Lena was sitting down with Eden having breakfast in the cafeteria at the hotel. There were only ladies or young children in the cafeteria. The men and boys were in meetings since this morning and ate and drank elsewhere for the time being.

Eden said "I wish Gabriella could join us at this table for breakfast... But I guess she was pulled to other tables by different ladies who seem to be having breakfast with her mother... I don't know half of them... But they seem to be bombarding her with questions and discussions ... Look.People keep joining their tables to hers to talk to her... What's going on?"

Lena sighed "I can tell she is not enjoying the attention that much... The people here are thrilled about what she and Gianluca did last night... Who wouldn't be? Its a bigger deal than you can imagine... Gabriella and Gianluca managed to stop a war by going to Christian because they are close to the Kavannaghs. The people here are mostly congratulating her and trying to get close to her... After the news has spread, everyone wants to talk to her about it.... I bet Gianluca is questioned and is as popular during the business meetings that's happening now amongst the men...."

Eden said "What's new though? Your family and Gabriela's family are quite popular. Everyone tries to get close to your family members and hers. People try to get close to Gabriella and you all the time but they respect your personal time and your meal times alot... People do try to leave you in peace for some time in a public place before crowding around you and inviting you to places or activities... You must be getting a hundred invitations a week..."

Lena gave a smile "I did not ask for this much attention... It wasn't like this always... Slowly as I grew up and got older I am more included in whatever communication my mother is getting... Gabriella is getting more and more attention too.. Basically its part of the roles of wives and daughters in crime families to keep good relations with their counterparts... My mother is not that outgoing and likes to avoid gatherings and attention but she interacts with those women of her class and attends their events as much as she can out of duty when she is put on the spot like how she is now at this hotel. Gabriella's mother is more outgoing..."

Eden asked "I have noticed the difference between your mother's approach and Gabriella's mother... Why is your mother not so keen to respond to attention? Gabriella's mother seems to embrace it more." 

Lena sighed "My mother doesn't talk about it much... I hear about it from those around me and not her... But its to do with her family... My mother is a Marino... In her youth she had alot of suitors... She married my father out of love but so many others loved her... Some suitors madly loved her and some suitors may have not been in love with her that much but wanted to marry her because of her status and getting close to her family. The Marino family are a well known family in Sicily... Much like the Marchetti family whom Gabriella's mother belongs to... So now my mother tries to keep out of public eye... She rejected so many men back in the day... Some of them are very powerful. Some were not even from places New York or any where close but were from outside America too..."

Eden asked "But why would your mother choose to hide away from the public? Its not her fault many men loved her..."

Lena shrugged "I dont expect you to understand... Well you dont know my father... My father is very powerful. No one dares mess with him and his family... If they do, they would disappear.... So my mother doesn't want people to die if you know what I mean.... If anyone is too friendly with her they die at my fathers hands. My mother wants to have a happy family life and not give her husband an excuse to kill people if they dare look at her the wrong way... She is not exactly hiding though. She does her duty but if she said yes to all event invitations and dinner time gatherings she wouldn't be home at all or she would be out of the country most of the time... She has chosen family over her career in some ways too... She could be a successful businesswomen who travelled the world but she tries to stay away from attention and some global opportunities."

Eden shook her head "Your world seems so complicated... So why isn't Gabriella's mum hiding from public?"

Lena said "Its not exactly hiding Eden... It's avoiding public attention. My mother and Gabriella's mother do their duties but they are just extra careful and selective about where they go and what they do... My mother is more careful but she doesn't need to be really. Its her choice..."

Eden sighed "Fine... But what's different with Gabriella's mum's situation? Didnt she have admirers?"

Lena said "She did actually... She did have plenty of admirers just like my mother... Gabriella's mother got married to a Bellagio while she had many admirers back home in Sicily.... Gabriella's mother and my mother were born and raised in Sicily. They came to America to study and got married here... Their families were both influential... So you see Gabriella's mother also had the same issues but she does not avoid gatherings because alot of her current connections are to Americans and wealthy and influential families who are not that connected to crime families. So Gabriella's mother lays low too like my mother when it comes to interacting with crime families. She is selective like my mother when she doesn't need to be."

Eden said "Its good to know its not only Luigi who has admirers and a huge fan club of single girls... This matter is historical it seems... It runs in the family..."

Lena said "You could say that... I dont think of it like how you do... I actually try not to think about it..." 

Eden noticed how Lena went quiet and seemed nervous as she was looking down. Eden asked "Lena... Is something bothering you? What's the matter?"

Lena shook her head while looking down "Its nothing you can help me with..."

Eden said reassuringly "I can try... You are always here for me when I need to talk... I can listen..."

Lena sighed and looked up "Eden... I am worried..."

Eden asked "About what?"

Lena looked around and then at Eden. "Eden... You know how we talked about admirers..."

Eden said "Yes..."

Lena said "I have admirers... That is natural ... I know.... But... There is one boy ... I did not expect him to like me..."

Eden said "Which boy?"

Lena whispered "Salvatorio Romano..."

Eden tried to remember where she had heard that name. She thought hard. Then she remembered "Oh.... The guy who helped you carry your shopping bags when you bought some stuff from the hotel lobby shops?"

Lena nodded "Yes. Him..."

Eden said "I thought you said he is just a family friend..."

Lena said "He is..."

Eden said "But you did not seem to mind him. How do you know he likes you? Did he tell you that he likes you or you heard it from others... He seemed quite descent and respectful to you. Your guards even trusted him around you..."

Lena nodded "It's a long story.... Let me tell you everything... Remember when Salvatorio helped me carry the bags, you left me to put your bags in your room and then we were meant to meet in the cinema room. He talked to me then after you left.... He told me he likes me..."

Eden said "He dared tell you he likes you when he knows you have a boyfriend? You must tell Gianluca..."

Lena said "Let me tell you everything first. Ok... You dont know my background with him... Some information is new to me too and I was just told about it.... Its hard for me to get my head around it.. So here it goes.... My mother's family are the Marino family in Sicily and they are close with the Romano family there... I met Salvatorio years back when we visited Sicily with family... I became friends with his sister Smeralda and we are still good fiends and write to each other even... After I became Gianluca's girlfriend, Salvatorio became livid apparently..."

Eden said "I bet all your admirers must have become livid after that..."

Lena said "That is true... But some admirers may have given up by now that I am with Gianluca and some just won't dare come forward now unless they have a plan and can face the Bellagios... The Bellagios are very powerful. No one dares mess with them... Why ruin the relations? But Salvatorio does not mind angering the Bellagios.... Salvatorio wants me to be his and is determined to do something about it..."

Eden said "What do you mean he is determined to do something about it? That does not sound good..."

 Lena said "Salvatorio moved to America shortly after so he got closer to where I am.... His family has allies here... He has friends here. He joined forces with Marcello Rizzi. The Romanos are forming more and more connections in America... They will be all on Salvatorio's side... So heaven knows what else he is planning to do..."

Eden asked "Marcello Rizzi. His name rings a bell... Isn't the the guy who just stares at Gabreilla all the time... He doesn't say anything but he seems so angry all the time..."

Lena said "Yes... That is Gabriella's admirer....

Eden gasped "What? He likes Gabriella. I had no idea... I thought he might hate her or something. When I told Gabriela that this guy keeps staring at her, she just dismissed it and said he has anger issues and he is grumpy all the time..."

Lena said "Well. Gabriella tries to ignore it. She doesn't want to talk about it... Gabriella was right though. Her admirer does have anger issues and is always grumpy. Just a warning. Marcello's family and Salvatorio's family are not like our families. They are more violent and brutal actually. We have some leniency and forgiveness in our family business culture. They don't. Not all families are as civil as us in business. It is a cut throat world..."

Eden said "Have you told Gianluca about Salvatorio? Has Gabriella told Christian about Marcello?"

Lena nodded "Yes..."

Eden gasped "Wow..."

Lena said "I told Luigi... He was not thrilled and I think he had an argument with Salvatorio about why he told me about his feelings when he knows I have a boyfriend... But to be fair Salvatorio wasn't doing anything wrong... I am not married. When I get married things change. My parents dont like him for me though... They approve of Gianluca much more... Luigi told me... That is a relief. At the end of the day if my family dont approve of Gianluca at any point, then this relationship has to end. As children we dont have a choice... I hope Gianluca never angers my family in any way or I will have to break up with him.. There are rules in the crime business world. Family come first."

Eden looked away thoughtfully.

Lena noticed that it was Eden's turn to be quiet. She waited but she was silently looking away. Lena asked "Whats wrong Eden... Are you okay?"

Eden smiled at Lena "Yes. I am fine Lena..." She then got busy eating as the memories of her conversation with Luigi from last night came to her. Family came first. Luigi had to choose his family if she came between him and his family in any way. She was not planning on causing a rift. But the possibility was there. 

****

Gianluca had been in so many back to back meetings all morning. Now it was lunch time. He looked forward to sitting down to have lunch.. Finally, after months of crisis, a peace treaty was being agreed on. Everything was going to soon go back to how it was before the crisis with the Irish. It meant Italians and Irish would not hurt each other unless they were provoked, people trespassed or spied on their lands or people got hurt and some other scenarios that Gianluca knew was unlikely since no one benefited from tension. Everything was being finalised. More meetings were going to follow and could run to the next day even. But he knew in the next few days he could be home and out of this hotel. The end to this crisis was very close.

As Gianluca made his way to the lunch hall. Then he saw a commotion. What was going on? He saw Alessandrini men acting different. They seemed to be shouting orders and in hurry walking around frantically. He asked around what was happening. Now he recalled how Lothario Alessandrini and Luigi left the last meeting a few minutes early as they were called upon for an urgent matter. He did not think it was a big deal until then. He was about to question the guards on what was going on but then heard his name being called. He turned and spotted Aldo who had called his name. Gianluca walked towards him as Aldo walked towards Gianluca. 

Aldo was Luigi's close trusted friend and potentially Luigi's future underboss. Aldo was from a similar background to Alfredo who was most likely going to be Gianluca's future underboss one day. Aldo was born into the life of crime. Generations before him served the Alessandrinis. He was very loyal to Luigi.

Gianluca dragged Aldo to the side "What's happening Aldo? This is not looking good. Alessandrini guards are all over the place mobilising and I cant see Luigi or his father nearby. What's going on?"

Aldo sighed "I dont know how to tell you this... But don't panic... The Alessandrinis will find a way..."

Gianluca said "Dont keep me waiting... Tell me what's going on? Why would I panic and why are Alessandrini employees seem to be preparing for some kind of war..."

Aldo said "They are not preparing for war... They are preparing for a search mission.... I don't know... I dont know how to tell you this but ... Lena is missing..."

Gianluca's eyes widened "What?" He froze. His shock quickly wore off. He was trained all his life to be calm and rational in all situations. As much as he wanted to run to find her he needed to know what Aldo knew and had to compose himself. "Are you sure she is missing?" He took a threatening step towards Aldo.

Aldo felt the danger. Gianluca had a calm exterior but Aldo knew what Lena meant to him. One wrong word and he was dead. He spoke slowly and carefully "I am so sorry Gianluca.... She has vanished from this hotel... There is no sign of her... No one can find her..."

Gianluca asked "Has everywhere in this hotel been checked? Has everyone been questioned?"

Aldo said "That is what we are doing now..."

Gianluca shook his head and spoke in a hard tone "I cant believe it... We need to start a search party. Any other family would lend their resources..."

Aldo said quickly "Other families are going to be informed within the next hour or so. The families are having lunch now... Mr Alessandrini will make an announcement maybe once people have finished eating lunch.... Other families are going to be called upon to help shortly..." The Alessandrini men have started searching the hotel and questioning people already... Mr Alessandrini is currently devising plans and preparing for all sorts of scenarios that we could be facing..."

Gianluca asked firmly "We need to find Lena. I would like to join the search..."

Aldo sighed and said reluctantly "There is something else you should know... There is a possibility that this is an inside job..."

Gianluca asked "What do you mean?"

Aldo said "We have been ordered to expect any possibility. We could be dealing with anything right now. Lena could be missing. Lena might be lost. Lena could be even abducted. Who knows? The Abduction scenario is quite extreme. Anyone who even thinks of abducting Lena must be mental. We don't know what hss happened but we will find Lena... She is missing and some people who managed to get close to her in this hotel could be responsible potentially. Alessnadrinis are trying to find out whats happened exactly and how. This time frame before public announcement could be crucial for that..."

Gianluca said "Who in their right mind will mess with the Alessandrinis though..."

Aldo shook his head "Probably someone who isn't in their right mind... It is hard to believe that any Italian family in this hotel to be involved with her disappearance since they know exactly who they are dealing with...." 

Gianluca asked sounding concerned but he was still calm "How much do you know? Where could she be?"

Aldo said "She could be anywhere, Some men are searching the hotel. Some men are posted to be searching the area nearby. Every corner of this hotel and every corner close to the perimeter around the hotel will be searched first and we will question as many people as possible... If this is an abduction, then it's an inside job. How else could Lena go missing?.. Trust the Alessandrinis and their plans. They will inform other families in the next hour so they can join the search and you will know more as time goes on... I dont know much else to be honest...We will bring back Lena."

Gianluca vowed to do anything to find Lena. Anything. He had to find her. He did not have time to go into a fit of rage or get angry for Lena going missing. He did not have time to be emotional. It was time to act and think logically of the possible scenarios behind her disappearance. 

******

Lena opened her eyes and found herself in an unfamiliar surrounding. She had a bad headache. She felt weak. She tried to move but she couldn't. She noticed she was laying on a bed and her wrists were bound to the bars of the headboard of the bed with hand cuffs. What was this nightmare? She looked around trying to find out where she could be. She seemed to be in a normal room. The reality hit her. She had been abducted. She felt chills run down her spine. She felt quite unwell too. She had been drugged most likely. As she was in her shocked state she was trying to recall how she had ended up here. What was the last thing she could remember? She tried hard to recall. she recalled her last memory. She was walking down a corridor alone. And then she felt a cloth on her mouth. That was it. She had been knocked out most likely by some drug and she had been abducted. She swallowed hard.

Suddenly footsteps were heard and the door opened. She saw her abductor enter. She had seen him before. He worked at the hotel.

The man entered and she felt tense as he started walking towards her. She wanted to speak but her throat felt very dry and she still felt weak most likely because of whatever drug they had knocked her out with. 

The man approached her bed and said "Finally you are awake... Maybe I gave you too much drug. I didnt know you will get knocked out for a whole 24 hours when I abducted you..."

Lena felt horrified. Had she been out for 24 hours? What were her parents thinking now? They must have been worried. The questions were running in her mind now. Who was this man and what did he want from her? She said "Why?" The word came out as a whisper. She felt so weak. 

The man said "Why what? Why are you here? You were mistaken with someone else. I wasn't meant to take you away... I was paid to abduct someone else.... You were wondering off without guards, your age and your appearance and the colour of clothes matched the girl I needed to abduct. From behind you seemed identical to her.... I made a big mistake... When I heard they were looking for you and found out who I had abducted, I realised my mistake... I got as far as possible from the hotel..."

Lena cleared her throat and asked in a whisper "What are you going to do with me?"

The man said "I work for money... I would give you to a wealthy criminal family who will pay good money for you over here ... We are in a hotel room in Mexico now... Far away from your people. No one can catch me..."