William cleared his throat, embarrassed. "…As you can see, my niece and nephew are a little… immature."
Azrael didn't say anything. He just leaned back, one arm resting lazily on the sofa, and kept grinning.
He thought she was a little kitten; she was clearly a tigress!
Uncle William felt his temple throb.
"…Victor and Valerie," he cleared his throat, straightening a little, "they're… both well-established individuals. They have always been really… close."
Azrael's grin deepened.
William rubbed his face. Even to his ears, it sounded ridiculous. "Victor was always an outspoken person, and Valerie is sensitive—"
Azrael let out a quiet huff, like he was barely holding back a laugh.
William stopped mid-sentence. …This was humiliating.
"I assure you," he added quickly, "this isn't their usual behavior. I swear, I haven't seen them fight in like a decade."
Azrael's eyes flicked toward the hallway where Victor had just been dragged off. He took a bite of another sweet, like he couldn't be more amused.
William felt even more embarrassed.
Just then, the pitter-patter of Little Roe's footsteps came. Aunt Eleanor walked in, holding Little Roe's hand, and stopped.
Her eyes widened.
The centerpiece on the table was broken on the floor, the table was pushed to the other side, there was coffee on her new rug, and a faint smear of blood on the floor.
Her sharp glare snapped to Azrael.
He was still sitting there without a care in the world, munching away at the snacks.
Her eyes narrowed instantly and landed on William. He closed his eyes and shook his head slowly.
Eleanor's mouth dropped. If it wasn't him, then… no way!
Her gaze darted around. "…Where are they?"
William pointed upstairs, feeling another headache coming.
She let go of Roe, who was looking around curiously. "Go to your daddy."
Roe didn't need to be told twice. He ran straight over. "Daddy, what happened here?"
Azrael caught him easily, his hand coming up to steady him. "Two wild cats got in a fight and fell here from the window."
Eleanor halted to glare at him before rushing away.
She turned and marched down the hallway, already fuming, toward Victor's room. She pushed the door open and froze.
Victor was sitting on the edge of the bed, his half-open shirt a bloodied mess, like a thug had done a number on him. The doctor stood in front of him, carefully stitching his forehead.
Victor winced. "Be gentle!"
Eleanor was at a loss for words. "…What happened to you?"
Victor looked up, already irritated. "Ask your precious—Ah—!" The doctor pressed down.
Eleanor stared for a second longer, then turned on her heel and stormed out. Both of them have lost their minds!
She pushed open Valerie's door without knocking. "What the hell happ—"
Her voice cut off. Valerie sat on the floor beside the bed, sobbing.
Her hair was a mess, and her shoulders were shaking slightly, her face buried in her arms. Eleanor sighed.
"…What the hell happened?" she repeated, this time slower. "You beat your brother like a thug and then you cry too?"
Valerie looked up, then stared blankly at the floor. Her lips trembled. She looked away. "Victor said… He said I let that bastard treat me like a… like a prostitute," she forced out, feeling shame wash over her. "And now I'm clinging to him like his toy…"
"That idiot—" Eleanor muttered under her breath.
Valerie wiped her face again, more frustrated now. "But isn't that what everyone is thinking? And now—now I don't even know how I'm supposed to go down there and face them."
Her voice dropped. "…Or him."
Eleanor stared at her for a second. Then she stepped forward and flicked her forehead.
"Ah—!" Valerie winced, holding her head.
"Snap out of it. No one is thinking anything, and even if they are, that shouldn't affect you!"
"You don't understand—!"
"I don't need to!" Eleanor snapped. "You married a guy, like every woman does—nothing out of the ordinary. Did you care about what people said when you had Roe?"
Valerie bit her lip, her eyes burning again. "…But that time, my own family didn't think of me like a slut."
"Are you a slut?" Eleanor exhaled, rubbing her temple once before grabbing her wrist and pulling her up.
"No! I'm almost half a virgin. I don't even remember how that went down." Valerie resisted instinctively.
Aunt Eleanor barely smiled before pulling her out.
"W-wait—no, Auntie, I can't just go down like this—"
"You think the situation downstairs is going to fix itself?" she continued, pulling her along. "Your uncle is embarrassing himself, your brother looks like he lost a street fight, and your husband—" She paused, lips tightening. "—is sitting there enjoying the show both of you morons put on."
Valerie froze slightly at that. "…He is?"
Eleanor shot her a look. "What else did you expect?"
"That bastard!" Valerie pressed her lips together and Eleanor rolled her eyes.
"Get changed and wipe your face," Eleanor said firmly, opening the door. "And when you get back down there, pretend like all of that didn't happen, you hear me?"
Valerie hesitated, her grip tightening slightly on her aunt's hand. "...Can you tell him to leave right now, and I'll see them tomorrow?"
Eleanor scowled. "No. Now get on your feet, or you're going back like this." She took some steps before turning with a frown. "And comb your hair."
It took her five minutes to change and ten minutes to muster the courage to come out.
Valerie stepped into the living room again, slowly. This time, she was wearing a light pink knee-length frock with white pants, doing her best not to look like the street thug she had been acting like an hour ago.
Her eyes immediately went to Azrael, who scanned her from head to toe. Looking at him lounging with Roe in his lap, as if he were still enjoying a good show, her eyes twitched.
"—and then I jumped like this, Daddy, and Felix fell and—" Roe was mid-story again when he noticed her. "Mama!"
Valerie forced a smile, timidly sliding a strand of hair behind her ear as demurely as she could. Azrael's grin widened, and she somehow became even more angry.
"I'm ready!" he beamed, spinning around to show off his outfit. "Look! Bear suit!"
"It's… looking very nice, baby."
Roe grinned proudly. "Mama, Daddy said we'll go nad live in his house now! With the big bounce house!"
She gave him a passive nod and hesitantly walked toward Uncle William, who looked like he had lost several years of his life.
"Umm...Uncle," she started, forcing her voice steady. "About earlier..."
"Let's talk later," he cut in quietly, feeling too exhausted for this.
Valerie rubbed her neck, embarrased. "…Okay."
This is so awkward... She didn't even know where to stand when a sharp ringing broke the tension.
Azrael fished out his phone, and his expression blanked. Everyone noticed his darkening mood immediately.
Valerie felt her chest tighten slightly.
He stood up and spoke curtly. "Let's go."
He picked Little Roe up in one smooth motion.
Valerie blinked. They hadn't even talked to her family properly yet! "…Huh? Right now?"
But he grabbed her wrist and was already walking to the door.
"Azrael, wait!" she hurried after him, barely grabbing her phone. "We're not done talking! What is wrong with you!"
"We'll come back again." He stepped out, dragging her with him.
To her surprise, his car was still parked, and Luka, his assistant, was there with another car. She frowned, but before she could process it, Azrael let go of her hand and headed toward the other car.
Scowling, she got in.
The moment they left, several black cars stormed to The Sinclair's house.
The doorbell rang once. Then again, longer this time.
Uncle William frowned, glancing toward the door before getting up. The house had barely settled after everything they left. Did Valerie come back?
He exhaled and opened the door.
A middle-aged man stood there with a warm,friendly smile in a formal suite. Behind him, several men stood holding large gift boxes.
"...Mr. Salvatore?" William lis twitched.
"Good evening, William!" Mr. Salvatore said, smoothly stepping inside. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"It has... why are you here?"
"What do you mean, why?" Mr. Salvatore didn't turn around, signaling the burly men to place the gift boxes neatly. "Didn't we agree hiding Ms. Valerie and Little Roman from Young Master Azreal was the best way to deal with him for the time being?" he continued, chuckling lightly. "The Chairman was so sad about what you had to go through these days because of Young Master Azreal. With the paparazzi swarming your residence for days, it must have been hard on little Roman and Ms. Valerie, so he couldn't wait another second to ensure their security and mental peace."
William's smile tightened. "Ah, yes. Where did you say the safe house was?"
"Oh, yes! It's a wonderful private tropical island in the Bahamas." Mr. Salvatore fished out his phone to show him the photos. "Chairman Hawthorne was very concerned, so while they lie low and rest comfortably for a few days, he will sort this out with Young Master Azreal. Once our young master calms down, we are sure he will see things from Ms. Valerie's perspective."
William's fingers tightened slightly at his side. "I see."
It was so impeccably kind that it was suspicious. Why couldn't he see that before? Only after Azreal had mocked it, did he feel something was off.
He glanced toward Eleanor, his look lingering. She gave a nod, understanding immediately.
"Let me bring some tea," she said softly, already turning toward the kitchen.
Inside the kitchen, Eleanor moved quickly, grabbing her phone with trembling hands as she dialed.
"Hello," she lowered her voice further, heart pounding.