Chapter 41

The door to the club burst open, and Nathaniel walked inside.

He saw the man standing by the counter, walked up to him, grabbed him by his shirt, and punched him hard as he turned him around to face him.

The whole club turned their attention to them. Nathaniel looked really pissed. He pressed the man’s face to the counter, pinning him in that position.

The man struggled to set himself free.

“Who sent you to go after her?” he demanded.

The man hit the counter repeatedly, groaning in pain. “It’s the boss,” he replied.

Nathaniel let him go roughly and stormed into the restricted room.

The boss, Vincent, was having a round with one of his girls.

He was thumping the lady hard from behind when Nathaniel entered with a disgusted look.

Vincent pushed the woman away; she sprawled, grabbed her clothes, and ran out naked.

“How dare you come in here?” Vincent growled at Nat.

Nat stepped forward.

“Didn’t the men outside stop you?”

Nathaniel scoffed. “Oh, they did.”

Two men scurried into the room, looking all beaten up by Nat.

They glanced at their boss, who gave them a disdainful look.

“You ordered your men to go after her,” Nathaniel said, sitting on the couch.

Vincent said nothing, just gazing hard at Nathaniel, his audacity surprising him.

“I don’t think we’ve ever even met.”

Nathaniel snickered. “I clearly said I was going to come back that night, and yet you sent your men after her. Why?”

“You might need a clearer description to ask me that. I hope you watch your words carefully. But don’t worry,” he shrugged, sitting on the couch opposite Nat, “you won’t be stepping out of this place alive.”

Nathaniel chuckled. “I’d suggest you call your older brothers—Dax and Max, was it? The twins?” He grinned.

“Who the hell are you?” Vincent asked, his expression serious.

Nat didn’t respond—he just brought out a picture of Ariel. “Did you send your men after this lady?”

Vincent didn’t want to look at it at first but eventually dragged his eyes to it.

He smirked. “The bitch Dax had his eyes on. Don’t tell me she’s your girlfriend?” he mocked, laughing. “Is this a warning to stay away from your sweetheart?” He laughed harder.

Nathaniel flexed his jaw. He rose slowly. “So it was Dax, not you?”

“You don’t want to mess with him, man. I’ll only overlook what you did today once. Now leave—and if you want your sweetheart alive, you’d better behave.”

Nathaniel nodded and smirked, taking slow steps toward Vincent.

“How do I meet Dax? He rarely comes to the club.”

Vincent paused, staring at him. “You’re crazy.”

Nathaniel shrugged. “You see, I’m not the type to joke with what’s mine. Your brother sent his men after my girlfriend. You almost got her killed.” He scoffed. “What hurts even more is that I wasn’t there to play hero.” He had a devilish grin.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Vincent snapped, stepping backward as Nat came closer.

He glanced at the gun lying on the table behind him.

“If I can’t meet Dax, I’ll just let him come to me.” Nathaniel’s grin spread wider.

“Who the fuck are you?!” Vincent shouted, his back hitting the table—nowhere to move, the gun only a few meters away.

Vincent quickly grabbed the gun, but before he could pull the trigger, Nathaniel fired his own shot straight into his forehead.

Voices came loudly from outside—they must have heard the gunshot.

Nathaniel looked around for a way to escape.

The men outside burst through the door, and all they saw was the wide-open window and a lifeless body—Vincent—lying on the table.

Nathaniel tucked his gun behind his back, rearranged his hair, and got into his car, speeding into the night.

“What took you so long? Don’t tell me Mrs. Jones made you work all day.” Ariel twitched her lips, placing the plates of food on the table as the door flung open, startling her.

“Nat?” she called, walking toward the wide-open door carefully.

“Nat, is that you? I’m seriously not enjoying this.” Her teeth gritted as she looked around, stepping forward slowly.

“Stay still.”

Ariel gasped when a voice spoke from behind her.

“Michael?”

She turned suddenly, and he placed a finger on her lips before she could say another word.

Ariel spread her hands, giving him a questioning look.

“Is he home?” Michael whispered, looking around carefully.

Ariel shook her head.

He nodded and carefully removed his hand from her lips.

“What are you doing here?” she asked immediately.

Michael exhaled deeply and rested on the edge of the couch.

“You left all of a sudden that day… Why?” she asked.

“You don’t trust him, do you?” he said, wiping his nose and glancing around suspiciously.

Ariel frowned. “Who? Nat?”

“The guy who came to get you at the restaurant where we were.”

“Oh, that’s Nathaniel—a rookie detective. And why are you acting so strange? Were you chased?”

Michael walked around restlessly. The sound of a cat outside made him jerk up.

“Alright, I’ll say this quick. Nathaniel isn’t who you think he is. Come with me—I’ll explain everything to you.” Michael glanced at the door, his breathing ragged.

“What’s wrong with you?” Ariel stepped back slowly.

“Just trust me, Ariel. You’re not safe with him.” He stretched his hand toward her, urgency filling his voice.

“I think I’ll be in more danger with you,” she said, shaking her head in confusion. The door creaked, and her head snapped toward it. By the time she turned back, Michael was gone.

She rushed to check the room and then heard Nathaniel’s voice behind her.

“Are you looking for something?”