Chapter 35 Never a prey

Chapter 35 Never a prey

As the gun’s muzzle still smoked faintly, the breeze slowly carrying the smoke away, the body had already lost its life, and those eyes, wide with shock, no longer held any light.
James knew the man would try to outsmart him and grab the gun again to fire immediately. There would be no fair fight between men; there were only two mafia members trying to outwit each other to win. James knew that.
“Did I talk too much?” James asked, his eyes cold as he looked down at the man’s body, the hole in his forehead oozing fresh blood. “I will never be as patient as Martin or as cunning as Joan or Son when it comes to deceiving an enemy.”
James washed his palms in the pool of blood, then wiped them across his head, letting the blood stream down his face before he left the body—not even bothering to move the gun lying nearby.
One thing James regretted was that the man had died believing James was a lamb in a slaughterhouse, trying to save his life with a little trickery. He never got to know that James had never lived as a helpless victim.
James didn’t deceive like prey trying to survive; James deceived like a hunter who was never satisfied.
While hiding his gun in his denim jacket, the look in James’s eyes dimmed with terror as his feet ran toward the exit. One hand was raised, while the other pressed against his ear, stained with the blood he’d stolen, as armed officers stormed in.
“Help! Help!”
“Sir, what’s going on?”
“He’s gone wild. He’s shooting everything in his path.”
One officer took James to the ambulance where two medics were waiting, then they went inside to apprehend the suspect—if they could find him.
Because the person responsible for the shooting was now wiping the blood from his face with a small towel provided to staunch the wound, then stepping out of the ambulance as the officers went to check on other victims.
James slipped through the crowd, returned to his car parked nearby, and sped away from the scene—and the chaos he had caused.
His phone vibrated with a message, causing him to let out a short sigh. James called Elodie, and when he found out she was in another city, he wanted to curse under his breath. But he let it go just to keep his focus on the road and get there quickly to pick up Elodie.
Meanwhile, Elodie waited inside a restaurant, looking different. The clothes were a bit large for her, but Elodie forced herself to be comfortable; otherwise, she feared her tense expression would make Hime ask questions.
“Is something bothering you, Elodie?”
The woman was much calmer than usual, and her voice was softer. Elodie glanced at her hesitantly, a little afraid as she recalled how the woman had pulled out a gun—which she’d been hiding under her clothes for who knows how long—and the way she’d threatened that stranger on the train earlier… it kept making Elodie think about the composure someone like that wouldn’t have on their first try.
“I’m fine, Miss Hime.”
“Miss? Didn’t we agree to just use first names?”
“Um… I think I’m more comfortable calling you that since…”
“Since…?” Hime followed Elodie’s words, “since you saw my thing earlier?”
She didn’t know when something as simple as swallowing had become so difficult, but Elodie felt she had to make sure she could do it after seeing Hime’s brief smile.
“I’m sorry if I scared you; I shouldn’t have brought it on our date.”
Elodie didn’t say a word, but the way her mouth was sealed by anxiety made Hime smile. A warm sensation tickled her stomach.
“Let me tell you a little about myself, okay? I’m the only child in my family, and I’ve inherited their entire massive business.”
“Is your business really that big?”
Hime nodded in agreement, flashing a brief smile with eyes that also offered an answer. “One of the five biggest in Las Vegas? I could call it that. That’s why my life has never been truly safe. An only child, with no parents or close allies, and a woman—don’t I look like easy prey?”
After hearing Hime’s story, Elodie’s gaze slowly softened as her wariness gradually subsided. Instead of suspicion, it turned to sympathy.
“It must be hard to live like that every day, Miss Hime….”
“You could say that. But I’m used to it; I can protect myself, which is why I carry this with me.”
Elodie felt a bit calmer when Hime opened her jacket slightly to reveal the gun resting inside, though the blonde girl never felt entirely comfortable seeing a gun, especially since she’d been dealing with the mafia world.
Watching Hime enjoy her parfait, Elodie seemed to be holding back something she wanted to say. She took a deep breath before speaking.
“I think we have a little something in common, Miss Hime,” she said. Hime paused to look at Elodie’s face. “I also live in fear and under threat—and I was reminded just how terrifying that is today.”
“Really?” Hime swallowed quickly; the sharp chill in her throat faded instantly. “Are you also the sole heir like me?”
“No, I don’t even have much money for people to fight over.”
“Then what do you have that puts you in danger?”
Elodie fell silent, long enough as if she were trying to find the words, though she was only trying to voice a truth that still felt strange for her to believe.
“Myself.”
Silence crept across their table, while the atmosphere of the place was so bustling that Hime had chosen it as a hiding spot.
Faced with that confession, Elodie tried to convince herself that there was nothing wrong with her, even though she knew—she was the reason for the chaos involving Ethan. But in front of her, Hime looked straight into the girl’s blue eyes—not as if offering blind sympathy, but as if she truly understood Elodie’s feelings.
Truly understood her.
Then James walked in; the doorbell rang loudly and harshly, causing Elodie and Hime to quickly turn toward the entrance. James scanned the crowded room, then spotted Elodie, who was also running toward him.
“James! James…!”
Elodie approached the young man, hugging him warmly as if she’d just lost him only to have him return from the dead.
James was surprised, confused, and didn’t know what to do.
“I thought that guy had hurt you,” Elodie said, “I’m sorry for getting you hurt, James.”
James might have remained stiff and silent for the next few minutes, but when he remembered the anxiety that had made him press the gas pedal so hard just to get to this city in a matter of minutes, he let go of Elodie to speak right in front of her.
“We have to go back now or Consigliere will know you left the mansion.”