After I deal with Nakir and his father, the spot for Head of Directors will be open. To prevent an internal war at the hospital, I will have Raphael's father who is the Assistant Director under Nakir's father immediately promoted as Head of Directors. It only makes sense to move through the line of superiority. It just so happens to play in my favor that Raphael's father is next in said line. That way, the heir to Eshea Hospital's Board of Director will be Raphael. This will give me top priority in medical care in case any of my men get hurt. The other three angels will decide on a later date what they will wish to proceed with when the time comes.
After finalizing the finer details, the four angels dismiss themselves and head on home. Alex and Xander split off to see their squads for their own daily meeting. Delic clears the table while Michael escorts me over to my room with Isaac following close behind.
"You really are amazing," Michael comments as he helps me change into some comfortable clothes.
"I'm not amazing," I chuckle. "I'm just doing my best in helping you get the revenge you're looking for."
Isaac returns from the bathroom with a small pail and a washcloth. "Don't sell yourself short, Lady Viola. Michael's right. You really are amazing. You have several plans in line that just spewed from one problem. You already have a future in mind and a use for everyone that will be affected. If that's not amazing, then I don't know what is."
"You should accept compliments more often, my Lady," Michael whispers as he wrings out the washcloth to give me a sponge-type bath.
Am I really as amazing as they say I am? All I'm doing is analyzing the situation and administering judgment that is within my power. Anyone can do that if he or she just puts some thought into it.
Is it because I spent so much time around my father listening in on his meetings hearing about different tactics and strategies? Did I assimilate all of that information just to use it for this purpose? That's a possible reason. I was always in my father's shadow following him around, so it's not too much of a stretch that I absorbed his personality and ways of doing things.
"Ah! Isaac," I call out remembering his healed injuries. "Let me see your back. I know that Michael did a great job in healing it, but I just want to check on it to see how it is."
Isaac turns around from my closet in the bathroom. "Hm? Sure, if you wish." Isaac begins to unbutton his shirt as he walks over towards me. When he stands at the edge of the bed, he shows me his back that is covered with scars yet are fully healed. "Is there a problem?" he asks as I glaze his back with my fingers.
"I'm just surprised at how fast it healed," I comment, captivated by the scars. "If Michael wasn't here, it might have taken another two or three weeks for it to heal."
"That's nothing," Michael inserts. "You should see the angels that have their full blessings. They can reattach limbs and even save someone from dying as long as there is a pulse no matter how weak it is. When I get my full blessing back, I will reserve it only for you, Lady Viola." A cheeky smile bounces onto Michaels face.
"Well, I don't think I will ever be seriously injured, but knowing that you will save your blessing just for me makes me happy," I say petting Michael's head.
"Don't jinx it, my Lady," Alex advises as he walks into my room with the cart for dinner.
"Are you the superstitious type, Alex?" Isaac asks, helping Alex with setting the table.
"Only when it concerns the Young Lady," Alex replies with a wink. "By the way, Michael, Delic has told me about your declaration after lunch." A smug expression wipes over Alex's face. "Just because I'm the nicest out of the three of us doesn't mean that I'm gonna be a pushover. You're gonna have to try hard to beat me to the Lady's heart."
"And here I thought I was going to have one less competition," Michael retorts, standing up to face Alex. "It's going to be devastating for you when Lady Viola picks me over you."
"Why can't the Young Lady love all of us?" Isaac interrupts nonchalantly as he sets the dessert down onto the table. "Didn't Lady Viola say that Eshea approves of polygamous relationships? Doesn't that mean that she can have all of us as her husbands?"
Michael and Alex turn white as they creak their heads over to me. They have been so focused on being the 'number one' when they didn't realize that they could be my 'only ones'.
"Don't you think it's kind of early for me to be thinking about marriage?" I ask, scratching my cheek. "I'm still adjusting to the new workload and when this is all over, I'm just going to have more added onto it. I don't even think I'm going to have time to sit on the thought of marriage for a while."
"R-right?" Michael nervously replies awkwardly laughing.
"Well, I mean, it's best to keep the option of marriage open for future references," Alex adds in as he hides his embarrassed face.
"Now, now, you two," Isaac says, patting Michael and Alex on the back, "Maybe after things calm down, we can try again. Okay?"
The two guys nod their heads.
Not long after Michael finishes getting me dressed does Xander and Delic join us for dinner.
"Sorry, we're kind of late," Xander apologizes as he sits down. "There were some issues that I had to attend to that needed Delic's assistance."
"What happened?" I question grabbing my plate to start loading food on.
A worried look tries to creep onto Xander's face. "The Business District was hit by Black Snow."
Stunned by the sudden news, I drop my plate out of disbelief. "Tell me everything."
According to Xander and Delic, the CEO of Land Electronics almost had his eldest son kidnapped when the son was out walking his dog. One of Xander's men managed to catch a glimpse of the kidnap and quickly alerted the others in the area as well as Xander. Xander called for Delic as backup in case there were more people than just the two kidnappers. Delic found a way to catch up to and corner the two kidnappers.
Isaac recalls that it's the women who do the actual kidnapping, but judging from what happened this evening, that only occurs outside the city. Inside the city, everyone has a family they go to everyday. No one is lost on their own. This makes kidnapping harder, so the men, under the guise of the night, kidnap the unsuspecting kids when they are out without adults.
Xander and Delic relay that the kidnappers had small pins of a black snowflake which gave away their group identity: Black Snow. Xander and Delic transported the two kidnappers to the police department to let them handle the rest. This was a good idea for my part as it will look like I had no hand in their capture, so I won't be on Black Snow's suspect list.
"They are already inside the city," I angrily mutter as I tenaciously chomp down on my steak. "How did they get inside?"
"From my experience, Black Snow garners new members quite frequently," Isaac replies as he passes me a cup of water to stop me from accidentally choking on the steak. "I figure that since these two have been captured and might possibly be exiled from the city, Black Snow will just send new people into the city that haven't been recognized yet."
That could be true. The steel wall that surrounds Eshea is too tall for anyone to cross over unless you can fly like Isaac or Michael. Eshea doesn't turn down outsiders as we are neutral and a safe haven from the war. We have no reason to reject anyone who tries to seek asylum from the outside.
However, knowing that they are close enough to the border that they are sending in their people is irritating. I never knew how close they were to the city, so I couldn't accurately predict when they would start their reign of kidnappings again. Now that I know that they are close, I might have to speed up my planning.
"Delic, it looks like I'm going to have to reschedule the dinner meeting with Thanial Raphtale," I state as I sit up from my plate. "Tomorrow, can you send a request letter to schedule our meeting sooner? Say in about two to three days."
"Won't rescheduling the meeting affect your plans?" Michael hurriedly asks, almost tipping over his plate.
"My plans never had a set schedule," I reply, glancing down at the table. "The meeting with Nakir's father was the only one I scheduled because I acknowledge that he might be a busy person. I didn't want to disrupt the flow or the balance of power by demanding him to meet me on my time. But now, things have changed. The variable that I couldn't predict was Black Snow's arrival into the city. Their unexpected arrival caused a sudden speed up in plans."
"I will send a request letter out in the morning before we leave for school," Delic declares as he sets down his glass of water.
I turn to face Michael and Isaac. "You two, repeat to me what your plan is after the completion of your goals?"
"I want to continue serving you as my eternal debt for saving my life," Isaac responds with a small smile.
"I want to stay by your side and live out my life for the purpose of serving you," Michael answers with a firm expression.
"I have heard your replies." I look over at the twins who seem to actually be smiling at Michael's and Isaac's answers. "Alex and Xander, prepare the necessary items for the mind link ritual. I need to instill the mind link in Michael and Isaac before we go any further with my plans."
"Excuse, Lady Viola," Isaac interjects, "but what is a mind link?"
"A mind link is something that connects the internal thoughts of two or more people," I begin to explain. "We will be able to communicate even when we aren't near each other, but you can only speak to me. You won't be able to communicate with anyone else even if they have a mind link."
"Are you guys already connected to the Young Lady?" Michael questions gesturing at Delic, Alex, and Xander. The three of them egotistically smirk at Michael just to get on his nerves. "So you have been able to talk to her without even being next to her?!"
"This ability is only given to those who are my personal aides. Even the workers on the estate don't have a mind link with me," I further explain.
Alex swallows his rice and meat then takes a drink of water. "Don't you think it's too risky to do both of them at the same time? You remember what happened last time when you did Xander and me. That was nerve wracking."
"Says the guy who got to experience a different side of Master," Xander mutters, glancing at his younger brother as he sits back on his side of the chair crossing his arms.
"I do wish to experience that at least one more time," Delic says to himself with slight ecstasy in his wild grin.
With a confused expression, Michael and Isaac turn to me hoping that I would give an explanation to Delic and the twins' reaction.
"There are side effects that follow the mind link ritual if you do two at the same time," I explain with an exasperated sigh.
"Which are?" Michael and Isaac ask simultaneously.
"You will find out when it happens," Xander spouts before I could answer. "But we will keep an eye on you to ensure nothing goes too far."
Michael's and Isaac's faces don't appear to be comprehending the situation. They want to ask more about it but fear that they are only to get more vague answers, so they drop it for later.
"I will be fine doing both at the same time," I reassure everyone. "Like last time, it will take me two days to fully recover which should be enough time for me to figure out the smaller details in the next plan after I finish with Nakir and his father."
"If that is what you wish, then I can't object to it," Alex replies looking concerned.
"We should still have the ingredients in your father's office, so we will ensure that there is enough for two rituals," Xander adds with a thumbs up and a dumb smile.
"Perfect. I will hold the ritual when we finish eating," I announce gobbling down my dessert. "It's best to do it on a full stomach since it will take a lot of energy out of both parties."
After we finish eating, Delic and Alex clear the table while Xander goes to my father's office to retrieve the sulfur. Meanwhile, I explain to Michael and Isaac about the process for the ritual.
"Do you two fully understand your parts during and after the mind link ritual?" I ask the boys standing in front of me.
"We shouldn't disrupt your concentration during the ritual. Afterwards, I will be the one in charge of carrying you into the school building, to our lunch spot and back, and out of the school," Isaac responds promptly.
I chose Isaac to be the one to carry me on the first day because he has some crazy strength when compared to Michael. Well, angels aren't made to be doing any heavy lifting, so it's understandable to have the vampire with superhuman strength carry me.
"We should be calm the entire time. On the second day, I will be the one to help you with your finer tasks and catch you in case you fall," Michael answers, smiling down on me.
Michael is going to be in a heap of trouble if I get the aphrodisiacal side effects again. Once my body is able to relax, those aphrodisiacal agents are going to flow through my body. Hopefully, my body is strong enough this time to withstand the effects and not cause trouble for me. I have a bad feeling that Michael might not resist me as much as Alex did and just accept whatever I do to him.
"We should start immediately. Michael since you won the rock-paper-scissors, you get to go first," I announce as I walk over to my spot on the base of the candle.