Hooked Book 2

Auden’s POV

It was a very close escape, a few seconds later and we’d all have been blown apart by the powerful explosion that happened to our plane. I clenched and unclenched my left fingers, my whole body aching in pain. The plane had spiraled out of control, and I was thrown hard against the plane’s strong walls. The gunshot wound in my left hand took a great hit too.

I pulled Aria more securely into my side and bent a little to inhale the soothing smell of her hair. Since she used my shampoo to shower, her hair reeked of my smell and I wasn’t complaining, but I’d have preferred if her strawberry and vanilla smell still lingered behind a little.

“That was close,” Tristan stated, and I couldn’t agree more, that was really, really close. I glanced at his side profile and watched his unmoving posture for a few seconds before tearing my eyes away from him and back to the burning aircraft. Tristan’s lower lip was busted, and his forehead looked a little bit swollen. His hands were shoved deep into his pockets, and he gave off such a cold and pissed off vibe.

I dug out my phone and called Lucas to come pick us up with two cars. Once I was done, I withdrew my arm from around Aria and grabbed her chin and lifted her face up until she was staring at me. I couldn’t see her face clearly since it was some time after eleven at night, but I could tell that her eyes were currently puffy and red-rimmed since she was still sniffing a little. I bent my head and brushed a light kiss onto her forehead before dropping another one onto her hair and used that opportunity to take a lungful of that scent.

Tristan turned around and headed towards where the group were huddling while I remained standing beside Aria’s quiet form. After a few more minutes, I broke the silence by inquiring, “How are you?”

“I think I broke my arm when the plane flipped in the air unexpectedly,” she replied quietly.

“I don’t think it’s broken, but I’ll look at it once we get out of here, yeah?” I reassured her after applying pressure with my thumbs on the part of her right arm that she thought was broken. 

“Alright,” she whispered.

I went to check on my family when she suddenly grabbed my fingers and pulled on them. “What is it, Aria?” I asked after turning to face her.

“I’m scared. Are you sure we’re not gonna die tonight?” she whispered, her hand still clasping my fingers.

I chuckled quietly. We couldn’t die now, not after going through all this stress, without getting revenge and sorting all this shit out, I thought to myself before shaking Aria’s hold off my fingers. I lifted my hands up until they were wrapped around Aria’s soft cheeks.

“Nothing going to happen, yeah? No one’s dying.” 

She nodded her head, and I glanced at the burning aircraft. I stroked my fingers against Aria’s cheeks for a few seconds before heading towards the rest of the people.

Nicole was already awake when I got there. I wasn’t sure what I expected her reaction would be when she finally got to see her twin again, but I was really surprised when I saw her sitting cross legged a few feet away from Daven. She cried softly into her hands. Her soul-wrenching sobs made her whole body vibrate and her voice broke.

Not knowing how they got to that position, I went to Tristan who was tying something around Daven’s head and crouched beside him. “Why’s Nicole crying? Is she hurt?” I asked before remembering to check how Daven was doing. 

Daven was leaning against a rock. The fire from the explosion still illuminated his face and I didn’t miss that his eyes could barely stay open. I noticed the bandage Tristan was using to wrap Daven’s head was just a part of his shirt which he had torn off to stop the wound from bleeding.

“Daven? Can you hear me?” Tristan asked Daven.

Daven only nodded his head once before throwing his mouth wide open but not a sound came out.

“Buddy, you’ve got to use your words. Talk to me.” I tapped my fingers against his chin when his eyes started to droop again. He didn’t look alright. He looked like someone in need of medical attention as soon as possible but we were currently stuck here at the moment with Lucas nowhere to be found. Lucas was supposed to have gotten here minutes ago but I didn’t understand what was taking him so long.

“Boss?” Daven whispered.

“Yeah? Don’t die on us, alright?” I said to Daven, who was used to calling me ‘boss’ regardless of how many times I had told him to call me by my name, since at this point, he was already family.

‘Old habits die hard, boss,’ he’d reply with one of his famous cheeky grins every time I remembered to correct him, and somehow it just stuck.

“I’m not dying, but this shit hurts like hell,” he replied quietly while breathing harshly. 

He winced again when Tristan tore another part of his shirt and tied it around Devan’s head again. The first cloth was almost soaked through already.

“Why does it keeps getting soaked. I thought the added pressure on the wound was supposed to stop it from bleeding out?” I asked Tristan while watching him tie the newly cut piece of clothing against Daven’s covered head wound.

“I honestly don’t know. I think something really sharp pierced him when he fell, and that’s why the wound keeps bleeding,” Tristan replied just as he knotted the cloth tight.

“Did you check to see if something was imbedded in there first?”

“I just used my fingers since there was no other light available and my phone is currently being fried on an open fire. I didn’t feel anything in the wound,” Tristan replied before pushing himself to his feet.

I really hoped nothing was currently in his wound. If there was, the damage it was going to leave behind might need surgery. I thought to myself as I placed my hand against Daven’s uncovered head to check his temperature. His skin was cold as fuck, thanks to the harsh breeze blowing around. I didn’t think too hard about his slightly shivering state since that was way better than him burning up.

I nudged Tristan and pointed at where Nicole was still crouching. Tristan blew out a harsh breath before leaning a little into me and replying. “Nicolas said she shouldn’t touch him.”

What?

I stared blankly at Tristan and after a few seconds, he decided to elaborate more. “When we all got out, Nicole was really excited to see him, but as she approached Nicolas, Nicolas turned away from her and told her not to touch him. He said the same thing to Esther. I think those people really fucked with his head.”

God. I tugged on my hair hard before glancing at Nicolas. He was leaning against a separate rock; the night breeze blew his white hair around. I couldn’t see his face clearly, but I figured he’d be glaring at nothing at the moment.

“Maybe he just needs time? Or he probably feels too dirty at the moment? Think about it,” I said to Tristan, hoping to God that the answer to the puzzle would be one of these options and nothing too serious.

Tristan only shrugged before replying. “I don’t know, man. I really don’t know.” 

After a few minutes, Tristan broke the silence. “So those people actually did um, the Xobra gang actually molested Nicolas?”

I gritted my teeth in suppressed anger. There was no use being angry at the moment since there was nowhere for me to express my anger. I didn’t bother replying because I knew Tristan knew what happened. 

When I went in to get Nicolas in exchange for the diamond, I had a microphone chip behind my ear that my hair covered. Tristan and Daven heard all the conversations that went on between the sick fuck and me; that was the whole plan. Tristan just didn’t want to believe it.

I didn’t want to believe it either.

“Christ, he’s just sixteen, Auden,” Tristan whispered, the pain in his voice choked a particular spot in my heart and I felt my eyes water out of nowhere.

“Don’t I know that?” I asked, laced with anguish, before continuing, “Believe me when I say we’re going to get revenge on them, for what they took from our baby siblings, and the unnecessary problems they’ve caused.” My voice hardened on the promised threat, and I clenched and unclenched my fingers while trying to calm my erratic beating heart.

“Where’s Lucas? Isn’t he supposed to be here by now?” Tristan asked.

I dug out my phone again and dialed Lucas’s number. He answered the phone on the second ring.

“Where the fuck are you, Lucas? Get your ass here this instant. We’re supposed to be away from here already,” I snapped into the phone without waiting for him to get a word in.

“We’re trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. There are some suspicious men lurking outside some cars in the area where your plane crashed. Also the police are one their way, likewise the firemen, I’m trying to avoid them all.”

“Shit,” I cursed under my breath. How could I have forgotten about something as important as that? Of course the police and firemen were going to be on their way. The aircraft was still currently burning, and a part of my mind was sure the bomb I threw out the window was burning something at the moment too.

We had to get out of here as fast as possible before the police got here. I didn’t have time for interrogations and shit at this point.

“Just hurry, will you? Before the police get here,” I said to Lucas before ending the call and shoving my phone back into my pocket.

I headed towards Nicole and sank into a kneeling position before her. Her hands were no longer covering her face, and she was not crying, thankfully.

“Hey Nicole,” I mumbled softly as I stroked my fingers through her hair with my left hand while my right hand took her left hand in a light grip.

“Why won’t Nicolas let me touch him? What happened to him?” she asked immediately. Her voice was as low as possible, but still managed to crack. She squeezed my fingers when I didn’t reply, and my stroking of her hair faltered for a second when I felt two fat tears drops fall on my hand. She was crying again.

“Hey now, stop crying, will you? He’s home now. I told you I was going to bring him back home, didn’t I?” I said to her softly but only more tear drops fell on my hand in reply.

Shit. All this emotional crap was stressful as fuck.

“Why won’t he let me touch him, Auden? Nicolas was never like that. He has never, ever acted that way. And I thought he was going to be hurt when he saw that I was hurt in his absence,” Nicole whispered before sniffling loudly and using the sleeves of her top to wipe her dripping nose.

I couldn’t tell her that Nicolas was currently fighting his own battles in his head and the probably wouldn’t notice if anyone else was hurt, now could I? I also couldn’t tell her what really happened to him. That was up to Nicolas if he wanted his twin to know or not.

“Nicole, Nicolas is hurting really bad at the moment, okay? I’m sure that’s why he’s emotionally unavailable at the moment. And I assure you that he doesn’t know that you got hurt. There wasn’t enough light for him to notice if you’re fine or not. Also your bandages are beneath your clothes, so he couldn’t have been able to tell that way,” I tried explaining to her as much as I could without revealing anything.

“He’s hurting really bad? What happened to him?” 

“I’m sorry but I can’t tell you what happened to him. He’ll tell you when he’s ready, yeah?” I said into her hair before dropping a kiss into her curls and pushing myself onto my feet. 

Esther was perched on a rock beside the pilot, and I walked towards them. “How are you guys holding up?”

“Something’s wrong with my feet, boss, but I’m glad we’re all alive,” the pilot, whose name I kept forgetting, replied. I gave a terse nod in reply before glancing towards Esther.

“Nothing’s wrong with me. I’m just concerned about everybody, most especially Nicolas and..,” she trailed off when she glanced at Daven’s spot. I followed her gaze and saw what she saw as the words came out of her mouth. “What’s wrong with Daven?”

Daven’s head laid limp on the rock while his lips remained a little bit parted. I hurried to him and touched his neck to find his pulse. I found it and breathed a sigh of relief. He has just slipped into unconsciousness again. A peek at the soaked cloth covering his wound told me something wasn’t right about the wound.

The sound of cars pulling up drew my attention. I was relieved when I saw Lucas in the first car. Behind him two more cars arrived with familiar faces.

“You’re not dying on us,” I said to an unconscious Daven before pushing up to my feet and heading towards the still running cars. Tristan was saying something to Lucas while Aria stood beside him with arms folded beneath her chest while the cold breeze blew her long hair around. I got to them and glared at Lucas.

“Oh, hey boss,” Lucas started to say but I cut him off.

“We waited for you for almost an hour man. Where the fuck you been?” I demanded angrily.

“We took a different cut and almost got lost, thanks to the stupid GPS. I’m sorry,” he replied quietly. I glared at him more before heading towards Nicole and pulling her up gently.

“Our ride is here, Nicole,” she shrugged my grip away from her shoulder and glanced in Nicolas’s direction. “Can I sit with him at least?” she asked desperately.

I followed her eyes and took in Nicolas’s look with the aid of the cars’ headlights. A blank expression sat on his face and other than his fingers moving over his clothes slowly, he wasn’t making any other movement. I remembered how much pain he was in when I got him out of the warehouse and onto the plane. I knew Nicole’s hopes of sitting beside Nicolas would have to be squashed because Nicolas wasn’t comfortable with being in physical contact with anybody except Tristan and me.

“Baby,” I started to say, but Nicole cut me off immediately.

“No! Don’t patronize me. Just let me sit with him. I promise not to touch him until he’s ready. Please, please,” Nicole pleaded while gripping my wrist hard.

“How about you give him space until tomorrow morning? Then we’ll see how things go from there. Remember, he’s hurting a lot now. How’s that?” 

She waited a few seconds before nodding her head even though she wasn’t happy about it. I watched as she walked slowly until she was standing on the other side of Tristan. Tristan guided her into the first car before signaling for Aria to go in after Nicole. I watched as she hesitated a bit before glancing around until her eyes caught mine. Our eyes locked for a moment before she finally settled into the car.

I lifted Daven and deposited him in the back seat of the first car before gesturing for Esther to sit with him and hold onto his head. Tristan would be driving the second car while a guard sat in the passenger seat. Lucas and the limping pilot were the last to get in.

“Where to? Home or back to the safe house?” Tristan asked as we crouched by Nicholas.

“Home, I think. It’s not like it’s fully safe in the safe house now since we left there hours ago,” I replied before turning my full attention to Nicolas.

“Hey Nicolas, we’re going home right now,” I said to him. After getting no response, I continued. “Want me to help you up?” 

I knew it was going to be really embarrassing for him since it wasn’t in our nature to show weakness, but I also know that he was extremely weak and also in need of medical attention.

“Where’s Nicole?” he asked instead.

“She’s in the second car already, riding with Tristan. You’re riding with me,” I informed him, understanding just where he was coming from and how he wouldn’t want his twin to see him in his very worst state.

“Can they all leave first? I can’t really move away from this rock and my whole body hurts,” Nicolas whispered. I noticed the way he blinked a little before turning his face away at that little confession.

“Of course. We’ll be on our way now but won’t be too far away from you guys,” Tristan replied before pushing himself to his feet and heading towards the cars. He stopped at the first car and told Lucas to start moving.

Lucas drove away with Daven and Esther while Tristan followed suit with Nicole and Aria. Once they were all gone, I turned back to Nicolas and informed him.

“You know what happened to me, right?” Nicolas asked flatly. 

I took in a sharp breath before nodding my head.

“Don’t tell Nicole what happened, please. It would break her heart,” he continued.

I didn’t bother telling him about the gunshot wound she sustained yesterday. He might as well find out himself when we all get home. Instead, I replied, “Of course, I won’t. That’s up to you if you want her to know or not.”

“She’s not going to ever find out,” he replied before wincing when he shifted a little on the rock. I bit my lips to stop myself from muttering an apology. I knew how much he hated being coddled. My head told me that this wasn’t an exemption and Nicolas wouldn’t be happy with me.

I helped him up carefully and together we got into the car and zoomed off into the night.

******

The moment we pulled in behind Tristan’s car and killed our engines, I knew that something wasn’t right.

Lucas was already out his door, but he stood still, waiting for everyone to head out. I turned to Nicolas and told him to wait behind before getting out of the car and slamming the car door shut. Tristan was already out of his car by the time I got to his side and together we made our way onto the stairs leading into the house. 

The first thing that caught my attention was the knife edge sticking out of the door, which meant someone must have left it there before closing the door and exiting the compound or someone pierced it in there before going out through one of the numerous windows of the house.

“Isn’t that a knife?” Lucas asked when we all stayed silent and kept staring at the knife like we were waiting for answers to our thousands of questions to fall on us like unexpected rain.

“It is, and there’s blood on the edge of the knife,” Tristan replied to Lucas. On hearing the last part of Tristan’s answer, I glanced at the knife again and noticed the blood stains on the sharp edge of the knife.

“Someone should touch it,” Lucas said but I disagreed immediately.

“No! No one touches it. For all we know, poison could have already been sprinkled all over it and anyone who touches it might die on that very spot. We can’t take any risks,” I replied before sprinting back to the car to grab a gun. I pulled open the driver’s door and dug out two guns from beneath the seat, before slamming the door shut. Nicolas asked if there was any problem.

“There’s a little problem, I think. But we’re working on it,” I reassured him before slamming the door and sprinting up the stairs again. I handed Tristan a gun before cocking mine. The guards who were with us, including Lucas, dug out guns and cocked them. 

I pushed open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. I tried the door handle, but it seemed like the door was locked with keys. Maybe whoever got into the house didn’t even go in through the door, but through the window. 

“Where are the keys?” I asked Tristan, who patted his pockets before shaking his head and replying, “They’re probably at the safe house.”

I racked my brains but got nothing.

“Anyone with a master key here?” Tristan asked the rest of the guys, and someone dug out a master key out of their pocket. The master key was a special kind of key that could open any door or lock in seconds.

I inserted it into the keyhole and the door clicked in seconds. Taking in a deep breath, I pulled on the door handle and kicked the door open, but it didn’t go far. Something seemed to be wedged behind the door. 

I sucked in a deep breath when I saw blood pooling directly behind the doorway. I followed the trail of blood, but it seemed like the source of the blood was behind the door.

“Holy shit,” I muttered under my breath while Tristan cursed behind me. I stepped into the blood since there was no other place to step that wasn’t covered in blood and the rest of the guys followed immediately.

I paused in my tracks when a horrific sight caught my eyes.

Behind the door, laid the guy I brought home from the gym two days ago. His leg wound was just starting to heal, but his lifeless eyes were frozen open while his blood flowed from different parts of his body, but most especially, from a slit across his throat. 

Bile rose in my throat, but I forced it down as I tore my gaze away from his lifeless, battered body and instead zoned in on the knife embedded in the door. The knife went through the man’s right hand and nailed it to the door as if we were somehow replaying Jesus’s crucifixion scene all over again. The only difference was that this was the horror version where Jesus is actually killed.

What kind of asshole did this?

Auden’s POV

“Jesus Christ,” Tristan breathed out. “The fuck? Wow,” he continued. I glanced at him and watched as he kept looking at the man and glancing away immediately only to look again.

Guilt swamped me out of nowhere and I swallowed while the metallic smell of blood filled the air. I’d have ended his life immediately and painlessly assuming I knew he was going to go through so much pain before heaving his last breath, but no, I had to drag him into something he had no part in.

Suddenly, I remembered he had no family except his small sister. I wanted to shoot myself in the guts because of how disgusted I felt at myself at the moment.

Christ.

Could things get any worse? I doubt it at this point.

“Whoever these people were, they sure left more than enough proof that they were here tonight and that they meant business,” Tristan stated while staring at the stairs. I followed his trail and shook my head in defeat when I noticed blood dripping from the floor upstairs all the way downstairs through the spaces in the banisters.

“Boss, they left a letter.” Lucas called my attention and I turned towards where he was pointing. Turns out they left a letter on the window by the man. I plucked it out and rolled it open.

Give us what we want (the real diamond & your sister) then we’ll leave y’all alone. Until then, watch your step.

Æręñá

The fuck?

I crumbled the paper in a crushing grip while glaring at my hands until Tristan nudged me a little and requested the letter.

“What the fuck? Holy hell,” he exclaimed before locking eyes with me.

So many questions were flowing in my head, and I could see those questions in his eyes as well but sadly the answers to those questions were nowhere around us. 

I ordered the guards to spread out and check out how many people were killed and if there was any other letter. 

After a few minutes, three more dead guards were confirmed, and Lucas handed me another.

I stared at it for a moment before unfolding it. This one was direct and confusing:

The most prized possession should be the most guarded. You have three days before I come in and forcefully take what’s mine.

Your choice, Mr. Dickson.

Æręñá

What the hell does this even mean? I asked myself before scowling and launching the crumpled paper across the room.

“What did that one day?” Tristan asked and I told him what it contained immediately.

“Are those people really serious right now? I think they were referring to Nicole, I think. God, the thought of some sick fuck being obsessed with my baby sister is making me seriously sick.” Tristan informed me just as a small gag escaped his lips. 

“You guys clean the bodies up; I’ll call the cleaning team to come clear out the bodies,” I said the last part to Lucas before stepping back out the doorway with Tristan a step before me. Our footprints left ugly marks in bright red as we kept walking until we were completely off the stairs. Tristan followed my wary gaze and grimaced on seeing how our footprints shown all the way to where we were currently standing.

“This is fucked up, man.” Tristan mumbled under his breath before heading towards the car he drove here while I went along with him until we were standing outside the car.

“Where to?” Tristan asked but I only shrugged in reply, I’m as blank as you are, fam.

“We could go to one of our hotels?” Tristan suggested. I rolled the idea in my mind, that was way riskier than staying in our private house since I’m a hundred percent sure that everyone who’s after us at this point knows about all our riches and all our properties.

“I’m not sure, Tris. That’s really risky,” I replied while running my fingers through my hair.

God, what I’d do to have a long night sleep knowing that my family was complete at the moment...

Oh, and for food, I need food- lots of food. My stomach rumbled at the thought of food, but I ignored it as I racked my brain, thinking about where I’d house my family that won’t have a bomb already implanted in it and won’t have a sniper waiting for us to stand before one of the windows before taking a straight shot at our necks.

“What about Xavier? He can give us the keys to his penthouse for a few days, right?” Tristan suddenly said out of nowhere.

Xavier and I go way back to high school and there was a time I saved his life in a hotel. One evening, he told us to come to him when we needed his help and he’d grant it to us if it was in his power. Xavier wasn’t in the underground business through his parents, he got in himself and has made a name for himself in the dark by selling drugs amongst other things.

None of us were saints but at least we weren’t involved with most illegal things. There were a few things we had to keep doing to prove to our enemies that we weren’t scared of them. What was the point of resigning from the business when I knew very well that people don’t just resign from the business without making life changing decisions and leaving every materialistic thing behind to cut off all traces that might link you to your former life?

I guess we could give him a call.

I dug out my phone and called his private number. He didn’t answer at first until after five trials.

After exchanging pleasantries, I asked him if we could borrow one of his numerous penthouses and he agreed immediately. He texted the address of one of the penthouses that wasn’t as popular as the rest and texted me the address. When I asked about the keys, he said the receptionist would hand the keys to us and that we could stay until whenever we were done with sorting out our shit.

I tried thanking him, but he only asked me to stop being an idiot before the call ended. I turned to Tristan and nodded my head before saying, “He said we could stay until whenever we liked.”

“See? I knew he was gonna help!” Tristan replied while a ghost of a smile appeared on his face before it died almost instantly.

“Holy shit, we still haven’t gotten Daven medical care, Auden!” Tristan informed me before quickly sprinting towards the car Lucas drove all the way here and pulled the back open. I was already beside him by then and shook my head on seeing that Esther was already fast asleep with Daven’s head resting on her thighs while a gun lay across his chest with Esther lightly clasping it.

I chuckled a little before plucking the gun out of her grip and shook my head when she didn’t even jolt awake or something.

Tristan felt for Daven’s pulse and physically relaxed when he noticed that he was still breathing. We’d have to take him to a hospital or something since our personal doctor wasn’t in the states at the moment.

“His blood soaked through the shirt pieces, Tris,” I said as I lightly traced my index finger against his pale forehead.

“I think we should stop at a hospital on our way to the penthouse,” Tristan said, and I couldn’t agree more.

Lucas and the guys came out of the house, and I told Lucas about the new arrangements and how we were stopping at the hospital for a little bit. Lucas had already called the cleanup team. They would be there tonight, so he was going to come back and supervise them. I nodded my head at him before slapping his back and heading into the car I came with.

I expected Nicolas to be asleep already since the rest of the people that remained in the cars were asleep, but he wasn’t. Instead, his eyes glistened with unshed tears, but he ducked his head immediately when I got in beside him. I signaled for the guard to bring the privacy shield up and watched as it slid up until we were cocooned in our own private balloon.

“Nicolas?” I said softly but got nothing in reply. I placed my hand on his shoulder lightly, but he shrugged it off immediately. I knew he was hurting, and I knew that what happened to him today was going to leave an ugly scar behind, emotionally and mentally.

******

Apparently, a small piece of glass was embedded in Nicolas’s wound like I predicted and had been sliding in deeper and deeper. They had to do a quick operation to get the glass out and inject him with a big bag of drip since he has lost a lot of blood and needs to regain his strength back, for his wound to be able to him. 

I made the money transfer from my phone and told the doctor we were going to come check up on him the following morning. On getting back outside, I told one of the guards to go in a watch over him while the rest of us continued our journey until we got to the penthouse.

The keys got given to us immediately and the aides came towards us immediately, checking around for our bags. I told them not to bother since we didn’t even pack anything and instead headed into the first lift with Nicolas limped slowly beside me but tried to make it less obvious while a guard, Tristan, Nicole, Aria and Esther took the second lift. We got into the penthouse first and on Nicolas’s requests, I lead him into one of the rooms and promised to come help him do some private stuffs later. He grumbled and said he could help himself just fine, but I brushed him off before closing the door shut.

Nicole was perched on one of the lemon-colored chairs while Aria stood before the large fish tank located on the left part of the sitting room as she watched the movement of the fishes weave themselves around the plants and seashells. Tristan was on the phone, ordering different kinds of food while Esther was tapping away on a laptop. I dropped into the space beside Nicole and pulled her hands into mine before asking about her wounded shoulder.

“It’s starting to hurt a lot more than normal; I think it’s because of the strain I placed on it when the accident happened on the plane,” she replied truthfully. I unzipped the jacket she wore to shield off the harsh cold and pushed it off her wounded shoulder to examine the wound.

The bandage was thankfully not stained with blood which means the stitches haven’t been torn open. I prodded the sides of the wound and applied pressure on it a little until she couldn’t hold in her cry anymore. 

“Hey, hey, I’m almost done, yeah? You’d take your drugs after eating and then you’d apply the pain ointment on it, there’s no need for you to massage it since I’m doing that already. In a few weeks’ time, you’d feel little to no pain from this spot.” I ended the speech by applying a little harder pressure on the part of the swollen sides that wasn’t covered by the bandage and winced a little when her teeth buried itself into my shoulder to stifle her scream.

“See? All done.” I zipped up her jacket and smiled at her on seeing her face void of any tears. Whether she realizes it or not, she was getting stronger than she was days ago.

In a few minutes time, the food Tristan ordered got wheeled into the penthouse by one of the workers. There were different foods on the table which were nothing too heavy since the time is just 1:40 a.m. on a Saturday morning.

I walked towards Aria and leaned down until my jaw was cushioned on her head, she glanced back at me before turning back to the fishpond she was engrossed in. I felt her lean into my body and welcomed her body heat immediately as I wrapped my right hand across the shoulders until my elbow was slightly resting on her boobs.

“The foods already arrived, let’s get something into your body, I don’t think you ate anything this afternoon at my house, did you?” I asked.

I felt her shrug her shoulders a little before shaking her head in reply to my question. I dropped my hand away from her shoulders and stepped away from her before tugging lightly on her wrist as I led her towards the table arranged with different kinds of light weight foods.

Nicole was barely eating her bacon and eggs, instead she just kept flipping the bacons around and eating only a little bite of her eggs. By the look of things, I don’t think any one of us is going to be actually getting something into their stomach due to how knotted up we were feeling. 

Tristan hovered by the fireplace with a mug of coffee and sipped on it slowly while obviously deep in thoughts. Aria sank into a chair while I followed suit until I was sitting in between her and Nicole on the table.

“This is that your friend, right?” Nicole asked me loudly while gesturing towards Aria with her fork.

“Oh yeah, she is. Nicole this is Aria.” I paused and glanced towards Aria and introduced her to Nicole officially.

“Hey there, thanks for the cloths.” Aria said to Nicole with a warm smile and a little wave while Nicole only shrugged her shoulders before going back to eating her food, or rather playing with it.

“Thanks for holding my hand in the car when you notice it start to quiver... it happens sometimes when I get too anxious and lost hold of my whole emotions.” Nicole said quietly with her gaze focused completely on her food, after a few seconds, she raised her head up and glanced at Aria before continuing, “Also you’re welcome concerning the clothes.”

I glanced at Aria, then at Nicole- both of them didn’t even notice my stares since they were still gazing at each other.

“Oh it’s nothing, I know that feeling about losing a grip on your emotions because it happens to me sometimes and I’d start quivering uncontrollably, although thankfully I’m getting a stronger hold of it than it on me.” Aria replied almost immediately, her body physically loosening up by the long breath she puffed out some seconds ago.

Nicole gifted her with a small smile which lasted about a second or two before she ducked her head until her long curls blocked her face away from us completely while the poking of her food continued.

I felt for Aria’s hand on her thighs under the table and held her small finger in my large hand the moment I felt it. She glanced at me and smiled a little before glancing away and biting on her lower lips absentmindedly.

Aria tried to get some food in but only managed a small slice of pizza and two glasses of orange juice. Nicole was already heading to her room at that point, a quick glance at her plate showed that she only managed to eat one and a half bacon, some of the eggs and a glass of orange juice. Tristan followed her up the stairs to ensure she don’t decide to start looking for Nicolas on her own.

I ate a few pizza slices since I could literally feel my body start to shake since I’d spent so much energy yesterday. I drank three cups of coffee until I was sure my body was going to be alright with me not giving it enough food and not collapse on me. I headed upstairs with Aria trailing softly behind me.

I stepped back and allowed her to go in first before stepping in behind her and closing the door softly. Aria awed sequel as she took in the beauty of the room didn’t miss my ear and a small smile tugged at the corners of my lips.

Whether she realizes it or not, she was growing on me, faster than I ever thought possible. I followed her gaze and chuckled when she knelt down until she was face level with a glass blow which held in it a small, cute goldfish. I wasn’t sure Aria would be cool with it if I bring it to her hearing that a tiny goldfish was reminding me of her.

“Hey there, little guy... your home is beautiful.” Ari whispered against the glass bowl while I chuckled not so quietly behind her. She didn’t pay me any attention and instead rubbed her nose softly against the glass and I watched as the goldfish rubbed itself against the part which was plastered with Aria’s face.

“Omg, Auden look. The goldfish loves me already,” she said to me without glancing up and I nodded my head a little before replying.

“Yep, it sure does.”

Aria stood up from her kneeling position and turned around until we were facing each other. A smile threatened to burst out on her face, but she bit her lips slowly to stop it from blooming. Instead she looked at every other object in the room except me, even though I was still standing a few feet away from her.

I walked towards her and amusedly watched as she took small steps backwards until she was almost falling on the goldfish.

“Don’t fall on the goldfish, it’s just starting to fall in love with you,” I whispered to her and watched as she quickly took one step away from the table without glancing back until we were pressed against each other. Her small hands flew upwards until she clutched handfuls of my shirt. She couldn’t properly wrap her hands around my neck unless I bent down a little to make it easier, but I decided against doing that.

“Hey,” I whispered softly while my hands wrapped themselves around her waist and pressed her more tightly against me until I could feel her hard nipples dig into the fabric of my shirt.

“Hi,” she whispered back, her eyes landing on my lips and back to my eyes, then to my lips again and I watched as she her tongue slip out to lick her lower lips before slithering back into the warm heat of her mouth.

I slid my hands lower until it rested on the curve of her ass, I cupped her soft flesh in my palms and lifted her up. Her legs wrapped around my waist and her hands wrapped themselves around my neck until our noses were touching, and I could feel her warm breath escaping her parted lips. I turned around with her in my arms and walked a few more feet until her back was pressed against the wall.

Using the wall as leverage and her grip on my waist with her legs, I removed my tight grip on her ass cheeks and felt behind my neck until my hands were wrapped around her wrists. I unclasped her hold on my neck and brought her hands upwards until they were both pinned high on the walls on the sides of her head.

I lowered my head and brushed my lips against hers before pulling away and watched as her tongue slipped out to lick at her lower lips as if savoring the taste of my lips briefly ghosting over hers before slipping back in while her gaze never left my lips. She finally locked eyes with me, and I groaned low in my throat at how glassy her eyes looked, I didn’t need to feel in between her legs to tell that she was turned on since it was boldly written on her face, coupled with the fact that her puckered nipples were digging into my chest.

I leaned my head and took her parted lips in a deep, toe curling kiss and tightened my grip on her wrists when I felt her legs wrapped itself more tightly against my waist while she received my kisses with so much enthusiasm, it fueled my hunger more and more until my lips were sucking a particular spot on her neck while she moaned my name breathlessly.

I let go of her right hand and instead gripped the roots of her hair and tugged her head backwards while I licked a line over her fast-beating pulse, raising my head back up, I covered her lips with mine and sucked her lower lips into mine while stroking the roots of her hair with my fingers. I pulled on her lips with mine and bit on it then watched as she gasped out a moan. Licking into her mouth, I stroked the roof of her mouth with my tongue and sucked her tongue into my mouth the moment her tongue joined the lips dance.

I removed my hand from her hair and gripped her throat while resting my thumb and index fingers on her beating pulses as we kept on kissing, her free hand buried itself into my hair as my kisses drove her crazy while I swallowed her moans down.

We slowly pulled away to catch our breaths and I noted how puffy and pinkish wet her lips looked, I could just imagine another part of her lips that’s glistening pinkish wet and puffy at the moment, and the thoughts alone that flooded into my head was enough to spin us with my hands back on her ass as I stood before the bed with her still in my arms. 

The next second and I was crawling into the bed with her legs still wrapped around my waist tightly, I pressed our bodies into the bed and pinned her hands above her head while I sat up on my heels and watched her heaving chest for a few seconds, her nipples were pressing so tightly against the shirt so lewdly at the point and I just couldn’t resist the pull. 

I leaned into her right tit and caressed the puckered nipple softly with my nose and watched as she arched her back upwards in blatant invitation until her clothed nipple was almost touching my lips. I glanced up at her and found her watching me with her lower lip clasped between her teeth. Her eyes were seductively wild, and her cheeks infused with color. 

With my eyes still locked with hers, I slipped my tongue out and lazily swept it slowly against her covered nipple but with the way she puffed out a harsh breath and arched a little, I knew she felt that lick all the way to her toes. I repeated it again and again and once again until she was moaning softly with her back completely arched off from the bed. I slither back upwards and took her lips in a slow kiss while tugging her hair a little. I lifted my face away from her after delivering a small lick against her tongue, which slipped out to lick her lower lips. I couldn’t help myself from sucking on the tip a little before it slithered back into her mouth. 

My smile widened when she smiled at me. Her eyes turned to tiny slits because she was grinning so wide. The room lights caught her greenish eyes and they sparkled beautifully. I dropped my head into the side of her neck and breathed in her scent before slipping off her and sitting on the edge of the bed while I adjusted my hard on shamelessly before her while she watched closely with her lips parted as she didn’t even try to hide her burning hunger written all over her body language.

I stood up from the bed and turned to Aria who was already sitting up on the bed and glancing up at me questioningly. “I’ll be right back, I wanna go check on my brother,” I said to her while stretching my limbs a little.

“Oh. I can’t believe I totally forgot about him since I didn’t see him at the sitting room when everyone was trying to eat something. Is he alright?” Aria asked immediately, her lust covered face now blanketed with worry and concern.

I nodded my head, “He needed privacy, that’s why he didn’t stay in the sitting room with us and also why no one went to check up on him, because he needed privacy, but I’m going to go check up on his right now and see if he needs help of something.” 

“Is he hurt? Was he shot? Auden is he alright?” Aria pressed on, her hands poking at the warm comforter she was seated on If he had been shot, it would have been way better than what actually happened to him, I thought bitterly. Nicolas has been shot a handful times, so I was one hundred percent sure he would d have been able to handle a gunshot wound better.

“He was, but he’s recovering now,” I lied to Aria as I made my way out of the room after returning her cute little wave. He didn’t even get shot once, at the gym days ago, he got hit on his head with something and with the way one part of his hair was still tinged with red, I knew the wound was still somehow fresh and in need of cleaning and treatment since he got kidnapped on Thursday and today’s Saturday. 

I made my way downstairs and stopped when I met Tristan sitting with his back against the foot of one of the chairs in the sitting room, his right knee was raised up where he rested his elbow on while the second one was lying flat on the floor. The lights in the sitting room were all turned off and only the lights from the fire flicking all the way from the fireplace illuminated his face in the shadows. 

“Tris?” I called out softly as I made my way towards him. He lifted his head that was resting on his elbow and glanced at me for a second before returning his gaze back to The dancing flames. I crouched beside him and nudged him with my body.

“What’s the matter?” I inquired softly.

Tristan was obviously troubled and I’m starting to be worried about him. Ever since the day Nicolas got kidnapped and Nicole got shot, he has been acting somehow weird. 

“It’s nothing,” He mumbled softly.

It sure doesn’t look like nothing, I thought as I nudged him again.

“Seriously Tris, what’s wrong?” 

He racked his fingers through his hair before scrubbing that same hand over his face and finally glancing back at me while I held my breath in anticipation for what he was going to say to me.

“It’s..,” he trailed off slowly and glanced away while working his throat on a swallow. I clasped his chin and pulled him back until we were staring into each other’s eyes once again.

“Spit it out, Tris,” I urged but he only wrenched his face away from my hold and glared at me. “It’s nothing, alright? I just have a lot on my plate right now,” he spat out.

“I don’t believe you,” I said to him after a few seconds of just staring at each other.

“Well that’s the truth,” he argued back immediately. I breathed out a sigh. There was no use trying to coax anything from Tristan. If he wasn’t ready to tell you what was really happening, then he wouldn’t. I knew it was useless because he was the same way when we were growing up together. I just felt like he’d be more eager to share whatever was on his mind since I had a feeling it was related to what happened with Nicolas. 

“Is Nicolas asleep?” I asked instead, purposely dropping the topic about why he was sitting in the dark and obviously deep in thoughts before I walked in. 

“I checked last when I escorted Nicole upstairs to help her check out her healing wound and make sure she use her drugs, he wasn’t asleep then, but he also didn’t acknowledge my presence even though he was obviously, clearly awake so I left him be... I figured you’d come check up on him again, I’m sure he’d be more responsive to you.” Tristan explained while rubbing his hand on the rug slowly.

Yep, it wasn’t hidden news that Nicolas trusted me more, probably because they all look up to me, or maybe because I’m the oldest in the family and was supposed to automatically keep them all safe. They were all my priority, starting from Nicole all the way to Tristan who was always livid each time he noticed me fussing over him because apparently he was already old enough to take care of himself. 

Apparently, Tristan and Nicolas were already old enough to take care of themselves in serious situations, but we had never prepared for unexpected ambushes like what happened to Nicolas just days ago at the gym. Even though his bodyguard was with him, it still didn’t make a difference. Same with Nicole. Tristan and the guards were all at home when it happened. 

I was one hundred percent glad nothing happened to Tristan the day Nicole was shot, along with Daven. Lord knows I’d have gone crazy assuming that has happened.

I breathed out another long sigh, I need to take care of all our known and unknown enemies which I didn’t know existed until yesterday so my siblings can all be safe enough to go to school and not have this constant fear about getting ambushed or kidnapped or shot at.

“You’d be heading to bed soon, right?” I asked Tristan as I pushed myself until I was standing again and glanced down at him as I waited for an answer.

“I’m not sure, maybe. It’s nice here so I might be here all night. You just go to our brother.” Tristan replied quietly and I resisted the urge to sigh in irritation. Tristan was already old enough to make his own decisions years ago, so I left him to his thoughts as I made my way down the hall towards Nicolas’s room.

I knocked on the door a little before letting myself in and closing the door quietly behind me. The room was subdued in near darkness save for the tiny blue round lights that lined the edges of the ceiling. I turned on the light and Nicolas’s thin form was exposed to my wandering eyes. He was wide awake and flinched when I turned on the light unexpectedly. He was sitting with his legs spread straight before him was tugging on his hands. 

His white hair usually fell towards his neck, unless he tied it up in a bun, or braided it. When it was neat, it was drool-worthy and always a sight to behold. The Nicolas staring blankly at me looked lost, and his hair resembled a nest because it was so unkempt and rough. There was a part of his hair that was still tinged red, and I knew that he hadn’t taken a shower yet. I was sure he needed a shower more than anything at this point.

“Hey Nicolas,” I called out softly as I sank down on his bed. He glanced sideways at me before looking away again. His busted lips still looked nasty, along with the other wound he sustained on his face. I’d have to help him clean out those injuries since he wasn’t in any state to be doing anything by himself at this point.

“Wanna shower? You should totally take one so we can take care of your injuries,” I continued but Nicolas didn’t make any move to indicate that he heard a thing of what I just said.

“Nicolas!” I nudged his shoulder lightly and sighed when he focused his empty eyes on my face.

“I don’t feel like taking a shower,” he whispered quietly before looking away from me again.

“You should, to wash all the diets off, and clean out your injuries too,” I continued.

“You mean so I could wash off the motherfucker that molested me?” Nicolas asked after turning around until he was facing me once again. I looked away from him this time and took a deep breath before facing him again. “That wasn’t exactly what I meant, but I think it would be good if you washed him off, y’know—”

“You know that a stupid shower won’t change the fact that I was raped, right?” 

“Nicolas, don’t say that word,” I started to say softly but he cut in again. 

“What word? Rape?” He paused and chuckled darkly before continuing. “But I did get raped. Not once either. Do you know horrible it felt? Do you?” I could hear his voice break slowly, so I pulled him into my arms, but he pushed me away and glared at me angrily as tears slowly slid down his cheeks.

I brushed my fingers through my hair and pulled on the roots in frustration I didn’t know what to say to him at this point, let alone what to do for him as I watched him cry even harder.

“I’m so sorry, Nicolas,” I said, but he wasn’t seeing me anymore. His mind had traveled somewhere else entirely, somewhere I knew wasn’t a good place.

I knelt on the bed beside him and pulled him into my chest tightly. Of course, he fought my hold and tried to pull away with all his might, but I refused. Instead I drew him tight against me and kept apologizing for failing to protect him. After a few minutes, he sagged against me, the whole fight rushing out of him all at once and leaving him with nothing but his emotions which were all too overwhelming to him at that particular moment. 

The moment his hands finally stopped hitting my back and instead wrapped themselves around my back while he cried into my chest, I felt my eyes which has already been feeling prickly ever since Nicolas started crying start to water all of a sudden. A tear slipped from my eyes, so I wiped it on my sleeve. 

Nicolas needed me to be the stronger person here. I shouldn’t be shedding tears, I told myself as I kept on apologizing to him. His white hair tickled my nose and the metallic smell of dried blood drifted into my nose, reminding me again of just how demonic the xobras were.