Beat them to the Punch

I spent the entire day cooking. Hopefully I would make a delicious cake that would make Marie happy. Halfway through the day I was covered in marshmellow and chocolate. I felt delicious and smelled like if I'd been stuck inside a bakery for a whole week. Sweets were never my favorite, but being surrounded by sugar made me feel strangely giddy.

Until I heard the knock.

I shrugged. The thing about my apartment building is that the lobby guy won't let anyone he doesn't know go up to my floor. Security is the finest and I'd trusted him a long time ago with plenty of information, so we were close. He still wouldn't stand up to help me with my groceries, but it can't all be perfect.

"Hello?" I opened the door.

Never. opening. the. door. without. asking. again.

"Good evening, Lucille Marie."

Okay. So it had been a fair amount of four weeks since my chest had constricted and I felt my heart being tugged violently. I thought I was over the worst kind of trials. I mean, I was heartbroken, but I had slowly picked up part of the pieces. I was still picking... but I wasn't about to go back into a depression of any sort. I was in control of my head.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I whispered. I was not in control of my temper.

His blue eyes trailed my body from down and up. He brushed his dyed dark hair back and casually let his bangs fall upon his forehead. He was smoking, like he usually did, and he stared at me as though he were a king looking down on a subject. He would've been king had he been born two minutes earlier.

"That's the kind of welcome I get?"

"The kind of welcome you DESERVE is a stake through your heart, if you have one, Johnathan."

John chuckled. "Oh Lucille... mind if I come in?"

I slammed my hand against the door. "You're not allowed in."

He smiled, flashing white teeth. Deliberately he pushed and slammed me against the door and went in.

I bit my lips, looking at him. If John knew how to be something, it was to be exceedingly cruel.

"I don't take no for an answer, Lucille. I thought you would know that."

He had that look in his eyes: the look when you know he is capable of anything. John was Richard's spymaster, working inside the Interpol until some months ago when he conveniently switched back to his brother's side and had been playing several strings behind the curtains. I had seen him at his kindest time, but I had seen him at his worst time. Compared to Richard, John was pure evil. He had been capable of almost raping Veronique for the hell of it. He could treat his brother miserably one second, yet the other be by his side. He was capable of amusing and entertaining people, but he was also capable of killing, torturing, lying, and cheating. Ever since he had left the Interpol I had only heard the rumors of just how depraved he'd become. Nonetheless, Richard was keeping him extra close. Apparently he was doing his espionage job very well.

"I heard today's Marie Bellay's birthday. Is it a cooking contest?"

Better be cooperative in order to find out what he wants. "It's a cake-a-thon. Everybody's supposed to take a cake."

"Comic." he whispered.

God. Get out of here. "Johnathan... what do you want?" My nearest gun is under the living room table. If I dash, I'll reach it in no time.

"What else do I want?" As if reading my mind he walked towards the living room table, took the gun from under its hiding place and disarmed it. "I want to talk with you for a little while."

And to think that I would've ended up with this guy. And I would've, because he was kind to me and he cared for me, and loved me. That love soon turned into hate when I chose yet another man before him. He walked away cursing my soul and wishing I would burn in hell. Hell hath no fury as a Wilbatten Royal scorned, huh?

I stood up, my bravado pushing me forward. "I can't talk now. I'm baking cake."

He scoffed and walked right up to me. "Lucille..." He brushed a strand of my hair away from my face and behind my ear. It gave me goosebumps. He slammed his fist next to my ear, missing it by inches. "You think I care about your stupid cake?"

I was paralyzed. This guy was scary. He was terrifying. Kick him on the balls, Lucille, kick him. But I couldn't because he had me trapped.

"How's my little whore doing?" he whispered merrily.

"Doing great. Can't you tell?" I whispered back. "What... do... you... want?" I glared.

"Aren't you afraid of me?"

"Terrified. Don't you see?" I met his gaze with my own and showed him that if he thought he would push ME around, he was dead wrong.

The next instant I had spat in his face, taken advantage of his momentary surprise to kick him hard in the groin, pushed him, dashed for the kitchen table and had my 9mm in my hand directed at him.

He laughed. "Not bad, Lucille. Not bad." he stood up.

"Not one step closer, Johnathan. I could cause the greatest of scandals for this one."

"But you won't. We have to protect each other's backs in the kind of circle we move in. Well, at least that I move in and you used to move in." He took out another cigarette. "Lucille." he looked at me "I hope you know you're shit. You're not worth anybody's time. You got lucky with one software and you're holding to that with everything you've got. But, you're replaceable, honey. You're disposable. You've been a trainwreck your whole life and now you're creating your own make believe life. You're a fucked up horrible person."

Motherfucking asshole. My hand slightly trembled. None of those words would get to me. None of them.

"I heard you got yourself a new boytoy. How long will this one last? What's the record in your book so far? Three months? Probably's with you because of your body. It's certainly not because of your personality since you have none."

"You're bitter and full of hatred and you should leave before I really deem to shoot you, which at this point would be the smartest thing to do."

"You know you're worst problem?" He walked towards me and placed the gun against his heart. "How very worthless you are."

DAMN IT! He grabbed the gun, turned it around, pushed me once again, this time towards the floor and pointed the gun down at me.

"Where is the software?"

"I don't know." I answered, glaring.

He charged the gun. "Where is the software?"

"I don't know."

He laughed "Are you really going to tell me you don't know where your own chip is? Your precious masterpiece? The one thing that you can pride yourself on? You don't know?"

I shrugged. "You can inject truth serum into me. The answer, I swear, will always be the same. I, Lucille Delton, don't know where it is."

He nodded and looked at his watch. "You do realize I won't rest until I have the hands on that chip?"

"Why would you want it?"

"In a political world the strongest country has the power."

"Why now? What makes you think *I* have it? It was taken from me in the institute. I don't have such a thing."

"Rumors fly fast, and the rumors are it never left its creator's hand."

"I DON'T have it." I growled at him. "It was too dangerous for me to keep. They took it away years ago. I don't know its whereabouts now."

"Hm. Right." He glared down at me. "You're not as easily intimidated as I hoped you would be. I guess, I have no choice right now. You obviously want to get back into your fun little cooking joke. I have matters to attend to anyways." He pointed the gun towards my arm and shot. The bullet grazed my skin and I yelped in pain. "That's for spitting, your dirty slut." he laughed, threw the gun and left just as rapidly as he had appeared.

My heart beat fast inside my chest. No time to think of what happened. No time to think at all. I ran towards the bathroom, covering the bleeding wound. Don't look at the blood, try not looking, you're terrified of blood. No fainting, Lucille, no fainting. I quickly applied alcohol and did the first aid procedure on the wound. Luckily, nothing serious. No bullet into skin, just graze, just a superficial wound. When I was done, I slid down onto the bathroom floor.

When had I stopped carrying around any type of protection? Was I forgetting that being an ex-interpol implied a lot of people around trying to use me as target practice? Maybe it was because it had been John who had done it that I had been so undecided. I stood up, left the bathroom and walked toward the living room. I opened a small hidden compartment behind the window and pushed the button there. Immediately a tiny screen appeared as a part of the wall turned inside out. I pushed my hand into it. The words "increased security" started flashing on it. I heard doors and windows lock. I saw various computer screens appear as video cams. Suddenly my feng shui apartment was becoming a completely technologically equipped spy room.

"So much for peace and quite..." I murmured. I had to be ready for anyone and everyone.

While I walked towards the kitchen I heard every one of John's words inside of my head. Nonetheless, I wasn't perturbed, I wasn't depressed, I wasn't even angered. I was numb. I sighed and made it my purpose to make the best cake I could. Even if the day had been shit, the night was sure to be better.

I hoped.