Mastermind

VENUS

I know it's a sham, but how bad does it have to be?

Turns out there were more of them. This is a serious breach of security, and whoever orchestrated this must have been planning this for a while. He also must have been well-equipped.

Maybe an inside job? Because how the hell are the security men outside unreliable? Unless they were in on this. Someone paid them all.

There are so many theories that one could come up with, except this is not actually the time to think about all that. All the wedding guests have been taken hostage.

They had announced that they interfered with the communication system and whoever tried to make any call wouldn’t have any success. I have no idea with what’s going on with the security outside, because the ones that were inside have been outsmarted. Damn, these guys are good.

No one would ever try this if they ever loved their lives. So, I have so many questions.

We have never been at a weak point like this.

No one can do anything. The new men are now in control.

The one who's with lots of explosives is standing at the altar, yelling some warnings.

Everyone's sitting still, waiting for instructions.

I mean, when has something like this ever happened in the mafia world?

This is like the rare apocalypse that happens once in a century.

Renato and I have been given front seats too. No one can do anything. Not even my father. One look at him, he's on the verge of drilling a hole underground.

There are some little murmurs, and the men shut them down. One of them stands at the altar and raises his gun, shooting up. Again, creating more perplexes in the air.

“Listen carefully,” he begins.

“This is going to be easy if you cooperate.”

Now I'm starting to really wonder what these guys’ end game is. Do they really know the consequences of their actions? Well, silly question. They clearly know what they are doing, and they look like they have a grand plan.

While giving credit, I could give them a lot. It takes so much to make this actually happen.

The next statement leaves me flabbergasted. First, he glances at me and I return the favor. I look back without blinking.

“We want the bride to come with us. That’s all.”

What is that even supposed to mean?

“If you let us go peacefully with her, then this is going to be easy for everyone. No one needs to get hurt.” Their threat is as clear.

“You're not going anywhere with my daughter!” my father shouts.

It doesn't take seconds before a gun is pointed straight at his head.

My heart skips in panic.

“Are you willing to bet on that?” asks the man with the gun on my father's head.

I wouldn't put it past the to kill him right now. And I cannot lose him because of a simple instruction. I'm not ready for that kind of pain again.

“I'll go with you,” my mouth utters before my brain can register what I've just said.

“At least someone here values life.” He comments with a grin.

—----------

A few moments later, I'm in the abductors’ car. They've peacefully led me in, leaving some of their men to take care of the situation behind.

Everything is still a mystery to me.

The key question being, how all this became possible. The only thing that makes sense in my mind is that there must have been traitors in our organization. Which only means the situation at home is just as fucked up.

That aside, who are these men, and what do they want with me?

Two men are seated next to me, while the other one is driving at a speed that could compete with lightning. They still have their masks on, and my hands are tied.

“Who are you guys, and what do you want?”

They maintain their silence ignoring my inquiries.

“If money is the issue-”

“This heiress can't keep calm,” one of them says, as he takes a piece of cloth from his pocket.

“What are you doing? I did what you asked?”

I can't believe this is happening. Is this the day I die? I always knew a day was coming, but this is not how I imagined it to be. Being kidnapped by strangers? On the exact day of my fake wedding?

Just when we thought we were one hundred percent careful and nothing could go wrong.

The man ties the piece of clothing between my lips. I end up with my hands tied, and my lips sealed. The best I can do is groan. How helpless does one have to be? I hate this.

I thought the worst part was that I'm in a fucking wedding gown. As if that's not enough, they blindfold me, too. Talking about these guys having a perfect plan. Now I have no idea where they are taking me.

—---------------

I'm in a fancy room in a place I know nothing about. The blindfold was just taken off a few minutes ago. This could be a five-star hotel for all I know. Everything in it looks like it cost a dime. Starting from the comfy bed. There's a black couch on one side, with a coffee table. On the left side, a dressing mirror and table. It looks like they made this room for me.

I thought kidnappers put their hostages in dark or empty rooms. Tie them up and do all sorts of torturous things. Depending on the skill and preference. From experience. Don't judge. I grew up in a mafia syndicate.

Kidnapping and locking me up in a five-star room has to be on another level. Either way, I don't have time to scan everything in the room. I surely don't care about any of that. My mind is racing at a million questions per minute. The men brought me here, locked the door, and left. That's not a good way to treat a client, really.

I'm looking for an escape route, and the window is my first option. I peek to see how many floors I have to jump without breaking every bone in my body. Just my unlucky day. The ground is so far away. The only thing I'll gain by jumping is death with crushed bones.

Besides, I'm still in my wedding gown. How would that work for me?

From the view, I can’t tell which part of the city we’re in. I’m still standing at the window and I capture the view of a lake. I must be on the last floor of the building. I can’t even begin to count the number of floors in this building.

From the strings they pulled, they are capable of taking me to Jupiter. If Jupiter has lakes in it, that is. How would I even know? My mother was the one fascinated by the solar system and the galaxy at large. Is that where she got her name from? Now I’m thinking about her again. I hate the helpless situation.

I wonder what went down in that church after they got their prize, me. Not only that, but I'm worried and angry at the same time. What do I have to do now? I've been asking myself who the mastermind behind all this is. I try to think of a million possibilities.Trying to gather a list of enemies in my head. My father has many enemies out there.

That's one norm of being the boss of a mafia syndicate.

That's not to say that I'm a saint. The one enemy my father and I agree on is Ramon Garcia. That's right. I hate him. Only Lola understands the depth of my hate and how personally I take it. My father on the other hand, might only know it above the surface. Especially because he thinks I’m still in the dark about some past events.

But my hatred for Ramon Garcia grows with every blink of an eye.

I orchestrated plans before, but I was careful enough for nothing to be traced back to me.

There's no way he would have found out about my moves, right?

Besides, he's supposed to be in a coma, the last I checked.

Am I grasping at straws or are my missions coming back to bite me in the ass? Either way, I don't regret it. I would do it again and again. Even if it kills me.

My train of thoughts is interrupted when the door cracks open. I walk away from the window.

I'm still ready to fight, even though I know it's clearly a losing battle.

A slim guy with well-kept brown hair walks in right after locking the door behind him.

“Who are you and what do you want with me?” I ask immediately.

He's not here to kill me, right?

As he's not carrying any weapon.

“I just came to welcome you,” he says, crossing his arms, with a slight grin.

Huh? How noble.

Besides, their welcoming act is not what I’m concerned about right now.

“Who's behind all this?” I ask.

“If it's about money…”

I've said it again, and he cuts me short, raising a hand in the hair.

“It's not always about money, Venus.”

And he knows my name.

“Did Ramon send you?” I ask. That’s what has stayed long enough in my mind.

But I realize how silly it sounds. The man is not in a good position right now and he confirms it.

“Oh, Ramon should be the least of your worries.”

Then who should I be worried about?

“Well, I just came to inform you that the boss will see you in an hour?”

“The boss?” I inquire.

“Yes, Ramon's son.”