"Mister Mortcombe! *Huff huff* Sir!" Puffed Maria, one of the housekeepers, who had run with all her might to the vast garden in search of the pair looking all disoriented. Her body arched as her hands rested on the hips and lines after lines decorated her forehead as her eyebrows frowned in deep.
Frederick and his lady companion looked on, waiting for the poor lass to catch her breath as she simultaneously tried to deliver a message.
"Take a breather!" demanded her master, masking his true intention. His body was towering against the slouched helper as his eyes carried daggers for having a private moment interrupted.
But the preoccupied lass kept on shaking her head vigorously and forced the words out of her mouth with a strained voice, "Sir *huff huff* Ra-Rafael is he- *cough* HERE! Gerard is *inhaled a gulp of air* unable to —"
Frederick did not need to hear the end of the sentence. He knew how this would end up if he reacted slowly. In fact, there was no time to react but to act! He must hide his prisoner away from the beastly predator! But with Audrey in the second trimester of her pregnancy, he was too cowardly to make a dash with her in tow.
And what was the best alternative he could do in such a sticky situation? He had to make some sacrifices with some quick thinking. And it was...
"Maria! Guide her to the staff rooms!" he ordered as he handed the scarred wrist gingerly to his housekeeper, putting his full trust in his staff. His hazel eyes gave a meaningful but silent blink to the confused woman who nodded in return, unaware of what the man had signed her up for.
With a brief glance in their direction before he left, Frederick ran full speed into the house hoping his Head Butler had done his VERY best to keep his best friend at bay!
Sure enough! As soon as he was nearby, he could hear the loud rackets coming from the inside, of Rafael asking why the old Butler was being a little obsessive with him.
"My visit is not unwarranted, Gerard. I DON'T understand why you are questioning this now."
"Please forgive me, Sir Rafael. It must be the old age. Could you please repeat the purpose of your visit?" asked the Head Butler while taking advantage of his age as an excuse for his presumptuous manner.
Fortunately, Frederick interrupted their exchange just in time as he finally entered through the door, addressing his butler to prepare some refreshments, "Gerard, can you please prepare some drinks and have them sent to the study?"
Just as the butler nodded in understanding, the young lad added, "Something strong!"
Now that he knew Audrey was no longer burning up with a fever and one of the unpredictable misunderstandings between them was somewhat resolved, he could feel the jet lag disorder starting to kick in. He needed a strong drink to keep him awake while being aware of his surrounding.
Rafael, who had already guessed Frederick's condition by the mention of a strong drink, asked "Should I come another time?"
The young villain had half a mind to agree with the suggestion but the very thought of his best friend might come again unannounced was a straight no! "Let's just do this now. You're already here."
Once they were both in the study, Rafael shot his question as he lit up one of Frederick's finest cigars, "Have you found the Bloodsworth in Country G?"
Frederick had already had a drag as he puffed out a circular smoke and replied with quite a disappointment, "Yeah, but he was murdered."
His blond-haired best friend no longer sat upright as he hunched his back and looked in confusion upon hearing the disappointed tone in the villain's tone, "That's the point, isn't it? You're there to annihilate him so there won't be another rebellion?"
For a fraction of a second, Frederick froze in his spot, wondering if it was possible to turn the conversation around. Not only was he exhausted from the lack of sleep and jet lag but he had also been mentally overworked.
Thankfully, he managed to recover himself as though the runaway Bloodsworth's death is not a lost hope but meant to be and immediately changed his tune, "Yeah, but he wasn't murdered by my hand. Someone else did."
"Who??"
"Not sure. It was pitch black in the middle of the ocean," explained the young man as he recounted the whole event.
Rafael smacked his forehead with a slap as his eyes grew wider with bewilderment. "Holy shit! Surely there's light on your boat??"
The best friend exclaimed further as he slammed his palm against the armrest when Frederick shook his head, "What the fuck, Fred?! Those people must be highly skilled in their marksmanship if their bullet misses you by a hair's breadth! Please tell me you drag the body! We could find out the origin of the bullet!"
"It was too late. He was pulled downwards quite fast. Either so e marine animal or a submarine."
"Unbelievable! I guess the Bloodsworth has one too many enemies. I can't help but wonder why they killed him off though."
Rafael was lost in his thought as he took another drag from his lit cigar when the dark-haired man shrugged in response. Soon after, he abruptly stood up and pointed his finger at Frederick, "Actually!! I wonder why they did not kill YOU! Think about it, Fred! It would be a quiet deal if everyone is dead."
"You're thinking too much over this, Raf!" complained the hazel-eyed man, getting drowsier by the minute and unable to process what his second next in command was sharing.
"No, think about it! I think they know it's you! I think they are trying to send a message," Rafael shot up from his seat as he began to chatter away rhapsodically. The man was now pacing back and forth in the study room as his hands were moving animatedly.
It was slowly beginning to annoy the sleepy young lad as the unstable volume of his voice kept making him jumpy. There was barely any energy left to scream at the man to shut up or kick him out of the house. But he persisted to keep his ears a-running and his mind awake!
Frederick only wanted his friend to go home before he shut his eyes. That way he would feel secure knowing she is safe. He had only blinked his eyes once. And then another. And then another.
Poof!
Rafael is no longer in the study and the sudden silence was a godsent pleasure! But he had to make sure he was truly gone.
Even with heavy eyelids that felt like each was nailed to an anchor and the invisible weights per invisible weights that seemed to place themselves on his back as his feet painstakingly dragged his body around the room in search of the man, he carried on walking.
Even when Gerard gave a pat on his shoulder and assured him it had been over forty minutes since Rafael had left, he still carried on walking. This time, it was not to find the man.
This time, it was to find Audrey.