Chapter 32 Celene Celene Celene
Celene… Celene, Celene, Celene.
That was all the words that ran in a loop in my mind. I needed to get back to her.
I also knew that as much as I needed to check myself and curb a little of my obsession with Celene Luther, I could not. It would never happen. It wasn’t an obsession to me as much as it was worship. Celene was an unknown deity, and I was an ordained worshipper.
Curbing was out of the question. I would not stop, even if I could.
But I knew I needed to come to some sort of compromise, some sort of silent agreement with myself, and install the spy/security cameras. My only reasonable rationale for my new conclusion was to blame it on my need to keep her safe while still being away from her, which was a blatant lie.
In truth, it was the only way I could conveniently be near her without giving in to the already intense temptation to do more. Like touch her. Resisting was becoming harder and harder to do. Regardless, over the past year, I knew my fortitude had begun to crack like the stones of an ancient church.
Every step I took, every move I made, every breath I now took was mainly for her, for her security. Until I was sure all the newly employed security around me were proven to be loyal and truly on my side, I would have to limit my visitations.
It would not do me or Celene any good if I could easily be traced to her doorstep. And knowing I would not cope if I completely cut off seeing her, the cameras would have to do.
Finally coming to both a favourable and safe conclusion, I felt more at ease and also more in a hurry to get back home and set everything up.
The only people I trusted who even knew about Celene were Jeffery and Bone, and I trusted them enough to turn my back while unarmed around them. No one else got that privilege.
I often wondered that if I had a different life, a more normal life, and I had my way around words and compassion like everyone else, Jeffery would have been my best friend. I knew the man like the back of my palm, and Jeffery knew me too.
We kept our relationship a little distant for the sake of hierarchy and discipline in ranks, but I knew there was a side of Jeffery that I might never get to see directed at me. The man was a clown to the people he saw and trusted as family.
I had wandered through the halls of the family manor back home only to find Jeffery surrounded by people laughing as he cracked jokes and carried the crowd. But every time he sighted me, he switched back to professional mode, and I did not have it in me to correct him or ask him to feel free around me.
I would not even understand the jokes Jeffery cracked even if I loosened up. There was no need to put both of us through the misery,but he tried every chance he got to get under my skin.
I wasn’t even sure if I would ever be truly comfortable around a smiling, joking Jeffery. I liked how things were anyway; there was no need to change our dynamic. Besides, Jeffery loved to see an enemy bleed out on the cold floor just as much as I did. He was a two-faced psychopath.
Bone, on the other hand, was stiff and unmovable through and through. What he lacked in communication skills, he made up for in muscles and body weight. The man was huge and imposing to everyone that saw him.
Standing at a groundbreaking seven foot two inches, he was a literal giant, and with his complete lack of soft features, he was a menace—and he clearly liked it too. I could not count how many times I made a person confess their guilt just by threatening them with the presence of Bone.
He was a useful asset when I did not want to spill cheap blood. Bone was always up to it.
I picked up my phone and dialed Jeffery. He answered on the first ring, just as I liked it.
“Yes, Boss,” he answered from the other end of the line.
“Any updates?” I asked cryptically.
“Miss Luther is still okay, Boss. She goes to school at her usual time and returns home alone as always. Also, she has an event happening in the next two days, Boss.”
“I know about that already. Anything else?” I asked, not knowing what I expected to hear.
"Are you worried she stumbled into a club and willingly took drinks from unknown men again?" Jeffery said, his voice surprisingly firm. The thought caused my heart to hammer in my chest with rage filling my veins... Did she really go right back, doing the one thing that could make me run mad?
"Jeffery..."
"Boss..."
"What are you talking about? Where is she? What happened? Where are you? What's wrong?"
"Nothing, Boss. I just asked... you know, if that was what you were thinking, "
Relief swarmed my chest. Fuck Jeffery for puttimg those thoughts in my head. After breathimg in enough air to calm my mind, with Jeffery still silently waiting for my response on the pther end of the call, the instant relief that filled my heart turned to something dark.
"Do you want to die, Jeffery?"