Nathalia’s POV
Nearly thirty minutes have passed since I arrived back at the mansion. But until now, I still couldn’t believe what I discovered.
“Ouch! Slow down! Let me do it.”
Mads was trying to wrestle the ice pack from Damon’s hand. He was applying it to the bruise on his face.
I couldn’t help but wince. I felt bad for what happened to Mads. Her smooth face was marred now. If only I had known it was her behind that mask, I would have bravely intervened before she got punched.
“No. Just stay still. Don’t move,” Damon said authoritatively before continuing his task. His face was filled with concern.
I suddenly recalled what happened earlier, during the first time he witnessed what happened to Mads. Even though the enemy was already down due to the way I repeatedly struck him with a rock, he didn’t stop kicking and punching until his face was unrecognizable.
It was the very first time I saw Damon rage like a fire. Even I felt a pang of fear from him. If Mads hadn’t stopped him, that man might have ended up completely battered.
I took a deep breath. I had thought they were clueless about Stephen’s mafia boss identity.
But just by the way they fought earlier and looking at their weapons now resting on the table, I was well aware that they were actually part of the Anderson Mafia.
I cleared my throat loudly to divert the attention of the four of them towards me. They all quickly settled down, as if they were children waiting to be scolded.
“I’m just waiting. Is nobody planning to speak? Are the things you told me before about Don Isaac adopting you into the sanctuary all true or just lies?” I asked straightforwardly. I had been waiting for an explanation from them since earlier.
I looked at them seriously. I needed to get the real answer because I was tired of hearing lies.
They all looked down. Except for Mads, who met my questioning gaze. Meanwhile, Cole, who had been standing quietly behind me, remained silent.
“Thalia...”
I adjusted my posture as I felt like I might collapse any moment now.
“Speak up. I’m listening.”
Mads folded her hands. “It’s true that we were adopted by Don Isaac. But he didn’t just adopt us randomly. He chose us for a reason. There’s a deep reason why he took the four of us.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Reason? What reason could that be?”
Mads glanced at the three beside her. They nodded, so she continued speaking.
“Don Isaac knew our parents. But it’s not true that they died in a fire like we told you before.” She clenched her fist.
“They were killed by one of the enemies of the Andersons. When our parents were gone, we ended up in the sanctuary because we had no other close relatives here. So, we thought nobody else would come to take us. If there were, we were afraid we might be separated,” Albert continued.
“Then Don Isaac came and gave us an opportunity to start again, but at the same time, to avenge the death of our parents. So, when we came under their protection, we promised to serve their family just as our parents did. It’s our way of giving back as well,” Harold added.
I nodded slowly. To some extent, things were starting to make sense to me.
“So, your parents were also mafia guards? That’s why you guys became mafia guards as well.”
Damon shook his head. “We’re not just mafia guards. We’re mafia reapers.”
My mouth fell open. I had heard Stephen talk to Ashter once, and he mentioned something about the mafia reapers in their family.
“So, you’re the ones he sends whenever he needs someone to be assassinated?”
I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe that my friends were raised to kill, and that’s the kind of duty they were willing to fulfill.
Mads nodded. “Yeah. But ever since you became Stephen’s wife, he assigned us to be your personal guardians. We believe that Cole can protect you. However, Stephen, being quite paranoid himself, won’t just relax when it comes to your safety. Plus, we also want to personally look after you.”
I blinked. So that’s why Stephen had such immense trust, even when Cole was my sole bodyguard. It turns out my friends were always keeping an eye on me too.
That’s probably why I often can’t contact them. I also always end up being the first one to arrive at school because someone’s been tailing me. When it’s time to go home, they always make me leave ahead of them.
“We’re really sorry if we didn’t tell you earlier. We were afraid of how you might react. Plus, we thought you might see us differently,” Damon said sadly.
I looked at each of them before giving a slight shrug.
“If you had told me about this before, I’d probably have been really shocked. But that would have been just in the beginning. Because no matter what happens and what I find out about you, I’ll still accept all of you.”
Finally, a smile appeared on their faces. They stood up and approached me, enveloping me in a hug.
“Group hug!” Albert exclaimed loudly.
“Join us, Cole!” Harold invited.
We playfully slapped Cole’s back. I was happy that their silliness had returned.
They didn’t seem like the friends I had known while watching them fight earlier.
But despite not telling me the truth, I believed that what they had shown me since we first became friends was genuine.
“Wait!”
We pulled away from the hug abruptly as Albert suddenly shouted. We looked at him in confusion as he hurriedly grabbed his phone. But I gasped when I noticed he was about to call Stephen, so I quickly stopped him.
“Why?” he asked in confusion.
“Why are you going to call Stephen?” I still held onto his phone tightly.
Mads slapped her forehead. “Oh, shit! We forgot to report.”
“I was about to call him also,” Cole added.
I shook my head repeatedly. “No! Nobody is going to tell Stephen what happened.” I turned to face them all. “And don’t tell Mom and Liam either about what happened. I don’t want them to worry.”
The first time something like this happened, Liam had a huge outburst and rushed to the mansion.
“But Thalia—”
“Please. This is all I’m asking.”
They exchanged glances. Their reluctance was evident on their faces.
“Please,” I pleaded with them.
They closed their eyes briefly before nodding. “Alright. But we’re surely in for it with Stephen if he finds out.” Damon rubbed his temples.
I smiled at them. “You have nothing to worry about. I can handle him.”
However, my smile slowly faded as I suddenly remembered something.
“Wait.” They all looked at me. “So, that means you also knew that Stephen kidnapped me on my birthday?”
They swallowed audibly.
“We’re very sorry, Nathalia. We knew that Stephen wouldn’t hurt you, so we didn’t protest further. And whether you marry him or not, you’re already involved in the group’s affairs, especially since you witnessed something you shouldn’t have. He did that for your protection; being under his control would keep you safer,” Damon explained.
“But why does he need to protect me? I don’t understand. He has no reason to care about me, right? What’s the real reason he married me?”
I was so confused. This was one of the questions I’ve wanted an answer to for a long time.
Mads came closer to me and held both of my hands tightly. “We can’t really tell for now, Thalia. We can’t preempt Stephen. Whatever else you want to know, only Stephen can answer.”
Albert tapped my shoulder. “Don’t worry. Once he’s ready to explain why he left, we’re sure he’ll tell you everything you need to know.”
There were still so many questions I wanted to ask them. But it seemed like they had no intention of saying more.
Perhaps it was better for me to wait for Stephen to come home and ask him everything. I wouldn’t miss any opportunity once he was back.
Before long, they said their goodbyes. They needed to visit the hotels owned by Stephen as well as the company. It would be risky if any enemies slipped through.
I watched their vehicles drive away from the window. All of them rode their own motorcycles. It looked like I needed to get used to seeing them always ready for action.
I looked up at the sky. Who would have thought that my friends were actually mafia reapers?