Indebted to the Mafia King
A Different Morning

Chloe

It's been one week since I last saw Tony and I'm losing it. That's the only way I know how to put it. My days are all the same, nothing happens, and having no news from Tony or his men back in New York is leaving me awake at night, too anxious to relax.

Only God knows how many times I pondered calling him, checking in on him, or anything at all to ease my mind, but nothing I do seems to work. Whenever I ask Rocco or any of the guys outside to let me know what's going on, they always tell me the same thing-they are not allowed to give me any information.

And what annoys me the most is the fact that even with all of this happening, I can't find it in me to hate Tony. I simply can't. All I care about is knowing he is all right.

I have no idea what he and Cal did with the little information I gave them about Mateo. Judging by how calm his men seem to be though, I can only assume that nothing major has happened yet.

My mornings look all the same, where Mom and I do our best to keep ourselves entertained while taking shifts to watch Ellie and take care of the house. Not being able to go out has also taken its toll on Ellie, who seems to be more irritated than usual.

But today, when I go downstairs for breakfast, something feels different. I can't tell what it is at first, nothing out of the ordinary seems to have happened while I was in my room getting ready for the day. Mom is giving Ellie her breakfast in front of the TV while the soldiers are cheerfully talking to each other outside.

"Good morning, Mom. Morning, sweetheart," I greet, giving my daughter a kiss on the forehead. "Is everything okay?" I ask my mom. It's become a habitual question of mine, an attempt to get anything she might know out of her. But her answer is also always the same.

"Yes, everything's great," she replies. "Did you sleep well?"

I nod, even though she is not looking at me. I plop on the couch, too depressed to head to the kitchen and pour myself a cup of coffee. The weather outside is cold this morning, and that's why I decided to wash my hair as soon as I woke up and changed into a set of comfortable sweatpants and hoodie. It's not like I have anyone to impress here anyway.

"You're not having breakfast? I made waffles," my mother asks, stopping with Ellie's spoon of mashed bananas midair, frowning at me.

"I'm not really hungry," I grumble, laying down on the couch.

I feel her eyes studying me, and a few times, she opens and closes her mouth to say something but decides against it. I count to ten, knowing she won't let it go though.

"Listen, I'll take Ellie to the park today with the guards," she informs me.

I sit up straight, surprised to hear this. "What? Why?"

She shrugs at me, as if this is nothing big. "Honestly, we're all bored in this house, and Dice assured me there was no problem going outside as long as they come with us." "You don't like going out with the guards," I remind her, my frown deepening.

"I know. But I thought it'd be nice to get out of the house and also give you some time alone." Her voice is softer and kinder this time, and I can see the empathy in her eyes.

Mom knows how much I'm suffering being trapped in this house, away from Tony, and not knowing what is going on back home with him and Mateo, so I truly appreciate her doing this for me.

I can definitely use some time to myself, and since Dice guaranteed they would be safe, it makes me more at ease.

"Thank you, Mom," I whisper, looking at my hands. "Are you really okay going out though?"

She nods eagerly at me. "Absolutely. I could use some time at the mall as well, just getting some new stuff for myself...and Ellie. Right, baby? Grandma will buy you something really nice today."

She turns to Ellie, receiving a huge smile and excited claps in return. Ellie tries to say something, but it comes out as an incomprehensible babbling that none of us can interpret.

After breakfast, they leave the house, and I immediately feel like this wasn't as good as I'd originally thought it would be. It's not like I have much to do here by myself, anyway. Books and the TV only keep me entertained for a couple of hours, and after that, I need to be creative and find something else to do.

The house is sparkling, the clothes are washed, and there are no dishes in the sink. I wouldn't like to spend my free time doing house chores, either. However, since I didn't have breakfast, my stomach growls when it gets close to noon.

I spend some time at the kitchen, preparing a quick meal for myself and also deciding to bake a cake for when Mom is back with Ellie.

It's almost 4pm when I start getting uneasy. Mom hasn't reached out since she left, and I had no clue she was planning on spending the entire day out. I call her a couple of times, but she doesn't answer.

I'm immediately nervous.

I ponder calling Dice or one of the guys, but opt for calling Mom one last time. I am almost giving up when she picks up the phone.

"Good Lord, Mom! Why didn't you answer the first time I called? Is everything all right?" I blurt, scolding her even before she has the chance to say 'hello'.

"I was playing with Ellie," she tells me defensively. "You were supposed to be relaxing. I told you we'd be fine. Why are you so worked up?"

I gasp in disbelief. Is she kidding me right now?

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because we're in the middle of a mafia war and there are literally people out there looking for us and wanting our heads on stakes?" I counter bitterly. "What are you thinking, Mom? It wouldn't hurt to give me some news every once in a while."

"I know, I know. I am sorry. I thought you'd be...doing something better," she points out, a note of something in her voice that I can't interpret.

That's when the alarm of the house goes off, almost deafening me.

"Fuck," someone hisses from the front door, and my body is instantly on alert.

Who the hell is here? Did any of the guards try to come inside and forgot to type the password? They wouldn't make such a stupid mistake though, would they?

It takes less than thirty seconds for the alarm to be turned off.

"Jesus Christ, why does it have to be so loud?" the same voice grumbles.

Frowning and confused, I slowly walk toward the entrance, aware that if this was someone trying to kill me, they wouldn't be announcing their presence so easily and amateurly.

But what I find, or better yet, who I find staring back at me when I get to the foyer is the last person I was expecting to see today.

"I'll call you later, Mom," I whisper to the phone, not bothering to wait for an answer before hanging up.

Tony is looking back at me from across the room. His ice blue gaze holds on mine, his gaze so intense I almost lose my balance.

"What are you doing here?" I manage to ask.

He looks somewhat out of breath, almost as if he had run to get here.

"I just had to fucking see you," he tells me, striding across the room toward me.

In a blink of an eye, his arms wrap around my waist, pulling me hard against his chest. His intoxicating cologne encases me in a bubble, and I instantly melt in his arms. I am thankful that he's holding me so tight, because I don't trust my legs to keep me steady right now.

I might be dreaming. This is the only explanation for Tony to be here, in this house, holding me in his arms.

"Did something happen?" I ask in a whisper, searching his face for any sign of trouble or worse, a wound.

But he just shakes his head at me, reassuring me nothing bad happened. Then he leans forward, sealing our lips together, devouring me like only he knows how.