ENIOLA
"Do you think he will be alright?" Eniola quietly asked Tobias who just chuckled as he wiped his hands on his already bloodied coat. "Tobias? Is he going to be alright?" She asked, her voice louder than before.
She needed an answer. It was not every day her normally calm and collected Tobias was planning to turn someone into a living and breathing, well, hardly breathing sieve.
"Maybe." He answered with an emotion she tried to think was amusement.
"And you're fine with it?" She asked again, frowning when he clicked his tongue.
"Of course I am, why won't I be?" She glanced at his forced smile for a moment then set her eyes back on her thighs. It was difficult to look anywhere else as his tense presence and glare were almost suffocating her.
"Well, your hands are shaking and these bloody knives are a bit off-putting." She pointed at the thin blades he stuffed in a lone glove and kept between them.
"I have adrenaline coursing through my veins. Of course, my hands are shaking." He answered, laughing again and taking a second to pick up the glove before stuffing it in his bloody coat.
"I-"
"You would have asked to ride with the rest or Rebecca and I would have let you." He added strumming his fingers on his knee. Eniola could easily see that he was not at all relaxed. She was worried about him. "At least you wouldn't be this scared of me. Look at you, you're shaking too and almost glued to the car door." He added rubbing his eyes before leaning his head on the glass window.
"It's hard not to be scared of you being like this. And I'm worried about you. You just lost it." She too replied sparing another glance at him to meet with his cold steel eyes.
"He had it coming." He said, spitefully and it was her turn to sigh.
"Why are you driving him to your place then?" She asked curiously.
She was grateful he had listened to her and held back from stabbing Giovanni. Well stabbing him again. She had been too late to stop the first blade from piercing into his shoulder. She hated to admit that it was a bit of an entertaining scene to witness.
Tobias being anything but cool-headed was a rarity.
"He's serving as leverage. His brother might not do anything as long as we still have him."
"What if he dies from the wound?"
"Mateo said he'll be good for another three to four hours."
"But what if he dies?"
"Then he dies, Enny." He said in a sharp tone but took a breath to pause and apologize. "Sorry."
"Well he was rude for spitting on you but I just feel stabbing him was not really your brightest idea." She tried to reason and he laughed again. She could not find the humor in the situation.
"And what would you have suggested, Doctor Eniola?" He mused and she narrowed her eyes at him.
"I'm an architect, not a fucking shrink. And you would have, I dunno, tried to reason with him?" She said and he laughed again. Damn, you must be in a really good mood.
"I did. He didn't comply. I only did what the likes of him understand."
"And what is that?"
"Pain. I caused him pain and if you hadn't-" He paused and exhaled again. "If you hadn't asked me not to, I would have caused even more pain and he would have talked." She knew he was trying to restrain himself from raising his voice at her. She also knew he was incredibly upset. He was just really good at controlling his emotions.
"I'm sorry for interrupting but it was a bit too public to be causing a scene." And I don't want you getting into trouble.
"I suppose you are right." He said looking back at the window. His tone meant he was done with the conversation and she respected that.
The entire court issue had been resolved but it had somehow blown open another case. There were already two battered people and one missing person. She sighed in frustration because all she wanted was an uncomplicated life with Tobias but got herself into so much trouble instead.
"Would you still like to see the house?" He asked quietly and she muttered a small 'yes'. She knew her house would be empty and there would also be a lot of paparazzi in front after hearing the court verdict of her being acquitted. "Alright."
The rest of the drive was uncomfortably quiet for her.
She could feel how tensed Tobias was even when his hands had stopped shaking. He was still in deep thought as his eyes glued to the passing scenery outside the car. She wondered what he was pondering over. Was he still upset that she stopped him from hurting Giovanni? Was it something else? She wished he would share his thoughts with her.
She really wanted to help.
"Tobias?" She drew his attention, his beautiful grey eyes coming to hers. Even with the smudges of light pink on his face, he was still the most beautiful human she knew. She even thought his black roots and white hair suited him. "Do you have curly hair like Rebecca?"
"Sorry?"
"Your hair. When it's longer, is it curly like Rebecca's or wavy like Varo's?"
Her random question made him stare at her in confusion before he slowly nodded. "Like Rebecca's."
"Why don't you grow it out?" She asked again and it made him think for a moment.
"Keeping hair is high maintenance."
"Like Varo? I'm sure he spends a lot of time styling his hair."
"Well, I am not sure he does it himself. I think he goes to Luis to do it for him." He answered lightly and she felt inwardly smug. She had succeeded in distracting him. She knew she had to keep it going.
"Luis being a hairstylist just makes sense. They always look good." She added and Tobias gave her a side glance, going back to pick at his stained fingernails. Eniola knew he was thinking about getting a shower.
"You think he looks good?" He asked almost cautiously and she just giggled. Was that envy she sensed?
"Of course, he does. I don't know who looks better between him and Alvaro." There was some truth to that. She had noticed that Luis and Varo had almost the same body build and fashion sense. "They are almost the same with their stature and penchant for designer clothes. Save for Luis' blue hair."
"Well they are cousins so I guess it's not surprising for them to share certain features." He answered thoughtfully and Eniola was surprised. Cousins?
"I thought you said only the eldest of a family could be in the Cinco Grande thingy." She asked and he nodded, taking time to rub his eyes before answering. She bit her tongue from voicing out that he looked cute as he did as she didn't want him to withdraw into his shell again. And she had promised him and herself she would give him time.
"They are maternal cousins. Varo is a Montezuma and Luis is from the Obero clan." He explained and Enny furrowed her brows in thought.
"Alvaro's complete last name sounds ancient."
Tobias cracked a small grin. "It is and we're here." He announced just as the car drove through an automatically sliding gate.
Her jaws dropped for a moment.
The house was gigantic with an empty fountain-like roundabout right in the ceA few men were workingorking outside and she could see Luis already running the lawnmower at the far end of the plain.
"Oh my God." It was not enough to describe the mansion's elegance. She cautiously stepped out of the car as Bob stiffly held the door open for her. The warm and light-colored pillars supporting the building had a Roman feel to them. She could already bet that the interior was a lot bigger.
"It was a gift from a friend a few years ago," Tobias commented as appeared by her side, shrugging off his coat to stuff it in a waste bin. The busy men had not noticed them until Rebecca honked loudly, startling most of the men, and Eniola.
"Cabrons!" She yelled before slamming her car loudly and Enny could almost hear some men sigh in tiredness.
Rebecca was a force to reckon with.
"Who missed me? Who am I kidding? You all did. Hello, Julio! My macho man, Julio!" She said excitedly as she pulled a large blonde-haired man into a hug. He looked like he would rather vanish into thin air.
"Hello, Becca. Como estas? How was Paris?" He asked nervously as he tried to pry her off him. The other men were already backing away from her when they sighted Tobias.
"Don Ferna?" One shirtless man with a shaved head called out followed by a series of "hola"s and "jefe"s.
"Ho-" Tobias was interrupted by Riccardo who slammed a car boot shut after dragging an injured Giovanni out.
"Oops." He remarked as the judge's head bumped against the car. Something told Enny that the foul treatment he was getting was for disrespecting Tobias.
"Second breathing man today. Are you turning a bit soft, jefe?" The man with the shaved head joked and Tobias just rolled his eyes at him.
"I have missed your taunts, Diego." He commented, nodding his head at the man who just grinned. "Thank you for coming."
"¿Es esta la chica, jefe?" Is this the girl, boss? Another shirtless man asked as he stared at her and Eniola had to avert her eyes for a moment no matter how much she enjoyed the view. Isn't it fucking cold? Why are they not wearing coats?
"Yes. This is Eniola. Eniola, Xino." He gestured at the dark-skinned man. "That's Alejandro, Benicio and the one Rebecca is forcing her affection on is Julio. They are part of my security detail and at least two of them have to be with you when you have to be somewhere without me." Her eyes went to each man as they smiled at her when their names were called. They all seemed to have their distinct personalities. Diego had caught her attention, the man was almost as short as she was which was saying a lot as most of the members she had met were well over 6 feet tall.
"It's nice to meet all of you." She greeted, getting different responses as they all scurried back to the domestic work they were doing with Julio complaining of how much weight he would lose as Rebecca was at his neck again.
"They are really nice." She commented, with Tobias only nodding as he led her into the house.
Before they could enter, she could already see the interior was buzzing with activities. Another tall man was pushing a vending machine to an elevator by the side. Yes, the house did have an elevator. "How big is this place?" She asked in shock walking into the oddly quiet living space.
"11,000 square feet. 15 bedrooms and a couple of extra rooms that I have no idea what anybody would use them for." He answered pulling off his blazer.
"Shit sounds expensive." She commented flopping on the rich Italian leather.
She recognized the design and all. Kent had taken her for an antique auction a few years back where she had spent a couple of thousand dollars for the charity for an orphanage. She had gone back to propose a new design for the renovation of the place but nobody took her seriously. The media easily looked past that and just said she was spending too much money and was a product of nepotism. Kent advised her to just drop the entire project.
"I'm sure it is." He said, bending over to retrieve a knife from his shoe. Another one?
"Would you like anything to drink?" Tobias asked bringing out two smaller ones from his sleeves. How many are there?
"N-not really. Won't those cut you?" She asked and he shook his head, gathering his blades.
"They won't. Come on, let's look for Varo. Knowing the glutton, it's either he's in the kitchen or he is in the kitchen." He commented and Enny laughed watching him drop his knives on the equally suave-looking table and stretch his hand to her. She gratefully took the hand, relishing the short-lived pleasure of being in contact with him as he gently pulled her up and led her to the kitchen.
The kitchen was quite the journey from the living space as it seemed to be on the far left wing of the mansion. The sounds of their footsteps made her wonder why the area was so quiet.
"The men live upstairs. They're currently doing renovations for their rooms so you might not see the rest of them immediately. They are also less likely to come down if Varo is here." He answered before she could ask. He knew her too well.
"They are scared of him?" She asked slightly huffing from having to walk so fast to keep up with him. Thankfully, he slowly down.
"Not exactly, they just like to give him space." Another cryptic answer.
"Wow, that was so helpful." She tried to bite back the edginess in her tone and he just sighed.
"Add it to the couple of things you want me to tell you about?" He suggested and she frowned. "Here we are." The open space was a gigantic kitchen that revealed Clara sitting on the island with a cup of hot chocolate in her hands and ignoring Varo who was gesturing wildly at her. As usual.
"Hello, Mr Tobias. Hello Enny." Her face lit up in an adorable smile when she saw them but the smile dropped when she took in Tobias's bloody shirt. "My God, are you alright sir?" She asked pushing a perplexed Varo away so she could take a good look at him.
"I am alright." He answered casually turning his attention to the lawyer who watched him smugly.
"Heard you almost turned Berlusconi into Mafia kebab? That's cute." Varo said stifling a laugh before turning to hand Tobias a cup of coffee but Eniola stopped him.
"He's not having coffee today. He needs to sleep later." She said strongly making Varo, Tobias and Clara raise their brows in surprise. She had caught him many times rubbing his eyes and trying to suppress a yawn. He needed to rest.
"Okay..." Varo drawled emptying the contents down the drain. "Anyways, Berlusconi is downstairs with Riccardo and Franco watching him and Sergei is cuffed in Mateo and Miguel's room. I gave him some sleeping pills, he was sobbing like a bitch when Olegario reset his nose," Varo said casually as he rummage the fridge before eventually pulling out a can of Pringles.
He discussed the issue like they were not kidnappers at that moment.
"Speaking of which, where is Olegario?" Tobias asked and Varo just shrugged hopping on the same counter that Clara was quietly sipping her beverage on.
"Last time I saw him, he was sorting out the infirmary. He might be in his and Luca's room, he did order a couple of books."
"Alright. Enny, I'll be back soon to take you home." He looked at Enny who glued to his side. Why are you leaving?
"Okay." She said sadly. She had hoped he would stay and show her around the house but it seemed he had other plans. "Who is Olegario?" She asked just as he left.
"He's his doctor." Clara answered finally coming down from the counter. She had been shuffling further away from Varo who had also been scooting closer to her out of sheer amusement.
"Doctor? Is he sick?" Eniola asked and Clara shook her head lightly.
"Of course not. Like he's his therapist. Yunno, his shrink." She added holding out her beverage for Enny who shook her head. She needed something much stronger.
"Thank you." She politely declined before helping herself in ransacking the refrigerator. She almost wept when she found a bottle of Ciroc vodka. A single shot would do. "What does he need a therapist for?" She asked breaking the seal open.
"To keep his mind in check I guess. I have only known most of the men here for less than 24 hours but the chaos they raise is enough to make me go bonkers." Clara said and Enny laughed at her vocabulary, preparing to pour some vodka into a mug.
"That's Vittore's bottle. He'll lose his mind if he sees you with-" Varo warns but pauses mid-sentence, a mischievous smile stretching his lips. "Nevermind. Carry on." His Cheshire cat-like grin was a bit unnerving but Eniola brushed it off. She was sure the man would not mind her having a little. And the men were pretty nice and accommodating, surely Vittore would not be an exception.
She skillfully tipped the bottle's content into the mug and then paused to dilute it with some water. She reopened the fridge and brought out a can of Coke instead. She preferred Pepsi but this would have to suffice.
She mixed the drink with enough Coke as she did not plan on getting drunk that evening.
"Here." Varo suddenly appeared with some sliced lime and squeezed it into the drink. "I can't ignore or reject a good drink." He commented stealing a sip with his face contorting because of its sourness. "Good shit. Fuck, I'm making mine." He pulled out the Ciroc again and Clara shook her head.
"Would you like me to show you around? I've been here for a few hours longer." She stated dropping her clean mug on the rack. Eniola could not be more grateful. Varo was now too busy for conversations and she was getting bored.
"Of course." She finally responded linking her arms with Clara and grabbing her drinks.
This would have to do until Tobias came for her.