Sebastian.
Millions were being pumped into his account every month just to clean up dirt and yet, he could not do something as simple. had Orla at my tail. ‘Orla’!
Sebastian.
Millions were being pumped into his account every month just to clean up dirt. Yet, he could not do something as simple and now had Orla at my tail. ‘Orla’!
Rage loomed over not just my sight, but my senses as well. Every nerve in my body was ticking aggressively that even if I were to vent all of my furies on the figure kneeling before me, there’d still be some more left pent-up and unable to completely run loose.
Forcefully jamming my right foot against his shoulder, I tossed him to the ground, uniting his back flatly against it. I then pinned him to the floor, fixing his waist between my knees. “You. Have. Not. Been. Doing. Your. Job,” I said, breaking each syllable with punches saturated with ferocity, across his cheek. Even if it got dislocated, that’d only fetch my soul little or no satisfaction.
I vented in a roar, raising my hands in fists, and then landed a final punch with an impact equal to the previous ones put together. By the time, it was a crimson-themed party around his lips.
Thudding my knuckles against his chest, I frustratedly dragged them down in a bid to clean off the red dense liquid trailing them, a disgusted scowl pinching my features.
“Who the hell do you work for?” Seizing him by his collar, I raised his bloody face to mine. “Who the hell do you work for, you scallywag?!” I yelled in his face, my eyes brimming with raw fury.
“I work for you, sir,” he gurgled slowly amid the blood in his mouth.
“For me? You work for me?” Foreran by broken chuckles, maniacal laughter snapped through my throat seconds later. “I don’t think so!” Releasing my grip, I let him plop downward, eliciting a grimace in response the second a thud sound pushed through when his head crashed with the tile beneath it.
I got off him and charged toward the footstool to retrieve the papers littered on and around it.
“If you truly work for me … If you truly –” Pausing and staring helplessly at the papers in my hand with an erratically heaving chest, the gravity of its content struck me like lightning. Again. “Aaarghh!” I vented.
Hastily, he got on his knees instead, keeping his head buried.
“How are these here, Matthew?” I asked through gritted teeth in a compelled calmness, keeping the urge to rip his insides apart hurled up like a caged mad dog waiting viciously to attack. “You did your job? –” Crouching to his level and clasping his hair from behind his head, I held up the papers to his face. “How then did these get here?”
His eyes were already misty while violent tremors took over his jaw. He was humming something inaudibly, letting the blood drip off the spaces by the corners of his mouth.
“You don’t know?” I reechoed, guessing his words. And his sharp affirmative nod further confirmed that.
“You don’t know?” Peaking the force around my fists, I clenched his hair more furiously, steeling his face up. “Say something, Matthew!” I couldn’t care less about his battered face. His silence was getting on my last nerve!
“I do not know, I promise,” he finally whimpered. “I b-b-buried everything as per your orders. I made sure none of it was leaked to the p-p-press or media. I really do not know how this got here, I swear!”
“You had just one job, Matthew,” I ditched the silence that followed, in a voice muffled with rage, now speaking through gritted teeth. “Just. One. Job!” I emphasized, my pitch growing denser with deep insight on how screwed up I was already.
Then flinging his head away, I stood up and just paced around, restless.
“I pay you handsomely just to clean up trash, Matthew.
“Do you want to go back to the streets??!” I roared.
“No, Sir!” he pleaded, falling flat on the floor. “I-I will fix this somehow. Please give me a second chance.”
“Unless you can bring me her head on a platter, shut. Your. Filthy trap!” I was cheesed off already. Giving me these copies meant she could do the same over and over so what could he possibly do to “fix” this? That was in no way going to reassure me.
Ruffling my hair, I heaved a sigh of frustration before storming out.
A few moments after that, I changed into something else and headed to the station to see Mateo.
Bursting through the holding room’s door, my eyes jammed with Mateo’s rather nonchalant as he was relaxing against the chair.
Rushing to him and immediately seizing his collar, “What foul play are you driving at?!” I asked, po-faced.
“Using my line, I see.” He scoffed through, throwing his face away. “Did Orie visit?” he asked casually.
“Answer me, Mateo! What the hell are you both up to?!” I yelled furiously.
He flinched, scrunching his features in discomfort while rocking his left forefinger in his ear like I was being a nuisance to him. “You’re being loud, Sebastian,” he mumbled loud enough for me to hear.
Acting chill and aloof, he was intentionally trying to anger me. As much as I wouldn’t want to accept, it was working. I could feel literal flames ride their way up my head like a time bomb was embedded in there and waiting to explode.
“You’re not a dog, Sebastian. You don’t have to bark,” he said to me, holding my grim stare firmly, rather unbothered. “Sit down.” Gesturing, he slanted his head in the other chair’s direction for a second.
As much as I hated to move an inch as it’d seem like I was simply obeying his orders, I knew a proper conversation would only be attained once I calmed down.
I sucked my teeth before letting go, my smearing eyes staring daggers much longer. Rounding the table, I took the seat across from him.
“What the hell are you guys doing?” I asked again, keeping my voice as composed as I could. Was doing a pretty good job, I must confess.
“I’ve literally been here for the past four hours, Sebastian,” he stressed nonchalantly. And that? That right there was what got my veins swelling to the surface, resentment pulsating through them at s dangerous speed.
‘Still feigning ignorance, huh?’
“You asked if Orla visited. Why?” I managed to ask, still keeping myself in check.
He winced, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully. “Did I?” he returned cluelessly.
“Mateo!” I roared vehemently, thudding against the table pretty hard. At this point, I could explode any time soon.
Chuckling breezily, he was obviously relishing the furnace he threw me in.
“You think this is funny?”
He flashed me a willy smile before answering, “Your time’s ticking.” My brows jumped in dismay. He was aware of her visit.
“You’re playing with fire, Mateo.” Literally. “And as you know, it’s blind and doesn’t hesitate to burn whatever stands in its way,” I warned dismally.
“You’d be the one burning if you don’t get me out of here,” he retorted. My control almost snapped, jerking my hand forward in a fist across the table like I was going to punch him. I would. Just not today. For now, they had an edge over me but by the time we’d switch places, I’d stop at nothing until I saw that smug look on his face dissipate into thin air.
I drew in a deep breath to abate my nerves but its effect was like a pinhole against a fireball.
“You’re gonna pay for this,” I promised.
“Until then.” That ripped a dismayed scoff off my throat abruptly. Whatever was egging them on would come crumbling by the time I’d be done dealing with them. Mercilessly.
They had their lucky stars to thank for this victory. I rose forcefully, the impact producing a stainless-clattering sound as the chair behind me clashed with the ground.
Storming out, I shot him one last glare before exiting the room entirely.
I dropped all charges against him but this was miles away from being the end yet. They were going to PAY dearly for the humiliation. That was a promise I made to myself. And of course, my pride that just suffered the cruelest brunt.
On my way out, I sighted someone lurking behind my car, his full profile swallowed by the black hood over his head, and a nose mask. I paused just before the exit and just stared at him through the glass door, hoping that’d scare him off. But he wouldn’t budge.
Putting my mask on, I grabbed the pull handle ready to get out when he slipped out of my view.
I ran toward the spot he was standing in and found it empty. He was gone.
Whipping my head in multiple directions, I looked for him but as if I’d just seen a ghost, he’d vanished into thin air.
Then my phone chimed in my pocket. Raising it to see, it was a text from an unknown sender.
It read: “Do as you’re told. Else…”

I waited in burning anticipation while the chat box appeared against his blank profile, three dots dangling and validating my wait. He wasn’t done texting.
Another chime came through, and the remainder of the text came on.
“It would be your brain spilling the next time.”