The Intervention

I held both her hands as I stood up, and asked her to follow me - we went straight to the tap and washed our faces, to wipe off any evidence, especially the teary residue that may potentially get us into trouble. It was a long walk back to the house, Nelson Mandela had nothing on us compared to his long walk to freedom, but ours was of shame and guilt. As we walked the silence was loud, I couldn't wait to enter the building and just save myself from all this misery and soft torture that I am facing.

As we entered the house, everyone was starring. I came in and grabbed a bottle of water from the freezer, trying to behave as normal as possible - on the other hand, Hailey walked in and aimed straight at her room, you'd swear she's an arrow from a bow and her bed is the intended target; she shot straight into it. Non of the guys wanted to know what was said on our private conversation, they figured it's just unnecessary drama and small waters whilst we have gallons and a ton of an ocean to deal with - we had to deal with the issue at hand, not the issue that's constantly trying to force our hands, especially my hand.

"Are you okay brother" Savage asked, "Yes my brother, what's happening?" I asked. "The guys seem to be a little concerned about you guys, there are speculations involved, but they think you guys are talking about Faith - of which I hope you are" . At this point, I'm no-longer sure if I should keep lying or just open up to Savage, he could help but I didn't want to appear vulnerable and weak, I could unintentionally expose my true feelings and would be forced to deal with them while receiving pressure & deceiving thoughts from him. I did need a fresh new perspective from someone who isn't directly involved with the situation, maybe I could see things in a different light, but I didn't want to deal with that right now it could slightly throw me off and disable my focus. I only had one thing in mind, and that is finding Faith.

"Yes brother, the whole conversation rotated around Faith, she wanted to apologize for her actions and treatment towards her" I replied, while sipping on ice cold Fiji water. it didn't sound expensive nor convincing at all, he could've bought it but he didn't it - even I didn't believe it. Savage gave me that look, but he just took it in, ignored it and let it go - he didn't want to dig deeper and uncover dead bodies he wasn't ready for, burying them would be super hard - this whole situation felt like a love triangle crime scene. he could tell something was up but chose to shut it out and saved himself from dealing with an elephant from the next room, which had nothing to do with him and would probably weigh heavy on him before it decides to tremble on his thoughts, or tiny heart.

Within moments Babushka summons every member of the group into the living room, but Hailey was absent. We figured it's just better to let her be at this moment, we'll call her once we've formulated a solid plan and in need of her input or expertise. Her feelings are all over the place, spilling all over. We're tipping-toeing around her - one slip up and she'll snap and cut your head off, we're all just trying to avoid that.

"Daemon, we need every piece of information you have on Mr. Baltimore, everything! All the way down to what type of underwear he wears" Jake said, I paused for a minute. I rewinded everything on my mind, then it just occurred to me that Faith barely mentioned her family. I knew bits & pieces, that topic was closed off because she became upset whenever we brought it up. I knew she came from a dark background, she was birthed by a mother that never really cared and a runaway dead-beat dad. Coming out from a dark place is hard, but finding light and constantly having to mentally revisit that dark place is even harder - I gave her a chance to deal with it internally, I just let her be, there was not much to see, I deliberately allowed her to hide some parts of her from me.

All I could recall was that her father left when she was about 6 or 7 years old, he was a workaholic at heart and barely had time for the family. He was too focused on his career, but she was never too specific about which career - I figured it was because she thought it would scare me off, especially knowing what kind of operations we run. I can't confirm if me knowing about it would've had an impact on our relationship or not, but if I knew about it before we deeply fell in love then I would've probably decided to let her go - she would've been a huge liability and a security risk, posing a threat at our operation. In our case - Money first, love second, anything that poses a threat should be taken care of or eliminated by any means, quick fast.

She also mentioned that her parents had a rocky marriage, she barely ever witnessed them happy - and due to this she never really believed in love, up until she came across me & I offered her the world including everything on it. The rocky marriage they had affected her views on love, her and the siblings suffered and endured a lot from it mostly. She thought that real and genuine love was all a fairytale, a Cinderella story and barely achievable especially in this day and age. Nowadays love has changed, it's a give and take, sell and buy, scoop and suck. It all seems like a waste of time, up until you find somebody that's worth wasting time for.

The discussion went on and on as I revealed each and every detail that I had knowledge of, although I wasn't comfortable with sharing detailed details about the love of my life. I wasn't too happy about the whole ordeal but I knew it was for a greater course, I knew I needed their help and just had to cooperate and do it in order to have her back in my arms.

Finally the burning question arrived, "Is she worth it? can't you just find another girl, or another whore and just let it go. You're still young after all no need to tie yourself down" said Savage. I was shook, I stood up, walked straight up to him and gave him the biggest slap - with full force, no mistake. He immediately fell on the ground, the other guys tried to intervene as he tried to fight back and they finally managed to break us apart, a whole commotion just erupted between best friends. I was furious, I was angry and I was also disappointed in him. I know Savage's views on women aren't pleasant, but he should never stoop that low and disrespect the love of my life. Now everything is a mess, I couldn't believe I had to deal with the loss of the love of my life and a fallout with my best friend, at the same damn time!

While there's ongoing commotion, screaming and shouting - a sweet & yet calming voice finally arrived and intervened, with tears rolling down her nicely rounded eyes and a cracking voice. "Guys, Guys, No! Please" she said. It was Hailey, she finally came downstairs after long hours of locking herself up, she had chosen to be a self-inflicted prisoner. I was pleased to see her, but not under these circumstances. Her presence was immediately felt, she softened up our hearts, we needed her at that very moment, she couldn't have came at a better time - we also respected her and protected her against any form of violence, she had seen enough when growing up in an unhealthy home, so we instantly stopped and everybody stared at her swollen and yet cute face .. What a ray of sunlight piercing through darkness.

As the tension in the room reached its boiling point, Hailey walked in with a calm and confident demeanor. She had always been a calming presence in the group, and everyone knew it. "Hey, what's going on here?" Hailey asked as she surveyed the room, taking in the hostile energy. The other members of the organization immediately took notice of her presence, and their anger began to dissipate. There was something about Hailey that just made people feel more relaxed and at ease.

"We're just having a little disagreement, that's all," Jake said, trying to downplay the situation. Hailey raised an eyebrow skeptically. "It looks like more than just a little disagreement to me," she said. "Now, why don't we all take a step back and take a deep breath? We're all on the same team here." Slowly, the tension in the room began to ease. People started to relax and take deep breaths, the anger and frustration they were feeling beginning to dissipate. Hailey moved around the room, talking to each member in turn and soothing their anxieties.

Before long, the group had calmed down completely, and Hailey's presence had played a big part in that. It was just another example of why she was so valuable to the organization - not just for her skills as a criminal, but for her ability to keep the peace and calm everyone down in a crisis.

Hailey glanced over at Daemon, who was standing off to the side of the room. She could tell that he was avoiding eye contact with her, and that made her feel uneasy. She knew that she had overreacted earlier, and now she was regretting it.

Feeling guilty, Hailey walked over to Daemon and motioned for him to follow her to the side of the room. When they were out of earshot of the others, she spoke in a low voice. "Look, I'm sorry about earlier," she said. "I know I overreacted when you asked me not to make it obvious that we've been sleeping together." Daemon sighed and shook his head. "It's not that, Hailey," he said. "It's just that we need to keep our relationship under wraps, at least for now. I don't want anyone to use it against us."Hailey nodded, understanding. "I get it," she said. "I'm sorry. I just got a little carried away." Daemon smiled wryly. "It's okay," he said. "I know how you get sometimes." Hailey grinned back at him, relieved that he wasn't angry with her. "So, we're good?" she asked. Daemon nodded. "Yeah, we're good," he said.

Hailey let out a deep breath, feeling much better. She knew that she had to be careful with Daemon, especially given their complicated history, but she also knew that she couldn't help how she felt about him. For now, though, she was content just to enjoy their secret relationship and the passion that came with it.

Jake, Babushka, and Savage sat huddled in a corner of the dimly lit room, talking in hushed tones. They were discussing the recent tension that had arisen between Daemon and Hailey, and they were all curious to know what was going on between them."Have you noticed how strange Daemon has been acting lately?" Jake asked, looking around the room to make sure no one was eavesdropping.

Babushka nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I have," he said. "I think there's something going on between him and Hailey." Savage raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" he asked. "I mean, they've been acting weird around each other," Babushka explained. "It's like they're trying to hide something from the rest of us." Jake leaned forward, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Do you think they're keeping something from us?" he asked. Savage shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "But Daemon is my best friend, and if there's something going on with him, I want to know about it." Babushka nodded in agreement. "Me too," he said.

Just then, Daemon walked into the room, and the three of them fell silent. He looked around at them, a small smile on his face, but they could tell that something was bothering him. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked, his voice tense. Jake hesitated for a moment before speaking. "We were just talking about you and Hailey," he said.

Daemon's expression darkened. "What about us?" he asked. Savage spoke up, his tone serious. "We just want to know what's going on between you two," he said. "We're your friends, and we're here to support you." Daemon sighed heavily. "Look, there's nothing going on between me and Hailey," he said, his voice tight. "We're just friends."

Jake, Babushka, and Savage exchanged a knowing look. They could tell that Daemon was lying, but they didn't press him any further. They knew that if he wanted to tell them what was really going on, he would. For now, they would just have to keep a watchful eye on him and Hailey, and hope that everything would work out in the end.

Savage waited until the others had left the room before turning to Daemon. "You know, you don't have to lie to us," he said, his voice low. Daemon's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?" he asked. "I mean, we all know that there's something going on between you and Hailey," Savage said. "And I think you should be careful." Daemon's expression darkened. "What are you trying to say?" he asked, his voice cold.

"I'm just saying that the others are starting to catch on," Savage said. "And if they find out what's really going on between you two, it could be dangerous. "Daemon's jaw tightened. "I appreciate your concern," he said, his voice low. "But I can handle myself." Savage nodded, his eyes fixed on Daemon's face. "I know you can," he said. "But just be careful, okay? I don't want anything to happen to you."

Daemon looked away, his mind racing. He knew that Savage was right - the others were starting to catch on, and if they found out the truth about him and Hailey, it could be disastrous. He needed to be more careful, more cautious. "Thanks, man," he said finally, his voice low. "I appreciate it." Savage nodded, his eyes fixed on Daemon's face. "Just be careful, okay?" he said again. "I don't want to see anything happen to you." Daemon nodded, and the two of them fell silent, lost in their own thoughts. The truth was out there now, hanging in the air between them, waiting to be acknowledged. And Daemon knew that he couldn't keep running forever - eventually, he would have to face the consequences of his actions, and he could only hope that he would be ready when that day came.

Hailey sat alone in her room, staring blankly at the wall. Her mind was racing, replaying the events of the past few days over and over again. She couldn't believe what had happened between her and Daemon - the stolen kisses, the secret rendezvous, the mind-blowing sex. It had all been so intense, so passionate, so...wrong.

She had always known that getting involved with a member of the organization was a bad idea. But she had been unable to resist Daemon's charm, his charisma, his raw sexuality. He had drawn her in like a moth to a flame, and she had willingly followed. But now, as she sat alone in her apartment, she couldn't help but question everything. Was she really in love with Daemon? Or was she just caught up in the moment, swept away by his charm and his dangerous allure?

The thought of him lying to the others, hiding their secret relationship, made her feel sick to her stomach. She had always prided herself on her honesty and integrity, and now she was caught up in a web of lies and deceit. She knew that she needed to confront Daemon, to talk to him about what had happened and what it all meant. But the thought of facing him, of admitting her own vulnerability and confusion, filled her with a sense of dread.