Lucky's (Mis)Fortune (MXMXMXM)

Lucky's (Mis)Fortune: CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Loud noises were coming from outside, crashing of glasses and gunshots. The gunshots made me flinch and nearly hyperventilate but I did my best to control myself. I knew I was safe. I kept reminding myself of that with Aiden's arm around me, guiding me down a few halls before we were outside and in an alley. 

Was this happening because of me?

Why did those groups want to take me so badly? What did they even wish to do--kill me?

This can't be just about hurting the Golden Mane Syndicate, can it? And if it is, why are people so adamant about thinking that I'm the way to get through them when I have been around for about ten minutes? 

It just doesn't make sense.

The sound of the gunshots get insufferable. My thoughts stop distracting me even though I try to focus on them and not the loud noise. Even as the noises start to get quieter, the images that haunt me come back, and I can just about smell the immense amount of blood from that day. My mother's opened eyes which were terrified, my sister's blue sundress that were drenched, completely red, my father's phone in his hand, a sign that he was about to call someone. 

"A- Aiden." 

I don't want them to stop but I feel like I'm about to collapse, my legs can't hold myself up anymore. I can't run, I just want to crumble. 

He looks back, his eyes wondering what was wrong. He instantly notices my state and his eyes turn panicked. "Khael! Eliott! Jordan is pale, I think he's about to faint."

The other two look back before deciding something among themselves. I couldn't understand their words that came out in yells, my mind was too fuzzy to focus. However, I feel when I stop running and I'm taken into someone's arms before the quick movements resume. I feel stupid for a few minutes, wondering why my trauma had to overwhelm me so much to the point of fainting. I fall asleep before I can contemplate much. 

ELIOTT

Jordan is extremely light but that isn't my biggest concern at the moment.

He has fainted. Although I wonder for a second why and if it has something to do with the scare from the night I spent in his room, that is also not my biggest concern. 

Instead, I focus on listening in to make sure that there was no one running after us who saw us leave. I had to make sure that there was no danger nearby, that no one would shoot us if we stopped running. Any other day, the three of us would have stayed and fought to protect what belongs to us but with Jordan around, we had to prioritize his safety. We made a promise, after all although a bigger reason relied on how much we cared about him.

We stop running when there was no more noise. They had either stopped the ruckus or we had gotten far enough from the chaos. Either way, we were now safe, next to our car. 

"Call Mr. Lewis," Khael says to no one in particular, frowning, typing into his phone. He was probably telling the heads of our warehouses to watch out in case they were the next target. He seemed confused, too, probably because Rowan had just told us that there hadn't been any trouble for some time.

I place Jordan inside the car, taking a seat next to him, and look down at him who looked calm now that his eyes were closed and he was asleep. "What have we done?" I wonder, raising a hand to brush his hair out of his face. 

I hear Aiden beside me talking on the phone, making sure that everything was alright at home and I'm glad he took the initiative because I can't take my eyes off the boy in no matter how hard I tried. He didn't deserve this--He doesn't deserve becoming the target of multiple mafia groups in the United States because of our mistake, he doesn't deserve the trauma that causes so much anxiety to him, and we don't deserve him. He had a normal life just a couple of weeks, perhaps a month ago. 

"Is he okay?" Aiden asks as soon as he hangs up, peaking inside. I hear the concern in his voice but my eyes are still on the beautiful boy.

"His breathing is back to normal. He looks serene, I don't think he's having a nightmare or anything," I respond. 

"What's the next step?" He isn't talking to me anymore, his voice distant and outside the car.

A few minutes pass by making sure that Jordan was okay before I step out of the car, leaving the door open. Khael and Aiden were just a few steps in front of the door. "Has anyone found anything out?"

From the snippets of their conversation that I heard, they were discussing with Rowan on finding out who the perpetrator were 

"The hostages won't talk. Permission to get physical? We can search their bodies for their tattoo." The voice came from the phone on loudspeaker which Khael held in the middle of the three of us.

Khael was the type of man to avoid violence as much as possible but when it was necessary, he granted permission. The Golden Mane Syndicate wasn't known to be violent or someone who threw the first strike. Maybe that's another reason everyone realized that Jordan was special, we wouldn't have acted harshly if he wasn't.

"Go ahead," the boss says without thinking much about it.

He knew we had to put an end to this, place assertiveness. They thought they could mess with us just because of one small slip up... The only one we have ever made, even back in our rookie days when we had just established this mafia group.

He hangs up the phone, harshly stuffing it into his pocket before stomping to the driver's seat with a scowl on his face, not sparing us a glance. Even after all these years, I can't decide if I like it or hate it when he gets like this--so stern, so focused to the point that he could ignore everything around him. Ignores me and Aiden and that says a lot. Usually, he is the most loving and caring and protective but when something severe happens, he turns completely. I guess you could say that it's a good thing that he knows when he has to focus on something bigger than the love he feels for us but it's horrible to feel distant when he gets like this. 

Aiden and I exchange a knowing look before making our way to the car. I take a seat at the back, next to the still sleeping Jordan while he takes the one in front, not fighting me on it. Which I'm glad for since I would only feel comfortable if I was the one keeping an eye on the sleeping boy.

It's silent as we make our way home and along the way, Jordan's head drops onto my shoulder. Somehow, it makes me tense up while simultaneously making me relax at once. 

There was no sound in the car as the three of us anxiously waited for a call to come through and when it did, it took Khael less than three seconds to take the call. There's a quiet hum on the other side before the person speaks up. "It was the Snakes," Rowan says. There's noises in the background, crying and screaming.

"What?" I murmur under my breath.

The Cobras only acted when they were provoked and we hadn't done such a thing. While they act when provoked, Lions are territorial and as long as they stayed out of our turf we wouldn't attack and even then, we hardly ever did attack violently. On the other hand, the Scorpions are the aggressive ones who usually are simply looking for trouble. 

"Why would the Snakes attack?" Khael voices out exactly what I was wondering, curiosity laced on his voice. 

"That's what I'm trying to figure out as well. Could be about what you told me..." Rowan says carefully.

"It's okay. Jordan is sleeping, Eliott and Aiden are hearing you."

He clears his throat. "Well, the only theory I have is that they are shooting their shot. They wanted to try to get to you before the Scorpions can finalize any sort of plan. Seems to me like we have a big problem to fix, my friend." The comment was supposed to be amused but it didn't sound that way to me, perhaps not to Khael and Aiden either. We knew that he was right. We had to fix this, show them that we're strong and Jordan isn't a weak point. Perhaps he can even become a strength. 

That was it.

"We have to show that Jordan is strong. He has to show that he's not just someone we protect," I explain, looking down at him. I had a feeling that something would go wrong, one thing or another. 

Khael looks back at me and then stares blankly at the road, knowing that I was right. This was the only solution. We couldn't prove it but Jordan himself could. 

Eventually, I see the defeat in Khael's eyes through the rearview mirror.