Beyond Duties

Chapter 12

"W-who are you?" Vee questioned as the man guided her to the backdoor exit of the bar. She couldn't clearly see the stranger's face which was covered with a scarf up to his nose, but she could see his wary eyes darting around as though trying to ensure that no one noticed or followed them. He cautiously let her lean against the wall after letting go of her arms.

"Please don't make a scene, Yates," the man said in a hushed voice. "I won't hurt you." He moved Vee further into a darker spot and started reaching for his jacket pocket. He was about to withdraw his hand when all of a sudden, another man appeared and hit him hard on his jaw.

"Sh-!" Due to the force of getting hit, he lost his balance and tripped against a stack of beer cases behind him.

"Who are you?" This time, the inquiry came from the second man who is now blocking Vee from view with his own body. He was poised to attack again, fists lifted menacingly as he stared down at the sprawled body of the man he hit.

"Jesus!" The first man massaged his jaw and looked at his attacker with annoyed eyes. "Lucas Connor, you dickhead. You should already know that by now." He gingerly lifted himself up and fixed his clothes.

The man who was blocking Vee's view took out a gun which was held somewhere on his ankle, and pointed it straight at Lucas' chest. Vee started panicking, not used to seeing people being held at gunpoint. She wanted to scream, but she was forced to keep quiet when the man next to her suddenly covered her mouth. Not only did the sudden movement surprise her, but also the weird tenderness of the way he held her made her freeze. He even turned to her with the most caring eyes she could ever imagine belonging to someone who is carrying a gun.

"It's alright, Venera. It's me," Jordan's baritone voice came from the man, and it took a few moments before Vee realized it. When her eyes fell on his pistol, she came back to her senses and finally acknowledged Jordan's presence. She was surprised to see him looking a little distressed.

Lucas Connor sighed in exasperation, casually flicking Jordan's gun away from him. He once again reached into his jacket pocket and withdrew a small envelope which he handed to Vee.

"I only meant to give this to her," he said, automatically lifting his hands in the air when Jordan aimed his gun at him again. "It's the CCTV footage of the car accident where your fathers were involved. I had it stripped from the database as Mr. Yates had requested a day before it happened." He looked at Jordan with much displease. "I never knew who you were and whether you are to be trusted, that's why I attempted to plant a camera on the Yates princess to watch you. You got me busted sooner than I expected. Seems like the Gallaghers had kept an ace for a long time."

Jordan studied Lucas' disgruntled face before snatching the envelope away. He peeked into it and saw a small hard drive.

"There are no other copies left," Lucas said, "and the cops don't know about it. You could research all you want, but that's all there is. I risked my reputation just to get away with that. I don't know what the old man Yates wanted with it, and why he seemed to know that his own accident was going to be captured in it. I did what he wanted - deliver that to his daughter."

A sudden movement from the backdoor exit alarmed Lucas and he instinctively hid behind Jordan. The latter aimed his gun to the direction of a man who was lurking behind the shadows.

"Hold it," came Frank's voice. He slowly approached, hands raised as he grinned at Jordan and Vee. "'Sup, Jordy, you seem too excited to blow people's heads." He winked at Vee. "I came here when I realized that you weren't inside the bar anymore. I guess I was right in expecting Mr. Connor to show up." He eyed the man curiously and also took a peek in the envelope. "I guess we should take that somewhere safe."

Frank had to quickly explain what he meant in order to convince Jordan that Lucas Connor was someone to be trusted. He said that his research revealed that the Connor family is one of the Yates' secret allies. Apparently, Reynold Yates wanted the Connors to be perceived as independent businessmen who would not likely be involved with the Yates, despite the truth that the company owner, George Connor, was once his schoolmate and an acquaintance. It was obviously done for the safety of the Connors. Their communication was always done covertly to avoid being discovered by whomever the Yates were up against.

"I need to go before I attract attention," Lucas grumbled, casting a quick salutation at Vee. He nodded his farewell towards Jordan and Frank, who watched him casually go back inside the bar.

After Lucas had gone, Jordan started asking about the details of Frank's research which the latter was supposed to share with Vee. Frank cast him a dubious look, as it was unlikely for him to discuss important matters in poorly secured places like where they currently are.

"You alright, buddy?" He asked, noticing Jordan's pissed expression. He also looked at Vee, who absentmindedly slumped on top of an abandoned chest freezer, yawning and sneezing alternately.

"Where's the shawl?" Jordan suddenly demanded, having asked Frank to buy one from the nearest boutique earlier. He ignored Frank's developing mischievous grin as he ripped the shopping bag handed to him. He then roughly tossed the shawl around Vee's bare shoulders and lifted her off the freezer to make her stand. "I'll take her home," he told Frank. "You go and have some fun. I'll call you tomorrow."

Frank opened his mouth to argue, but seeing Jordan's grim face, he simply shrugged and walked away, leaving the latter looking a lot grumpier than ever.

A/N

I'm sorry for the late update update, my lovely and silent readers ^_^

Got a bit loaded for the Holidays...

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