Wildfire

(19)

Mariana Montanari

It had been two weeks of pure torture. I hadn't slept, eaten, drank, or been in the sunlight. I'd been basically living in my office.

I hadn't slept in so long that even Elijah was concerned; and sleep and he had a worse relationship than me and my dad. I tapped away on my laptop replaying the footage he had sent me for the 45th time.

Same shit. A covered man waiting on the turn, Kenneth getting a call, the man slamming a rod on his head and getting in a car with a covered licence plate and driving away through the open field without cameras. Again and again.

"Ma'am we have analysed the video by the millisecond. There's nothing."

"Go take a break for now." I needed to be alone. I needed to die really but Elijah gave me his snake to stay alive.

What if Kenneth did have problems with someone and didn't tell me? Not like he really had a reason to tell me anything though.

I took the bike keys. There's usually no traffic but I would rather not risk more time.

The fleeting ride to his office had made my heartbeat all that faster.

Of course, after getting on his floor I was greeted with Terra.

"Ma'am-" I did not have time for her right now. I walked past her and his office was surprisingly unlocked.

I went through files after files after files for hours on end. Nothing. I looked up to Terra bringing up security. Which was ironic.

The deal between Deora techs and I was they laundered my money and I provided them with security for business.

"Dismissed." I said looking at the head guard behind her. All the guards left but my eye caught the keys on Terra's waist.

"The keys." her eyes widened before she shook her head in denial. Why don't they just fucking listen. A flash of my gun and she tossed the keys to me.

The drawer had a single file. My last fucking hope.

I started reading through it. And again. And again.

I couldn't believe my eyes.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no. No. NO.

FUCK MY LIFE.

I was dialling Elijah's number before I had processed what I just read. No response. My shaking increased.

I wanted to react but I was choked on tears, on memories, on the fucking signatures on that file. Kenneth's signatures.

I took the only paper in that file and started to leave before Terra stopped me. For god's sake. The only likeable thing about her is her foolish bravery of getting in my way every. single. time.

"You can't take papers from the office-" I cut her off, this time not with words but with a knife to her throat.

She tried to scream but I dug the knife deeper. My face covered in a grin sinister enough to make Lucifer weak in his knees.

"If you touch him, in his office, in his house, in your house, even in your fantasies, Terra. I will rip every individual muscle out of you and make a rug of it."

I punctuated it with a slice on her collarbone. "You have pretty blood."

She whimpered and I finally let her go. You're jealous. No? she got in my way. You sure that's what it is? You're literally my inner monologue. Stop asking me questions. YOU. ARE. JEALOUS. Maybe.

I opened my phone to see an unread text from Elijah. I was on a bike for god's sake. I'll see it when I get home.

The ride home was too fast for it to be legal. Not one thing about you is legal. Even your NAME is illegal. Someone has to shut this thing up. I sat on my desk again, opening the laptop again. You're forgetting something. Later.

I went back to research if what I saw on the file was true. I hacked into Deora Tech's official accounts. And it was. I was almost caught in the "Did Kenneth kill his father" rabbit hole. But I knew he didn't. He couldn't kill a fly to save his life.

But It was true. Kenneth or his dad owned Camila's club. Which meant legally me or Mary was working for him. I dug my nails into my palm. Right before it was about to bleed again my phone rang.

Evelyn.

In any other situation I wouldn't pick her call while I'm in a violent mood but considering now I involved Elijah in this whole situation I picked it anyways for safety reasons.

"Yes blondie?"

"Hiiiii!" She sounded like the literal sunshine that she was. Being childish was her coping mechanism. One of the reasons why Elijah and her as a couple looked interesting to say the least. There was this girl smiling at everyone on the street and then this menace giving a death stare to everyone she smiled at.

"Hi. What's up?" She has called me for several reasons before including Elijah was bullying Cheeto, what flavour of cake she should bake, she wanted mac n cheese, to plan Elijah's birthday, to tell me I'm nice and also to tell me she's not short she's "average height".

"Do you know where Eli is?" She sounded a little concerned and to be honest slightly exhausted.

"No but I'll look. Go watch Barbie." The fastest way to calm her down was to distract her.

"Okayy!" I sometimes wondered if I could've been as innocent if I wasn't so broken. I shook the thought out of my head.

I opened my phone to text him. Damn it. his text. Please don't be a suicide note.

It wasn't. It was a video.

A video of the same car that took Kenneth. The face was still covered but something caught my eye. A tattoo.

I knew that tattoo. I knew it too well.

I knew it while the hand it was on tried to choke me. While it tore my life away and I stared into the eye of that damn spider.

Christopher Augustus. Now it all made sense.

Everyone in that place had "a taste for younger women" or in simpler words kids. They all owed money to Garrison Deora. So did Christopher. He must've connected the dots to Kenneth killing them to recover the money cause no one remembers the whore.

And if Christopher had Kenneth there's only one place he'd be in.

The fucking club.

Guess we're going back home, Mary.

And we're burning that home down.

+=={:::::::::::::::::>