"Only a fool would put his lips at the other end of a burning fire." ~ Unknown
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
...♛...
"Father," I speak through the phone held onto my ear.
"Mea infantem puella," my father replies in Latin. Every time he calls me that, there's always an edge of sweetness, but today, there's an edge of sorrow.
"How long has it been?" I question looking straight into Nick's grey eyes.
"Three days," my father responds as if he has failed.
"Okay, that's enough," Nick pulls the phone back to his ear. "You've heard her, Xavier. She's alive and well, so let's get to business. I want every single piece of document ever printed, from the last fifty years, regarding The White Dragons. We'll discuss thing's further once I have them."
Nick listens as my father speaks on the other end. I can't tell how Nick is feeling because his back faces me. But, his rigid posture reveals his tension.
"If you do as I say, you'll get her back, Xavier. You have my word," Nick assures. His words are a lie. He is never going to let me go, not after letting me see his face. Not once has he mentioned who is to my father, he knows he'll be at a disadvantage if he does.
"Et mendacii pater suus! Et vidi faciem! Non illud faciunt! The equites!" I yell hoping my father's going to hear me through the phone. Latin is a dead language and that's exactly why my father made us learn it. No one, off the bat, can know that it's Latin that we're speaking and that can only benefit us.
Nick whips around and strides over to me. Without a single warning, the back of his hand connects with my left cheek once again.
My head tilted to the right, I open my eyes slowly. The metallic taste of blood dances across my tastebuds. I spit it out onto the ground in disgust. Nick grabs my hair and forces me to look up at him. My eyes blurru with tears, I blink them dry. His grey eyes have been taken over by the darkness of his own emotions.
"What did you just say?" he asks through gritted teeth. The phone held away from his ear, is silent. My father and Nick both wait for an answer.
"Et mendacii pater suus. Et vidi faciem. Non illud faciunt. The equites," I respond calmly. This time, I know my father can hear me.
Nick chuckles, "You think you're funny? What does it mean in English?"
"Look it up on google translate," I tease.
"Alright then," Nick responds. He takes a few steps back and puts the phone to his ear.
"You've raised a handful, Xavier. I need to treat her to her standards, so I'll leave you to it. You have twenty four hours," he ends the call. Showing off his anger, he throws the phone across the room. It hits the wall behind me and I hear it shatter.
