Chapter 25: Codename: Blackheart Chapter Twenty-Five

Mum and I enjoy a nice cup of tea outside, while I explain to her everything that happened from the moment I got the contract, until now. She doesn’t say a word or interrupt me once. Just lets me tell her the whole story while she listens intently.

“But now you have another problem. Who will watch him when we're not here? You know your father and I are expected to attend The Tournament as guests, and we’re not letting you go through this alone. It’s a miracle you’ve survived the last three, let alone won, but how long can that streak last?” she asks in concern, reaching out and taking my hand.

“I’m aware that this might be the year I die, but I don’t want to get in that headspace. As for Alec, perhaps Grandpa or Marcel can watch him. Even if he’s left alone, it’s not as though he’d be able to escape. We’re miles away from people and he doesn’t speak the language. He’s basically trapped here,” I grin.

“And I thought the situation with your father was complicated,” she says, shaking her head. “We’ll help however we can. You certainly have thought this all out to the last detail,” she says proudly.

“You taught me well,” I smile, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I don’t think Alec’s heart can take much more stress,” I say as I get to my feet.

“Are you sure you don’t just miss him?” she smirks.

“Oh, grow up.”

“Alina, I know what it’s like to fall for your mark. It can be thrilling, but it’s also dangerous and messy, and you certainly have the dangerous and messy part covered, in spades.”

“Mum, I am not falling for him. I’m a grown woman who wasn’t going to turn down sex when it was offered to me, that’s all,” I argue.

“Whatever you say,” she says, sipping her tea.

“You are so annoying,” I grumble as I head back inside and make my way to my dad’s den. As I step in, I see my dad showing off one of his guns to Alec who now looks whiter than an albino ghost.

“Now this is the gun I used to kill a politician in Croatia. I’m sure they weren’t able to get all the brain matter out of the carpet,” my dad brags. I clear my throat to get their attention. Alec immediately looks at me with so much relief that it’s a little jarring. I’m used to people being scared to see me, not relieved. “There’s my Little Warrior,” my dad beams at me.

“If you’re done showing Alec your arsenal, I thought I’d show him to his room,” I smile.

“That’s fine. I can explain the intricacies of exploding bullets to him later,” my dad says, clapping Alec so hard on the back that he nearly falls forward, cringing from the blow.

“Th-that sounds great, Mr. Scythe,” Alec stutters. I manage to keep a straight face at him calling my dad ‘Mr. Scythe’. That’s just hilarious. Even in formal settings people just say ‘Scythe’.

Alec quickly rushes out of the room, closing the door behind him, “Don’t you ever leave me alone with him again,” he says in a panic.

“Why? Don’t you like my father?” I ask sweetly.

“If anyone is going to kill me, I’d rather it be you,” he admits, stunning me. I hate how he keeps doing that!

“Why is that?”

“At least then I’d get to see something beautiful before I die,” he says moving closer to me. I raise an eyebrow at him. Is this guy bipolar? One minute he’s terrified, the next he’s flirting with me. I swear he’s going to give me whiplash.

“Let me show you to your room,” I say, leading him down the hall and grabbing his bag as we head upstairs.

“My room?”

“Or you could sleep outside. Your choice.”

“Why can’t I stay in your room?”

I look back at him with a serious expression, “I don’t share my room with anyone.”

“You shared your bed with me at your apartment. Shared more than that, actually,” he smirks. 

Oh, good. He’s one of those clingy ones. Have I enjoyed our intimate moments? Absolutely. But right now indulging in him and his talented fingers and cock is only going to be a distraction. A couple days ago, it worked into my plans perfectly, but now it’s just a complication I can’t afford. 

I walk down the hall to one of the guest rooms, and open it tossing his bag inside, “You can have this room. It has its own bathroom, so no snooping around and trying to use ‘looking for the bathroom’ as an excuse when you get caught,” I warn as he walks in and looks around admiring the room.

“Where is your room?” he asks.

“In the house.”

He rolls his eyes, “Where in the house?”

“Down a hall.”

“Fine. Don’t tell me,” he huffs in annoyance.

“I’ll come and get you when it’s time for dinner,” I say as I go to close the door.

“You’re just leaving me here?” he asks incredulously.

“Let’s get some things straight. I didn’t invite you to come here, you imposed yourself on me and I decided having you where I can monitor you is better for me in the long run.” I walk over and stand in front of him. “Just because we had sex, doesn’t mean we’re a couple and it doesn’t change the fact that I don’t trust you and will gladly kill you if I feel like it. So, maybe instead of seeing yourself as a guest in my home, think of it as a very lavish prison with amazing amenities. This is your cell and I’m the warden. Enjoy,” I grin. 

As I go to leave, Alec grabs me by the wrist, spinning me around and pushing me up against the wall with his hand around my throat. I look up to see a storm of emotions in his ocean-blue eyes. His breathing has turned heavy, and his minty fresh breath is hitting my face.

“You know what I think? I think you’re just fucking scared,” he spits, tightening his grip around my throat, making my head feel a little heavy.

I keep myself composed and quirk my eyebrow, “Enlighten me. How am I scared?”

“You feel something for me and that terrifies you. You can pretend there isn’t something between us, but I know you feel it too,” he says, his tone softening as he runs the pad of his thumb along my jawline. He dips his head down, placing a gentle kiss on the corner of my mouth and trailing his lips from my jaw to my ear. The feel of his lips on my skin causes the muscles between my thighs to clench with need, my panties damping. Okay, so the dominant display is a turn-on. Sue me.

He brings his knee up forcing my thighs apart as he presses his thigh firmly against my pussy. The contact hits my clit and sends a buzzing electric jolt through my insides. My every impulse is to sink my teeth into my lip and moan into the sensation as my eyes roll into the back of my head, but like I said, that would be a distraction I can’t afford right now. Plus, I’d hate to prove my mother right.

“Alec?” I whisper as he softly trails his nose down my neck.

“Hmm?” he hums as he kisses under my collarbone, hitting my sweet spot. But I suppress the shudder threatening to ripple through me.

With minimal pressure, I punch him right in the windpipe and watch as he hunches over, clutching his throat as he struggles to get air. He can breathe fine, it’s just a nasty spasm that makes you think you can’t. 

I take a step forward and fist his thick hair as I yank it back, looking into his tear-filled eyes. “I admit the sex has been good, but don’t go mistaking sex for love like some love-sick teenage girl. Just because I let you touch me, doesn’t mean you have power over me. The fact I let you touch me at all should tell you how little power you actually have. If I didn’t want you touching me, this is how you would end up; tears in your eyes, gasping for air. You’re only alive because I haven’t decided to kill you yet. So, before you go thinking you have some sexual hold over me, think again,” I say, tossing him away and leaving the room.

I’m unsure if this guy is trying to use sex as a tactic or if he is genuinely that pathetic to think fucking a few times in a day means true love. The sex was amazing, but it wasn’t love, not even close. If it weren’t for the fact I need him alive, he’d be decomposing by now.

“Sweetheart?” I hear Dad call as I make my way downstairs.

“Yeah?”

“Could you join your mother and me? I think we should talk about The Tournament,” he says with a grim look on his face. Oh goodie, one fun conversation to another. I’m starting to think The Tournament will actually be a nice break from all this crap.