I Skimmed My Bestie’s Mafia Seduction Fund Chapter 1

My bestie got wasted and begged me in tears.

"Help me get into Caspian's bed! Please, spend whatever it takes, just get me out of this broke-ass life!"

God help me. Caspian was the most ruthless Don in Chicago.

I sighed. What could I do? I was her best friend.

But I had one rule: never spend a dime more than I have to.

The budget was set. The less I spent, the more I pocketed.

She gave me $5,000 to buy a dress that would seduce him. I pocketed $4,900.

So she wore a dress I made out of flea-market silk scraps. Her pitiful, broke-girl act completely won the Don over.

Thrilled, she shoved another $1,000 into my hands to buy top-tier birth control.

I skimmed $999 and bought a two-dollar bottle of multivitamins.

Clutching that positive pregnancy test, my bestie looked at me like I was God.

Later, the Don's ex, Cassandra—pure mafia royalty—came back for blood.

Furious, my bestie threw $50,000 at me.

"Ruin her! Aria, you're the only one I trust to handle this."

But at the family dinner, that bitch struck first.

"She hired thugs to attack me in the penthouse! They're hiding inside right now!"

Yet, when Caspian kicked the door open.

The woman's smug smirk froze.

"Freaks... are you fucking freaks?! Who fills a room with life-sized creepy Halloween wax figures?!"

...

* * *

Cassandra kicked the penthouse door open.

Heads snapped toward the open door.

"See?!" Cassandra shrieked, pointing right at my nose. "Six thugs! She hired them! Hiding in this room to ruin me! Caspian, what a great woman you're keeping!"

Click. The lights came on.

Over a dozen life-sized figures stood in the room.

A bloody nun. A clown missing half its head.

A white-clad ghost hanging from the chandelier.

And a zombie bride holding her own head.

All discarded Halloween wax figures.

Cassandra's smile froze. Her lips twitched downward.

"Freaks... are you fucking freaks?! Who fills a room with life-sized creepy wax figures?!"

I peeked out from behind Caspian, looking clueless. "Are these the thugs Miss Cassandra was talking about?"

Seraphina's tears fell right on cue.

"I'm pregnant..." She backed away, clutching her belly, her voice trembling perfectly. "She accused me of hiring attackers in front of all the elders... Caspian, what did I do wrong?"

Caspian pulled her into his arms.

She buried her face in his chest, turned her head slightly, and gave me a thumbs-up.

Beautiful.

Caspian looked up. His voice was cold, like the back of a blade against a throat.

"Cassandra. Tonight is a family dinner. Three elders are sitting downstairs. Tell me, what is this?"

"It's not my fault! They set me up!" Cassandra stomped frantically, her heels digging holes into the carpet. "I have proof! I have proof!"

She snatched the tablet from the butler, her fingers trembling as she pulled up the security footage.

On the screen, I was holding her wine glass. My sleeve flicked, and my wrist brushed lightly over the rim.

"Look! She poisoned my drink!" Cassandra’s voice cracked. "She’s trying to kill me! Caspian, look closely!"

The crowd gasped.

Seraphina pinched me under her sleeve.

I sighed, pulled a tiny plastic bottle from my pocket, and held it high so everyone could see the cartoon ghost face on it.

"Party joke shop, $9.99." I lowered my head. "My little brother's toy. It sprays a rotten egg smell, fades in ten minutes. I admit, I was petty. Miss Cassandra was stealing the spotlight tonight, so I just wanted to play a prank on her."

Caspian gave a look.

A bodyguard took the glass and tested it with strips and pens.

"Boss, no poison."

Suddenly, a stench of rotten eggs and sewage exploded in the hallway.

The closest elder dry-heaved on the spot.

Caspian’s eyes went dead.

"Over a ten-dollar gag spray. You crash my dinner. You kick in my door. And you insult my woman in front of the elders?"

"Caspian, listen to me—"

"She is carrying my flesh and blood." He cut her off. "If anything happened to her tonight, how would you pay for it? With your bankrupt Viti family mess?"

"Drag her out."

Two guards grabbed her arms and dragged her away.

"Aria! I know it was you! I won't let you get away with this—"

The door shut.

Peace and quiet at last.

I did the math in my head.

Seraphina gave me $50,000 to ruin Cassandra.

Murder and assault were so expensive. And too brutal.

Scaring her off was enough.

My brother's stink spray: $0.

Clearance sale at a bankrupt Halloween warehouse in South Side Chicago, over a dozen wax figures plus shipping: $1,000.

Net profit: over $48,000.

Nice.

The moment the elevator doors closed, Seraphina's tears vanished completely.

"Great job!" She laughed under her breath. "She kicked the door herself, she humiliated herself, and now Caspian doesn't even want to look at her."

She grabbed my hand. Her fingertips were freezing.

"Aria, you're the only one I trust in this world. Whatever money I get from this family in the future, we split 50/50."

"Stop, don't let it go to my head."

"Hold that thought." She pulled a crisp check from her clutch and slapped it into my palm.

I looked down and counted the zeros.

$50,000.

Seraphina stroked her belly, smiling gently and harmlessly.

"Next week is the family dinner hosted by the Donna, the supreme matriarch. Use this money to make her humiliate herself in front of the whole family again. Brutally."