Chapter 6: Betrayal

“YOU SHOULD have just sent us a gift. I heard you came straight from the airport. I’m sure you’re tired. You didn’t have to bother coming all the way here since the gift would have been more welcomed and more appreciated than your presence,” I told Giovanni, the Vice President’s son as soon as I saw him at the gate.

Giovanni’s fully-armored guards stood behind him. There were seven of them, mine were five. And they all seemed ready to kill including my cousin who rushed forward and grabbed me by the collar.

“Why did you do this? You knew my feelings for Alexandra! I was only gone for a while!” he yelled. “I was supposed to be her groom! You were aware of my plans and yet, you betrayed me, you bastard!”

“I may have known your plans, but I didn’t say I would simply go along with them and do nothing. This is why you lost your chance. You let your guard down,” I replied in a neutral voice as I brushed off his hands and straightened my suit which had only intensified Giovanni’s anger. “Tone down your voice, Gio, and keep your temper under control. Your men and their weapons are already grabbing too much attention. I would normally not let anyone use that tone on me and do these things to me but I’d let it slide for two reasons. One, it’s my wedding day and two, I know you’re brokenhearted. But do this again and I won’t sympathize with you and forgive you the second time. My enemy list is already full at the moment but if you would really insist, I wouldn’t mind adding one more name on it.”

Giovanni gritted his teeth. He was fuming as he tried to throw a punch. But since he was not used to getting his hands dirty, I was able to catch his fist easily. He was not born for this. And he had to accept that.

Grief was now evident in his voice when he spoke.

“You were the reason why Dad sent me away, weren’t you? You were behind it because this is your goal all along. Why did you allow this to happen, Luther? I know we weren’t close. Still, I never thought you would hurt me like this.”

I looked away. I never thought that I’d do this, too. But the ones around me had pushed a button they shouldn’t have.

All of a sudden, Giovanni’s eyes were drenched with love: an emotion which our parents had always considered useless.

“This had to be done, Giovanni. I was the best person to play this role. And your father knew that. That was the reason why he supported my plans. You are a nice person and the likes of you have no place in this game. If we had let you participate, you would have been killed without even realizing it since you are too deep in love with the woman who will never hesitate to ravage you.” I cleared my throat. “Now, if this is all you came here for, then you’d have to excuse me. I still have a reception and a wife to go back to.”

“Wife, huh?”

Giovanni laughed although it sounded so desolate even in my ears. When I said he was a good man, I meant it. I meant every damn word. And when I saw how pain crossed his eyes, I stayed still. I would not be the man I am today if I allowed such things to affect me.

“Alexandra is one of the good wolves out there. You also knew that because I was not the only one who had seen her years ago. So, at least tell me this one thing before you leave,” Giovanni begged. “You owe me that, Luther. What kind of role are you playing here? Everyone’s been thinking that you are Alexandra’s prey here but we both know how far that thing is from the truth. That’s why as early as now, tell me. Are you on Alexandra’s side or will you kill her just like what the elders wanted us to do? Give me an assurance that you will not hurt her and that you will save her from our family instead. And then I promise I will stop making a ruckus. You will never hear from me again.”

“And what will you do if I were to say the opposite?”

Giovanni looked at me with such determination that I’d never seen from him before. “I will steal her from you.”

I smirked before releasing his fist. “Then go ahead, do it. I would love to see you lose.”

He looked at me as if I suddenly grew tail and horns. “I can’t believe this. And to think I trusted you!”

I nodded. “Yeah, you did. And maybe that was your biggest mistake.” I took a step closer to Giovanni and patted his shoulder before saying, “I know you’re expecting a grand explanation from me. But such thing won’t happen. I don’t owe you anything, Giovanni. But fine, for your own peace of mind, let me tell you this at least. When this is over, many will devour and be devoured. And as for who those people are, I will leave that up to your imagination.”

Giovanni was still screaming his heart out when I walked away. His guards tried catching me, but they stopped when the rest of my men appeared and blocked them. Giovanni may be the son of one of the most influential men in the country, but this is still my town.

Here in San Antonio, my name and orders bear more weight compared to anyone else’s.

I was about to go back to the reception area when I saw Pa at the hallway. It was as if he had been waiting for me there. He threw his cigarette away before he approached me. He looked incredibly pissed.

“What the fuck was the explosion about, Luther?” his voice thundered in the hallway. It was a good thing that only the guards were around to witness his outburst or else, his reputation would plummet.

“Giovanni is still outside the gate, Pa. You can ask him for complete details. I’m sure he has a lot to say about it.”

His forehead creased. “What are you talking about?”

“He was the one behind the explosion.”

I could feel Isaac’s gaze on me as Pa gasped. Nevertheless, Isaac didn’t say a word. Instead, he quietly stood behind me.

“But I was informed that Tristan was the last person who was seen visiting the headquarters-“

“And so, I heard.” I sighed. “My righthand man would have died had he stayed there longer when I asked him to grab some files for me. Some of our men were also severely injured and all the data we had collected painstakingly these past few years were now gone. I’m just as devastated and as furious as you are, Pa, especially when I found out that Giovanni was behind all that because of his anger and jealousy. We both know how much he adores Alexandra and how much he secretly favors the wolves. I know you can’t believe it, too, and I feel the same, Pa. But don’t fret. Tomorrow morning, I will send Isaac to give you the evidence that we’ve gathered.”

Pa looked flustered. “I-is that true?”

I shook my head. “How could you ever doubt me, Pa? I’ve worked with you for as long as I can remember. I followed no one else but you. I would never go against your wishes. Besides, I would not dream of harming my own men! That’s against my principles! You didn’t raise me that way.”

Pa looked touched. “No, son. Don’t get me wrong. I would never doubt you! Among the countless people around me, you are the only one I have faith in. I would never suspect you although I must admit, I did suspect your assistant. I thought he was working for your Uncle Mason. I know you will never stab me in the back. You are not like your Uncle. I was just shocked by the news, that’s all.” After a while, his eyes narrowed. “Giovanni and Mason must be up to something again. I will make them pay for this! We will strike back!”

When Pa left, only then did Isaac speak.

“I’ve been with you so long and yet, I could still never guess what’s going on in your mind, Sir.”

Isaac and Tristan were twins. They were the only ones I trusted the most in this game because they were not only my subordinates. They were my comrades, my friends. And we all shared the same goal.

I shrugged. “Didn’t you see Giovanni’s expression earlier? For the first time in his life, he looked determined to do something and that was to protect the woman he loves. He needs to be strong in order to accomplish that. And for him to succeed, he has to surpass this hurdle. His father can’t keep sheltering him forever. This is a harsh world. And I’m too busy to entertain his fragile heart.”

“Then I guess this means more work for us. Hell, I don’t even remember my address anymore since it’s been ages ago since I last came home. With all due respect, I demand a salary increase,” Isaac replied. “I accepted this job merely for the salary because you said all I would have to do was guard you. And I swear I’d never been more wrong in my life. You promised this will be easy, but I can’t think of a day that I wasn’t stressed and overworked because of you. And now, you also want me to be a magician just so I could turn the lie into the truth for you? This just proves once again that Tristan and I had been scammed!”

I snickered. Only the twins could be this brutally honest with me. They were a chatterbox, they complain most of the time, but they still get the job done which made them a prized asset in my team.

“The people in the headquarters are all agents so acting like they are on the brink of death because of an explosion would be easy, but the rest of the evidence? How do you expect me to pull that off?”

“I don’t know. That’s a part of your job now. After you weave some magic, you and your brother can come to my office. And on top of my table, you’ll see the keys.”

“For what?”

“For the car you and Tristan had been eyeing for quite some time now.”

His face lit up in a jiffy. “Sir, have I told you how much I love working for you?”

“There’s no need to go that far, buddy. I know you don’t mean it. Just make sure to send the evidence tomorrow.”

He whistled. “No problem, Sir. I suddenly feel so inspired that I could even send it tonight. I will show you one of my best magic tricks.”

I grinned. “Great. I look forward to it.”

“Kidding aside, are you sure about this, Sir? Once we go back to the hall, there will be no way out,” Isaac said as his face suddenly became serious.

“I wouldn’t start this thing if I knew that I wouldn’t be able to finish this, Isaac. At the end of the day, you, me, Alexandra, and everyone around us, aren’t we the same? We are all here today, hoping to make a difference. We only have this one chance to do that, buddy. That’s why we have to seize it no matter what,” I said as I went back to the reception hall.

There, I saw Alexandra, stirring up men’s primitive desires once more as she gave her most incredible smile to the guests even if most of them were giving her death glares. Her pack was gone. She was the only wolf now in this venue. Yet, she didn’t look nervous, not even a little. In fact, behind that smile, I could tell that she was just royally annoyed, nothing more, nothing less.

Her pack had earned my admiration for leaving their future Luna in the hands of the people who either wanted to lock her up or draw a dagger across her neck. But they must have had too much faith in Alexandra for this to happen. In their eyes, she must have been that capable.

When my wife saw me, she extended her hand as if she wanted me to come to her and reach out… which I did.

This was a show, after all, where both of us were either the heroes or the villains. It was our responsibility to either entertain the crowd or annoy the hell out of them. And when we finally held hands for everyone to see, I’d like to believe that we succeeded in making them feel something no matter what that was.

“That was quick, darling. I thought you would be gone for a while,” she said in a husky voice.

“And what? Let you have all the fun here while I’m away? So, how are things going?”

She yawned. “The usual. I could still hear every single person in this hall badmouthing me, wishing I would die tonight that’s why after this, I’m planning to send them all on a trip.”

“A trip? Well, that will be nice,” I said as I drank the wine which I took from the waiter. “And where exactly do you want to send them?”

She looked at me, carefully watching my reaction as if she was waiting for my mask to fall off before saying, “To the afterlife.”

When I choked, Alexandra immediately took away my wineglass, put it on the table, and patted my back a few times which just made me cough more. I felt like my organs and intestines got jumbled up because of that supposed to be simple pat of hers. I wasn’t even sure if my spinal cord was still intact. Without the amulet I was wearing, I would have been in the emergency room by now.

What can I expect, though? Tenderness was not in Alexandra’s vocabulary. It seems that whenever we’d talk, somehow, the conversation would eventually lead to death.

“So, what do you say, darling?”

“What… a wonderful travel destination. I’m impressed!”

I looked at her, amused all over again. Not many people knew this, but I eat death threats for breakfast. I was just a little surprised by the way she delivered that brutal line so casually with that gorgeous face.

She raised her brow. “You think so? I’m glad. Since you seem to be interested, do you want to join them in the trip, too? I can make it happen tonight, darling.”

I leaned on my chair and tried to match Alexandra’s saccharine smile. And here I thought we had somehow reached an understanding a while ago and even sealed it with a kiss. I should have known that it was impossible to understand a woman like her right away. I agree with Pa, though. Alexandra was a walking time bomb and they put me in this position expecting me to defuse the bomb.

But why the heck would I do that?

I grinned. I am actually waiting for her to explode. The bigger the explosion, the better.