Tristan's POV:
In the span of a few weeks, my priorities have drastically shifted. The fact that I was dealing with a human trafficking ring has struck me hard. And I was starting to focus my attention on freeing as many women as I can.
I've tried my best to be discreet and not to cause any suspicion which has been working in my favor so far. The boss has forgotten about the hit he took out on Aurora and was more concerned on the women that were missing.
Considering I wasn't the latest member and I had gained their trust by implicating myself in their most difficult assassinations, I was in the clear. As far as they know, I am oblivious of any human trafficking that's taking place.
The contract is no longer Brett's and hasn't been for weeks. It's an open hit out for who can get to Aurora first but I'm not worried because Brett and my men have been keeping tabs on each contract killer targeting Aurora.
In other words, she's safe. I know for a fact no one will be able to reach her. As for me, I have taken a reckless route which can ultimately get me killed in any minute.
I am taking a huge risk doing what I'm doing and the men around here are running around in circles to find out what's happening. And once they do, I'll be dead. I doubt they'll be too pleased when they realize I'm the culprit behind the loss of their hundreds of millions worth of income.
But even if my plans go awry, at least I'll know my wife and my son are protected and taken care of. That's all I'm here for.
I stood in the shooting range, reloading the ammo into my gun before aiming at my target. I continue shooting till I empty it out before placing the gun down and sighing to myself.
Suddenly, my thoughts are abruptly interrupted by the footsteps behind me. "Gabe, Boss wants to talk to you" Miles tells me, grabbing my shoulder.
"Any particular reason?" I question, turning around to face him.
"I believe he has another task for you." He tells me, his eyes glued to his phone before he tucks it into his pocket.
"Who's the target?" I deduce, reaching into my pocket. I take out a cigarette and place it between my lips.
"Highly sought after drug lord. He's been slacking off with payments and we need to send out a message that we're not to be messed with." He informs me as I nod to myself, lighting up the cigarette.
"Try not to get your head blown off." He smirks with a smug look on his face, giving me a pat on the shoulder.
"I'll do my best." I reply bluntly. The only thing that's been keeping me somewhat sane is the fact that I get to take my rage out on whatever target they've acquired. Murdering these lowlifes has been keeping my anger at bay.
"You can go to his office, he'll explain everything in detail." He adds and I nod to myself before walking away.
I'm thinking I should wrap this up quickly. By the end of this week, I'll have gotten all the information I want and there'll be no reason for me to stay here any longer.
Aurora's POV:
My days were beginning to feel repetitive and I was starting to grow more and more depressed with how this situation is progressing.
I had spent my time so far switching between taking care of Eric and worrying about Tristan. In my free time, I would drown myself in imagining the worst possible situations Tristan could be in right this instant.
I've always strived to find a silver linings in every cloud and that's what got me through some dark times in my life. However, this time is different. I can sense something is wrong and I feel like I am just waiting for something to strike me. It's an uneasy sensation that has been lingering with me ever since this whole ordeal started.
Tristan is usually the person who calms me down and shakes these bad thoughts away by reassuring me. But I'm all on my own now and it breaks my heart.
I can't think rationally, I can't go somewhere to distract myself. There's only so much I can handle before I break which I can't do because I have my son to take care of.
I sit in the grass in the middle of the garden as I watch Eric crawling around me. I watch him as he attempts to stand up and hold on to one of the rods on the railing but ultimately fails and falls down.
It's crazy to see how fast he's growing up. Time has flown so fast and it feels like he just started crawling yesterday. I hate that Tristan isn't here to see him.
"Come here, cutie." I mutter in a soft voice as he crawls over to me. I pick him up and go back inside with him. I don't want him having too much sun but I'm running out of ways I can entertain him.
As I closed the back door to the garden behind me, I hear the phone ringing. I wonder who that could be. I rarely get any phone calls from anyone unless it's my in laws or Elijah checking in on me.
"Hello." I huff out as I readjust Eric in my hold.
"Hey." Stella's voice rings through, making me smile to myself.
"Stella. How are you?" I chirp, holding the phone up against my ear. I haven't talked to her in forever. Ever since what happened with Isaac, she seemed to drift away from me.
"I'm good. What about you?" She replies as I walk over to the armchair and sit down, placing Eric in my lap.
"I'm okay."
"Is that Eric I'm hearing next to you?" She questions and I nod to myself.
"Yes, he's trying to take the phone away from me." I tell her, making her laugh.
"I guess he's still being possessive over you." She giggles, letting out a heavy sigh as she does.
"How have you been doing? I haven't seen you in a while." I ask her, leaning back on the chair and listening intently into the phone.
I spent all about three hours talking to her. It felt refreshing. She had a new job and new people in her life and I was happy to hear about it all. At some point during the phone call, Eric was starting to get a little angsty so I fed him then rocked him to sleep.
I groan as I stand up, placing the phone on the coffee table and heading upstairs to place Eric down. I haven't been sleeping well lately. Eric wakes up quite a few times during the night and it's been disturbing my slumber.
Placing Eric inside his crib, I turn off the light and head into the bedroom. I'm thinking I'm due for a nap as well. I have a banging headache and I can really use a few hours of rest before Eric wakes up again.
I have to admit Tristan was a big help. I don't think I appreciated how he'd come back from a long day of work and take Eric off my hands. He's an amazing father and I can't wait till he comes back to us. Nothing feels the same without him.
Shutting the blinds, I put on another set of pyjamas and get under the warmth of the covers. I place my head on the pillow and allow myself to dive into a well deserved sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~
It hasn't even been a few hours and I am suddenly jolted from the bed. I groan in frustration as I wipe my tired eyes.
I can hear muffled voices and I can definitely make up someone crying. But it wasn't Eric. I stood up and rush towards his crib only to find him sound asleep. So who is downstairs?
I frown to myself, slowly making my way down the stairs. I reckon the guards wouldn't let anyone in so there's no reason for me to be scared. We're perfectly safe here.
But I wonder who's making all the noise. I am almost positive there's a woman downstairs crying. I reach the bottom of the stairs and trail closer to the living room, following the voices as they near in closer.
I stop at the entrance and look over to see Dianne bawling in her husband's arms with Aylina hugging her from behind, her chest heaving up and down. I divert my eyes to the couch where Isaac sat with his face buried in his hands.
Next to him were Elijah and Jonas, looking a little worse for wear. Everytime I've seen them, they would always look so serious and professional. But right now, they just like sad and tired. Something bad must have happened.
"W-What's going on?" I hesitantly ask with a worried look slapped across my face.
"Aurora!" Aylina cries, rushing over and jumping to hug me. I hug her back but frown as she sobs. I'm getting scared and genuinely worried. I have never seen Aylina cry like this.
I let go of her and look back at Tristan's family. They all look back at me with broken eyes, with pity, with utter and complete sadness.
"Did something happen?" I question, feeling the nerves taking over as my hands start to tremble.
"It's Tristan." Elijah sighs, his eyes glued to the floor. My heart immediately start racing as I wait for him to elaborate.
"He's dead."
I am not ready for the hate I'm about to receive but this had to be done, guys😭
Happy Belated New Years' guys. And if you're feeling generous this new year, you can support me through the link in my bio.
Lots of love <3
Published: January 13th 2024.