brutal

Chapter 28

KAI

If there was one thing I could've changed prior to leading a unit at Siege, it would be my fame.

I never liked it, anyway. Everyone that passed by me called me by my name as if they were my friends, and everywhere I went had swarms of cameras as if they had been tipped off the moment I stepped foot outside.

I didn't get the appeal. Sure, I knew I had some semblance of what people might find attractive, but I didn't really understand why it was such a big deal.

They called me the American Prince, others calling me Golden Boy, even when all I did was donate to charity (which was leaked to the press despite my wishes to remain anonymous) and did a few acts of kindness here and there (which was the bare minimum).

I had my doubts about joining Siege because of it, of course. In fact, it had led me to relying on Seth's face-morphing tech for more than half of our missions, donning different faces for hours on end that sometimes it felt relieving to be someone else, even just for a while.

Some missions though, I had to go as myself— tonight wasn't any different. The last twenty-four hours I'd spent completing all the work I needed for The Deimos Project, Siege, and pulling a multitude of strings in order to get not only an invite to the gala Jacobi was attending, but also a seat right next to him.

Well, next to his date to be specific. But the problem of proximity was no longer a problem, at least.

"Hey, just a... thought— why did I have to attend this event in an ugly grey jumpsuit with a fake moustache when Dread gets to wear some thousand-dollar suit and look like his usual douchebag self?"

Roman's bitter tone in my ear made me smile into the champagne glass I held. "Because I look lavish in Burberry, sweetheart, and I wouldn't wish to deprive the public from one of the seven wonders of the world."

"Well, don't you just love it when he's humble?" Yuna's scoff was loud and clear through the earpiece.

"At least you aren't stuck in a van in some alley with rat-infested garbage." Seth's voice came a second later. "I've heard high-pitched squeaking longer than I've spoken tonight."

Roman huffed. "Alright, well, if you put it like that, then thanks for the assignment, Dread."

"No problem," I muttered. Watching a waiter pass me by, I placed my empty glass on his tray to trade it for one freshly poured.

Seventeen minutes had passed since I first entered the fray, and truthfully, I was on edge. I'd blame it on the usual crowd that gathered around me whenever my presence was made known, maybe even the fact that Jacobi had yet to present himself.

But I'd be lying if a part of me didn't admit that it wasn't the fact that for those seventeen minutes of having so much useless and topical conversations in my ear, not once had I heard her voice. Nothing. Not even her usual scoff or curses, not even a sound of her breathing.

Absolutely none. Just Roman's usual complaints, Yuna's endless comments, and Seth's short but lasting remarks. It were as if our fifth member was back to being nothing but a spot to fill.

I really had trouble figuring her out lately, to be honest. We were fine back in New York, but a day passed by and suddenly, all semblance of amiability disappeared. Even when I told her she was coming as one of the constituents of a Fortune 500's board, with a big role to play unlike last time, she just gave me a curt nod and listened to the mission briefing with a poker face.