Chapter 40: The Girl from Viper

Chad sat on his chair in the meeting room. There was no one in the room except him. He had his eyes closed as he leaned back and sighed. The meeting with Hank still lingered in his mind. He had a bad feeling. He’s still trying to figure out what’s going on with the Viper. The old snake revealed nothing. That got him feeling a bit irritated. However, he reacted when he heard the name of his right-hand.

Was everything planned? While he was a little excited that they’ve finally found Hank, now he’s sure that Gus would be the actual key to solving the mystery. Only if he’s found that the real sequence behind all that’s happened would be made known.

Zalen walked in. He cleared his throat as he sat across Chad. “You’re late,” he said casually. “Was handling that bunch of snakes,” Zalen said, neither his tone nor his expression showed any sign of remorse. “Thanks for the hard work. I know they’re definitely trouble,” Chad said.

“Well, how’s things down there?” Zalen asked. Chad shook his head. “Hell,” he said, “Max and the rest are working on it. I’m sure that old snake will not keep his mouth shut for long.”

“Hope so,” Zalen ended the topic. “I think you might want to know,” he continued, “a girl is captured today. According to some of the men, they’ve seen her visiting some of our bars with her brother. Their frequent visit seemed fishy.” Chad readjusted his posture on the chair. The topic seemed to pique his interest a little. “Have you found out her identity? What about her brother?”

Zalen shook his head. “The brother is yet to be found. More importantly, they appeared at Rambler the night it happened.” Chad thought for a second. Then, he stood up decisively. “Ask Will to come along. He knows the Vipers better than any of us do. If the girl’s related to them, he’ll know. Let’s pay her a visit.”

The men marched towards their destination in silence. The nearer they got, the more uneasy Will seemed to be. It looked like the others weren’t paying attention to his restlessness. If they did, they made sure to stay out of the topic. Even if Will didn’t approve of the way the Vipers run their gang, it’s still a fact that it was where he came from. He made sure to stay out of the fight that’s been going on for years but recent development dragged him back in.

Things would be complicated if the girl they wanted him to see was someone he knew. There were many girls hanging around the Vipers, but not many who were really a part of the gang. He could only think of a few - so few he could count with one hand. There’s someone in particular he wouldn’t forget. Could it be her? He knew the chance’s thin but his heart skipped a beat at the thought.

He held his breath as they stood in front of the door. Chad gave him a quick look before pushing it open. In front of him sat a figure with long hair. She hugged her knees as she rested the side of her face on it, folding herself into half. Her hair hung down her legs, covering her like a blanket.

Hearing the door open, she lifted her head to look. Her actions were sluggish, like she needed to put in much effort for that one action. Her dinner from the previous day lay untouched beside her.

Chad looked at the man who stayed guard that night. He shook his head. “The leader’s here. Would you talk now?” The man folded his arms in front of him as he directed his words at the girl, sounding impatient.

Her unfocussed eyes looked to her left, finding Zalen’s poker face first. Then, slowly, it travelled to the right. Her eyes met Chad’s gaze for just half a second before she continued looking to the right where Will stood.

She bowed her head, breaking connection and any will to communicate with them. Suddenly, her brows furrowed as she seemed to remember something. She lifted her head to look at Will before realizing that she shouldn’t be giving out any information to the Reapers. She pretended to look at everyone again in order to hide the fact that she recognized Will.

Her reflex action, however, had given her out. Zalen continued staring at her like if he looked away for one second, he would miss a detail. She could feel his eyes on her, making her uncomfortable. She avoided looking in his direction, pretended that he’s not there. Chad looked over at Will.

Will studied her carefully. Slowly, he moved forward and kneeled down in front of her. “Why aren’t you eating?” The question really seemed out of place. She turned to look at him again, this time with confusion writing all over her face. She saw the serious look in his eyes and swallowed to calm her beating heart.

A few beats past and none of them reacted. As the seconds passed, she got nervous and started fidgeting. Will, however, stayed in the same position. His intention remained clear and unwavering. Then, he pointed at the plate on the floor with his chin.

Cecilia tensed up immediately. He got his message across, clear and full of dominance. It made her feel like she had no choice but to obey. However, her limbs were frozen on the spot, unable to move according to the instructions he gave. It made her terrified and mentally strained.

He looked exactly like his father. Even the aura was similar. The passive-aggressive intention made her want to cry but she remained frozen. Immediately, she felt all the blood rushed up to her head, making her dizzy. Her sight blurred in and out. She knew she was on the verge of passing out, while the urge to puke was strong.

Suddenly, the figure in front of her shifted. Will stood up and moved away from her.

He went back to being tense. His whole body was stiff as he stood a few steps away from her, with his back facing her.

“There’s no poison in the food. Eat something or you might really faint,” he said before leaving the room in big strides.