Return of the Youngest Auclair

Ch. 20

"Yeah, let's talk again soon," I say, pulling my phone away from my ear and ending the call.

I grip the rubber end of my throwing knife tightly before I throw it up and catch it once again.

"Cameron," Matheo shouts as he bangs the door to my room open. I flinch at the sound and instead of catching the knife with my hand, I catch the rubber between my two fingers.

"What Matheo? Is it time?" I ask, turning around in my desk chair in my bedroom.  I give him a pointed glare, but it seems to just bounce right off him and back to me.

Tonight is where we would all be having dinner with Lucien's girlfriend. Matheo is wearing the same thing I was which is a nice dress shirt and pants. "Yeah, she's literally standing at the front door. Lucien will be pissed if you don't come down now." Matheo recites his little speech and then walks away, probably to go back downstairs.

I take a few deep breaths trying to dissipate my growing anxiousness before standing up from the chair, tucking my knife into my sleeve, and walking down the stairs to meet the woman my oldest brother loves.

My brothers were all standing at the entrance, leaning off to one side as Lucien and Alessia stood more towards the middle. They all had friendly smiles and I took a step back reminding myself that they had all grown up together without me. That they all could act like a normal family without me. I was just an extra in the play.

I stroll down the remaining steps and walk over to where my brothers were standing.

"Ah, my dear." Lucien speaks with a smile towards Alessia. "This is my youngest brother, Cameron." He points to where I was. "He is spending the week here for the funeral."

I walk over to where Lucien and Alessia were standing and lift my hand for her to shake.

She grabs my hand and shakes it with the same firmness I extend to her. I have to conceal my facial expressions, so that I smile doesn't appear on my face. I will admit that my curiosity is growing to learn more about this  woman's character.

"Nice to meet you," I say, giving her a polite smile.

"Same here, you don't understand how curious I was of meeting the youngest Auclair." She looks at me straight in the eyes causing my smile to widen. I could tell from her stance and facial expressions that she was not one to back down easily. Just what you need to have in this world.

"Ok Cameron enough testing her," Lucien says, pulling our hands apart and sliding his hand into Alessia's. He turns to look at the rest of my brothers and states to the rest of us, "Let's head to the dinner room." Lucien walks away pulling Alessia with him.

I look over at Matheo with a raised eyebrow. He returns it with a small smirk and nods.

Mylan looks over at his twin and then at me. "Don't tell me that you both are sending each other messages again through your facial expressions. Cameron, my little brother." Mylan dramatically falls onto me. "I thought that now since you've become a computer nerd that we could share a closer bond, but it seems that my twin has encapsulated you in his clutches."

"I swear Mylan," Matheo says, pushing Mylan off me. "You're so dramatic I wonder how we shared a womb."

"Easy, I took all the dramatics, smarts, and looks and left you with the bitter, cold heart."

"I guess that explains your...."

"And I am happy I didn't have to share a womb with either one of you," Alexandre says, stepping between Mylan and Matheo. "But right now we are not talking about wombs and whatever you guys are throwing at each other and instead we are going to eat dinner with Lucien's girlfriend. So make your way to the table." Alexandre points in the direction we all need to move and waits for both twins to go first before following behind them.

"That included you too, Cameron," Alexandre says, not even bothering to turn to face me as he continues walking down the hall.

We sit in the order of hierarchy to the don, leaving Lucien and Alessia in the head and right seats respectively and me in the last seat next to Mia and Mylan. 

The first course is set in front of us simultaneously and we all pick up our spoons and start eating.

One guard must have heard something, for he immediately opens the door, ignoring the rest of us, and walks straight to Lucien.

The guard leans in and whispers something in Lucien's ear, but his face remains impassive, giving nothing away. At that moment, an excited voice echoes through the walls, piquing my brothers' curiosity and my fear.

"You boys are going to love this surprise, you too dear!" As my aunt pushes open the door to the dining room, the room falls silent, and small gasps escape from a few people's lips. Although I can tell that Louis is feigning his surprise, my uncle and Pierce look genuinely bewildered and shocked.

I notice Lucien glancing at me and his face contorts into an apologetic expression. However, the look vanishes in an instant as he turns his attention towards our cousins and starts speaking to them.

"Sit down now. We can talk about this later. We are trying to eat here." Lucien picks up his glass and takes a rather large sip of his wine.

"Oh right, I am sorry that we interrupted your eating time." My aunt says, as she and her family take their seats at the table.

Lucien turns to the nearest maid and whispers something to her, to which she quickly nods, and scurries away. She comes back with four bowls and sets them in front of the new guests.

"Well," my uncle clears his throat trying to clear the awkward silence in the room. "Thank you for the food. It tastes delicious."

As I turn my gaze back to Lucien waiting to see what he would say in return, I notice a subtle haze in his eyes, almost as if his mind is preoccupied with something else.

"Lucien." I say, to see if he reacts to what I'm saying. That's when I noticed a small red dot lined up directly onto the middle of his head.

"Bloody hell," I mumble, while pushing myself out of my chair, and running towards Lucien. Everyone looks at me weirdly, but I ignore their expressions as I scream to them.
"EVERYONE GET DOWN NOW!" I tackle Lucien off his chair and to the ground. Not even a second later, all I can hear is the sound of bullets and Mia's screaming.

I hold Lucien in my arms trying to get a reaction out of him. I hit his face multiple times as I hid under the table, but I know in the back of my head that it's no good. He has been poisoned and the people trying to hurt this family have come back for seconds.