Love and a Lady Mob Boss (Closed for Wombat9966)

Taylor stood back respectably but kept a close lookout all around him. At the moment all looked pretty clear. No one was in this part of the graveyard except for them and several gardeners. He wasn't too happy with his line of sight, the headstones being too high for his liking but he could work around that. He walked around her fathers headstone in a full circle looking all around and he began to get an uneasy feeling. Something was wrong. His training and instincts knew it but his brain hadn't caught up yet. He reached inside his jacket and pulled out his gun putting it down by his side. He began to walk towards Marise still scanning the entire area trying to figure out what was spooking him.

The path to the limo was clear and the funeral was too far away. The few people that he had seen on the way in were all in another part of the cemetery and no one had approached and the gardeners were still over by their cart loading their tools back on to it. Suddenly his eyes zoomed in on them and he took in the scene in greater detail. 3 men in brand new coveralls, new sneakers that were sparkling clean, and clean tools. Oh shit.

"Marise get down it's a trap," he yelled as he fired off a couple of shots at the men that he knew had virtually no chance of hitting them. Unlike the movies hitting a target while running full pelt was not easy, especially if it was moving. All he wanted was to distract them though so he could get between them and his boss. He succeeded and he grabbed Marise by her shoulders and shoved her behind her fathers headstone. "Stay there and stay safe."
Turning around he put himself between the men and Marise. Damn no cover and nowhere to run. Well not an ideal situation. They had pulled automatic hand guns and were firing at him. Luckily they were crap shots and did not know how to compensate for the kick of the automatic weapon. He crouched down and fired off a few careful shots and one of the men went down. One of them stopped and took cover looking down at his weapon while the other just charged him wild eyed. A single shot to his head put him down, but as he was dealing with him the other guy stood up and put two careful rounds in his chest. Twisting he fell against the headstone and looked down at Marise. "Stay there and wait until you can surprise him," he gasped "Wait for my signal."

Taylor could hear the man walking up confidently now and when he judged the moment right he flopped down and shot him in the leg. God that hurt but he hoped that Marise finished him off.

Marise lifted her head as Taylor called out to her to duck. Scanning the area she quickly took stock of the situation. Things looked pretty hairy with the three to one odds but before she had a chance to go for her gun she was shoved behind the headstone. Gunshots started rattling off almost immediately but it looked like the would be assassins were indeed terrible shots. Reaching beneath her blazer she pulled out her gun, glad that she made it a habit of leaving her safety off. Before she could even fire Taylor had taken two of them down. But the third caught him by surprise, putting to bullets into his chest. Judging by the fact that he didn't die instantly it was obvious that he had been wearing a vest. Had he not been between her and the shooter those bullets could have very easily hit her instead.

Still she knew that a Kevlar vest was only really effective against one shot at max and even that one would have put a little sting on him. The second had undoubtedly hurt worse a thought that was confirmed as he slumped into the headstone. Even then he still managed to cover her with his body. She brought her gun up, waiting for the moment to make her move. When Taylor flopped to the ground, another painful act no doubt, and shot the incoming assailant in the leg. In the moment that the man was stunned she brought her weapon up to bear and fired to well placed shots. The first caught him in the chest right above the heart and the second caught him directly between the eyes. Lowering the weapon she scanned the area, making sure that everyone was down. She cast a quick glance at Taylor, mostly to check for blood which meant that he would need immediate attention. But he looked fine so she stood and moved from behind the stone. She went to check the other assailant, the one who had not been shot directly in the head. The man was down and bleeding profusely but he was still drawing breath. It seemed like the shots had got him in the abdomen and lung. The shot to the lung meaning he wouldn't be able to answer any questions she might have. Deeming him thus useless to her she put a bullet between his eyes.

Sighing she returned to Taylor, dropping to a knee at his side. Gently she place a hand on his shoulder and helped him to sit up. She could see the circular holes where the bullets had passed through his shirt but neither was soaked with blood. Placing his arm across her shoulder she put her other arm around his waist before standing up. Supporting him slightly against her own body they made their way back to the limo. Holstering her gun beside the vehicle she opened the door and placed him gently in the passengers seat before walking around to the other side and getting into the car. As she started the vehicle she made a brief and very rushed phone call, contacting one of her subordinates to get them to send clean up crew to the graveyard as quickly as possible. She wanted things wrapped up neatly and as quickly as possible. As she put the car in drive she cast a glance at Taylor.

"Thank you..."

Taylor slumped back into the passenger seat wincing and struggling to breathe. Damn his ribs felt like they were on fire. He tried to unbutton his shirt but his hands refused to cooperate with him. Looking down he saw where he had been hit. Two holes were neatly drilled in his chest one on either side of the wide area. He laughed as he saw that neither one would have been fatal but still it was always better to not have been shot in the first place. He had got sloppy and this was his price for it. He should have noticed those gardeners right off and protected Marise accordingly.

Finally he was able to open his shirt and look at the vest below it. He had a top of the line new prototype sharkskin vest. It was much lighter and easier to wear than other vests but it protected them from bigger projectiles and more hits. He pulled out the squashed slugs and then opened the vest to examine his chest. Already heavy black bruising was forming and he was very tender. He wouldn't be surprised if he had a couple of cracked ribs or maybe even a broken one but he needed to be up and moving, this could only have been the first in a long play at the boss. Tightening the vest back up he grimaced and then sat up properly biting back a groan of pain.

Looking over he saw Marise driving with a look of determination on her face. "Nice shooting Boss. Remind me to never criticize you for wanting to carry a gun again. Don't go the same way back, they might have followed us. Hit the GPS and press button 2. I have programmed a back up route into it," he grimaced. Picking up the phone he hit the pre programmed number and after two rings Angelo picked up. "Yes boss whats up?"
"Coming in hot Angelo. I'm hit, Boss is driving. Get to the garage and have Tony watch the doors. Also clear the Lobby. Not sure if we can trust the security yet."
"You got it boss. ETA."
Taylor glanced at the GPS and then at how Marise was driving. "About 15. Remember Boss is priority."
"I know the drill, I will be ready."

Taylor hung up and then looked at Marise. "Drive into the Garage and straight to the elevator. Angelo will be waiting. Go with him to your rooms and get safe. Tony will make sure everything is fine then come and get me. Hey by that time I will be able to walk to my own rooms myself. So just follow the plan please. Hopefully nothing else happens," Taylor grimaced but picked up his gun and held it in his hand," But they will be in for a hard fight if it does."

Marise frowned as she glanced over at him. Reaching out she hit the two button on the GPS, waiting a bit as it reprogrammed itself. Turning she began following the alternative course that the system was showing her. Even when she felt it wasn't an urgent situation Marise drove like a bat out of hell. But usually that was in her Ferrari and not a limo. Still she was pushing the speed limit as closely as she could without causing herself to fear getting them into a wreck. During her glance she had gotten a chance to see the dark bruising that had formed beneath his vest. It looked painful but not particularly life threatening. However there was always the chance that he could have a few broken bones.

Admittedly she was feeling a tad bit of guilt about the fact that he had been hurt protecting her. Sure it was his job, but stepping in the path of gunfire for her was something she had not seen from many of her guards. Perhaps he really did just want to do his job. That was not something she could fault him for. However as he began giving her further instructions she realized that he was still in a protective mindset. Though he was wounded and obviously in pain he still was focused on protecting her. The thought was both unusual and mildly irritating. She tapped her finger lightly against the safety of her gun, which was still off.

"I wonder exactly how many bullets that thing will protect you from... But just this once, I will do as you ask... On one condition... When I get out, you get out... There will be none of the waiting in the garage shit... And that is an order..."

She had decided not to argue against what he wanted, but she also refused to let an injured man remain behind if there was any more danger to come. He was confident in his men and she was confident in herself. If worst came to worse she wasn't inclined to leave anyone behind to get needlessly killed. Flicking the safety on her gun on, she placed the weapon on her lap. Driving with one hand she opened her clutch with the other. Retrieving her bluetooth she popped it into her ear before grabbing the cube and twisting it into the on mode. Tapping her finger against the headset she made a call.

"Carlese, meet me at my apartment in the next 20 minutes... Make sure you check in with one of the new guards before anyone else... I have an injured bodyguard who could use some attention..."

Carlese was her personal doctor and handled any discrete medical situations that Marise needed handled. He had been with the mafia since her father had first started running it and he was one of the people she knew she could trust. When he agreed to meet her she hung up the phone.

Taylor was too sore to argue with her. Besides if it got her to follow his plan he would do whatever it took. "Fine but you park the car...with the drivers door near the elevator." He took several deep breaths and felt something twinge but he was pretty sure his ribs weren't broken. Hurt like hell and maybe still cracked but not broken. The good news was he could ignore pain for a little while and should be able to make it into the elevator without too many problems.

"So how many people know you make this pilgrimage Marise. This would have taken a little bit of planning and knowledge of your movements. Hopefully there are only a few, please tell me there are only a few and that this is not a well known event that you do every year. If it is my suspect list just got a whole lot bigger you know," Taylor told her with a wry smile. "We can figure this out when we are safe in your penthouse. Don't you worry about me when we get there. I will follow you but you will go first."

Taylor was rather touched that Marise wasn't willing to leave him behind, even though she didn't like having him around. She had even called in someone to have a look at his injuries. Maybe she was warming up to him a little.

"It's not to late for me to shoot you... I'm sure at this range it'll at least break your ribs..."

She turned her glance on him for a moment a frown on her face. But she would save the answering of questions for later. It was also probably best not to mention that this was not an unusual, or even infrequent thing for her. She made the trips to see her father frequently and many people had taken to believing that this was a time when she was at her most vulnerable. So they saw her as a prime target for their attacks. However much like today when the dust had settled she was always the one calling a clean up crew.

Running a hand through her hair, Marise hit the button to trigger the garage door. With the same ease as before she blew through the garage, hitting the breaks while simultaneously pulling the limo in a hard turn. The car slid to a stop near the elevator doors. Standing immediately near the door to the elevator was the man she had seen earlier, presumably the one called Angelo. Marise turned the car off and opening the door, stepped out with her gun at her side. She approached the elevator, uttering a lazy yawn.

"I'm going to my room...alone... Grab your friend in the car there and get him to his room... Then when Carlese gets here make sure he sees him... Until then... I don't wish to be bothered... I have some business to deal with..."

Turning away she entered the elevator. Swiping her card so the buttons lit up she shut the door immediately and pressed the button for her room...

Taylor half grinned half grimaced as he watched his boss storm off in the elevator. If he was reading her right he had just earned a few points with her. A very few but a few. The problem was she still considered herself damn invincible and that was the problem. He needed to be around for when she found out she wasn't. He prayed that the day was far away but he had the feeling it was going to be very soon with the way she acted.

As Angelo helped him out of the car he couldn't suppress a grunt of pain. He looked at him with a look of concern. "How bad is it boss?"
"I'm fine Angelo. Just a couple of cracked ribs at the worst I'm sure. That's why I want you to make sure that everyone we hire gets one of these new vests. I got hit by two slugs from a semi auto hand gun at 30 yards shooting modified ammo and I'm here talking to you with only cracked ribs. These things pass the test. Also I want one in white one in black and one in tan in the boss's size. Find out if they do other colors too." Taylor saw the other mans puzzled look. "It's simple Angelo. If the vest won't go with what she is wearing she won't wear the vest. This way we cover our bases."

Angelo had helped him to his room while they had been talking and Taylor stripped off his jacket, shirt and vest and laid down. He must have dozed off because he as woken by voices coming down the hall. Tony escorted a man into the room who was holding a typical doctors bag.
"Hey doc, sorry to disturb you but I am pretty sure this is nothing more than some bruised or cracked ribs. If you just want to strap me up you can be on your way or grab a coffee if you want."

Marise sat in one of the two chairs that flanked her fireplace. Her laptop rested on the table near her. She was tapping her fingers on the side of the half empty glass of scotch she held. Upon entering her penthouse she had went into her room and activated her signal jammer. She had started making phone calls almost immediately. These attempts had long since ceased to be isolated events and she was losing her patience. In many accounts she was her fathers child but when it came to temperament she was his exact duplicate. She would stand for no foolishness nor would she sit back quietly and accept any attempts on her life or her business.

By the time Carlese knocked on her door she had finished what remained in her glass and was pouring a fourth one as she wrapped up a rather terse conversation over the phone. Still she managed a friendly smile at Carlese as the doctor entered her room. Carlese was as close to her as family and she was rather fond of the old doctor with his gruff and rather serious demeanor. She gave him a warm hug before lifting her eyebrows in a silent question.

"Your bodyguard is fine. Stubborn kid tried to get me to do a quick patch job so he could get right back out there." Carlese said with gruff chuckle.
"I know you weren't favorable of that attempt..." she replied with a sight smile.
"No. I gave him a thorough look over. He has a few cracked ribs, but I bandaged him up and gave him some pills. He should be completely fine before long." Carlise said with a nod.
"Good... I suppose he'll be back to bother me shortly... Thanks for coming on such short notice..."

Carlese nodded at her words and gave her a final hug. Gathering up his work bag and coat he headed for the elevator. Marise downed her drink in a gulp and poured a new one. Returning to her chair she set the fire to a low blaze.

Taylor was feeling a lot better now. The doc had wrapped him up tight and the pills he had given him had finally kicked in. He had a small bottle to last him for the next few days but he would only take them when he really needed them so they would probably last him a lot longer than that. He got up and put on a shirt and walked down to the security room. Tony was in there again, but this time he was looking a lot happier.
"Why all the smiles Tony?"
"Oh Boss. Good to see you up. I have finally found a use for this silly system. My friend is coming around tomorrow to have a good look at the whole system but we have worked out that we have more than enough room to put in at least a ten camera system up here. If we find out what is draining all the speed and power from the system we will be able to more than double that, but we will probably want that for other things."
Taylor nodded as he digested this news. Ten cameras would be good. It would give them some decent coverage as he would not just be placing the cameras in the penthouse but the garage, elevator and some in the lobby too.
"Good work Tony. Oh and how are the guys on the day shift?"
"Decent. Looks like it is just the Night shift that is the problem. Of course you will have to check them out but for building security i would pass them."
"Fine I will eventually get around to seeing them but if you think there OK then that is one less worry for now."

Taylor walked back towards Marise's room. He needed to check in with her to find out how she was doing and if she had any ideas about who the people might have been who had sent those people after her. They hadn't been all that professional but the set up had been. Probably some low end muscle backed by someone higher up. The thing was as far as he knew there was no one in the city that had any grudges against them at the moment.

Knocking on her door he asked politely "Miss Marise it's Taylor, may I come in?"

Marise was standing near the fireplace her phone in one hand and her glass in the other. She had taken her blazer off quite some time ago and it was laying neatly over the arm of her chair. She had yet to take of her holster or put up her gun. Both contrasted starkly with the soft and sweet appearance of her dress. At the sound of the knock on her door she shook her head. It had taken less time then she thought for Taylor to return to work. Moving back to her table, she poured herself a fresh cup before shutting her computer. Sitting down she uttered a soft sigh.

"Come in..."

Her mind was elsewhere, planning things out for herself. There were some things that she would need to do and things were quickly sliding into position for her to get them done. Certain groups were beginning to get out of line and they were sorely in need of a reminder of who was in charge. Some things she would delegate to other members of her gang. Others, she would handle herself.

Taylor walked in to find Marise sitting at her table. It looked like she had been working almost non stop since they had gotten back as her phone and laptop were on the table with her and she had yet to take off her shoulder holster. It was a strange sight to see such a thing over such a feminine dress but somehow it looked good on her. Taylor snapped out of his daydream and looked at her properly. She looked tired and unhappy. A glass of alcohol was in her hand and he scanned the room for the bottle. There a bottle of scotch and it looked like she had had a few more than one. Not good. Time to get that away from her.

"Reporting back for duty Marise. We need to have a bit of a talk about this morning. That was a professional hit. Those guys had guns you can't just buy from a gun store, you need connections to get them as well as the ammunition they were using. The set up was good to. The gardening truck, uniforms, everything was worked out. Their only problem was in the guys they hired, strictly low end. Bad shots and didn't know their weapons. We were lucky. I am thinking that they didn't know about this mornings visit. This was a plan they had in place for a long time and as soon as they found out you were going there they put it in motion with the best guys they could get. That means either you have a spy in house, or this place is under surveillance. I will work on both assumptions. What I need from you is a list of anyone bold enough to pull off something like this. Also you are going to have to be a lot more careful for a little while."

"The least they could do was send me a security detail with a bit of knowledge... This is not the first time there's been an attempt while I'm paying my respects to my father... I make the trip once every month and always on the same day... Since it is a known thing and people tend to be under the assumption that I'm easier to get to at those times it is no longer an unusual occurrence..."

She sighed, reaching back to grab the clip from her hair, letting it fall down around her shoulders. She tossed the clip on the table and took another drink from her glass. Running her hand through her hair placed the glass on the table. Settling into the chair she grabbed a folder from the table. The file folder was rather thick and full of an assortment of papers, most with paperclips grouping them together into neatly organized packets. She sat the folder on her lap flipping through the selection until she withdrew a set of papers. She removed the top most paper and picture, placing them back in the folder before handing the rest over.

"That is the group responsible for today's attack... Either you figure something out to do with them, or get Morelli and some of the others to... I don't particularly care which... I won't stand for repeated attempts on my life to go unpunished..."

She grabbed her clutch from the chair beside her, opening it and pulling out a pack of cigarettes and her lighter. Shaking one out into her hand, she lifted it to her lips. Lighting it she took a drag, holding it in before exhaling a plume of silver smoke. Her gaze was calm and her voice made it clear that there was no room for argument. She downed the rest of her drink before placing the cup on the table. Standing she went towards the window, grabbing the ash tray as she went. She was quite for a moment before she spoke again.

"I know I said it earlier... But I am quite thankful to you for shielding me today... I am a tad irritated now so it may be hard to tell...but I really am grateful..."

Taylor looked at her and suddenly realized just how young she actually was.He hadn't realized it before because of her aura of... well toughness he supposed but now that she had let her guard down he saw that she was actually younger than him. He wanted nothing more than to go to her now and wrap her in his arms and comfort her but he knew she would probably shoot him if he tried that.

"Marise it is my job to get between you and any harm but that is not to say that I do not appreciate your thanks. However we are going to have to change your routine for visiting your Father. It is just to predictable. Even if it is just by a couple of days every month it can throw off their schedules and we can see them coming, and you are right, I should have been informed of the previous attempts on your life. Then I would have known what to look for and had more people on hand."

"As for this group, I will take care of it. I will only say it will be public so that others know that your life is not to be threatened or they will be dealt with. I am only telling you this so you can be ready for the media storm that will probably follow. It always does when this sort of thing happens. I will tell you exactly when it will happen when the plan is in place."

"One last thing. You have a massive computer set up here, but my computer guy who I and he readily admit has only a basic understanding of computers, say that it is only running at about 50 % of it's true potential. Something is draining it's other power and speed. Would you know what that is or is this news to you to. We do have a tech guru coming in to see if he cn work it out but I thought I would bring it to your attention first."

"If it is public... Then let it be so... There are two things in this world that I can not stand... One is being bothered by trivial things... And the other is those who would dare to try to eliminate me... Make sure they are crushed and that everything is cleaned up nicely... And get it done by tomorrow night..."

She tilted her head, taking another drag from her cigarette. She exhaled slowly a small smile curving her lips. Flicking the ash into the ash tray she chuckled softly. The sun was beginning to set and the sky was turning luminous hues of pink, orange, and light purple. She crossed her arms staring out across the rooftops. She would have some work of her own to do. But it would wait until the morning. Her appointment was already set. She doubted she would get any sleep tonight. There were still some things that she had to get set in place, and even more so she would have to figure out a way to get out of the house on her own. What she had to do was not something she wanted other people present for.

Taylor examined the file and did a bit of calculating. Everything he needed to know about the organization was in here from the boss down. Where they all lived, where they gathered and where they worked. it looked like he could get most of the crew in one hit at the gentleman's club in which they gathered every day. The boss was going to be a little harder but he left his car outside his mistresses place and did not take any security with him. A simple bomb would deal with him. The other three or four other guys would be easy to mop up with simple hits. He would need a few guys but it was doable.

"No problems Marise. By this time tomorrow this gang will be history."

"Ah one more thing... Don't touch the boss... That matter is already being dealt with... Since that's all I have for you... Go rest... I won't need you again until the afternoon tomorrow... I plan to sleep til around noon or so..."

Marise turned, giving him a half smile before making a shooing motion towards the door. She needed him out of her hair, there was a lot of other planning that she needed to do. Tomorrow morning she had a meeting first with her mother, it had been a long time since she had seen her and another small thing to handle.

At the thought of her mother she took another deep inhale of her cigarette, her hand trembling slightly with anger. That woman had been useless other than for giving birth to her. After her father's death she had become and even bigger thorn in Marise's side. The woman hadn't even grieved the loss of her husband properly, probably do to the fact that she hadn't seen a full day sober since Marise was born. When she finally did gain her senses long enough to talk to Marise is was only to see how much money she would be getting. Her father had been smart enough to cut the bitch out of his will. So not only had she gained control of his gang she had gained control on the fortune he had made both through legitimate business and illegitimate means. She had made sure that her mother would never see a scent.

Every since her mother had been doing anything in her power to try to make Marise's life a living hell. She had even gone so far as marrying the boss of a rival gang. Of course the man cheated on her compulsively, but it never seemed to matter to her mother. All she wanted was access to his men and his connections. She had been attempting to take her daughter out of the picture for years in hopes of claiming the money and power that Marise had nearly tripled since her fathers death all for herself. Both her mother and the leader of the gang would have to be snuffed out. And that was something she would need to do with her own hands. So while her men were busy taking out the small fries, Marise would be making a statement of her own, and it would be a bloody one.

Taylor nodded to Marise and left the room. He needed to call a few people anyway and lay down a few plans. He didn't want to just rely on Mr Morelli for this as that would send the wrong sort of message to the other Families. He would spread the work around to show that they were all equally important to Miss Marise and she was relying on all of them. Plus some of the lieutenants were nearer other members territories than others, it would make it a lot easier.

Two hours later and Taylor had all the hits lined up and the thanks of the head of the families for involving them in miss Marise's revenge. They promised to make it as public as they could while still enabling themselves to remain clean. Taylor had thanked them and had promised them that she would not forget this. The gentleman's club hit he would do himself. He had arranged to pick up some C-4 and timers from an expert later that night and a contact in the power company was arranging a legitimate power outage in a 4 block radius of the club. He would have half an hour to plant the explosives and get out before power was restored.

At three in the morning he was in place. He had arranged for a bike to be brought to him and the 250cc dirt bike was parked two blocks away. He had walked to opposite the front door and now waited for the power to go out. At exactly 12 past all the lights went out. Donning his night vision goggles he set to work. Running across the road he quickly picked the lock and was in. He had chosen the front door because it was the least secure. Everyone reinforced their rear doors but their front had to look inviting. Inside he found a pot plant and he dug into the dirt and buried the first bomb. It was set to go off at 2 in the afternoon when a meeting was scheduled to have started at one in the back room. It would be well underway and everyone should be there. They also shut down the place so innocent casualties should be zero.

Taylor worked his way through the building planting his packages in unseen areas, even managing to put two in the actual meeting room itself. He knew the place would be swept because of the outage, but he was sure they would not be discovered. He exited and relocked the door at 3:58, ahead of schedule but he kept watch until 5 in the morning to be sure that he had tripped no hidden back up security systems that had not been on the plans. Once he was sure that they were in the clear he went back to the penthouse and fell asleep. He set his alarm for 11:30. He wanted to be outside the club when the bombs went off to make sure they got everybody.

Marise spent the majority of the night fielding phone calls from the higher ups in the organization as well as calls from various rats and informants. By midnight there was hardly a moment when she wasn't either on the phone or typing on her computer. Everything had to be in place for such a large move as this one. She got the information on the plans that Taylor had put in place as well, gathering the plan piece by piece from various bosses. Soon she was fully aware of the scale that this wipeout would take place. It was well planned to. Things would be done in a way that would make a statement to the other gangs in the area while keeping each individual part of her business clean from the prying eyes of the authorities.

By 6 o'clock in the morning everything was in place for her end of the plan. Closing her laptop, she headed for her closet. She flicked the light on moving through the rows of clothes to find an outfit that would suit her purposes. In the end she decided on a black pencil skirt, blood red silk blouse, and a long black jacket that hung at the same length as the hem of her skirt. She dressed quickly, taking care to don her shoulder holster as well as the custom made holster that she had fitted to be able to hold a blade at her thigh as well as another gun in the small of her back. She even put on one of the bulletproof vests that she had made specifically for her.

She chose her two favorite DE's as well as a smaller caliber handgun and strapped her combat knife to her thigh. Pulling her jacket on she sat in front of her mirror. Grabbing her brush she ran it through her hair until it shone and decided to leave it down. Her makeup was simple and quick, a bit of black liner and shadow and a deep red lipstick. Satisfied with her appearance she ran her hand through her hair a few more times. Donning a pair of black strapped heels she grabbed her clutch. Touching the frame of her father's photo she smiled one last time.

Entering her closet she moved a small panel hidden just along the side of one of the many shelves full of shoes. She pressed her palm to the panel waiting as the thin strip of light ran first up then down her palm. A single green light lit beside the panel and another hidden panel slid back, revealing the button panel for her private elevator. She pressed the button, glad that the elevator was already waiting, and stepped inside as the doors opened. She pressed the button for the garage and waited as it made it's swift descent.

By 7:30 she was blowing out of the garage and through the city streets. She checked her watch. Her meeting was set for 10 o'clock that morning. She had some time before she needed to be at the family house near Brighton Beach. So instead she headed to a flower shop to buy some roses and from there to her fathers grave. Despite yesterday's events the graveyard was just as peaceful as ever. Laying the flowers at the foot of the headstone Marise closed her eyes. For the next 2 hours she sat at her dad's grave, leaning against the headstone and talking.

By 9:30 she was back on the rode again. It took her little under a half an hour to get to the house. Allowing her enough time to settle in to the dining room as she awaited her two guests of honor. By the time the maid was showing them in Marise already had her first cup of coffee.

"Please... Take a seat..."

Taylor awoke at 11:30 and grabbed a quick shower and a coffee. he checked with Tony and Angelo that Marise had not left the building and then hurried downstairs. He grabbed a cab over to the club and arrived a little after midday. Taking a seat at an outdoor cafe a little down the road he ordered another coffee and a large lunch. He wanted an excuse to be able to take his time. He also grabbed a paper and started to read it.

A little before 12:30 the crew began to trickle in. Taylor started to mentally tick them off the list he had in his head, counting them off one by one. His lunch arrived and he began to eat slowly as he continued to count. By 5 to 1 all of the crew was safely inside and the staff started to trickle out. By 10 past one he saw someone lock the front door and there was no more activity near the club.

Taylor enjoyed his meal and ordered another coffee telling the waitress to send his complements to the chef. He must remember this place, the food really was excellent. Once they had moved in and taken over this territory he would have to recommend it to whoever took over the place. At five to 2 he paid his bill leaving a sizable tip and walked away and caught a cab. He was four blocks away when he heard the explosion behind him. He hoped the cafe had not been damaged.

Marise was quite as she sat at the table. A slender coil of silvery smoke drifted up from the faintly burning cherry of her cigarette. She lifted the cup of coffee to her lips, taking a small sip as she turned her gaze from one face to another. Sitting opposite from her at the small table that sat in the enclosed back patio was her mother, Trisha, and Boss Carelli. Carelli was a solidly built man, dressed in a staunch black suit. He ran the Carelli Mafia, the mostly Italian gang that ran a good portion of the cities more colorful and ethnic areas. Though the organization wasn't all that large they were nothing to sneer at. Even in her fathers days the Carelli Mafia and the Calisto Mafia had bumped heads. That is why she had found it to be the greatest form of treachery when her mother had married Carelli shortly after her fathers death.

"Marise, what did you call us here for?" Trisha asked, her hawkish gaze on her daughter.
"You should already know..."

Marise's response was short and calm. She placed her coffee cup back into it's saucer, uttering a patient sigh. Lifting her cigarette to her lips she inhaled slowly. Her gaze never wavered as she studied both one and then the other of her two enemies. Staring at Carelli for a moment she saw a slight trickle of sweat running down his face and to his collar. It was the first sign of his nervousness and as she exhaled a small smile curved her lips. The big man slammed his hand down on the table rising a bit from his seat.

"If you called us here so your goons could kill us then why don't you just get on with it?!" he bellowed.
"I didn't bring any goons, but you will be dying here..." Marise said putting her cigarette out on the edge of her saucer.
"I doubt that." Trisha said with a smile.

Marise's gaze drifted to the window as the rattling sound of semi-automatic gunfire broke the quite. Marise's gaze went to the window just to the left of the other two as the glass shattered. There was the sharp pain as a few of the bullets caught her, tearing holes in her shirt before thudding into her vest. Luckily the bullets all hit around relatively the same time so the vest took the majority of the sting off. A fourth bullet grazed her shoulder, some of the burn being taken off by her shoulder holster. Marise tipped the table, ducking behind it and pulling out two of her handguns.

Carelli and Trisha were making thier way towards the door as two of their hired guns drew closer to the shattered window. Marise cussed softly under her breath, but it wasn't that she hadn't expected this. Trisha was cowardly and manipulating enough to try for a move like this. Leaning out from behind the table she fired two shots, both bullets ripping through one of the shooters throat and tossing him back out of the window. The other brought up his weapon and fired another barrage of bullets into the table. She frowned glancing over as she watched her two targets slip out of the door. They were not going to get away from her. Rising from behind the table at the telltale sound of a reload Marise fired again, this time four shots, each hitting the man square in the chest before he could finish changing clips.

Marise winced at the pain in her chest and shoulder but followed behind Trisha and Carelli. She caught up with them in the hallway that led to the back garden. Bringing both guns up she fired once. The first shot caught Carelli in the back of the head, bringing the male down instantly. The second shot however caught Trisha in the back of the knee, blowing out her kneecap and driving her to the floor. The woman screamed in pain, but continued trying to crawl forward. Marise holstered on of her guns, struggling to repress a groan of pain. She made her way down the hall, firing another shot, this time into Trisha's shoulder. The woman collapsed in a groan on the floor and Marise advanced slowly before kneeling at her side. Grabbing the woman's hair in one hand she reigned her head up from the floor, forcing her to keep her gaze. A small smile played on her lips.

"Well mother... It seems like you'll finally be able to see Daddy again... I'll see you both in hell..."

Marise holstered her other gun, and pulled the knife from it's sheathe on her thigh. With one swift brutal motion she sliced open the woman's throat. Releasing her head, she let her face drop into the pool of blood. Straightening, she rose to her feet, brushing a hand down her skirt.

An half an hour later Marise was tearing back to her penthouse. A clean up crew was handling the mess at the house, but not before making sure that the word would be discreetly spread. Marise gripped the wheel tightly, fighting the urge to pass out.

Yaylor arrived back at the apartment building and walked in. He was surprised to find three of the day guards on the front desk and thought it may have something to do with all of the hits. so he walked over. "Good afternoon gentleman. Anything I should know about?"
They glanced up guiltily but then turned to the most senior in rank. "It seems like their has been a big play today sir. The Carelli family has been wiped out to a man. That was the family Marise's mother married into and they say she's dead too. Some almost got away when the rumor of their bosses demise went around early in the afternoon but just as most of them were leaving they got it themselves. Most of the gang didn't even know. They got blown up in their monthly briefing."
Taylor put on a good surprised act. "Damn. What are the rumor mills saying?"
"It is supposed to be in retaliation for attempted hits against Miss Marise but it wasn't sanctioned by her or done by any of her people. These people are supposedly just sending a message. Don't fuck with a good thing."
Taylor gave a chuckle and the men looked at him strangely. "Hey don't get me wrong I know this could start a war, but anything that makes my job easier, I am sort of happy and so should you be."
They looked at each other and slowly grins spread across their faces as realization of what this could mean hit them.
"Well I will leave you to it.The boss will probably want to be told or discuss this with me."
Waving he headed for the elevator and headed up. Inside his smile fled his face. The leaders had died early and he knew who had done it. Marise! She could have blown the whole operation because she had to kill her damn mother. Oh he was going to have words with her alright.

"Goddess damn it...!! I'm not made of stone Carlese..."

Marise's voice came out in a pained his as she grabbed her glass from the table. Lifting it to her lips with a trembling hand she took a long drink. Carlese had been waiting for her when she had gotten back to her apartment and the better part of the last hour had been spent giving her a thorough check up. She had broken two ribs and the majority of her chest was a splotch of deep purple bruising. Carlese had wrapped her wounds and given her a bottle of pills to ease the pain. Then he had set to work on the wound in her shoulder. The bullet had grazed just above where her holster had been strapped and the resulting gash wasn't to deep. But it would require stitches.

Marise was curled over her pillow, clenching her jaw in order to bite back any further curses as Carlese drew the needle in and out of the wound. Though the gash wasn't to big it felt like it was taking him forever to finish up. It didn't help that the only thing he was letting her drink was water, since he couldn't run the risk of her bleeding any more while he was suturing the wound. He gave the needle on final tug before cutting of the string. He wiped the area with an alcohol soaked piece of gauze before covering it with some ointment and a bandage.

"Now, I'd recommend that you get some rest Marise. And maybe next time take some back up. You're not invincible." Carlese said as he gathered his items.
"I know that... But my enemies don't need to..."

Marise gave him a weak smile turning her head some as he kissed her on the cheek. Leaning back in her bed she checked her phone once again. It seemed like the plans had gone of well today. In fact they went a bit better than expected, she had expected a least a few to survive. Sighing she closed her eyes for a moment.

Carlese looked at her one last time before he exited the room, heading for the elevator he brushed past Taylor.

Taylor brushed past Carlese and his anger grew a little more but it was tinged with anxiety. Why was the Doc back again? Then his brain caught up. Obviously Marise had done something stupid and had paid a price for it. Just how much of a price he was about to find out.

He opened her door without knocking and walked in. He saw her sitting behind her desk leaning over one of her pillows with a freshly bandaged wound on her left arm. Looking at her he also saw some bandaging around her rib area but most of it was covered by her pillow, still he knew chest taping when he saw it. Damn it the woman had been shot and at least twice by the looks of things. His face growing angrier he walked to the other side of her table.

Glaring at her he looked her up and down. "So how did your personal revenge go," he began angrily without any hellos or deference in his voice. "I see you got pretty banged up, let me guess. One shot to the arm, probably just a graze from the looks of things and maybe several shots to the ribs from what I can see of that wrapping now. Well tough and I hope it hurts. Do you know you almost bungled the whole hit," his voice had gone quiet and cold now. "I gave you the plans and time frame. You knew that all hits were to go off at 2pm, yet I hear you offed your targets earlier in the day and then had the nerve to start spreading the rumors about it. You are just lucky they didn't move fast enough to reach the right ears and we got all our targets and they hadn't tooled themselves up. If you ever do that again i will shoot you myself. I don't care that you are the big boss, no one treats people that I have put in the field with that sort of disrespect."

Taylor looked her dead in the eye and grinned. "Maybe now you will listen to me."

Marise lifted her head, locking her gaze with Taylor's her expression remain placid. She grabbed her shirt from the back of her chair. She dropped the pillow revealing the taping that covered the majority of her ribs. Livid purple splotches stood out on her skin and peeked out from the edges of her snowy white bandages. With some difficulty she wrangled her way into the black silk button up. As she fastened the buttons she waited for his tirade to end.

She had somewhat expected this, but that did little to negate the fact that his outburst was both irritating and troublesome. The urge to laugh in his face or preferably curse him out both flashed through her with equal swiftness. However both option would only increase the already searing pain that was pulsating through her rib cage. When he grinned at her, punctuating his rant with a smart remark about her listening she snapped. Grabbing the half empty glass of water first she flung it with her good arm. The glass crashed into the wall just above his head and sent a spray of water, ice, and broken glass raining through the air. In nearly the same motion she grabbed her gun from the small of her back.

Still with the same calm face she fired seven shots at him, each of them only a hairs breadth away from hitting him. It was obvious that the slight miss was intentional and she exhaled slowly, flicking the safety on and sitting the gun on her desk. Folding her hands in front of her she spoke her voice deadly calm and ice cold.

"Get out of my sight... Return to Morelli and pray to the gods that you never come before me again... You dare to run your mouth on situations that you know nothing about... If you were worried about your men then you sent the wrong ones or you yourself are a worthless fool... The first rule of gang operations is be prepared for anything... If you expect a slight change to mean the deaths of you men, then you were not prepared... Now... Before I put a bullet in your chest... Get out..."

Taylor had not moved as she drew her gun but he had been surprised. As she began firing he knew better than to move and he knew that she had missed him on purpose. The problem was she was injured and she had no way of knowing how that would have effected her aim. He was sick and tired of playing these silly games with her. It was about time she learned that there were people that were not going to put up with her moods anymore.

He drew his own gun, smiled at her and put three shots into the sides of her chair right next to her body. "Wow you are right, that is a lot of fun. Don't you tell me I am not allowed to be worried about my men. They risked their lives to wipe out those men for you and you treat it as if it's your right to risk theirs by casually mucking up a carefully laid plan. Newsflash Miss Marise not everyone is here for your benefit especially not me anymore. I am going to be happy to go back to Mr Morelli, at least he knows how to treat his men and when to listen to advice."

He turned and began to walk out but as he reached the door he turned again and looked at her again. "Oh and Marise if you ever draw a gun on me again make sure you actually shoot me, because i will be doing the same." Taylor walked out the door and almost walked into Tony and Alberto. "Good luck dealing with her boys,she is all yours now." He stalked into his room and slammed the door and threw himself on his bed, wincing as his ribs reminded him they were still injured.