The Real Klaus Farkas

Klaus

"Are you sure this is a good idea? She still loves him, and it's clear he loves her too. Won't they do something while we're gone?" Damon questioned me as we both walked towards the waiting vehicle. We had an important conference to catch up to at work, and it was something that I couldn't neglect or postpone.

"I'm certain nothing will happen between them. Lisa gave me her word—"

"And you believe her? You manipulated her emotionally to get those words out of her, it wasn't genuine. You do understand that you need her to fall in love with you, leaving her alone with her ex lover might not be the best idea." Damon censured me even further. His words carried meaning, and soon I was beginning to doubt my own decisions.

"Let's forget about Lisa and Mark for now. We'll worry about them after the conference." I said in a bid to change the topic.

"As you wish." Damon's voice leveled down to its formal intonation. Right now I wanted him to be my assistant, not my friend, and he understood that immediately. Once we were at work, personal feelings were to be put aside, and the work at hand was to be prioritized above everything else.

Damon got settled in the driver's seat, and I sat right beside him. Before he turned on the car ignition, he flashed me one look of disapproval but I brushed it off and tried to convince him with my facial expressions. It didn't work, and we spent the next thirty minutes in silence, staring out the window, and occasionally exchanging glances that had a lot of words behind them.

"How many hours before the conference begins?" I asked Damon as we both alighted from the vehicle.

"Two hours, I'll inform you if there's any possible reason for delay." He answered just before he excused himself to his office. I did the same, the only difference was that I spent twenty minutes exchanging pleasantries with my workers instead of walking straight to my office like Damon had done.

After another ten minutes of getting my files in order, I finally sat behind my desk, poring over endless spreadsheets, trying to drown out the noise of the bustling office around me.

I had barely gotten accustomed to the softness of the leather seat when suddenly, a shadow fell over my computer screen. Startled, I glanced up to meet a familiar figure towering over me, a cynical smile plastered across his face. My stomach churned with a mix of anger and dread as I met his cold gaze.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I hissed, barely able to contain my fury.

Icarus smirked, his eyes gleaming with malice. "Nice to see you too, brother," he sneered. "But I didn't come here for pleasantries. I came to talk to you about Lisa."

My heart pounded in my chest at the mention of her name, and I glared at Icarus with threatening eyes. I wondered how he managed to get in, but considering the blatant resemblance we shared, it wouldn't be difficult for him to pretend he was me. Everybody that worked for me knew to avoid Icarus and stay away from him, but today, it seemed they had neglected that instruction.

I did well to tame my rage, and only then did I manage to form the words I wanted.

"What about her?" I managed to choke out, trying to keep my voice steady.

The smirk on Icarus's face widened further, and the sight of it made my fury rise even further. I wanted to tear the smile off his face more than anything, yet I chose to not let my emotions get the better of me.

Once he was certain that I wouldn't punch his face in, Icarus leaned in close, his breath hot against my ear. "It's the same with Krista, she and I have a mate bond." He whispered, his words dripping with venom. "And soon, I'm going to take everything you love away from you. Starting with her."

Rage boiled inside me, threatening to consume me whole. Without thinking, I lunged out of my chair, grabbing Icarus by the collar of his shirt and pinning him against the wall.

"You stay the hell away from her," I growled, my voice low and dangerous. "If you ever come near her again, I swear to god—"

But before I could finish my threat, Icarus broke free from my grasp, a twisted smile playing across his lips.

"Shout all you want, it will all end like it did with Krista. You've always hidden your true self, how on earth do you think she'd love you when you're not yourself? I'll find a way to get to her, and when I do, history is going to repeat itself—"

Like a speeding golf ball, my fist slammed into Icarus's face, cutting him short, and knocking him down to the ground. Blood trickled down his nostrils, and all I could think of was repeating that action over and over again until there was no life remaining in him.

Enraged by my retaliation, Icarus lurched forward to mirror my earlier actions, but was promptly restrained by Damon who managed to push Icarus a good distance away from me.

"I believe it's time you take your leave, Icarus." Damon said with a serious demeanor. In a fight, he would definitely lose to the bleeding man before us, but that did not stop him from standing his ground and ordering Icarus out. He was bad news, and having him around would only cause trouble.

The cynical smile I had momentarily wiped off Icarus's face returned, and as he glared at me with threatening eyes, he slowly wiped the blood off his nose. Without saying another word, Icarus turned around and left.

"It's my fault he managed to enter here, I'll make sure to tighten security around the perimeters—"

"It's fine," I brushed Damon's apologies off, "Icarus will always do what he wants, no matter how much you try to stop him."

"Is there something you need me to do?" Damon inquired with a worried expression on his face. Although my looks looked calm, my bloodlust was yet to subside, and Damon was worried that I might lose myself if I didn't regain my composure soon enough. He was right to worry, if he hadn't stepped in when he did, Icarus and I would have likely torn the building down.

"It's fine, continue preparations for the meeting. We cannot allow one man to ruin everything we've planned." I replied before dismissing him from my office.

I returned to my desk after he was gone, and no matter how much I tried to push myself, I just couldn't concentrate on the work before me. Icarus's words kept ringing in my head, and the worst part of it all was the fact that he was right. I never showed my true self to all the women I've been with. I was always cold and demanding because it was how my father had taught me to act. He raised me to believe that a king should never be subject to anybody, not even his lover.

Since I was the oldest, those words had been panel beaten into the core of my very being, while Icarus had grown up living a fairly normal life. He wasn't given as much attention as I was, and that might have contributed to his hatred for me.

I had tried to shake off that part of me, but it never seemed to work. It was because of my rigid attitude that Krista had chosen Icarus over me, and now the same thing might happen with Lisa. Icarus was a cunning manipulative man, and with how simple minded Lisa was, it wouldn't be difficult for him to get into his head. Keeping him away from Lisa was my utmost priority at the moment, and getting her to love me was the second most important part of my life.

I had lived a lie my entire life, perhaps it was time for a change. Maybe Icarus was right, and despite how painful it was to buckle to his words and advice, I knew I had no choice. It was time to show Lisa who the real Klaus Farkas was.