a s t r i d
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Do you ever wish you had a second chance to meet someone again for the first time?
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Black, lace dress.
Black, leather jacket.
Black, heel combat boots.
Black, straight hair. Black nails. Black smokey eyes.
Considering black is the color of death, I seem to wear it extremely well.
I step out of my room, smiling softly as I catch sight of Taylor. He's wearing black too. A black, incredibly tight, long sleeved Henley with black skinny jeans and sneakers.
Blushing slightly, I take his hand as he leads up out of the house and into his car. I wait for him to pass me a blindfold of some sort, assuming the base location was still supposed to be 'top secret' but it never happens.
He turns the radio on, humming slightly to 505 by Arctic Monkeys. We stay in complete silence, but I felt like it was more comfortable than making idle conversation.
We had all night for that.
He drives us to some restaurant in the City Centre, the sole part which wasn't burnt to the crisp during the war.
I didn't know areas like this still existed.
Marvelling at its beauty, I take Taylor's hand once again and we walk into what appears to be an abandoned building.
Or at least it did on the outside.
The inside looks like something out of a Disney Movie.
A spacious room, shaped like a wide oval. Patterns laced and lurked on the walls, creating a soft but loud collision of colours. Hues of blue and purple decorated the ceiling, like a galaxy, partnered with crystal chandelier. To the far side of the room lay a waterfall, the water glittering when the fluorescent light cascaded gently upon it.
It reminds me of my childhood home.
It's sensational.
"Oh my god." I say quietly, my eyes widening. I smile, a true smile.
"Come on." Taylor tugs me along, smiling with me.
We sit down at a random table, and the waiter comes instantly to ask for our orders.
"Can I have the menu please?" I ask sweetly.
"Oh, darling, we don't have menus. We make anything you desire." He speaks with elegance, a trait I have almost forgotten.
Taylor smirks at me from across the table, before looking up at the waiter. "For my appetizer, I will have the Gamberoni Piccanti. Main: Filetto Pavarotti. And for dessert, I would like a Strawberry & Mint Granita. May we also have a bottle of your finest Red Wine, thank you."
The smirk widens as he says the Italian Dishes.
He thinks it's impressing that he knows Italian Food?
Ha.
"I would like a Pizza All' Aglio for my appetizer. A Pollo Gorgonzola for my main and a Pistacchio Gelato for my dessert. Grazie, Signore." I nod to him, and he goes to put our order in. Noticing Taylor staring at me, I raise an eyebrow. "What? You thought you was impressive because you could name 3 Italian Dishes?"
"You still manage to surprise me, Miss Cleveland." He laughs, "How do you know Italian, then?"
"My Mom was Italian." I tell him, already considering how to get away from the topic of my parents. "We visited a few times before the war. Speaking of that, how did this place manage to survive?"
Our appetizers come quick, and Taylor speaks in between bites. "It didn't. Becca and I built it up again after the Rebels left. Some chefs were looking for jobs, so we gave it to them. The Head Chef actually claims he used to cook for the Royals."
I almost choke on my food, "What?"
"You do know about the Royals? Right?" He questions, to which I nod my head hesitantly. "Well, when we hired the Chef, he told us loads about them. Apparently, King Tobias Kensley and his wife Isabella were killed in their chambers and both their kids went missing."
"No way." I reply quietly, almost too quiet. I suddenly don't feel like eating anymore. "That can't be true."
But the waiter doesn't notice, as he takes our plates and returns with our Main Meals.
"Yeah I know, it's crazy." He takes a sip of his wine, "He said the Rebels were after their little girl, Ingrid, so Tristan, her brother, ran away with her. But of course, loads of conspiracy theories have been made. Most people just think they're dead and the Rebels won't admit they killed two kids."
"What do you think? Personally?"
He glances up from his food now, I could see the clear certainty in his eyes. "Personally? I think the Royals secrets were more darker than that. I don't remember much about my parents or my Grandma, but I remember that she adored them all. Their security was insane, as well. So I think they had a rat. A traitor, somewhere on the inside. And I think they killed them."
"Interesting." He's smart. "So how's things with Alexi? She seems to be doing okay."
His jaw locks at my question, "You don't sleep in a room close to hers. She cries herself to sleep every night."
"Oh."
He places his knife and fork down, "Asher was her other half, they've always been inseparable. Tyler hurt Asher a lot when they were younger, and he hurt Lexi too but she's always been a fighter. Asher was innocent, quiet. It destroyed him. He was a good kid, he didn't deserve what happened to him."
"How do people not know about this? Surely people would act if they knew such fucked up things were going on?"
Of course I knew they wouldn't. Humans are cowardly creatures. But Taylor didn't need to know I think that.
No one needs to know.
"The general population doesn't know what's happening, and it doesn't even know it doesn't know. Word is the surviving adults are attempting to establish a Government of some sort. But even if they do, it won't work."
"Because everyone is so accustomed to the law of the streets that it no longer matters." I think out loud, gaining a proud nod from Tay. "What I don't understand is why Alexi let Tyler live in the first place if he harmed her and Asher previously. Surely she would've seen him around?"
"We're Vipers, Arry." Taylor says as though that's the answer to everything. "When we declare loyalty to our cause, we forget all other events that we need to avenge. It's like another chance at living. That's why she didn't go after him, because he didn't provoke her. That's the thing about a viper, you see, they got no reason to bite you if you don't step on them first. You understand?"
"Yeah I do."
I really did.
A new chance to start again, leaving the past in the past. Where it belongs.
It's almost too good to be true.
"You finished with your dessert?" The waiter takes it as I nod. We both thank him and pay the bill.
Goosebumps litter over my arms as the cool, summer breeze hits us. I shiver.
Something cold pressed against the back of my head, I kiss my teeth.
"Not exactly how I imagined the date to go." I remark as guns were pointed at our heads.
Four males stare back at us, only one gaze wavered. He looked like a kid, only 12 or 13.
But everyone looks the same from the end of a gun.
Taylor addresses each one of them individually. "Cole." The hot brunette. Alexi's half brother, I realize. "Axel." The ginger. "Jax." The abnormally tall one. "Dean." The kid. "How can I help you all on this fine night?"
"Lexi took Tyler out. Big Boss wants payback." 'Cole' replies with smoothly, cocking his head to the side as he averts his gaze onto me. "Damn, Valentine. What a fine piece of ass."
"Say that again and I'll cut you before you can think twice."
His mouth opens and I dive forward, kicking the gun from his hand and getting him in a chokehold. He taps my hand instantly, struggling to find his breath. I tense one arm up and quickly use the other to grab my knife, holding it to his throat.
I lean down, whispering in his ear. "What was that?"
"You think this scares me?" He pants, gripping my tense arm that was still wrapped around his throat. "Let me share this with you then, darling Freya. I know the Princess is as good as dead....and I know the Prince is soon to follow."
I freeze as my original middle name leaves his lips.
Wren.
Ignoring Taylor's confusion, I lean back down and whisper even lower. "Tell your Boss that he can come and see me himself instead of sending his bitches. You know who I am? Good. If I could kill my own parents, imagine what I would do to you."
He gulps, and I fight the urge to smile in triumph.
Taylor uses the others moment of shock to engage, shooting one in the head and the other in the stomach. The one with the head wound dies instantly, but the other was still breathing.
Dean was kept at gunpoint, he drops his gun.
I dig the knife into Cole's throat, ensuring that it was deep enough to keep him breathing. My voice lowers once again, "My name is Ingrid Freya Kensley, I think you deserve to know that. Tell Rogue that the last thing he will ever see is a Kensley smiling down at him when I slit his throat."
Pushing him to the ground and watching him cough, "Five seconds, Cole."
He runs before I make it to three.
Signing, I pull my handgun from my jacket and point it at the kid, Dean.
" I'm a gangster. But I don't have to be a killer."
"You don't need to do this..." He begs, "Please. Please don't kill me."
Mom and Dad, please forgive me.
"I do. I'm sorry."
If there is a God above, I'm sorry.
I pull the trigger, and he drops to the ground like a snowflake on a Winter's Eve.
Only difference is, his snowflake is crimson red.
***
Taylor called for backup the moment I dropped my gun.
And then he proceeded to beat the stomach wound victim, Axel.
Whoever had come, I didn't acknowledge them.
I turn and I see the last boy barely conscious in Taylor's arms. The same man who had stared at me with adoration in his eyes was now fixed with a brutal expression.
The teen's face is barely recognizable, his body twisted up, ginger hair covered entirely in blood. I gaze up and Taylor is watching me draw deep, shaky breaths. His eyes capture mine and for a moment he hesitates.
"Do you love him?" A voice embraces me unexpectedly.
I glance at Shae, shaken by his blunt question.
Shaking my head, I reply without missing a breath. "No, we barely know each other."
He hums, following my eyes to Taylor's still form. "Do you care for him?"
I bit my lip, my voice coming out almost inaudible "I do."
"Then you care for all of him. This is who he is, Arry. He needs you to accept him. That boy tried to kill you both, he tried to take down a Viper. He threatened you."
"I killed someone." I state, "Did he have a family? He was just a kid."
"Yeah he did." Shae looks to the floor, "Look this life...what we do...what we have to do isn't easy. We've all done things we regret, it's natural."
"Then tell me why everyone is tiptoeing around me at base?" I ask, flinching as Shae goes to hold my shoulder. "Don't. They're afraid of me, aren't they?"
"Afraid? No. Cautious? Kinda."
"Look, I trust you did what you needed and I'm not judging you and I can tell Taylor is trying not to. But he can't do that for you if you won't do that for him. This is who he is."
"Taylor promised me," I say quietly "He said he wouldn't let anyone hurt me."
"That's right." I sense his eyes focusing on the side of my head. "Taylor...He needs to do this. If you care for him as much as you claim to, then you'll accept him for this. You'll accept him for exactly who he is, not who you want him to be. He is a weapon, a killer. Don't forget it. No matter how much a snake sheds its skin, it'll still always be a snake."