Andre sat on his bed exhaling smoke with a cigarette between his index and middle finger while thinking about Valerie. He thought about the night they spent together and smiled."I miss her so much. I want to see her," he said to himself.Meanwhile, inside her office, Valerie also kept thinking about Andre. She thought about the words Julius had said and also about the things Andre said to her last night and sighed."Why can't I get you out of my head, Andre?" she asked herself. "Why is it that when you're in front of me, I can't push you away and mean it?"While she was still engulfed in her thoughts, someone knocked on her door, and she said, "Come in."Doctor Kell came in, and she instantly stood up. He still had a bandage around his nose, and she felt guilty as she looked at it. He walked up to her table, and she said, "Good morning, Doctor Kell.""Good morning, Valerie," he replied."Can I sit?""Of course, yes you can," she said. He took out the seat opposite her and sat down.
Valerie stared helplessly at Andre. She wanted to break free from his grasp, but his arms firmly held her waist, drawing her nearer."Let me go now," she pleaded."Please, Andre.""No, I'll never let you go," Andre replied."Really?" she asked sarcastically. "What about your 'different packages'? I mean the ones you spend all your time with."Andre smiled, "Spend all my time with? Valerie, you know I spend all my time chasing after you.""Oh, don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about," Valerie retorted."Alright then, let me tell you something," Andre said."I won't deny that I used to have weird kinks. Back when Drew and I grew up together, we did a lot of things: wild partying, drinking, smoking, and... well, I occasionally had multiple partners. I never really formed any attachments because I discarded them as quickly as I got them. Then Drew began to get involved with all these 'packages.' He would have many women in a room, partying and having sex with them. He a
As Valerie began to walk away with Julius and Melody, Andre followed behind them, but they ignored him. When Julius reached his car, he opened the front door for Valerie to get in, but she went to the back, leaving the front seat for Melody, since she was his girlfriend. As Melody sat in the back, Andre, who was still following them, attempted to enter the car. Julius, now in the driver's seat, noticed him and stopped, stepping out of his car and approaching Andre on the other side."What is wrong with you, Andre?" he pushed him."Do not get into my car. I don't want you here with us. Why can't you understand simple English?" Julius exclaimed.Andre stared at him and smiled, "No matter what, if Valerie is going, I'm also coming. I planned to have lunch with her. Since you want us all to have it together, let's do so.""That is not going to happen," Julius said, pushing Andre away as he tried to enter the car again. Valerie, sitting inside, closed her eyes."What am I going to do abou
Valerie screamed as the sounds of gunshots filled her ears, but Andre covered her mouth and said, "Shhh..."He pulled her towards a table, and they remained underneath as gunshots fired through the window. She looked in the direction of the burly man and saw him lying on the ground, while his underlings, who had earlier stood beside him, positioned themselves at two other windows, shooting out. While Valerie tried to control her breathing, she stared at Andre and noticed that a bullet had grazed his shoulder."You're bleeding," Valerie said helplessly."Don't worry about that," Andre replied, taking out a gun from his pocket. He began crawling towards the door, but Valerie tapped his back."Get back here and let the other men handle it," she said.Andre looked back at her and smiled, "How do I get you out of here if we remain under the table?""This is all your fault," she complained. "If you hadn't brought me here, my life wouldn't have been in danger.""Shush, this is not the time
Valerie looked at Andre and finally smiled."Oh... see, you finally smiled," Andre said pointing happily at her."Come with me, I need to show you something," he continued.He took hold of her hand and led her towards a room. He opened the door, and they both went in. Valerie looked at the room, seeing different artworks of guns, flowers, and mostly weapons."Do you have a hobby of collecting drawings and paintings of weapons?" She asked. Andre smiled. He went over to a recent drawing covered with a piece of cloth and opened it. It was Valerie's face, and she was smiling.She had a coat on, and anyone who saw her would know she was a doctor.She exclaimed, "Wow, this is beautiful, Andre!" She walked closer and stared at the drawing, "Wow, it looks just like me. Whoever did this is really good."She turned to Andre and asked, "Is this supposed to be a gift for me?"Andre nodded, "Yes, and um.... I drew that.""It's a lie," she said in disbelief."It's not a lie," Andre replied. "Come
The next morning, when Andre woke up, he watched Valerie quickly rush into the bathroom to shower.When she came out, he said, "Just give me a second, I won't be long," and he also went into the bathroom to take his bath before coming out.Upon his return, he noticed she was already dressed and she asked him, "Why didn't you just join me when I was going in?""Yeah, because you said you were in a hurry, and I didn't want to delay you," he replied.She shook her head, smiling."I wanted to order breakfast, but then I was thinking we could stop along the way and have something to eat.""No, I don't have the time," Valerie replied. "I need to meet with Julius, and there's this meeting we have at the hospital too. I need to be there early enough. I can't afford to be late.""Alright then, I'll drop you off," Andre offered.He drove Valerie back home, and when they arrived, he followed her into the house. He was expecting a very cold reception from Julius, whether it be an attempted punch,
Valerie stared at Melody in surprise."I'm not sure I understand what you're saying. You think you can find out if Andre is cheating on me or not? How do you intend to do that?" Valerie asked. "Or is it possible that you know him from somewhere?"Melody laughed, "How could I know him from somewhere? Well, you see, I studied computer engineering, so I'm very skilled when it comes to operating phones. I even told Julius about this. Perhaps he can explain it better."Julius nodded, "Yes, Valerie. Melody had a word with me. She suggested that rather than trying to push Andre away, we should find out if he is cheating on you and hold on to that. As it stands now, you love him and whatever it is he feels for you, he's not willing to let go. So, instead of this constant fighting, and everything that is not yielding any result, she is trying to say that we should check his phone. Most times, people like Andre who are used to getting their way will most likely not bother to delete such thing
When it was time for lunch, Andre drove over to the hospital to see Valerie. When he got there, she was standing outside the door waiting for him. He waved at her, and she walked over to his car and got in. He smiled and said, "Since you've invited me today, where do you have in mind for us to go?" "Any place you pick is fine by me," Valerie said."No, I want you to pick a location," Andre insisted.After thinking for a while, Valerie finally came up with her favorite fast-food restaurant, and Andre scoffed, "Of all places.""Well, you had your chance," she replied."Okay, let's go, ma'am."They soon arrived at the location, and Valerie ordered her favorite food for herself and Andre."I'm really in trouble today," Andre commented."Indeed you are. This is what I choose for you, and you have to eat it," Valerie said smiling.Andre began to eat, and said, "Hmm, this doesn't taste so bad. It is my first time, but it doesn't feel like it.""I'm glad you're enjoying yourself," Valerie r
EIGHTEEN YEARS LATERQueen woke up in the morning, opened the windows, looked through them, and smiled. Today was going to be a wonderful day because her fiancé, Bryce, was visiting. He belonged to a different gang called: "The Wild Stallions," and he was coming so they could finalize their engagement because she turned eighteen yesterday.She had been betrothed to him since she was ten, and ever since then, she had only had him in her heart. He was strong, charming, and everything she wanted. She believed that with him in her life, everything was going to be perfect.Queen was in her first year of college and very strong, just like her father. Andre Scorpion had trained her to be a very skilled fighter so she could take over from him when the time came.Her family, the Black Scorpions, had been the leaders of all the gangs for fifty years. However, a week ago, they handed over this position to another family. Despite that, they were still the strongest, richest, and most highly conn
Andre took Valerie to the roof of the hospital. When they reached the top, she looked around and asked, "What is it you want to show me, Andre?" He moved closer to her and said, "Close your eyes."She smiled and obeyed, closing her eyes. Suddenly, she heard a bang, followed by another and then another. She kept hearing different sounds and realized they were fireworks. "Open your eyes," Andre said.Valerie opened her eyes and turned around as Andre directed her to face the direction of the sound. As she looked up at the sky, she saw vibrant colors and, finally, the words "Will you marry me?" popped up."Wow!" Valerie exclaimed in excitement. She turned to give Andre her reply, and at that moment, he went down on one knee, presenting her with a ring. "Yes, I'll marry you," Valerie said and stretched out her hand.Andre put the ring on her finger and then got up, pulling her into his arms for a hug. "I am beyond excited, Andre," Valerie said. "I didn't know you were ready for marri
While Andre and Valerie were still together in the hospital room, Julius walked in. Seeing how close they were, he coughed, and Andre turned to see him."Hi Andre," Julius greeted."Hi Julius," Andre replied."So, the doctor said Melody is going to live, but she's still unconscious," Julius informed."Oh, okay. Good for her," Andre responded."I'm sorry, Julius. I know everything that happened..." Andre apologized."No," Julius shook his head. "No, Andre, it's not your fault. There are some things that are your fault, though. But there are other things I take responsibility for. If I had not let Melody into my life, Valerie wouldn't have been put in so much danger.""No, you don't understand," Andre said. "Drew would not have sent her into your life if.....""Maybe not. Maybe he wouldn't have gone to the extent he did today. But I almost lost Valerie, and it's all my fault. I was so focused on chasing you and making sure you stayed away from my sister that I didn't even notice the ene
When they arrived at the hospital, Andre opened the door of the car and carried Valerie out. Afterward, he rushed her to the hospital. Right after that, Julius arrived, and a stretcher was brought for him. He placed Melody onto the stretcher, and she was also rushed into the hospital.As they took Valerie into a private ward, Andre sat by her side and watched as the doctor attended to her. Seeing that he had so much blood on his body, the doctor said, "You seem to be faring worse than she is. Why don't you get your injuries treated?""Okay," Andre said, not wanting Valerie to worry.Valerie lay on the bed with her eyes closed as she waited for the doctor to carry out different tests on her. Meanwhile, another doctor attended to Andre. He took off his jacket, and the injuries on his shoulder, arms, and face were treated.All the while, Valerie kept waiting for the results of her test. Andre had not said anything about her pregnancy so far, and a part of her was afraid that he was goin
The moment Julius and Melody rushed into the house, Drew turned his attention to both of them. He stared in surprise at Melody, and when Andre noticed Drew's distraction, he took the opportunity to slip one hand into his pocket and press the button before lifting it back up.Outside, where they had been waiting, Soldier finally received the signal. "It's time for us to go in," he said. "We need to be very careful. There may be hostages."They began making their way slowly and cautiously into the building. Julius's face contorted in horror as he stared at Drew and Valerie. His complexion turned pale as he had witnessed numerous dead bodies strewn across the ground while running inside.Although he worked for an investigating firm, Julius had never encountered such a sight before. He believed that Andre must have killed all these people just to reach Valerie. Looking at Andre, blood staining his arms and body, he gazed at Valerie and back at Andre, understanding that Andre truly loved
Andre stared at the mansion for a while, and finally turned and walked toward the opposite mansion, which was higher than the one Drew was in. As he reached the other mansion with his bag, he kept climbing until he got to the roof. He positioned himself, took out his rifle from his bag, and pointed at the building. From his vantage point, he could see all the men stationed outside. Without wasting any time, he came up with a better idea. He knew that if he was the only one shooting, it wouldn't take long for them to figure out his location and take cover. So, he called for Soldier and the rest to join him in the same building. Once they were all there, he asked them to position themselves with their rifles and wait for his order. After pressing the button and hearing his phone ring, they were to begin shooting. By ensuring their vantage point, they could take down at least seventy men. Andre made his way to the back of the house. At this point, he pressed the button, and Soldier
Valerie heard noises around her, voices that were unfamiliar, and struggled to open her eyes. The moment she did, she saw a few men with guns at the door. When she looked to her right, she saw someone sitting on a chair, one of his legs seemed to be bandaged as though he had been shot, and he had a crutch by his side. She lifted her face a little bit to get a better view, and when she saw his face, she remembered that Andre had once shown her his picture, and she recalled his name: Drew. She quickly bent her head down and closed her eyes, pretending to be unconscious.She thought back to the events of the day, how Melody had tricked her, and how she had fought with her to deliver her to Drew. She suddenly began to fear for her life. She knew that Drew was Andre's enemy, and if he was keeping her there, it was surely in a bid to get Andre to come. This was one of the things she feared about men in the mafia. For the first time, she wished that she was moving around with a gun. The f
When Melody got into the car, she noticed Valerie's phone lying on her seat and picked it up. She turned it off and placed her hand on her racing chest. She turned on the car and began to drive to the location Drew had given her.When she arrived, she was surprised to see a big mansion. She had never met Drew in that house before, but what surprised her, even more, was the presence of so many underlings—over a hundred—positioned in different places, armed with weapons. She felt sorry for Valerie because she knew she wouldn't make it, and she also felt guilty. She tried to justify her actions, telling herself she didn't have a choice. She owed Drew her life and was only fulfilling the promise to do anything he wanted in return for saving her.When she finally parked the car, she came out and pulled Valerie, who was still unconscious, out of it. Some of the underlings noticed her struggling and came to assist. Together, they took Valerie into the house. Drew, using crutches on one si
After the call with Drew ended, Melody sat on her couch, thinking about what to do. She was very scared. It was bad enough that Andre was closing in on her, from what Drew had said, and now she had to get Valerie. How was she supposed to do it? Drew had given her until midnight. She paced up and down, thinking about what to do until an idea suddenly struck her mind, and she stopped. She looked at the time on her clock and saw that it was a few minutes to five. She knew that Valerie always closed from work around six or six thirty, and judging from the fact that her relationship with Andre was now good, it was likely that he would come to pick her up after work. After coming up with a plan in her head, she quickly dashed out of the house and hurried to Valerie's place of work.Valerie was still in her office when she was informed that there was someone waiting to see her. At first, she thought it was Andre since he had called her and said that he would be picking her up for dinner.