A week after Jericho and Kayden had a brawl at the airport, the group found themselves on a plane that smelled of rotten sushi and had the lighting of a basement in a horror movie. Asa was moving with the help of Theo, but not well. The gunshot gave him nerve damage that wasn't likely to heal anytime soon. They had to cope with carrying around a blind guy, a man with a weak shoulder, and a man who couldn't walk well. This couldn't get any better.
The plane was economy class, nothing special. They were near one another, but not next to each other. Jericho was of course sat with Kayden. Kayden had to spite him by making their seats the same row. Charlotte was way too far for comfort. She was behind him, in reach if need be, but that wasn't close enough. He wished they were together instead.
Regardless, Jericho knew what he had to do. After the airport talk he and Kayden had, he knew he had to resolve things before the huge fight came. Well, they didn't need to be buddies. All that they needed was trust. Jericho knew just the thing to say to gain Kayden's trust. At least a little bit of it, anyway.
The flight was already in progress. It had been for an hour. The seats were filled with people who were sleeping, playing on their phones, reading, or staring at their seat partner with disgust. Jericho was in that last category, his eyes on Kayden. Kayden got the window seat, his legs draped over one another as he rested his calloused hand on his chin. The tip of his ear was cut off, and Jericho didn't know from what. It could have been before this madness or after, and it wouldn't make a difference.
"We need to trust each other," Jericho said in a whisper, Kayden shifting to meet his eyes. "I know you don't trust me. I'll be honest, I don't trust you either. What's important is gaining trust now, at least enough trust that we'll help each other if we really needed it."
"So, what are you proposing?"
Jericho got up and made his way to the bathroom, Kayden taking the hint and following. There was a line of one other person that Jericho didn't recognize. By the time it was their turn, Jericho knew he had to be quick. He had to say the words and pretend everything was okay. The secret he had been keeping from the group. All except Charlotte, and Ivan knew too from outside sources.
Kayden kicked the door shut and locked it, leaning against it and crossing his arms over his chest. "What is it?" he asked, his voice neither impatient or relaxed. It was a mix between the two, the pale interior of the bathroom making Kayden appear ghostly. Jericho was sure he was the same way, him glancing at the mirror and seeing the reflection of the monster he became.
There were more scars on his face than he remembered. No makeup in the world could hide that despite how Charlotte had tried not long ago. His hair was parted to show off his forehead, but there were scars there too. He didn't recognize himself.
"Jer," Kayden said, the nickname snapping him back to reality. "Whatever it is, you can tell me. You know that, right?"
"I don't deserve that kindness."
"You're right, you don't, but I'm giving it to you anyway. I want to believe the man I grew up with is still in there. Show me he's there."
Jericho took a deep breath. "What I'm about to tell you will make you look at me differently. Much differently. And I'm so sorry for that, I'm so sorry for everything." Kayden absorbed the words and accepted them, Jericho fiddling with his fingers.
And then, he told Kayden his secret.
~~~
As it turned out, finding the concert was the easiest part. The hard part was they had no weapons. Metal detectors at the airport made it impossible to bring anything other than pocket knives. Ariel had hers, and a couple others managed to bring some, but otherwise, they were weaponless and had no way to take on the High Council.
That led them to the concert. It was happening three days after they landed, so they went to a hotel and stayed there for that long. Jericho didn't believe it, but there were fliers for the concert every where. No tickets needed, anyone could walk in. It was strange that they were hosting a walk-in concert. Jericho hadn't heard of it being that way before. That was without mentioning the convenience that it was posted everywhere, and seeing as it was located in a mini castle, Jericho knew it was the right one. It felt way too convenient.
They were wearing their best clothes. Charlotte had a red romper with a blonde wig, Jericho's hair matched hers while he wore a suit that was easy to maneuver in, Jimin was similar except he kept his dark locks. He said something about not caring if the Council saw him. Something about how this was a trap.
Jericho couldn't disagree. No matter how many disguises they wore, the odds were, they'd get caught. Jericho wanted to leave Ivan, Asa, and Ariel behind, but Theo and Kayden protested. Jimin was on Jericho's side, much to Jericho's amazement. No one wanted the injured and the young to get hurt. They were the ones they were fighting for, so if they died, there was no point in continuing.
Kayden and Jericho were closer than before because of how Jericho confided in him. Secrets were complicated, but Kayden made it less complicated. He told Jericho he was an idiot, then slapped him like Charlotte did. After, Kayden said it wasn't his business and decided to leave it be. Was he pissed? Yeah. Was he holding it against Jericho? No. He had every right to, but he didn't.
"If any of you suggest splitting up, I'm personally going to beat you all to death," Jimin said. Charlotte gave him a stare. "Okay genius, literally what plan could you possibly have that justifies splitting up when we're already outnumbered and have a blind guy, two injured guys, and a little girl?"
"Be ready for anything. We shouldn't stay together once we're inside. The larger our group, the easier it'll be to pick us out of a crowd. Jimin, go with Jericho and Ariel to find weapons. I'll stick with the injured two, Theo and Asa. Kayden, stay with Ivan. You two are the most disguised and I'm guessing the least wanted. You can blend in easier," Charlotte said, as they approached the front gates. Jimin, like the others, ended up agreeing when they saw there were three separate entrances to the castle. That made splitting up a better option. For that moment, anyway. They'd have to group up eventually. "Meet near the middle entrance in 15 minutes."
The fences were made of metal, and they were open to allow guests inside. It smelled of cheeseburgers and hot dogs, and the scent was strong enough that they could taste it too. Music and shouting were the two noises Jericho heard. There was nothing else. It pounded against his ears until he swore they were bleeding, his nose overwhelmed by the scents passing by him.
Jimin took him and Ariel inside the venue. It was an outdoor concert, but there was a mini castle attached to it. The space in between the entrance and the castle was where the concert was, a stage set up with lights flashing. They varied between cooler shades of navy to the brighter ones of lime. Jericho got painted in a sea of light, drowned by a wave of aromas originating from sweat.
The concert had already begun. There were people bumping into each other, Jericho literally getting his wig knocked off when someone jumped into him. The grass didn't have enough space for the free, open concert.
Spotlights waved around as the rock band continued, the guitarist breaking out into a solo. That masked every noise other than guitar. No communication was possible between the group as they split off to go to one of three entrances to the castle. The others disappeared right as Jericho went to turn around.
"Hey old man," Ariel shouted over the music. That was quite a feat. Jericho didn't think she had the lungs for that. "Want to sing? Show the concert who's boss."
"Haha. Shoot me," Jimin replied, going down the cobblestone path until they saw the archway that was the castle. There were a couple people inside, but with the concert in full swing, no one cared about whatever was in the castle. Jericho was sure that this was a trap now. Concerts were loud and an easy way to lure in people. An easy way to get them distracted on one thing while another was going on.
They made it to the other side, Ariel panting as they stood near the door. Jimin knelt and held her shoulders. "Are you okay?" he asked, and she nodded.
"Just a lot of people. I've never seen so many."
"It's okay, just don't let go of me." She took his hand, and they went inside the castle. It had a stone exterior that oozed elegance, and the interior was no different. Chandeliers lit the long, narrow passageways with teak wallpaper. There were tables with treats Jericho had never seen before on their left and right. Free treats that guests were snacking on. Ariel took one. Or two. Or maybe more than two, Jericho wasn't keeping count.
Jimin snickered and investigated the area. There were polished and light wooden floors with dark squares as a design. The design wasn't spectacular, but it was flashy enough to catch the attention of the drunk people. Jericho wished he was a part of that crowd.
They continued, noticing several guards around the area. They didn't bother taking them out yet. Not until they were deeper in the facility. It was a miracle that they weren't caught. Well, that was assuming they weren't caught and were getting lured into a gigantic trap where they all got killed at once.
That'd suck.
"Are you hurt?" Jimin asked Ariel, who shook her head. "Scarred?" That she nodded to. "Good, at least I know you'll never go to a party and make out with any boys."
"I'm not going to make out with any boys, they have cooties," she replied, and Jimin lit up. Jericho had never seen Jimin so happy.
Jimin ruffled her hair. "That's my girl." They continued down the hall, turning and seeing an empty sector. "Where to now?"
"Basement couldn't hurt," Jericho said.
"Holy shit, this entire God damn group needs to watch a horror movie."
"Nerd," Ariel replied, Jimin flipping her off.
"Let's pass the time," Jimin said, Jericho and Ariel turning to glance at him. "How about some jokes?"
"If I don't laugh, we have to compare our pinkies."
"Deal, you'll definitely laugh." Jimin cleared his throat, Jericho checking the corner of the identical hallway and seeing nothing. They turned down the intersection. Nothing. Not even guards. "Why didn't the skeleton climb the mountain?" Silence. "Because he didn't have the guts." Jimin laughed at his own joke, but Jericho and Ariel stayed quiet. Jimin coughed. "Shit."
"Deal's a deal," Ariel said, holding out her pinky. Jimin grumbled a curse and compared it, Ariel doing a cheer when she saw hers was bigger. Jericho had to admit he chuckled at the sight of the teen having a larger pinky than Jimin.
"Fuck you," he said to Jericho, then, to his own pinky finger, "fuck you too." He swiveled and pointed at Ariel. "And especially fuck you."
"Come on, let's focus, there hasn't been many guards around. No people either," Jericho said, and Ariel and Jimin fell back into their solemn state.
Jericho trembled. It was warm inside, yet there was a draft coming from the open windows on either side of them. There were few doors, mostly windows that were oval-shaped with no curtains. Strange designs seemed to dominate the entire castle.
"Be honest with me, do you like Charlotte or not?" Jimin asked, Jericho biting his lip. "It's okay if you do. Sometimes you have to lose everything to find what you really are. Now I've found myself, and everything I think I want to be. I'm slowly but surely getting there, and Jericho, it's been 5 years since I could even think something like that, let alone say it." He halted, facing Jericho. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For taking care of Charlotte. You're the best man I know, and I mean that. There's no man I'd rather have by my side right now, not even Kayden or Ivan. You're special to me. You're special to her too. I don't trust you, but I do trust you to take care of her. And Ariel, if the situation ever arises where you have to. Take care of my girls, Mr. Novak."
"Only if you promise to take care of yourself, Mr. Seong."
Jimin snorted and waved the air, picking up his pace. "Never happening, but I appreciate the sentiment."
They continued, Jericho watching the back of Jimin's head. Jericho begged himself to say it. To tell the truth, especially after all Jimin said. Every version of himself cracked down before his eyes, all because of Jimin and Kayden. Kayden called Jericho as he was, and Jimin saw the version of Jericho that he craved to be. But the only way to do that was by telling the truth.
Secrets laid on his tongue. Jimin noticed and raised a brow, Jericho shaking him off on instinct. Dammit. Dumbass move. Jericho mentally scolded himself, moving forward and praying that they'd get time to talk about it together. If Jimin didn't kill him in the process, that was.
Right as they were about to round the next corner, they got ran into by a wall. Or, not a wall. A group of men. Ariel yelped, Jimin pulling her behind him as he took out a pocket knife. Jericho didn't have to do shit. Jimin took care of them in less than a minute. What was a group of 6 became a group of groaning men who Jimin searched for weapons.
"Pistols, nothing else," Jimin said, tossing one to Jericho. He hesitated, then gave one to the kid as well, kneeling in front of her. "Only point if you want to shoot. Prepare for the kick it has, don't-"
"Jimin." He shut his mouth. "Charlotte already told me."
"Right. Yeah, she did. She's a good teacher. Come on, let's find more weapons." As soon as Jimin finished his sentence, a shot grazed by his ear and cut the tip of it off. It was identical to Kayden's ear now, Jimin ducking behind the wall and returning fire. "Shit, we have incoming!" Jimin lowered his voice and grumbled curses as he checked how many bullets the pistol had.
They returned fire. One shot. Two. Three. The bullets kept coming from both sides, Jimin taking extra pistols from the dead bodies whenever they ran out of ammo. Walls of neutral color exploded with bullet holes. Jericho had to duck to avoid many of them. Jimin kept standing, Jericho kneeling in front of him and peeking out to fire. They fired at the same time. The added momentum of gunshots allowed them the upper hand. Ariel caught on and shot what she could at the enemies.
A beat of silence signaled they were clear. Jimin led the way with Jericho on the rear, Ariel in the middle with her pistol weighing down her sprinting speed. They turned the next corner and were about to fire, but they saw something that made them halt in their tracks.
There was a woman there, a man in front of her with his pistol on them. The woman was the same way, two pistols waving at them as they froze. For some reason, this was different. It should have been another kill. Another tick to their imaginary chalkboard. Whoever the woman and man were, Jericho kept his weapon on them in case they made a rash move.
"How interesting," she said, peeking over the man's shoulder with her face caked in makeup and lipstick two shades too dark for her skin. "Mr. Seong and Mr. Novak. It's an honor to meet you." Her tone, the way she moved, the sari covering her body. Jericho knew, and based on the way Jimin stiffened, so did he.
Madam Amara.
~~~
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Heartless || •OG• ✔️
Mystery / Thriller|| 18+ Enemies to lovers gxb and bxb || Infamous NYC mafia leaders Charlotte and Jericho have been rivals for years. However, all of that changes when one of the leaders of their Underworld is assassinated. The rivals are forced together and must re...
