The Mafia And His Queen

- Roxie -

Life is an extraordinary thing. Family is a gift which I'm sure any person would want. When you're a child, your parents are supposed to protect you from anything that may harm or frighten you. They're supposed to shower you with love and let you know that you have them.

For as long as I can remember, my parents have given me the exact opposite. To be more precise... my mother and stepfather. Instead of wishing me sweet dreams, they cursed me with nightmares. Rather than hugs and kisses, I received punches and kicks.

I'm not sure what I did wrong for them to give me that treatment and hate me so much, but I had learned to just deal with it. Especially when a beautiful green-eyed baby girl was born into the family. Well, if you can even call us that.

Eventually, I managed to get us away from those horrible people I called parents. Everything was fine and we were happy, but happiness doesn't last long. He was the beginning of my ending.

I just wish someone would've told me what my life would come to. Maybe then I wouldn't have chosen to trust him. I wouldn't be dragging my seven-year-old daughter out at two o'clock in the morning just to get away from him...

"Come on, bubbles. Hurry!" I hurriedly yell as I pull Lily towards the car by her hand.

"But, mama... I dropped Nico!" She cries back to me while I put her in the backseat and quickly buckle her in.

I didn't want to go back in, scared of what might happen but she loved Nico. Ever since I bought him for her, she couldn't go without him. She had Nico through all the tough times so without another thought, I ran back into the house.

I saw him right away as soon as I entered the living room. He was by the side of the couch. I ran quickly to the pony stuffed animal and right as I bent down to pick him up, I was hit with a slap to the face.

I fell on my back and stared at the man in horror as he jumped on me and grabbed my throat with his hands. My own hands grabbed his, trying to pry them away with no luck.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going? You think you can just leave me?!" He asked while tightening his grip on my neck.

My vision started to become hazy and I started seeing black dots everywhere. I searched the ground with my hands for anything I could use to my advantage. I felt my hand touch a lamp that had been knocked over earlier, so I grabbed it in a tight grip and used all of my strength to hit him on the side of his face.

He fell sideways, clutching his bleeding face in his hands and groaning in pain. In a fit of coughing and trying to breathe in some air, I wasted no time in grabbing Nico and running out of the house, stumbling on my way towards the car.

I gave Lily the stuffed animal and shut her door before I threw my phone across the street, ran to the drivers' side, and jumped in. After starting the car, I put it in drive and hit the gas.

I'll just get a new phone when we're long out of California.

I don't know where we would go but it doesn't matter to me right now. What matters is that we're gone and we're going to start fresh. Without even sparing a glance back, I sped off into the night, driving to wherever the road may take us.

*Four Days Later*

We have finally arrived in New York. I tried to take as little stops as possible in fear that he thought of following and catching up to us. I've barely gotten any sleep since we left California so relief instantly fills my body when I spot our destination.

I get out of the car after pulling into an apartment complex. Opening the back door, I unbuckle Lily's seatbelt and help her out of the car while she clutches tightly onto Nico.

"Okay, bubbles. Hold my hand and don't let go." I say while grabbing her tiny hand in mine and walking with her into the main office.

When we get to the front desk, an older woman greets us softly, "Hello, how can I help you today?"

"Umm... I need to rent an apartment. Do you have an available one with two bedrooms?" I ask her nervously.

"Yes, ma'am. I have an available two-bedroom, one-bath apartment, and no pets allowed. The rent is one thousand nine hundred fifty a month." She tells me while smiling sweetly.

Seriously? That's almost two thousand dollars. If it were me alone then I'd just sleep in the car but I have a child to think of. Gosh, why does New York have to be so expensive?

Inhaling deeply, I look to Lily before looking back at the lady, "Thank you. I'll take it. Can I move in today?"

"Well, you'll need to fill out some paperwork but after that... yes." She responds hesitantly with furrowed eyebrows.

I shake my head and pull out two hundred dollars. I slide it across to her while saying, "Look, I need to move in today. Can't you just look the other way this one time, please?"

She glances down at Lily who is hiding behind me while holding my leg tightly with one arm. Then she looks back up at me and slides the money back towards me.

"Apartment 403, Building C, second floor." She says while pulling a key from a drawer and handing it to me.

I smile gratefully at her as I take the key and two hundred dollars before placing them in my pocket. Then I grab Lily's hand again and lead her back towards the car with me.

After bringing everything, which wasn't a lot, up to our new apartment, I lock all of the locks on the front door and head into the kitchen where Lily is sitting down at the table. It's a small round wooden table that was already here when we walked in.

Taking a seat next to her on the other wooden chair, I tilt my head and ask, "Are you hungry, bubbles?"

"Yes." She replies while glancing down at the slightly dusty table.

"Hmm... how about I order some pizza." I suggest with a raised eyebrow, knowing how much she loves pizza.

She quickly perks up and is practically jumping off of her seat, "With extra pepperoni?"

"Extra, extra pepperoni." I say before tickling her sides, making her burst into laughter.

She giggles as I stop to kiss her forehead and grab my new phone. Pulling it out of my pocket, I look up the number of the nearest pizza place and order us a large pizza.

After about thirty minutes, there's a knock on the door and I pull out some cash. When I get to the front door, I pause and look through the peephole. Seeing that it is indeed a man carrying our food, I release a breath of air and roll my eyes at myself.

Once I pay for the pizza and we finish eating, I blow up an air mattress and grab a blanket. As soon as we arrived here, I searched for a store and bought it so we wouldn't have to sleep on the floor. I lay down with Lily and my body finally relaxes.

"Mama, can you sing the rainbow song to me?" She asks in a whisper while snuggling closer to my side.

I run my fingers through her hair and shut my eyes as I mumble, "Of course I can, bubbles."

Singing the song that she loves to hear before bed sometimes, it doesn't take long for her to fall asleep. I wrap my arm around her small body and quickly drift off into a deep sleep.