RARE

{ S*X AND HATE... }

By, Dammrare

CHAPTER 09🦋10

★~•★~•★

{ ANOTHER ENEMY }

"Were you really going to fight him in my house?" Mother asked me as I walked inside the house alongside Harry.

"No," I responded, burying my hands inside the pocket of my leather jacket. "I will be in my room. Just in case Father looks for me."

She gave a firm nod. "Okay, child."

I glared at Harry and his cohorts and then mumbled "Avoid me." before going upstairs to my room.

To avoid fighting with Harry and disrespecting my mother and our empire, I better lock myself up in my room until Father requests my presence. I told you this before, Harry and I can not stay under the same roof without fighting. We both hated each other that much.

The sight of that boy infuriates me. Why are they even here? What do they want? Initially, we were heading to their empire but they beat us to it. Why? At least, we had a reason why we wanted to go over to them but what about them, what is their reason?

I needed answers. I just need to exercise patience and wait.

Scar crawled towards me and sat on my lap, purring quietly. I ran my fingers over her head, staring out of the window with my face hardened in annoyance.

It feels like I was in a dark tunnel with no way out. Don't get me wrong, I am not afraid of the dark. But I hate feeling trapped, confused, and confiscated. It makes me sick! And unfortunately, I think I am feeling those emotions right now with how lost and curious I am about this whole situation.

They say "Curiosity killed the cat." Well, luckily for me. I am a lioness.

What could Father and that man be talking about right now? Are they here to draw a war after sending a warning to us? Yes, my instinct thinks the opposite but what if it is wrong this time around? F**k shit. I have never doubted my instinct until now. And I don't like that I did.

"Meow." Scar purred, snuggling closer to me.

I am not in the mood for cuddles and kisses. I can't be at ease until I know what the f**k is going on. Shit, I need a smoke and I can't do it in here because of Scar.

I gently picked her up and placed her on the bed and then left the room. I wanted to use the front door to go outside but decided not to. I am really trying so hard to avoid those uninvited guests so we wouldn't end up doing something we had both regret later. Especially me. Because mother won't take it likely if we dare ruin any of her furniture.

I headed towards the back doors, already taking out the pack of cigarettes from my pocket - a little bit distracted when I suddenly bumped into a wall. Or wait, it is a human being and not a wall. I raised my head to see the face of the fool that wasn't looking where he was f**king going. I was expecting to see one of the guards or better still, our consigliere who has been away for a week now for a job but I was very disappointed to see neither of those people. Just to make a point clear... I do not care about any of those people I mentioned above however, it was better to come across them than this bastard standing in front of me right now. I should have just passed the front door assuming I know I would find him here.

"Oh, there you are!" Harry smirked, tilting his head to the side as he studied me carefully. "Where are you heading off to?"

"What part of avoid me do you not understand?" I snarled, anger sparkling in my eyes.

He doesn't seem afraid or intimidated by my anger. Why the f**k can't I have the effect I have on other people on him? What makes him so special? Huh?

≤!≥He is an underboss just like you, Scarlett≤!≥ The inner voice in my head answered my rhetorical question and I hate that she is right.

"Why should I? I know you have a lot of questions to ask, Foxy. Now is your chance to ask." He wiggled his eyebrows.

That was a very tempting offer but I refuse to succumb to him and let him see how desperate I was for answers. I should not embarrass myself in front of an enemy. It won't end well for me if I do.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I knew you were curious and confused_"

I cut him off. "I didn't ask why you came here with your father to my territory. I am asking what you are doing out here. You should be in the living room like the rest of the boys that came with you."

I saw the surprise that flashed in his eyes but it disappeared just as it came. Hell yeah, he never expected that question. He expected me to ask desperate questions on why they were here but I won't give him that satisfaction. Yes, I am curious and desperate for answers but he shouldn't know about that.

He laughed, his chest vibrating from the loud laughter that escaped his mouth. "Is that what you are curious about?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Don't you want to know why we are here? Are you not curious about that?"

"My father will tell me everything I need to know, Harry. I don't need to hear anything from you. Now, f**king get out of my way." I brushed his shoulder as I walked past him but he caught me by the wrist and in a swift motion, I grabbed his hand and rushed to stand behind him, twisting his arm in the process. I pressed it against his back very hard that I could hear some cracking sound and a low groan from him. I love when he was in pain. And I love it more when I was the one inflicting the pain on him.

"What did I tell you about avoiding me, Harry?" I hissed, twisting his hand harder to the point of dislocating it.

"F**k." He cursed and expertly freed himself from my firm hold, kicking my stomach really hard and I fell to the ground with a loud grunt.

That f**king hurt!

"Shit," He rubbed the ache from his hand, hissing at the pain that shot up. I almost ripped it off. Good job, Scarlett. Good job. I couldn't be more proud of myself.

I got up from the floor, placing my palm over my stomach which now hurts from the impact of his heavy kick.

"Don't f**king touch me again, Harry. The next time you come any close to me, I will kill you. I promise."

He smiled. "You are no match for me, Foxy. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Get out of my sight." I pushed him out of the way and stepped out of the house.

That motherf**king arsehole. I swear I will give him an agonizing and slow death that he is going to pray for the blessing of death and won't find it. I was going to fight back but as I said, I don't want to disrespect my mother or our territory. If I want to kill Harry then I should do it in the underground or somewhere in the street or even in his residence but definitely not here.

••••

<THIRTY MINUTES LATER>

The Maynards were finally gone. Fortunately. I entered my father's office.

He was seated in a chair while drinking from a glass of whiskey. As soon as his eyes fell upon me, he lets out a groan.

"Child," He called out.

"Father," I sat down opposite him. "What happened? Why did they come here?"

"You were right, Scarlett." He began. "The Maynard are not the culprit this time around."

"Someone else sent the knife." It wasn't a question but Dad still answered by nodding his head. I was not surprised because I had suspected that. However, I don't understand. Why will someone else want to come after us? I know our mafia empire is very strong and feared by most empires. They see us as threats and always composed themselves whenever we are involved in some things. The Russian Mafia is the only empire that can stand up against us to fight. Who would dare gather up the courage to want to fight against us? F**king who?

Wait a minute, if the Maynard didn't send the knife, why did they come here?

Father must have seen the question written all over my face because he answered by saying, "The Russian Empire was likewise sent a warning... Just like us."

"What?"

"I don't think it is the same person that sent the warning because the knives are completely different. They came here to confront us and know if we have anything to do with it."

"Aside from the Maynard, which other enemies do we have that I don't know about, Father?"

He shook his head. "Believe me, child. I can't think of anyone else that could have done this. Not a single idea."

I bite my lower lip, pinching my brows together as I think of a way out of this f**king mess. Do you know the worse attack? Ambush. It is better to know the direction of where your enemies will come from than you shouldn't. Because it will make things complicated for you and hit you when you least expect it.

There is another f**king enemy aside the Russia. Who could it be?

"We need a lead," I said.

"And how do we get it?" Father queried.

"I know what to do..."

My father furrowed his brows at my words and leaned back into his seat. "What do you plan to do, child?" He asked.

What do I plan to do? Nothing much, honestly. I just need to keep my eyes open and find the culprit who dares challenge our empire. One thing I know for sure is that whoever did this is someone we least expected. Probably an enemy in disguise. Or someone closer than we can ever imagine. I can't say, though.

However, I can't sit back and watch this whole drama unfold without doing any f**king shit. My family, the empire, and our properties are at high risk here and if nothing is done, we might get blown away by whatever tornado coming our way. Ambush. That is one disastrous attack that anyone can ever experience. You won't know where the hit is coming from.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Nothing much."

"Nothing much?" He repeated and then shook his head in disagreement. "That doesn't sound like you, Scarlett. You must have a plan. Tell me." He urged.

"Father, I do not have any plans right now. How can I make plans when I don't even know who the enemy is? We had all suspected the Russian empire but turns out they are innocent. I have no other empire in mind. Although, that doesn't mean we have to fold our arms and do nothing about this threat. We need to be prepared for whatever harm that lurks around. And I will also have a word with the security team. I see no reason why an intruder got into the vicinity and they didn't know. That f**king makes no sense at all."

My father tilted his head to the side, giving me a pointed look. "So you are going to scold them?"

I shook my head and say, "More like punishing them. Well, yeah."

"Scarlett, I get where your anger is coming from but punishing the security team over this won't sort out anything."

"Dad, I am pissed off. I feel so much anger in my body. I want to relieve myself by unleashing this anger on something or someone."

"Then go to the gym." He advised.

I chuckled, ruffling my hair. "Great advice but no, thank you. I will do that after I figure out all this going on at recent." I paused. "Okay, fine. I won't punish them but at least I can scold them, right?"

My father's lips stretched into a smile and he nodded his head. "Yeah. Sure. It was really bad of them not to have been able to secure the vicinity well enough. You can scold them however you want, dear. After all, you are their next boss."

I smirked. "Thank you for your understanding, father. I will find a lead soon and make you proud."

"I trust you, child. And hey, you've always made me proud."

"Of course. Anyway, I will be in the underground addressing the guards," I told him.

"Okay." He nodded his head and started going through some paper works on the desk. "Scarlett," He called without looking at me.

"Yes?" I answered, looking at him as I waited for him to say whatever he has in mind.

"Take care of your wound before going to the underground. Your health comes first before anything in this world. You mean a lot to me."

Wound? What is he talking about?

I ran my fingers over my face to check out whether the band-aid on my right cheekbone has come off and now bleeding but that doesn't seem to be the case.

"What wound are you talking about?" I asked, still looking quite confused.

He raised his head up to look at my face and slowly, his eyes went down to my stomach and immediately I knew exactly what he was talking about. How did he f**king know? Was I too obvious? I doubt that because I barely reacted to the pain. I even forgot about it until now.

"I'm fine. It's nothing serious." I grunted.

"I had told you to take care of the guest and not fight that boy. What is his name again?" He seemed to be in deep thought, trying to remember it.

"Harry." I helped out.

"Oh, yes. Harry. I know he can be a pain in the arse. I can tell just by looking at his face but you have to learn how to ignore certain things. You don't need to have a solution to every problem or an answer to every question. You need to learn about self-control and stability."

I tried not to roll my eyes, balling my fist. "I know a lot about self-control and stability. But I always seem to lose all of that whenever that bastard is around. And besides, I've told you to stop worrying about unnecessary things."

"You are not unnecessary, Scarlett." He corrected. "You are my eldest child and the underboss of the Italian mafia empire."

I nodded. "Hmm. Yeah."

"I will tell the doctor to_"

I quickly cut him off. "I will take care of it myself. I don't need anybody's help."

"But... Are you sure?"

"Yup. See ya around." I left the office, shoving my hands once again inside my pants pocket.

When will my father get to realize that things like this don't faze me? Why should I feel bothered over a little tiny injury? Yes, it hurts like a bitch and I can barely move my f**king body without hissing in pain but that is no excuse for me to lazy around.

My mother stepped out of the kitchen and approached me. She studied me for a while before saying,

"Breakfast is ready. You are going to eat, right?"

"Can I turn it down?"

"No. Go to the dining room and wait while I call out your father and brother. Do I make myself clear?"

"But I have work to do," I whined.

"I don't care. Your health comes first. And I won't let you work without eating. You should already know that by now." She walked past me and entered my father's office.

What is it with them and 'my health comes first'? F**king hell. My family, the empire, and our properties come first for me. And I do not give a f**k about myself. Besides I can take good care of myself.

Feeling defeated, I went to the dining room. As I've said before, I can't challenge my mother. She is one person who knows how to control me without a bullet going through her forehead.

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