Chapter 30 THE PREDATOR THEY CREATED

Chapter 30 THE PREDATOR THEY CREATED
“You won’t say anything you fucking gold digger?” Marcus continued, which had Xavier clenching his fists in anger and holding himself back from attacking the man before him.

The air in the restaurant had turned cold, the kind of coldness that did not come from the air conditioner. Xavier's heart was beating fast like a hammer in his head and everything was starting to look a little weird like it was glowing blue.

\[SYNC LEVEL: 94%\]

\[MULTIPLE HOSTILE TARGETS IDENTIFIED: MARCUS AND UNKNOWN SUB-TARGET.\]

\[OVERRIDE PROTOCOL READY. SHALL I NEUTRALIZE THE ARROGANCE?\]

‘No,’ Xavier thought to himself, his jaw clenched tight. ‘No. This is not the park. There are cameras here. There are people watching. Isabella is watching me. I am a doctor. I am not a killer.’

He looked past Marcus's face and his eyes landed on the woman standing a few feet behind him. Sophie looked really different from the girl Xavier used to know, her eyes moving around the room not looking at him.

"Sophie," Xavier said, his voice calm even though he was really upset inside.

She looked at him for a second, her lips opening like she was going to say something. When she saw Xavier's eyes she quickly looked away staring at the carpet.

"Stop looking at her!" Marcus yelled, stepping in front of Xavier to block his view of Sophie. "Look at me when I am talking to you. I am the one who paid for you to disappear. I am the one who knows what you are really like under your suit."

"I do not want to talk to you Marcus," Xavier said, his voice low and serious. "You made your choice. I made mine. No need to haunt me for it."

"Oh I do not think so," Marcus said. "I want to hear more about this new image of yours. Is that what you use to trick women into liking you? A fake. A personality that is not yours?"

Just then, a waiter came running up, looking really worried, holding some keys with a shiny keychain that caught the light from the lights.

"Excuse me? Sorry to interrupt. We have a silver Bentley blocking the valet parking. Whoever parked the 2026 Continental... We need it moved now to the VIP area."

Isabella, who had been watching what was happening with a worried eye, leaned forward a little. Her voice was cool and calm like metal. "Alex... Is that your Bentley they are talking about?"

Marcus let out a mean laugh looking from the waiter to Xavier. "His? You have to be joking. This guy cannot afford a car like that."

Xavier did not look at Marcus. He just raised his hand, his fingers steady. "It is my car. Bring the keys here."

The waiter looked surprised by the way Xavier spoke. He quickly came over to him. He handed Xavier the heavy keys and Xavier took them feeling the metal against his skin. He put the keys in his jacket pocket without saying a word.

The room was quiet for a moment. Marcus's smile started to fade. He looked confused.

"I should have known," Marcus said finally, his voice shaking with anger. "I should have known you would spend all the money we gave you on a car. You are trying to buy back the life you lost. You spent all the money on a car. Now you cannot even afford to put gas in it. You are pathetic."

Marcus turned to Isabella looking at her with pity. "Do you see what he is doing? He will take all your money just to keep living the way he wants. We know how much money he has and there is no way he can afford that car unless he is stealing from people like you."

Isabella stood up slowly looking at Marcus with narrow eyes.

"That is not true," she said, her voice in the quiet restaurant. "Alex has worked hard for everything he has. He has a house, a car and a good job. He did all this by himself."

Xavier touched Isabella's arm stopping her. "Do not explain anything to people like him," he said. "It is a waste of time."

Isabella was upset. "He is lying about you and you aren’t going to do anything about it?" she said, her face red with anger.

Xavier put some money on the table to pay for the meal they did not eat. "Let us go, " he said. "This place is not nice anymore."

Xavier tried to leave with Isabella as Marcus stepped in front of them blocking the way.

"You cannot leave until you tell the truth," Marcus said, his voice low and mean. "Tell her where you really got the money."

Then Sophie spoke up from behind Marcus. Her voice small and sad.

"Alex, was the money worth it?" she asked. "Was it better than staying with me and fighting for me?"

The restaurant was quiet again with nobody making a sound. Xavier looked at Sophie, his face not showing any feelings.

"What are you talking about?" he asked quietly.

Sophie stepped forward, her eyes narrowing with questions. "The money you took from my family…" she said. "Was it worth leaving me behind?"

Xavier looked at Sophie for a time remembering the past. Then he started to laugh, a low dry sound.

"What is the point?" he said. "You did not care about me when things got tough. You just sat there. Watched your family humiliate me, you didn't say a word when they threatened to kill me if I don't sign on divorce papers, when all these happened, nothing wrong came, but you care about only fact that they paid and I took money... Right?" 

"You could have fought for me!" she cried out.

"No," Xavier shook his head. "You chose comfort. You should have fought for me, Sophie. I'm sure you're already looking for the next rich guy to fill the emptiness. Don't act like a victim now that you see I'm doing fine without your family's help."

Sophie tried to defend herself but she couldn't say a word. She looked at Marcus then at Xavier and finally hung her head. Her silence said more than any argument.

"Move, Marcus," Xavier said, his voice sharp.

Marcus looked at the keys in Xavier's pocket then at the determination in his eyes. For the first time Marcus saw something in Xavier that he hadn't seen before. He saw a predator. Marcus slowly stepped aside, his face twisted with anger.

Xavier didn't look back. He took Isabella's hand then walked out of the restaurant. The heavy glass doors closing behind them.

The valet had already brought the Bentley to the front. The silver car shone under the streetlights looking like a drop of metal against the dark road. Xavier opened the door for Isabella, waited for her to get in and then climbed into the driver's seat.

He didn't start the engine away. He just sat there gripping the wheel tightly.

"Alex?" Isabella asked softly. "Are you okay?"

Xavier took a slow breath. The blue tint of the system screen in his vision faded, leaving an ache in his head.

"I'm fine," he said, his voice steady again. "I just... I just want to rest. I'm sorry about dinner. That wasn't how tonight was supposed to go."

Isabella put her hand on his. "Forget dinner. Those people were horrible.”

“It’s fine,” he sighed. “Let’s reschedule. I have an early day tomorrow.”

She nodded as he ignited the car then joined the traffic.

Xavier drove into the night with Isabella beside him, while the ghosts of his old life stood frozen behind the restaurant glass.