Suspicious

"Watch out!" 

Zeke evaded on reflexes, however, he could not escape the dagger completely. 

It ripped through his shirt, slicing it open and slashed his right waist, creating a thin red stripe on his skin. 

Zeke hissed and dropped on the ground as the man pushed him and rushed out of the door, fleeing. 

"Sir Roderick!" 

Zeke's face twisted in pain, teeth clenched. His hand clutched againsts his right waist, crimson blood gushing out between his fingers and dripped onto the ground. 

He grunted. 

Jian Yu had seen wrongly, it was not just a thin line, but it was deep enough that it needed a few stitches to close the wound. 

"Sir, are you okay?" 

Jian Yu looked around for spare clothes, anything to wrap around the wound, something that was able to stop the bleeding for the time being. 

"Oh no! I need a nurse…!" Even in this crucial moment, Zeke still managed to grit out a joke, but Jian Yu wasn't getting it at all. 

He was panicking, one hand was pressing down on Zeke's stomach to slow down the bleeding. That was, until he tore a section of Zeke's right sleeve, receiving a squawk in return. 

As clueless as he was, Zeke thought Jian Yu was perceiving his jokes seriously. 

"My dear Yu, I do not know you are that aggressive--" 

Was what he managed to blurt out before Jian Yu cut him off completely. 

"I can't tear mine, it's quite expensive. So, yours will do." 

Zeke wasn't really sure if he should cry or laugh out loud, so he chose to do both of them and ended up groaning in pain instead. 

Adding a mental note to buy a lot of expensive clothes for Jian Yu in the future. 

XXX

The man ran out from the bar. 

His breath came in small spurts, hot and nervous. At his sides, tanned fingers curled into sweaty fists, swinging forward as if it would make him faster. 

"Shit!" He cursed. They were found out by the Rodericks! 

He needed to hurry and notify the Zeros immediately. 

His lungs and heart were pumping, but the air didn't seem to be enough as he sprinted forward, panic trembling in his exhausted limbs.

The man ran towards where he thought was the safest, his home. He almost breathed out in relief when he reached his apartment. 

Rushing up the stairs to his destination, he never realized he was being followed. His hands trembled furiously from the adrenaline as he patted his body for his keys. 

Retrieving them, he needed a few tries to be able to plug the keys in the keyhole. 

The moment he managed to push the door opened, an arm snaked around his neck, one hand against his mouth, and yanked him backwards. 

It happened so fast that the man had yet to register what was going on.

He let out a muffled yelp, but the assailant had slashed his throat with a dagger, ripping it open. His body slumped off and the murderer caught him. 

The murderer, wearing a long coat with black leather gloves, had a mask around his face, concealing his identity. The only thing noticeable on him was the dark brown locks peeked out of the hat he wore. 

He looked around, checking for any witnesses. When there was none, he pushed the door open and dragged the dead body inside, slamming the door closed. 

XXX

Jian Yu flopped onto his bed tiredly. He had reported back and washed up. Something felt missing. 

He blinked, looking up at the ceiling. 

Something didn't feel right. 

What was it? 

Jian Yu glanced up, looking at the white ceiling and pursing his lips. He furrowed his eyebrows, deeply thinking. 

It was weird that it gave him a displeasing feeling. 

He thought back about the events that unfolded he went through. Everything was going fine until the man stabbed Zeke. 

Yes, stabbing and bleeding all over. 

Then… 

Wait a minute. 

Jian Yu bolted upright, leaping up from the bed. "Ah! I knew it!" 

It was Lord Zero and his lack of concern. 

By the time he reached the Zero household, he had mentally prepared himself for any scolding thrown his way. 

But no… There was nothing. 

Nothing at all. 

He was just dismissed right away. Wasn't it weird? Did he not want his package? Rich people and their endless money. 

Truth to be told, Lord Zero's lack of concern was really disturbing to him. 

However, that wasn't all.

The strange conversations by that man. He said something about the Rodericks and betrayals. To be honest, he noticed the man looked frightened, like a startled rat, the moment he saw Zeke entering. 

'What the hell is going on?' His thoughts were a whirling jumble. 

Zeros and Rodericks… 

What in the world was going on between the two of them? 

XXX

It was midnight when a figure melted out from the dark shadow. A man with messy brown locks appeared across Malakhi's desk. His light brown eyes glinted brightly under the moonlight that reflected from the window. 

He walked across His Lord's office room and dipped his head at Malakhi. "I have silenced the rat, My Lord." 

Malakhi glared at the man standing in front of him. "That is why I told you to search for a competent one and now, look what happened!" 

"I beg your forgiveness, My Lord. I shall find a better one to replace him." 

"You better do before I kill you," Malakhi warned. 

The man across him almost rolled his light brown eyes in annoyance, but he stopped himself from doing so. 

"How about the beta?" 

"Still clueless as ever," He stated emotionlessly. "But there seems to be a problem, it appears that he is quite close with Roderick's Alpha son." 

Malakhi clicked his tongue. 

"Keep an eye on him," Malakhi ordered. "He might be a perfect tool in the future." 

Light brown eyes narrowed slightly before they turned blank.

"Yes, My Lord," The man said, dipping his head.