DARLENEI ascended the stairs, balancing the tray in my hands properly and took the turn that led to the East wing of the mansion once I got to the corridor. The hallway was eerily quiet. Not like it was always bustling with crowds either. I didn't see myself getting used to coming here. It was creepy in a way.I pushed the door to his study open with my legs and stepped into the dim room. "Just get it done," He said flatly into the phone. His voice was quiet and airy, holding the littlest emotion to it yet, it couldn't sound more appealing to my ears.I stepped forward, my eyes dropping on his tall frame that was slouched against the chair in the process. His posture hinted at the fact that he was tired. It was glaring. The sleeves of his shirts were rolled to his elbows, his upper buttons left undone. He had a file in his left hand, his eyes skimming through it.He hasn't seen me yet."How convenient," I muttered sarcastically and marched forward, setting the tray on his table. He
DarleneMy husband had abandoned me in the king-sized master bedroom of his grand manor, in the wee hours of dawn, just before I woke up.I could tell from the indent on his side of the bed that had lost its shape. The bulky mold of his toned body.”Ugh,” I groaned, stretching like a street cat down to one-and-a-half lives left before I managed to drag myself off the comfy foam of the high, gold-encrusted canopy bed to soil the cold red-marbled tiles of the floor below.The fire in the stone hearth had gone out and I shivered against the cold draft swirling in the ornately-designed rustic-style bedroom.The sound of footsteps slapping down the wooden floored hallway had me snapping my neck to the cedar wood door just before it flew open and a red-faced maid sagged heavily against the gold doorframe, the smell of garlic floating pleasantly into the room.“Miss Lady! Miss Lady ho-” The purple and white frocked woman panted, knocking a hand to her chest so that I had to put my hands up t
ALEXANDER“He’s still in there?” Fredrick shrieked and I resisted the urge to press my brother’s lips shut firmly with the tips of my fingers, instead settling for bonking him on the back of the head and shushing him.”Quiet Fredrick! Goddammit! Are you trynna to announce our stakeout or what?” I hissed, throwing the strawberry blonde-haired man a dirty look as he slouched beside me in the driver’s seat, the full line of his mouth scrunched up angrily at my tone but he stayed quiet.Fredrick’s blue eyes were turned away from me, fixed painstakingly on the swinging glass doors of the elite socialite bar that remained empty, much to his chagrin.It was the second time my father had sent me for pick up on one of his late deliveries, agreeing for Fredrick to accompany me as though it were an afterthought.I’d known it was punishment, everyone damn well knew it was punishment for what I'd told Darlene.I hated this petty, weak-ass beta shit. It was the collector's job, something to munch o
ALEXANDER“Please, please don't!” The man from the bar warbled as he scooted back until his back slapped against the matte black BMW noisily.I strode to meet the man slowly, Fredrick’s noiseless football shuffling behind me quietly as the man’s frantic screeches grated my ear.“Help! Please help me! Somebody!” The socialite shrieked, struggling to open the door to his BMW before my hands laced around the starched collar of his suit shirt and I jerked him back, rather roughly, to the granite floor of the bar’s parking lot.“Shut it Cinderella, I don't have time to play guessing games.” I seethed, striking my foot on the hard washboard abs of his midriff as the man whooshed a ball of blood onto the crisp silk linen of his suit.“Good stuff. Must have been expensive,” I hummed grinding my feet into the uneven bumps of his abdomen and grinning when he struck his fist on my boot, barely denting the leather and groaning even more.“Now,” I hissed, throwing up the ace and catching it before
DARLENE”I must say, Mrs. Alex McKenzie, that the manor looks different than before,” Laura commented as we settled on the dark marble top dining table at the lounge.I heaved an inward sigh. We hadn't even lasted five minutes after I forgave my best friend for stabbing me in the back- however accidental- and here she was already nitpicking my new house.The agonies of having a perfectionist best friend.“What now Laura?” I heaved, making a show of sighing exasperatedly and fixing my fists under my chin as I glanced around the crisp rustic-styled wallpaper of the lounge area, complete with large morose-looking family portraits lined side by side.I knew off the bat, that it wasn't the drab aesthetic Laura had been referring to. There was a certain coldness to the air, a chill not brought on by the nasty weather.And guess whose fault that was? That's right, Laura’s.If she hadn't opened her big fat mouth to tell the McKenzie's secret Alexander opened his big fat-rather delicious mouth
ALEXANDER“You little shit!” Darlene shrieked before she flew at me to bite me hard in the neck, shocking the sense out of me as I struggled to keep from promptly dropping the woman.“Ow! Goddammit, Darlene, how many times have I told you to drop your carnivorous tendencies around me, dammit,” I growled in the woman’s ear and she made a shivering noise, making me laugh despite myself before my eyes fastened on the attractive woman who had been watching us with a look of longing on her face.“Diego was it?” I mused and the dark-haired lady seemed to snap into a grin, rushing forward to nod excessively.I am about to cuddle the porcelain bean that had latched on to me tighter when I felt her stiffen in my hands and my heart dropped.Could she smell it on me?The stench of violence and blood? I felt pinpricks of fear pinch at my chest where her soft bosom had mashed into mine.“Where the hell have you been?” Darlene’s honeyed murmur had a strange lilt to it as I lowered her to the glassy
DARLENEMy husband stared at me like I had grown multiple breasts on the crown of my head, before breaking into an easy laugh, the ring of it felt like I'd been pouring butter down my insides.“Sheesh- Must have spaced out for a hot minute there didn't I?” Alexander whispered, appearing to have been searching my face for a moment before he spread his arms out to me again and I settled reflexively in the cocoon of his toned arms.“Want me to cart you upstairs, bridal style?” His deep baritone rumored in my ear, and I felt the rumble to the tips of my crack-polish toes.I sighed internally, Once a cafe girl, always a cafe girl. I knew I should have dressed up today!Now here I was, being carted up the grand staircase to the prince’s chambers where the master bedroom was, looking like a mold potato that’d been left out in the rain too long.I looked up into the man’s eyes once more, just as the gold-plated door of the master bedroom cane to view and I managed to tear my eyes from what wa
DARLENE”Come here.” Alexander said softly, but my husband needn’t have bothered. I didn’t mind the order that was laced around the words as I snuggled into his chest, the warmth of his breath fanning the hair from my face pleasantly.Shit! Laura! I’d forgotten all about her and abandoned her downstairs, with nothing but the strawberry-haired oaf for company.I chewed at my bottom lip anxiously, knowing deep down that I’d never been much of a good host before deciding I would make it up to her in the morning.I was with my husband after all. I thought, turning to stare at the bulk of male energy beside me but only being able to make out the chiseled line of his jaw and the black flutters in his long eyelashes as he scored softly behind me.I sighed heavily, remembering how my mother had told me that it was the way of men to die briefly after any sort of intimacy., a wrinkle formed on my face as I wondered fleetingly, whether she had cautioned me about her own experiences with Dad.Nas
DARLENE“Rise and shine sleepy heads! Breakfast’s ready!” Prince Charles’ booming baritone cracked through my skull before a wash of yellow light bored through my closed eyelids so that I groaned, breaking into a chuckle when Alexander groaned beside me.“Fucking hell Charles, did your parents not teach you to knock?” My husband hissed, throwing the soft white duvet away from his hard body and stretching to his feet to snatch the coffee mug the purple-eyed man held out like a peace offering in one hand, his gaze sliding over to me and darkening a shade before he smirked.“I don't believe they did,” He whispered breathlessly, nodding his head to the door where the strawberry blonde-haired man was leaning against the doorframe in brown capri pants, a pearly grin stretched across his smooth face.“Have some decency Frederick, my wife’s in the room,” Alexander whispered, scoffing loudly and sipping his tea as I stretched a yawn and shimmyed away from the bed to rest my head on my husband’
FREDERICK“Die motherfucker,” I gritted, pressing my finger into the claw of the trigger and feeling the gun jerk in my hands, the impact pulling me forward so that I tumbled into the stone flooring.“Come on! Go go go!” I screamed through gritted teeth, waving my hands wildly at Darlene and pushing her around the car as she surged through the barrage of shots pummeling us and firing off a few more rounds as the Umbrella man roared with pain, tearing the knife from his eye with an impossibly loud sucking sound.“I need to get closer,” I hissed through my teeth as I rounded the bend of the car to meet Alwxander’s tense body where he was hunched, hiding from the rain of bullets with Darlene curled in his arms.I swallowed the bile that had risen in my throat, jabbing my fingers into my palms to battle the wooziness that stabbed the sides of my head and peering through the rim of black sedan to see that the man now had a gaping hole in one eye that still spurted blood as he glared around
STEFAN MCCOYMy knuckles were white on the trigger as I watched the man’s hard body as he walked slowly into the room, his eyes never leaving the gun I had pressed dutifully against his wife’s empty ass head.“No sudden moves Alexander or I’ll have the woman’s brains plastered across the floor,” I growled through clenched teeth as Alexander staggered into the room with his father and more of my men surrounding them.I had known something was off the minute I left the penthouse, even before the sound of gunshots echoed out behind us and I asked Markov to turn the car around.The white penthouse with its flashing lights and tall pine trees loomed as ghastly as ever, as I motioned the men every which way, feeling adrenaline rush through my veins when the sounds of gunfire exploded around the sides of the house as my men sniffed the bastards out like the rats that they were.“Please, McCoy, don't do this, My wife has nothing to do with this okay? I’ll, I’ll give you whatever it is you wan
DARLENE“Something’s wrong,” I whispered breathlessly, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand straight as I watched the man with the Jerry curls stride away from the large lattice silver gates, a gun held tightly in his right hand.“What the fuck do you mean something’s wrong? McCoy’s going with most of his men! This is our cue to go in, grab the twins, plant the bombs, and hightail the fuck out of here in time for Mrs. McKenzie’s dinner special,” Erwin snapped blithely from his crouch beside me, the rim of a sniper rifle held tightly in his hands, as he peered through the scope.“Lassie’s right, this seems too easy, they must have found out about the decoy car approaching already, that's the only reason for him to leave...and yet,” Williams McKenzie growled on my right flank, raising the tight hulk of his frame into a low squat and inching to slap himself against the tree, the burnt orange blackness of the forest blending perfectly with our camo gear.“We should-” Erwin start
ALEXANDERThe bright fluorescent lights tore through my eyelids to fry my eyeballs before I had even opened my eyes. I groaned, the soreness in my arms and stiff legs making me groan louder as I let my head fall back into my chest.What the hell did the bastard hit me with? Fucking hulk?“Ugh!” I groaned, screwing one eye open to lock gazes with my brother’s blanched face and watching him sag with relief when he saw that I had opened my eyes.“Alexander? Fuck! Thank saints you're okay,” He rasped breathlessly and I felt the scowl deepen between my eyebrows as I glared at the swollen purple bruises on his face that had left the skin of his face puffy and red.“Your buddy didn't take too kindly to you I reckon, stabbed you in the fucking balls just like you did to me you piece of shit!” I barked acidly, watching my brother rear back on the chair that he was strapped to like he had been slapped.I looked down to see I was lying on some makeshift gurney table, feeling my heart pound wildl
DARLENE“Where is he? Where’s my husband?” I whizzed when I caught up to the ring chief scowling in the middle of the road, his hands fixed patiently on his narrow hips.“He’s gone Dar, that McCoy took him,” Prince Charles gritted, eyeing me carefully before I noticed his hand cupping the large gash on his chest, the trickle of blood pooling on the purple suit staining the area black.“Here, let’s get you to the car,” I gritted through clenched teeth, managing to push the words past the lump that had grown in my throat and tugging the man’s hand free when he resisted before hooking it over one shoulder, grunting when he leaned his weight on me a little.I could hear the whirl of sirens in the distance as they got closer and I yelped, slamming to a stop when the purple-eyed man stopped suddenly in his tracks.What the hell was it with mafia men and having death wishes? I tried not to look at the nasty knife wound on his abdomen or the purple and red bruises on his chin and focused inst
FREDERICK“Did you have to do it that hard?” I whispered, feeling tears gather in my eyes as I watched the Umbrella Man tower over my brother’s limp body, his brown eyes almost luminescent in the dark.“Quiet Frederick, you're ruining my groove, take him.” Stefan McCoy growled and I felt my heart hammer in my ribs as the masked ninjas dropped from the trees like banana monkeys, hooking my brother’s hard body onto the stretcher as I watched on with widened eyes.“Is he dead?” I rasped breathlessly, feeling panic burn in my chest as I trotted after the men, the crunch of dried leaves under my feet sounding loud in the silence as the masked men marched my brother to the large white van that had been parked off to the side of the highway.“Not yet,“ The Umbrella man whispered, rubbing his hands together in glee as they loaded him into the van and I felt a flicker of doubt spark in my chest.“So it’s all good now right? Everything will go as planned now?” I coughed, scarcely trusting mysel
ALEXANDERIt took longer than I would have liked for my eyes to adjust to the near blackness as I entered the forest.“Where are you? You son of a bitch,” I ground through clenched teeth, waving the gun this way and that and aware of the way I was panting loudly, carefully placing one foot in front of the other.My arms were starting to get sore from holding the gun up and high, my knuckles white on the trigger as I crept along the line of trees, freezing when I thought I had heard the distinct sound of a tree branch snapping.Could this get any fucking worse? Did the motherfucker have to pick the shittiest forest in the whole of New York to make his dramatic comeback?“Go on and run away like the coward that you fucking are McCoy, I can smell that cheap perfume from a mile away,” I jeered loudly, feeling goosebumps rise on my skin when my distorted voice echoed back to me in the blackness.I tried to focus past the hum that had started in my ears but my mind was not following my eyes
DARLENEMy husband hadn't made any sense when he got off the phone with the purple-eyed man and it made even less sense now as we sped toward the edge of town with his knuckles white on the steering wheel.I braced myself against the cool leather of the dashboard, trying to calm the staccato beating of my heart in my chest as we sped through the stretch of asphalt and felt a wave of nausea press insistently against the roof of my mouth.“Are you sure about the address?” I wheezed, unable to bear the silence any longer and risking a glance at the chiseled line of Alexander’s jaw, the way his piercing green eyes were starting dead ahead, his flock of obsidian black hair falling over his face as the muscles of his shoulder and bicep flexed when he fishtailed the steering wheel.“White Villa at Maple Street, I didn't know he lived there, there's only one of the kind, you can't miss it,” He whispered, and even though I knew the steel in his voice couldn't have been meant for me, it made sh