The chatter of people muffled out the groans of pain coming from the man sitting in front of me. Battered and bruised, he sat tied to the folding metal chair, sobbing.

"You think that you have any right to steal from me?" I demanded, twirling the knife in one hand. Franco stood behind him, stone-faced. Jasper leaned against the door, the picture of perfect boredom on his face. Elijah stood to my left, a menacing grin on his face that promised a fate worse than death. His knuckles were covered in blood.

The man in the chair's chest heaved as he gasped, trying to find the words to defend himself. I bent down to look in his eyes, one of which was swelled shut, and widened my own, patiently waiting for his excuses.

He staggered on a breath. "I only took a little bit, I swear," he wailed, his lips trembling.

I straightened up and paced in front of him leisurely. "Look, Marty, you've been working for me for almost two years now and I'm supposed to believe that you've only taken a little bit of my money?" I asked rhetorically, shaking my head in disappointment. I stopped in front of him, my hands behind my back. "Unfortunately for you, I'm not stupid."

He whimpered. "Please, Miss Love. I had to, I needed the money," he begged, his head drooping low.

Franco grabbed his hair and yanked his head back so that he looked me in the eye. "I don't care why you needed the money, it's not yours to decide where it goes," I informed him in a deathly calm voice.

"My wife—we needed the money to pay for her surgery, I was only going to take what I needed, Anastasia—" his voice cut off when I lunged forward and grabbed his throat.

"You call me Miss Love and nothing else," I warned him in a low voice. "And you know that if you needed help, you could have asked." I threw an arm out to the other people sitting in the room in the corner, watching silently. "We help each other in this business, do we not?" I demanded, glancing at each of them.

One young woman dipped her head in agreement. "Yes, we do, Miss Love."

I smiled softly. "Thank you, Katrina. When Freddy needed help for his daughter's leukemia treatment, my family paid in full with no expectations from him," I explained, folding my arms over my chest. "No one gets left behind in this business, not even their family members."

Marty shivered in his seat, his nose running.

"But you," I said, using my knife to point at him, "You stole with no remorse and I don't accept that." My head twisted to the side to see Jasper from my peripheral and I jerked my head.

Jasper stalked towards us, handing over a folder. I opened it, scanning the contents before shutting it and dropping it on the small round table on the other side of the room.

"You will pay my family back in full within the next two months or you will suffer the consequences," I spoke loudly, so the others would listen carefully, "You are hereby fired from my business and will not breathe a word of your previous occupation to another soul or you will forfeit your life, is that clear?"

Marty sobbed, his gasps catching over each other but he nodded, understanding my terms.

"Very well," I said, sliding the knife into my boot, "You will sign the papers on the table and we will be checking up on you whenever we wish." I turned to the other dealers from my casino. "The rest of you have my permission to get back to work." They surged to their feet, bidding me goodbye as they bustled out the small room and back onto the casino floor outside this door.

Franco and Elijah got to work cutting Marty's ties and yanking him to his feet and towards the table to sign the documents.

Jasper stood at my side as we walked out of the room, the laughter and cheer of our guests breaking through the gloom from that small room. "How often do you want us to check up on him?" Jasper asked, dodging a waitress carrying a tray full of champagne for the Mayor's table.

Smiling and waving at the guests playing blackjack in the corner, I spoke softly, "Every two weeks, pick random days and times so he doesn't sense a routine." Someone called out my name and I nodded towards them, snatching a champagne flute from another waiter and raising it in the air. "Also, I want you to look into this surgery for his wife. Find out what it's legit and what he's paid towards it. If it is important then pay the remainder anonymously and be done with it."

He nodded his head, shaking hands with a regular CEO guest before falling into step beside me. "I'll stay here for a few days to ensure the transition is smooth," he said, slipping his hands in his pockets.

"Just don't be late for Atticus' graduation on Friday, starts at two in the afternoon, I've reserved a row for all of us," I stated, placing the now empty glass flute on the bar counter. "Keep me updated," I said by way of farewell and made my way upstairs and back into the hallways of the hotel.

Harvey and Lorenzo stood at the doors to the kitchen, waiting. "Staying in the penthouse tonight, Love?" Harvey asked innocently, his eyes darting to Lorenzo, who stared straight ahead.

"No, I'm going back to the manor tonight, Harvey." We walked through the lobby, nodding to the staff bustling around, making sure our guests were satisfied with their stay.

Harvey coughed delicately but I heard the sarcastic, "Shocked," from where I stood. I sent him a knowing grin over my shoulder before walking out of the hotel and into the warm summer afternoon.

The drive back to the manor felt like forever. Traffic was a nightmare, the city streets were filled with tourists, trying to act as though they belonged in this city and I nearly told Harvey to run them over the next time they paused in the middle of the street to take a picture.

Harvey parked in front of the manor, leaving me to climb out and enter the house with Lorenzo while he parked the car in the garage. Once inside, I dropped off my handbag in my office and made my way further down the hallway and the familiar steps.

Finn sat in his office with a pair of glasses on his face, scanning a package of small bottles from the cabinet behind him.

I folded my arms across my chest and leaned against the doorway, trying to school my giddy expression. God, it was so embarrassing being this hung up on someone. I cleared my throat.

His head snapped up and a smile appeared on his face when he saw who stood in the doorway. Bright blue eyes scanned my appearance causing a frown to mar his lips. "You've got blood on you," he stated worriedly, pushing to his feet.

My eyelashes fluttered. "I need medical assistance," I declared.

He raised an eyebrow and grabbed my face, lifting it to check my neck before sliding his hands over my body, lingering a little too long on my chest, until he gets to my arms. "Where?" He asked softly, turning my jaw to the side to check my head.

I lifted my hand and show him my finger. "Paper cut," I said solemnly, blinking up at him, trying to hide the grin from his unimpressed expression.

He leaned forward, inspecting my finger, where a thin line of dry blood sat from an actual papercut. In a quick motion, he raised his hand and flicked directly over the cut sending a shooting jolt of pain through my finger.

My jaw dropped. "Um, ow," I said, bewildered.

Finn rolled his eyes. "That's what you get for making me worry. How was work in the city?" He asked casually, stacking up the vials of medicine.

I gestured to the droplets of blood on me. "How do you think?" I asked sarcastically.

He paused, glancing up at me with an impassive expression. "Did you kill them?"

A cold chill rushed through me at the way he spoke. Clearly, this was a sensitive topic, one I would rather avoid. "No," I stated, "he's fine." A broken nose and a few ribs but overall fine. Finn bobbed his head in a nod as he continued putting away his supplies. I sighed. "Can we not do this every day? You know the kind of job I have and if it's going to make you uncomfortable then don't ask about it."

My mother sure as hell never asked my father once how his day went.

The cabinet shut quietly once he slipped the vials inside before turning to his desk. I ran a hand over the smooth wood and wedged myself between him and the desk. I looked up at him with a small smile on my face. "Hey," I said softly, staring into his eyes.

He blinked once, brushing away any thoughts, and slid his hands on my hips. "Hi," he murmured, leaning forward and giving me a soft kiss.

Gently, I took his glasses off his face and held onto his jaw, deepening the kiss, sliding my tongue over his. His grip on my hips tightened, his fingers digging into my skin as he lifted me onto his desk. My heart started beating faster in anticipation and excitement.

I'm pretty sure I felt a pen stab me in the ass but I didn't say a word, only rested my hands on his waist, bunching his scrubs shirt in my hands. He nudged my legs apart and stood between them. See, this was much better than talking about our days.

His fingers ran up my body and onto my shoulder, tugging the fabric of my blazer down. He broke the kiss and angled my jaw to the side so he could place open-mouthed kisses along my neck. My fingers instinctively dug into his waist.

A sharp pain pulsed through my neck as he gently bit the skin there before his tongue soothed it softly. I gasped, my legs clenching together, which pressed against his hips causing him a groan to leave his mouth that still attacked my neck.

Oh my God.

Kisses rained down from my neck to shoulder and he slowly traced his fingers over my bare arms until he found the thin strap of my top and started dragging it down my arm. With deft fingers, he did the same to the other strap.

His hands grazed my breasts before he abruptly pulled back, looking down at my chest in confusion.

Still in a daze, I glanced down at myself and noted that while my straps were now off my shoulder, my top had not moved an inch. Finn stared as if trying to solve a puzzle.

I rolled my eyes and yanked on the hem of my cropped top, pulling it down to my waist, exposing my chest. I smirked up at him. "The girls can hold up any shirt, they never let me down," I said with a coy smile.

He rolled his eyes and captured my lips in a kiss, shutting me up completely as a featherlight touch brushed against my breasts. I arched my back closer towards him, silently begging for more without breaking the kiss. His hands firmly cupped my breasts, his fingers grazing each nipple delicately.

His touch was so gentle and deliberate, just how I imagined a surgeon's hands should be from dealing with tools constantly.

Feeling left out, my hands slid up his shirt, my nails dragging over the hard ridges on his stomach as his muscles tightened in response. Heaven.

With a lingering pull on my bottom lip, Finn broke the kiss, gazing into my eyes for a second, our chests heaving out of sync. His thumb slowly brushed along my bottom lip and I blinked once, seeing the intensity in his eyes.

I wanted him. Now. Forever. For the day, for one more second, I didn't care. I needed him. He read something in my eyes that made his burn brighter and before I had a chance to take a breath he was on me. I arched towards his body, feeling him pressed against me exactly how I wanted.

His lips ran along my neck, over my collarbone, and down my chest causing me to moan, my legs pulling him closer while my fingers tugged on strands of his white hair—.

"Hey, Ana—AH!" Amari screamed as she stepped into Finn's office.

I froze. Finn vaulted away from me, crashing into his medicine cabinet, making the vials inside rattle.

Amari quickly covered her eyes and pivoted on one heel, nearly crashing into the wall as she stumbled out of the room.

"I-uh, I'm so sorry," Amari mumbled from where she stood outside his office, her back pressed against the wall. "You should really close doors, just by the way."

I leaned on the desk, propped up by my elbows, my head thrown back and staring at the ceiling. My shoulders shook. Finn gaped at me. "Are you laughing?" he hissed, his face turning red while he maneuvered his desk chair in front of him, blocking a certain excited area. A snort left my mouth.

With little effort, I pulled my top back into position, slid the straps up my shoulders, and slipped off his desk. "Come on in, Amari," I announced, leaning my hip against Finn's desk.

Finn's eyes widened as he glanced down at himself and then at me.

I shrugged. "What? Why are you freaking out?" I asked, completely calm.

He cocked his head to the side, a pointed look on his face. "She's a kid that just walked in on us probably about to have sex, and you're calm?"

Amari walked in, staring at the floor purposefully, her hands resting at her sides. I gestured to my sister. "She's sixteen, there's no way she doesn't know what sex is, right Amari?" I called out her name.

Her eyes widened and a nervous smile tugged at her lips. "I'd rather not discuss this, I'm happy pretending I didn't see anything," she explained and Finn nodded his head in agreement.

I glanced back at Finn. "That's a yes, by the way." He glared at me and I grinned before facing Amari. "What did you need?" I crossed one ankle over the other, balancing perfectly in my stilettos.

Amari suddenly looked shy, something I'd never seen on her unless it was choreographed to get what she wanted. This looked genuine. Doe eyes and all. "Can I talk to you?"

Wanting so badly to tell her no and continue teasing Finn would have been the option I voted for before the whole almost getting strangled and my baby sister having to witness it, so instead I angled my head to the side, and focused solely on her. She couldn't make eye contact. Whether because of what she just witnessed or she was too afraid to talk to me, I didn't know.

"Of course."

She brushed her brown hair over a shoulder, relief shining in her eyes. "Cool, um, could we go upstairs to your office?"

I nodded and she twisted on her foot, awkwardly waving to Finn before disappearing out the door.

Finn's shoulders slumped and he ran a hand through his hair, making some of it stand up. I sauntered over to him and bit my lip to stop laughing at how uncomfortable he was. My fingers played with the hem of his scrubs shirt as I looked into his eyes. "Sleep in bed with me tonight?"

His hands gripped the sides of my face and a smile tugged at the corner of his lips. He nodded his head and brushed his lips across mine gently.

"Oh," I began with our lips barely brushing, "there was no 'probably' about it, we were going to have sex on this desk," I informed him with an innocent smile. His fingers tightened on my jaw and I chuckled. "Guess we'll have to put a pin in this for later," I murmured, my finger slipping under his shirt and brushing against his stomach.

Lust flared in his gaze.

"Ana!" Amari called from the steps.

A hand threaded through my hair, playing with the strands. "Okay, okay I'm coming," I called out before whispering, "not in the way I want to but whatever."

Finn snorted, hiding his head in my neck, trying to cover up his laughter. He brushed a kiss against my neck before letting me walk out of his office.

|| ✨ ||

Amari and I sat across from each other in my office, neither of us talking. She glanced around the space, only visiting my office less than a handful of times. I clasped my fingers together and placed them on my knee, waiting patiently.

Was I supposed to talk first?

"You've got spots of blood on you," she blurted out, looking at my bare arms.

I scanned my skin and clothes. "I was working tonight."

Her fingers fidgeted, twisting and pressing on each other before she made eye contact with me. "So," she stated, flicking her hair over her shoulder, "I want to see The Courtyard."

I stared for a split second, confusion running through me. "What?" I asked, blinking a few times.

She gulped, taking a deep breath. "The Courtyard, where you do...things, I want to see inside."

A laugh of disbelief left me. "I'm not taking you in there, are you mental?"

Her back straightened and she wiped all nerves off her face. "I want to see inside," she stated, in a more demanding tone.

"Yeah, I heard you the first time. Just because you're suddenly sitting up straighter doesn't make you ready to go in there," I said, leaning back in my seat, draping an arm over the side of the chair.

Amari's nose flared in silent rage and I grinned at how similar we were. It only made her angrier. "You were all sixteen when you went in there for the first time."

I flicked a hand in the air, crossing one leg over the other. "We were trained to go in there," my eyes roamed over her short pink skirt and white top, her outfit even showing how pure and innocent she was, "you were not."

"I know self-defense." She folded her arms over her chest, her nose lifting in the air slightly.

I chuckled, "You think these people can't handle some basic self-defense training? They're killers Amari. We deal with killers in that place and self-defense is not going to do anything except help them win."

Amari huffed, her lips pursed. "Is this because of mom? Do you think I liked being coddled my whole life?"

I leveled her with a cocky smile. "Yes I do, otherwise you would have put up a fight years ago." She shut her mouth quickly, proving my point. "Why are you so desperate to see The Courtyard, I'm sure you've heard enough rumors about what happens in there?"

She bit the inside of her cheek, her brown doe eyes downcast, and wrapped her arms around her stomach lightly. "I need to see the truth." She glanced up, catching my eye. "I need to see what he's truly like and not what has been fed to me."

My gaze burned through hers, taking in every inch of the little sister I resented for most of my life. She lived a life I could only dream of having, and I hated her for it. I let our parents come between any bond we could have formed and kept her at way further than arm's length.

She got the love I craved, the attention I fought for, and didn't have to lift a finger. But yet here she was, terrified of the truth. Something I've known my whole life and she's been sheltered from because of that love. Someone scared of her own family.

With a loud sigh, I pushed to my feet and held out my hand. "Come on, let's go take a tour," I said with a grim smile on my face.

Her eyes brightened in relief before she grabbed my hand and held on tightly as we left my office and then the manor, silently walking towards The Courtyard.

Harvey and Lorenzo followed at a safe distance, giving us privacy. Luca and Theo stood watch outside The Courtyard door this evening, backs against the wall, chatting mindlessly.

"Evening boys," I drawled, keeping a firm grip on Amari's hand.

Luca raised a silent brow at Amari's presence. "Evening Love," he replied, glancing back to my sister, "Amari. What brings you two here on this fine night?"

Theo nudged Luca's arm. "Yeah shouldn't you be in bed with your doctor," he teased, causing Luca to bite his lip, his shoulders shaking.

I gave them both a blank stare. "You two can scrub the floors tomorrow then," I answered with my own smile, watching them both deflate. "Your faults for opening your mouths so willingly," I said with a smirk and waved them aside with my free hand.

We stepped into the damp narrow hallway, the pungent smell of wet concrete in the air. Amari covered her scrunched-up nose. I led her past empty rooms, opening them to show her what the inside looked like and the cupboards of tools we used.

Her olive skin turned pale with every step we took, her eyes wide and darting around at every small sound. Her fingers squeezed my hand to the point of numbness but I didn't react.

We came to one door that was bolted shut. Without touching the door I jerked my thumb at the door. "The strangler from my bedroom is in there, thinking about her actions. She's our only guest at the moment."

She peeked through the small oneway window on the door and her jaw tightened. "What happened to the others that have been in here?" She asked softly her eyes glued to the seething woman pacing her space.

"They didn't make it out," I replied neutrally. "It's the rules we are forced to follow, Amari. Everyone in here abides by those rules or faces consequences, even myself."

She sucked in a breath. "Who even is our father?" She breathed out in a whisper, watching the woman kick her bed, awaiting her own fate.

"A king of his own creation."

|| ✨ ||

Until next time,

Sammipott xx