Zayden

"You need a psychiatrist, Nico." Nicolai raised his head and looked at his cousin, Zayden, who gave Nicolai his unwanted advice the second he walked inside the office. 

"And you need a plastic surgeon, do you need me to ring up the number for you?" Nicolai volleyed back. He knew why Zayden was saying this in fact, Nicolai, himself, had considered going to the psychiatrist for help many times in the last few days. 

He should have tested and taunted Noah Nelson's wife a few times, made her shed a few tears, maybe a kiss or two, such that Noah Nelson would get the message and back off. That —— at least that was the plan. 

Though, he approached Ari in a way that was way different from the one that he had in his mind. Nicolai intended to use Ari and make sure that her husband stopped provoking him unless he wanted a green prairie on his head. 

However, the second he met the woman, he couldn't get on with his plans. Nu huh, as much as everyone said that he had an emotional quotient of a teaspoon, Nicolai saw things alright? The second he looked at Ari, he found such a profound sadness in her eyes, that he was sure that he would drown in it. 

That was when he decided that he was going back the f*ck down. That woman looked high on adrenaline even if she looked calm, Nicolai knew that she was an inch away from either chucking herself off the cliff or someone else. 

He would rather not be the cause of an innocent woman's death. Thus he decided to mellow down his plans and stay away from the woman for a while. The two of them needed to calm the f*ck down. 

However, never in his wildest dreams, he thought that he would catch that woman climbing down the pipe that looked ancient and older than his grandma. It could have fucking crumbled down then and there if that woman was not lucky enough. 

But at the same time, he realized that Ari was not as fragile as he thought, she was a f*cking fighter and the fact that she elbowed him on the nose and even tried to give him a concussion was enough to tell that the woman had balls of steel even if they were non-existent. 

That was when he impulsively decided that such a woman was wasted on Noah. A man who was too tied up in his normal world and normal lifestyle. 

Thus, Nicolai had woven a plan to make sure that Ari got the divorce that she wanted, even if Noah didn't agree. This was the twenty-first century, a woman need no man. At least that was what his sister said to him. 

"No, thanks, that doctor seems like a novice since he created such a monstrosity out of your face," said Zayden and Nicolai snapped out of his thoughts. He raised his head and looked at his cousin who smirked at him and then said, "Now can you tell me what is up with you and this sudden obsession of yours? Why are you getting a married woman divorced?" 

"Did you finally decide to shed your horrible path and walk down the path of illuminance?" Zayden taunted Nicolai even further. 

"I can illuminate your face, what do you say?" Nicolai hurled the paperweight at Zayden who dodged it and his sister who walked inside the office caught it in her hands. 

Her violet eyes stared at Nicolai as she questioned, "I want to ask the same thing, Nico. What are you thinking? Why Ariana Nelson, of all women?" 

"She won't be a Nelson for long," Nicolai corrected his sister.

"Told you, he is obsessed," Zayden remarked, causing Nicolai to glare at him. 

"You are playing with fire, Nico," his sister said with a reproachful voice. "No man will like it if you snatch his wife. And we planned to make Noah back down, not get him onto our tail like a bloodhound." 

"Zena, I know what I am doing," Nicolai tried to convince his sister and himself as well. Because he sure as f*ck did not have the slightest clue what he was doing. 

Zena narrowed her eyes at him. She strode towards his table before she said, "Nico, I hate to break this to you, but this plan is plain stupid." 

"I don't even know what you expected from him," Zayden chortled as he sat down on the couch inside Nicolai's room and snatched an apple from the fruit bowl. He bit into it before saying, "Apart from the fact that he is the son of the leader, the only reason your brother was allowed to become the next leader is that he has more muscles than wits. And because he is the archetype sadist who likes inflicting pain on others more than he likes using his brain." 

"That's it! I am shooting that sharp mind out of your head!" Nicolai jumped to his feet as his hands reached for his gun. 

However, Zayden was not scared. He calmly raised his brow and then said, "My mother and your aunt will not like it. She will be too heartbroken, and your mother will be disappointed in your Nico." 

"Not if I make it all an accident and come up with a sob story about how you gave up your life to save mine," Nicolai shot back. He turned to Zena and then added, "My sister will back me up." 

"My dad will not believe a shit about that sob story," Zayden remarked with a happy smile. "He likes to drill deep into details, and you can never get past him." 

Nicolai grumbled as he threw the gun down on the table. As much as he hated it Zayden's father who was also the strategist of his mother, was indeed quite a witty man. He was even smarter than a computer occasionally. 

"Fine, you live to see another day, asshole." Nicolai sat back down, hoping that his cousin and sister would stop questioning him, but let doom befall him as they did not stop.