Property of the Mafia

[09] Flower Power

Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit.

Was this some kind of cruel, unfair joke? If I didn't know any better, I was guessing this was some setup that Ares' brother had made on purpose, just for his own pleasure.

I bit down on my lower lip, trying to prevent myself from breathing erratically or screaming if something scurried by.

I don't think Ares likes dog treats.

He would definitely be a lot harder to get by then a bunch of guard dogs.

It didn't exactly help that he probably detested me and wanted revenge for last time. How did he get back here, anyways? Was there some stupid rule in the mafia telling you to return the enemy back home after he tried to kill you? Did that even make sense?!

It felt like the world was working against me. Time was ticking.

It was already 2:00 am.

Although the maids didn't check on me until around 9:00am, I was still pressed for time.

Could I do this in a mere seven hours?

I need an idea...Well, that was obvious. What did I even have left in my bag? A couple of dog treats, remnants of some rope, some leftover money, an unused tazer and gun, a handkerchief... everything was useless!

If some other security guard had been on watch, I would've been a little more confident that I would be able to pummel them or at least pull off something. Ares, on the other hand... I was kind of afraid of him going all insane on me again.

And there was no way I was going to shoot Ares, or anyone for that matter.

The sudden sound of chimes almost made me gasp, and I clamped my hand over my mouth. A dim light began to glow from Ares' direction, and I could tell he was getting closer.

"What?" Ares spat, sounding impatient and angry as ever. Thank goodness, he was on a cellphone. If he had been talking to me... I didn't even want to think about what would happen.

"Huh? Of course I'm keeping watch! ... Yeah, no one has gone by... what? Arc is gone? ... What? That's impossible! I just saw him this morning! ... Excuse me? I don't f*cking care if he just vanished a half hour ago, he did not f*cking pass me, okay? ... Father is counting on me? ... Well, fine then. I suppose I can handle it. I'll be heading back, then. ... Yeah. Mmkay. Bye."

It was surprising how different his tone of voice could be. At first he was in such a seething, overwhelming rage that the darkness around us seemed to quiver at his tone of voice. But the instant his father was mentioned, that anger had dissipated into a gentle, if not loving tone. It was almost like the time I had first met him.

I watched carefully as Ares darted back towards the clearing, able to make out a bright smile on his face, full of innocent, naive happiness in the dim glow of his cell phone.

I slowly made my way after Ares, following at quite a distance to make sure he didn't notice me. I was quite confident that in his current state, he probably wouldn't notice if I walked right behind him. It was better to play it safe, though.