Claimed By The Ruthless Mafia Lord: Chapters 1–5

"Laurel...I have told you times without numbers that I can't make it to thanksgiving. Give me some credit. I work my ass out here every day. I don't exactly play around."

Laurel Marco rolled her eyes as she made her way out of her apartment. She listened carefully, only to sigh when her sister harshly explained why she wouldn't make it to thanksgiving. It was the same excuse over and over again. It was so unlike her to argue with her sister.

"I understand." Laurel whispered in an assuring tone. "But, how about you make it in time for the New Year’s celebration? Don’t say no this time around!"

It became quiet suddenly and Laurel wondered if she had stretched her luck once again.

"Antonia, are you still there?" Laurel whispered, sparing a quick glance over her wrist watch. The wrist-watch she would soon put into her bag. You can never trust the streets or the people walking in it either!

"I am sorry for the break in transmission. Are you just going home?" Antonia, Laurel's big sister who had chased her dreams of becoming a scientist and made a name for herself, asked over the phone. Her tone was harsh.

Laurel shook her head as a shiver ran through her spine. Must be the cold, She thought and scanned the deserted street with her beady eyes.

The perks of working in a club...Yay! Laurel celebrated sarcastically, deciding to ignore her sister's question. She wasn't surprised to hear Antonia's disapproving tone.

Was anything she did right?

"I taught you better than this Laurel. How could you go against my orders? I chose to come here because of you, yet you disobey me!"

Laurel zoned out. It was during one of these rare calls that she zoned out. She admitted not being able to look for a better job but, she won't listen to her sister talk low and dirty of her while seated on a high throne. She has to do something. Fast.

"Cluck, Cluck, cluck, Antonia? I can’t hear you..." She coughed into the phone. That was so fake... Laurel herself could feel the annoyance coupled with disappointment laced in her high pitched tone.

She hoped Antonia felt it too.

With that thought, she pressed the hang up button, feeling relieved after hearing the familiar hang-up beep. By the time she looked up from her screen, she was at the club.

The name Bounce was boldly and beautifully written in cursive handwriting on a board. It was stationed for all eyes to see at the top of the roof. Laurel smiled as she saw the little multicolored lights come on.

It was why she had chosen to work at the club, knowing she could spend all night staring at those lights which made her dizzy, but blended well with the night.

Even from a distance, you could see those welcoming lights. Call her cheesy, it is what it is.

Suddenly there was a black out. Puzzled, Laurel wondered about the few times she came into the club only to find it locked from the inside. Usually, there were no lights. She knew what to do. It seems today wasn’t going to be an exception.

She swiped her phone screen and checked the last message she received from her co-worker. Matteo.

“Laurel darling, could you help me with my shift? I am feeling a little dizzy. Thank you!”

She could practically hear Matteo's high pitched voice, whispering ‘darling’ into her ears. She placed her phone into her bag and made her way into the club. There was a path into the club no one knew except for close workers.

It was such a good thing that Laurel had a locker of her own. It was where she kept her bags, away from the hungry wolves that pretended to ask her for a date and ended up stripping her of her golden properties.

The tiny hall which contained 5 lockers and iron chairs attached to the floor was eerily quiet. It was the way she liked it. Unlike busy days when she couldn't even trust anyone and had to look over her shoulders every two seconds.

Laurel knew she was being overdramatic but blamed that on the fact that she has been alone most parts of her life and a 25 year old lady, living alone in the streets of New York was like handing a piece of yam to a goat.

She was the yam. Ever ripe and ready to be gobbled up by the men in the streets of New York.

Getting to her locker, she rummaged for her keys from the little Versace bag she had gotten as a birthday present from Matteo.

As soon as she turned the key into the locker, she heard a loud noise coming from the main-dance arena. It was what they called where the VIP’s pay to have fun.

Laurel froze. “What was that?” She noticed that not only was the Tiny Hall dark, it was also void of humans.

It was very unusual.

Laurel had been so caught up in her thoughts that she failed to grasp the condition of her environment. She had used her memory to find her locker in the dark! With that realization and trembling fingers, she picked up her emergency touch from the locker.

The touch light casted it’s blinding lights around the Tiny Hall. What had Laurel expected to find? There was nothing but utter silence.

Eventually, the lights blinked on and Laurel inhaled sharply. It was satisfying to see those bright lights once again.

"I am being paranoid over nothing," Laurel whispered to herself while wearing her work apron and closing her locker. She placed her keys into the right pocket of her apron.

Time for work! She nodded to herself as if to convince herself that working in Bounce club was great.

She just wasn't expecting to find the feet of what looked like a man peeking from the corner. She froze.

Laurel’s heart flew to her mouth as she slowed her movements. Was he dead? Laurel asked herself as she studied the bloodied feet. She raised her head up and a small whimper left her mouth as she saw a splash of blood on the walls.

She turned to look at the feet of the man, gasping when the feet was suddenly dragged away by someone in thick black rain boots. Curiosity got the best of her as she followed the sound.

Unfortunately, Laurel wasn’t as discreet as she thought she was. A strained whimper left her as she saw more blood.

The body stopped moving.

Oh shit! He heard me… Laurel figured when she started to hear heavy footsteps heading to her direction. She frantically looked around trying to find a weapon she could use.

It was all over.

Thick black rain boots stopped in front of her. Laurel ducked quickly as Boots man looked intensely at her direction. He was looking for her.

She willed herself to breathe slowly so that she wouldn't make the mistake of whimpering again.

Laurel prayed profusely to the heavens that her curiosity would end there. But of course, the heavens didn't listen. They were not in control of her body anyway. She was.

She knew she had to check out the main-dance arena instead of running back home. Either this or her curiosity would not be satisfied.

As she peeled herself from the hiding spot, she could neither find the body nor Boots man. She tiptoed gingerly to the main-dance arena, the place she heard the sound from.

Then she saw it. A handful of heavily armed men sitting while…

A man was strapped to one of the chairs. He had tears and blood gushing down his face. Laurel almost didn't see the double barrel gun pointing at his forehead. The bloodied man was trying to say something desperately but he couldn't because he was gagged.

Boots man was the one holding the gun. His face showed no emotions as he pulled the trigger.

Laurel unwillingly chose to do one thing. She let out a bloodcurdling scream. This turned the attention of all the men to her.

The whole blood scenes and all made her dizzy. She was out cold before she got to the floor.

After laurel’s great fall:

Boots man, who had shot the bloodied man, was dumbfounded. He was sure he heard a whimper earlier but he couldn't decipher where it was from.

Who is this? He asked himself in wonder critically looking at the sprawled out figure on the cold floor.

“Luis!” He called to another.

“What is this young lady doing here?”

Luis swallowed. “Sorry boss. I had already sent her a message, telling her to help me with my night shift. That was before Silas called and told me that they have the traitor in chains.”

Boots man sighed as he handed the gun back to his third in command. “Let this incident never repeat itself again.” He knelt down to scan the body of the unconscious lady. I thought I heard something earlier…so, it was you.” Boots man asked himself in amusement. She must have been terrified.

Killing a traitor himself made Boots man satisfied. This traitor stole from him. He even closed a deal with Silas, his second in command who pretended he was on the traitor’s side just to find the mole among themselves.

The traitor had struck a drug deal worth millions and was about to deliver his drugs to the so-called buyer. Unfortunately for him, Silas seized him and he was brought to Bounce. The club was supposed to be emptied out by Luis.

“She looks terrified. Look how pale she is.” Boots man murmured guiltily.

He gently brushed her bangs off her face. What he saw made him gasp. He didn't want the crew to know how he felt when he saw her face. Although she looked pale, he couldn't help but admire her beauty.

Her face held so much innocence that Boots man almost slapped himself for scaring her to the point of unconsciousness.

Her perfectly carved eyebrows gave him the impression that she was angry but he knew she wasn't. Her long lashes fanned her cheeks and for a second, Boots man thought she was soundly asleep.

"Take her to the car. It's been a long night." Boots man stood up from where he was with unusual emotions brewing through him.

Luis cleared his throat as he pointed to her apron. "Should I remove her apron or?"

Boots man gave him an incredulous look which shut him up. It was Luis’s nature to ask foolish questions during serious moments like this.

A phone beeped and Boots man answered without looking at the caller ID.

"Speak." He paused. "Get me all the information you have on a certain…" He looks at Luis who shrugs. "...lady?"

Silas chuckled deeply on the other end. "Boss. I can't get you all the information you want if you can't give me a name."

"You are right." Boots man cleared his throat, gesturing to Luis for the unconscious girl's name.

"Boss, isn't that Luis? Tell him to check himself if he doesn’t know Laurel Marco. That fool has been hitting on her for years!"

The crew, who were busy, stopped abruptly. Then, they all busted into laughter. It was deafening. Even Lucas couldn't help but chuckle. He ended the call, turning to a dumbfounded Luis. His expression showed he wasn’t happy with what Silas implied. Silas had totally turned the tides against him.

"Yes. Get me all the information you can on your co-worker. You know who I am talking about." Boots man could feel a tightening in his chest. He wondered if she already had a boyfriend.

He wouldn’t be surprised. She had an innocent face.

A girl as beautiful as she is would have men wait in line just to kiss her hands. She is an angel and he was no angel.

Laurel whined as she snuggled deeply into the soft pillow. If she could wish for anything, it was never to get up from the bed.

Well, it wasn’t until what happened in the night flashed through her mind. She jumped from the bed with a start.

"What the heck…" She wondered as she took in her surroundings. Bright lights, soft bed, white sheets, cool breeze blowing in from the window...it could mean only one thing.

"To answer the question on your face, none of my men touched you." A man suddenly said. He was seated close to the open door just in case she wanted to escape.

"Although if I had given the order, Luis would have removed that cute apron sitting on your body…" He continued talking like she wasn't there at all. It gave Laurel the creeps. Then he stood up.

Laurel's heart beat increased in realization. It is Boots man! "Stay away from me!" She scrambled to the far end of the bed. She was sure he wouldn't let her escape. Not after she had seen him kill a man.

"Why are you so afraid? You don't know me." Boots man paused at the foot of the bed, merely meters from where she folded herself.

"I know you well enough and guess what? You are a murder!" Laurel gritted out angrily.

He has no shame, asking her such a question of why he was afraid of her. Laurel narrowed her eyes as she tried to read the emotions on his face.

He was impressively tall, had a day old stubble on his face and even from the distance, Laurel could smell his clean clothes. He was a neat freak and had a weird way of describing things.

Looking at his eyes, she almost gasped at its coldness. It was the eyes of a murderer!

"Relax." Boots man repeated.

Laurel couldn't help but tremble as his deep baritone voice made shivers run through her spine. But she quickly shook of that feeling. "How can I relax when you killed a helpless man in front of me?"

"You shouldn't have seen that. I specifically instructed Luis not to let anyone come to the club yesterday."

Laurel scoffed. "Oh, so I just happened to be there? Where is everybody? Did you finish them off just like you did to that poor man?”

Boots man gritted his jaws. His actions didn't go unnoticed by Laurel as she swallowed. She wondered if this was the moment she would die.

He exhaled. “I am here to inform you that you are to stay in my house. I wouldn't want to stain my beautiful walls with your blood. What you saw at the club is what happens who betrays me. They never live to see the next day."

Laurel recoiled in horror. "Then, let me go home you freak!"

"Luis told me you were feisty. I could have sworn you look so innocent." He shook his head in amusement.

Laurel didn't like his intense gaze. It gave her the creeps in a delicious way.

"Sorry for the spoilers alert." Laurel shrugged. "Now can you tell me, who the hell is Luis?"

"You never give up do you?" Boots man chuckled.

Laurel felt her heartbeat normalize. It wasn't so hard to get to him right? Now, she can find a way to escape. The window was the first choice and Laurel couldn’t wait for him to leave her alone.

"I know your type. You think you've gotten to me...” He suddenly said, shaking his head. "If you try jumping down from here, you could break your neck." He added nonchalantly.

Laurel grimaced. How could he read my thoughts so easily? Was I acting too obvious? "Where is my bag?"

Boots man pointed to the table beside her. Laurel had been so anxious to escape that she had failed to see the table beside her. On it was her bag and phone.

Without thinking of the consequences of her actions, she grabbed the phone, quickly dialing 911. From the corner of her eyes she could see the smirk on his face. He looked so relaxed and it made Laurel wonder if she wasn't making a mistake.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He calmly stated, watching her with those lifeless eyes.

Laurel smirked triumphantly "Stop me if you can." To her horror, the call went straight to voicemail. She dialed and dialed but it didn't go through. "I don't understand…"

"You see, someone took the pains of explaining your personality to me. Luckily I adhered to his warnings. You guessed that person right. Luis." Boots man smirked.

Laurel knew he was teasing her. She saw red. "So you kidnapped me? Why not end it here and now? Why am I held here against my will?"

Boots man tilted his head like he was in deep thoughts. "You are here because you just showed me that you cannot keep your mouth shut. Whatever happened to try not to escape?"

Laurel's eyes glistened with unshed tears. "Please, let me go home. I am too young to die…."

"You are not dying woman!" He yelled, making Laurel scramble further to the far end of the bed.

It was the first time she was seeing him angry during their conversation and Laurel felt the urge to cry. Why was he so concerned about her dying when he had killed a man without flinching?

No matter how she wanted to erase that image from her mind, it was going to be in her mind forever.

Laurel cleared her throat as sudden peace washed over her. It was time to act civilized and negotiate with him over her freedom...

"What now? What do you want from me?"

Boots man sighed as he took his seat. "I don't want you to escape. You might get shot so," He shrugged like it was something he said every day. "I would stay in this room if I were you." He whispered coldly.

Laurel nodded like the obedient child she wasn't. "Okay. I won't try to escape. Can I call my best friend and my boss? I need to let them know that…"

"Know that you have been kidnapped? No darling. You are going to tell them exactly what I tell you.” Boots man looked amused. What is amusing him?

She nodded, dialing Matteo's number. He picked up instantly and his high pitched voice filled the whole room.

Laurel spared a quick glance at Boots man's face but aside from his amused look, his eyes seemed cold. She cleared her throat again. "Matteo! I am on my way home.”

"Yeah...I am so sorry for asking you to take my night shift, Laurel. I shouldn't have...are you okay?" Matteo sounded worried.

"Yeah, she should be worried, bastard." Boots man whispered under his breath.

Laurel frowned as she turned to him. "Did you say something?"

Boots man shook his head. "Time up.”

"Listen, Matteo. Don't go near the club or my apartment for now and do tell Mr. Malik that I am feeling extremely sore...”

There was shuffling in the background. "Are you there?" Laurel asked worried that something might have happened to him.

"I am here darling." Matteo replied from the other end of the phone. "Are you sure you are good?"

Laurel sighed. She glanced at Boots man seated beside her. He was watching her every movement like a hawk. "I am good. Just deliver the message for me. I'll take care of myself." She dropped the phone, glaring at Boots man. "Are happy now?"

“I am tired of this." He stood abruptly. "You need to eat and Oh, don't bother running, my men will shoot you at first sight." He casually said, making his way out of the room.

Laurel shut her eyes in deep thoughts. Who is this man? Not getting good any reply. He didn’t even tell her his name.

He is a mafia lord. Laurel was sure. She wasn’t stupid enough not to figure that out. He had this weird mystery around him and tried to play around every question she asked. Her stomach growled loudly. How pathetic can I be?

Although hungry, she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her clutch her stomach and beg for food. She wasn’t going to succumb to the pangs of hunger and gravel at his feet…

She'd rather go hungry than eat with a murderer.

Meanwhile, at Bounce…

"What is with the high pitched voice…And Matteo?" Diego asked amidst laughing.

Luis shook his head as he circled the boy scrubbing the walls. It has to be perfectly clean. "She is a clever girl you know. She'd never trust me again if I tell her my name.

I've been hitting on her for years now. But since she is close to the boss, I have to back off. I made a mistake yesterday. I hope Boss will be lenient with her." He added feeling regretful.

"You know the Boss. You should check up on her." Diego suggested.

Luis looked at him like he had grown 5 heads suddenly. "You know I can't do that." He tapped the boy, signaling him to stop adding excess bleach to the walls. It was getting suspicious.

"I have to protect…"

"Protect what? You are lucky she fainted before you came into view, man." Diego replied smugly.

"I guess." Luis replied. He didn't want to continue the conversation. He hoped his best friends were doing okay together. Laurel was feisty and Boss wasn’t the opposite of feisty. That wasn't a very good combination.

He had tried to ask but Laurel wouldn't tell him anything. He knew deep down, she felt she was trying to keep him safe. How would she feel when she learns that he was associated with the one who kidnapped her against her will?

Luis chuckled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He couldn't wait to see how the drama would unfold.

At the same time….

Boots man slammed his hands on the table after waiting an hour for the woman. She is stubborn. Boots man realized as he tried his best to hold his anger in but it boiled in his stomach and threatened to come out.

He beckoned on the guard close to him. He whispered an instruction to him and waited.

The guard didn't waste much time as he walked upstairs.

Boots man smiled knowingly as he heard the woman's angry protests echo downstairs.

"You can't be serious!" The woman screeched. He knew she was itching to slap him but the guard held her back without much effort.

Her face was morphed into one of anger. It didn't stop her from being less beautiful though. Boots man felt many places going hard at the thought of kissing those her luscious lips.

It was too early he knew, but his body had thoughts of their own.

"Seat her down. If she as much as screech again, gag her." Boots man whispered softly. But why did he sound like he was suggesting something else. He could tell from the redness at the tip of her ears.

The woman struggled out of the guards grip. “Humph!”

Boots man raised his hands and the guard went back to his position. "Seat down and eat." He gestured towards the table filled with different dishes.

The woman gasped in surprise but tried to hide it with a cough. Unfortunately, her stomach growled loudly.

Boots man walked towards the table and expected her to follow him. She did.

Gazing at her from the corner of his eyes, he took in her appearance. Disheveled hair, red eyes probably from crying, growling stomach, the apron from yesterday night and the rest of her clothes was rumpled.

Boots man shook his head as he drew out a single chair. The woman looked puzzled. Then she connected the dots.

"If you think I am going to eat with you, you must be out of your mind." She spat bitterly.

Boots man rolled his eyes. "Are you serious? I thought we have gone past this?" He didn't miss her longing gaze on the shrimp rice.

The woman scoffed, reluctantly removing her gaze from the delicacy. Boots man almost shivered as she glared daggers at him.

Her eyes were a mixture of the setting sun and the green leaves of an acacia tree during spring. It drew him in and He wanted to allow it.

After several moments of intense staring, she finally lowered her gaze. Her feather black lashes dusted her high cheekbones.

"It is fine. But, I will only take a bite if he…" She points at the guard he had instructed earlier to bring her down stairs. "…tastes the food."

Boots man couldn't stop the laughter from bubbling up from his insides. He let it out. The more he laughed, the more puzzled the woman became and it showed on her face making him to laugh more.

"What is so funny?" She asked dryly. Was it a bad thing to be too careful? Clearly the woman beside him didn't think it was. He felt strange after laughing.

This was because the laughter didn’t reach his eyes. He was as furious as the raging fire of hell. He didn’t want the guard to taste the food he prepared by himself.

The guard who had been watching them refused to show the astonishment on his face. His face remained stoic even as his boss ordered him to have a taste of all the dishes spread out on the table.

If only the woman beside him knew that she had given the guard the opportunity to have a taste of his homemade food. Boots man tried to hide his annoyance as the guard also desperately tried to hide the ecstasy on his face.

"That's enough. Let the woman eat."

"Don't call me woman. My name is Laurel," She pushed the guard aside, giving him a suspicious look when he didn't drop dead as she had expected.

She waited five more minutes for precaution measures and when she didn't see anything, she dived in. She started with the shrimp rice.

She had unknowingly sat down on the chair Boots man held out open for her and she obviously didn't see the evil smirk of victory on his face.

She gobbled the lemonade juice and belched. "So…what is your name?" Food crumbs fell out of her mouth as she spoke.

Boots man bit his lower lips in disgust. "You don’t need to know anything." He winced as she swallowed a giant meatball. That must be painful. What a glutton…

"Eat with caution young woman!" Boots man suddenly barked. He had held his annoyance in for too long.

The woman paused midway. Her fork was filled with spaghetti. Then she placed it on her mouth, munching and slurping.

Lucas rolled his eyes. He now knows better not to command her. She'd do the exact opposite. So intriguing…

"I thought I told you my name. It is Laurel! What is yours?"

"Yes I heard." Boots man chose to ignore her second question again.

….

Laurel was halfway into her meal when she noticed heavy breaths close to her neck. She intentionally ate like a pig just to infuriate the guy. It worked until now.

Her neck felt hot and she decided she had had enough of the delicious meal.

She turned only to find Boots man's face so close to hers. She couldn't stop the yelp that left her mouth.

He looked so handsome up close. Laurel knew she was falling for a murderer. She is officially doomed. She removed herself from the chair.

Boots man raised his head. "Don't look so surprised. You were eating like a pig. I had to check why."

Laurel became flustered. "By coming up close to my face? Haven't you heard of personal space?"

"Oh don't be a child." Boots man shrugged, turning to his bed room. "I want to take a nap. Make yourself comfortable and above all, don't try to escape.”

"They might shoot you,” She mouthed mockingly. “What is your name?”

Boots man turned only to look at her dirty feet. "Call me Boss Lucas." With that he walked off.

Laurel suddenly lost her appetite. She glared at the guard who eventually got her message that she wanted to be alone.

He didn't completely leave the dining though but she appreciated the distance.

Hence, the thoughts of how she ended up kidnapped ran through her mind.

A part of her knew that she wanted to have little thrill by sneaking a peak into a dangerous situation. Probably add it to her diary.

She didn't know it would end of like this. It was either this or end up dead in a gutter somewhere.

At least she had food to eat and a roof over her head. All she had to do was to earn the trust of Boss Lucas.

He needed to know that she would never rattle him out. But what about the poor man who had died innocently?

Did he have a wife? Children? These thoughts ran through Laurel's head and she couldn't help but feel a rush of anger. How could he take a man’s life?

Taking a man's life isn’t justified.

There was a mirror opposite her. Catching her reflection, she relaxed into the chair and from under her eyelashes, she took in her appearance. She looked unkempt.

No wonder he stared at me like I was mad. No doubt he came close to me to check if I reeked.

She wasn’t sure but it felt like Boss Lucas came closer not only to infuriate her but to make her flustered.

She didn't think her kidnapper would be this hard to read. Boss Lucas was mysterious and never revealed his emotions to the surface. If he is saying something, his facial expressions said otherwise.

Who knows, he might act all nice now and maybe kill me when I sleep.

Who knows?