"No! Leave him alone!" Valeska roared, pulling Nero into her arms. Not letting them hurt him. She fumed, snatching Nero from Hadeon's cruel grip. "Don't touch him!"
Valeska retreated, shielding Nero behind her back.
"You're crazy to bring him here! You think this is a shelter?!" Hadeon cursed, his eyes glaring fiercely. But he liked this situation; Valeska's stupid actions must have tempered his father. "You're going to die, bitch!"
Shivani snickered from her seat, acting as if an absolute ruler. "Poor you, must you think he's just like your long-dead brother? Why? Can't you live with the guilt of bringing him here without Daddy's permission?" She lamented tauntingly. "Oh, dad. Don't be rude on her; she's doing that to cope with her pathetic guilt so she can sleep well at night. Isn't that great? Our money-making machine is growing now. Just information, kiddo. That bitch killed her little brother last year."
Nero stared at them sharply, growling in his mind; he restrained himself from losing control. After all, Nero must hide his true identity. Not after he saw how humans worked; yet not all of them were bastards, but they were willing to do filthy things to achieve something.
Corbett's face turned bright red, his jaw tightened, while his hands began to clench. He threw the glass, hitting Valeska roughly on the head. He shouted furiously, "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! HOW DARE YOU BRING A THIEF INTO MY HOUSE, DAMN IT?"
The glass shattered, Valeska was knocked sideways, and she leaned against the wall. The silence was eerie; Nero's fist was clenched as hard as iron while he watched the wild blood trickling from Valeska's head. Valeska slumped to the floor, feeling the pressure of stabbing soreness until she was unable to let out another agonized moan.
A trail of fresh, thick blood stains the wall. Valeska is bowed down deeply, helpless.
Nero's strength was about to explode, but that bastard Hadeon pounced from behind, then locked his body again by strangling his neck. Nero's legs thrashed as Hadeon lifted him into the air, his hands desperately trying to reach the bloodied Valeska, showing no movement or signs of life.
"Oh, my gosh! Is that unwanted girl dead, Daddy?" Shivani cupped her mouth with both eyes bulging in aghast, though she was actually holding back her maniac laughter at the moment.
"What kind of people are you?" DISGUSTING!" Nero growled somewhat strangled, his face crimson red. He cursed at them through eyes of hatred.
"Little bastards! This is all on you!" Hadeon hissed fiercely, "Nothing is free in this place! If you want to live here, then you'll have to pay dearly for it, idiot."
Shivani kicked Valeska, "Hey! V! Get up you, bitch!"
Valeska's eyes opened wide, her hands reaching for the shards of glass scattered on the floor. The sight of Nero's tiny face turning ashen blue in Hadeon's arms ignites Valeska's courage to fight back. Now there was someone she had to protect—Valeska couldn't give in anymore, lest Nero die of her negligence.
Not again.
"AKH!" Shivani screamed in horror as Valeska stabbed her in the face brutally with a broken shard. Shivani fell backward, hysterically in crazy soreness, and bloodied. "YOU SON OF A BITCH! NO! MY ADORABLE FACE!"
Corbett and Hadeon's jaws were dropped; they had not expected Valeska's strike.
Valeska was jolted, then she charged at Hadeon, snatched the baseball bat, and beat him over the head until he roared back like a loser rat cowering in helpless fear. Hadeon wobbled and collapsed instantly as Valeska slashed his face with all her might.
Nero coughed and fell on the floor. He struggled to breathe in. Realizing the situation was getting minefield for him and Valeska.
"YOU BASTARD! INSOLENT! I'll KILL YOU!" Corbett rages; he grabs Valeska's blood-slick hair. Corbett's hands are clenched; he intends to punch her in the face.
Nero yelled. "Don't touch her, asshole!" He raised his hand, using dark fire manipulation power—he had to do this before Valeska really got killed.
And Valeska had no idea what was happening—a massive blast of blinding red light with thick black smoke blowing up all the corners of the house—throwing everyone. Huge black flames burst out, burning everything brutally; even Valeska got thrown far into the yard.
"Valeska!" Nero let out a garbled cry as he realized Valeska had fallen in ache. "I'm so sorry."
Valeska staggered, her head hurting too much; her skin feels scorched and melts; then everything blurred into darkness.
***
"Where am I?!" Valeska squealed, rising from the bed, awake after a long night of unconsciousness. "Hell!"
"Oh my, V! Thank goodness, howdy? Is it still hurting?!"
"Sir Walker?" Valeska whimpered, her head throbbing and her vision briefly blurry. Confirming that this was not delusion. Yet Valeska knew this place very well and did not feel any strange. "What happened?!"
"That little boy who brought you here was bloodied, panicked, and scared. I should have asked what the hell happened, V. I asked the boy, but he refused to answer." Isaac asked, looking so worried about Valeska's condition, and he put down the tray with the lunch menu. "Who's that boy? He looks nervous and stayed up all night guarding you here."
"Oh, sir. I'm sorry, again—I'm troubling you," Valeska wailed miserably, then she remembered something weird. "But, how did Nero bring me here?"
"Nero?" Isaac snorted, now observing Valeska with a worried look in his emerald eyes, making sure she wasn't insane. "For real? You don't think of him as your late brother, do you? He's a stranger, V. Even though he's still a kid, I felt something was off about him," he shrugged, handing Valeska an ice pack to medicate the bruises on her face. "I found you on the doorstep; I'm honestly sick of seeing you wound up like this. Last night I almost grabbed my gun and went to shoot your bastard foster family dead! Well, Maddie got in my way, and I couldn't do much about it. I'm sorry."
"I should apologize to you, sir. Where is Nero now?"
"He's downstairs with Maddie. He refused to eat, but yeah, he finally had breakfast this morning. He's so quiet and calm, huh? More than like a noble man." Isaac is confused; it's hard to believe his own words.
Valeska sighed heavily; she did remember the incident last night. She's unsure what had gotten into her that she dared to brutally invade Shivani and Hadeon. But the explosion of blinding red light with black flames that destroyed the entire house—Valeska saw it vividly and was not dreaming. She salted the bruises on her face gently, savoring the pressure of the soreness that cooled with ice.
***
"I will adopt him, Sir Walker," Valeska stated, bringing Nero to sit beside her, facing Sir Isaac and Maddie Walker. Her mind was made up, having gone through the near-death incident yesterday.
Isaac put down his coffee cup and let out a long sigh. Watching Valeska's face full of wounds was commonplace. He sits tensely in the living room chair. He leered to the boy sitting quietly next to Valeska. Isaac looks at Maddie, who just shakes her head—leaving all the decisions of this conversation to Isaac.
After hearing all of Valeska's story, Isaac began to fathom the objective of her decision. "Are you sure? So what about that hellish family of yours? You can't let this boy into that house of hell, V. Don't risk his childhood to them. I know you miss Nero a lot, but—"
"Yes, I know, sir," Valeska reassuringly said. "That's why I decided to leave them. Leave far away from Nevada. You know, I can't stay here anymore."
"Oh my, all these years I've been waiting for you to say such bold words, I almost lost hope. I was afraid you were too numb to go through this terrible situation. All this time you wouldn't listen to other people's help, but thank goodness. You finally have a mission for your life now," Isaac let out the longest sigh of relief. "So, where are you going? It's actually hard for me to let you go; you're the best chef and waitress I have, and everyone here loves your cooking skills. The L&C shop is crowded thanks to you."
Valeska shrugged, she noted regretfully. "I wish there was a better option, sir. I want to be free of them."
"Yes. I know you should have done this a long time ago. Even if you stay, you'll only die a silly death. I've told you that you have a bright future, V. Now you have to fight for it no matter what. If that boy can make you find your zest for life again, then do it. Neither my wife nor I don't have any reason to hold you back," Isaac agreed in knowing; he rubbed his chin, then his eyes moved to the boy. Yet her reasoning sounded ridiculous; the boy's presence made Valeska's eyes brighten and sparkle again, as if she had regained her spirit for life. "Hey, son. Can you keep your word? I heard you're going to be her knight protector."
"Across with my heart. I vow to protect, guard, and save her, sir," Nero replied firmly, and he gazed at the Walker couple with calm eyes.
"Wherever you are? If you break your promise, I will definitely find and hunt you down," Isaac threatened in a strange yet teasing tone. "Well, if Valeska is determined, then there's nothing I can do. You deserve a decent and better life."
Maddie smiled in agreement, "Live well, V. You've been a good girl since we've met you; you deserve the best."
"Thanks, Mrs. Walker. Will you be able to hold them off later?"
"They're useless and cowards; do they dare to mess around in my shop or property?!" Isaac hissed hatefully and furious, "Let them die in your absence. I can hold them off. Any road, actually in Vermont, Montpelier, I have an abandoned tavern; it's a strategic and stunning place. If only you would settle there to continue the tavern."
"Really?" Valeska's eyes widened with sparkling eyes. It's miracle. New hope. "Yes, I will, sir. Are you sure you can trust me with the shop?!"
"Your performance is impressive; as long as you've been working here, you've kept my income up, and L&C got this big. I entrusted that place to a competent person like you, V." Isaac let out a confident squeal. He was smiling brightly. "I'll give your final salary and severance pay. Leave today. I hope you make good use of it. Call me if you need anything. I can help you until you reopen the shop."
***