Stuck

Reaching into her glass, the domineering woman pulled out the block of ice, opting to take her drink neat as the conversation continued. Sharpened nails clutched the ice, with her analyzing the block as it melted in her hand.

She let out a deep, frustrated sigh, her eyes portraying a deeper tiredness which was previously masked. As if a mirage had lifted, the woman now freely showed her annoyance and impatience, aiming her negative feelings at Zain.

“So… I assume you have a valid reason to return to that place. I told you, the sanctions would bar us from returning, unless you have something substantial, you won’t be able to take a voyage there.”

Devante stood his ground, taking out the papers he had prepared before. “The limitations say nothing about restricting hospitality or tourism within the vicinity.” He unscrolled a map that he had taken with him, pointing to a spot that had a sparse amount of islands. “We have an island nearby that was used for voyaging crews and tourism, so I plan to take a small crew there and use that as an intermediate point to infiltrate the country.”

The woman did not react, casting a casual glance at the papers as if she had already known the answer. She remained unmoved by his argument.

“And how do you plan on doing that? Patrols would be able to detect any boats you take to the shore, there is no way you would be able to take even a small boat without detection.”

Devante paused, swallowing softly as he continued. “I plan to take a small boat from the island to a few miles off shore…then we’ll water walk the rest of the way in a spread formation in order to reach the island.”

The woman audibly slammed her glass on the table, gritting her teeth as he uttered the statement. The ice block she had been holding crumbled in her hand as anger radiated from her tiny frame.

The intensity of her outline looked hazy, as if steam or heat was emanating from her; She faltered in her stance, brushing a few strands of hair back as she lost her composure. “I’m sorry. I think I misheard you. I thought you said that you were going to water walk to the shore line. My husband wouldn’t suggest something so goddamn stupid and dangerous, right?”

“It might be stupid, but it can work! You said that the main thing preventing us from returning was all this bureaucracy crap, right?! Well, this is the work around!”

“You’re a goddamn fool if you think that’s the only reason! I already told you about the danger of you going back! Going back could mean death! I don’t want-”

“Death means nothing to me! I have to go back! This isn’t something I can entrust to anyone else and you know that!”

Stalemate. Both stared at one another, their own separate resolves preventing them from folding.

There was an uncomfortable silence that lingered in the air, the tension was almost palpable.

The longer the impasse continued, the harder it was to breathe. Maybe it was just his nerves, but Zain felt as if there was less oxygen within the room.

Sweat trickled Zain’s neck and his teeth involuntarily chattered; Subconsciously, he felt that had to do something to end this standoff or he felt as if he would suffocate.

“Ummm…” he softly muttered, hardly able to expel the words from his lungs.

Immediately, the woman’s eyes switched to him, a cold hatred fueling her glower. It made his heart skip a beat, in a bad way.

Why am I doing this?!

Why couldn't his dumbass stay out of this crap? Well he was in it now, so might as well continue.

Swallowing hard, he tried to redirect the conversation so some progress could be made. “M-maybe Devante doesn’t need to directly be involved….maybe he could just oversee-”

“There’s no way he would agree to that. I know the man I married. He would refuse to let anyone handle something he considers his own responsibility.” Her voice was clear and forceful. Unfortunately, Zain’s stupid suggestion had worked to a degree because now her attention was redirected to him. “So…You’re the idiot who convinced my husband to revisit this topic, hmm?”

What he had been experiencing before was a cakewalk compared to what came next. Devante’s wife began to walk slowly towards him, with her outline fading and distorting; a haze appeared to make her look unfocused in Zain’s eyes, causing him to have a strange nausea and dizziness.

The closer the sound of her heels came, the more it felt like he was being compressed on all sides. Forget breathing, he was drowning in her presence. The air felt like a cold, icy sludge that pierced his every pore with small bristly ice. A numbness crept through every extremity, causing him to feel painfully heavy where he sat.

Before he could even register it, she was face to face with him, peering down with cold, hellish eyes. Her pupils looked as if they were splitting in two as they glowed with rage, forming a slight ‘W’ as her animalistic anger intensified.

Her hair writhed like an animal, shifting slightly in color as wrath took hold. “Look here, boy. You know nothing about this, so just stay quiet. Risking everything just to save one colleague is unreasonable, and you know it. Those kinds of statements can be easily said when you are not in that situation, but when it comes down to it, most people are hypocrites who would choose their own life over another. You cannot tell me that you would risk your own life, and the lives of others, in order to save the life of just one!” Her nose scrunched up slightly as she frowned in utter disgust. “I can tell when you are lying. So don’t even try to argue against me.”

It was true. That was simple math: one versus the lives of many, the answer was simple. Her argument was sound, so there was no need to argue against it.

But Zain felt a little petty.

He didn’t like that this woman assumed that she knew him, and he didn’t like that she assumed that she was right about her assumptions.

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With every ounce of strength left in his very being, he met her eyes and proclaimed his truth, “No! Everyone deserves a chance to be saved! I would stake my life on that belief!”

She did not retort. She did not immediately react. She just stared at him, slightly caught off guard.

That didn’t last though, because she only took one second to grab his head with both hands.

She gripped at his hair, nails ready to pierce skin as she adopted a more demonic look. “WHO TOLD YOU TO SAY-”

However, this anger was short lived as Devante had finally, fucking intervined. He grabbed her wrist and pulled it away, diverting her attention to himself as he spoke more sternly.

“Cuddy. I’m going. That is final.” His eyes portrayed his statement as fact, as a resolute decision that could not be overruled.

All momentum she had prior extinguished almost immediately, with Cuddy returning a blank expression and a solemn frown.

Was it really that easy?! Why didn't he just say that before?!

If Devante could've just commanded his wife like that, why didn't he do it sooner? What the fucky fuck?

She drew her hand away, wrapping herself with her feathered boa as she pulled away. She turned away from them, almost hugging herself in sullen solitude. “Fine. I’ll get the paperwork together.”

Then, she simply walked away, taking her overwhelming presence with her. Why did it seem like it was too good to be true?

When the door leading out finally slammed behind her, both of the men left on the couch had finally let out a breath of relief. Zain melted like jelly, ready to pass the hell out after this ordeal.

“OH MY GOD, BOY HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE?!!” Devante exclaimed, shaking Zain’s shoulders, losing all of the composure he had just moments before.

“WEREN’T YOU IN CONTROL OF THE SITUATION?!!”

“HELL NO!! I THOUGHT SHE WAS GONNA KILL THE BOTH OF US! SHE LOOKED SO MAD!! LOOK AT ME I’M SHAKING!!!” He held up his hands which were trembling.

“SHE’S YOUR WIFE, SHE WOULDN’T DO THAT RIGHT?!!”

“I DON’T KNOW?! SHE LOOKED LIKE SHE WAS CONSIDERING IT?!”

Zain grabbed Devante’s shoulder and violently began to shake him too, “THAT DOESN’T FILL ME WITH CONFIDENCE DUMBASS! YOU’RE THE ONE WHO BROUGHT ME INTO THIS! WHAT IS SHE GONNA DO WITH ME?!! SHE DEFINITELY FUCKING HATES ME!!”

“SORRY!! I WASN’T PLANNING ON HER MEETING YOU! I WAS JUST PLANNING ON BRINGING JAVI IN HERE! I STILL DON’T KNOW HOW YOU EVEN GOT IN HERE!!”

They both stopped their screaming to catch their breath and calm down their hearts.

Devante tapped Zain’s shoulder, handing him a handkerchief. Zain shot him a confused look, causing the man to gesture to his nose.

“Your nose is bleeding a little.”

What?! How?! Is it from stress?!!

He did feel like he shaved some years off of his lifespan during the encounter, but he didn’t think he would start bleeding. Zain took the handkerchief and dabbed his nose, trying to clean himself before the woman returned.

Devante sighed and leaned back in his seat, casting his gaze upward. “I still don’t know how you got here, but I’m really glad you did. You somehow managed to say the right thing at the right time.” He pressed his hands to his face, letting out a shaky breath of relief. “It feels like lady luck is finally on my side.”

It felt more like what he said had a bigger effect on her. I didn’t say anything special, so why does he insist that I did?

Zain’s confusion was interrupted by the sound of Cuddy’s heels as she returned back to the room. The sound was so startling, Zain almost shit himself because his sphincter immediately clenched in fear.

She sauntered over, touching the table at its edge; The dark marbling projected documents above it like a touch screen with a map of the world floating overhead on a spinning, holographic globe.

“We had a planned shipment of materials for our resort on Etoile island. Mainly imports and food supplies, however it is not for another two months. We can expedite the process by one month, but any sooner would be impossible.” She started immediately with business-like composure. The map indicated the small island in question, which was one among a cluster within the area. “If we pair the smaller cargo ship with a venture ship that is scheduled to leave in a month, then it should be possible. However, you will need to not only resume normal practices for expeditions planned during that time but also escort the supply ship as well. You will travel with the two ships in tow to this planned exploration point, then diverge with just the hospitality ship cargo at this port...”

She began to point to the map, listing out the plan in great detail, step by step. It was almost as if she had this prepared for this beforehand, the plan was just so detailed and intricate. Devante and Zain just listened (with Zain half understanding all of what was being said).

When she finally finished, she stopped to look at the two of them. “Is this plan a good enough compromise for you?”

“Uh..yeah. Thank you, Cuddy. I’ll get started on -”

“Not so fast.” She stopped Devante before he could rise from his seat. Her gaze now looked over to Zain, with a manic gaze that sent chills down his spine. “Both of you will have to do something for me as compensation for allowing this expedition to take place.”

Both of us?!

Zain gave a startled look to Devante, who shook his head. “Cuddy, this kid has nothing to do with this, so-”

“Oh? But if he wants to join the company, he’s gonna have to prove himself, right?” She placed a hand on her cheek, creating an innocent facade.

“OH! You’ll let him join?!” Devante’s concern was quickly replaced with childlike excitement.

She smiled wickedly at Zain, “Of course, but he has to do something for me first.”

McSQUEEZE ME?! HELLLL NOOOOO!!!

If he didn’t dispel this misunderstanding, he would be forced into joining something he REALLY didn’t want to join. Zain opened his mouth to argue back, but Cuddy placed a hand on his shoulder, exuding the powerful force he had felt before on a fixed place.

It shocked him into silence, as his body rigidly tensed involuntarily, like some fear response. She looked at him with a menacing glare, “Before the ship is to depart, I need you to infiltrate a gang that has been using one of my properties. You’ll be working as an undercover witness for me. Of course the authorities are working with us as well during this investigation. ” She put a finger on her lips, as if contemplating. She hemmed and hawed for a second, before she added jarring knowledge to her statement. “It will be easier to infiltrate if you go with another person your age. I know! I hear you have a roommate you are good friends with. My husband has taken a good liking to him too. Perhaps I will have a talk with him as well. But, dear me. I can only allow one of you to join our organization at this time.”

She heaved a fake, forlorn sigh, hand on cheek as she continued. “Well, he is going to be a teacher from what I hear, so he shouldn’t mind. But…” She paused as she met his eye, making sure to get her point across as she persisted. “If you want to pursue different paths, perhaps I will make him an offer.”

The message was clear: Him or Brayden.

Zain could wash his hands of this whole mess and simply throw Brayden under the bus… but all of this was all his own fault. He couldn’t do that to Brayden.

Defeated, Zain could only nod in acceptance of her offer.

Cuddy smiled, schadenfreude clear on her face as she let go of the unfortunate boy.

She turned to Devante with a wry smile, “One of my conditions is that this boy must join you on the journey. Since I see SO much potential in him. As for the rest…We will discuss them later, once we are alone…For now, you should return the kid back home before his roommate gets home.”

The amount of knowledge she had was concerning, and she just casually dropped it in conversation in order to unnerve him. There was nothing he could do now, she had trapped him in petty revenge.

Everything that happened afterwards was very much a blur..Zain was just out of if as he was processing everything that happened.

They had met up with Javier and caught him up to speed, then they were all escorted back to the terminal.

At some point, he got his sword back to him: it was bound and boxed with an instruction and authenticity set. He held it in his hand; a small consolation prize that did not equate to the cost of its attainment. He kept it its box, slightly nauseated as his surroundings felt surreal.

He could really only sit in stunned silence as everyone celebrated around him, no one paying much mind to his slight internal crisis.

What…do I do now?