Chapter 5 IV

....Riel's POV

"I told you that you shouldn't have come with us," Ryu said. I groaned in pain when the doctor took out the bullets from his arm and shoulder. He then proceeded to bandage it and took his leave. "Well thankfully, Don's men had already left with the merchandise before their arrival making it a successful exchange," I said standing up. "Where are you going?" He asked. "I'm going home," I said. He paused before saying, "You know I've always wondered why you go home. You have no family or friends so it just makes me wonder why you are always so anxious to go home." "Well, going home is the only thing that keeps me sane in this insane world," I said then stormed out of the cartel. I sat in my car for a while. No one knew I had a sister, not even my right-hand man. I wasn't going to trust anyone again. Not after the Big Boss incident. And Fernando I trusted him too but what happened? He was after my life. I understand his pain and grudge against me but he never made the effort to find out why I did what I did. He was just about vengeance and blood. I drove off and as soon as I arrived at the villa, I went straight to check on Mia. It was 2:00 am in the midnight and I opened her door quietly. I rubbed her face gently but she woke up anyway. "Riel, you're here?" She said surprised and hugged me immediately. "Urgh" I groaned. "Riel, what is it? Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. "It's nothing serious. I hurt my hand at work" I lied.. again. "Oh!! Be careful next time okay?" She advised. "Okay, I will. Now go back to sleep. You have classes tomorrow" I reminded. "Yeah about that...."She paused. "What is it?" I asked worriedly. "Riel there's a car race immediately after class and I was wondering if__- "NO. You cannot participate in it" I declined harshly. "But_ "MIANO. You know your health is not fit for all these activities so why put yourself in danger?" I said to which she sighed dejectedly. "Okay since I won't be participating, can I at least give the Ferrari to my friend Clara to race instead? She needs a strong car to win the race?" She yelped. "No problem. But you're not allowed to stay out for too long" I reminded her. "Okay," she said. "Good night then," I said then kissed her hair.

I walked out of her room and bumped into Larissa. The unexpected bump made me groan in pain again from the bullet wound. "Oh I'm sorry Riel" she apologized. "No problem," I said then walked down the stairs going into my room. "Riel..."I had reached half the stairs when I heard Larissa call out to me. "Yes..."I answered. "What do you do in particular?" She asked out of the blue. I could have chosen not to answer her but it would only build more suspicion in her which could put me in danger. "Like I said, I'm an agent who sells properties for businessmen to other people," I said. "So how did you get hurt?" She asked pointing to my shoulder. "A brick fell on me when I was on-site" I lied. More and more each day, I was getting trapped in this web of lies. She paused, thinking of what to ask next. "Goodnight Larissa and please mind your business," I told her. I was grateful to Larissa for everything she had done and was still doing for my sister but I didn't need her meddling in my affairs. Mia was the only one who saw her as a mother figure not me. To me, she was just another one of our employees.

...... Fernando's POV.

The next day came and we continued with business as usual. Just like Lionel said, I am going to catch Riel. Maybe not now, but soon. But until then, I couldn't afford to get distracted. Business still needed to go on. "Boss, which channel are we taking to deliver the merchandise?" One of my men asked. "Because we've been attacked one too many times, we'll be taking a route they least expect," I said in front of a few of my men. "Where?" Lionel asked. "Westland Academy". "A school? Why?" asked Lionel, the only one bold enough to question me. "That's the safest place, plus it's the last place our rivals will think of when they want to attack us" I explained to them. ... Westland Academy field... My men went about the activities of the merchandise movement while I stayed in my car with a few others. Just then, a black limousine entered our vision. After that, a few other black limousines followed. A young lady alighted. She was dressed in a white floral gown and held a small pink bag that could contain nothing tangible, except a phone and some cash. Accompanying her were two able-bodied guards. Onlookers may have seen them as harmless but any experienced person would know they were armed to the fullest. I doubt the young lady even knew they were armed. She looked too innocent. I knew Westland Academy was a school for the rich but this lady in particular was too high class. Just one look at her and one would know she came from a very wealthy family. ...There was going to be a car race and she was here for that.

My men were taking too long to move the merchandise so I decided to watch the car race. In order not to arouse suspicion from anybody, my men and I dressed low-key. The security at Westland Academy was very tight too. I sat in front and watched how the students roared anytime a car won. "Amateurs" I muttered under my breath. I looked around only to see the same lady sitting across from where I sat. Just then, she stood up and her female bodyguard got up along with her. But why was the security around her so tight? I wondered. I couldn't be bothered about that anyway. I happened to want to use the restroom at the same time. I left the field and entered into a door. One door led to another, and I still couldn't find the restroom. "What are you doing here?" I heard a very soft voice behind me. I turned around and was surprised to see it was the same lady. I didn't answer. I made my way to the door beside me. She quickly came in front of me, blocking my path. We were so close to each other I could smell her. Her pure maidenly scent wafted through my nose. She smelled of lavender and milk. "Go away," I told her. "You can't go in. It's the lady's restroom" she said pointing at the labeled sign on the wall. Oh! "That's the men's restroom there," she said again pointing at the room right in front of the ladies' restroom. I entered the men's restroom and from inside the restroom, I heard her phone ring. "Riel, why did you call?" As if struck by lightning, I stood still inside the restroom. "Riel I needed to use the restroom. That was why I dismissed her" she said to the person on the phone. The person on the other end was probably reprimanding her for dismissing her bodyguard. I knew there were a million Riels in the country and this lady might not necessarily be connected to him but I was not one to believe in coincidences.

We shipped our merchandise and left Westland Academy at dusk. The lady was already long gone, or rather, the car race had ended a long time ago. And I couldn't be bothered about it. Even after I got home I couldn't stop thinking about that lady I saw. She wasn't someone I fancied. I've never fancied anyone before. But the thought of her being Riel's sister just made me lose focus. She was wealthy, and not the average type of wealthy. She had lots of bodyguards and a large convoy behind her. As much as they wanted to be unnoticeable, they ended up being noticeable. Westland Academy was a very big school and yet very low-key. Only a few rich people knew about it. I needed to investigate this girl. The next morning I immediately ordered my right-hand man Lionel to inquire about my suspicions. "What if she isn't the one? What if she's just the daughter of a very wealthy politician?" He asked. "Just check. There's no harm in checking right?! And if she isn't the one, then we'll back off" I said. My instincts told me she was the one. I had a very good feeling she was connected to him. "I need the report this afternoon," I said then left.

I was sitting in my study when Lionel sauntered in. I knew he had something for me. "Here's what you asked," he said, handing me an envelope. "There's not much information on her. She's an only child who was raised by her single mom, Larissa James. But then, each student is supposed to have a file of themselves and their parents. We checked her mom's file which contained all her information including the hospital she gave birth to her but her medical report was missing. It indicates that on that day, no woman gave birth to a baby girl. So it's__ "It's either the woman's not her mom or...He forged everything. It was a good plan but not a smart move. I can't pinpoint where exactly his plan flopped. Maybe from the part, where the report said she was raised by a single mom or the missing file at the hospital or the very expensive cars or the dozen bodyguards she had. In the quest to give her everything she wanted, he ended up bringing a lot of attention to her. Riel was a smart man. He knew how to protect himself and anything he wanted. I found it exciting that he didn't properly protect the one thing that needed protection the most.....his sister. Well, no matter how sneaky you are, you can never be too careful. Oh boy, this was going to be interesting.