The Second Chance (Forbidden Romance)

31. Time

LUCAS'S POV

*TRIGGER WARNING*

Sitting in silence these ten minutes seemed like ten years.

After entering the Villa, Emmanuel briefly went to speak with his team members in a large room located at the very end of the first floor.

Henry and I settled in the lobby where he directed us and waited for his return.

There was no end to my nervousness and my hands slightly turned red as I squeezed them hard.

"Dude, calm down. Everything will be solved."

Henry's words made me take a deep breath and I tried to bring my breathing down to some normal pace.

Looking at the home, I guess, where my brother lives, I couldn't help but imagine how he created all this himself. All these years, I wondered where he was, what kind of people he hangs out with, and did he even managed to escape from the person we used to call father once upon a time.

Now that I saw him grown up and strong and surrounded by so many people, my soul somehow felt a glimmer of peace and hope that he managed to make this life for himself on his own.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door opening and the cold tingling again paralyzed me in the armchair where I was sitting.

Emmanuel turned after a while and stopped next to a wooden dresser from which he took three crystal glasses and a bottle of whiskey. Whiskey that he obviously hasn't stopped drinking.

When he sat opposite of us and shared our glasses, our eyes met and I seemed to have lost the ability to speak.

I didn't even know where to start.

"Alright. I'm listening." Emmanuel's voice and the way he leaned back in the chair told me that he was really short on nerves and that it was time for me to start explaining everything.

"Emmanuel. Before you throw me out of the house, you must know that it was never my intention to leave you alone." I started but his raised hand cut me off.

Oh shit.

"Enough. Let's go like this. Start from the night you set out on your first big assignment. What exactly happened then and why did the whole fucking team convince me that my older brother, the only family I had, was killed?"

His calm tone was anything but calm.

I recognize that tone very well because apparently we also have the ability to remain calm when we would rather rip someone's head off.

Henry sat still and silent the whole time, which was completely to be expected because I didn't know how to answer Emmanuel's questions myself.

I sighed deeply, took a sip of whiskey and began to tell the details of the night that marked me.

"After we said goodbye, I got into the van with all other members on the teams, then we drove to the very edge of the city. I remember the feeling of discomfort and nervousness, and most of all, the uncertainty of why everyone around me was calm, even though the whole atmosphere suggested that Max was not engaged in any normal family business."

Emmanuel was absorbing my every word still showing no emotion and when I was sure he wasn't going to say anything, I continued to recall every detail.

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PAST

"Sir, they are coming."

I heard Harry say softly to Max who then turned to us with a serious expression on his face.