[Part 6]
It was definitely colder, but Jean-Jacques had a general idea that the chills he felt was not solely on the fact that he stood in a place of a different climate. He was willing to bet most of his accumulated fortune that the chills he was now getting was due to the fact that he was in the middle of the enemy territory, playing the role that he had not played –not needed to –in a long time.
He tipped the fedora lower, till a shadow was made over his eyes and slouched slightly in his oversized coat. The boots were making annoying noises as he walked on the snow-slush ground, but he grit his teeth and persisted on his mission.
Russia was truly somewhere entirely different from both France and the States. There was no harm in calling this place the home of mercenaries, for everywhere Jean-Jacques looked, even in the middle of the night, there were muscled man in thin layers of clothing, looking scarred and ready for a mission in exchange for money. The guns weren’t hid at all; simply all displayed in sight as if to offer a challenge to anyone who would be disturbed by their presence. Even though Jean-Jacques knew that they were all humans, lounging out in the cold night, showing their bravado in hopes of getting a better-paying job, he couldn’t help but feel a little threatened.
Russians were surely a notch above Americans when it came to that intimidating effect.
Still, Jean-Jacques was here for with a goal, and that was what he must make home to the States with. Making himself seem normal –even though it was hard to pretend as such for no man with the right mind would be out in the open in the dead of the night –Jean-Jacques stepped down the road, hearing the painful crunch of snow beneath his feet with every step.
How would he ever try to be sneaky with this tell-tale crunch of snow; Jean-Jacques still had not figured out a solution. He could venture going barefooted, but even a vampire cherished his body warmth. Jean-Jacques rubbed his hands together, breathing hot breaths to warm his hands up, only seeing the mist come along with his breathing. Winter in America and winter in Russia had definitely a large gulf between two freezing worlds, for in Russia, everything was harsher, even the weather.
It was helpful that none of the Russian mafia knew his face yet –a good news that he was still relatively unknown to Skalov and his henchmen. From what intelligence he had gathered so far about the Russians, they seemed to only know the faces of Cian, Louis, and Dante and –after the fiasco just a few months before –Lexi. The rest of the Council were still relatively safe from detection by the Russians. Not for long, though, for the Russians were now scrambling to learn the identities of Cian’s allies.
Jean-Jacques pulled out his phone from his pocket, and pretended to dial a number, placing the phone by his ear as he came to a stop under a lamplight. The humans wouldn’t think of attacking him if he appeared a tourist, and that was what he would use to his advantage. There were little hints of vampires around –Jean-Jacques had long suspected that the vampires were safely stashed away somewhere more secret and private along with Skalov –and so Jean-Jacques was slightly less afraid of an all-out battle at the moment.
He pretended to wait for his phone to dial, giving a breath’s span of wait before he pretended to stare at the screen. Knowing that the watchful eyes of the Russian mafia were on him –the lone soul who still dared to walk out onto the road in the dead of the night –he lifted his phone up against the sky, as if trying to search for signal. It was no surprising news that connections in Russia was bad, and considering that the winter storm was quickly approaching, getting connection would be a one-in-a-million occurrence.
Jean-Jacques pretended to search for signal for a short period of time, then checked his watch to appear as if he were rushing for time. He tapped his feet to affect the human-icon of a rushed man, then pretended to come to a decision. With straighter shoulders to convey confidence now, Jean-Jacques turned to the other light-source in the deserted street –the only low building that still had their neon lights blazed on.

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Heart Of Protectors {#2}
RomanceRenee Devaux is the perfect woman. At least, she has all a woman needs. A billionaire father who dotes on her, a sometimes annoying but loving brother who cherishes her, a career to support herself and keep her happy. In her prime age to find a man...