Destined to the Mob Boss

Irene

The next morning was Monday, the day that Irene didn’t have to work, and she slept in late.

When she sauntered to the kitchen to make herself some coffee, she was startled when she saw Luca standing against the kitchen counter with a cup of coffee in his hand.

“Good morning, Irene, did you sleep well? You want coffee too?” he asked her. He seemed to have a lot of energy; it might be because of too much coffee.

“Luca, you are still home. What are you doing here, don’t you have to go to work?” Irene asked with a frown.

“I am working from home today,” he told her, while grabbing a new cup and pouring coffee in it.

After he gave the cup to Irene, he picked up some of the papers that were spread across the kitchen table to make some space so she could sit.

After plopping down on her chair and taking a sip of her coffee, Irene asked, “Did you call Joanna yesterday? What was her reaction?”

Luca sat down across from Irene and closed his laptop to look at her. “I did. She would love to work there. She is meeting with the head of the clinic next week, to get acquainted. She has some doubts, though.”

“What does she doubt? It’s perfect for her.” Irene shook her head; she didn’t understand, really. If she got an offer like that, she wouldn’t doubt for a second.

“Well, because of the distance, she would have to move to Redwater Creek,” Luca explained. “Traffic is not a joke, and the last miles are all dirt roads without any streetlights, going up towards West Shaw Heights.

“I visited my sister a few times and when it’s dark, it’s really not pleasant to drive there. Joanna doesn’t want to move that far and is afraid she will miss us too much. There’s nobody she knows over there.

“And because it’s a closed-off community, there is little known about the people who live there. So, I get that she is hesitant about it.”

“I think I understand.” Irene thought a second before continuing. She was curious about the people in that community. “You have been there, though. What do you know about these people?”

“Not much. When I wasn’t with my sister, I was exploring West Shaw Heights,” Luca answered.

“The people there don’t like outsiders. Other than the staff from the clinic, I only met one man who was like the leader. He works here in Rockdale; he owns the Hunter Corporation in the city center.”

“Zachary Hunter?” Irene asked, surprised.

“Yes, you know him?”

“Not personally, but I have heard of him. He is one of the most infamous businessmen in town. He is said to be a hard man, not nice to work with.

“He is making millions, so everyone wants to be on his good side. What would a man like him do out in the country, though? I don’t get it.”

“I don’t know what he is doing there, but he is there more than he is here in the city. He has his staff that sees to his business when he is out of town, and they contact him when he is needed.

“That’s all I know,” Luca said with a shrug. He opened his laptop again and searched through his mess to find one particular paper. “Sorry, I have to get some work done. Can we talk more later?”

“Sure, sorry for distracting you,” Irene answered as she walked toward the kitchen door. “I am going to the store for some groceries later, do you need anything?”

“No, I’m good, thanks,” Luca said.

Irene walked into her bedroom to get her keys and her phone. She kept thinking about the community in the forest. She took her laptop and sat down on the edge of her bed to look for information about it.

There was little to know, just some news articles about incidents with crime near Redwater Creek Station.

When Irene stepped out a little while later, her phone rang. “Joanna! How are you?”

“Hey, Irene, I’m fine, thank you. I was wondering if you’re at home right now. I would like to come over and have a chat,” Joanna said, very straight to the point.

“I actually just stepped out to get some groceries. When I get back, I have some time,” Irene said. “You can come over and we can get some takeout if you like. Like old times, just Luca, you and I.”

“Sounds like fun,” Joanna said enthusiastically. “I’ll come around four then. I’ll bring the wine.” “Okay, see you then.”

Irene was back home an hour later and met Luca in the kitchen again. He was still working on his laptop, with an even bigger mess than there had been when she left.

“Hey, I’m back,” she said. “Joanna called. She’ll be over in a couple of minutes to hang out.”

“Hmm, are we going to get some takeout?” Luca asked.

“That was the intention, yes. She wanted to talk.”

They both looked up when the doorbell rang. Irene walked to the front door and let Joanna in. They hugged each other and then stumbled into the kitchen. Joanna ran to Luca with her arms wide to give him a bear hug.

“Oh my goodness, I can’t breathe,” Joanna complained, smiling. “Don’t squeeze so hard.”

“Joanna, my love, I missed you!” Luca teased. “How are you today? Did you think about that job offer?”

Irene grabbed some glasses, poured soda, and handed the drinks to Luca and Joanna.

“I did,” Joanna said. “I’ll be going there Wednesday to meet your sister. We’ll discuss the details about the job and then see from there. Your sister seems genuinely nice, by the way.”

“She is,” Luca said, after he had taken a sip of his drink. “Will you be going on your own? Do you want me to go there with you? The roads in Redwater Creek are very dark at night.”

“That is not really necessary. I can sleep there and come back after breakfast the next morning.”

“Well, I hope you will like it there. The woods there really have something magical about them.”

Irene finally joined the conversation as she said, “I wish I could come along. I could really use a little outing to get rid of a bit of stress. From what you say, it must be nice to explore the woods.”

“It is nice to hike there, yes, especially the trails that go up to West Shaw Heights. But only when it’s light. When the sun’s not shining, it can be very eerie there,” Luca said, followed by the rumbling of his stomach.

He patted his stomach. “Are you guys hungry, because this guy definitely is. Should I order already?”

“Sounds good,” Irene said, and Luca picked up his phone and walked out to call for food.

“Would you like to come?” Joanna asked Irene. “Do you think you can get two days off from work?”

“I don’t know,” Irene sighed. “I could really use some time off. But I don’t want to be a burden. I am not invited after all.”

“I’ll ask Jordyn. I could tell her that I don’t feel comfortable traveling alone,” Joanna suggested. “I could use some mental support, and the travel would be more fun as well. Taking Luca wouldn’t be as fun, I think.”

They smiled.

“I will call my manager tomorrow morning. I hope she’ll give me some time off,” Irene said.

It was incredibly early Wednesday morning when Irene’s alarm rang. Normally she would hit the snooze button a couple of times before she got up, but not today. She quickly got up and got herself ready for the day.

She filled a backpack with some clothes, shoes, and the toiletries she needed. She also took her phone, her wallet, and her keys and put them in a small handbag. Yesterday, she’d asked for two days off and, surprisingly, she got it.

She informed Joanna, and Joanna made all the arrangements. They were going by train instead of by car, and they would be picked up by someone from the community.

Luca wasn’t really happy with her going with Joanna instead of him, but he understood that she really needed it.

The train ride was very relaxed. They talked about Irene’s love life or, rather, the lack of it. Joanna told Irene that she really needed to go out more often. She thought Irene needed to see more of the world.

When they arrived at Redwater Creek Station, the station where they had to get off, it was gray and drizzly outside. The station was small and looked a bit rundown. It looked like it wasn’t used much.

The station was surrounded by the woods; everywhere they looked, there were big, tall trees. In the distance, they saw West Shaw Heights. The buildings towered above them. Proof that people did in fact live near these woods.

At the end of the platform stood a tall muscular man. When they got closer, he stepped forward, stretched out his right hand, and introduced himself.

“Good morning. My name is Ethan. You are Joanna and Irene? I am here to pick you up and take you to Redwater Creek.”

“Hi, I am Irene.” She took his hand to shake it.

“Joanna,” Joanna said, and she shook his hand as well.

He stared at her for a moment, still holding her hand. “Destined,” he whispered, but Joanna and Irene didn’t hear it.

“Well, you can let go now,” Joanna said with an amused smile.

“Er, yeah, sorry.” He seemed a little bit distracted, nervous almost, and his cheeks turned red. He quickly turned around and walked them to a black SUV.

The girls didn’t notice his nervous behavior as they handed over their suitcases and he threw them in the trunk. Then he opened the front door and stepped in behind the steering wheel.

“Fasten your seatbelts, please, and hold on tight,” he said. “It will be a bumpy ride.”

His gaze was on the road as he tried to avoid the big holes in the dirt road, but sometimes his eyes shot to the right where Joanna sat. “How was your train ride?” he asked.

“It was fine,” Joanna answered. “It was actually extremely comfortable. There were hardly any people on the train. And there weren’t any delays, either.”

“You were very lucky, then,” Ethan said. “On this part of the track, there are delays almost every day.”

“Why is that?” Irene asked curiously from behind.

Ethan tensed a little, but not enough for the girls to notice. “There are some sketchy people in the area. They hang around on the tracks and, therefore, cause delays.”

“Sketchy?” Joanna asked, surprised. “Will we be seeing them?”

“Maybe, but it is not very likely,” Ethan answered.

“Are they dangerous?” Irene asked.

“Some are, some are not. You can’t tell. The ones who hang around the station are definitely dangerous, but most people around here are amicable.”

They drove for another half an hour before seeing a big white brick building appear through the bushes.

“Is that the clinic?” Joanna asked enthusiastically.

“Yes, it is, actually. It was recently renovated. It looks good, right?” Ethan said proudly. “We will visit it later, but first I will show you where you’ll be staying.”