Hard to Hate You // Michael Langdon

Part XIX - Fighting With Fire

"You really said that to Langdon?" Mallory gasps.

Coco nods proudly as Gallant chuckles. "She sure as hell did. You should've seen his face. That smug look faltered for a few seconds; it was absolutely priceless."

"I wish I would've seen it," Mallory shakes her head.

I quickly look around the sitting room. "Why aren't Dinah or Andre here?" I ask.

Coco shrugs distastefully. "They're probably getting ready for the Halloween Ball tonight or something."

"What are you going to dress up as?" Emily asks.

"Marie Antoinette," Coco answers smugly.

"What about you guys?" Emily asks me, Mallory, and Gallant.

"I'll just wear a mask or something," Gallant shrugs. "I'm going to spend most of my time doing Coco's hair."

"I don't even know if Grays are allowed to dress up," Mallory shakes her head. "Although I suppose that the whole concept of Grays shouldn't even be a thing..."

As soon as they heard about Venable's making up the rules about Grays, Coco moved Mallory into her room so she didn't have to share the group bunks with the Grays anymore. They haven't seen Venable yet today, but I'm sure they'd attack her if given the chance.

"I'm so mad at that bitch," Coco grumbles, saying what we're all thinking. "She'd better hope that I never see her again."

"Coco, you've been aggressive lately," I remark. "First saying 'Fuck you' to Langdon, now threatening Venable."

"And what about it?"

I chuckle. "I wish this side of you would've come out sooner."

......

After hanging out with Coco and the rest of the group, I make the lonely walk back to my room. As I walk down the hallway, I realize that it's much quieter than usual. I am yet to see a Gray today; my intuition tells me that they're making their plan to overthrow Venable at the Halloween Ball. 

Right on time, I begin to pass Venable's office. However, I hear a commotion happening through her door. Deciding to see what she's up to, I change direction and walk up to her door.

As I arrive at her door, I knock twice. "It's Valentina," I announce my presence. I wait a few seconds before taking the liberty of opening the door myself. 

As soon as I open the door, Venable looks up from her desk, pausing from throwing its contents across the room. "Ms. Callistra, what are you doing in here?" she asks, her panic and anger evident in her voice.

"What is going on in here? You seem as if you've lost something." A smirk plays across my face, knowing damn well what she is searching for.

Her eyes narrow as she slowly makes her way toward me. My demeanor smug as ever, I take my time turning around and closing the door behind myself. When I turn back to face Venable, she is directly in front of me.

Her voice low and stoic, she forcefully asks, "Where the hell did you put my gun?"

"Your gun?" I reply mockingly as if I don't have it hidden in my room right now.

She swiftly (yet powerfully) strikes me across the face with her open palm. A sharp edge on one of her rings catches my bottom lip, pain immediately blossoming from the point of impact. As I recompose myself, I slide my tongue across my lip to taste blood.