across her body to shield it. She shivered in the icy room as Karl put out the candle, handed her garment to her, and walked slowly out of the room as if he were hesitating.
Kristen dressed and then stumbled through the darkness as she made her way back upstairs. The club was still empty and Karl was nowhere in sight. She walked around the front area. "Karl? Karl? Where are you?" There was no reply. Kristen became worried and walked back outside. She was relieved that the limousine was still there. The driver was holding the back door open for her, but Karl was not inside it.
Without a word, the driver closed the door and proceeded to her house. The partition window was dark and tightly closed. Kristen sat in silence. When they arrived, he appeared at the side of the car. She thanked him as he helped her out and asked "Where did Karl go?" He stood without expression and handed her an envelope. "He wanted me to give this to you. Good night Miss." He then returned to the car and drove away.
Kristen opened her front door and immediately went to her dining room table to read the note. As she tore open the side, a check for $75,000 fell out. Kristen shook her head "How could he have known about Robert?"
Dearest Kristen:
I enjoyed your company this evening. I hope that it all makes more sense to you now and that our paths will cross again soon. No need to fear me. Please use this money wisely. Don't be afraid to take it.
Until then…
Karl
9 DINO
No matter how much Kristen prayed, she never heard from Karl again. It felt like God determined he was bad news and had cruelly snatched him away. She could not get that kiss out of her mind! It slowly filled her with a relentless thirst for more dangerous men. She was becoming a real train wreck and her twisted course over the following months now led her to hanging out at Mafia nightclubs. And since it was Chicago, they were everywhere!
One evening, Ashley and some other girlfriends dragged her to a new disco in the suburbs that was actually a popular nightspot, complete with a private Italian Social Club connected to it. How much better could it get? Kristen chose to drive the group. When they pulled up to the venue and she announced to the girls “We’re parking ourselves. I don’t want anyone in this type of place touching my car.” Her girlfriend pointed and read from the sign posted right in front of them “Mandatory Valet”. She laughed “Too bad Kristen.”
Kristen was then surrounded and forced to park by some very greasy men. It was a well-known fact at these clubs that if it says "mandatory" and you try to park on your own, that there was a good chance that they would either call a tow truck, would steal it, or you would find it vandalized when you returned.
The girls walked inside ready for action. The music nearly blasted them back out as they entered. It was very techno and even had the flashing colored disco balls on the ceiling.
The lights contrasted with the Coliseum look of the place. There were several Italian marble columns and small religious statues atop fountains in the corners. The wall was padded with black plush carpeting and red vinyl. Kristen felt like she had stepped back into a bad Roman nightmare.
Something else did not fit in with the décor. There were several tables filled with men only. Many were clothed in old brown coats and fedoras. As the women looked further, there was also a grouping of five tables with very snappy looking, well-groomed men wearing Armani and smoking cigars. Everyone was laughing loudly. Their gold chains and diamond pinkie rings flashed in the dark. The girl group simultaneously zigged towards those tables.
As they came closer, the strong, permeating aroma of exotic cologne lured them even deeper into the men’s lair and they chose a table just a few spots away from them. Kristen viewed the dance floor. It was almost all women dancing with each other. They wore too much eye make-up and were garishly dressed. She felt like she was at the wedding reception in “The Godfather”. She now noticed that the men became quieter, put down their cigars, and were eagerly undressing her table of friends with their eyes. The girls shifted restlessly in their chairs. They weren’t sure how they were going to welcome this attention. They could smell the testosterone in the air.
A waitress walked up to one of the men and he made a gesture toward their table. Like an obedient dog, she came up to the girls and asked them what drinks they would like to order. She said “They are on the house.” She smiled in the direction of their provider. He was short, good looking, with his hair in a classic bouffant. He seemed to be most interested in Kristen and summoned her with his finger.
She slowly rose and with her best slink, she made it over to him, precariously balanced on her five inch stilettos. One of the men quickly abandoned his chair for her and she sat down next to this generous stranger. He grabbed the leg of her chair and pulled it so close to him that she was almost on his lap. He said something in Sicilian to the other men and they nodded their heads. Three of them went up to her girlfriends and walked them out to dance.
In a sexy, heavy Italian accent he said “I was telling them that you were the most beautiful girl in the world. My name is Dino and this is my place.” He then introduced her to his friends remaining at the table. The men seemed like they had been in a heavy discussion and were not completely pleased by this interruption. They politely smiled at her and continued talking with each other, leaving Dino free for her.
Her drink arrived and Dino placed the cherry from his glass into it. He held it up for her as she sipped. She smiled and looked into his eyes. They were friendly, but she also sensed a menacing feeling about them. He was definitely an “in-charge kind of guy”. At the table to the left she noticed two scary men, well-built with no necks. They were dressed in deep black. They were both watching the door and her every move. Dino saw the quizzical look on her face. “Those are my bodyguards, just ignore them.” She laughed, thinking he was kidding. Then she looked again. One man actually had a black gun sitting on the table in front of him.
Kristen now felt a hollow tremble inside of her resounding into a feeling of sexual desire. Dino put his arm around her and she was ready for the taking. It was magic and it was trouble and she knew he was someone that she could not turn down. Kristen also knew she was a little too tipsy to think sensibly.
When Dino began kissing her, the other men moved to another table and the bodyguards looked away. She noticed her friends were watching her from the dance floor and shaking their heads “No” at her. They felt intimidated by their partners and were afraid to quit dancing. They gave her a pleading look like they wanted to get out of there. Dino’s soft touch now became more aggressive and he was all over her, rubbing her legs and not so subtly fondling her. She thought he was going to jump her right there. He whispered “Let’s get out of here.”
They stood up. Amused, she noticed he was inches shorter than her, even without her heels. One of his bodyguards grabbed her purse and the other one got her coat. Dino hurried her out the front door. She looked back over her shoulder and could see her girlfriends looking at her like they should come to her rescue. But their partners pulled them further into the middle of the floor obstructing their view.
A black Town car was waiting. Dino helped her into the back seat and they drove only a few blocks to a small hotel. His driver got out of the car and walked into the office. Kristen could see through the window that the desk clerk looked very nervous. It looked like the driver was demanding the key to a room and no money was being exchanged. He came back to the car, opened the back door for them and slipped the key into Dino’s hand.
Dino pulled her into his arms and ushered her out of the car. They walked a short distance and into the small room. She noticed that his bodyguards were now present again and seated in a black sedan. The Lincoln driver had slowly followed Dino and was now parked directly outside the door.
Kristen was disappointed. The lighting was bad and cast a dim yellowish t
int to the walls. It was very seedy looking, a four-hour nap kind of place. Even worse, it was more like a half-hour set-up. She could smell mildew on the aged furniture.
Like a cave man, Dino threw her on the bedspread. She was reaching for her shoes when he grabbed her ankles, pulled her to the foot of the bed, and said “Baby, leave those spikes on. Oh, God are they hot!” Then he plowed into her. She didn’t know if she could handle him. He was built like a stallion! When he was done ravishing her, the blankets and pillows were in a heap on the floor. It was like a tornado had swept through and Kristen was the collateral damage.
A short time later there was a knock on the door. She heard an Italian voice say “Let’s go.” Kristen tried hard to collect herself. Dino walked ahead of her to the car and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and nuzzled her neck. “You were a good girl. Now go with them.”
His two bodyguards pulled up with the car. Dino shoved a business card in her hand. “Call me. I’ve got to do some stuff now.” She was given a ride back to the club as the bodyguards sat silently in the front seat. They deposited her at the street corner, not even at the entrance, and rudely said “OK, go.” Kristen now felt very cheap and was mad that she had been with Dino so