Lux
I blinked my eyes open and groaned in pain. I must of been sitting here for a while. Wait. Where am I?
I looked around through blurry eyes and saw four concrete walls, one metal door, a light above, and a chair that I'm currently tied to. I tried to jerk my arms apart but they wouldn't budge.
I'm trapped.
I jerked again at the ropes and started to panic. My shaky fingers tried to find a knot I could try to find and untie, but came up empty. Oh God. The walls are starting to close in. I'm back in the basement. With Him.
Fear of attracting Him but hoping to signal someone who could help me, I hesitantly yelled out, "He- Hello?!" I paused and listened, but heard nothing except my panicked breaths. "Hello! Someone please help me," I cried out. Tears were tracking down my cheeks and I felt like I couldn't catch my breath.
I was about to call out one more time, but a lock slid and the door creaked open.
°°°
Axel
I arrived home in record time and I don't think I even shut my car off as I ran into the house. "Mom," I yelled out.
I heard a distant, "In here," and followed it to the computer lab.
"What are you doing," I asked as I entered the room.
My mom was concentrated on the screen before her as she mumbled, "I called your sister to see what other info they had and I got the license plate. Frankie may be good, but your auntie Hanna... She's very talented with computers. We have their location and I'm hoping that it's wrong. They could of possibly just dropped off the van and transferred her with another car." She looked up to my dad and said, "For Benjamin's sake, let's hope they did that."
I watched him sigh and rub a hand against his jaw. "He wouldn't do it. But the club is still under their name," he replied.
"What are you guys talking about," I said, frustrated. "Who's Benjamin and what club?!"
My father sighed and looked over at me. "He's a friend of ours. He save your mother's life, but is also the brother of who tried to kill her."
"I knew they were back," my mom growled. My eyes flicked to her and then back to my dad.
He said and continued, "His family was the Silver Bullets. His younger brother was the don. He passed the title, not wanting to do anything with it, but he had to contribute, so he took care of the strip club. The very same one where the van is located."
I blinked and then nodded. "Okay, let's go now! It's a lead to find Lux."
"Axel," my parents call out to me as I walked back towards the front door, but I didn't hear them. My mind was occupied with finding Lux and bringing her back home to me.
°°°
I walked through the front door of the club and was bombarded with flashing lights, loud music, the scent of liquor mixed with perfume, and barely dressed women parading around. I had a few eye me, but I was looking for one person.
When I arrived, I saw the van and instantly coiled, ready to fight. I marched myself up to the bar and signaled one of the bartenders. This blonde sashayed towards me and purred, "What can I get you, handsome?"
"Where's Benjamin," I demanded.
Her eyes instantly became guarded and she asked tersely, "Who's asking?"
"Axel Thanos-Romano." I leaned forwards and growled lowly, "Now. Where. Is. He."
I watched as she gulped and stuttered out, "I- I'll get him fo- for you." She scurried away and I sat back onto the stool.
Not even five minutes later until a man around my parents' age came strolling out from the back hall towards me with a smile on his face. He had strawberry blond hair, pale skin, and green eyes. He stood about a few inches shorter than me but made up for it in the bulk of his muscles. "Axel! How are your parents," he asked as if we were old pals.
I quickly stood and grabbed onto the front of his shirt collar, demanding, "Where is she?!"
Benjamin's smile dropped and his eyes widened as he asked, "Who?"
"Lux! She has a head of brown messy waves, brown eyes, full lips, a face full of freckles, a willowy body, and as tall as to the bottom of my chin! Her nose is like a button, housed between two high cheekbones and an aura that can draw any man to his knees. She's been taken and the van that drove away with her is in your lot! Now tell me where she is!" I was getting ready to beat the answers out of this man when he held his hands up in surrender.
"Show me the van and I can see what I can do, but I promise you, I do not have her and did not send for her capture."
I sighed and let him go, watching as he straightened out himself before leading me back out the front door. "You are very much like your parents, I see," I heard Benjamin mumble ahead of me. We walked out towards the van and I pointed to it. "This one?" I nodded and he inspected it. He looked at the license plate and sighed while running his hands though his hair. "Good news, I know who has her. Bad news, I've been so out of the loop that I am unsure of their new location." I was about to yell at his ass for his incompetence but he held his hand up. "Lucky for us, I still have some friends in the family that I trust and could help us out."
He led me back in and led me back down the back hall towards his office. "When will you get their location?"
"In not too long." He sat behind his desk and quickly dialed a number.
A quick thought came over me and I drew my gun, pointing it at his head. He rose an eyebrow and I explained, "Making sure you don't send out a warning to your family and actually do what you said you would do."
He nodded in understanding and put his focus into his phone call. "Hey, Jim. I need a big favor from you."
°°°
Lux
The metal door creaked open and a familiar brunette popped his head in. I blinked my eyes free of tears as confusion filled my body. "B- Brian," I whispered in disbelief. "What- What are you doing here?" Quickly my mind remembered my tied up state. "Can you help untie me? Is Axel with you? How did you guys find me? I was so scared that-"
My ramblings were cut off with a raise of his hand. His face was void of emotions as he widened the door and led in another man and a woman. The man frightened me the most with his bulging muscles the size of my head, sneer on his lips, and the evil glint in his eyes. The woman, on the other hand, looked poise with no care in the world. While Brian and the man were dressed in jeans and t-shirts, she was dressed in a pant suit that was so out of place from our current location.
"Ah," the woman purred in delight. "You must be the infamous Lux Catelani. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." She held out her manicured hand but then chuckled to herself. "Oh, right. You're tied up." She obviously has some screws loose. Tears started to brim my eyes again as I felt hopelessness wash over me. The woman started to circle me like I was prey and she was a predator ready to strike. "My dear, there's no reason to cry." I felt her hand land on my shoulder and I flinched. "I just want you to answer some questions and maybe then I will let you free." I highly doubt she would. She quickly removed her hand, making me flinch once again, and placed her palm against her cheek. "Oh, dear. Where are my manners. I'm Erica Coulter, Brian's mother and the Don of the Silver Bullets."
°°°
Axel
I stormed into my house where everyone was now located and yelled out, "I have a location!"
Everyone rushed towards me and quickly fired different questions at me. "Everyone, shut up," my mom yelled and everyone listened. She turned to me and demanded, "Where is she?"
I quickly told everyone the address. "Okay, let's go," said Cash in determination.
"Wait, Cash. We can't just rush into this unprepared."
"With no disrespect Misses Thanos-Romano, but they have my baby sister and I will be damned if I have to wait another second from saving her from those bastards."
I was on the same boat as him, but I also agreed with my mother. "Cash, we can't help her if we all get killed upon arrival," I said. I looked at my mother and asked, "What's your plan." I knew I couldn't lead this operation. I was too involved and I would be more impulsive with my actions than thinking with a clear head. I could admit that I needed my mother and father's professional help.
"Okay, so this is what we're going to do," my mother said as she led us down into the artillery room.
°°°
Lux
"I don't know," I cried out for the millionth time. "I know mafias and I know my family isn't part of one." They would never hide something so important from me. They know of my past. Well, some of them. But that's enough. "Please, I just want to go home."
Erica sighed in front of me. She was leaned against a table that was brought in with various tools while the two men stood near the door like guards, observing. "Mom, I don't think she actually knows anything," Brain informed.
"Shut up," Erica growled at him. She whipped her head towards me and stalked forward. She gripped my hair and yanked back my head, making me look up at her with a cry. "Now listen here, bitch. You are going to stop playing around and give me the answers I need. I would start speaking if I were you, or else things are going to get messy." She let go of my hair and my head fell forward. My neck was screaming in pain but I held in the whimper. "That bitch, Gaiana. She's the Don, no? Or is it the bastard, Luca?"
"I don't know," I cried.
She sighed in exasperation. "Fine, let's play along and say you don't know anything. I guess it's story time for you." She gave me a wicked smile. "A quick run down. It all started when we were in high school. I was just a mere follower of the late Don Vincent and his girlfriend, Mireya, was my best friend. Mireya and I were the ones sent to work from the inside of the Thanos Empire and hack into their system, but Gaiana decided to end our work early since she found out who we were. We brought her in, tortured her for a while, and she was supposed to die. But somehow she survived. She came to kill Vincent, Vincent shot at her, she moved and the bullet hit Mireya. Gaiana killed Vincent, leaving Silver Bullets with no Don. I stepped in and here we are." I stared at her in shock and disbelief. "Must be a shock to hear that the people so close to you are a bunch of murderers. Gaiana and Luca, hell, probably their children killed people, too." She walked closer to me and started to circle me once again. "To think the man that sleeps next to you at night, your precious Axel, has innocent blood on his hands." She leaned in close to my ear from behind me and whispered, "He's a murderer."
_______________________________________
Hey guys! Finals is next week for me and you know what that means... FASTER UPDATES BECAUSE IM NOT STRESSED AND SLOWLY DYING FROM CLASSES! Wooooo!!!
Okay. You guys now know who's the new Don of the Silver Bullets: Erica Coulter. (Those of you from book one, remember her?)
Did you catch the two hints?
#1. "Miss Coulter"
She isn't married
#2. The license plate: "HAK3R1A"
= airekah = Erica
Tada!
Hope to survive til the end of next week. Until next time!