Ruthless Mafia 22

She clung to Icaro’s hand, very much aware she was not wearing any underwear and dreading taking the step into the
helicopter. Zorah was already nervous to get on the machine but if her dress billowed out at all from the gusts of wind
this thing was creating the entire bunch of men standing around were going to get eyefuls.
“Zorah!” Sidonia’s screeching of her name carried on the wind.
She looked over her shoulder to see her best friend being carried in Vodingo’s arms bridal style, her hair in disarray and
her arms hooked around his neck. She was smiling brightly as they approached.
“I get to come with you! My father actually took money from Vodingo in exchange for me. He sold me! What a jerk! Did
Icaro tell you about the great-grandmother who prayed for her offspring to find their soulmates and in return pledged
they would be faithful, and her prayers were granted? There’s actually a statue of her in their town. It’s so crazy!”
“Does she always talk this much?” Icaro whispered in Zorah’s ear.
“Yes. You get used to it. The silence becomes unbearable when she’s not near you.” She put a bright smile on her face,
“you can’t walk?”
She made wide dramatic eyes in Vodingo’s direction, “I can but I’m not allowed. He likes to carry me. He’s huge.” She
leaned forward uncaring who heard, “everywhere, Zorah.”
“Did you,” Zorah couldn’t bring herself to ask.
“Not in the car! I mean we made out, but Vodingo said my first time should be special and in a bed.”
“Did you ask him if he might have been the one holding the camera last weekend?”
“What camera?” Vodingo asked.
“The one at Icaro’s bachelor party.”
Vodingo looked at Icaro annoyance twisting his features, “while she is your wife, I will ask you to not to permit her to ruin
things for me and my bride, please. Control your wife.”
Icaro laughed and shook his head, “I am finding out my demure wife is not a doormat. I can no more curb her tongue
than my father could my mother’s.”
Sidonia turned to look accusingly at Vodingo, her hand on his cheeks, “I don’t care what you did last Sunday but I swear
if you ever do it again, I’ll make you pray for a short life.”
Vodingo shrugged, “deal. Can we go? We still have dinner to get through with the family.”
“Dinner with the family?” Zorah asked in confusion.
“Yes. My father, uncles and cousins are in New York. We will be having a family dinner to introduce you and then we’ll
retire to our honeymoon suite. When we fly to Italy in the morning, my father will accompany us.”
“Your father. Don Lucchesi?” She asked nervously.
“Yes. You will like him. He is very charming.” He motioned to the waiting helicopter. “Let’s get this show on the road. I do
not want to waste another minute in Rhode Island.”
“How come we’re doing a family dinner with your family but not mine?” Zorah asked bluntly.
“We offered to host the dinner here. My entire family was willing to come from Italy. Your uncle declined and said it was
improper and would rather he not be associated with the Lucchesi name. He spoke for himself and your mother and
refused the invite. It was then we realized they weren’t so concerned with anything other than making sure you were sent
off to pay the debt so they could both live. My mother then started preparing a party for you back home.”
“A party for me?”
“Yes. I am my mother’s only living child, but she suffered two stillbirths, both little girls. She is excited to have a daughter
to spoil.”
“Well, that’s going to be different for you,” Sidonia snickered.
Icaro appeared ready to ask more questions but suddenly a man near the chopper’s voice called out and ran towards
them.
“We need to go. Now. The rest of the team is already in the cars and en route back to New York. We don’t have enough
protection for you and both wives, boss.”
“Protection?” Zorah asked curiously suddenly worried as Icaro walked casually towards the chopper without seemingly
too much concern. “Are we in danger?”
“We are always in danger,” Vodingo responded before Icaro could, his voice shouting over the sound of the propellers.
“In our own cities we have protection everywhere but here, this is not a place we’ve ever set up and we have no need to. We’re here with a skeleton crew. Let’s go.” He pushed Sidonia into the chopper but then he hung back until both Icaro
and Zorah were in the machine.
Icaro fastened a helmet with a microphone on it to Zorah’s head and then helped her get buckled into her seat. Her head was reeling. She knew he was second in command to a mafia family. She knew he was dangerous to other people. It
never once in the week since her uncle told her she was marrying him considered he, and by association her, would be in
danger. She looked nervously to Sidonia who seemed oblivious to Zorah’s worries.
She was staring at Vodingo whose head was bent as he buckled her into her seat and made sure she was secured, and
Zorah was sure she could see stars in the other woman’s eyes. Was Sidonia head over heels for the man after nothing more than an hour?
Sidonia caught Zorah’s gaze on her and gave her a wide smile and a wave from where she sat opposite her. Sidonia then
beamed like the brightest sun in the solar system as Vodingo took her helmeted head in his hands and pressed a kiss to
her nose before climbing into the front of the helicopter and took the co-pilot chair.
Zorah jumped when Vodingo’s voice echoed in her ear to talk to the pilot beside him. Icaro reached out and squeezed
her knee through her dress. He winked at her reassuringly and when the helicopter lifted vertically into the air and she
lurched forward nervously, he lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to them. He then leaned forward and patted
Sidonia’s lap and gave her a thumbs up.
Icaro’s voice calmly stating “on to our new lives” sent Zorah’s heart racing.