" Holy shit! Fucking hell!" Logan drops his gun and steps away in fear. Lord Riverbank is stiff on the ground and a small pool of blood is forming underneath him. He raises his hands in the air to show Duke that he is not trying to fight back or attack him at all. " You don't have to kill me, I don't even know you. " He begs. " Hey, listen. " Duke takes off his mask to reveal his face. " You have got to calm down and stop acting like a little girl. " The way Logan's face stops shows that he wasn't expecting this beautiful face to belong to such a cold-blooded killer. " What do you want from me?" He breathes. " Let's sit and talk. " Duke pulls a chair and sits. It takes a few seconds, but Logan does the same. He takes one look at a dead Lord Riverbank on the ground and he shuts his eyes and looks away. " Come on, get over it. " Duke hiss. " Haven't you killed someone before? Haven't you seen someone die?"" Well, I wouldn't kill someone on a Persian carpet. " He sighs. " It wa
Another death again is too much for the great five. They have lost three Lords already and only one is still living and he is about to lose his shit. Mister Jimmy is sitting in the living room with the newspaper that bears the death of Lord Riverbank on the front page. He had gone to see a big CEO and was shot right there in the man's office. The faceless man killed over fifteen people to get to Lord Riverbank, that just shows how serious he is about what he wants. Mister Joseph is sitting in the living room too and his wife is beside him. She is crying into her handkerchief and her shoulders are shaking. She is crying because, with all that is happening, she doesn't know what fate is going to fall on her family. Mister Jimmy is not pleased with all her crying and he finds her loud sobs irritating. " Joseph, your wife's annoying cries are going to kill me before the faceless man finds his way here. " He hisses. Mister Joseph draws closer to his wife and rubs her shoulders. Even
Duke and Melody are in the living room, watching the television. They have had very little to do and so they are passing time by watching an episode of why women kill. Melody feels like the couch isn't comfortable enough for her and so what she does is put herself over him so that he holds her like she is a baby. They are like that when they hear a knock on the door and they turn to each other. " Are you expecting someone?" She asks. " I never expect anyone, are you?""No." She shakes her head negatively. " Let me get it. " She stands up and he walks to the door. Logan is looking at the front yard covered with well-mowed grasses and turns back to the door. He takes a step back when he sees that it's Duke who has answered the door. " Hi. " Duke's voice is cheerful and he has a beautiful smile on his face. " How can I help you?"Confusion sweeps Logan's face as he tilts his head to the side. He can't understand why the guy who came to his office and threatened to kill him is all
She watches her mother's mouth move as she tries to get the words out, but it doesn't work. Her mother, still stammering, walks to the cooking pot and turns off the heat. Melody ignores her and continues to chop up her tomatoes, but this time around, she does them impetuously, in irregular sizes and when she is done, she dumps everything into a bowl and washes her hands in the sink. She turns to leave the kitchen, but her mother grabs her arm, stopping her. " Melody, what do you mean your debts were cleared?" Her voice is low, subdued. " How? When? By who? Duke?"Melody is so irritated that she shrugs her mother off and takes a step away from her. " You've said it already. Duke is a church rat and we don't have millions of dollars sitting in an account. " She fires. " Does it even matter? The thing is that I am not a debtor anymore and I am fucking happy about it. " " Who did it?" " The kind owner of Russell Bank, and he has become an investor who has invested twenty million do
When Melody gets home, Duke was not expecting to see her. Usually, it's till nightfall before she comes back when she goes to see her family. He has just made himself ramen and is in the kitchen when she walks into the house. "Hey, you are back so soon. " He stands up to walk to the front to hug her, but he notices the distant look in her eyes. He kisses the side of her face, but she doesn't even notice. She has her bag in her hand. " Hey, babe? Are you okay?" He holds her shoulder. She blinks and looks at him. " Logan Russell is a Mafia. " She tells him. Duke looks back at her. Of course, he knows, but he can't behave like he knows or she is going to freak out. This has to be news to him too. " Really?" He tilts his head like he doubts what he has said. " Who told you that?"" My grandfather. " She says. " He thinks that I am going to get in trouble."" No, you are going to be fine. " He waves off. " Duke?" She sighs. " Do you know what these Mafia guys do? They kill people,
33. Duke knows that she came here with some kind of trouble up her sleeves, but he didn't expect her to start with him being without a job. " Excuse me?" He asks. He is trying to cover his pain with a smile. " I demand to know why my daughter goes off every day, working hard, only to come back home to you – a full-grown man – who does absolutely nothing. " I'm trying so hard to get a job. " He defends himself. His voice is calm even though hers is threatening to pull out the roof. " Liar!!" She accuses him. " You are only here to drain my daughter of her wealth, I know this!!""That's not true. " He shakes his head. " Melody and I are trying our best to make this work for us. We are struggling now, but we are going to get better. "" When?" She laughs in annoyance. " When will things get better for you guys, Duke Xavier? Just when will my daughter stop feeding your lazy ass?!"He doesn't answer immediately because he tells his anger growing like a pot of soup that is boiling over.
The look in Duke's eyes is something that she has seen before. His eyes are dark and for the first time, she dares to say that she is scared of her husband. She reaches out and touches his face again. It still feels like Duke, but where did Duke go?"Duke, promise me that you are okay. " She begs. " What happened in here? What happened to you?"He sighs and looks down and then back at her. " I'm not fine, no." He says. " I'm in a really dark place. "" Can you tell me about it?"" Some other time, but not right now. " He shakes his head. " But I need you to do something for me. " She nods. Anything to help him, anything that will make him feel better. " What do you want me to do?" She asks. He is more occupied with taking off his jacket than answering her question. He dumps it on the ground and holds her hand. He takes he to the wall and then puts both of his hands on the sides of her head. His face is dangerously close and she has a clearer view of his eyes and what she sees se
" It's just going to be for a few days and I am going to be back. " He explains. She doesn't look pleased at all. Even if it's for a few hours, she doesn't want to be away from him. "But why?" She is very close to tears. " Why do you have to go?"" It's very urgent. " He doesn't say anything beyond that. She stops and bites her lips. " Is it your family?" She blinks. " I have told you before, I don't have any family members. " He pushes his hair back. " You are the only one who is my family. "Yes, he didn't tell her that his family was gruesomely murdered, he just told her that they don't exist. She stands up and puts on one of his shirts and wears it. It's bigger than her small frame and her hands are lost in the sleeves. " I'm coming with you. " She announces. " And don't even try to stop me. " " No, I'm not going to try to stop you. " He shakes his head. " But who the hell is going to run your business for you? Your investor has put a lot of money into it and I know that