AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“C-Cooper’s been well-behaved,” he simply said.
“His name is Beer,” said Eden.
“Oh...”
Rolf didn’t seem to agree with that choice, but he didn’t add anything, staying focused on the street. Then, Dante got in the car, taking the seat next to Eden, and all his men simultaneously went to their cars. Dante briefly glanced at the pups playing at Eden’s feet, and she grabbed them to put them on her lap. Somehow, the little dogs stopped brawling and settled down under Dante’s stare. Eden decided to ignore him and looked out the window at her neighborhood. The cars all started and they quickly left the area, with no signs of the Mexican mafia showing up for action. It had only been a few minutes actually, but Eden was surprised. Were they too intimidated by the Italians?
“...The previous Tiger is already dead,” said Dante suddenly. “I fear there’s nothing left to do about that.”
“I wish I had shot him myself,” hissed Eden.
“...What if I saved you the pain?”
She frowned and finally turned to him. Dante was lighting up another cigarette, opening the window to let the smoke out. Just as the window opened slightly, Eden caught sight of a unique, very distinct reflection of metal from a rooftop two blocks away. She grimaced and jumped over him to press the button to close the window. A gunshot was fired one second later. It hit the car but was deflected by the bulletproof coating. Another one followed immediately afterward, hitting the side without making a single scratch on the car. They were still on Mexican territory, and not welcome. Eden’s blood pressure rose right away as she saw more weapons aimed at them. However, there was something else going on that made her blood rush. She had jumped without thinking to close the window, but her hand had pressed on Dante’s knee for support, and her upper body was above his legs, putting her face right in front of his. Hence, she was very close when he smiled.
“...What do you mean?” she asked.
“I killed the old man already,” he said. “Myself. One single, clear shot, like your brother… So, where does that put your desire for revenge now, Eden?”
Eden glared at him.
He had killed the previous Tiger? Why? Was that even the truth? She kept staring at him, but there was no hint of truth or lie in those golden eyes, just overconfidence that made people want to kill or follow him.
Another bullet hit the car, making a metallic sound again. Eden clicked her tongue, annoyed.
“...You’re lying,” she hissed, defiant.
“Certainly not. You can ask any of my men. I made it quite clear to them. To everyone, in fact. I got rid of those who did not enjoy this and took over the spot of the Tiger. In one night.”
Eden frowned. She wasn’t close enough to the Italian territory to know these kinds of things. She usually restrained herself from straying too far away from the Zodiac territories she did know, which were the Rat, the Dragon, and the Eagle. The others, she avoided unless absolutely necessary. She wouldn’t know something like a Zodiac changing unless there was a war between the two of them, which usually caused a lot of noise around the neighborhoods. But internal struggles? That was something else.
By now, the bullets were raining on the car. Rolf was driving faster to try and get them out of there. When one finally caused a crack on Eden’s window, she squinted her eyes. The pups whined, hiding under the front seat with a scared expression. Dante smiled as if he was about to ride a rollercoaster.
“Aren’t you going to do something about this, bodyguard?” he chuckled.
“I’m not your bodyguard,” Eden immediately retorted.
She then turned her head toward Rolf.
“You have a weapon? A gun?”
“W-what for?” asked the man, surprised.
“To play golf!” Eden yelled, pissed.
However, before she could add anything else, Dante took out a gun. Eden frowned, surprised to see him hand her one so casually. It was a heavy model, with an automatic shoot system and no electronics in it, which wasn’t surprising for someone who avoided the Core’s control.
“...Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you?” she asked, taking the weapon.
“Well, you’re not the first woman to ask me that,” he chuckled.
Eden rolled her eyes. Was he ever going to answer her seriously? He was a tiger indeed, a tiger only too happy to play with her nerves all the damn time... Upon hearing the next shot, Eden retreated back to her position and waited, stuck to the back of her seat for the next bullet to cause the window to break. Her hazel eyes were already spotting all of their opponents, and once the window did break, she stuck out her arm immediately, shooting one after the other. She was the first to respond to the fire from the Italians’ side, which surprised her opponents. She was incredibly precise too, not wasting a single bullet as she shot one target after the other, quick and efficient. The shots stopped for a second. Their enemies all went into hiding or attempted to find who was shooting them like rabbits.
The weapon recharged automatically, but it wasn’t made for long-range. Eden only got the closer ones and was glad none of them was an actual sniper. The Eagle’s men often preferred heavy weapons like rifles without much precision. She bought them as much time as she could while Rolf and the other cars sped to get out of there. However, with this complicated angle, Eden’s arm did get hit, and she had to take it back inside, her blood staining the leather. By then, they were out of there and relatively safe. She groaned, checking her injury.
“Efficient,” said Dante, looking in the rearview mirror.
Still, Eden pointed the gun right to his head.
