Chapter 1
My name is Alessa Greco. I was born into a life of privilege, a life of glamour and a life of unadulterated violence. My father, Lorenzo Greco, is the head of the Italian mafia in Foster City and he's a force to be reckoned with, but truth be told, I'm no better. At the age of fourteen, I had already taken the blood oath and my first kill was a man named Ezra Contraletti, the man who murdered my mother. I have a reputation for being cold, heartless and cruel and I've earned those titles time and time again.
This month, I was entrusted with taking control of one of my father’s largest companies, one of the few ‘legal’ businesses he owns, an Architect firm. He figured that turning twenty-five means I'm responsible enough to handle more responsibility, but I honestly find it to be tedious work. Today will be my first day in the office and I have a staff meeting right off the bat. With my father’s approval, I'll be weeding out some of the unworthy staff whose work has proven to be subpar.
“Alessa? We need to get going.” Enzo shouts from down the hall. I take a final look in my full-length mirror to make sure I look the part of the big, bad CEO. I'm wearing a pair of form fitting black slacks, a white silk button down shirt that only buttons to just above my cleavage, a black blazer and black stilettos. I'm wearing my long dark brown curly hair down, letting it cascade down my shoulders where is stops at my waist and my makeup is light with my long lashes being accented with a quick swipe of mascara and my eyeliner in a cat eye, drawing attention to my large golden eyes. I quickly apply a layer of lip gloss then head out of my room.
“You look amazing, Alessa. Your father would be proud.” I smirk at his comment as I walk past him, knowing he's not wrong.
“I want Carlo and Liam to be in my office at 1pm today. I expect them to have an update on the situation I asked them to handle.” Enzo grabs his phone, firing off a text message then placing it back in his pocket.
“I have the employee list you sent to me. Are you sure you're wanting to cut this many people in one go?” Is he really questioning my decision?
“These people have failed to perform even their basic duties for the last six months. My father allowed them to become lazy and complacent. I won't have people working for me who aren't there to get the job done.” Enzo nods in understanding as we reach the car. Toni opens the door for us to climb in and just like that, we're off to the office. When we arrive, I walk into the building with Enzo at my side and feel all the eyes on me as we stroll through the lobby to the elevator.
When the doors open, we step inside and I see everyone’s eyes glued to us as if they're frozen in place, all but one person who brazenly steps into the elevator and flashes me a smile before turning to face the doors as they close.
“Mi sono assicurato che ci sarà un caffè ad aspettarti quando arriveremo nel tuo ufficio. Hai bisogno di qualcos’altro prima dell’incontro? (I made sure that there will be coffee waiting for you when we get to your office. Do you need anything else before the meeting?)” Enzo reverts to our native tongue for privacy.
“Il bar è completamente rifornito? (Is the bar fully stocked?)” I smile as I watch his eyes roll.
“Sì, principessa. (Yes princess.)” I shoot him a sharp glare.
“Non sono una principessa, Enzo. (I am no princess, Enzo.)” My tone holds an unspoken warning, one I know he'll heed without question. The doors open and the man who entered stands at the doors to ensure they stay open while Enzo and I exit.
“Thank you.” I hum the words as I walk by and follow behind Enzo to the doors to my office. I enjoy a double shot espresso while we wait for the meeting, hoping the caffeine will help wake me up enough to face the employees that will be leaving with a pink slip and their final paycheck. At 9am sharp, we exit my office and Enzo leads the way to the conference room where thirty people are seated around the table with envelopes sitting on the table in front of them with their names printed on them.
“Ladies and gentleman, some of you know me, but for those who don't, my name is Alessa Greco. I'm the new CEO and I would like to inform you that we'll be making some very necessary changes. Everyone in this room will be offered continued employment with us. In front of you are envelopes with incentive bonuses based on your personal work. All employees not present are currently being escorted off the premises. Of ninety-seven employees, only you thirty have proven to be of any value to our company.” My eyes land on the man from the elevator who I now realize is Antonio Bernoulli, one of our best architects. “I understand that this likely comes as a shock to you and if any of you feel that this isn't a change you can be a part of, there's the door.” I point to the door to the conference room, but not one person rises.
“We have a meeting in thirty minutes.” Enzo speaks in barely more than a whisper.
“If there are no questions, you may all return to your offices and get back to work.” Everyone rises and exits, with the exception of Antonio.
“Ms. Greco? I can't accept this.” He holds out the envelope in his hand which has already been opened.
“Mr. Bernoulli, you've more than earned it. As I've made clear today, I'm strict, but fair.” He slowly lowers his hand.
“So, you clearly plan on making changes around here. I have some plans that I had wanted to show your father, but he never had time to see me.” I look to Enzo who gives me a nod.
“Be in my office at 3pm.” Without another word I exit the conference and return to my office. I'm on my second espresso when Wade, the soulless sack of shit that my father appointed as his second in command during his time as the CEO, comes walking into my office. Not only does this asshole not knock, but he strutted in like he's the king of my castle, plopping his filthy ass into one of the chairs in front of my desk.
“Good morning, Alessa. I see you're already making waves.” His smug look immediately sets my soul ablaze.
“I don’t make waves, I'm a fucking tsunami.” I step out from behind my desk as Enzo steps in front of the door. “Wade, We have a little problem. A $2.5 million dollar little problem.” I watch his eyes go wide and smile as he begins to squirm. “You see Wade, my father trusted you. He let you off your leash, but you were a bad boy, weren’t you?”
“I…I can explain. It isn’t what it looks like!” I walk closer until I'm able to bend down and be face to face with the asshole with my hands braced on the armrests of his chair.
“A lesson you should've learned by now…it's always what it looks like. Where the fuck is my money Wade?” For fuck’s sake…is he fucking crying?! What a weak little piece of shit.
“I don’t have it! But…but I can get it for you!” I stand to my full height and look down on this man who should already be nothing more than a rotting corpse in a ditch.
“Oh, but Wade…I don’t think you will. While I love my money, I love the idea of punishing you for stealing it even more. You'll serve as a reminder to anyone who dares to think they can steal from me. Enzo, get him to the warehouse. I'll deal with him after I'm done here.” Enzo springs into action, giving Wade a mild sedative in his neck before dragging him to the service elevator at the end of the hall. It's moments like these when I have to truly appreciate my father’s need to be prepared. My meeting with Carlo and Liam is unfruitful and has, quite frankly, left me in a sour mood, but then I hear a knock on my door and realize I had another meeting…Mr. Bernoulli.
“Come in.” My voice is much sterner than I intended, but he'll have to get over it. My door opens and he walks in with a large file in his hand and a nervous smile on his face.
“Thank you for seeing me today.” I nod and motion for him to have a seat on the couch. I pour myself a glass of water and walk over to the lounge, seating myself across from him.
“So, tell me about the building plans.” His face lights up and I can’t help the smile that pulls at my lips as he dives right into explaining the designs he's drafted for several of the new accounts we've acquired. His enthusiasm and skill are unreal as he walks from one plan to the next.
“This one's my favorite. I tried to pitch it to your father on multiple occasions, but he said it was too modern for the client’s taste.” I look over the client file and then his design and it looks perfect. It has a modern edge, but you can still see a lot of the original design seeping through.
“Did he show this to the client?” He sighs and I can see him growing nervous.
“No, I don’t think he's submitted any of my designs for review.” My father can be a real asshole sometimes, a fact I'm all too aware of, but as Mr. Bernoulli is about to find out, my father isn't running the show here anymore.
“Mr. Bernoulli, I'll set up a meeting with the client for the Burkshire account tomorrow, but only if you'll pitch your design personally. Please, calm your nerves. My father's a dick, no need to act like I'm unaware.” He gives me a surprised look, but I don’t miss the slight curl at the corner of his lip.
“I'll be more than happy to present it. Thank you so much. Should I hand my presentation to Wade for review when I'm finished?” I lean forward and smile.
“No, Mr. Bernoulli. Wade is no longer with us. I believe he may have been part of the reasons that your plans never made it to the submission process. From now on, everything you have will be run through me directly.” I carefully stack the folder neatly on the table.
“I'll have everything ready by morning. Thank you so much for this amazing opportunity.” He reaches for the folders and I place my hand on top of them.
“I would like to take a look at the rest of these. If any of them are half as good as the one you just showed me, we may need to contact some of our other clients.” I find his look of shock somewhat amusing.
“I don’t know how to thank you.” I wave my hand dismissively at him.
“Just keep doing your job, Mr. Bernoulli. I don't give praise or credit unless it's earned.” A sudden knock at my door draws me from our conversation. “Enter.” Enzo walks in with Liam and Carlo.
“We have an update on…” Liam ceases speaking as soon as he realizes I'm not alone.
“Mr. Bernoulli, I'm afraid I have an urgent matter to address. If you need anything further, you can contact me directly.” He nods and thanks me again as he walks out of my office.
