Harry Styles
I was very worried about Cleo.
My last three days had simply consisted of worrying about her and feeling anxious about this plan, and now here we were...
I was currently leaning against the wall in the foyer, just by the entryway of the large main room, and it was already crowded. I could see the stairs, the front door, and also the hallway that led to countless doors on either side from where I was standing, and it was a good place to observe.
Everyone had their masks on and champagne was being served to the guests by barely dressed girls walking around. Cleo was fuming the moment she saw them, recognizing two girls from Eroda, actually.
The fancy crystal chandeliers, expensive paintings all over the walls, and the classical music playing in the background made me think I was in some kind of charity event, and that's when I reminded myself of what was about to happen here.
No one was paying attention to me, they were chatting and walking into the main room, and I noticed there was a small stage set up right in the middle, almost like a runway. Chairs were also arranged on either side and many men were already in their seats.
There were many more guests than I anticipated, and this made me so fucking angry. I just watched as these people laughed and caught up like old friends, as if this was a simple dinner. Some of them even brought their wives along and I was honestly shocked. We never truly know how sick the world really is, to think this happens every day made a scary chill go down my spine. And it was happening right in front of me for years.
We were talking only about my father and Catherine, I wondered how many more traffickers were out there... how many children and women were being sold every day like they didn't matter at all.
I knew my line of work and the things I had done weren't exactly normal and, well, good. I wasn't one of the good guys, but there was no fucking comparison to what they were doing. This was so much crueler than just killing someone... this was much worse than death.
People walked by me and some of them nodded, and I just nodded back. I knew I couldn't be easily recognized with this mask, and sometimes I wished I had been careful enough during my life, like Cleo. Only a handful of people actually knew what she looked like now, but our plan wasn't to hide for long... we just needed to watch and study our surroundings. We needed to spot my father and her mother, and carry on with our plan after we were familiar with this.
We had gone our separate ways as soon as we walked into the main part of the mansion, it wasn't safe to stay together now. Plus, we could analyze things better this way and we had two different targets tonight.
And I was also quick to notice there were a few securities inside. If they were as slow as the ones we killed outside then we had nothing to worry about.
The familiar thrill was running through my veins ever since I snapped that man's neck, but tonight I was more worried than anything else. Cleo was so fucking numb that I was scared of how unexpected her actions could be, and I could see her from where I was standing if I glanced into the main room.
She was many feet away from me, carefully making her way to the opposite corner, looking around like a predator analyzing their environment... trying to decide the best way to corner and kill their prey.
I hadn't seen my father or Catherine yet, but I recognized a few of my father's friends. Some of the masks they were wearing barely covered their faces, and the way everyone was acting so fucking casual was triggering the dormant rage inside me.
I was doing my best to stay calm, for Cleo.
But sadly, I wasn't as calm as she probably thought I was. Walking around in the dark with just a small flashlight tended to affect me in more ways than one. Having her with me tonight was helpful, but it didn't mean I wasn't scared shitless, I had no control over this.
