Wild Side [h.s au]

Chapter 16

"Elena," he greets me, nodding. "Is everything alright? Take a seat," he offers, his hand motioning to the seat opposite of him.

I close the door and walk toward him, lowering myself onto the seat, my clammy hands clasping in my lap. "I know you did a lot for us, David, and I want to thank you," I start. "I came here to ask you to put your trust in us once again."

"Wait, what's that on your neck?" He asks, a frown appearing on his face. "Who did that to you?"

"I doesn't matter, I took care of it."

"Are you sure?" I nod in response and he sighs, displeased with my answer. "I told you if someone disrespects you to come to me, I won't allow that kind of behaviour in my base, especially not to my special guests," he says, a kind smile gracing his lips. "Now, tell me, what is it?"

"It's about what happened on the field yesterday," I say. "I'm sure most of the soldiers blame us for it since it was so obvious Vortex was prepared for the attack, which means there is a possibility of a traitor in the base."

"Yes, my son mentioned it to me, I was planning to call a meeting."

I frown in confusion. "Son? Wait. . . H? He's your son?" It would certainly explain why does everyone respect him so much and why is he on such a high position. But I don't want to assume anything, maybe he earned it the hard way.

David looks surprised I didn't know that. "Yes, but I'm not exactly the father of the year."

I nod, not wanting to pry into their business, so I brush it off. "About that traitor. . . I think it's possible Vortex was spying on Hazard and Rogue, tracking every single activity, so they naturally saw our meetings with Ace and concluded there might be an attack coming their way. But that's just how I would react if I were Vortex leader."

David suddenly smiles, my eyebrows scrunching in confusion. "You're just like your father. He was a brilliant critical thinker, not to mention his usage of logic and battle strategy."

My lips pull in a sad smile at the mention of my dad, the sense of nostalgia washing over me. "As far as I remember, he always spoke highly of you as well. I only hope he would approve of our decision to come here."

"He might've been from Vortex, but I'm sure he would be proud of you and your brother for deciding to do what's best and choosing your side," he says. "If my son did the same thing, I know I would."

When I feel we've stranded too deep into this conversation, I decide to change the subject, wanting to avoid confronting with any emotions. I was taught to do that almost my whole life. "Can I count on your support regarding this traitor matter, sir?"

"Of course." He nods, smiling. "I'd like to see you on the meeting I'll hold later today. My son and his most trustworthy friends will be there as well."

"With all due respect, I don't think that's a good idea. It's better we stay away from meetings and official business until we figure this out," I say. "But thank you nevertheless."

"Hey, Elena?" He calls once I stand up, prepared to leave. "I have to say I laughed so hard when I heard about that knife incident with my son. He's so used to everyone obeying him, I'm sure his face must have been priceless."

I try not to laugh at the memory. "I'm pretty sure he still resents me for that."

We wrap up our conversation and I leave his office, some of the tension now dispersed. There's still some time of lunch break left, but I'm in no mood to eat or socialise, so I simply go to my room to relax shortly and think this through. Confusion washes over me when I see a sandwhich wrapped in a foil on my nightstand, my hand pulling a note underneath it.