"Alright! Stop being so cheesy." Leo muttered as he dragged Crist far away from Emily and Mark.

"Emilia."

"Huh?"

Emily turned to look at her eldest brother when he called her name. Domenic was still busy reading the report that his Secretary brought early in the morning.

It was some kind of important file that needed his signature before noon, that's why her brother was still busy with his work even on Christmas.

"I want you to do me a favor," Domenic spoke as he continued reading the report.

"What is it?"

Emily asked while she tried her very best to not look excited at all. She was more than happy to do something for Nick. It was so rare for him to assign her with any work unless it was about following certain rules and regulations.

"I have an important parcel that is needed to be picked from the SA. Can you please visit the Academy to pick it up? Shadow will accompany you there."

He finally looked up from his file and fixed his gaze on his little sister as he waited for her answer.

"Alright! Just give me five minutes to change." Emily hurriedly accepted his request and immediately made her way towards the stairs.

Everyone watched in silence as the girl disappeared within a minute. She looked far too happy to be real.

"What is going on? What parcel? And why do you need to send her to pick it up?"

Mark was the first one who started bombarding the questions. The others were just as curious to know the answers as he was.

The only person who looked completely normal and unaffected by the entire situation was none other than Shadow. He just silently sat there reading the magazine.

Fortunately or unfortunately, no one noticed that the man had not turned a single page since the very beginning. In short, he had been reading the same page all this while....or maybe he was not even reading at all.

"To be honest, the parcel is not really that important. I just want her to enjoy a little time while enjoying the outside decorations of Christmas."

Domenic answered Mark's questions as he once again picked up the file that he had put aside just a few moments ago.

"That's thoughtful of you, Dom. But don't you think it's risky to send her out all alone? What if something bad........OUCH!"

Crist let out a sharp cry when a sharp slap landed on the back of his head. He turned to glare at the person who dared to hit him, only coming face to face with an angry-looking Simon.

"Don't jinx!"

His brother exclaimed at him with a shake of his head.

"Yeah, right! But you guys know what I'm talking about." Crist said as he once again looked at his eldest brother.

"Dom, Crist is right. We can't take such a huge risk with her safety." Daniel added his part as he too looked worried about the situation.

"You guys don't need to worry. Shadow will be accompanying her." Domenic said as he gave Daniel a serious nod.

While just like the others, Daniel too was not aware of Shadow's true identity but he knew his brother very well.

Domenic would never neglect Emily's safety and if he trusted Shadow completely regarding her safety then it meant that the man was really someone powerful who could keep her safe.

A sigh escaped Daniel's lips as he quieted down and did not speak anymore. Even though his heart was unsettled because of worry, he was going to put his faith in his brother, just like he had been doing all these years.

He trusted Domenic, his decisions, and his instincts more than anything or anyone.

The others looked at Daniel in surprise which made the man sigh once again as he spoke, "If he's saying that she will be fine with Shadow, then trust him. Dom will never let her get hurt because of his stupid decisions."

Even though the others still wanted to protest but they all knew that Daniel was speaking the truth.

"I can back up Domenic's trust in Shadow. He won't let her get hurt in his watch."

This time it was Sam who spoke up as he passed a quick look in Shadow's direction.

"What's so unique about him?" Leo muttered under his breath, even though he knew pretty well that almost everyone heard him.

Shadow finally decided to discard the magazine as he stood up from his seat and moved to stand in front of Domenic.

"I can't believe you are doing this." He said in a light voice as he shook his head at the situation.

"Me neither. But I owe it to him this time. Can't back down." The Young Alessandro Master replied as he thought about the previous night.

"Are you not worried that it's not really that safe to send her. She's only seventeen. What if something happens that should not happen?"

Shadow pressed on the situation as he reminded the Young Master about the risk that he was taking.

"Why do you think I'm sending you with her? You are responsible for her safety. No matter what's the situation, you have to make sure that she's totally safe." Domenic replied as he once again focused his attention on the file.

"How much safe? I mean she's not really a child. She can have those moments if she wants or maybe at least she can make....You know what I mean!"

Shadow was either trying to piss off the Young Master, or he was just too bored to think about the consequences of his words.

Domenic slammed the file shit as he focused his piercing gaze on the Supreme Sire.

"I'm leaving everything up to you. She can do as much as you will allow her. Good luck!"

The man did not wait to watch the dumbfounded look on Shadow's face. He just stood up from his seat and disappeared from the living room.

The rest of the people who were present in the room were left as confused and surprised as they possibly ever could.

While Shadow and Domenic were busy talking in codes, the rest had no idea what they were actually talking about which led to their utter confused states.

And the thing that left them surprised was the shocked expression that was still visible on Shadow's face. It was the first time they had seen him looking totally speechless.

Just what Domenic meant by his words that brought such a reaction out from Shadow?

"I'm so confused!" Leo spoke out softly as he watched Shadow finally shaking himself out of his shock.

"Same bro!" Crist added as he too stared at the bodyguard.

"What were you two talking about?" Jackson asked the question even though he knew pretty well that he was not going to receive any answer.

Just like he thought, Shadow completely ignored his questions and the curious gazes that were trained on him.

Their attention was pulled towards the stairs when a beautiful girl dressed in black jeans, white blouse, and a dark blue overcoat, appeared in their vision.

Her long brown silky hair was left loose and her hands were hidden in the pockets of her coat as she hurriedly walked towards Shadow.

"Are you ready?"

Her bodyguard asked as soon as she appeared beside him.

Emily immediately nodded her head in reply before she turned to look at her brothers.

"We will be back soon. Don't have too much fun behind my back." She told them with a cute little pout.

"I'm coming with you guys," Simon announced as he moved to pick up his jacket that was resting at the armrest of one of the chairs.

"You can't!" Shadow immediately stopped him as he turned his attention towards the man.

"Why?'

"Why not?"

Both Emily and Simon asked at the same moment as they looked at Shadow with confused looks on their faces.

"Because if any of you were allowed to accompany us, then your brother would have let you know."

Shadow's reply made a frown appeared on almost everyone's face but the man did not give them any more chance to question him or stop him.

He took hold of one of Emily's hands before he pulled her towards the hallway that led to the entrance door.

There were shouts of complaints but to both of their amazement, no one followed behind them.

"What is going on?" Emily asked as she descended the stairs along with her bodyguard.

"Domenic wants me to show you around the city while we are on our way to pick up the parcel. You can look at all the decorations around the area. He did not allow the others to accompany us because he thought that they will be too worried about your safety and it will ruin the mood."

Shadow laid out the white lie in front of her in such a way that Emily did not even think about not believing him even for a second.

She was completely clueless about what was waiting for her at the Academy.