Filed to story: Bring It On My Mafia Life Novel (Rhea & Lukas)
Being the last child out of the family of five siblings – all male – who made it their responsibility to ensure that their baby brother was properly catered for, Elijah had always felt his ability was underrated.
With his four brothers already leaving their marks in the underworld, Elijah felt there was no space for him and so he decided to leave, and here he was, already making a name for himself. The phantom ghost? It made his lips curl in satisfaction. However, the only thing that would make him truly satisfied now would be retrieving Rhea.
Once he had Rhea, he would go to his elder brother and demand his own territory to rule. It could be anywhere in the world and all he needed to do was just to say the word and it was done.
Once he had his kingdom, he would settle down with Rhea, and together, they would rule their kingdom, have a lot of kids, and live happily ever after.
But for now, he had to focus on messing around with Lukas and if it pleases him, perhaps crumble his kingdom as well?
No, Eric would give him an earful if that were to happen. The Luciano family might not be as powerful as they were but they were old and had quite an influence.
…..
If both factions were to go to war, his family was sure to win but it wouldn’t be easy at all and there was one percent chance of the tide turning against them if Lukas manages to snag enough supporters.
As much as they were a strong family, there was still power in numbers – and Lukas would be sure to take advantage of that. A king cannot win a war without his knights.
“You must be the newbie if you’re tugging at your tie like that,” a fellow guard struck up a conversation with him out of nowhere and as much as Elijah would love to roll his eyes and give him the silence, he couldn’t.
He was using a fake identity here and from his profile, he was known to have a bubbling personality. The people here were quite sensitive to details, deviate from that personality for far too long and questions were sure to be asked.
Aside from that, Elijah wanted to focus on his mission and that meant he needed no conflict with his colleagues. Bullying in the workplace was a common thing but he can’t let one be a hindrance to his plan or risk his identity, hence he wanted minimal confrontation by all means.
So he flashed a sheepish grin at the man, behaving like an ignorant newbie, “Ah, yes. I’m not used to wearing ties,” Well, turns out his dislike for ties worked out in his favor.
The man laughed, hitting him playfully on the back, “Don’t worry, I was once in your position.”
Although it was an innocent gesture, Elijah who was not used to having people touch him easily tensed up. His guard was up but seeing that the man meant no harm, he relaxed eventually. He nervously laughed alongside him.
“You don’t need to worry much, you’d get used to it. But at the moment, you have to put up with it because our spoiled princess is quite meticulous and fussy about appearances. So unless you don’t want to get on her bad side, I suggest you exercise patience.” The man gave him the heads up.
“In that case, thank you.” Aziz kept up with his bright appearance and the man seemed satisfied with his gratitude.
But when he wasn’t looking, Elijah sighed. He’d have to go through all of this trouble for that spoiled brat? He stared at the teenage pop singer from backstage entertaining her zealous fans.
“I really loved your fight,”
“Huh?”
Elijah was beginning to get bothered by this man. Why was he even talking to him? The others on the security details had pretty much snubbed him which was fine by him. He didn’t come here to make friends nor need him with his identity at risk.
Everyone here was loyal to the Luciano family – or a double spy. Just like him, it was not uncommon for fellow gangs to infiltrate one another for information – or assassinate a target in the worst-case scenario. Hence, he couldn’t warm up or trust anyone. And he worked better alone.
“I watched your fight,” The man reminded him by poorly demonstrating the way he knocked John out, “That was quite dope, man.” he praised him.
“You watched it?” Elijah was more concerned about the phrase ‘watch’
“Yep,” The man said, “The video circulated quite a lot. Why do you think you were promoted quickly?”
“Oh.” Elijah looked calm but inwardly, his mind was working. He knew that fight would attract attention, not popularity. Hopefully, that video didn’t spread to the outside because he was currently using his real identity.
Well, it’s not like anyone outside of his family knows what he looks like since his brothers did a good job of keeping him “safe”.
But then, that means his brother’s assistant would be on his tail again.
Damn.
Right Next To Lukas
After their father died, as the eldest son, their brother Eric had taken the burden upon himself to bind the family together and move the family business forward. And that involved taking care of their father’s favorite son. Him.
Unlike most families where the siblings fought for leadership and were at each other’s throats, it wasn’t the case in theirs. They were blessed in the sense that all five of them grew up together in love and harmony, making sure to look out for each other.
Although their father loved them equally, it was obvious to everyone that Elijah had been his favorite son. Maybe because Elijah was the last child the love of his life gave him before she left this world? No one could tell why he loved him exceptionally.
But then, while the other siblings would tire out on the training ground, Elijah would be seated beside his father, munching on his snacks and watching the fight – even though he wanted to join his brothers.
Perhaps their father wanted the boy to live a normal life because, unlike the others, Elijah began his training at a later age. However, it eventually began clear to everyone that he was designed for this lifestyle because he was a prodigy.
Elijah was a natural; he excelled at everything. A skill that everyone found difficult, just a trial and he was already efficient at it without even trying hard. Many guessed it was because he had capable siblings, so he picked it up easily from years of watching and following them around. Either way, it was obvious he was special.
Even at that, his siblings were not jealous, if anything they were glad their baby brother was not a dead weight. But even as “special” as Elijah was – people claimed – he didn’t feel complete. Thus, he left to find what he was missing, a purpose, and look where that led him.
Cindy was done with her show in no time and that gossipy colleague finally let him be – he didn’t get his name though and didn’t care about it either.
She was welcomed backstage by the first batch of security, thus Elijah, the unnamed guard, and another were extra.
…..
Even at that, when Cindy passed them by, she halted in her step and all three of them straightened instantly. They wondered inwardly the reason for the sudden halt yet none of them made eye contact with her.
To everyone’s surprise, Cindy passed the first and second guard, stopping directly in front of Elijah. There was a smirk on the faces of three of the senior guards escorting her.
They thought that Aziz had probably gotten himself in trouble. Everyone knew that Cindy was picky and it had taken them more than courage and hard-work to be part of this team yet some pretty face from nowhere had a stroke of luck and joined them. It was unfair.
All of them held their breath in anticipation waiting for the moment Cindy lashed out at him for a fault they had no idea about. However, for a newbie, he was taking the tension real well. Aziz had a stoic expression and showed no nervousness contrary to their expectations.
Cindy didn’t do anything, she simply observed Aziz who stared back quite boldly and the move would have been seen as arrogant if he suddenly didn’t back down, asking in a lowered tone, “Do you need anything, Miss?”
Cindy didn’t answer, rather she reached out and everyone tensed, waiting for the punishment she was about to inflict on the new guard, but all she did was work on his tie and each of them raised a brow. What was going on here?
Elijah didn’t say a word nor did the other guards interrupt either. They simply watched as the young girl straightened Aziz’s tie and when she was done, pressed it flat against his chest saying, “A handsome face like you deserves more than a crooked tie. Find me the next time you need help with that.” She winked at him.
But Elijah was quick to douse out the flame of ambition in her eyes, “Don’t worry, I’ll manage it better the next time,”
At once, the fellow guards looked at Aziz like he had lost his mind. Although Cindy had a nasty attitude, she was backed by a powerful family so she was treated like a goddess. Hence, Elijah seems like a crazy dude to them for declining her kind gesture.
“Can’t wait to see it then,” Cindy said interestedly. She then turned to the Captain, “He’s on this team, right?”