His Long-Lost Lover

A white Lamborghini smoothly glided into the expansive compound of the Gambinos' Empire. As it parked in the luxurious car shed, its powerful engines quieted to a soft hum. Bruno, the loyal driver, promptly stepped out of the car and opened the door for his boss, Alejandro.

Alejandro emerged from the vehicle with a lit cigarette in his mouth, wearing a stern expression that sent shivers down the spines of most of his men. He made his way towards the entrance of the central building within the empire. Inside the grand living room, he found his twin brother, Alexandro, comfortably seated on a couch, holding a glass of wine in his right hand and a rolled-up cigarette between his fingers.

Formidable-looking men occupied every corner of the room, their massive figures twice the size of an average person, their well-fitted bodies accentuated by their custom-made suits.

Taking a deep drag from his cigarette, Alejandro strolled past Alexandro, who was also indulging in a devilish smoke on the couch. Alejandro was about to ascend the staircase when he heard Alexandro's voice.

"Where have you been, brother?" Alexandro rose from the couch and turned to face Alejandro.

Alejandro exhaled a substantial plume of smoke as he fixed a cold, unwavering gaze on Alexandro. He retorted, "And why are you so interested in my whereabouts?"

Alexandro grinned and began to approach Alejandro with a glass of wine in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Alejandro mirrored his movements, both of them closing the gap until they stood face to face, exuding a menacing aura.

"Tell me, bro, where have you been all afternoon?" Alexandro inquired, his words accompanied by a cloud of smoke.

Alejandro drew deeply from his cigarette, blowing the smoke directly into Alexandro's face before replying, "Alex, it looks like you want me to put a bullet in that empty skull of yours before you stop prying into my affairs!" His tone brimmed with palpable danger, but Alexandro remained unfazed, even sporting a sly smirk.

"Then go ahead, Alejandro. Take out your gun and shoot me," Alexandro dared him.

"You're testing my patience, Alexandro, and the next time you meddle in my business, I'll put an end to you and reunite you with our parents, wherever they may be," Alejandro warned sternly. He turned away and headed for the stairs. However, Alexandro's next question halted him in his tracks.

"You were with that woman, the hook-up lady, weren't you?"

Hearing this question, Alejandro spun around, his anger evident on his face.

"Are you spying on me?" Alejandro snapped in frustration, and Alexandro scoffed while taking a sip of his wine.

"Jandro," Alexandro began, licking his lips, "I wasn't spying on you. I simply made an educated guess about your whereabouts, and it seems my guess was accurate..." He paused briefly and approached Alejandro, continuing, "But, I am genuinely curious about your relationship with that woman. So, I'll ask nicely. What's your connection with her? Have you fallen in love with her?"

An angry smirk appeared on Alejandro's lips as he furiously tossed his cigarette onto the tiled floor, crushing it with his shoe. Closing the gap between him and Alexandro, he stood nose to nose with his brother, leaving no space between them.

"Alexandro, being my brother doesn't give you the right to question me. And being my brother won't stop me from taking your life the next time you ask about my relationship with that woman!" Alejandro warned in a menacing tone. Alexandro simply scoffed in response.

"Quit the nonsense, Alejandro, and spill the beans about your relationship with that woman," Alexandro insisted, further infuriating Alejandro.

In an instant, Alejandro angrily revealed the concealed gun beneath his suit and aimed it at Alexandro, squeezing the trigger. However, Alexandro's quick reflexes allowed him to dodge the bullet, causing it to shatter a valuable golden vase behind him.

Mistaking the gunshot for an enemy attack, numerous mobsters, including the gang's top members, swarmed into the room, armed and ready to eliminate any potential threat. Yet, upon realizing that Alejandro was the shooter, the mobsters retreated, except for the top members.

"What's happening here?" Blade inquired as she approached the intense standoff between the twin brothers. Alejandro continued to aim his handgun at Alexandro, who nonchalantly smoked as if his life hadn't just been threatened moments ago.

"Get out of here, Blade!" Alejandro ordered with an icy tone, his angry gaze locked on Alexandro.

"Why should I leave when the two of you are acting like children?" Blade retorted, persistently advancing toward the brothers. The remaining top members silently watched the tense situation unfold.

"I won't say it again, Blade. Get the fuck out of here." Alejandro warned, but Blade remained resolute in her approach.

Before Blade could take another step, a gunshot rang through the room, causing her to scream in agony as a bullet struck her leg.

"All of you, get out!" Alejandro yelled, angrily firing two more shots into the air. One of the top members, Mario, rushed to Blade's aid, helping her to her feet, while the rest of the top members exited the room. Blade cast one final glance at Alejandro before leaving with Mario. All the other guards also left, leaving only Alejandro and Alexandro behind.

"Now, where were we?" Alejandro redirected his attention to Alexandro, who continued to enjoy his unique cigarette, specially crafted for the twin brothers.

"Alejandro, it's unbelievable that you nearly pulled the trigger on me just because I dared to question your involvement with that hookup woman," Alexandro remarked, shaking his head. "This only intensifies my curiosity about your connection with her. Why in the world are you so interested in her?"

"That's a question you'll never receive an answer to," Alejandro retorted firmly.

"You know me too well, Alejandro. I can easily find the answers I'm looking for without much effort," Alexandro confidently replied.

"I must make this crystal clear; you better not be anywhere near her, or the consequences will make you regret the day you were born as my twin," Alejandro warned before reluctantly lowering his weapon.

"Alejandro, ever since you saw that woman you hooked up with, you've been keeping things from me, and that's not like you!" an angered Alexandro exclaimed. "That's not how we usually handle things, man. We don't hide stuff from each other, but you've been doing that since you met that hook-up woman!" As Alexandro spoke, you could clearly hear the anger and hurt in his voice.

"I'm not keeping any secrets from you," Alejandro replied defensively.

"Yes, you are," Alexandro retorted firmly.

"I said I'm not!!" Alejandro yelled in frustration.

"Then prove it!" Alexandro interjected. "Prove that you're not keeping secrets from me by telling me what your relationship with that woman is!"

"You want to know why I'm so interested in her?" Alejandro asked with a smirk.

"Yeah. I do," Alexandro responded.

"That's good. Have a seat and listen carefully because this will be the first and last time I'm going to tell you this," Alejandro said, and they both sat down on opposite couches.

"Five years ago, when we were still underbosses," Alejandro began, "I fell in love with a lady named Marisa, and..."

"Wait, you had a girlfriend five years ago?" Alexandro cut him off.

"Were you deaf when I was saying it?" Alejandro retorted sarcastically.

"Dude, that means you broke the first law of the Gambino family," Alexandro pointed out.

"So?" Alejandro replied nonchalantly.

"Damn, you're lucky the godfather didn't find out about it, or you'd have been dead a long time ago," Alexandro remarked.

"Should I continue with what I was saying, or do you want to keep lecturing me about the laws of the Gambino family?" Alejandro asked, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Yeah, continue," Alexandro replied, "I'd love to know the end of your love story."

"Like I was saying," Alejandro continued, "I had a girlfriend named Marisa, and we loved each other so much. But we couldn't see each other much because her parents were strict. Actually, I don't know who her parents were, nor did I ever meet them. In fact, I knew nothing about her family."

"Not even her last name?" Alexandro chimed in.

"Yeah, I didn't know her last name," Alejandro replied, "I only knew her first name, which was Marisa."

"Dude, you had a girlfriend, and you didn't even know anything about her?" Alexandro asked in disbelief. Alejandro frowned at him.

"Love is crazy," Alexandro chuckled, and the room fell into silence.

"So, how's this long-lost girlfriend related to the hook-up woman?" Alexandro asked after two minutes of silence.

"First of all, that woman has a name, and her name is MARISA," Alejandro said, emphasizing the name.

"Yeah, whatever," Alexandro scoffed. "Just tell me how the hook-up woman related to your long-lost lover."

Alejandro felt like punching Alexandro for addressing Marisa as 'the hook-up woman,' but he managed to calm himself before answering Alexandro's question.

"The woman, Marisa, is related to my long-lost lover by name," Alejandro explained, and Alexandro raised an eyebrow in question.

"So, is that the reason why you're so interested in this hook-up woman?" Alexandro questioned.

"No," replied Alejandro. "Marisa and my long-lost lover kinda look similar."

"So, you're saying this hookup lady and your long-lost lover look alike?" Alexandro inquired.

"Not exactly," Alejandro answered.

"Do you have a picture of your long-lost lover?" Alexandro probed.

"Nope," Alejandro replied.

"Dude, I'm starting to wonder if you truly loved this long-lost lover of yours, as you claimed. Why wouldn't you have a picture of someone you were dating?" Alexandro questioned.

"She was the one who disagreed with the idea of us taking pictures because she was scared her parents would find out about our relationship," Alejandro explained.

"So, where is your long-lost lover now?" Alexandro asked.

"I don't know. The last time I heard from her was the night we had sex five years ago. After that day, I couldn't even reach her. I would've gone to look for her at her house, but I didn't know where she lived. I tried everything to find her, but all my efforts were in vain," Alejandro explained, as memories from five years ago flooded back to his mind.

"Now I understand why you've become more ruthless and heartless than me," Alexandro remarked. "You know, since we were kids, you were always the cheerful one. Even as we grew up, you were so kind-hearted that our godfather didn't think you'd make a suitable Mafia leader. But then you changed. I guess the disappearance of your lover awakened the inner devil we never knew you had."

"Yeah," Alejandro acknowledged.

"It seems like you had a complicated love life with your long-lost lover," Alexandro teased. "But anyway, I'd like to get close to this hookup lady..."

"Don't even entertain that thought, Alex," Alejandro interrupted. "Don't even let it cross your mind, because she's mine. Marisa is mine, and I won't hesitate to take you out if I catch you anywhere near her," Alejandro asserted with a stern and menacing tone.

"Man, you're something else. First, you pretend like you were a virgin Mafia, and then you had sex with Blade, and now you want to claim exclusive rights over that hook-up woman? For Pete's sake bro, don't be selfish." Alexandro retorted.

"I repeat, Marisa is mine. And for the record, the sex with Blade was nothing more than a grave mistake," Alejandro explained as he rose from his seat. He then made his way to the staircase, ascending to his room.

Upon entering his room, he removed his jacket and casually tossed it onto the king-sized bed. He walked over to the window, gazing at the full moon for a moment before retrieving his phone from his pocket.

Unlocking the phone, he opened the gallery app, scrolling through the images until he found the one he sought. The picture captured Marisa, taken secretly when he'd surprised her with a visit earlier that afternoon.

He studied the image with a smirk playing on his lips. "Who are you really, Marisa?" he mused quietly. "Are you the woman I fell in love with five years ago? Are you?"