King of the Don's

nine

Vaughn

Briar and I ate in silence for a few more minutes. I caught her looking up at me every several seconds, like she was building the courage to ask me another question.

I usually didn't care if someone wanted to ask me a question, or even talk to me for that matter. I was typically not a man of many words, but I let her ask whatever she needed.

"Do you have something to say?" I asked, and her eyes widened, she knows she's been caught.

She took another drink of her coffee, and I put down my fork, placing all my attention back on her. She opened her mouth, then closed it again, "Speak, little lamb." I demanded.

"This just isn't what I was expecting, y'know?" She admitted, "Like, when I got taken from that bar, I just, I don't know, knew I was going to die."  She winced at the words, "And now, I'm sitting at a large table in a million dollar estate, eating breakfast with what I've heard is a very powerful, and brutal man who just told me he will get me vegetarian food, I'm just confused is all." She shrugged, and I leaned back in my seat.

If only she knew I was confused at my actions as well. There was no rhyme or reason for her being alive. I just listened to my gut, and my gut told me not to kill her yet.

"Make no mistake I still have not decided what to do with you," I told her, and her face dropped in response, "I am not a kind man, and it would do you good to never believe I am." She nodded her head, and her I could see she bit her cheek inside her mouth. I noticed it was her nervous tick.

I took a last swig of my coffee, and I heard her soft voice again, "Why don't you know what you're going to do with me?" She asked, and I clenched my jaw.

"Ask me any other question." I told her, and she stayed silent for a moment, then with more confidence she asked, "What did Jordan Anforth do to get murdered?"

"That's your one question?"

She nodded her head, "He claimed he was innocent the night he-" She stopped herself for a second, "He said he didn't do what he was accused of."

"Why do you need to know?"

"Because you ordered the hit, right?" She asked, and I nodded my head once, "So however you answer this question reflects on you. Are you sure he was innocent?"

I let out a scoff, "One hundred percent sure." I told her, and she still looked curious, so I ran a hand over my jaw, "You want to know what Anforth did to get himself killed?"

"Yes." She persisted. Stubborn little lamb.

It made me sick even thinking about Jordan Anforth, nevertheless justifying my actions to a nineteen year old girl, but I did it anyway, "He was a fuckin' pedophile. Tried to rape his thirteen year old step-sister on several different occasions. That satisfy you, lamb?" I sneered out, with an unintended voice raise, and I could see the immediate hurt on her face.  I knew I should've calmed down, but I felt so shitty talking about it, almost like I was partially responsible, like I should have found out sooner.

And there was just something about Briar that unsettled me, in both a good and bad way. Part of me wanted to kill her to get it over with, but the other wanted to wrap her up and never let her leave my sight.

It was a very new, and very conflicting feeling.

"I'm sorry." I apologized for what I think was the first time in my life, "I shouldn't of raised my voice."

"It's fine." She told me, tears falling from her eyes.

I never did well with tears, especially the female kind. That's why I made an albeit stupid decision, "If you would like, as a formal apology, I will show you around the estate tonight."