Leila turned to look at Xavier, at first she thought she was miss reading his impassive face, but today, it was different. It wasn't his usual expressionless face, he truly looked ....... Happy? She couldn't figure it out, he didn't look particularly religious.....Why were they at a Church? She tried to playback and go through the sequence of events in her mind.... Xavier...he didn't just do things randomly ...everything had a purpose. He came to the Royal Ball, as Cut Throat...but when they got off the helicopter...he threw off the mask ...he threw away the gloves......and his ear piece....what did that mean? Was she with Xavier Johnston now?....Meaning what they were about to do now.....wasn't a mission.....?
The walk up to the Church was a long and tedious one. There were so many stairs going up steeply that her head felt queasy, Leila just focused down on her feet, so she wouldn't lose balance in her pin drop heels.
They finally reached the landing, Leila was tired and out of breath. She was acutely aware he hadn't left her hand yet. Leila looked up after catching her breath, and inhaled deeply.
"W-who—whatt is th-is-s?"She asked stammering, her body shaking, looking petrified...
From the landing and as far as her eyes could see there were men, hundreds upon hundreds of men, all dressed in black as though in unison. Her eyes tried looking ahead, but there was no end to them. They in turn were all staring at her and Xavier. She felt like a sheep, who was about to be slaughtered in front of an audience. To her shock, Xavier smiled at them, once again looking strangely elated, before turning to Leila "Come on .......we're still on the outside..." he whispered softly at her.
Leila was terrified, choosing not to look into their faces, she hung her head low.
Passing by the rows and rows of men, lastly they were at the entrance. Leila saw on either side of the Church all seats were occupied with more men. Even the chairs on the top podium were fully occupied. When they saw Xavier and Leila, all of them stood up, and then finally Leila saw the thing that made her the most scared......at the end of the aisle...was a Priest...who was no doubt waiting for them...
Leila slowly turned to Xavier. "What is this...?" she said in a frightened whisper...
Xavier turned to her "Leila............ This is ..................our Wedding...." He said softly.
*******************************
Somewhere on top of a hill, dressed in all black, camouflaging into the night sky was KO, he was adjusting the focus of his favourite long range sniper, while taking a sip of his favourite whiskey in his steel canister. He turned his head to see his team on either side of him all assembling their tripods and snipers; he adjusted his black cap, and bent down to see through the lens.
Looking at the field, he focused into the helicopter which was empty, he started to move forward. There was something dark coming into his view, he readjusted his focus, turning the dial slowly, till the view sharpened. There were men...... hundreds of them, from the landing going up. What are you doing Cut Throat? Zach thought to himself, as he started to slowly move his sniper through the crowds of the men to look for her.
And finally, he found them. Xavier and Leila were standing at the entrance of the Church looking like they were having some type of argument...He was aiming at Xavier's shoulder, his fingers on the trigger.....Just then he saw a Priest come out....... realization hitting him slowly...Almost as though he could literally feel his mind go clink, clink , clink...the pieces going into place. He released his finger immediately from the trigger, and raised his hands to his team.
"Stop! Don't Shoot!" he said, his voice panicking.
Oh Shit.
*****************
Princess sat drinking wine from his steel bottle, at the front seats in the Church. Silent tears falling down his face. He was also dressed in black like his comrades next to him, Skinner, Mr. Preston, Nico, Taylor, Justin and Thomas all looking in front with the same apprehension on their face. Directly on the opposite side of the aisle were all the new recruits. James, Eduardo, Vikram, Park and Kaito looking down at the aisle with suspense...
Princess put on his black glasses; It was very rare to find a man like Cut Throat he thought to himself, the emotions overcoming him. The sacrifice he was making for both Leila and Zach was unimaginable. He hoped they would one day come to understand what it had cost him to pull this off...But alas...no good deed goes unpunished..he thought to himself...
***************
"Listen I don't understand a word of what you're saying..." Leila said backing away slowly "Why...should w-we-g-g-gett married?"
".....the choice is yours....but first take a look at this ..." Xavier said in a soft deadly whisper, as he took out an envelope from his suit, handing it to her....
Leila opened the envelope, and gasped, her hands shaking, the envelope dropped to the floor...
"How....how did you know...? What...what ...have you done...?" Leila asked backing away from Xavier
Xavier looked at his watch, "Unfortunately....we don't have the time to debate about this....What is your decision Leila...."
"What.....if I say no......?" Leila asked slowly
"I .......Wouldn't do that if I were in your position....." Xavier said smiling slightly, as he put his arm on her back, and pushed him against her....Leila shuddered.
Leila turned to look at him, starting to realize that she had run out of options at this very moment....she couldn't make a run for it, not with hundreds of men lined up on every step , She couldn't fight him, she didn't stand a chance....and lastly...with what Xavier had shown her in the envelope...she was smart enough to gage what Xavier was saying to her, without actually saying it. She was left in a desperately pitiful state...she swallowed air, slow and deep to calm her nerves. She closed her eyes to calm herself, finally after a few minutes. She opened up her eyes "Let's go...." She whispered . Xavier stared at her with a hungry expression for a moment, which then changed into a handsome smile. The Priest walked towards them
"Is everything okay...?" He asked pleasantly, Xavier beamed back at him "Never been better Father...." He reached out his hand to Leila, which she took slowly, he gently held onto it, and led the way into the church.
This time Leila decided to look around, to her shock, she recognized a few faces as they reached the front seats. She saw Justin, Thomas, Taylor and Nico all staring at them with the same impassive expression on their faces, like the rest of the men in the Church.
"All Rise ! " The priest said loudly, when the two of them reached the end of the aisle. Leila realized she was the only female there, out of all the persons dressed in black attending the ceremony not one was a woman....
Xavier turned his body so he was looking directly at Leila, holding her hands in both of his. Leila without realizing it, also turned so that she looked directly at him too.
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here tonight to witness the joining of this man and this woman in holy matrimony...." The Priest started his sermon.
************
"Do you....Xavier Johnston take this woman to be your wife, to live together in holy matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?" He asked
Xavier stared at Leila, and it was very hard to express his feelings, he yearned for the beautiful woman in front of his eyes, he stared at her hungrily, the intoxication that was Leila was taking over him already....
"...I Do.." He said simply without any hesitation,
The Priest, turned to look at Leila,
"Leila Adams, do you take this man to be your husband, to live together in holy matrimony, to love him, to honor him, to comfort him, and to keep him in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?"
Xavier held a firm iron clad grip onto Leila's hands, he could feel her tremble, he held them even harder hoping to calm her down but yet she looked up to him scared
"I.....I....dd-d-do...." She said stammering severely. Xavier beamed up as soon as those words were said.
Priest turned to look at both of them, "Then repeat after me...."
"I, Xavier Johnston, take you Leila Adams, to be my Wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part...."
Xavier smiled, closed his eyes, taking a deep breathe almost not daring to believe.
And repeated after the Priest, "I , Take you , Leila Adams to be my Wife, to have and to hold from this day forward for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part...."
"Repeat after me....I,Leila Adams, take you Xavier Johnston, to be my Husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part...."
There was a long pause, while everyone stared at Leila, she looked around terrified at the sight in front of her..
"Dear....did you hear me...?" The Priest asked Leila softly, Leila nodded her head softly, tears starting to slowly spill "I.....L-l-eila..Ada..ms,,,,t-t-t-akee....yyoouu....t-takeee...you.........Xav-ieerr Johnnn-son to be my.......my......hus........hus.....husband........to have.....and to hold.......... from ........this daayy fooorward.......... For...........forr....... better, for............. worse, for............ richer, for....p-p-p-poor-- poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till.............................de-death do us part...." She looked like she was about to faint....Xavier pressed her hands a little bit harder, she gasped and looked at him cautiously...
"We will now do the exchange of rings...." Priest said, To Leila's surprise Nico and Taylor got up....Nico passed Xavier his ring, and Taylor passed a ring to Leila.
Xavier still staring at Leila, pulled out her small hand, and put a ring onto her finger. The ring...was simple, small, and beautiful.....it truly fit the owner.
Leila looked down at the ring she was given by Taylor, her hands shaking, Xavier put his hand forward. He hadn't realized, how truly soft her skin was, against it his scarred skin almost felt like sand paper. With her hands shaking, she put the grey ring onto Xavier's finger.
"By the power vested in me.....I now pronounce you Husband and Wife..." his words were met with wild cheers, the comrades threw their hats into the air, but Xavier grew apprehensive and nervous as he was most looking forward to the next words, and sure enough the priest put his hand up for the crowd to quiet down -
"You may now kiss the bride..." the Priest said to Xavier smiling, who in turn beamed at his wife. His wife looked shocked as though she was caught off guard.
Leila backed away slightly, trying to remove her hands from his grip but Xavier had already shown enough restraint throughout the night...he couldn't resist his beautiful wife anymore. He held onto her hands, approaching her with one swift step, bent down, gently but firmly put his hand at the back of Leila's head, and bringing his lips onto hers....
If he thought she was intoxicating before, it was NOTHING compared to how he felt now that he had tasted her....there was no point fighting it...he knew from the second his lips touched hers...he was hooked...
He got enveloped in her softness, his mind and body filled with ecstasy......but what was that....? Was she kissing him back....?
********************
Leila stood still and calm....with her eyes closed, she waited for an onslaught of aggression that was Cut Throat ...but she was taken aback by the gentleness of his kiss and embrace.... It was so ironic, that her first kiss was with her..................husband? For one short moment, she forgot the circumstances, being locked in his arms, and being kissed the way she was ...for that short one second...Leila felt really like a wife kissing her husband. But then reality set in, and she remembered that there were hundreds of men who were in audience.
Slowly opening her eyelids Leila saw one man who stood alone at the center of the aisle, looking like the grief of the world weighed upon him. His young and handsome face looked absolutely shattered. Her heart skipped a beat, her hands dropped, and her mouth froze. Xavier stopped too after noticing Leila's inaction, turning his head slowly to the man.
*********
Clap.
Clap.
Clap.
Clap.
The claps echoed in the big Church, all eyes moved from the newlywed couple, to the on comer. The impressive figure had a sniper flung across his shoulders. He staggered slightly, as though drunk... His black cap framed so low, it was difficult to see his full face. There was a small team of armed men behind him, too dressed in black, black caps and baklava's on their face.
"Wow , Ex-Bestie......you really outdid yourself this time...." Zach's voice came, as he staggered drunkenly in the aisle. "You know.....this one........this one...............this one really hurt......" his voice was full of emotion as he took a swig from a silver case. He flung his sniper across his back to his front, elegantly putting it in position, the rest of the men in the church immediately reacted to him
"Waaaiitttt!! Don't! He will not be harmed in any way !" Xavier shouted to the men in the rest of the Church, while pushing Leila behind him.
"Congratulations Leila!" Zach said, "Do you want to be a Widow now.....or should I let you enjoy your honeymoon first...?" he asked sadistically
**********************
"Don't talk to her like that ..." Xavier said in a dangerously low whisper
"YOU-DON'T TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK TO DO !" Zach yelled, in a hysterical shriek. There was pin drop silence, the men in the church turned to look from Xavier to Zach as though waiting on instructions on how to proceed. The impending doom filled the air,
"KO...." Came the voice of Princess in the corner...
KO turned around , his sniper was pointing straight to Princess, whose hands were raised...as he approached him slowly
" Listen KO....you don't understand.....this isn't what you think it is......" Princess said, while still walking closer to KO "Even if you don't trust Cut Throat....trust me okay? ....This is Princess......I wouldn't get involved in something messy......so whatever you think it is.....i can assure you it's not........let's talk about this okay......?"
"Noooo nooo Princess.......My Queen......" Zach said bowing down dramatically, "....I understand perfectly well what happened.......I know exactly what the FUCK-HAPPENED-HERE !" He said again in his same maniac shriek, edging closer to Princess,
"Not even I can pull of something like this..............trust me I know................" Zach said, the pain in his voice becoming evident with every syllable.
"Trust me KO ...you have this wrong-"
"This was to protect her right..?"
"To protect YOU !...Listen ...I know you're hysterical...lets calm do-"
"STOP.FUCKING.LYING.TO.MY.FACE !..." Zach said, shooting a few shots into the air, Leila screamed terrified,
"You know what ...? You're good...I'll give you that much.....talk about being blind-sided....woohooooo...but Princess........why don't you have a real honest conversation with your boss eh....about who he really is? Because even YOU won't be ready for my power move.....should we already tell them now Cut Throat or....or.. ...what about we at least tell your pretty little wife eh....? Together....? You know what they say...you shouldn't be starting off a marriage with secrets and all that good stuff...?" he said laughing to himself
"........Have you been drinking...?" Princess asked a little bit bewildered
"Just give me ONE good reason WHY either one of you should be alive ....!" Zach asked sadistically, he was an inch away from Princess now, the tip of the sniper touched Princess directly in the forehead
"Come on now....you won't be able to make it of this alive KO...Just pu-"
"ALIVE?!...." Zach shrieked once again laughing sardonically, "......Who said anything about making it out of this alive...Haven't you learnt anything about Me or your Boss yet.....we don't half ass our way into anything eh? It's all the way .....or nothing" He whispered, looking slightly deranged...
"Well then...If it's all the way or nothing....don't you think Cut Throat also went .........'all the way'....?" Princess asked calmly, as though the two were in class having an intellectual debate
But before Zach could respond, several things happened all at once: the men in the church took out their weapons aiming at Zach in unison, Zach's team all pulled out grenades out of their hands to show to the men in the church, Leila rushed from behind Xavier, and ran to Zach, putting her arms around him.
Zach turned in shock , to look down at the soft body pushing against him.
Xavier stared at his wife, who had a Church full of men aiming guns at her and his best friend,
"Let go........" Zach shocked, whispered softly to the girl....whose body was shuddering,
"P-p-p-p-p-p-pleasee.......d-d-d-don't.....hurt him...." Leila said sobbing, Zach tried gently to loosen her grip, without hurting her, "Let go....Leila..." he said, she shook her ahead.
"STOP ! EVERYONE ! BACK AWAY NOW !" Commanded the voice Xavier.
*****
"Leila...let go..." Zach pleaded with Leila, who stubbornly held onto him, shaking her head. He was scared for her. She didn't understand....him and Xavier didn't understand limits, ...he was distracted by this soft body pressing against his, he wanted to take the sniper and shoot while he had a clear shot,
Xavier was edging closer to them, he had his hands in his pocket, no doubt he was going to pull something out....
******
Leila didn't want to let go, she was scared for both of them, she didn't want to see either one of them get hurt. She had to make a quick judgment, and between the two of them, Zach was most unstable...and also most vulnerable. Xavier had hundreds upon hundreds of men armed, all the way to the outside of the church...while Zach had a much smaller number...
She clung onto him, but she wasn't convinced he would back down, the only thing she managed to do was to buy time...
From the corner of her eye...she could see the sniper that had momentarily been down when she ran to him, was now slowly starting to rise. ...Xavier was edging closer he too had his hands in pockets, Zach's fingers were on the trigger, she released him, slowly without even realizing what she was doing
Zach and Xavier both stared down at her in shock, as she raised her hands slowly walking towards Xavier, till she had shielded him.
"Move......." Zach's face expression changed into a menace. Leila shook her head, "Don't do this ...please...." She whispered.
Zach's eyes darkened "Do you know WHY I'm called KO ?" he asked Leila with a sarcastic smile
She shook her head
"Because I have a hundred percent accuracy Knock Out rate...be it with my bare fist...or be it with a gun.....this is the last time I'm telling you.....move....." He said dangerously...
Leila shook her head,
And within a split second, their 3 lives changed forever: The sniper shot,
Xavier pushed Leila out of the way, but he had undermined her...she was ready, and all the years of dodging Aunt Margot's beatings, trained her to have quicker reflexes, and she moved back into the line of fire right in front of her husband.......
*******
AUTHORS NOTES:
Dear Readers !! Thank you so so much for all of you who have been keeping up with the book ! It means so much to me! I am really looking forward to your opinions, so please feel free to be brutally honest. I just had one question, which I wanted to ask you, as we have reached thus far in the book, so please feel free to hit your opinion in the comment sections ! I literally read EVERY comment! So here goes:
· "Power moves", has been quite a consistent theme in recent chapters on wards, and this chapter in particular had an array of power moves, were you able to identify some of them? (Some are more obvious some are more suttle..)
I know there a lot more questions than answers in this Chapter L , but please please bear with us ! All that was once in dark will soon come to light!
*In my most Zach Williams dramatic fashion bow* See you in the next chapter !