CHAPTER 2

     

      A gasp jumped from my lips. My eyes widened in shock. I walked in slowly. Still, wondering, he remembered this day. I whirled on my bare feet looking at my surroundings at all kinds of red, and white flowers. Red roses, orchids, daisies, lilies, all kinds of bouquets, dozens of red roses. My inside tinged with happiness.

       I twirled as I felt him. His coat was hanging in a deadly grip, his face was severe, eyes blazing. The top three buttons were unfastened, showing his hard muscles. His furious gaze met my tearful eyes. I quickened my steps at him and curled my arms around his torso. 

       "You remember! I thought…" Tears rolled down. I glanced up at him. His arms came around me, slowly. His gaze was perplexed a little, "I cooked for us. I was waiting for you. I thought you forgot our day." A chill ran down my spine continuously staring into his dark eyes. 

       "You didn't check the room," His voice was slow and intense. He schooled his cold expression after a soft sigh. 

       I shook my head, wiped my cheek with the back of my hand and put my hand on his shoulder. This day is undeniably important for me, "I've baked a cake for us." I took the inner skin of my bottom lip between my teeth. He was looking angry.

        He forwarded his hand and slipped it on my cheek. Drawing it down my neck, he brushed it along the neckline of my dress. My body was responding to his touch. My heart quickened. Certainly, he could hear the palpitations of my heart. He wasn't saying, just beholding everything very carefully. Unusual! I wasn't the center. 

                     Bizarre!

       "Duante," He pressed his index finger on my lips. I gulped as my words disappeared in my throat. 

       I sighed through my nose as he was still pressing it against my lips. His unreadable face perplexed me more. He remained impassive, unemotional. 

       "Get ready for bed," His voice hardly reached my ears. 

       I stared at him, trying to control my hurt expression. I was so busy cooking for us that I didn't come into our room. I held his hand. Still, his gaze didn't return to me. His second hand lowered to his holster. He always carried two guns and a sharp knife with him. 

        I stilled, careful not to make any noise. He slipped his hand. It disappeared behind his coat. I could only guess, it could be a gun and a knife. 

       I saw the sharp shining edge of his knife. His gaze was already on his prey. He drew his hand back to aim at his mark. He sought it and threw the knife. I didn't hear anything.

      Instantly, I spun to see. My eyebrows pulled together when I couldn't see anything. Then, my gaze rested on a dead snake. It had a wide head and a narrow neck. It was a timber rattlesnake of yellow color. A series of dark brown cross bands on its skin. I retreated in dread and hit his hard body. 

      "Duante," I muttered in fright.

      "Shh," He shushed me and tugged me closer to his body. 

      I snuggled closer. He was quiet. That was a sign. The danger was still surrounding us. 

      I tried to calm my breathing. Minutes passed. We stood still, not making any noise. My heart began to thud when I heard….

                 Hiss! Hiss! 

       Duante gripped another blade in his hand. I sucked when I saw a grey snake crawling at us. He raised his head high in the air and hissed. He opened his mouth. I could see his back mouth. 

       "Black mamba!" I shrieked in dread.  

        When I saw it was near the wall. In a blink, it was closer to us. It could be eight feet. It slithered quickly to us. He raised in the air, his head proudly held high as it opened its black mouth to attack. I screamed. Duante was agile and quicker than always. He ran the knife. A sharp blade cut it into two pieces.

       Footsteps echoed in the air. Assassin, Aakash, Rocky, Drake and more people rushed in gripping their guns. 

       "There are snakes. Empty the floor." Duante said in a calm voice. While I was breathing heavily and dreading it.

       He grasped my wrist and made me walk with him. I was still staring at the two dead snakes in awe. 

       "Yes, sir." I heard again. 

       My body trembled in fear when I heard a thud. I snapped my head from the doorway to the sound. The fake moon ball was crawling toward us after bouncing on the stairs. 

       "What's it?" Aakash asked, contorting his face, gaze curious. 

       "Fake lighting moon balls. I ordered them online for celebration." I whispered but I wasn't certain he had heard me. It should have stopped but it was still crawling on the marble floor. I saw a shadow crawling inside it. I pressed my body to Duante in fear, "Why is it not stopping?" My voice was full of suspicion, and panic. 

       "There could be a snake in it." Assassin said as he walked over it. He must have seen moving shadows in it. He hunched down near it and stopped it with the sharp nook of his knife. He brought his hand back near to his head and hit it with full force. 

       I held my breath, "Oh my God!" I squealed in dread when a dark head raised from it and hissed at him. 

      He was stilled before wiping his blade on it. 

      "There are a lot. It's a dozen. There are a dozen more snakes." I was frightened. 

      "Aakash, Drake," Duante motioned at him

      Aakash climbed the stairs. Drake rushed behind him.

      "I don't know there are snakes. I purchased the moons, not snakes." Tears filled in my eyes. My hands began to tremor. I wouldn't forgive myself if someone died because of the venom of serpents. My shoulders began to shake with sobbing. 

       Duante engulfed me, "It's not your fault." He muttered. 

       "I stayed among them more than an hour waiting for you." I cried against his shoulder. 

       His body stiffened, and his jaw tightened. His grip tightened. The rush of the hot breath fanned my skin. 

       "Boss, it's cleared," Aakash said. 

       Duante took a long stride back and scooped me up. He gestured at Assassin before walking toward the private elevator. 

      It had been only a week since we shifted to this house. It was unbelievable. We didn't have any enemies now. I curled my arms around him and looked over his shoulder. Assassin was standing clenching a sword. I didn't know. Where did this come from? 

       The elevator opened. We weren't alone. Drake and Rocky were with us, gripping their guns.

       Duante put me on my feet and looked me in the eye. He broke the gaze and turned to Drake and Rocky. He stared into their eyes for a second. Rocky immediately looked down and bowed his head. Drake did the same. They talked in sign language. I didn't understand.

       "I'll come with you." I grasped my hands around his wrist. 

       He shook his head and pulled his hand out of my grip. His gaze became furious once again. He whirled and strode out of the lift. I choked back my words, my desire to stay with him. 

       Rocky pressed the button and the door closed, breaking his view. My heart accelerated. It made me a bit irate. I could understand his concern. But I wasn't trained to fight with snakes nor was he. Was he?