THE DRY CLEANER'S MESS

CHAPTER 8

"What is The Family?"

"The Family is a group of brothers, scattered around the world, joined by the same cause. The bond between brothers is thicker than blood."

She thought about it for a moment and eyed him warily. "So The Family is like a cult?"

His brows ticked in mild annoyance. "It's not a cult. Calling The Family a cult is utter disrespect and degradation. The Family is a cause."

Arielle quirked her brow quizzically. "And what is the cause?"

"World peace."

What was he saying? "What do you mean by world peace?"

"Unity and love is the core of The Family. Brothers in The Family are as inseparable as a pair of chromosomes in the nucleus of a cell. If the whole world got initiated into The Family, there can't be wars." He explained and she nodded slowly.

"That sounds an awful lot like a cult to me." He frowned and ignored her. "There are no sisters?"

He sniffed the air in a manner that highlighted belittlement. "No, women are not allowed in The Family. That would be a waste of time."

Her jaw clenched. "Your sexism is oddly unsurprising and grossly disgusting. It's the 21st century, men with similar mindset are ashamed to say things like this in public." Luke sneered. "So your mom wasn't in The Family? I feel so sad for her."

He ignored her for some minutes, concentrating on his phone. When he finally responded, it was in a voice void of emotions. "My mother was wise enough to understand things a lot of women these days don't. You on the other hand, are just spouting things you barely even have knowledge of." The scowl on her face was wiped off when Luke gripped her wrist suddenly in a firm hold. "I'd advise you to mind the tone you use when talking to me though. I'm a lot meaner than you can imagine. Believe me, you wouldn't want to see that side of me."

She resisted the urge to cower and pulled her hand out of his grip with a defiance that she really wasn't feeling. She couldn't deny, Luke looked very scary when he was delivering his spine-chilling warning. Just like a saber-toothed tiger roaring before a baby deer. He looked like he could rip her apart if he wanted to. Arielle took a deep breath and rested her head against the cold window.

In the silence that ensued after, Arielle thought about the impending meeting with The Eyes. Despite the hope Dr Martina had tried to feed her, she still felt like a rabbit about to walk into a foothold trap. And she didn't think there was anything she could do about it. At the moment, her fate laid in the hands of The Eyes. What if Mr Hyde was part of The Eyes? A thought suddenly came to her.

"Since The Family has a bias against women, how am I sure The Eyes would handle my case fairly?"

Luke shook his head. "The Eyes are very, very just. Their judgments are always the same, regardless of gender." Arielle nodded hesitantly. "You might not even get it hot with The Eyes today. Xavier has already taken the heat of the matter."

She tilted her head to the side. "Who?"

"Xavier. The man that dropped the bag at the place you worked." Arielle whipped her head at lightening speed to face Luke. Mr Hyde's name was Xavier! The name had an enigmatic feel to it that befitted the cryptic man.

"The tattooed man that always came to drop suits on Friday nights?" Luke gave her a blank look. "You owned those suits?"

"Some of them."

She pondered for a moment. "Why do you wash your suits there? There are better laundry houses and you're very rich. So why was he always dropping the suits at Propre et Fraîche?"