[fic] Cruel Intentions: Retribution Three
Title: Retribution Three
Rating: PG-13
Warning: Major angst + Tragedy
Characters: Fei Long, Alexei, Yoh
Spoiler: Spoiler for NT arc
Disclaimer: All characters belong to YA sensei.
Beta: angel0399
Previous Chapters: On the side bar of my lj kajornwan
TRANSLATIONS UPDATE: CI (first arc) is now being translated into Polish by yoan_chan *hugs*. The first chapter is finished and can be found here http://yoansfanfictionstories.w.interia.pl/rindex.htm
“What do you want?” Fei Long asked, drumming his fingers on the white linen of the dining table as he looked straight into the cunning green eyes. It wasn’t everyday that he’d received a call from Alexei, much less being invited to join him for dinner. Despite all his advances when they happen to run into each other, the man rarely took that extra step to get truly involved. In a way, Alexei was the opposite of his brother, who had a tendency to dive into something he’s attracted to immediately without thinking. The younger Arbatov, however, enjoys playing but would never commit himself to anything that would require an effort to keep. For Alexei to call and extend an invitation meant there was an underlying reason⎯ one he’d yet to find out.
Alexei smiled. He reached for a thick envelope inside his jacket and tossed it on the table. “On the contrary, I have something for you.”
Fei Long reached for the envelope and held it in his hand unopened for a few seconds while his eyes carefully studied the other man’s expression. It was rather obvious that the content was meant to be a surprise, but given Alexei’s unpredictable nature, one could never tell if such a surprise would be pleasant. “What’s in here?”
“Open it” Alexei insisted, smiling to himself as he watched Fei Long’s amethyst eyes narrow in curiosity. For some reason, even the slightest change in Fei Long’s expression seemed to have a strange affect on him lately. Butterflies invaded his stomach out of nowhere, and by nothing more than a simple gesture from that flawlessly beautiful face.
Long, elegant fingers flipped open the envelope and unfolded the set of papers inside to read. For a brief moment, life seemed to return to those beautiful eyes as they looked up at the man across the table, surprised and obviously impressed. “I don’t understand.”
“Just sign on them, and it’s yours,” the young Russian added. The expression on Fei Long’s face at the time was that of a child who’d just been given a Christmas present. It was a sight that was well worth the price he paid for the content of one small envelope.
Trying his best to hide his satisfaction, Fei Long refolded the papers in his hand and placed them back on the table. It was funny how a few sheets of paper could give him so much pleasure. Finally, Mikhail’s penthouse was now resting in his hands, safe, and truly his to keep.
But at what cost?
“I thought you said it’s been sold.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t buy it back,” Alexei shrugged as he lit himself a cigarette. Buying the penthouse back was easy; keeping the transactions hidden from his brother, however, was remarkably difficult.
“And how much do I owe you?” Fei Long asked, signaling at one of his bodyguards to bring him his checkbook.
“Whatever happened to ‘I’ll sleep with you if you help me get it back?’ ” Alexei countered with a mischievous smile, ignoring the presence of Fei Long’s bodyguard whose hand paused in midair for a few seconds at the information.
With a quick glare of disapproval at the Russian, Fei Long snatched the checkbook from his bodyguard and gave a signal for him to return to his post - somewhere out of range from whatever Alexei had to say next to ruin his reputation. Sometimes he wondered if shamelessness was a Russian virtue, or a characteristic that runs in the Arbatov family.
“It would help for you to remember that a man in my position doesn’t offer the same prize twice if you refuse me the first time,” Fei Long replied, peeking through his long lashes in a quick glance at the other man, asserting himself before he began to write on a check. “How much?”
“Perhaps I don’t want your money.”
“Unfortunately, it is money that I offer,” Fei Long confirmed with a smile, backed with the tone that showed no room for argument.
“Are you always this aggressive or just in business?” Alexei raised a brow at Fei Long’s intention to singlehandedly close the deal without so much as an opening for rejection.
“I was hoping you’d appreciate my generosity of forgoing the most important aspect of doing business called bargaining,” Fei Long replied with a criticizing look on his face as he emphasized the last word of the sentence.
“I do, except I’m not here to do business with you.”
“Every exchange is considered business by my interpretation.”
“Then consider it a gift.”
“On what occasion?”
“One should never need an excuse to give someone like you a present.”
Fei Long looked up, taken aback not by the words spoken, but the tone Alexei had used. He had hoped to see a hint of playfulness on that face, or something that showed it was nothing more than a joke the man loved to throw at him whenever he found the opportunity. Somehow, those green eyes that kept staring at him seemed strangely fixated and unwavering. Most of all, they resembled those of Mikhail’s, and it inevitably made him feel uneasy. Alexei was flirting with him, and it was beginning to feel more than a fling.
“What are you doing?” Fei Long sighed as he put down the pen and looked back into Alexei’s eyes with concern. He knew something was different the moment he’d received the call. The question was, does the man know what he was getting himself into?
“I have absolutely no idea,” Alexei replied with a laugh. It wasn’t far from the truth. He had no desire to commit himself to a relationship, and the idea of being attached to someone seemed unbearably boring to him. The reason why he was sitting there and going through all this just to see Fei Long was beyond his comprehension, not to mention against his own rules.
“Don’t fall for me, Alexei,” Fei Long warned with sincerity in his tone. Alexei had become a good friend - one he didn’t want to lose. Not to mention he was in no shape or form to get himself involved with anyone at that point. As someone who had been there along with him and Mikhail, he should already know this.
“Well, you showing up here looking so damn hot certainly isn’t helping.”
For a brief moment, a genuine smile appeared on the Baishe leader’s face - one that made Alexei wonder what it meant. Fei Long had so many expressions and gestures that he’d yet to learn to decipher. In a way, it was rather irritating to think that Mikhail probably knew most of them, if not all. “That was the first smile I’ve seen from you in a month.”
Fei Long looked away, lowering his eyes to the wine glass in front of him as the smile slowly disappeared. “Has it really been that long?”
One month had passed, and the event on that ship still seemed like yesterday. He could still remember his heart beating fast as he kissed Asami and how it felt to see the man’s expressionless face in response to it. But most of all, he remembered the look on Mikhail’s face just before he walked away. Somehow, it was the only image of Mikhail that he could still remember with clarity. But seeing Alexei laugh just minutes ago reminded him of what Mikhail looked like when he smiled, and how it used to soften his heart every time he saw it. Even without the deed to the penthouse, accepting Alexei’s invitation wasn’t such a bad idea. They were brothers, after all, and Alexei did resemble Mikhail in many ways.
“Anyway, how was Moscow?” Fei Long asked. He’d suddenly remembered that Alexei had just returned from Russia a few days before. He had to admit, the question was somewhat different from what he truly had in mind.
Alexei took a puff on his cigarette and smirked knowingly. “You mean ‘How is he?’”
Fei Long paused. His heart skipped a beat from hearing Alexei speak out loud the question he’d tried to avoid. Somehow, even asking about Mikhail felt like a sin. But there was no use hiding it now. Alexei knew as well as he did how much just a mere mention of the man’s name meant to him. “Well, how is he?”
“I only saw him for a few minutes,” Alexei replied, casually knocking the ash off his cigarette before he continued. “He was high on pot and was cheating on his wife with someone’s daughter. Other than that, he seems fine.”
“I thought it was that singer from America,” Fei Long said with a smile; it was difficult to tell whether it was real, or if it was merely a mask he’d put on to conceal a certain unwanted emotion.
“Don’t believe everything you hear from the press. By the time it’s published, he’ll be doing another actress from another country,” Alexei explained, rolling his eyes at what he considered normal for his brother. “But you wouldn’t know this, of course. He was head over heels for you.”
“While it lasted,” Fei Long added. It wasn’t as if he didn’t know the extent of Mikhail’s affection for him. He’d always known what he had, and it was his stupidity alone that allowed someone like Mikhail to slip through his fingers.
For a while, Alexei sat there quietly, watching the expression on Fei Long’s face change from regret to self-pity. It wasn’t an easy sight to stomach, especially when those delicate fingers continued to endlessly stroke the surface of that white envelope as though it would bring him the comfort he needed. It was impossible for anyone to know the true magnitude of the pain the man contained behind that calm and controlled façade he was wearing. And yet Liu Fei Long still stands, with his head held high and his back straight, going about his business and duties in the kind of perfection that was uniquely his own. He’d never seen such strength, and perhaps it was this strength that had both intrigued and saved his brother, who was also broken in many ways.
“Let’s get out of here,” Alexei decided to break the silence. “As for the penthouse, unless you want to rethink your first offer, you can start paying me back by picking up tonight’s check and treat me to a few drinks.”
“That would be inappropriate,” Fei Long narrowed his eyes and gave him a disapproving look. “You ask me out for dinner, you pay for it.”
Taken aback by the unexpected answer and a hint of playfulness in Fei Long’s tone, Alexei paused for a few seconds before he realized it wasn’t a joke. “You’re not kidding, are you?”
“I’m Chinese, sweetheart, and this is China,” Fei Long replied with a slight grin. He had to admit, something that night managed to improve his mood a little. Perhaps it was the wine, or the thoughtful present, or the way Alexei reminded him so much of Mikhail that did it. Whatever it was, he had Alexei to thank for lifting some of the weight in his chest.
“But as a gesture of gratitude, I will treat you to a few drinks in my new penthouse that you so generously paid $38 million for.”
“You mean $39 million.”
“He was going to sell it to me for $38 million. You have been ripped off,” Fei Long smirked.
“Considering it’s the most expensive gift I’ve ever given someone, being ripped off for $1 million isn’t that bad, is it?”
“Then perhaps you should know,” Fei Long said, lifting his chin slightly and fluttered his unreasonably long lashes. “Your brother gave me a blank check the first time he took me out for dinner. You have pretty big shoes to fill. Pick up the check, I’ll wait outside.”
***
Fei Long sighed in relief as he opened the door. The penthouse was just as he’d left it one week ago. It seemed Alexei understood why he wanted the apartment and had made sure nothing would be removed from it. He picked up the universal remote and turned on the lights, remembering Mikhail’s favorite preset for a night like this - a night when they’d shared their first kiss.
At the press of a button, the living room lit up just enough to create a warming, dreamy atmosphere, while the rows of fluorescent blue lights illuminated the outdoor pool to perfection. Fei Long smiled as a certain memory came back to him; he once stood right here, admiring the superb lighting job of the apartment and the quality of the stereo system playing Ella Fitzgerald. But which song was it?
Moonlight becomes you…
“You read my mind.” Fei Long turned around towards Alexei as the same hauntingly sweet sound reached his ears.
“I would love to take the credit, but the play list is under your name,” Alexei replied as he put down the music controller. Only his brother would think of details like this - saving a play list for Fei Long or setting up the lighting control to suit a certain date. He’d never had patience for such things. But perhaps such patience was needed to get close to the dragon, whose walls are obviously high and seemingly unbreakable.
“He took me here after our first dinner together. And I made fun of him about his choice of music.” Fei Long turned away and walked towards the floor-to-ceiling window where he once stood with Mikhail right behind him, recalling the event of that night he’d always remember. The room smelled so much like Mikhail then, and he remembered how his heart pounded irregularly as he thought about what being with the man would be like.
Alexei’s footsteps approached him slowly from behind, and Fei Long tried to hide his smile as he realized how much they resembled his brother’s. Perhaps it was the wine at dinner that helped create such an illusion, or perhaps it was the penthouse itself that held so much memory. Here, Mikhail touched him for the first time, kissed him for the first time, and wrapped those arms around him for the first time.
“And what did he do?” Alexei whispered, feeling his own words tremble at the captivating sight of Fei Long in front of him. He wondered if this was how his brother felt when he stood right here, in Fei Long’s presence - bewitched and maddeningly desperate. Maybe it was the way he saw them together that caught his interest. Maybe it wasn’t just Fei Long, but the relationship he had with Mikhail that he desired. That could explain why he didn’t mind tracing his brother’s steps right then, just to experience the same kind of rush that nearly destroyed Mikhail.
“He stood right behind me, breathing down my neck,” Fei Long continued and closed his eyes as he felt Alexei’s warm, uneven breath brushing the side of his face. Yes. This was how it felt back then, when his whole body ached and became overly sensitive with Mikhail standing so close right behind him. “And told me now embarrassing it was for his image that he actually likes this stuff.”
“Well, it is rather embarrassing,” Alexei commented, leaning closer to capture the sweet, intoxicating scent of the long, jet black hair he could touch all day. Fei Long made a little sound, though almost inaudible, as he stole a quick taste, or two, of the flawless skin on that long, elegant neck.
“I asked him what else he had hidden under his bed,” he said, hearing his own voice shake a little as Alexei kissed him again on the side of his neck. Mikhail’s lips were coarser, rougher; they could almost scrape off a layer of his skin when dragged along his body. Harder, he almost slipped out the word, but his vanishing conscience managed to stop him just in time.
“What did he say?” Another kiss, and Fei Long slipped out a moan.
“He said, ‘Why don’t we find out?’” Fei Long recalled and held his breath as Alexei said those words to him with the same thick, Russian accent - the way Mikhail did that used to make his knees weak every time. “Then he ran his fingers through my hair…”
“Like this?” Alexei asked, feeling his breath quickened as he stroked the soft, delicate strands that were strangely intoxicating. He wondered how did he miss all this when he had the dragon in his arms, why it felt like he’d never touched this man before, and why his heart didn’t beat this fast when he held this man down and forced him into submission back then.
Fei Long tilted his head back and closed his eyes. Even though he remembered Mikhail’s hand being bigger and stronger, Alexei’s touch was enough to remind his body how it used to react to Mikhail’s fingers. He missed those hands that felt rough against his skin, how they used to handle him without fear that he would break apart like some porcelain doll. Mikhail had never considered him to be weaker or more fragile. The man enjoyed pushing him to his limits, as much as he enjoyed being challenged. When he was gentle, it was because he wanted to be gentle, but never because he thought it was required.
“And then he kissed me…” his voice trailed off as Alexei captured his lips gently. “Harder.” This time he said it out loud, pressing himself closer, demanding that the feelings he once had would be relived and remembered. “Kiss me as if you’re going to die if you stop.”
Pushing himself harder against the dragon, Alexei couldn’t help but think how appropriate those words sounded. Fei Long’s lips were burning to the touch. He was going to die if he’d stopped. Did Mikhail go through this every time the two of them had sex, or was it just him that felt so weak and defenseless in the presence of this man’s overpowering sexual desire? Whether he ended up on top or bottom, the one holding the reins surely wasn’t him.
Suddenly, Fei Long’s body stiffened. Somehow, a certain memory he didn’t wish to keep also resurfaced. Just like that night with Mikhail, when they were kissing, he remembered Asami.
“Fei Long?” Alexei asked as the expression on the other man’s face suddenly changed into something disturbing. “What happened?”
What happened...
“I pushed him away,” Fei Long replied. His eyes looked past Alexei’s shoulders into the darkness that suddenly fell upon him, confused and, in a way, full of regret. It didn’t just happen on that ship. It’d happened a long time ago from the very first day Mikhail stepped into his life. Even now, with Mikhail gone and Alexei was standing in his place, the dreadful memory still haunted him just as much. “Because that kiss reminded me of Asami.”
Yes, it did. It was the first time he’d been kissed by a man. He could still remember how he enjoyed that warmth he’d long yearned for, how good it felt to be desired by someone, and how the back of Asami’s hand felt so affectionate and tender when it caressed his cheek. Asami had caught him in his most vulnerable state, and he’d embraced all of it without a single doubt, out of desperation.
“I let him kiss me and fooled myself that it meant something,” Fei Long said, gritting his teeth as the truth he’d tried to deny slowly surfaced. It wasn’t Asami that continued to haunt him, it was always his own weakness and stupidity that brought about the death of his father that he’d never be able to forgive. And for years, he’d been too much of a coward to face his own failure. For years, he clung blindly to the possibility that Asami may have felt something for him, that what he believed wasn’t entirely a lie. He’d dragged it along far enough for it to ruin everything Mikhail had worked so hard to build for them. “I took that hand and believed that the kindness was real.”
Alexei held his breath as the strong yet delicate hands grabbed the fabric of his shirt hard enough for him to feel Fei Long’s pain rippling under his own skin. The body in front of him was trembling in a mixture of rage and self-damnation while tears began to pool in those amethyst eyes.
“I did it,” Fei Long said. Every word that came out was slicing his throat open like a blade, and he cried as though each drop of tears that ran down his cheeks stung like acid. “I killed my father.”
He didn’t know how long he stood there with Fei Long in his arms, wondering if Mikhail had ever seen him cry like this, and how he would deal with it. Some time later, Fei Long passed out on his shoulder. He changed the man into his black silk robe and tucked him into bed. It was beyond his comprehension why he found himself sitting there, staring at the one and only man who’d ever affected him so much, without the slightest desire to take advantage of the situation. Fei Long was beyond broken, and he knew nothing good would ever come from touching this man who had already ruined his brother’s life. But still, somehow, against his will, he simply didn’t want to leave.
***
The next morning Fei Long was awakened by the sound of metal clashing against one another. Someone was in the living room, perhaps arranging something on the table or making something in the kitchen. He looked around and realized that he was still in the penthouse, covered with just the black silk robe and nothing else. His heart skipped a beat as the memory of what happened the previous night came to mind. He remembered kissing Alexei, and then he ended up crying on his shoulder. He didn’t know why he’d told Alexei those things, or why he’d allowed himself to appear so weak and helpless in front of a man he couldn’t say with certainty that he trusted. Perhaps Alexei was just there at the right time, in the right place, when he was at his limits. But as embarrassing as it was, what happened that night allowed him to breathe again with less difficulty. The only regret he had was that he’d never told Mikhail these things when he should have…much sooner, and more than anyone.
He rose from the bed and stepped outside to the living room. Alexei was sitting by the bar, reading a newspaper with room service breakfast laid out before him. It was a sight that almost seemed like a dream. Every time he woke up in that penthouse, Mikhail would be there like this, reading the newspaper while waiting for his coffee to brew to perfection. The whole room would be filled with the smell of espresso, and Mikhail would turn around, with his curls hanging disorderly over his face, smile at him and say…
“Good morning.” Alexei folded the paper roughly and placed it on the bar table.
“I suppose the Arbatovs have all been taught to wake up early,” Fei Long teased, trying his best to hide his smile as he sat down at the bar. He’d always considered himself a morning person, but somehow Mikhail seemed to wake up before him every time they’d spent a night together. And just like this, breakfast would be ready, as though the man knew exactly when he’d wake up. With Alexei, it had to be a coincidence, and the way his light brown curls fell over his face in all the right places must be a coincidence too.
“Not really,” Alexei replied, obviously in somewhat a worn out state. “I didn’t really sleep.”
Sleep. The word inevitably brought up an issue in Fei Long’s mind. The room fell into complete silence for a few seconds; he tried to decide whether to ask the question that mattered to him just as much as it was difficult to inquire. Somehow, Alexei understood and was giving him time to make a decision. “Did we…”
“No,” the answer came as readily as the playful smile on Alexei’s face. He was rather pleased with himself that, for once, he’d successfully read Fei Long’s mind.
The head of Baishe sighed in relief. In reality, it wouldn’t matter if he’d slept with Alexei for the third time; especially when the chance of him and Mikhail getting back together sounded like an idea too farfetched to even dream of. Still, it was something he hoped would not happen. For one reason, Alexei had become a good friend, and for another, he resembled too closely to his brother - one he should try his best to forget.
“Don’t sigh,” Alexei said as he lit himself a cigarette. “We can still have sex if you’re so disappointed.”
“Believe me, you don’t want to,” Fei Long replied with a faint smile on his face. He was done using someone else as a substitute for the man he couldn’t have, least of all Alexei.
It was meant to be a joke, but Alexei wasn’t laughing. Instead those green eyes looked straight at him in a way that they almost seemed insulted. “Don’t tell me what I want or don’t want to do.”
Taken aback by the reaction, Fei Long adjusted himself as he realized what those words implied. At that point, he knew everything was not to be taken lightly, and it was about time they had a real talk before going any further. “Well, what do you want?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“No,” Fei Long replied firmly. Alexei needed to ask himself the right questions before even suggesting the idea that was, to him, an impossibility at that point.
“Do you want sex? Fun? A relationship? A friend? A lover?” he asked, staring back into those sharp eyes. “Which is it, and how prepared are you?”
Alexei sighed and ran his hand through the already ruffled curls of his hair. It was a difficult question to answer, even though he knew as much as Fei Long did that he must. He didn’t know what he wanted from Fei Long, nor had he thought of the consequences. All his actions had been based entirely on his desire of the moment, including this. The answer to that question would take more time for him to come up with, and he wasn’t the type to bother making up some beautiful lies to rectify his behavior.
“The truth is, I don’t know,” Alexei replied openly. “Last night, I just didn’t want to leave. I wanted to stay and see how you look in the morning. I want to know how you take your coffee, how you like your eggs, what you’re thinking when you bite your lower lip and narrow your eyes,” Alexei explained. Those words came easily as though they were something ordinary and simple. He didn’t sound overly sweet or try to back it up with a romantic gleam in his eyes. He was just being Alexei - somewhat insensitive and unquestionably blunt.
“And while I try to find out the reason I want to know all these things, instead of picking up some inexperienced boy toy for your sexual release while you figure out whose life you want to fuck up next, why don’t you take me out for a test drive and have yourself a real man who can perform?”
Fei Long sat quietly, listening to what had to be the most flattering confession he’d ever heard, especially when spoken so casually by a man who had not a shred of sensitivity or conscience. In a way, Alexei seemed almost like a child, and the way he sat there, messing up his hair even more with his fingers, was certainly adorable.
“Tea,” Fei Long said, trying not to smile as he continued to stare at those curls that must be as soft as Mikhail’s.
“I’m sorry?”
“I drink tea, not coffee,” he added. “I like my eggs over easy. And as for performance,” Fei Long paused as he rose from the stool and headed back towards the bedroom, turning around before he entered. “You should’ve seen first what your brother can do.”
“He’s that good, huh?”
Fei Long smiled, closed his eyes and purred. “You have absolutely no idea.” He had to shamelessly admit, having sex with Mikhail was one of the things he found most difficult to live without. “That said, I’m going to have myself a cold shower,” he murmured and noticed a brief smile on Alexei’s face as he left the room.
He closed the door and began to untie the belt of his silk robe as he headed for the shower. Something fell on the floor just before he took off the robe - something small and shiny. His heart sank as he realized it was the pendent Mikhail had given him - the one he’d refused to take off even now. He didn’t believe in fate or some mystical sign. But that day, the way the pendent fell, for the first time since he began wearing it, made him question his faith, or lack thereof.
As he knelt down to pick up the Love key, the sound of a helicopter approaching prompted him to turn to the window in alarm. Something wasn’t right. Hong Kong’s sky was always filled with helicopters, but never this close to a building.
The next thing he knew, the whole penthouse shook from the loud, deafening sound of machine guns coming from the direction of the living room. Someone had ordered a hit from the air, and it was moving fast towards him.
Without hesitation, Fei Long quickly grabbed the pendent and ran for cover. The floor-to-ceiling glass panels exploded one by one, the broken pieces shot at him like a storm of a thousand blades. He ran to hide behind the far side of the bed as bullets continued to shatter every piece of furniture in that room, destroying everything in sight and leaving no possibility of escape.
“Shit!” Fei Long swore as he realized he’d been shot in his left arm, in addition to the numerous cuts on his body from the shower of sharp, broken glass. He wiped off the blood that was dripping into his eyes and interfered with his vision. He needed all of his senses working, even when all he could do was wait for the attack to be over.
The helicopter flew past the bedroom, and for a moment, the firing stopped. But the sound of the rotor was still too loud, too close to the window.
“Son of a bitch!” Fei Long cursed as the same chopper returned for the second round of attack. Whoever ordered the hit meant to kill every living thing in that apartment. It was the first time someone had tried to kill him in his own personal space and with such madness. No one else would dare attack him this way in his own territory - no one but that arrogant prick Phillip Toh!
The attack lasted less than a minute, but it was enough to destroy everything in the penthouse that he cherished with all his heart. He stood up slowly when he was sure it was truly over. Gritting his teeth to the pain in his arm and the rage in his chest, he made his way through the broken glass with his bare feet towards the living room.
“Alexei,” Fei Long called before he realized he was still temporarily deaf from the sound of the machine guns. He held his breath as he looked around the room for any sign of the other man. But all he found was a trail of blood on the floor leading to the area behind the bar.
A sudden surge of mind-numbing pain hit him as a certain memory from the past projected itself on the wreckage of that penthouse. His blood turned cold and he could feel neither his fingers nor his toes as he stumbled across the living room. It had to be a dream. It must be! This must be his father’s house, and outside had to be dark, and raining.
“Alexei!” Fei Long called again, wishing that his own voice would wake him from the wretched dream. He was certain the broken glass that pierced through the soles of his feet was just a fragment of his imagination, and on the other side of that bar table, at the end of that blood trail, he would find his father’s body.
Someone was kneeling on the floor next to a body, dressed in black from head to toe. For a moment, he thought it was the mythical figure he’d seen many times in the storybooks his father had bought him when he was little. Upon realizing his presence, the man quickly turned around and let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.
“You’re all right. Thank God.”
He didn’t know why, when or how Yoh had gotten into the penthouse. But the fact that he was there had slapped him back to reality. They were in Mikhail’s penthouse, it was still morning, and at Yoh’s feet laid the body of a man who was Mikhail’s only brother.
The expression on his face must have given away his question without him having to utter a word. It was Yoh, after all - someone who knew him better than anyone, and the one with the right expertise to answer such a question with absolute certainty.
“He was already dead when I came in.”
***
P.S. I know you want to kill me (or maybe not for those who hate Alexei), but this has been a very difficult decision for me to make, but necessary for the angst to come and for the future plot. I am the saddest one of all, in a way, since you know how much I love Alexei. I'll miss writing him... a lot. He'll always be in my heart, and I hope yours too.
P.P.S. As I wrote the end of this chapter, it reminded me of an image I once posted of the model I think would be perfect for Alexei's role. It didn't match him so much at the time because he was quite an evil character. But now that I've got a chance to show off the adorable side of Alexei that I've always had in mind, I think it's appropriate that I post this again (even though he's not Russian).
For Alexei,
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Rating: PG-13
Warning: Major angst + Tragedy
Characters: Fei Long, Alexei, Yoh
Spoiler: Spoiler for NT arc
Disclaimer: All characters belong to YA sensei.
Beta: angel0399
Previous Chapters: On the side bar of my lj kajornwan
TRANSLATIONS UPDATE: CI (first arc) is now being translated into Polish by yoan_chan *hugs*. The first chapter is finished and can be found here http://yoansfanfictionstories.w.interia.pl/rindex.htm
“What do you want?” Fei Long asked, drumming his fingers on the white linen of the dining table as he looked straight into the cunning green eyes. It wasn’t everyday that he’d received a call from Alexei, much less being invited to join him for dinner. Despite all his advances when they happen to run into each other, the man rarely took that extra step to get truly involved. In a way, Alexei was the opposite of his brother, who had a tendency to dive into something he’s attracted to immediately without thinking. The younger Arbatov, however, enjoys playing but would never commit himself to anything that would require an effort to keep. For Alexei to call and extend an invitation meant there was an underlying reason⎯ one he’d yet to find out.
Alexei smiled. He reached for a thick envelope inside his jacket and tossed it on the table. “On the contrary, I have something for you.”
Fei Long reached for the envelope and held it in his hand unopened for a few seconds while his eyes carefully studied the other man’s expression. It was rather obvious that the content was meant to be a surprise, but given Alexei’s unpredictable nature, one could never tell if such a surprise would be pleasant. “What’s in here?”
“Open it” Alexei insisted, smiling to himself as he watched Fei Long’s amethyst eyes narrow in curiosity. For some reason, even the slightest change in Fei Long’s expression seemed to have a strange affect on him lately. Butterflies invaded his stomach out of nowhere, and by nothing more than a simple gesture from that flawlessly beautiful face.
Long, elegant fingers flipped open the envelope and unfolded the set of papers inside to read. For a brief moment, life seemed to return to those beautiful eyes as they looked up at the man across the table, surprised and obviously impressed. “I don’t understand.”
“Just sign on them, and it’s yours,” the young Russian added. The expression on Fei Long’s face at the time was that of a child who’d just been given a Christmas present. It was a sight that was well worth the price he paid for the content of one small envelope.
Trying his best to hide his satisfaction, Fei Long refolded the papers in his hand and placed them back on the table. It was funny how a few sheets of paper could give him so much pleasure. Finally, Mikhail’s penthouse was now resting in his hands, safe, and truly his to keep.
But at what cost?
“I thought you said it’s been sold.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t buy it back,” Alexei shrugged as he lit himself a cigarette. Buying the penthouse back was easy; keeping the transactions hidden from his brother, however, was remarkably difficult.
“And how much do I owe you?” Fei Long asked, signaling at one of his bodyguards to bring him his checkbook.
“Whatever happened to ‘I’ll sleep with you if you help me get it back?’ ” Alexei countered with a mischievous smile, ignoring the presence of Fei Long’s bodyguard whose hand paused in midair for a few seconds at the information.
With a quick glare of disapproval at the Russian, Fei Long snatched the checkbook from his bodyguard and gave a signal for him to return to his post - somewhere out of range from whatever Alexei had to say next to ruin his reputation. Sometimes he wondered if shamelessness was a Russian virtue, or a characteristic that runs in the Arbatov family.
“It would help for you to remember that a man in my position doesn’t offer the same prize twice if you refuse me the first time,” Fei Long replied, peeking through his long lashes in a quick glance at the other man, asserting himself before he began to write on a check. “How much?”
“Perhaps I don’t want your money.”
“Unfortunately, it is money that I offer,” Fei Long confirmed with a smile, backed with the tone that showed no room for argument.
“Are you always this aggressive or just in business?” Alexei raised a brow at Fei Long’s intention to singlehandedly close the deal without so much as an opening for rejection.
“I was hoping you’d appreciate my generosity of forgoing the most important aspect of doing business called bargaining,” Fei Long replied with a criticizing look on his face as he emphasized the last word of the sentence.
“I do, except I’m not here to do business with you.”
“Every exchange is considered business by my interpretation.”
“Then consider it a gift.”
“On what occasion?”
“One should never need an excuse to give someone like you a present.”
Fei Long looked up, taken aback not by the words spoken, but the tone Alexei had used. He had hoped to see a hint of playfulness on that face, or something that showed it was nothing more than a joke the man loved to throw at him whenever he found the opportunity. Somehow, those green eyes that kept staring at him seemed strangely fixated and unwavering. Most of all, they resembled those of Mikhail’s, and it inevitably made him feel uneasy. Alexei was flirting with him, and it was beginning to feel more than a fling.
“What are you doing?” Fei Long sighed as he put down the pen and looked back into Alexei’s eyes with concern. He knew something was different the moment he’d received the call. The question was, does the man know what he was getting himself into?
“I have absolutely no idea,” Alexei replied with a laugh. It wasn’t far from the truth. He had no desire to commit himself to a relationship, and the idea of being attached to someone seemed unbearably boring to him. The reason why he was sitting there and going through all this just to see Fei Long was beyond his comprehension, not to mention against his own rules.
“Don’t fall for me, Alexei,” Fei Long warned with sincerity in his tone. Alexei had become a good friend - one he didn’t want to lose. Not to mention he was in no shape or form to get himself involved with anyone at that point. As someone who had been there along with him and Mikhail, he should already know this.
“Well, you showing up here looking so damn hot certainly isn’t helping.”
For a brief moment, a genuine smile appeared on the Baishe leader’s face - one that made Alexei wonder what it meant. Fei Long had so many expressions and gestures that he’d yet to learn to decipher. In a way, it was rather irritating to think that Mikhail probably knew most of them, if not all. “That was the first smile I’ve seen from you in a month.”
Fei Long looked away, lowering his eyes to the wine glass in front of him as the smile slowly disappeared. “Has it really been that long?”
One month had passed, and the event on that ship still seemed like yesterday. He could still remember his heart beating fast as he kissed Asami and how it felt to see the man’s expressionless face in response to it. But most of all, he remembered the look on Mikhail’s face just before he walked away. Somehow, it was the only image of Mikhail that he could still remember with clarity. But seeing Alexei laugh just minutes ago reminded him of what Mikhail looked like when he smiled, and how it used to soften his heart every time he saw it. Even without the deed to the penthouse, accepting Alexei’s invitation wasn’t such a bad idea. They were brothers, after all, and Alexei did resemble Mikhail in many ways.
“Anyway, how was Moscow?” Fei Long asked. He’d suddenly remembered that Alexei had just returned from Russia a few days before. He had to admit, the question was somewhat different from what he truly had in mind.
Alexei took a puff on his cigarette and smirked knowingly. “You mean ‘How is he?’”
Fei Long paused. His heart skipped a beat from hearing Alexei speak out loud the question he’d tried to avoid. Somehow, even asking about Mikhail felt like a sin. But there was no use hiding it now. Alexei knew as well as he did how much just a mere mention of the man’s name meant to him. “Well, how is he?”
“I only saw him for a few minutes,” Alexei replied, casually knocking the ash off his cigarette before he continued. “He was high on pot and was cheating on his wife with someone’s daughter. Other than that, he seems fine.”
“I thought it was that singer from America,” Fei Long said with a smile; it was difficult to tell whether it was real, or if it was merely a mask he’d put on to conceal a certain unwanted emotion.
“Don’t believe everything you hear from the press. By the time it’s published, he’ll be doing another actress from another country,” Alexei explained, rolling his eyes at what he considered normal for his brother. “But you wouldn’t know this, of course. He was head over heels for you.”
“While it lasted,” Fei Long added. It wasn’t as if he didn’t know the extent of Mikhail’s affection for him. He’d always known what he had, and it was his stupidity alone that allowed someone like Mikhail to slip through his fingers.
For a while, Alexei sat there quietly, watching the expression on Fei Long’s face change from regret to self-pity. It wasn’t an easy sight to stomach, especially when those delicate fingers continued to endlessly stroke the surface of that white envelope as though it would bring him the comfort he needed. It was impossible for anyone to know the true magnitude of the pain the man contained behind that calm and controlled façade he was wearing. And yet Liu Fei Long still stands, with his head held high and his back straight, going about his business and duties in the kind of perfection that was uniquely his own. He’d never seen such strength, and perhaps it was this strength that had both intrigued and saved his brother, who was also broken in many ways.
“Let’s get out of here,” Alexei decided to break the silence. “As for the penthouse, unless you want to rethink your first offer, you can start paying me back by picking up tonight’s check and treat me to a few drinks.”
“That would be inappropriate,” Fei Long narrowed his eyes and gave him a disapproving look. “You ask me out for dinner, you pay for it.”
Taken aback by the unexpected answer and a hint of playfulness in Fei Long’s tone, Alexei paused for a few seconds before he realized it wasn’t a joke. “You’re not kidding, are you?”
“I’m Chinese, sweetheart, and this is China,” Fei Long replied with a slight grin. He had to admit, something that night managed to improve his mood a little. Perhaps it was the wine, or the thoughtful present, or the way Alexei reminded him so much of Mikhail that did it. Whatever it was, he had Alexei to thank for lifting some of the weight in his chest.
“But as a gesture of gratitude, I will treat you to a few drinks in my new penthouse that you so generously paid $38 million for.”
“You mean $39 million.”
“He was going to sell it to me for $38 million. You have been ripped off,” Fei Long smirked.
“Considering it’s the most expensive gift I’ve ever given someone, being ripped off for $1 million isn’t that bad, is it?”
“Then perhaps you should know,” Fei Long said, lifting his chin slightly and fluttered his unreasonably long lashes. “Your brother gave me a blank check the first time he took me out for dinner. You have pretty big shoes to fill. Pick up the check, I’ll wait outside.”
***
Fei Long sighed in relief as he opened the door. The penthouse was just as he’d left it one week ago. It seemed Alexei understood why he wanted the apartment and had made sure nothing would be removed from it. He picked up the universal remote and turned on the lights, remembering Mikhail’s favorite preset for a night like this - a night when they’d shared their first kiss.
At the press of a button, the living room lit up just enough to create a warming, dreamy atmosphere, while the rows of fluorescent blue lights illuminated the outdoor pool to perfection. Fei Long smiled as a certain memory came back to him; he once stood right here, admiring the superb lighting job of the apartment and the quality of the stereo system playing Ella Fitzgerald. But which song was it?
Moonlight becomes you…
“You read my mind.” Fei Long turned around towards Alexei as the same hauntingly sweet sound reached his ears.
“I would love to take the credit, but the play list is under your name,” Alexei replied as he put down the music controller. Only his brother would think of details like this - saving a play list for Fei Long or setting up the lighting control to suit a certain date. He’d never had patience for such things. But perhaps such patience was needed to get close to the dragon, whose walls are obviously high and seemingly unbreakable.
“He took me here after our first dinner together. And I made fun of him about his choice of music.” Fei Long turned away and walked towards the floor-to-ceiling window where he once stood with Mikhail right behind him, recalling the event of that night he’d always remember. The room smelled so much like Mikhail then, and he remembered how his heart pounded irregularly as he thought about what being with the man would be like.
Alexei’s footsteps approached him slowly from behind, and Fei Long tried to hide his smile as he realized how much they resembled his brother’s. Perhaps it was the wine at dinner that helped create such an illusion, or perhaps it was the penthouse itself that held so much memory. Here, Mikhail touched him for the first time, kissed him for the first time, and wrapped those arms around him for the first time.
“And what did he do?” Alexei whispered, feeling his own words tremble at the captivating sight of Fei Long in front of him. He wondered if this was how his brother felt when he stood right here, in Fei Long’s presence - bewitched and maddeningly desperate. Maybe it was the way he saw them together that caught his interest. Maybe it wasn’t just Fei Long, but the relationship he had with Mikhail that he desired. That could explain why he didn’t mind tracing his brother’s steps right then, just to experience the same kind of rush that nearly destroyed Mikhail.
“He stood right behind me, breathing down my neck,” Fei Long continued and closed his eyes as he felt Alexei’s warm, uneven breath brushing the side of his face. Yes. This was how it felt back then, when his whole body ached and became overly sensitive with Mikhail standing so close right behind him. “And told me now embarrassing it was for his image that he actually likes this stuff.”
“Well, it is rather embarrassing,” Alexei commented, leaning closer to capture the sweet, intoxicating scent of the long, jet black hair he could touch all day. Fei Long made a little sound, though almost inaudible, as he stole a quick taste, or two, of the flawless skin on that long, elegant neck.
“I asked him what else he had hidden under his bed,” he said, hearing his own voice shake a little as Alexei kissed him again on the side of his neck. Mikhail’s lips were coarser, rougher; they could almost scrape off a layer of his skin when dragged along his body. Harder, he almost slipped out the word, but his vanishing conscience managed to stop him just in time.
“What did he say?” Another kiss, and Fei Long slipped out a moan.
“He said, ‘Why don’t we find out?’” Fei Long recalled and held his breath as Alexei said those words to him with the same thick, Russian accent - the way Mikhail did that used to make his knees weak every time. “Then he ran his fingers through my hair…”
“Like this?” Alexei asked, feeling his breath quickened as he stroked the soft, delicate strands that were strangely intoxicating. He wondered how did he miss all this when he had the dragon in his arms, why it felt like he’d never touched this man before, and why his heart didn’t beat this fast when he held this man down and forced him into submission back then.
Fei Long tilted his head back and closed his eyes. Even though he remembered Mikhail’s hand being bigger and stronger, Alexei’s touch was enough to remind his body how it used to react to Mikhail’s fingers. He missed those hands that felt rough against his skin, how they used to handle him without fear that he would break apart like some porcelain doll. Mikhail had never considered him to be weaker or more fragile. The man enjoyed pushing him to his limits, as much as he enjoyed being challenged. When he was gentle, it was because he wanted to be gentle, but never because he thought it was required.
“And then he kissed me…” his voice trailed off as Alexei captured his lips gently. “Harder.” This time he said it out loud, pressing himself closer, demanding that the feelings he once had would be relived and remembered. “Kiss me as if you’re going to die if you stop.”
Pushing himself harder against the dragon, Alexei couldn’t help but think how appropriate those words sounded. Fei Long’s lips were burning to the touch. He was going to die if he’d stopped. Did Mikhail go through this every time the two of them had sex, or was it just him that felt so weak and defenseless in the presence of this man’s overpowering sexual desire? Whether he ended up on top or bottom, the one holding the reins surely wasn’t him.
Suddenly, Fei Long’s body stiffened. Somehow, a certain memory he didn’t wish to keep also resurfaced. Just like that night with Mikhail, when they were kissing, he remembered Asami.
“Fei Long?” Alexei asked as the expression on the other man’s face suddenly changed into something disturbing. “What happened?”
What happened...
“I pushed him away,” Fei Long replied. His eyes looked past Alexei’s shoulders into the darkness that suddenly fell upon him, confused and, in a way, full of regret. It didn’t just happen on that ship. It’d happened a long time ago from the very first day Mikhail stepped into his life. Even now, with Mikhail gone and Alexei was standing in his place, the dreadful memory still haunted him just as much. “Because that kiss reminded me of Asami.”
Yes, it did. It was the first time he’d been kissed by a man. He could still remember how he enjoyed that warmth he’d long yearned for, how good it felt to be desired by someone, and how the back of Asami’s hand felt so affectionate and tender when it caressed his cheek. Asami had caught him in his most vulnerable state, and he’d embraced all of it without a single doubt, out of desperation.
“I let him kiss me and fooled myself that it meant something,” Fei Long said, gritting his teeth as the truth he’d tried to deny slowly surfaced. It wasn’t Asami that continued to haunt him, it was always his own weakness and stupidity that brought about the death of his father that he’d never be able to forgive. And for years, he’d been too much of a coward to face his own failure. For years, he clung blindly to the possibility that Asami may have felt something for him, that what he believed wasn’t entirely a lie. He’d dragged it along far enough for it to ruin everything Mikhail had worked so hard to build for them. “I took that hand and believed that the kindness was real.”
Alexei held his breath as the strong yet delicate hands grabbed the fabric of his shirt hard enough for him to feel Fei Long’s pain rippling under his own skin. The body in front of him was trembling in a mixture of rage and self-damnation while tears began to pool in those amethyst eyes.
“I did it,” Fei Long said. Every word that came out was slicing his throat open like a blade, and he cried as though each drop of tears that ran down his cheeks stung like acid. “I killed my father.”
He didn’t know how long he stood there with Fei Long in his arms, wondering if Mikhail had ever seen him cry like this, and how he would deal with it. Some time later, Fei Long passed out on his shoulder. He changed the man into his black silk robe and tucked him into bed. It was beyond his comprehension why he found himself sitting there, staring at the one and only man who’d ever affected him so much, without the slightest desire to take advantage of the situation. Fei Long was beyond broken, and he knew nothing good would ever come from touching this man who had already ruined his brother’s life. But still, somehow, against his will, he simply didn’t want to leave.
***
The next morning Fei Long was awakened by the sound of metal clashing against one another. Someone was in the living room, perhaps arranging something on the table or making something in the kitchen. He looked around and realized that he was still in the penthouse, covered with just the black silk robe and nothing else. His heart skipped a beat as the memory of what happened the previous night came to mind. He remembered kissing Alexei, and then he ended up crying on his shoulder. He didn’t know why he’d told Alexei those things, or why he’d allowed himself to appear so weak and helpless in front of a man he couldn’t say with certainty that he trusted. Perhaps Alexei was just there at the right time, in the right place, when he was at his limits. But as embarrassing as it was, what happened that night allowed him to breathe again with less difficulty. The only regret he had was that he’d never told Mikhail these things when he should have…much sooner, and more than anyone.
He rose from the bed and stepped outside to the living room. Alexei was sitting by the bar, reading a newspaper with room service breakfast laid out before him. It was a sight that almost seemed like a dream. Every time he woke up in that penthouse, Mikhail would be there like this, reading the newspaper while waiting for his coffee to brew to perfection. The whole room would be filled with the smell of espresso, and Mikhail would turn around, with his curls hanging disorderly over his face, smile at him and say…
“Good morning.” Alexei folded the paper roughly and placed it on the bar table.
“I suppose the Arbatovs have all been taught to wake up early,” Fei Long teased, trying his best to hide his smile as he sat down at the bar. He’d always considered himself a morning person, but somehow Mikhail seemed to wake up before him every time they’d spent a night together. And just like this, breakfast would be ready, as though the man knew exactly when he’d wake up. With Alexei, it had to be a coincidence, and the way his light brown curls fell over his face in all the right places must be a coincidence too.
“Not really,” Alexei replied, obviously in somewhat a worn out state. “I didn’t really sleep.”
Sleep. The word inevitably brought up an issue in Fei Long’s mind. The room fell into complete silence for a few seconds; he tried to decide whether to ask the question that mattered to him just as much as it was difficult to inquire. Somehow, Alexei understood and was giving him time to make a decision. “Did we…”
“No,” the answer came as readily as the playful smile on Alexei’s face. He was rather pleased with himself that, for once, he’d successfully read Fei Long’s mind.
The head of Baishe sighed in relief. In reality, it wouldn’t matter if he’d slept with Alexei for the third time; especially when the chance of him and Mikhail getting back together sounded like an idea too farfetched to even dream of. Still, it was something he hoped would not happen. For one reason, Alexei had become a good friend, and for another, he resembled too closely to his brother - one he should try his best to forget.
“Don’t sigh,” Alexei said as he lit himself a cigarette. “We can still have sex if you’re so disappointed.”
“Believe me, you don’t want to,” Fei Long replied with a faint smile on his face. He was done using someone else as a substitute for the man he couldn’t have, least of all Alexei.
It was meant to be a joke, but Alexei wasn’t laughing. Instead those green eyes looked straight at him in a way that they almost seemed insulted. “Don’t tell me what I want or don’t want to do.”
Taken aback by the reaction, Fei Long adjusted himself as he realized what those words implied. At that point, he knew everything was not to be taken lightly, and it was about time they had a real talk before going any further. “Well, what do you want?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“No,” Fei Long replied firmly. Alexei needed to ask himself the right questions before even suggesting the idea that was, to him, an impossibility at that point.
“Do you want sex? Fun? A relationship? A friend? A lover?” he asked, staring back into those sharp eyes. “Which is it, and how prepared are you?”
Alexei sighed and ran his hand through the already ruffled curls of his hair. It was a difficult question to answer, even though he knew as much as Fei Long did that he must. He didn’t know what he wanted from Fei Long, nor had he thought of the consequences. All his actions had been based entirely on his desire of the moment, including this. The answer to that question would take more time for him to come up with, and he wasn’t the type to bother making up some beautiful lies to rectify his behavior.
“The truth is, I don’t know,” Alexei replied openly. “Last night, I just didn’t want to leave. I wanted to stay and see how you look in the morning. I want to know how you take your coffee, how you like your eggs, what you’re thinking when you bite your lower lip and narrow your eyes,” Alexei explained. Those words came easily as though they were something ordinary and simple. He didn’t sound overly sweet or try to back it up with a romantic gleam in his eyes. He was just being Alexei - somewhat insensitive and unquestionably blunt.
“And while I try to find out the reason I want to know all these things, instead of picking up some inexperienced boy toy for your sexual release while you figure out whose life you want to fuck up next, why don’t you take me out for a test drive and have yourself a real man who can perform?”
Fei Long sat quietly, listening to what had to be the most flattering confession he’d ever heard, especially when spoken so casually by a man who had not a shred of sensitivity or conscience. In a way, Alexei seemed almost like a child, and the way he sat there, messing up his hair even more with his fingers, was certainly adorable.
“Tea,” Fei Long said, trying not to smile as he continued to stare at those curls that must be as soft as Mikhail’s.
“I’m sorry?”
“I drink tea, not coffee,” he added. “I like my eggs over easy. And as for performance,” Fei Long paused as he rose from the stool and headed back towards the bedroom, turning around before he entered. “You should’ve seen first what your brother can do.”
“He’s that good, huh?”
Fei Long smiled, closed his eyes and purred. “You have absolutely no idea.” He had to shamelessly admit, having sex with Mikhail was one of the things he found most difficult to live without. “That said, I’m going to have myself a cold shower,” he murmured and noticed a brief smile on Alexei’s face as he left the room.
He closed the door and began to untie the belt of his silk robe as he headed for the shower. Something fell on the floor just before he took off the robe - something small and shiny. His heart sank as he realized it was the pendent Mikhail had given him - the one he’d refused to take off even now. He didn’t believe in fate or some mystical sign. But that day, the way the pendent fell, for the first time since he began wearing it, made him question his faith, or lack thereof.
As he knelt down to pick up the Love key, the sound of a helicopter approaching prompted him to turn to the window in alarm. Something wasn’t right. Hong Kong’s sky was always filled with helicopters, but never this close to a building.
The next thing he knew, the whole penthouse shook from the loud, deafening sound of machine guns coming from the direction of the living room. Someone had ordered a hit from the air, and it was moving fast towards him.
Without hesitation, Fei Long quickly grabbed the pendent and ran for cover. The floor-to-ceiling glass panels exploded one by one, the broken pieces shot at him like a storm of a thousand blades. He ran to hide behind the far side of the bed as bullets continued to shatter every piece of furniture in that room, destroying everything in sight and leaving no possibility of escape.
“Shit!” Fei Long swore as he realized he’d been shot in his left arm, in addition to the numerous cuts on his body from the shower of sharp, broken glass. He wiped off the blood that was dripping into his eyes and interfered with his vision. He needed all of his senses working, even when all he could do was wait for the attack to be over.
The helicopter flew past the bedroom, and for a moment, the firing stopped. But the sound of the rotor was still too loud, too close to the window.
“Son of a bitch!” Fei Long cursed as the same chopper returned for the second round of attack. Whoever ordered the hit meant to kill every living thing in that apartment. It was the first time someone had tried to kill him in his own personal space and with such madness. No one else would dare attack him this way in his own territory - no one but that arrogant prick Phillip Toh!
The attack lasted less than a minute, but it was enough to destroy everything in the penthouse that he cherished with all his heart. He stood up slowly when he was sure it was truly over. Gritting his teeth to the pain in his arm and the rage in his chest, he made his way through the broken glass with his bare feet towards the living room.
“Alexei,” Fei Long called before he realized he was still temporarily deaf from the sound of the machine guns. He held his breath as he looked around the room for any sign of the other man. But all he found was a trail of blood on the floor leading to the area behind the bar.
A sudden surge of mind-numbing pain hit him as a certain memory from the past projected itself on the wreckage of that penthouse. His blood turned cold and he could feel neither his fingers nor his toes as he stumbled across the living room. It had to be a dream. It must be! This must be his father’s house, and outside had to be dark, and raining.
“Alexei!” Fei Long called again, wishing that his own voice would wake him from the wretched dream. He was certain the broken glass that pierced through the soles of his feet was just a fragment of his imagination, and on the other side of that bar table, at the end of that blood trail, he would find his father’s body.
Someone was kneeling on the floor next to a body, dressed in black from head to toe. For a moment, he thought it was the mythical figure he’d seen many times in the storybooks his father had bought him when he was little. Upon realizing his presence, the man quickly turned around and let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.
“You’re all right. Thank God.”
He didn’t know why, when or how Yoh had gotten into the penthouse. But the fact that he was there had slapped him back to reality. They were in Mikhail’s penthouse, it was still morning, and at Yoh’s feet laid the body of a man who was Mikhail’s only brother.
The expression on his face must have given away his question without him having to utter a word. It was Yoh, after all - someone who knew him better than anyone, and the one with the right expertise to answer such a question with absolute certainty.
“He was already dead when I came in.”
***
P.S. I know you want to kill me (or maybe not for those who hate Alexei), but this has been a very difficult decision for me to make, but necessary for the angst to come and for the future plot. I am the saddest one of all, in a way, since you know how much I love Alexei. I'll miss writing him... a lot. He'll always be in my heart, and I hope yours too.
P.P.S. As I wrote the end of this chapter, it reminded me of an image I once posted of the model I think would be perfect for Alexei's role. It didn't match him so much at the time because he was quite an evil character. But now that I've got a chance to show off the adorable side of Alexei that I've always had in mind, I think it's appropriate that I post this again (even though he's not Russian).
For Alexei,
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