I keep staring in front of me in absolute shock with terror swiftly taking over my complete body. My forehead covers with thick sweat and my palms turn clammy. I open my mouth to utter something, but nothing comes out of it. And for a minute it seems like I have been choked by my own voice. No, this can't be happening! I blink a few times trying to decipher what's going on and before I can clear my throat and try once again; I hear Richard's strong, raspy voice bringing me back to the actual world.

"Ahh Nicole, I was expecting you to be here..." His gaze scrutinizes me entirely before settling on my face. "Why are you standing there? Come...have a seat..." He looks at me with a cigarette in between his lips and says with a visible smirk striking on his face. His features scream a kind of sinister semblance that looks more horrifying in actuality than I could have ever dreamt in my worst imaginations. I notice that he has taken off his suit jacket and kept it aside.

He looks extremely composed sitting in front of me, holding a relaxed posture, yet there is something darkly threatening behind that calm appearance on his face. His voice has been barely enough to send a surge of intimidation through my veins as I freeze in my position, not being able to make a move. My gaze then slowly diverts towards Sophia who is sitting next to him. She is wearing an off-shoulder black top and pencil skirt. Her long legs and shiny black hair are definitely something that couldn't be overlooked. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out by looking at their faces that the two people sitting in front of me are closely related to each other in all possible ways. I see that Sophia carries an equally confident look, just as her father is having right now on his face.

I move forward, taking small steps as I look around at the men standing near, burning me with their evident glares. My gaze wavers, scanning the surrounding for a moment, and then it fixes on someone in particular standing behind the couch. It's Colby. His eyes meet mine, greeting me with an apologetic look on his face as if he is trying to convey that he is helpless in this situation. He clenches his jaw and looks away from me.

"Sit down.." Sophia commands, making me look back at her.

I walk a bit and stumble into the chair in front of them. "Who the hell are you and what the fuck are you doing in my house?" I challenge, trying to sound confident, but deep down I know that my nerves are quivering with fear. I am completely aware of their identities, but I am still trying to pull the facade of being unaffected as I don't want to let them know that right now looking at their faces my heart is churning with knots of apprehension.

"In your house?" Richard laughs, throwing his head back. "If I am not mistaken, this isn't your place, Nicole. It's your boyfriend's place and If I am not wrong, your boyfriend works for me." He takes a drag and purses his lips as he says. "So technically it's my house..." His sharp brown eyes scan my face and I suddenly feel a lump forming in my throat. Sophia crosses her legs and leans back with a dirty smile dancing on her lips as if she is getting ready to witness some kind of show that's going to take place before her eyes.

"I am deeply hurt that Christopher didn't tell you about me..." Richard shakes his head conveying a fake hurt eloquence. "Not a big problem though... I'll introduce myself. I am Richard Scott and this is my daughter Sophia." He announces proudly.

"I know that..." I tell him irritatedly before he continues.

"I am glad that you know." He declares, looking amused by my answer. "Then you would also know the reason why we are here?" He raises an eyebrow at me questioningly.

"Don't beat around the bush, Richard. Come straight to the point, what do you want?" I bark angrily.

"It's funny that you think I want something from you.." Richard fixes his malicious gaze on me as his lips curve into a disgusting smirk.

"I am not here to ask you for some kind of favor. I am here to warn you.." I swallow harshly when I see a weird shadow of wickedness covering his face as he says that. What does that mean?

He sighs and leans back, closing his eyes, trying to mask that expression. "See Nicole, it doesn't matter who you are and what you do. Honestly, I don't care about it..." He pauses for some time as if he is trying to recollect something. "But the thing that brought me here is your association with Christopher..." He snaps his eyes open and his intense gaze pierces through me.

He looks straight in my direction as he speaks. "Christopher has been working with me from the time when he was a little boy. From the very first day when I laid eyes on him, I knew he got that in him. I knew he was meant for our business." I see an unusual gleam in Richard's eyes as he continues. "He has always been a stickler for perfection when it came to his work, always focused on his goal not leaving any loose strings for distraction." He turns his gaze for a minute and then looks back at me. "He was always meant to be a leader...A mafia leader." He pauses for a second and then directs again towards me. "But since last year, there had been a breach in his dedication. Unfortunately, he had failed many consignments and lost many of our important deals. Something had distracted him..." His icy look peers at me, making me cower under his gaze. "And I guess you are aware of that distraction."

"I don't know what you are talking about.." I retort to him, sounding to be unknown about the matter that he talking about, but the truth is I freaking already know what he is trying to imply here.

"You know exactly what I am talking about. Miss Johnson, if you want me to make it clear for you, then hear this." His authoritative voice echoes in the room. "You are the fucking distraction coming in his way...." He sighs and massages his temple, looking frustrated and I flinch, taken aback by the sudden straightness in his voice. "In our way." He adds to it. "I don't know what is going on between you two, but this has to end now."

He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, attempting to conquer his raging anger. "I don't intend to hurt you, Nicole. It's none of my concern. The thing is, I just want you to get out of Christopher's way."

"Leave him...Get out of his life. That's it." He straightens in his seat and says.

"What?" I ask him in shock.

"Is it that difficult to understand? Get fucking out of Christopher's life. Get your ass out of our business." Sophia barges in between diverting my attention towards her. I haven't even known her for merely five minutes, and I have already started to hate her. She absolutely sounds like a bitch to me.

"I can't do that. I can't leave Christopher." I instantly reply, shaking my head in disapproval. "I am with Christopher because he lov.." I blabber without thinking, but I immediately stop mid-sentence when I realize what I was about to say. What the hell was I going to say? I sigh and rephrase. "I am with Christopher because he likes me and...I... I like him too."

Richard again lets out a petty laugh listening to what I said and then looks back at Sophia, who is currently eyeing me up and down. "You are so naïve to not understand his games."

"He might like you," Richard announces, turning back to me. "He has picked up liking for a lot of women in a period of time. But let me make one thing clear to you." He then turns his head to face Sophia. "You see, here is my daughter Sophia. I hope Christopher has told you about her." He indicates towards her and Sophia nods with a smile. "Christopher has always loved her and the truth is he will always love her. Do you understand that?"

"No... that's not true. I know that he doesn't love her."

"Oh, Nicole. You know nothing." Sophia spats interrupting.

"I and Christopher have been childhood friends. We have known each other so well for so many years. We literally grew up together." She dramatically bats her lashes as she proceeds. "For the past 5 years, we have been together and in those times, our relationship has always been like this...on and off." She sighs and closes her eyes. "It had been complicated. Our relationship had many complexities, but I know no one can understand Christopher better than me." She looks at me and this time a vicious smile takes over her face. "This isn't new for me. It happened before a lot too." She shrugs and suggests fixing her menacing gaze on me. "When we break up we go around having casual flings, but at the end of the day we are meant to come back to each other."

"Moreover, if you want actual proof...then let me tell you that Christopher and my daughter are going to get married soon. Their wedding card would do enough justice to it." Richard smirks, looking at me.

"No...I don't believe you. You are lying. I know none of this shit is true. Christopher told me everything. He told me how you fucking cheated on him." I curl my fists with pure rage streaming through my body as I look at Sophia. "He never loved you and he would never love you for what you did to him.."

"You believe his words?" Richard inquires in a surprised tone.

"Of course...I trust him because he told me everything."

Richard slowly stands from his seat, and I shift back uncomfortably, dreading what he might be intending to do after listening to my accusation against his daughter. He drops the bud to the ground and steps foot on it, directing a threatening look at me as if he is symbolizing it to be something else. He makes his way towards me and I grip my jeans in anticipation, dreading what his next action could be.

He stands in front of me, and I anxiously raise my eyes to meet his cold ones. "Tsk tsk tsk...It's really sad to know that he succeeded in tricking you. Like he always does with others." He says trying to mock being apologetic. "I thought you were smart, Nicole. But I guess you are trying to be incognizant of his games." He shakes his head in disappointment. "Can't you understand that's how he is? He is a gangster, Nicole. His entire life has been built on it. He is trained to play, deceive and kill people. He doesn't care about you or your feelings. He is a player, Nicole. He knows how to do it. It wouldn't be hard for him to mask it before you.."

"You are just another one of his innocent preys." He says raising his palm to touch my cheek, but before his fingers could make contact with my skin, I smack his hand away. Within the blink of an eye, all the surrounding men standing in the room direct their guns in my direction to my response. I gasp and close my eyes, frightened by their instant reflex. Fuck! I am surely gonna die now! After a minute when nothing happens I open my eyes slowly and discover Richard's hand up in the air signaling them to take back their guns.

He then looks at me and gives a wicked smile. "I am not lying, Nicole."

"No.... I fucking don't believe.."

"He is just like us...in fact, he is one of us." He shrugs and says. "You don't know us. You don't know our world. But we know how our people work here. How someone like Christopher would work. We know him better than you." He denotes calmly. "He is just toying around with you. Once he'll get bored, he'll throw you and come back to my daughter. He had been doing that for years." He laughs and shakes his head. "Trying to make her jealous when they aren't together. You shouldn't take his words seriously, it is going to hurt you later."

"Dad's right. I know he'll eventually come back to me. He has done it always. Besides, he would never choose someone like you over me." Sophia snorts, giving me a demeaning look. Bitch!

"No...no..no...You are fucking lying. Christopher couldn't do that. He wouldn't do that to me." I scream, losing my temper listening to their shit. "I know what you are trying to do. You are trying to manipulate me just like how you did to Christopher."

"What the fuck are you saying?" Blood drains from Richard's face as he barks agitatedly.

"I know you took advantage of his memory loss after his accident." My eyes dart between him and a confused Sophia as I spit it on their faces.

"Why you look so baffled? So it is indeed true that you manipulated him." I smirk, knowing the victory that I gained by hitting the right nerve. My gaze then settles on Colby and I notice him looking just as confused as the rest of the people around here are.

"I don't know what the fuck you are talking about," Richard growls and I stare back at him.

"Isn't it true that you lied to him about his accident?" I question him, looking confident as I cross my arms over my chest. "You are trying the same thing with me...lying to me about him." I sigh and tell. " You can't do that with me, Richard. I trust Christopher. He told me everything about him and you. And I know he would never try to hurt me."

"Shut up!!! You fucking know nothing." He bangs his hand over the center table, startling me. "Shut the fuck up!!! I am certainly not here to listen to your crap."

"Then stop lying to me!??" I yell, matching his tone, being completely vexed by listening to whatever he is trying to prove. My chest heaves, appearing to be a result of how intense my scream was. Richard becomes quiet, studying my face, and after a minute I see him bursting into laughter. The throbbing anger which was present on his face seconds ago is now consumed by disastrous laughter. I look at him and frown in confusion, thinking about what did he find so funny in this situation.

"Okay... you believe that we are lying to you." He says after regaining his composure. "Fine." He pauses and then looks at me. "But do you really think Christopher told you everything?"

"Did he really reveal everything to you, Nicole?" His brown eyes grow darker as he gazes at me with a stern look taking over his face.

I clench my jaw and say. "Yes.."

"Did he tell you about his brother?" He moves forward, looking into my eyes as his lips curve into an undefeated smirk, challenging me.

What the hell is he talking about? I frown, processing his question. Christopher's brother? "He never had a family. He said you found him near a junk bin."

"Yeah... that's right. But he wasn't found alone. We found him there with his elder brother." He arches an eyebrow at me mockingly. "Hasn't he told you that?"

"No...that can't be true. You are lying. I don't believe it." I protest. I know he is trying another trick on me. But I am not going to fall for it. I fucking don't believe him.

Before I can object to him further, he says. "His name was Oliver Harris..." I attempt to ignore his words, but as soon as I hear that name I couldn't help myself from questioning him. Is it true? Does Christopher really have a brother?

I exhale deeply, looking at his confident face. It makes me utterly nervous when I don't find even the slightest hint of dishonesty on his face. I know I shouldn't believe him, but I am not being able to refrain myself from asking him. I stutter as I say. "Wh...Where is he now?"

"Christopher killed him..." The moment he says that I feel all the air being sucked out of my lungs. No...This can't be possible. What? He couldn't do that. Christopher couldn't lie to me. He fucking couldn't do that.

I jerk back in shock, blown by his sudden revelation. "What?"

"Yes, Christopher killed his brother two years ago," Richard says. "He killed his own brother to establish his dominance." He sighs and continues. "Christopher couldn't stand someone being as powerful as him in his business, even though it was his brother. He earned the tag of being devil by killing his own blood..."

"Don't fucking play with me, Richard.." I breathe with my eyes starting to well up with tears. It feels like my world has been turned upside down as I look around, trying to get answers from these unknown faces.

"He is a ruthless mobster, Nicole. What else do you expect from him?" Richard declares harshly. "If you don't believe us, fucking ask him yourself." He says looking at me as I try to gain my normal breathing.

"I just stated the facts, it's now your decision to make the right choices. I hope you'll choose wisely this time." Richard says before walking out. As soon as he walks away, his men follow him, vacating the room behind him.

I don't know, but I feel I am unable to move from my seat after hearing what Richard just said.

Before I can understand anything, Sophia stands in front of me. "Get out of Christopher's life before it's fucking late. Remember, he is freaking mine, and I'd go to any extent to get him back." She seethes, turning back on her heels and walking out of the door.

I find it difficult to register what is happening. My mind goes numb and my eyes turn blurry when Colby finally appears before me.

"I am sorry, Nicole. I wanted to tell you about Richard planning to visit you that day...but I couldn't because Christopher came before that."

He glances at me with sympathy filled in his eyes. " As much as I want to, but I couldn't deny what Richard has said." He takes a deep breath and looks at me with his eyebrows knitting together. "It's true. Christopher killed his brother." I stare at him in horror, learning his confession. I can't believe this. I was expecting him to deny it. He was my only hope. I was expecting him to tell me that it wasn't true, that it was a game that Richard is trying to play with me. But no...Here he is standing in front of me accepting everything that Richard said was true. This can't be happening.

"I am sorry, Nicole. I don't know why he kept this from you, but I think you should talk to him." He whispers after a minute, but I don't feel like having any courage in me to reply to him.

He then clears his throat trying to get my attention and I look at him. He hesitates a bit. "This is my number. If you need any help, you can contact me." He says in a low tone, sending a small smile, and hands me a slip on which a number has been scribbled. With that he walks out too, leaving me behind all alone with so many unanswered questions.