Bernand raked his hand through his hair while staring at the three piles of files he had gathered on the archive's oval-shaped table. He did not know there had been so many rogue assassins in the past.
The two taller piles contained all the rogues who were under an order to be hunted by other assassins who vowed their loyalty to the House of Valor. The lowest pile next to them contained the rogues, hunted down and killed.
Bernand heaved a sigh, wiping his face before scratching his beard. There went the plan of discovering who the rogue assassin was.
Bernand slumped on the chair next to the table, trying to figure out what he should do now. Asking Father Silverius was one option, but he doubted Silverius would give him the answer so easily. Valentianus was another option to go to and ask the question. The man had the most power in this city besides the House of Valor, but he didn´t know every assassin the House used when something needed to be handled discreetly. And Bernand was confident the rich boy didn´t know anything about rogue assassins.
He was out of ideas when his phone started ringing in his pocket. Irritated, Bernand fumbled in the left pocket of his jacket and took out the phone. Looking at the screen, the man frowned:
It was Valentianus.
He never called Bernand directly. Why would he do it now?
Cold sweat formed on his forehead while his hands shook as Bernand pushed the answer button and lifted the phone to his left ear.
"Hello?" Bernand answered nervously.
"Bernand. Come to my office, I have a new assignment for you."
Valentinus's voice sounded ominous and strained, Bernand swallowed. The man was angry.
"What about the family you ordered me to deal with?" Bernand dared to ask, doubting he could concentrate on getting two assignments done at the same time.
"Forget that. I'll give it to someone else. This is more important."
The near growl laced Valentianus´s tone of voice told Bernand Valentianus wasn´t asking, he was commanding.
"I will come right away, sir," Bernand answered, and with that, the call ended.
Pocketing his phone, Bernand was still shaking as he stood up, glancing at the files on the table.
Debating for a second if he should put them back first, but as the image of a furious Valentianus came to mind, eradicated the thought of cleaning up. Bernand shook his head as he ran out of the archive. He didn´t want to risk it to get punished for not following the order right away.
Bernard rushed through the long, narrow staircase back up to the main floor and ran toward Valentianus´s office.
He tried dodging the flocking ministers who were too busy to pay any attention to him as they were carrying a pile of files from archive number 9 to another location. Bernand hoped that whatever the reason for Valentianus's anger, it had nothing to do with him and the fact that he failed to kill the female assassin. Why would it? Bernand doubted Valentianus knew anything about it. Although he and Father Silverius were often holding meetings, Father wouldn´t be so stupid and tell these matters to Valentianus.
Valentianus was an opportunist and a brilliant businessperson, traits he had inherited from his father, Janus Tharron. If he found out about this predicament, he would surely turn this in his favour.
Bernand tried to calm his mind as he finally reached the wide main stairs, guiding him to the upper floors.
The grand white granite stairs were an astonishing work of art, they centred it in the middle of the room with steps leading up to a higher platform. Two separate staircases were positioned across from one another, both leading up to the second floor.
It looked graceful yet powerful and poignant, a fitting construction for a house of faith.
Bernand skipped two steps at a time as he climbed the stairs, finally reaching the top. Slightly out of breath, Bernand took a minute to even his breathing before straightening himself and rushing through the wide hallway. Even the hallway looked luxurious.
The floor made of light granite tiles was gleaming, showing reflections of the paintings on the ceiling.
White granite pillars stood on both sides, huge paintings representing the God Cian and his crows hanging on the walls and crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling every two meters provided light during the evenings.
Huffing, Bernand approached the double doors at the end of the hallway. His nerves started acting up the closer he got. His stomach was coiling at the thought of facing the angry man behind those doors. He stopped and glanced at the bronze nameplate on the door which said "Tharron".
Wetting his lips nervously, Bernand lifted his right hand and knocked two times, waiting anxiously for permission to enter. A gruff voice through the door barked a single word, permitting him to enter, and Bernand cautiously opened the door before stepping inside.
Valentianus was standing in front of his desk, his back facing Bernand as he closed the door. Hearing the door being closed, Valentianus turned around while holding a file, his steel-grey eyes landing on Bernand, who visibly flinched under the young man's fiery glare.
Bernand noticed what Valentianus was wearing, black slacks, a dark red vest and underneath it a black shirt with the same colour tie. His red jacket hung at the backrest of his chair behind the desk.
Valentianus´s signature outfit.
He wore it for a couple of reasons.
Which meant Valentianus wasn´t in the mood for chit-chat. Bernand kept quiet until Valentianus would ask him something.
"You know my wife, Theia Tharron, correct."
It wasn´t a question, merely a statement, but Bernand nodded anyway. The icy tone behind that calm appearance was unnerving, and for a moment Bernand struggled to breathe normally.
"Good. The task I have implies her." Valentianus began coldly as he turned around, dropping the file in an unceremonial manner on the desk, and turned to look at Bernand again while leaning against the desk.
Bernand frowned but nodded again, not daring to speak up. The hair at the back of his neck rose while he waited for Valentianus to explain how exactly his wife had to do with the task Valentianus was about to give him.
"I want you to follow her every step, starting today. You will report every person, every store, every touch she makes during her day to me, and you don´t question any of it. Another thing I want you to do is to track down a man she was trying to invite for breakfast with her this morning. Although he refused her request, I know my wife. She will ask him again if she bumps into him."
Bernand gulped and nearly squirmed under his studying glare while he was listening to Valentianus´s steely speech which chilled him to the bone. Valentianus was a possessive man when it came to something of his, and Bernand felt bad for his wife. He knew the background of their marriage, and he had watched from the sidelines of the ridiculous show for a year.
He was astonished that Theia hadn´t jumped off the building or done something equally drastic to get away.
On the contrary, she was trying to make Valentianus´s life as miserable as possible, doing the exact opposite of what he wanted her to do.
Too bad her plan wasn´t working. Clearly, Theia wanted to push his buttons to the point where Valentianus would get enough and divorce her, then she would be free. The only downside of her plan was that Valentianus had every intention of getting his money back. Her father owned him and wasn´t going to let her walk away before he got every zhiny.
"I´ll get right on it, sir." Bernand bowed his head and was about to turn and leave when Valentianus´s voice stopped him.
"Make sure she doesn´t find out you are following her."
Bernand nodded and left the room, leaving Valentianus glaring at the closed door.
Leaning against the door, Bernand heaved a sigh and wiped his face as he stared at the ceiling.
"I need a new job..." He muttered.
Pushing himself off the door, Bernand started walking toward the staircase, deep in thought when from the left corridor someone bumped into him, sending him onto the floor with a curse.
"Watch it!"
Recognizing the annoyed sounding voice, Bernand glanced up and realized that he was staring at Riss, Valentianus´s younger brother, who looked pissed.
"My apology, I didn´t notice you, sir." Bernand quickly apologized, shifting his gaze to the floor while pushing himself back up.
"Well, obviously you didn´t. Is my brother in?" Riss scoffed with a roll of his eyes.
"Yes, yes, he is." Bernand nodded quickly and bowed, he was about to be on his way to find Valentianus´s wife when Riss´s voice stopped him.
"So, my brother sent you on some stupid errand again. Well, aren´t you as loyal as a lapdog?" Riss laughed mockingly, making Bernand grimace, but he held his tongue. He knew better than to snap back at the hotheaded man.
"It's what I´m paid to do. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do," Bernand mumbled, not wanting to stay and hear what else Riss had to say. He hurried down the corridor toward the grand staircase.
Riss snorted as he watched Bernand´s hasty retreat when his phone chimed, telling him someone sent him a text. Taking out his phone, Riss sighed, irritated. He wanted to talk to his brother because their mother, Niraya, had given him quite the lecture yesterday and this morning he had received a call which made his anger flare into new heights.
Apparently, she didn´t appreciate the fact Riss was so carefree, focusing on the wrong things and had little responsibilities if none in the company. She wanted to change that.
Riss shuddered at the mere thought of having to sit behind a desk for twelve to fifteen hours a day and listen to some old farts arguing about a budget.
He wanted to concentrate on his martial art lessons and motorcycle racing. Those were his passions and his father had understood that, giving the company to Valentianus and giving Riss his freedom to do what he wanted to do.
At that time, Niraya had agreed to Janus´s decision as Riss didn´t possess the discipline and drive for making the company even greater. But now, for some odd reason, she insisted Riss needed to involve himself in the family business.
Riss loved his mother, he really did, but right now he didn´t feel the love. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. With a deep scowl on his face, Riss unlocked his phone and stared at the notification for a good minute. Riss opened the message involuntarily, snarling at the text.
"Morning handsome, care for brunch in two hours?"
This was the last thing he needed today. The text was from Alia, the woman he had a brief sexual relationship with three years ago after some serious cat-and-mouse chase. It had thrilled him; it always did when a woman played hard to get and when he finally won, they had a lot of fun for a while until Riss got tired and moved on. The only downside was, Alia, didn´t.
She was constantly pestering him, sending him pictures, and calling him. She wanted to start an actual relationship with Riss, as she told him they were meant to be.
Riss had rolled his eyes at the statement. Sure, the sex with Alia was great, and she was always down to try something new, but eventually, Riss got sick of it. He had learned every single sweet spot in Alia´s body. He knew how to turn her on and how to finish her in a matter of seconds. Riss knew how she reacted to his touch, and it was getting boring.
And she was a little too enthusiastic to be together as much as possible, so he decided to wrap things up with her and start looking for something else.
Riss wasn´t the type of guy who wanted to settle down. He was a hunter, loving the feeling of being on a prowl. But Alia clearly hadn´t got the memo that Riss wasn´t interested in her anymore.
"No, I´m busy."
He typed the quick reply before pocketing the phone and turned toward Valentianus´s door. Knocking twice, he barely had the patience to wait for his brother's permission to step into the office.
"Enter!" Valentianus´s bark finally reached Riss´s ears, and he flung the door open, stepping in.
Valentianus´s deep scowl swiftly changed into the surprised look as Valentianus´s brows quirked up seeing his younger brother practically running into his office to meet him.
"Riss. Normally I´m lucky if I see you once a month and now I´m flattered by your presence twice this week. What's going on?" Valentianus chuckled while holding a file in his hands and standing in front of his desk.
"You can thank our mother," Riss grunted, flopping onto the armchair.
A burst of hearty laughter escaped from Valentianus and he turned sideways, dropping the file onto his desk and then fully faced Riss, leaning against the desk, crossing his arms over his chest. He studied his brother for a moment, seeing Riss was agitated and angry.
"What did she do this time? It must have been quite something to make you this angry." Valentianus pointed out and got a piercing glare in return.
"She had decided I need more responsibilities in the company."
Valentianus stared at Riss, looking stunned before he collected himself. Wetting his lips Valentianus cast a glance to the floor, wondering what had caused this change in her suddenly. Not that he disagreed, he would love to see his brother stepping up and taking an interest in the family business but, Valentianus was fully aware of Riss´s passion for motorcycle racing and martial arts. Riss was a professional racer, and he was exceptionally good at it. So good he ended up signing a contract with a successful team, making Valentianus extremely proud.
But their mother wasn´t so thrilled about it. In her opinion, it was a death wish waiting to happen. Riss and Niraya constantly ended up fighting, forcing Valentianus to act as the referee. That didn´t please Niraya either. As Valentianus had become a new head of the Tharron family, she wanted to see Valentianus talk some sense into Riss, which Valentianus was reluctant to do because he understood Riss´s point of view in all this.
"I can´t say I´m surprised to hear that. Hell, it's nothing new. She throws a tantrum about it every six months. You know that. Why exactly are you so mad?" Valentianus recounted, looking at Riss who sneered at him.
"You haven´t heard the best part."
"Oh? There is the best part? Enlighten me then." Valentianus smirked before glancing down at his phone as it chimed, but Riss merely huffed, annoyed.
"She went and called my team chief, and my manager, stating that I am quitting racing. I got a furious call from both this morning."
"What?" Valentianus jerked his head, gazing at Riss, not believing what he just heard.
"Yeah. So that is why I am so mad now. I repaired the damage she tried to cause, my contract is still valid but Val, you have to talk to her. Tell her to back the fuck off. This is my passion. I am earning my money and I love it. Nothing is going to change that."
Sighing heavily, Valentianus wiped his face, already exhausted, and the day hasn´t even fully started yet. This was one of those days. He just wanted to stay in bed and do nothing. But as the head of the company, he couldn´t. Like he didn´t have enough stress because of his wife's antics, now he had to deal with their mother's meddling.
"Alright. I´ll try to talk to her but I can´t promise anything yet."
"That's all I ask." Riss nodded, earning a tired smile from his brother. Suddenly Riss´s phone started ringing, making the man groan aloud and Valentianus glanced at him, amused. The ringtone was awfully specific, telling Riss exactly who was calling, and he wasn´t happy.
"God, why can´t she leave me alone," Riss whined, taking his phone, silencing it rather than answering.
"Who?"
"Alia. She's been texting and calling me all week."
"Aren´t you popular with the ladies today," Valentianus teased, knowing Riss hated it when he did that.
"Shut up."
Valentianus laughed while shaking his head and turned around, walking behind his desk. Glancing at his watch, his brows furrowed. He was late. He had nearly forgotten about the meeting with Father Silverius.
"I need to go. I have a meeting which started five minutes ago."
Riss nodded to his brother and got up.
"Alright, you go do you while I´ll go and try to avoid a vixen."
They both chuckled as they walked across the room and stepped through the door, a playful banter going back and forth between them.