Kill The Innocent

Chapter One

"After you, hell should be easy" 

-Unknown

***

"We need to have a serious sit down." He told me as he walked around to the other side of his desk. "I know the things you've been doing."

"You say that as though you don't do those things yourself." I snap back at him.

"Val, listen to me." Listening. I've been doing that my whole life. Why should I anymore? "You don't understand the danger you've put us in."

No, I fully understand. "What are you talking about?"

"This man you killed last week? He belongs to someone. Someone dangerous. Someone you don't know the strength of." He stands from his desk. "By killing one of his men, you've put a target on our backs."

The man I've messed with is none other than Declan Love. And yes, he's dangerous. And yes, I killed one of his men on purpose. I want nothing to do with the man in front of me. But I also have no way to leave right now. Unless he's dead.

"Nolan, can you please not put all this stress on me." I say in the most monotone, sarcastic way I could. "Don't make me feel so-"

"I'm not fucking kidding!" He snaps. "Valerie, I don't think you understand the burden you've just put on me! Love is dangerous, and by doing what you fucking did you just put me and our entire team at a goddamn risk." He's talking with his hands now. He must be really mad. Flailing those things around like they aren't attached to his body.

"You say our team like I'm a part of it." I cross my arms over my chest and lean back against my chair.

I can't believe the man I'm looking at is my brother. He is nowhere close to the person I grew up with. He is now quite the opposite. I stand and head for the door. "I'm leaving."

He grabs my arm and pulls me back. "No the fuck you're not!"

All I have to do is look between me, and his hand roughly gripping my arm for him to let go of me. He knows what I'm thinking. What would Mom say?

It's a tactic I realize bides my time. I'm not sure how much longer it's going to work though.

I start to head toward the door. "You can't just do that too us." He says on my way out. I come to a dead stop, but don't turn around. "We're your family. I'm your family. And the only one you have left."

He sighs before he sits back down at his desk. I head him pick up the phone and start pressing buttons. "I hope you fix this."

I stop, chewing on my lip while I think about what he just said. But then I'm out the door.

I grew up with my vigilante parents, and my brother, Nolan. I was taught good and bad at a very very young age, I was raised to kill. And kill good. Nothing in between.

My father, Lucas Arrow, was known by a lot of people. He went to law school and became a lawyer. He was known by a lot of people that way considering he was such a good one. But once he realized how often these people get away with their crimes, he took his anger out on them. He learned. He progressed.

He met my mother, Betty soon after. He had killed a man for rape, and ran into my mother, who by some chance was trying to do the same thing. They got married, had Nolan, then, 15 years later, me. They raised us with the values they had. Hurt those who hurt others.

When I was 15, my parents died, killed in the process of trying to kill another. I went into custody of Nolan.

Nolan took over my father's business. He hired all new people and started giving out cases to them. Now, with his authority, he tries to control every aspect of my life. I'm tired of it.