Intuition (A Villains & Monsters Novella)

7. Luca

Luca sat in Simon's home office, which was the quietest room in the lake house at the moment. Outside, music played and everyone else laughed loudly. He could tell that a few of his friends were already drunk and buzzing with much-deserved joy.

He stared at his phone irritably, his brows furrowed together in disappointment. He let out a long, tired sigh, and began to respond to the email from one of his henchmen. The task that he assigned to them was simple, but apparently they failed and the target slipped through their fingers.

I knew I should've just asked someone who'd proven to be a bit more competent, or even took care of the damn thing myself. Would've been much quicker that way. Now I'm going to have to wait a little longer for another opportunity to open. For fuck's sake, that's what I get for listening to Austin's advice and giving this mission to someone who needed more experience.

"It'll be a good learning opportunity," Luca mimicked Austin's voice from earlier with a roll of his eyes. After sending the email, he put his phone on Simon's desk and inhaled slowly, rubbing his temples to fight the oncoming headache.

Maybe I'm being too harsh on the guy, he thought to himself. Maybe I think this is simple because I work too much. Either way, I need a drink.

With that, he left the office, changed into his swim shorts and finally went back outside. He saw Adrienne first, who excitedly grinned. "There you are!" She exclaimed. "I was worried that I was going to have to drag your ass back out here."

"Sorry. Working."

"Obviously," she scoffed as she followed him to the mini bar. He grabbed a clean glass, fished a couple of ice cubes out of the freezer, then reached for the bottle of amber liquid. "Oh, whiskey?" She teased. "That kind of night, huh?"

Luca chuckled quietly, then sipped from the glass once he was done pouring, relishing in the way it burned on the way down. "Unfortunately. Going to have to talk to my team about fucking up so badly on missions."

"You should invest in a favorite henchman who will take care of that part for you."

"The job's heavy enough. I don't want anyone thinking that they need to take on extra responsibility for my sake." He sighed, then took another drink from his glass. "It is nice to be around everyone though."

"Hm, is that your way of saying you've missed us?"

He playfully rolled his eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be dunking Tony in the lake right now, or something?"

Tony, who was relaxing next to Hazel on one of the rocks by the lake, groaned as he stood up. "Really?! You had to remind her?!"

"And this is why you're the best, Luca. Have fun tonight!" She waved him off, then chased a screaming Tony into the water.

"Hey, guys, be careful!" Simon yelled, slightly slurring his words. "Unfortunately, I won't be able to save any of you tonight if you drown!"

Luca raised a brow at his friend, then laughed softly when he saw his bright grin, and the way he was clinging to Daija, peppering the giggling woman's face with loving kisses. "Gee, Reid, don't suffocate her. How much have you had to drink?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah!" Simon gave a cheery thumbs up, and Daija burst into another fit of giggles. Sierra, Austin, Wylan and Violet followed suit, and Luca shook his head, but his smile remained.

He wandered away from the backyard until he was closer to the lake, looking at where Tony was sitting prior to being chased, and where Hazel remained. She sat peacefully on the rock with her legs in the water. Her eyes were shut, but her head was tilted towards the moon, which seemed to wash her entire figure in its soft, glowing light.