CH.59

Alex had been in a state of disbelief when Khylie had shown up, waving around a medical report she'd somehow managed to snag from the hospital where Serena had ended up after her wild night out. He had always thought Serena was above that sort of behavior - using her body as a weapon for revenge. But now...

His eyes narrowed to slits as the answer suddenly became clear. Indeed, someone had been pulling the strings and filling her head with dangerous delusions of power and entitlement that she could never earn on her own merit.

A slow burn of anger began kindling in the pit of his stomach as his gaze raked over Dimitri and the rest of Serena's hulking bodyguards once more with their icy demeanors and telltale bulges of concealed weapons beneath their tailored suits.

A cruel smirk twisted Alex's lips when the final piece clicked into place in his mind. "I see it now," he sneered, giving a slow, mocking shake of his head as he looked back towards Serena with undisguised contempt. "The little slut has gotten so bold and delusional because she's sold her body to some rich perverts. Trying to intimidate us all with these thugs she's got on payroll like some two-bit madame."

If Alex's words struck a nerve, Serena didn't show it. She merely arched one perfectly shaped eyebrow, her full lips curving into a slow, predatory smile that made the hairs on the back of Alex’s neck prickle with a frisson of unease.

"Is that so?" she purred in a dulcet tone that somehow managed to sound utterly alluring and utterly menacing at the same time. "And just what makes you think my man is anything but an old pervert?"

Dimitri shifted his weight subtly. His piercing eyes never left Alex's face, but Serena could sense the undercurrent of dark amusement rolling off the giant bodyguard as if he found the entire situation terribly entertaining.

“Oh, so you agree to have whored your body to rich men.”

"Speak to the madam like that again or call us thugs one more time, and you'll be eating through a straw." A cold smile seemed to play about the corners of Dimitri’s mouth, though it never quite reached the soulless pits of his eyes.

"Madam?" Alex let out a mocking laugh. "So it is true; you've indeed sold your—"

His words were cut short by a swift punch from Dimitri that sent him sprawling backward.

"Alex!" Kylie and her mother shrieked in unison.

Kayla whirled on Serena with rage blazing in her icy blue eyes. "How dare you have your goons attack my son-in-law!" the elegantly coiffed older woman spat, jabbing a perfectly manicured fingernail toward the nonchalant Serena. "I'm going to teach you a lesson since your mother clearly failed at it. Security!" she barked at the handful of private guards stationed around them. "Why are you just standing there like idiots? Bring these thugs—”

A hot, stinging slap silenced Kayla mid-sentence. Her head whipped violently to the side from the force of Serena's palm.

She stared at her stepdaughter in disbelief, one hand rising to cup her reddened cheek as her mouth opened and closed soundlessly.

The place fell into an uneasy silence once more. Everyone stood frozen, processing the shocking act of violence that had just erupted.

Serena's bodyguards remained utterly impassive, not even flinching at Kayla's orders as the older woman's private security team exchanged uncertain looks, clearly unwilling to engage with these people.

It slowly dawned on the trio that whoever Serena had gotten involved with, they were operating on a level of power and ruthless influence that dwarfed even the considerable might of the wealthy Bruck and Montgomery families.

Just who the hell were these people?

"Do you mind if I borrow your gun?" Serena asked Dimitri nonchalantly, as if inquiring to borrow a lighter or pen.

Dimitri looked at her with amusement before nodding his consent, handing over his weapon. He was intrigued to see what this fiery woman would do next.

Serena turned the heavy weapon over in her delicate hands. "Do you think someone can die from being shot in his...dick?" she asked with a wicked glint flashing in her green eyes as she twirled the gun around her finger in a practiced motion.

A shiver of dread ran down Alex's spine when he locked eyes with Serena. Her gaze was icy and her pupils were dark voids that reflected a malice he had never seen before.

This was not the broken, defeated woman he had environed.

"You wouldn't dare," Alex challenged, attempting to mask his fear with bravado.

"Wouldn't I?" Serena retorted with venom.

She brandished the gun in her hand, its cold metal glinting wickedly under the harsh sun light. With a swift motion, she aimed it directly at Alex's crotch.

"Serena!" Alex exclaimed, his voice pitching high in alarm as he flinched back. "Put that down! You're going to hurt someone and get yourself thrown in ja—"

But before he could finish his plea for sanity, a deafening bang echoed.

A stunned silence followed in the wake of the gunshot with the acrid stench of burned gunpowder hanging thick in the air.

The tranquility was short-lived, however as a guttural grunt of pain tore through the silence followed by a high-pitched shriek of horror from Kylie.

She was huddled next to Alex, who was clutching his upper thigh where blood seeped through his fingers from a gunshot wound just inches from his groin.

"Damn it!" Serena cursed under her breath, her face contorted in a mask of frustration. "I missed my target." She paused for a moment, eyeing Alex with cold calculation before adding ominously, "Well then... I suppose I'll have to try again."

"Serena! You heartless witch!" Kayla screamed. The older woman's face was pale, her perfectly coiffed blonde hair bellowing behind her as she glared at Serena with pure hatred burning in her eyes. "How dare you bring violence into this house! Into our family!"

Serena’s own anger flared up like wildfire at the woman's words. "Shut your mouth!" she snarled, raising the gun to point it squarely at Kayla's chest. "If you don't tell me where my father is right now, you will experience hell on earth! I know deep down that he isn't dead."

Her voice trembled with barely suppressed rage as she continued accusingly, "You've always been a cunning vixen, scheming to steal my inheritance along with your wretched daughter. But let me tell you something - everything my father owns was earned through the sweat and blood of my mother and him. So it rightfully belongs to me!"

Serena squared her stance and prepared to pull the trigger but she was abruptly halted by a firm grip around her wrist.

"We must leave now, madam," Dimitri whispered urgently in her ear. "The police are on their way and we cannot afford to expose our identities at this juncture. Let's wait for the master's return; he would be better equipped to handle this situation."

Serena frowned in disappointment but eventually nodded in agreement, lowering the gun with obvious reluctance. "Alright," she conceded begrudgingly. "I guess they're lucky... for now."

Serena's icy stare clashed with Alex's with revulsion. "You're all about scheming and plotting, aren't you? But can’t actually stand up like a real man. I must have been the biggest fool not to see you for what you truly are. A coward!" she spat out. "I hope for your sake you've got some grand plan to wriggle out of those ridiculous accusations that I'm Diana's killer. Because let me tell you something…. not even the grave will offer you refuge from my wrath!"

She then swiveled around, addressing her trusty bodyguard who had been silent throughout the exchange. "Alright, time to get moving!"

Dimitri gave a curt nod to his troops and started guiding Serena towards the vehicle’s open rear door, with the other bodyguards following suit like a ceremonial guard.

Kayla, Kylie, and the wounded Alex could only watch in stunned silence, too shocked by the violence that had just erupted to do anything but gape.