Amber Eyes

11

After a while of talking about opportunities and risks for the gang, our food arrived and we toasted.

"To a glorious future.", Colin said and raised a toast.

There was silence for a few seconds as my dad spoke up.

"Mara, you will finish your studies at home.", he broached the subject I had been more or less dreading all evening.

We were obviously on war terms right now, but I knew how much she wanted a life without the gang. She wasn't made for this life, she'd rather loose herself in books, she can't even fight... and that's why I'm like her guardian.

"No.", she said in a hard voice.

Had she just contradicted? It wasn't like her.

"It's for your own good.", my father continued.

"I went to college to learn and to live my own life without the gang! I don't belong to this family!", she cried tearfully.

She stood up jerkily, turned and ran out.

"I'll handle it.", I muttered.

I jumped up and hurriedly ran after her. I picked up speed and yanked her back by the arm.

"You're hurting me!", she hissed out.

"Well then. You obviously need something to bring you back to reality!", I hissed harshly at her.

"I'm getting out of this... life. I want to get away. Away from the family, away from the gang, away from shitty America.", she cried.

"Are you fuckin insane? You can't turn your back on the gang.", I growled.

"Each and every one of you has gone mad! You kill people!", she souted.

"We make deals and if they're not followed through, people are out of luck."

"See! And thats the reason I don't want to have anything to do with you. You are not God but behave like you decide who lives and who dies."

Her eyes were red and tears trickled down her cheek. Her lip quivered and her hands trembled.

It hurt me to see her like this.

"Listen Mara, it wasn't my intention.", I explained. "I thought you pushed him away again."

"It wouldn't upset me so much if he wasn't my only friend. I have nothing to do with our family, no one understands me!", she whimpered.

I nodded with a sigh.

"If you really want to leave, I'll help you... but you have to take someone with you.. to protect you.", I offered her.

"I'll think about it...", she said quietly and followed me back into the restaurant.

Again I got a strange feeling and reached to the inside of my cleavage where I kept a small butterfly knife. I pulled it out slowly and flung it behind us after turning around.

The hooded man I had hit went down gasping and screaming because I had shot him in the leg.

In a flash I pulled my two hunting knives out of my knife belt, which I had fixed to my thigh before putting on that dress.

I hurled one into his shoulder and kicked his ribs until at least one or two cracked.

"So now start talking!", I shouted at him and tore off his mask.

The face was unfamiliar to me. It was really a young man who would be insanely hot if he didn't grimace in pain.

"Who are you, you son of a bitch?!", I shouted and gave him a punch.

"Noah Garcia.", he hissed as I pressed my knife to his jugular.

"From another gang I suppose? Which one?", I asked aloud.

"From the Black Panters." he gasped.

"Get up and come with me.", I growled at him.

He was struggling, or acting stupid, one of the two, but it made me fucking furious.

"Hurry up you motherfuckin bastard.", I yelled at him.

I helped by continuing to place the knife at his neck and pushed in forward towards the restaurant, where my family was already running towards me.

"Who is that?", asked Mum, pulling out her Glock 17.

"This Prick has been spyin on us the whole week. I bet my ass he was up to something that involved Mara.", I growled.

After a few moments it was like hell broke loose. Jacob and my mother took my sisters to the car while the rest of us took care of the stranger.

At some point, he was so exhausted from all the kicking that he collapsed, gasping.

"Let's leave him, he deserves to die with the rats.", Alec said.

"No. He could bring us valuable information.", I said, doubting his idea.

"My granddaughter just has brains.", River said in a proud voice.

River yanked the wounded man up and dragged him into his car. He sat down in the driver's seat and looked at us.

"I'll squeeze some information out of him.", he informed us.

"Have fun.", I said, raising my hand in farewell as he drove away.

"Are you okay?", asked Charles, hugging me from behind.

"Yeah, at least I caught him this time.", I replied, leaning against him before wiping off my knives and returning them to their place.

"For now we need to watch out for each other.", my father said in the background and looked to Colin and Alec who agreed.

"That means?", Charles asked me.

"Meaning that for now we should all stay in the same neighbourhood again.", I smirked.

"Can I come over to play, like in the old days?", he grinned at the ambiguity.

"I think you're allowed to stay over too. Pyjama party.", I said with a grin. "Without pyjamas.", I added in a low voice.