Prologue:

"You know, if you showed a little leg, you'd get more tips."

Elizabeth didn't even glance up from the glasses she was cleaning. "No."

"Hey, look at me." Connie put her hands on her hips and fluttered her eyelashes. "I've only been here three months to your seven, and I've gotten three times as many tips. Why do you think that is?" she asked coyly.

Elizabeth pretended to give it some thought. "Pity?"

Connie pouted with glossy red lips. "No! Because I doll myself up and actually smile when I take their order." she glanced at her friend pointedly. "Unlike some people. I don't see why you're even in customer service if you can't be friendly."

"I need the money and I make good drinks." Elizabeth finished the last glass; it was getting late and their break was going to be interrupted by a bunch of strung out businessmen who desperately needed to get wasted. She checked in the back and took inventory.

Connie followed and shook her head wearily. "You won't get more money if you keep up the cold bitch routine."

Elizabeth walked back to the front counter and smiled slightly, used to Connie's crass choice of words. "I don't mean to; I'm just doing my job. I don't need the extra tips anyway."

A rowdy group of men came from the gaming floor; Connie flashed them all a sweet smile and a playful wink. "What can I get you boys?"

"A round of tequila shots to start out and keep 'em coming!" One of the men said robustly; his friends all gave him high fives and whooped loudly. Elizabeth refrained from rolling her eyes as Connie fluttered over them. Connie was a nice enough person, but to say she was flighty was an understatement; still, Elizabeth had to admit, she had just charmed about half of the group out of $20, not including what they owed for the drinks.

"If only I had her confidence. Oh well." she went over to a man who had a woman on each arm, no doubt thinking he was a huge big-shot.

"Hey sweetie, when do you get off?" he asked with a suggestive grin.

"I'm not allowed to divulge that information to you sir, Don's policy."

The man tensed up a bit and laughed nervously. "In that case, three martinis for me and these beautiful ladies." The women giggled and wrapped themselves around the guy like snakes; no doubt they were simply after free drinks. The man seemed oblivious, or maybe he didn't care; Elizabeth sure didn't.

She made his drinks with a tiny smirk. True, she was fibbing a little to get him to back off, but not really; while it was a rule to not date paying customers, it wasn't the Vampire's policy. Elizabeth wasn't even sure how much he got involved with the employees of the casino or even if he had anything to do with the policies and going ons of this place.

In fact, Elizabeth had never seen him, but that suited her just fine; rumor was, he was insane and violent. There was a lot of stories that floated around about him and all of them were whispered about very carefully in case someone of importance heard. Connie had once told Elizabeth that the Vampire had his men placed around the casino to keep a lookout for members of other mafia families and troublesome guests; these men didn't think twice about putting a bullet through someone's skull.

That Elizabeth had no problem believing, though her father would say she should never make assumptions and that gut instincts should be carefully considered.

"Stop." Elizabeth commanded herself. "Don't think about that now."

"Miss Miller?"

Elizabeth turned around, almost dropping the glass; a tall gruff looking man stood at the counter.

"Yes sir?" she knew who he was; who didn't? In the slums everyone talked about Giovanni Gallo, the former street rat who got taken in by the Leonelli's and was made the current Don's personal bodyguard. It was a mystery why he was picked, but one thing was sure, he was lucky. The biggest mystery now was what he wanted.

"We need a bartender for a business meeting. Come with me." he ordered gruffly and turned away without even waiting for her to answer.

"Yes sir." Elizabeth followed him and straightened up her uniform a bit; she had never been called on to serve the Vampire and his "guests". She assumed he hired more qualified people to do that or people who were sworn to secrecy to not blab about whatever they talked about in those meetings.

Giovanni had a hard expression and his sunglasses hid his eyes from sight. Elizabeth wanted to get a reading on him; he seemed a bit stiff, but maybe he was just on his guard.

"Well duh. He is a bodyguard after all, he should be." Elizabeth thought as she followed the man into an elevator; they went all the way to the top floor, where only special guests were allowed; people with high social standing and a ton of cash.

Elizabeth fought back a wry smile. "Or for mafia meetings. I hope I don't have to stay too long."

Before she knew it they were standing in front of a large polished oak door; Giovanni opened it and entered first.

"I got her."

He gestured for Elizabeth to enter too; she did and inclined her head politely to the group.

"Good evening." she greeted with her most polite and professional manner.

When she raised her head she realized that there were only three other men there; two of them in suits stood behind a large chair where a young man slumped lazily.

"Miss Miller was it?" he asked nonchalantly. Elizabeth was at a loss of words; he couldn't have been older than 18.

"Hey, answer the Vampire when he asks you a question lady." Giovanni said; he stood behind her and Elizabeth heard a click.

He had locked the door.

"Yes sir." Elizabeth answered trying to keep her voice steady. "Why did he lock it?"

The Vampire smiled playfully. "You work in my casino as a bartender; you're from the slums of Judoh, and you've been working here for over half a year."

Elizabeth felt her mouth part in slight surprise, but closed it immediately.

"Is that right?"

He sounded so pleasantly casual, but Elizabeth sensed something was off; regardless, she remained calm.

"Yes sir."

"Yes sir? Is that all you can say?"

"No sir."

"You will address me as Vampire or Don Leonelli." he got up from his chair and strolled over to her slowly. "Understand?"

"Yes Vampire." Elizabeth could feel her knees knocking together slightly; he was circling her now and came to a stop right in front of her.

"I would address you as Miss Miller, but that's not your real name."

Elizabeth felt her blood turn cold.

"I don't understand sir-"

She staggered backward as she came face to face with the barrel of a small pistol.

"I told you not to address me as sir." Clair smiled; his voice was hushed and sinister.

"I-I'm sorry Vampire." she couldn't control the trembling now; she could practically feel the cold metal of the gun on her forehead. His finger was on the trigger and his hand was steady; it was clear he would have no problem killing her where she stood.

"Good girl. Now, back to the subject of your fake name. Ian, the papers." Clair called to the shortest man, who produced a folder of papers from his jacket.

"Certainly Vampire." Ian began to read the file out loud. "Elisa Gambino, age 19, daughter to Sven Gambino, cousin to Don Carlo Gambino; Sven was gunned down nine months prior by Gambino's men on suspicion of betrayal and two months later, his daughter went missing."

Clair smiled smugly at the wide-eyed Elizabeth. "You don't think I don't do background checks on my employees, do you? I have to be careful who I hire, and it looks like a rat has infiltrated the premises."

Giovanni walked over and stood behind Clair grimly; he didn't much care to kill women, but if this lady was a threat to Clair, then she would have to be taken out.

"What should we do with her Vampire? Kill her right here, or drive her out somewhere?"

"Please, don't." Elizabeth said weakly. "I'm not here to spy on the Leonelli family, I-"

"Do I look stupid!?"

Clair had hit her with the gun and she fell to the floor clutching her her head; she was shaking uncontrollably now, close to breaking down in sobs.

The Vampire was visibly unmoved; in fact, he seemed amused. He walked back over to Ian and Mitchal while Giovanni pulled out a gun and pointed at her limp form.

"You came here thinking you could spy on me and get some useful info to bring back to Don Gambino; no doubt he even put you up to this, perhaps threatened to shoot you down like a dog if you didn't. Just like your father."

Tears fell from Elisa's eyes.

"Father…help me."

But she knew she would have to help herself; there was no one else she could depend on, not anymore.

"It's true I used to be a member of the family." Elisa stood up on shaky legs and tried to look Clair straight in the eye. "I left and lived in the slums for some time before getting a job here. I didn't come here to spy on you; I ran away, simple as that."

Ian eyed her skeptically. "Do you really expect us to believe that story?"

"It's the truth, please!" she cried. "I didn't even know the Vampire owned this place until after I got the job! No one from the Gambino family knows I'm here. That's why I used a fake name, so they couldn't track me down."

Clair studied her with a mocking smile. "That's some coincidence, ending up working at a place owned by a rival family. Sorry, but I don't think I buy your little sob story." he sat back down in his chair and sighed tiredly. "Giovanni, it's getting late. Take her out, kill her, and dump the body. Maybe in front of the Gambino estate, just to send a message."

"Sure thing."

"NO!" The outburst was sharp and sudden and took them all by surprise. Elisa gathered herself; she walked closer to where Clair was seated and collapsed to her knees in front of him.

"Don Leonelli, please you have to believe me." Elisa kept her eyes cast down and tried to keep the tears at bay. "I ran away. They killed him. They killed my father like an animal." she spat out bitterly; he seemed to be listening or at least he hadn't interrupted yet. "I couldn't stay there any longer; I would have rather died in the streets than go back. I swear I came here for a job, and that's all."

Elisa raised her face to him and tried to look in his eyes; they were rumored to be the eyes of a wild beast. Up close, she could see it was true. He eyed her contemplatively, like a predator deciding whether to go in for the kill; he seemed calm, but the menacing smile stayed on his face. But at least he was still listening.

"If you want, I will leave here and never come back. I'll work somewhere else, you'll never see me again. Please, I ran away to escape, I don't want to hurt anyone. I couldn't live in a place where my father's murderers were alive and well, not caring that one of their own was six feet under because of a misunderstanding! I wanted to live my life in peace, I want nothing to do with my family!"

Tears rolled down Elisa's cheeks and she bit her lip slightly to keep from sobbing. Now wasn't the time.

"Please, believe me."

Clair stared at her for a moment before standing up and walking over to her.

Elisa's head dropped to her chest. "This is it. This is how I die."

"I can't say I do." Clair crouched down to her eye level and grabbed a fistful of her hair; he yanked it up so she would have to look at him. She whimpered but didn't dare fight back.

"Let's say I did believe you; even so, I can't allow you to leave. I don't know what kind of information you may have picked up. Just you knowing this location and how to get in this office is a bit of a risk."

"Of course...is this what I get for running away from my problems?" Elisa shut her eyes and shook. "He would have no problem killing a coward."

"Giovanni, escort Ms. Gambino to the bar downstairs. She will continue to work there."

Elisa stared at him dumbly.

Clair ignored her. "Make sure you have someone keep an eye on her while she's there. She needs to be under surveillance before I'm convinced." he let go of her hair and threw it back in her face before brushing it to the side carelessly.

"Ms. Gambino, if you continue to be a good girl and do your job, I'll consider your story." Clair yawned and slumped back down in his chair; Mitchal and Ian eyed him skeptically, but didn't dare voice their concerns, at least for the time being.

"Come on, let's go." Giovanni pulled her up only a bit roughly to her feet; she seemed unable to walk for a second.

"Vampire," Elisa turned around, eyes already beginning to sting with fresh tears of relief.

"What?" Clair asked impatiently.

"Thank you so much."

He simply waved her away. "Hurry up before I change my mind." he smiled again and it sent chills up Elisa's spine.

Before Giovanni could lead her out the door, she turned around suddenly.

"Please, Vampire, don't call me Ms. Gambino. I meant it when I said I wasn't a part of that family anymore. Call me anything but that." she looked at him pleadingly.

Clair burst into laughter and Elisa watched him worriedly. "That's what you're so concerned about?!" he was giggling gleefully at the revelation; she simply looked so pathetic, it was comical. Elisa had to resist the urge to frown angrily.

"Yes sir. I want to assure you I won't betray you, but that name is dead to me." her tone was polite but icy; Clair ceased laughing after a bit.

"Okay then. Elisa; weird name." he commented dismissively. "Does it mean anything?"

"Um, my father said it meant consecrated to God."

Clair chuckled once more. "Oh really? Doesn't seem like God is being much of a help."

Elisa fidgeted with her hands. "I'm not religious, but my father was. You could say my name is the only thing I have left of him." she shrugged her shoulders and avoided Clair's gaze.

"Elisa then. I'm not calling you by that fake name; you know, if there's one thing I can't stand, it's liars." Clair glared at her; there was no trace of his smile and Elisa wasn't sure which was scarier. But suddenly, he averted his gaze and waved her away. "Well, get out of here. Go on, I have business to see to."

"Run along, foolish little daddy's girl." he thought bitterly as she scampered away to follow Giovanni back to the bar.

"Vampire?" Mitchal asked after a moment.

"I want you to tell two of my men to keep an eye on her, maybe have one stationed in the bar area." Clair added carelessly. "Ian, get me the rest of her file. I want you to find out where she lives and plant a camera in the entrance. We have to make sure her story holds true. We mustn't let our guard down, even if she seems like just a pathetic mouse."

"Right away boss." Mitchal said cheerfully and Ian followed after him with a respectful nod to Clair.

"You can count on us Vampire."

Clair was left alone to stare out his window; he walked over to it with a tired sigh and looked down on the city. The sky was pitch black and the city glowed; the lights of his own casino blazed and flashed, illuminating the people coming to and from the building. Groups of people, rich and poor alike, coming in to gamble and lose their money; they all had one thing in common, their greed.

"How disgusting." Clair sneered; he went back to his chair and stretched. "At least that girl doesn't seem to be anything to worry about. She's a naive idiot, probably never killed anyone; it's doubtful they'd use her as a spy."

He yawned again and closed his eyes, ready to take a nap. "I should've just killed her." Clair knewshe'd be easy to dispose of and he wouldn't have to waste time on monitoring her.

"Thank you so much."

Clair's eyes flew open and he found himself staring blankly at the ceiling.

No one had ever smiled at him like that before.