Chapter Two

Calvin rolled his eyes – he remembered this strategy. Instead of responding, he reached for her face and cupped her cheeks in his palms; Now, she couldn't avoid his strict gaze.

Calvin leaned in then kissed her deeply on the lips – definitely, she didn't waste a second kissing him back passionately while her arms encircled around his neck. 

Slowly, he pulled her closer, and soon she mounted directly on him, yet they didn't break the kiss. 

"Calvin?" Amaya pouted her lips, clearly unsatisfied, when he withdrew from the kiss. He brushed his fingers tenderly across her cheeks, then kissed her forehead lightly. 

Done, Calvin faced her completely and his eyes stared into hers. "You won't ever lie to me, right? Then tell me" he whispered only for her to sigh. 

"You won't be mad, just promise me that!" she insisted, and he eventually gave in. Amaya didn't attempt to get off but sat more comfortably on his groin. 

"I began working as a waitress in a popular restroom, The Elite, and during the night one of the customers was… Kross Phantom".

Calvin's eyes doubled in size at that statement – did she just say Kross Phantom? Like Kross Phantom? One of the lethal triplets of the Graveyard?

"Amaya, do you have any idea of whom you're referring to?" Calvin inquired disbelievingly. If she encountered Kross, what transpired between them?

The Graveyard's a dangerous crime syndicate – the number of crimes they've committed was unbelievable and heart-shattering. 

Ranging from drug and human trafficking, slavery, organ shipments and even mass murders – the Graveyard was something feared by the people of New York. 

It's being controlled by three individuals, although one has never been seen. Kross Phantom – the dashing womanizer, Kris Phantom – the temperamental demigod and Kristen Phantom – no one has ever set their eyes on him before. 

Slightly offended, Amaya flickered his forehead and he winced painfully. 

"Don't speak of me like a kid, Cal. A coworker of mine said he was Kross and trust me he was annoying!" she huffed crisply. 

"Did… something happen between you two?" Calvin asked eagerly, and she shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah, I guess. He was like the greatest pervert of all time, Cal. No matter how many times I rebuked his advances, he kept pestering me".

Calvin couldn't help but frown – he knew how pulchritudinous Amaya was. Which man wouldn't be attracted to her? Yet, he hated it. But if a mafia was interested in his girl and a mafia as callous as Kross, what was he going to do?

"So? What did you do to him?" again his voice held eagerness, and she chuckled, mistaking his worries for jealousy. 

Amaya kissed his lips gently but then smiled. 

"I fucked him up, big time! And guess what? On the night it happened, on my way to the apartment, I came across a ruby pendant. Once I sold it, the money for the operation was ready. Fortunately, right?" she beamed joyously, but Calvin – he looked as pale as a ghost. 

Did Amaya do something crazy to the mafia? 

"Oh, Amaya..."

~~~~

Throughout her entire ride to the apartment she shared with Calvin, Amaya found it difficult to get rid of the countenance he displayed before she left the hospital. Her Calvin was one to always maintain a calm composure, then again he freaked out after she narrated her story. 

Now Amaya felt idiotic for sharing it with him. A sigh elicited from her lips as her head rested on the window of the taxi which she rode home. 

"I'm such a fool for being truthful with him. Tch! He lied again; he said he wouldn't get proven" Amaya pouted childishly while absent-mindedly thinking out loud. 

Calvin sure was insistent when he ordered her to bring all their properties and come back to the hospital – was he planning to flee the country with her?

Though Amaya couldn't figure out why – did she say anything to get him agitated? She couldn't decipher his reason for going to do so without dissenting – Amaya was just gleeful that he was back. 

Calvin was conscious again, what more could she ask? During the ride, she failed to acknowledge the occasional glances the taxi driver sent her way. 

Amaya also failed to notice his odd mode of dressing – what ordinary cab driver was clad in black entirely?

"Oh, that's a lot of smoke!"

At that utterance, Amaya diverted her gaze to the driver. "What smoke?" her eyebrows were curved inquisitively, and he merely pointed his finger in…the direction of her apartment. 

Amaya's eyes dilated excessively yet shockingly as they drew nearer to her burning apartment – why was it ablaze? Instantly the cab halted, she rushed out and then went on her knees with her jaw dropped in disbelief. 

"No!!" Her screams attracted the attention of the firefighters who simply told her the cause of the fire – it was unknown. 

Tears unhesitatingly streamed voluntarily down her eyes as she cried raucously – the memories with Calvin, their sweet memories…it was all gone!

Her limbs felt too weak to move, yet she needed to inform Calvin about this. 

"To…to the hospital!" Amaya dragged her legs as she went back into the cab. "Where miss?" the driver smirked secretly, only for her eyes to burn with rage. 

"Are you a moron? The hospital, you deaf?" she yelled outrageously angrily at him. He didn't speak and instead began driving off. 

Amaya reached for her phone yet felt a sudden wave of dizziness and her eyes steadily got shut. In a matter of seconds, her phone fell freely and she lost consciousness. 

★

Her eyes blinked continuously while she tried to get a glimpse of the environment. The room was dark, and she could barely tell what the hell this place was. Yet due to the sun rays which sneaked in from the small window just below the ceiling, she could tell it was morning. 

The unusual smell of dried blood from the room twisted the insides of her stomach, causing Amaya to be nauseous. Her brain couldn't interpret what and where she was. The last thing she could remember was…her burning apartment and the cab driver.