The Devil's Dance

Sofia's POV

"You think you can fool me? Play me around with my money, right!?" A deep baritone voice which rose over the high music from the club.

Suddenly gunshots rang from outside disturbing the still night air, there were shouts of fear and scampering feet as those outside ran inside quickly startling those inside the club.

"What is going on? What is happening." One of the strippers in the changing room asked, she must have heard the angry yelling first.

There was an uproar everyone began to run for safety. This was life in downtown Italy.

Everyone in the club will be drinking and partying and the next minute, a different deadly gang or a Mafia Lord would send everyone scampering to safety.

And this was what was happening now, this was a norm, something we had gotten used to. But I was quite sure this incident was slightly different in many ways than any other raid.

Meet me Sofia Deluca, I was orphaned when I was barely five after my parents died in a plane crash like I was told.

I was left in the care of an Aunt who died from cancer a year later.

I was taken to the orphanage where I had lived my whole life, but life in an orphanage can be so cruel in many ways than one, and a month ago I had ran away and was deceived by my boss Luca into becoming a stripper. I was convinced of a better life with this job, but such has not being the case so far. Don't get me wrong, I do see my share of daily bread from it, but I also get my share of shredded dignity at the end of the day. And the amount I get isn't worth it.

"What's happening?" One of the strippers asked again her voice shaking. I looked at her, fear in her eyes.

"We are dead that's for sure" A busty striper with dyed blonde hair whom everyone called Sarah looked at me a smile plastered on her lips as she chewed away blowing bubbles with the gum in her mouth.

Life in the orphanage was quite better compared to this, only that we didn't have enough to eat and the sisters there watched you like a hawk but here you have to do just as you are told like a kind of puppet.

The small room was crowded with five of us we were the next set of strippers to go to the pole, but I felt nervous a month was enough for me to be perfect in pole dancing. At least I was better than most of them, bringing more money for my boss Luca and this had made me an enemy to some of the other girls, welI I really don't really care. I guess I was a natural.

"What is this all about anyway?" I asked no one in particular "Are we not going dance tonight?"

"That's a very silly question to ask considering the situation at- the- moment. You can dance all by yourself Queen bee." Rosa a sworn enemy of mine said brushing past me almost knocking me off my feet.

From the changing room where we were, we could hear yelling and banging on the tables at intervals, glass crash to the floor and more yelling rose up, causing some of the people in the club to scream out in fear

"But three months haven't elasped yet, Lord Azrael". We could hear our boss stuttering

"Do I look like a clown to you? I gave you five minutes to go in there and bring back the money you stole from me including the ones I gave you, you can't keep deceiving me and still snitch on me to the police." A booming voice rang

"I swear on my grandmother's grave, I never snitch on you, it wasn't I, perhaps it was someone who looks like me."

"Then both of you will visit hell soon."

The last sentence made everyone in the changing room to stare at one another in fear. I wonder what was our fate tonight.

Tears were already streaming down Maria's face her heavy face makeup made her look like an old witch, her tears made her mascara run down into long dark lines.

I was so scared I almost passed out, I didn't want to go back to the streets and this wasn't what I bargained for when I signed the contract.

My heart tightening and I felt faint.

"Please don't shoot me.... Please don't shoot me, you can take anything you want from the club, you can take the wine, the strippers anything... Please don't end my life. I beg of you Lord Azrael."

A few silent seconds passed by and we heard a loud bang, I jumped out of my skin the rest of the girls screamed out of their lungs causing the men who had invaded the club to discover our location.

I was about peering through the curtains when the door was pushed open with so much ferocity, sending it flying across the room.

The half naked girls screamed out of the lungs and I tried to hide behind a chair.

"Wow, wow, wow, look what we have here ."

One of the men who had a long scar running down from his left eye to his jaw said looking seductively at all of us, he held a gun carelessly and I feared that a little mistake would send the bullets flying out.

Another man came up behind him short and ugly looking, he grinned like a Cheshire cat and made for Maria who was crying her eyes out. He reached out to touch her inappropriately and she moved away, angrily he gave her a hard slap on the cheek sending her to the cold floor.

"Bring them out to the boss now." He said to the first man.

Whimpering and shaking like wet leaves, we were being dragged out to the club, the light dancing overhead gave the whole place an erie feeling.

Everyone was lying face down and at the other end, our boss Luca was looking different, his face was puffed and red and his lips were bleeding, his white long sleeve shirts were torn at different places with stains of blood.

He wasn't shot like we feared, lying close to the door in a bit to escape was the the body of one of the club bouncers.

I was so scared to even look up, we were surrounded by about twenty men, all in clad black and I watched my life flash before me, this could be my end, I should'nt have run out of the orphanage .

"Don't play games with me Luca." The voice came again. "I gave you three more."

"But you said five minutes." Luca asked stupidly, he was rewarded with a kick in the stomach from one of the fierce looking men which sent him doubling over and groaning in pains

"Bring him closer." The voice commanded "He needs to be taught a lesson."

"Okay ...okay ... fine I'll give you two million." Lucas said.

There was silence as he looked from one of the armed men back to the boss who had his back turned to us all.

From where I crouched, I could see his towering authoritative figure, his hands were clasped behind him, slowly he turned around and I couldn't help but gasp, standing there looking so perfect and clean was the most handsome man I have ever seen.

His dark hair gave light to his big black eyes, his well chiselled jaw ran up to a smooth almost hollow cheeks, he was a handsome devil.

Immediately he turned our eye seem to lock for the briefest of moments before I looked away fearfully.

"You owe me 10 million, I'm quite sure you haven't lost your memory Luca.?

"No ..no ...no.. no.. no I haven't I must have drank too much today." He replied stupidly.

"Don't you think it will be a good idea if I send you to hell to continue drinking with the devil?"

He said coldly and then raised the metal in his hand.

"I will fill you with lead if you don't pay me up now and here. I've been hearing rumors of you snitching on me and if you don't do as I said everyone in this club will accompany you to hell."

There was muffled screams from everyone

"Silence! ." He bellowed.

"Pl... Please... Lord Azreal". At this point Luca seemed to say anything that popped into his head as long as it would prevent Lord Azreal from ending his life. And rightfully so, I think anyone in his current situation would do the same.

" I can pay you back, just give me more time " he completed.

Lord Azreal let out a menacing chuckle almost immediately like he read Luca's mind before he could finish. Still maintaining his authoritarian stance, hands behind his back. "Luca, if I'm not mistaken, you said that the last time I confronted you about this issue. And now I've run out of patience". He let out a huge sigh.

"If you kill me... Lord Azreal, if you kill me how then will I pay you back. Dead men can't make money " Luca spoke, this time with a lot less conviction.

"Hmmm. You know what, this is the first time you've actually made sense." Lord Azreal replied with a smirk across his face, his head cocked to the right. "Hmm. What to do... What to do" he finished.

"I will give you anything.... anything ...I promise.. please don't kill me."

"Anything...? ." He asked

"Yes anything even my soul ." Luca said

"Who wants your dirty soul?" Lord Azreal replied his expression immediately changing to visible disgust.

Just then one of the men came dragging in one of Luca's guards.

"Lord Azrael." The man called, his voice deep and rough ."We found this one trying to escape."

"Let me show him what I can do." Azrael said, the handsome devil and in a twinkle of an eye, he raised the gun in his hand and the next thing we heard was a loud boom.

Lying down there in the pool of blood was the guard dead and gone

"Is there anyone else who wants to join him?" He asked

I could feel the fear from everyone bouncing off against the walls. I was shivering, I was about to throw up I regretted ever coming to look for help here.

I could feel his eyes looking around and then settling on me and the rest of the strippers.

"You said I can ask for anything?" He asked.

"Anything." Luca replied without thinking.

An even before we could blink he said something which made my heart stop for a bit.

" I want her." He said coldly

Slowly Luca lifted his head and his eyes almost fell out of their socket.

" You... you said?"

"If I repeat myself one more time, it will go with a lead in your thick skull."

"Please not her... I beg you, there are lot of strippers here, thirty of them you can't choose her please."

"Shut your dirty mouth, this is the first I've seen of this." Lord Azreal pointed the gun at Luca.

"A beggar with a choice? Honestly Luca I don't know how you've survived for this long. Since you are hungry for hell, I can send you there now." Lord Azreal poised his trigger finger.

"Say Hi to Lucy for me ehh...?" He put his finger on the trigger and applied pressure.

Luca hooked his head like a baby, his teeth chattering and he broke out in cold sweat

I couldn't even feel my hands, my whole body felt numb, as Lord Azreal turned to settle his eyes on me.

I wanted to pass out, I wanted a spell to be cast to me so I could vanish forever. Up until that second, I hadn't any idea that Lord Azreal was referring to me when he said he 'wants her'.

My heartbeat seemed to seize as he approached me slowly, gun still being pointed at Luca. He looked down at me beneath his lashes like I was some kind of an orphaned rabbit.

"I want her and she is leaving with me tonight."