Double Down (a double standards series) Dark Romance (Part 7)

The Truth Hurts

Fuck, why am I so stiff? My neck feels as if it's been twisted at an odd angle and hurts to move. A stinging sensation can be felt over my leg eye and my ribs burn.

Slowly I was working my way out from beneath whatever grogginess I was under. This feeling made me feel zombiefied , sluggish and gave the impression that everything was happening in slow motion. My brain was fighting to wake up and and make sense out of my situation. Why did I feel like this?

I went to lift my hand up so I could rub my eye's in hopes of making them open up but my hand wouldn't move. I tried to move it a few more time's but it wouldn't budge. It was if it was being held down by force. That's when I realized that my hands were tied down to the armrest of my chair. Not only my hands but my feet as well. Now I was determined to lift this fog from my mind and wake up to access my situation. As I fought to open my eye's I heard a low gruntal noise near by indicating that I wasn't alone. Biting my bottom lip I forced my eye's open and the light stung my retinas like fire. Nothing was focused, it was all a blinding blurr. I squinted my eye's several time's until thing's seemed clearer. I discovered my neck hurt because I had been asleep in a chair and my head had been dangling. Many pop's and cracks registered out as I stretched upright. My eye stung from an obvious blow and my ribs told me that I had been in a fight but with who and why?

Another groan rang out and I remembered that I wasn't alone. Turning my head toward the sound I saw Sire in pretty much the same scenario as me.... Beaten and tied to a chair. It was obvious that he too was trying to overcome this fogginess. My only conclusion was that we had been drugged. I watched As Sire went through the same ritiual as I did before he finally came to. "You look like shit". He said in a dry voice.

" You look no better". I retorted and realized how thirsty I was.

Before we could say more I thought of Alice and hoped she was okay in whatever happened. Then like a lightening flash it all came back to me. Bouncing up and down I tried to scoot my chair closer to Sire to finish him. "You fucking bastard. I'm going to rip your throat out. Alice was mine and you had no right to touch her".

Sire remained calm and I could tell that he was trying to piece together what I was talking about. The haze lifted and the asshole smirked. "Oh yea Alice. Hmmm.... Is she your girl? Or is she mine?"

With a growl I tried to lunge closer to him. Before I could the metal door slung open and Demarco barged in. "Good fucking morning fuck faces. I see that beauty sleep didn't do a damn thing for either of you shit heads."

" untie my ass so I can finish this". I snarled.

Demarco looked at me sharply and slowly walked to me. Gripping me by my shirt, he lifted me along with the chair up off the floor and got into my face. "You do not speak to me so. I am your king and things will be fine my way" .

He let me go and the chair clatter to the floor but I managed to balance it out and not tip over. "First off I can't believe you, Sire would attempt to betray your cousin so. Our family is built on trust and loyalty and you broke a cardinal rule. I'm gravely disappointed in you. However your actions will receive a punishment. You will lose your ranking for six month's. For the next six month's your title won't be the future king. You will work with my runner's. That's right, you'll be doing the shit work. You will rid us of any dead bodies, clean the crime scene, get my coffee, run errands, clean the pit and the tools when used and share your table with the runner's if we have any event."

" that's bullshit". Sire bellowed.

Demarco slammed his fist down upon the table and yelled until the point of bursting a blood vessel. "No what is bullshit is you two fuck ups nearly causing a rift in the family and the business. I will not allow such deceit to carry on under my rule. This is over now. Here is where it ends. No fucking piece of ass will cause our downfall".

" Oh like you nearly let a whore named Ivy".

Smack.

Before Sire could complete his sentence my uncle backhanded him across the mouth and a trickle of blood fell from his lip. "Fuck Pape, you didn't need to hit me". Sire swore as I laughed.

My laughter was cut short with one deadly glance from my uncle. "I'm good". I mumbled.

"Here's what's going to happen. You  two fucktards will remain tied in this room until you work it out. There will be no food, water or bathroom breaks so I suggest you make it quick." . Demarco stated.

He begin to leave when I spoke up with a question that was killing me. "Where is Alice"?

Before he could reply my mother walked in. "Honey she's gone".

" you fucking killed her? " Sire and I both roared.

"No baby. Sometime duiring the fight she slipped out and made a run for it. No one noticed with all the commotion going on. It wasn't until we checked the camera's that we realized she left. Don't worry, we have men on it".

I eyed Demarco hoping my mother was telling me the truth and my uncle hadn't killed her. Demarco rolled his eye's. "I didn't kill the trick. Had she stayed then yes, I might have ended her".

I knew he wasn't lying and relaxed. My main goal now was to get this shit over with Sire and look for my Angel. However that proved harder than said.

Three day's we spent held up in that room covered in our own piss and starving. Eventually I felt like Sire was being honest when he said that they never slept together and it was all him not Alice. He apologized and promised to stay away from her if I found her. I guess you could say it took this to make me see the errors of my way and for that I am ashamed of my behavior. I swear if I find Alice I'll do right this time. I won't force anything on her. I'll listen or at least try to. But the thing that hurt the most was knowing that I hurt her. I didn't hear her out or trust her word and ultimately I placed my hands on her. Feeling like shit was a understatement.

After a shower and some food I started my search. Day's and day's of turning over ever stone led to nothing. There was no record of even the tiniest lead. It was almost as if she never existed.

Many month's passed and I still hadn't given up looking. My hope was dwindling and my guilt ate at me. I prayed that wherever she was that she was happy and safe. Meanwhile my soul had turned to ice. I avoided my cousin's and refrained from going out doing anything. The only places I did visit was the coffee shop where we met and her old apartment building. Each visit only made my heart harder and I felt like my Pape's craziness was showing up inside me. I knew I had to stop coming here so I took care of it the only way I knew how.... Murder.

My first victim was a older man whom we had been watching for sometime. He was responsible for trying to steal drugs from us. As soon as we confirmed it true I found myself waiting in the back of his car. Before he could even get the key in the ignition I had his throat laid open from ear to ear.

I didn't stop there. I went to Demarco or my Pape everyday practically begging for someone to kill. No matter how many I killed or how vicious my kill was nothing made my hurt go away and every night I found myself wondering by the coffee shop or her old place thinking that maybe this time she'd be there.... But she never was.

Knowing that I couldn't continue on this pattern, I made a decision one night. After the coffee shop closed, I poured gasoline around the building and with one, last, long look, I struck a match and clicked it into the flammable liquid. A sadness ceased my chest as I stood off in the shadows I watched my memories go up in flames but it had to be done. If it no longer stood I didn't have a reason to come here. As for the apartment building, well that wasn't so easy. I couldn't set it on fire and possibly injury or kill innocent people. Not only that it would make them homeless as well. No need to make other's suffer for my issue's.

Instead I started spending late nights at the Den drinking or playing a hand of card's and that's how it happened. I stumbled into Reya Cortez. I've known her for year's as her father is one of our men so she grew up in the building and life. Mafia trained and breed to the bone. She approached me and we engaged in small talk. Eventually we ended up in one of the room's at the Den. From there on  I guess we could be considered an item.

She wasn't Alice but she did help take my mind off of her and numb my pain. Finally I came to the realization that I'll never have what my grandparents had. Reya is my destiny and there should be no complications like it would be if I dated women like Alice. Reya is the safe choice. She's prepared, a fighter and  accustomed to this life of mine. Sometimes it's just easier to settle.