The Blood Contract
Chapter 21: Totally worth it

Chapter 21: Totally worth it

Oblivious to the scene unfolding somewhere around her and the insistent eyes that were fixed on her, Serena enjoyed her swim. The cool water enveloped her, helping her partly forget the turmoil churning inside her body. For a moment, she pushed all of her problems to the back of her mind, allowing herself to simply float in the tranquility of the pool.

But the peace was short-lived. She heard Darrell’s voice cutting through the calm.

"You have a call, ma’am," he announced loudly, holding her vibrating phone in his hand. A small frown appeared on his face as he noticed that the caller’s number was not saved. Instantly, he suspected it must be the guest she was expecting.

"Bring it over," Serena responded, swimming to the edge of the pool so she could easily collect the phone from Darrell.

"Hello?" she spoke into the phone after sliding to accept the call.

"It’s Steven from Never Lonely. I’m outside, and there are security guards here interrogating me," the man on the other end of the line said, his voice tinged with urgency.

Serena’s eyes widened. "Just hold on a little. I’ll send someone over to bring you in," she said, ending the call. She then fixed her gaze on Darrell. "My guest is at the gate. Go bring him inside. I’ll join you in a jiffy," she instructed, stretching her hand out to him so he could hand over her towel and swim robe.

Knowing there was nothing he could say to convince her to change her mind at that point, Darrell simply nodded, handed over her items, and proceeded to the gate to bring in her guest.

***

Inside Lucian’s bedroom, the surveillance screen suddenly let out a beep—a sound that signaled a visitor at the gate. He narrowed his eyes, shifting his attention from the pool to the screen.

He had been wondering why Serena ended her swimming session so early, only to see her approaching the gate where Darrell was talking to a man he had never seen before. Worst of all, Serena was approaching the man with a smile.

That was when something clicked in Lucian’s head, and he instantly saw red.

Without waiting another second, he pulled out of Mitchell, who already looked exhausted, and stepped into his undershorts. He moved to the drawer, pulled out a pistol, and headed outside without a second thought.

***

Serena flashed Steven a smile as she welcomed him into the house. He was nowhere near as good-looking as Lucian, and she wondered why she even made that comparison. Still, he looked decent enough.

As she looked at him, she wondered what she was going to do with him. Of course, she had the money to pay for his services, but she knew there would be no "servicing" happening that night.

Despite the intense need for the touch of a man plaguing her, she knew she would never be able to bring herself to sleep with a stranger she had just met on the internet. She had impulsively made the decision to invite him only to provoke Lucian.

An idea immediately formed in her head of how to handle the situation, and she smiled in satisfaction.

But as soon as they stepped into the living room, a gunshot echoed throughout the house. The bullet whipped past Steven’s left ear and shattered the window behind him.

Steven froze. Serena froze. Darrell froze. Adrian, who had been seated on the sofa, shot up from his seat and turned his eyes to Lucian, not realizing when the man had arrived in the living room. His attention had been fixed on the TV screen. Dr. Marlowe ran out of the kitchen with a glass in hand, only to find Lucian pointing the gun at the stranger in the room.

Steven instantly lifted his hands in a surrender gesture, his heart pounding in his ears as he racked his brain to remember if he had offended anyone of high status—the reason he now found himself in this situation.

"That was a warning shot," Lucian said, his voice cold and menacing. "The next bullet will be lodged inside your brain if you don’t disappear from my house this very second."

Steven didn’t need to be told twice. He turned on his heel and ran like his life depended on it—because it actually did.

With Steven gone, Lucian lowered the gun and shifted his gaze to Serena. "The next one will not be this lucky," he warned her, successfully snapping her out of her shocked state.

"Are you crazy? What the hell did you do that for?" Serena yelled at him, but he ignored her and turned back toward the stairs.

"Serena—" Dr. Marlowe began, but Serena cut her off.

"WHAT???" Serena yelled, catching the woman and everyone else in the room by surprise.

"Drink this while it’s still hot," Dr. Marlowe offered, holding out the glass after recovering from her surprise.

"What the hell did he do that for?" Serena asked, ignoring the drink that was being offered to her.

"Drink this first, and we can talk. The medicine will lose its effectiveness if it gets cold," Dr. Marlowe urged, noticing how the girl was trembling slightly. She couldn’t tell if it was from the cold or the shock of what had just happened.

Serena finally shifted her attention to the drink. She collected it and took a sip. It tasted sweet, which gave her the push to finish everything in the glass before handing it back to Dr. Marlowe.

"Let’s talk in your room," the doctor said, handing the glass over to Darrell.

"No need. You’ll only defend him anyway. I’ll be in my room," Serena refused, almost immediately walking away. She was already feeling tired and sleepy, and didn’t want to hear any lecture about how or why Lucian was the best thing since coffee.

"You’re not going after her?" Darrell asked Dr. Marlowe, his tone concerned.

The doctor shook her head. "There’s no need. What I gave her is strong enough. She’ll be asleep in no time," Dr. Marlowe responded, rubbing her temples tiredly. She took the glass back from Darrell and moved to the kitchen.

"You know, this is partly your fault. If you hadn’t given her the address, none of this would have happened," Darrell accused Adrian.

"My fault?" Adrian asked incredulously. "I wasn’t the one who pulled the trigger. I only saved your ass because you were stammering and shivering like a chicken fresh out of a freezer over a simple question."

"Yeah, right. Like saving me was the only reason you did it," Darrell scoffed.

"Of course it wasn’t. I did it for the drama. I wanted to know how boss would react to her guest, and I must say, it was totally worth it," Adrian replied, a smirk playing on his lips. "Also I think you need to make a call. The window needs fixing."