Path to Secrecy

Found in the Flesh

There was a second between him opening his mouth to answer and debating whether it was the perfect idea. I stole the second attempt to solve the question for him inside my head, but I too remained confused about his presence.

Why was he standing before me, free of weapon or harm?

Either he'd come to offer a few death threats on behalf of his wretched gang to initiate a deal, or determined to help me out of the mess. The former thought rang the bell and I immediately rolled my eyes, fuming about their lack of notice between my stubbornness of providing safety for my family and repetitive disturbance from their presence.

The game had just begun but I was overly persevered to have the upper hand in all matters. At the age of twenty, I too somehow praise myself for absently holding things together and not calling it quits, but it's not like I'm not close to the edge of initiating a somewhat similar act.

I'd broken down twice within the past few days and suffered a persistent tear leakage ever since. Who knows, I might faint the moment I see a gun held at my temple.

I absently exhaled a deep breath, allowing a substantial amount of relief to flood through, oblivious to my body's intentions.

"Great plan. The whole, freeing your family and gaining victory. Smart move but executed at the wrong time." I frowned and racked my head for some clue behind his words, silently questioning. "Fortunately DeCicco hasn't found out. He had attached a group of snooping dogs onto your tail for you to finally confess the whereabouts of his property. Lucky for you, that job is now handed down to me."

I sighed heavily, before leaning my backside on the bonnet of my car, accepting the gang member's sickness of persistent stubbornness about negotiation. "Even then, I wouldn't confess."

"Thought so."

I blinked once, staring at his strong back, waiting for him to initiate some physical move that I can somehow avoid. Despite the reassurance my body provided, my mind had been screaming, "Run you fool!" for the past fifteen minutes.

"How are you so sure that you'll get what you want?"

He flipped around, the moonlight unreachable towards his facial features. Yet those smothering eyes seemed to have magical powers to make me squirm every time they switched towards me.

"The most important question is, how will I not?"

"Oh for fucks sake, not you too." I whispered. He arched a brow and I followed suit. What is it with these people and an ego the size of Texas?

"Valerie."

I gritted my teeth, waiting for him to finish the god damn sentence I've heard my mind imitate from DeCicco's talent of sending nightmares. "Just hand over our property."

I paused in mid-inhale, trembling from utter annoyance before my inner hulk decided it was time to roar out loud and remind the male to keep trying because success was not to be found just around the corner.

I whipped around and stalked to the driver's side of my car, ignoring the heavy boots crushing the gravel behind my tail. My arm suddenly tugged back with a firm grip circulating my bicep and I growled when my body followed suit, lazily wobbling from the prevention.

The heel of my foot tapped against the side of my car wheel while my furious gaze finally focused into the determined brown swirls. His upper lip curled and his large hand almost circulated my entire upper arm while I attempted to yank myself free, inevitably failing.

"I've had enough, honestly. You bastardo's harass me yet I rationally try to make peace. That god-damn property of yours is not in my hands yet, but I'll be damned if I hand it over when it arrives."