How a Vampire Fall in Love - A Sequel to Remember Me

The Silver Cross

J anticipated another wave of memories to hit him. But his mind disappointedly failed to react to "Ari."

The owner of this body does not know her? Then what was she doing in his room in the middle of the night?

"Why are you here?" J blurted before he could stop himself.

"I should be the one asking that question," Ari spat at him. "You kidnapped me."

Shittttttt, what have I gotten myself into?

J scratched his head, flustered. "Uh, I don't know what's going on. But I promise I will release you first thing in the morning."

"That's what you said last time."

Shittttttt, so this is not the first time he kidnapped her. What's wrong with this dude?

"I'm..." J went quiet, not sure what to say. An awkward silence draped over the two silhouettes.

Finally, Ari decided to rescue them from the awkwardness. "To be honest, I'm quite grateful that you kidnapped me tonight."

"Huh? Why?"

"I was running away from the loan sharks."

"How much do you own them?"

"You mean how much does my father own them."

"Yes."

"Too much." She went quiet, reliving the event that happened that night. Ari was being cornered by the loan sharks when Jason's people came to take her away. She thought that was the last anyone would see of her. But the loan sharks scurried away at the sight of the Silver Cross, Jason Wright organization's symbol.

Even in the mafia world, there's a hierarchy. And Jason's operation is undeniably on the top of the food chain. Other gangs know to stay clear of the Silver Cross. Getting in their way was like getting in front of an angry bull. Without the proper training, you will only get trampled by it. The same goes in the world of mafias; without backing, you will only fall. And that is precisely the function of the Silver Cross. It is not an ordinary mafia operation for drug dealing or pleasure selling. They're deemed as the "guardians" of the gangs.

Jason's grandfather, Malcolm Wright, created the operation by joint forces with other gangs and forming the Silver Cross. Like any alliance, Silver Crosses needed a leader. Other gangs saw Malcolm's appealing charisma and leadership; they unanimously voted him as their leader. And that's how he became the leader of leaders. Silver Cross' sole purpose was to protect the gangs they overlooked. Hence they do not have to do any of the dirty work. They profited from collecting "monthly protection fees" from the gangs.

Silver Cross thrived under Malcolm. But when the throne eventually passed to his heir, Aiden, Jason's father, things started to go downhill. Aiden was a "powder boy," described by the other gang leaders, who did not desire to continue his father's legacy. He married Jason's mother through an arrangement in the hope of saving the organization. Silver Cross then was chained down by heaps of debts from his extravagant spending. Aiden's only way out was Jason's mother, a beautiful woman from the Clarets, yet another powerful family. The Clarets promised to pay off all of Silver Cross' debts only if they bear them a grandson. And then, it was the birth of Jason Wright, the only son of the Wright and Claret family. Naturally, he became the heir of both powerful and wealthy families.

Ari knew the rumors about Jason were that of a ruthless monster. Unlike his grandfather and father, Jason was keen on killing and often took it upon himself to perform the actions. He and his subordinates destroyed anyone and anything that got in their way or their plan. Many blood-curdling stories about his torturous killing methods circled the streets. The respect for Silver Cross gradually became fear and terror.

But, Jason hasn't always been this cruel monster. He was just a regular happy little boy born with a golden spoon in his mouth. Ari still remembered when she followed her dad to work, Jason would keep her company by playing hide and seek with her in their garden. Until one day, when both of his parents disappeared and left him all alone to fend for himself. The event turned Jason into a completely different person. He became paranoid and aggressive. He woke up the next day, acting as if his memory got erased overnight, and he forgot that she existed. Jason changed off all the workers around him, even the family's driver, Ari's father. And this drove her father mad. He found refuge in drugs, and sooner or later, he would gamble his family away. But for a moment tonight, she saw the old Jason, the bright Jason that she once witnessed.

Ari stole a glance at him just to get caught by his intense gaze. He was already staring at her.

"Do you seriously don't remember why you brought me here? " she coughed, avoiding his eyes.

"Not really."

"Did Jungwoo not report back to you?"

Who's Jungwoo? J caught himself this time before slipping up again. He was exposing too much of his identity to this girl. Unsurprisingly, waves of memories related to the name flooded his brain.

(To be continued)