Chapter Text
Liliana woke up early that morning and caught a taxi with two piece of luggage. Today, she would be boarding a boat, which would take her to a remote island off the coast of Italy. This place was usually a resort for the rich and wealthy people such as politicians, business tycoons, and even members of the mafia. It wasn’t a place one could casually travel to even if one desired.
As an investigative journalist, her most recent piece had her going to this luxurious island because of the recent chatter concerning the Chinese mafia, also known as the Lao Shu, within Italy. Lately, there had been discussions floating around on how their power had been increasing as they had been steadily taking over the territories of the other mafia groups. Oddly, the police had a hard time catching them, specifically the elusive Lao Shu leader. Few ever saw the revered and feared honcho. She heard of his apparently beautiful appearance, but she doubted someone like a mafia leader could be charming at all.
In any case, she heard rumors that the Lao Shu were going to this island to make a major trade deal within a few days.
Most journalists tried to stay away doing stories on the Lao Shu in particular because they were known to be ten times more ruthless than the other criminal organizations, but Liliana wasn’t deterred by that. She was determined to uncover the truth and get to the heart of the story. She wished to figure out who this mysterious Lao Shu leader was and how the group had been gaining so much strength and wealth as of late. This trade deal was her one big chance to learn everything.
However, because she was a civilian, she couldn’t go alone. When she initially learned about this obstacle, she was saddened, but she was tempted to go on some boat as a stowaway or even masquerade as one of the employees on the island.
Luckily, she then heard from her friend, Elena, that the resort island also ran this ten-days program where one would be paired up with a stranger and hopefully could kindle true love. In all honesty, Liliana didn’t believe in the whole ‘finding true love’ in the fashion of a blind date set up. But she was willing to participate in this program if it meant she could travel to this island without resorting to shadier tactics. She would do anything to investigate and write this story on the Lao Shu.
Thus, it was why now she was headed to the dock to travel by boat. It would be an overnight trip, and the next day, she would arrive at her intended destination. She paid a lot of money for this entire trip, so she had to make the best of it. She couldn’t allow this “vacation” to be a waste.
When she arrived, she carried her two suitcases with her and headed over to the check-in desk where she would be able to set sail and start her journey.
“Hi. I’m here to board the boat.” Liliana kindly stated her reason.
“Of course. Welcome. May we see your ticket please?” The kind lady asked her.
Luckily, Liliana brought all of the paperwork with her and patiently waited as the lady checked her information against the roster. After a few moments of silence, Liliana noticed a worrisome expression on the lady’s face.
“Um…” She timidly spoke as if she was too afraid to continue her train of thoughts.
“Yes? Is there a problem?” Liliana wasn’t sure what the issue could possibly be.
“Ahem, unfortunately, the room you booked isn’t available anymore.” The lady cleared her throat and informed Liliana of the situation.
Liliana furrowed her eyebrows, “Excuse me? I booked this room two weeks in advance, and it was still available then. How is it suddenly unavailable?”
“Someone else, um, paid for both rooms. They booked yours and the room right next to it.” The lady calmly tried to explain the situation.
Liliana could hardly believe it. What?! Argh! How could this happen?! She wasn’t going to be stopped from going on this trip!
“I paid for this room! Excuse me. I’m going to talk to this person right now.” Liliana wouldn’t let this get in her way of her investigative story!
Liliana quickly picked up her items and barged past the lady, storming onto the boat without caring about the consequences. She was going to find that sleazy prick who bought off her room!
“Wait! Ma’am! Don’t, please!” The lady tried to stop Liliana who already raced off at the speed of light.
XOXOXOXO
Yang sighed loudly as he laid across the sofa and stared out at the window. Most people would probably be jumping for joy being able to ride this gaudy cruise and enjoy traveling to some luxurious resort island. Unfortunately, it did not interest him in the slightest bit. He would rather be back in Burlone crushing his enemies or drinking some alcohol with his men. However, he had a pest problem within his own group and had little choice but to make this burdensome trip.
He turned his head around and stared up at the plain white ceiling as he rested the back of his head on the palm of his hands. He needed evidence of the infestation problem within the Lao Shu and to sever it at its core. Honestly, it was a little too boring how he already knew all the information and had to play a disguise-and-wait game instead. It would be one thing if he was going to conduct a sneak attack or a covert assassination. But this operation? It bored him to death. There was hardly going to be any action of that kind.
He closed his eyes, hoping to get some shut eye. When was the last time he was this unoccupied? Even at the headquarters, he would listen to his men chatter about some nonsense or sit up at the rooftop to observe the city from above. Either of those would be more interesting than being here.
The ticking of the clock. Why did it bother him? He almost wanted to get up and silence it. But it would only be a waste of his effort and energy. He was drifting into useless anger that only made him tired and bored.
In the midst of his thoughts, he heard a loud knock. He casually shifted his eyes, peering over at the time. Hmm, it was about that time, wasn’t it? He was almost beginning to wonder when the “show” would start. Yang slightly smirked as he slowly scratched his chin. Perhaps this could possibly tide him over for a bit.
Meanwhile, Liliana traveled down the hallway, searching for her room number. Oh! She spotted it right away and wondered if the culprit was even on board. Maybe they were in one of the neighboring rooms. She took a haphazard guess and knocked on one of the doors. If no one answered, she would try the other door. She would stand out here until someone responded to her.
“Excuse me! Hello? Is anyone inside?” Liliana called out, not afraid of whoever could be inside.
Who could it seriously be? It was probably some rich stubborn hothead. Those people thought they could get away with anything and everything because they had money and power. As if she was going to let that dictate her behavior. Why should she cower in fear? She had as much right to be here as anyone else!
After a few moments of silence, Liliana was about to walk over to the other door, however, it suddenly opened as a stunningly handsome man appeared before her eyes. Her entire body froze at the sudden gust of wind while she closely studied his undeniably gorgeous features. He had such brilliant yellow, but fearsome eyes and overflowing long crimson red hair that glimmered in the light. Goodness, she couldn’t deny that he was extremely attractive, but something about his presence was also awfully unsettling.
“What’s with the ruckus? Here I was in the middle of sleeping until I heard a disturbing knock.” Yang made up his story as he purposely spoke in somewhat exaggerated manner. He pretended to be distraught about the whole manner even though he was more observing this woman in front of him.
Huh. For a woman, she was dressed very unfeminine-like. She was wearing at typical white work blouse with some business suit tan pants and a matching suit tan jacket. Not very interesting to look at in his opinion. He might be more interested in her if she wore a dress at least. She also had her hair tied up in a ponytail. How boring. Nothing captivating in the slightest. Well, he somewhat lied. She did have a voluptuous figure, which was hidden by her plain taste in clothes.
“I apologize for disturbing you, however, I was wondering if you were the person who bought off the room next to this one.” Liliana kept her cool despite feeling a bit frightened by his presence.
This man had a strange aura. The way he talked and closely eyed her made her uneasy. She had met a variety of people in her field of work, so she was used to interacting with politicians, policeman, civilians, and even criminals and being in these kinds of intense situations. However, this stranger oozed with a kind of cunning mannerism that she usually only saw in politicians or even high-ranking criminals. Who was he? He was no ordinary person.
She then noticed his Chinese attire and the black tattoos on both of his hands as he gestured while speaking. This man must have been Chinese even though he spoke without any accent. But more than that, he had such beautiful tattoos. Tattoos? The only types of people she met who had tattoos were… mafia members. Suddenly, the pit of her stomach flipped upside down as she broke out in a cold sweat.
This man was no mere civilian. He was most likely a criminal or even associated with the mafia. Oh goodness. She should have been happy to have found a connection to the Chinese mafia, but was he a part of the one she was after? Or was he a part of a different group? Her mind raced as she wondered what to do next.
“Hmm? Whatever are you talking about?” Yang pretended to not understand what she meant.
He could tell she was trying to size him up and figure out how to deal with him. Oh? She wasn’t like most other women he encountered whom only met him with those disgusting ogling eyes. Most interesting. At first, he dreaded conversing on with this woman, but his interest peaked again. Maybe she would be entertaining after all than being a simple pawn.
“I booked the room next to this one, but I was informed someone had bought it up along with another room. And I was wondering if that someone could be you.” Liliana maintained her calm disposition.
Even if he was a part of the mafia, she had to get her room back. She could worry about his association later. Ugh! She was being distracted by other matters! No, she couldn’t let someone like him bully her into fear otherwise she wouldn’t be able to board this boat. And that in turn wouldn’t allow her to go to the island and write her story. She had to get there no matter what!
“And what do you hope to accomplish if you found out who it was?” Yang intently stared at her, curious as to how she would respond.
Liliana blinked her eyes in confusion. Why was he toying with her like this? What did it matter to him if he wasn’t the person? Unfortunately, she had little choice but to go along with him because she had a feeling this stranger was the man who bought off her room. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be wasting his time with her.
“I… I booked that room. I would like to sleep in there.” Liliana swallowed hard as she answered.
Oh, goodness. She had a feeling this man was a criminal of some sort especially from the slimy way he spoke, so she obviously had to be careful. But she also had to be firm or else she wouldn’t be taken seriously.
Yang quietly sighed with a sly smile, “How would you sleep in there if it’s not under your name anymore?”
Liliana frowned at his question. She could tell this conversation was going to go in circles if she didn’t just cut to the chase.
“Are you the man who bought my room off?” Liliana disregarded his nonsensical question and inquired in a straightforward manner.
“Must you be fed all the answers? It’s boring to converse with someone who doesn’t use their brain in the slightest.” Yang seriously said to her, disliking how she dared not play along with him.
He wished to string her along some more, but she treated it like it was a waste of time. For some reason, that made him upset. How could this woman treat his words like it wasn’t worth her attention?
Liliana could feel his deathly glare boring holes into her, but she cast it aside. “You must be because you keep on conversing with me. But you’re refusing to let me sleep there when you rightfully know that I already booked that room. Why else are you spending your time speaking with me?”
He carefully stared at the woman who had so much fire in those eyes, an unrelenting kind of fire, one that irritated him when he saw it in others. But that expression in those emerald eyes also interested him because very few looked at him with such audacity. He didn’t count those foolish policemen or other criminals like him because they lived and breathed in danger. But she was a normal civilian. He knew very well what she did for a living – chasing down dangerous stories and playing the hero at times.
Normally, he found people like her who masqueraded as some hero in the name of ‘justice’ mundane. However, this woman. This peculiar woman.
Suddenly, he very much wanted to uncover what made her tick and crush that persistent spirit she possessed with his very hands. Yes, he very much wanted to play with her. In fact, he decided then and there he would make her his new toy.
“If you so want to sleep here tonight and travel on this boat, then I have a proposition to make.” Yang gleefully smiled with a bright gleam in his eyes.
Liliana couldn’t believe that he ignored her question. Argh! But that only proved he was most definitely the culprit!
“And what would that be?” Liliana nervously asked, knowing that he had nothing decent in mind.
“I’ve come here by myself, and it’s quite terribly dreadful being here alone.” Yang explained his predicament, hoping she would understand what he meant.
Liliana gaped at his implication and immediately responded, “If you are looking for someone like that, then look for someone else. That is not my job!”
She was a reporter! A journalist! She did not accompany men like that in her free time. She had better things to do!
Yang chuckled, finding her predictable but rash reaction hilarious. Did this woman really think so naïve? She could be so intelligent yet so stupid. Was that even possible?
“Do you not understand your situation? You are so desperate to be here despite having no room. How else will you reach your destination? Unless you intend to swim your way to where you want to be?” Yang mockingly said to her, finding all of it quite amusing.
Liliana flapped her lips, but she couldn’t exactly deny his words. It didn’t help he was messing around with her out of pure enjoyment. No, no, no. She couldn’t lose her cool. She had to remain calm and think about the situation in a clear-headed manner. This man was right. Because he bought off her room, she technically wasn’t a passenger on this boat. She would be thrown off and have no other way of getting to the island.
Technically, she could find other ways to get there, but it would be a hassle, and she might miss her big scoop. In the end, it seemed she had little choice in the matter. She had to agree to “spend time” with him for the duration of this trip until they made it to the island.
“I’m not that kind of indecent woman. But if I am to get to my intended destination, then… fine. I will accompany you as you wish. But-” Liliana was about to lay out her terms, however, she heard that same check-in lady from earlier come rushing towards them.
“Excuse me, ma’am. But you aren’t allowed to come on board without a valid ticket.” She politely spoke to Liliana.
Liliana realized that she made this lady chase after her. Oh, crap. She was probably going to be escorted off by security because of what she did if she didn’t explain her situation.
Yang praised his incredible luck. Ah, what good timing. Now, he wouldn’t have to fall asleep listening to her ridiculous speech. She would have to play on his turf no matter what.
Just as she opened her mouth, Yang smoothly stepped in and wrapped his right arm around her petite waist, bringing her in close to him.
Liliana gasped, but she could hardly say anything because Yang spoke first. “This woman is with me. There isn’t a problem with that, is there?”
Liliana noticed that the staff lady became nervous all of a sudden as if fear struck every inch of her body. She knew it. This man must have been someone quite important. Perhaps he was some powerful criminal or insanely rich businessperson.
“Oh, of course not, sir. Um, please excuse me then.” The lady quickly said before she rushed off without another word.
Once the lady left, Liliana saw how close she was to Yang. Oh god! Why did he bring her in so close? However, in that moment, she felt how toned his body was and got a whiff of his strong but alluring scent. That was interesting. This man wore perfume. It was a spicy, but sharp smell, which seemed to be intended to attract people’s attention. Did he really need to wear one? His outer appearance was already so striking. She doubted he had any problems garnering any attention from others.
“Aren’t you going to say anything? I did save you from a horrible situation.” Yang intentionally brought up.
He could care less about receiving appreciation of any sort. However, he caught her taking note of him and found her behavior humorous. Was she finally taken in by his presence? He mirthfully smirked, imagining what kind of words would escape from those precious, enticing lips of hers.
Liliana gulped as it hit her that she hadn’t made a peep. Then she tried to back away from him, but he gripped onto her waist tightly. Ah! What was this guy doing?!
“Um, I appreciate what you did for me. But please let me go.” Liliana cleared her throat and tried to pry herself away from him.
“You’ve already agreed to accompany me today. Why should I let you go?” Yang closely leaned in as he softly whispered to her. His slim fingers even reached out and carefully traced against her pearly white skin, even outlining those smooth blonde eyebrows.
“I did just save you… Didn’t I?” Yang chuckled, enjoying the sight of Liliana squirming against his tight embrace.
A woman who resisted his touch. He couldn’t wait to break her down. What kind of sound would she make? What kind of facial expression would he see? He found himself becoming more enthusiastic with each passing second.
Liliana gulped as she felt his cold, icy fingers slowly slide against her warm cheek. It made her nervous as her body shivered. She had never been this close to a man, so she would have been anxious under any circumstance. But the way he spoke… it sounded more like a menacing threat despite his casual tone. Not to mention, his fingers felt akin to a cold-blooded snake slithering against her. It was unpleasant and scary.
Yang smugly smiled as he noticed a frightened expression appear within those luscious emerald eyes. There was a certain naivety in it that he despised, but there was also a pure, sweet innocence that drew him in. He became curious, wondering what exactly that innocence of hers tasted like. At first, he wasn’t terribly fond of this trip, but maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
He kicked her suitcases into the room and pulled her inside without another word. Anymore from her, and he might doze off listening to her supposedly righteous words.
“Ahh! Wait!” Liliana cried out as she was being taken along without her consent. “Don’t drag me in!”
Okay, so she did agree to spend the night with him. But this was too close for comfort! She didn’t even know his name!
“Whatever do you mean? Unless you wanted to stay outside. I don’t mind.” Yang nonchalantly said with a pleased countenance on his face.
Liliana’s entire face flushed at his implication. Goodness! This man had no morals, did he?
“I didn’t say that!” Liliana protested at his careless words.
He tightly grabbed her chin and raised it up, forcing her to look at him. He looked down into it with his shimmering golden eyes.
“Then say what you mean. I don’t have time to play riddles.” Yang seriously said, hating it when people beat around the bush.
If there was one thing he couldn’t tolerate, it was when people treated him like an idiotic fool. Humans were beings capable of speaking words and thinking clearly. Thus, he expected others to act and treat him the same.
Liliana almost expected him to be rough and brusque, perhaps even using force to make her listen to him. Instead, he simply spoke in an even tone that dripped with an ominous aura.
“I understand.” Liliana responded, hoping he wouldn’t do anything physical to her.
He chuckled at her obedient response and gently let her chin go. It would be no fun if he gave her the response she was expecting. That would be too boring. Plus, he didn’t feel like working up a sweat right now. He would catch her unaware and off guard. That would make her reactions so much more deliciously sweet.
“Why are you giving me that look?” Yang taunted her as he stepped away from her to sit down.
“What?” Liliana stared at him in bewilderment.
This dangerously handsome man. She couldn’t understand him at all. He was like an unpredictable storm, impossible to forecast and capable of probably wreaking havoc if he chose to do so.
“Almost makes me want to smother you with kisses.” Yang grinned with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
“Real funny.” Liliana decided not to respond to his tactics as she continued to stand by the doorway.
She couldn’t let her guard down around this horrible man. Otherwise, he might pull a fast one on her.
“You don’t have to be so uptight. It’s not as if I’m going to kill you.” Yang snorted at Liliana being wound so tight.
He laid back down on the sofa, not bothering with whatever she wished to do. It would be no fun if he had done something to her now. Why move when people predicted you to do so? To him, it was much more thrilling to strike your opponents down when they least expected it. Oh, well. He had plenty of time on his hands. In fact, time was all he had at the current moment. He could wait very patiently until the right moment.
Liliana was surprised when he simply rested on the couch and closed his eyes, choosing to sleep. She… didn’t expect him to do that at all. Strange. It was probably a blessing in disguise because she wasn’t sure how much longer she could handle his precarious behavior. At least she could get a reprieve from his wily ways.
She decided to sit at the table and noticed a newspaper lying on top of the table. Huh? An Italian newspaper? She didn’t peg this man to be keeping up with politics and economics. Well, that was wrong of her to make such an assumption. It wasn’t good to judge people by their outer appearance alone. Maybe he did read in his spare time.
She quietly pushed it aside and made room so she could use the table. Normally, she would take out her notepad and pencil to start jotting down some thoughts. But she had a sneaky feeling this stranger would be observing her every move. Thus, she decided to crack open a book instead. She couldn’t reveal who she was. It wasn’t any of his business regardless of who he was. No, she wouldn’t falter.
XOXOXOXO
Dante had been anxiously pacing around the room, awaiting news from Nicola. He couldn’t believe it. How could this be? When he headed to the church yesterday, he had been informed that Liliana had taken two weeks off on some romantic blind date trip, which frankly shocked him to the core. He wasn’t aware Liliana was actively seeking a partner.
He first came to meet Liliana because he periodically donated money to the church, and she tended to cover stories relating to the mafia, the church, and the politics. Despite her occupation as being a journalist, he couldn’t help but be fond of her. He admired the way she worked hard and never gave up despite all of the dangers and obstacles that stood in her way. In fact, she never let danger stop her from pursuing what mattered to her most – the truth.
He sighed, feeling restless and anxiously gazed out at the window. He had already sailed off to the island and was riding in one of the Falzone’s family private boats. Officially, he was visiting one of his relatives who lived on this small luxury island meant for those with special connections. However, his real reason for being there was a different purpose. Of course, at the time he planned this “work trip”, he had no idea Liliana would also be there.
He heard a knock on the door and immediately perked up at the sound. He hastily rushed over, almost tripping on his own foot, and flung the door opened.
“Nicola?” Dante breathlessly called out as if he ran a mile.
“Whoa. You looked like you went through a hurricane of some sort.” Nicola jokingly commented as he noticed Dante’s hair a bit messier than usual, which deviated from how clean and crisp he presented himself.
“This isn’t the time for jokes.” Dante frowned at Nicola’s frivolous words and sighed, stiffly crossing his arms. “Were you able to find out what I asked for?”
Nicola quietly nodded and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. It was rare Dante ever asked him to look into things unrelated to the mafia. In fact, Dante seemed to be concerned about a particular woman who worked for some small, local newspaper company.
“I think you’re wasting your time worrying about someone like her. She has no relation to us.” Nicola came out to speak his honest feelings.
If he didn’t know any better, it appeared Dante cared quite a lot about her. Dare he say, he even loved this woman. Of course, Dante vehemently denied it, but Nicola knew better since they grew up together. Although why Dante liked her had completely befuddled him.
“Nicola.” Dante frowned, displeased to hear Nicola’s words.
Nicola sighed, quietly dropping the subject for now, then he added, “It’s as you said. She’s headed for the island. I had one of the men find out who she was paired up with.”
Dante anxiously waited to hear the rest of information. However, Nicola paused in deep thought. Something about the way Nicola hesitated to continue right away made Dante fearful. In fact, that only meant news. The pit of Dante’s stomach flipped upside down in gut-wrenching concern. He almost didn’t want to hear what Nicola had to say anymore. But no. He couldn’t hesitate. He was a capo, and he couldn’t show any hesitation or fear.
“What is it?” Dante narrowed his eyes.
“Well, I said she has no relation to us. But… I think that may change very soon.” Nicola slowly said, wondering if Dante would understand what he meant.
For some strange reason, Dante had taken a liking to this woman, Liliana, who was a journalist. However, her stories focused on corruption, politics, and how it was all connected to the mafia. To him, she meant dangerous business because her stories lead to arrests and trouble for anyone who was featured in it… which were mostly criminals to begin with. But that still didn’t bode well for them. They were the mafia after all.
Dante swallowed hard with his worst fears being confirmed through Nicola’s cryptic words. “You can’t be serious.”
“If only I was joking. And it’s the biggest old rat himself.” Nicola dryly chuckled, not liking the situation one bit.
If Dante lost track sight of their goals because of his feelings for this woman, then this whole operation would turn out to be a waste. Thus, Nicola already concocted several plans to whisk that woman away from Yang’s deathly grips. He knew Dante would never approve of it, but Dante didn’t need to know, per say. As long as Liliana ‘voluntarily’ left and was out of Yang’s hands, who was complaining?
Dante peered over at the clock on the wall and contemplated how he should proceed. The situation escalated into the worst possible scenario. He had to figure out a way to persuade Liliana before she became too deeply involved with matters beyond her comprehension.
“What do you want to do?” Nicola asked when he didn’t hear Dante say a word.
“I need to meet with her as soon as I get there. Make it possible.” Dante commanded.
The last thing he wanted was Liliana, an innocent civilian, to become involved in their underbelly world of mafia and gangsters. She may have been a journalist, digging up crimes. But she had little idea of what awaited her in the darkest depths of the mafia world. He vowed he would do anything within his power to protect her. No matter what.