguards, lay at a distance from them but they were not Diren’s concern. The dead couple were no longer breathing, but Diren would not mourn their passing. They were not his concern and the loss of their lives was small price to pay for the bloodshed they had caused.

He noticed a cinema ticket protruding from his father’s breast pocket. His mother’s was in her right hand but it was soaked with blood.

He bent to pick up the cinema tickets so he could remind his parents of their promise to him when they got home. His father’s ticket had a hole in it and was partially covered in blood. Diren didn’t mind, though, and tried to shake his father awake. Get up Daddy. The show is about to start. As he stood, his eyes unpeeling from the sight of his parents, he felt his stomach tighten and his legs part with the ground. His body felt so light he could have sworn he was floating. He did not want to acknowledge this as a goodbye, but as his parents shrank, he realized he would never see them again. He watched as security officers wholly covered his parents and as much as he wanted to believe they would be okay, part of him knew they were gone for good.

Two policemen stood watching as some security officers carried Diren away.

Sir, what is going to happen to him now?

The child? Oh, easy. He’ll die.

But he’s only ten-something years old. He’s harmless. Will he be killed?

Obviously it’s Accra who did this. He might have had enough playing sidekick to Douglas the King. He gestured to where the bodies lay. And ten-year-olds grow up, right. And when they become fourteen years old they’ll know how to use a gun. Accra too knows this. So the boy will die soon.

* * *

Mateo and Accra were sobbing during the funeral but that didn’t mean that Diren couldn’t be killed by them. The sadness was for his father Douglas and not for him. Perhaps all those tears were a show for the public. Perhaps he would be abducted and dumped in the sea. Perhaps Accra would say to the public that Diren committed suicide even as Diren’s lifeless body was rotting in the sea with hands and legs tied. But would the public believe that a twelve-year-old would commit suicide?

Diren looked at Accra and saw pure hate in his eyes. Diren looked at the ground. He was about to be killed. He half hoped that the murderers of his parents were skillful enough to kill him too without pain.

In the cemetery grounds, Accra stood in front of Diren and looked down at him for a while. Diren didn’t have the courage to look back at him to read his facial expression. His heart pounded in his chest and his eyes blinked profusely as he struggled to maintain his composure. His hands felt freezing, and his feet felt suddenly weak and shaky.

Still silent, Accra reached to his back’s waistline, underneath his jacket, and when he brought his hand in front of Diren, a black Walter PP pistol came into sight.

Diren’s jaw involuntarily dropped and he took a step back. The sight of the gun petrified him and almost made him lose his balance and fall. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets as he looked at the gun, then at Accra. Just when he had accepted his new life, someone had to crush it. The only person he trusted with his life was about to take it from him. He couldn’t even move or breathe.

Accra took a step closer to Diren, letting his knees support his weight, and looked into his eyes. The sounds of barks, the smell of leather and sweat, the anger in Accra’s face: everything was too vivid for Diren. He could not see anything else. Could not hear anything else. As if the world and life were being squeezed out of existence. Diren could see Mateo looking out through the car’s rear window and it felt like Mateo could not wait for his dad to finish Diren off. Diren was afraid to talk. If Accra had said a word at that moment, Diren would not have been able to figure out how to respond. His mind was blank. He could only see his parents’ coffins in his mind and imagine his own right next to theirs.

Diren watched as Accra reached into his breast pocket and took out four bullets.

* * *

At the time of Douglas Marcello’s death, Accra had been sent to Mexico to inspect a shipment of firearms before it would be sent to Douglas. Accra was Douglas’s right-hand man.

Little Diren would not talk to anyone unless it was his parents. He was mean to those who tried to kindly approach him, telling him everything would be okay. The only way he would be assured of this, though, was if he saw his parents and wrapped his little hands around them.

For twelve hours, Diren remained behind his locked bedroom doors. He would spend most of his time crying, while looking at the cinema tickets. He felt like the world was not the right place for him anymore. It was Accra who saved him from the mystery. He flew from Mexico without completing the inspection and returned to the city after hearing of Diren’s parents’ death.

Accra talked to Diren behind the closed door like his father would, and for a moment, Diren thought his father was still there with him. He opened the door for Accra and got lost in his muscular arms, expressing every emotion he had.

That man will be the end of the boy. I mean, who wouldn’t want to have everything Marcello had? Diren heard people say during the funeral. He didn’t care, though, because he had no control over what they said and he was dealing with too much already.

If not that accountant, Bastin, someone else in the mafia will do it. It is dog-eat-dog in the mafia land.

True, but Bastin is the one who will gain more if the boy dies. Remember that he, too, has a son, Mateo, so if he manages to get rid of all the Marcellos, he will take over and when he dies, his son will be left in charge.

Diren wasn’t interested in power and didn’t really know anything about the business. He was a boy whose parents had been killed right in front of him. The firearms business was the last thing on his mind. As a twelve-year-old orphan, the business of guns and gold meant nothing to him. He wasn’t interested in power or the business. A part of him still wanted to go to that cinema hall, a part that wanted to believe that his parents were searching for him and that he was lost in the crowd.

Diren sat on the front row, dressed in all black and a pair of dark sunglasses. Accra and Mateo sat on each side of him. They had no choice but to listen to the judgmental and ill-minded whispers behind them. Neither Accra nor Mateo said a word.

Accra turned around and saw that the iron words were being spewed out by a bunch of policemen. No wonder they viciously hated him.

Everyone’s eyes remained on the priest, who could not stop talking about how good the couple were and how much losing them meant to the community. And every word that came from the priest was true.

Those who were able to read out their tributes wept, their voices breaking as they spoke of the worlds stolen from them. They swayed on their feet and had to be supported back to their places. The audience that gathered there wept with them, so full of sorrow that they sobbed. They spoke with sincerity, reminding everyone that these were generous souls. They stood strong, not faltering under the weight of the memories they shared. Diren watched them and felt love swell in his chest. He remembered the faces of the ones he had lost and was grateful for their lives and for their legacy.

Diren did not say a word as he had Accra to speak for him. Accra was the only person who really understood him in the entire audience and was the only one who saw Diren’s heart. Accra’s words were sincere, his tears were heartfelt, and just like Diren he had lost important people in his life. Douglas was not only his boss but also his closest friend.

Accra looked at the coffins. Douglas, Maria, forgive me for not being there when you needed me the most. I could have been there to stop the killers and save your lives but I wasn’t. I am so sorry. You didn’t get a chance to fulfill all your dreams, to watch your son grow and become successful, to watch the business flourish and help anyone who was in need of your help. You trusted me with every detail of your life when you were still alive and now that you are no longer with us, I want you to know you can still count on me. I will take care of Diren like he is my own, I will see your business continue to flourish, I will fulfill every other dream you wanted to fulfill and be there for the people in need like you were. I will continue your legacy, Douglas. And hand it over to Diren when he is up to it. I know it will be challenging but I also know you two will be watching over all of us. Thank you for everything, my good friends.

The policemen in the crowd whispered jokes about how Diren would be a good feast for the sharks in the ocean. When they became too loud the priest and his helpers eyed them and the police fell silent.

Diren and Mateo stood at each of his sides, and together they approached the coffins. They were silent, but a tremor of emotion ran through their bodies, the waves the only sign that something was wrong. Diren stood on the right, his heart raw and heavy with grief. Mateo stood on the left, ready to support Diren with unspoken love and strength. The three silently stood looking at the coffins.

Everyone had left the cemetery after Maria and Douglas were buried. Mateo was inside the car and Accra was leaning on the black Mercedes. They were both looking at Diren.

The piece of land in front of Diren held his parents six feet beneath. He stared at the differently-colored lively flowers placed on top of the graves. The flowers and the names printed on