The Ultimate Sacrifice
Giving It All to the Cartel
Charmaine Willoughby
Cartel Romance Series
COPYRIGHT 2015
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, whether living or dead, is entirely coincidental and the author and publisher has not used any likeness to anyone in this novel.
Copyright © 2015 Charmaine Willoughby
Summary of This Book: This book follows the story of a young woman who has to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to save her family. Her father made a lot of mistakes in business and the last one was the most costly. She chooses to meet with a man whom many choose to avoid and it leads to a change in her life.
What decisions is that she has to make which changes her entire life and how she thinks about things? Is this business man/mob boss as cold and unfeeling as everyone says he is? All she knows is that she can’t leave his office without knowing that her father debts will be cleared and that her parents will be safe from his henchmen…
Begin Reading the Book
DIGITAL EDITION
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ALL ABOUT THE WRITER
Charmaine Willoughby and her siblings grew up with her grandparents in Michigan. Both her parents were always on the road taking odd jobs and trying to earn enough to feed take care of their children. She loved living with her grandmother and she learned a lot from her. She was also encouraged by her to be opinioned and strong and not to stop fighting for what she wanted.
That gave her the idea for a character for a story; a woman who was strong willed and knew that she had to do what was needed to keep her family alive. She loves to focus on struggle and how a solution can be found in the direst of circumstances.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright 2015
All About The Writer
The Price of Sacrifice
Dedication
The Ultimate Decision
Danger
The Boss
Reality
Interesting Business Proposal
Counter Proposal
Adapting
Fighting Back
In His Bed
THE PRICE OF SACRIFICE
“There is no decision that we can make that doesn't come with some sort of balance or sacrifice.”
Simon Sinek
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to my parents. They sacrificed spending time with their children so that they earn enough to provide for them. I also thank my grandmother for molding me into the strong woman that I am today.
THE ULTIMATE DECISION
Bianca was just sitting there looking at herself in the mirror. She was giving herself a silent pep talk. She knew it was far-fetched but she had to at least try. She had to do what she could to help her parents in their current situation. They made sacrifices for her all the time. She could remember the day the man came to her father’s store.
She had looked at the man. He had ice gray eyes. She knew that he couldn't be good. She felt the evil coming of him and she instantly hated him. It was a vibe she was feeling. He was the reason her parents were so stressed. He had ruined their lives and the lives of the family. Money really was really the root of all evil. That was the cause of all of this anyway. She was not fussy. She was content to wear clothes that were not torn and eat to quell her hunger. She was not one of the girls who had to have what was in fashion. That was not her at all.
Here she was, getting ready to put on the best dress that she could find in her closet. It was not worn as much and still had some color left in it. It was a dark blue spaghetti stop dress. It had that washed out look. She had been meaning to dye it but had not found the time to do so. She had borrowed her mother’s best pair of pumps and she was now working feverishly to fix her hair. She wanted to look her best to go and meet with this demon.
She could not do much more than she had done already. She got up and headed to the kitchen where her mother was. He father was in bed already. He had thrown out his back a few months ago and he could not sit up for extended periods of time. She found her mother putting away the leftovers.
DANGER
Her mother looked at her and went back to what she was doing. She looked back at her mother. She had always thought that she was so beautiful. She was showing her age now and the stress and made her look even older but she was still a catch. She no longer wore makeup or cared what her hair looked like. She just put it in a bun and that was that. She had lots of gray hair now. She used to have beautiful caramel skin but she had neglected that too. He father was a dreamer and he had spent what money they had on lots of investments. Some worked out and some didn't. Unfortunately the negatives were more than the positives. He had made her mother lose her radiant smile. She always seemed so stern nowadays.
"Bianca, I don't know what you think you will work out by going to talk to that man. He is not one to mess around you know. Many people that have done business with him have disappeared. I just think you need to calm down and think it over baby." Her mother Sarah said.
"Ma, I know what you are saying. I just can't sit here though and not try something. We simply cannot continue to exist like this. It is killing you and look at Dad. This is the last thing I think I can try to do to get us out of this mess." She really hoped her mother would understand.
"So, what are you going to do? You really think you can go over there and just walk in and he will write off the debt?" Her mother looked around at her. She realized what she was wearing. "Is it that you plan to make an offer he can't refuse to help with the case?"
"Ma, come on. I would not do something like that. I just want to appeal to the kind part of his soul. He must have one so where under all that evil. I want to explain things to him and see if he can see what we are going through. I would feel worse if I did not try."
"Bianca, that kind of man doesn't care about that. He has no compassion in him. He is a rich Italian man. Some people say a mob boss. He doesn't care about us underprivileged people. You need to just understand that and stop being so optimistic."
Her mother clucked her tongue and turned back to her task. That was the end of that. Her mother was done talking. It was up to her to decide what she wanted to do.
Bianca took a deep breath. She took up her purse and her worn jacket. It was a bit cold outside. She was not dressed appropriately for that as she was trying to appeal to his eyes as well. Maybe that could distract him without her having to do much more. She had dressed to look decent, not like a whore on call. She just hoped that it worked. Her mother wasn't even looking at her. She was humming and washing up the dishes. She shook her head and headed out the door. She flicked a she cold night air hit her. She almost went back in the house but she gritted her teeth and started the long walk to town.
THE BOSS
Gian Conti was busy playing pool. He was scrutinizing the table, trying to decide what move he was going to make next. It would be a bit tricky but he could do it.
"Well Gian, what is your next move going to be?" Lucio asked. He was smili
ng and looking at his boss. They had grown up together and he knew that his friend and boss had a strong competitive streak. He really hated to lose. He never even had that word in his vocabulary. He would not make a move until he had studied the layout of the table and figured out exactly how he was going to win. He assumed that that was why Gian was so successful. He just did not accept that he could ever fail at anything. He always went into a venture to succeed. He made strategic moves that ensured that he would always get what he wanted.
His ice gray eyes focused on the perfect shot. He was ready now. He went up to the table. He positioned the cue stick and moved it back and forth before hitting a ball. It went right into the pocket without touching another ball.
"Damn it!" Lucio whispered.
Gian was happy. He looked over at his friend and indicated that it was his turn. His face was a makes that could not be read. He always looked that way no matter what. He watched Lucio go up to the table. He was really trying to figure out what he could do here. He looked tense and anyone could tell what his situation was. Gian was tired of telling him that he needed to change that. He needed to find his poker face. His father had taught him that. He never let people know when he was doubtful about something. That is what made him a success. He had learned a lot from his father and he had come up with his own set of rules. That worked to his benefit as well.
He had never ever thought that he would have been in the position that he was in now. He was a mob boss. He had inherited that from his father and he had not disappointed him in any way. Though he was a mob boss, he had a certain level of respect for the law. He loved watching shows that had cops in it. He soon discovered that what cops did was the opposite of what his dad did. He would have to find a balance.
His father Salvatore Conti came to the United States from Italy. He was tall and wiry. He firmly believed what he was taught from his own parents. He had always been a hard worker. He paid his own fare to get to the states and as soon as he landed he started to look for any job he could do to earn some money. He never shirked from work. Soon he was able to open up his own shop selling produce. He would talk a good game to get the best and freshest produce from the suppliers. He was always one step ahead of his competitors. As a result of that he became popular in no time. His name was on everybody's lips.
He met Gian's mother when she came into the shop to buy some vegetables and they became an item. He married her and they had six children. He soon moved on to bigger business. He opened a small pizzeria. He got the money from some scrupulous men. They used the store as a front for dealing in weapons and drugs. Salvatore facilitated them and he would get a cut of their profits. Even some cops were involved and he got numerous favors from them. They ignored the illegal goings on and he helped them out with certain things. The arrangement worked and there were no major problems popped up over the years.
Gian was different from his father though. He never liked that his father was so cut-throat. He would never take more than he was supposed to get. He did threaten but that was just to get them to remember who he was and the clout he had. That worked quite well for him. He was also more hand son than his father had been. He would deal with the distributors of the weapons and drugs directly. He made more when he did that.
He had been running his father’s business for the past seven years. He had expanded it. He not only ran the restaurant but he also opened a club and a fine dining restaurant. The businesses were all very profitable. He was making much more than his father ever did. He was the man everyone went to when they had to get business done. He was not one to brag about it either. He was always well dressed and he always had some nice young lady on his arm when he went out.
Well he did until one of them managed to get him to marry her. He had met her at the club and he was not sure what she did but it worked. He married her. Her name was Violet and she was a 5' 9" brunette bombshell. She was a strong woman and was never afraid to share her opinions. She never took no for an answer either. Maybe that was what he liked about her. She was a go-getter. She was nothing like his mother. She had been so calm and nice and always knew how to diffuse a hostile situation. He loved to watch Violet in action. She softened up to no one but him. He had made sure of that. He was the one in charge and she and all the men who worked for him were aware of that.
They had hit a rough patch in their marriage about eight months ago and they are currently separated. He really wondered what had drawn him to her as now he really hated her. Maybe marriage just was not his thing. He still couldn't figure out how they got that far. He yearned for a companion that loved him and who he would love just as equally. He envied his father for that as he had found his true mate. He had found out over the years that Violet was only with him for the status and of course the money. When she slept with him she realized he was a full package. He was a handsome man and he had a nice tanned complexion that turned women on and he could more than hold his own in the bedroom.
REALITY
Since they separated he was back to being the playboy. He had women coming to him anyway so why stop. He needed more however. He was getting bored with the same game every night. He did miss hearing Violet's shrill voice giving orders in the house. She was extremely entertaining that way. He had lost it when she had asked about them expanding the family. He wondered if she was crazy to say that when they were already having issues. She was not ready to be a mother, not to his children. She was more interested in shopping sprees and partying. When would she find time to care for a child? He had also found out that she liked drugs. That was the last nail in the coffin for him.
They had gone back and forth over the baby debate until he had completely lost it. She ended up leaving the home and going to get high on a coke binge. After that she went out for a joyride while she was still high and she crashed her Ferrari and got arrested. He was livid as the police was looking for any opportunity to search even one of his premises. He had to send Lucio to get her as he was not going to be the one to go get her so he could be held on some jacked up charge. He had more sense than that.
When she came home, they had really started arguing. Gian was not one to shout and he was not one to keep on arguing with no end in sight. He gave orders and people complied. It was as simple as that to him. Violet was different. She loved the confrontation and sometimes did it just to get him upset. She was always screaming at him about the baby and he was steadfast in his answer. No! Pretty soon she realized that it just wasn't going to work out. She had gone too far and he had lost interest in her. She had taken off her ring and left.
After a couple of days he heard from her again. She wanted to make amends. She was insisting that they could find a way to work it all out. He was not interested but he did not have the time to spend hackling with divorce lawyers. He opted instead to just spend time apart. Take a break from each other and come to some sort of compromise later on. That seemed to satisfy her. He soon missed the noise thought, everything was peaceful again and there was no friction. He was bored. He needed something to spice up his life.
Lucio lined up his pool stick and aimed for a ball. He missed it.
"Fuck!" He said.
Gian took over and clears all his balls and sunk the eight ball to finish the game. He handed his cue stick to Paola.
"Wait Gian, let us play one more round here. Give me a chance to make a comeback."
Gian stooped and thought about it and took back his pool stick.
"Lucio, you sure love to lose don't you?"
They were both over six feet tall but Lucio was fatter. He loved to eat and his wife was a fantastic cook. Gian did eat but he was always at the gym. When he was not at the gym or overseeing his operations he was having sex. He loved that. It was a great way to get rid of stress.
INTERESTING BUSINESS PROPOSAL
Lucio was busy racking the balls. A security guard was approaching them. He turned to look. It was Vito.
"Boss, there is a young lady here to talk to you."
> Lucio smiled and took a shot scattering the balls.
"Why is she here Vito?" Gian was looking at the table.
"She wouldn't say why boss. Says it is urgent and for your ears only."
"Did you get at least get her name Vito?"
"She says it is Bianca Richards."
Gian thought about the name. Who the hell was she? Oh he figured it out now. She was Marlon's daughter. Her father owed him a lot of money. She worked in the store her father had, it was a big fail. Marlon had borrowed his father’s money and he opened the store. It was barely making money. He couldn't even hire staff so the wife and daughter had to work. Maybe she had found some way to get the money to pay him or she was there to beg for some mercy. His men had been consistent with their visit to collect and to give out his threats.
"I have no time to see her now. Let her know that."
He made his shot and was waiting for Lucio to make one. Vito nodded and headed out. The game was over in less than fifteen minutes. He had won again and Lucio was speechless as usual. He was trying hard to figure out just how he could beat him. One day he would. He scowled at Paulo who was laughing at him.
"Paolo, why don't you go find something to do. I might just...." he let his voice trail off.
Polo ignored him. He was a hard one to get upset. He spent most of his time crunching numbers. That was his job and he was very good at it. He was not married and he was not interested in finding a wife or even a floozy to fuck. In the meantime his life was numbers and science fiction. They had tried everything but he was hard to break. After a while they just gave up on trying to get him a normal life.
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