330 The Stakes Were High
These women would be the death of him, Marcel groaned inwardly while rubbing his forehead. It wasnât until the next day that he heard the news of Mimi deciding to join the party and was seriously against it.
It wasnât enough that he had to look out for Arianna, now Mimiâs added to the circle already? This wasnât a fucking field trip for crying out loud. Their lives were on the line here.
Marcel had good reasons for worrying about them. He wouldnât be there, and neither would his people, to avoid rousing suspicion. In one word, they were operating in the dark and that worried him the most. If anything happened to the women there, he wouldnât know.
So he repeatedly pounded upon the issue of their safety and refused Mimiâs zealous desire to join in the risky mission. At least, Marcel knew Arianna, she was a fighter and a quick thinker, and if push comes to shove, sheâd be able to figure out a way to save her ass. Marcel was sure of that.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
But Mimi? Marcel didnât know about her abilities except that she had great energy and good socialization skills if only she could upgrade her decorum and language. In one word, those skills werenât helpful in real-life fighting scenes. However, Marcel underestimated her because the woman could talk the stripes off a zebra and that was how Mimi got him to agree to join her best friend.
âIt would be like Batman and Robin in action. Those two can never do without each other. Although in our case, it would be Batwoman and Robbyn. She fights and I look out for her, sounds like a team, doesnât it?â Mimi claimed, laughing brilliantly as if she just solved the most difficult puzzle in the world.
So here, they are, coming up with a plan on how to get into Danielâs stronghold.
âSo, after our last meeting, without the presence of the love of my life, and of which Iâm sure Arianna has done well on updating her already,â Victor said, blowing her a kiss and Mimi reciprocated the gesture happily.
Marcel and Arianna shared a gaze instantly, the both of them looking really uncomfortable and wished the land could open up and swallow them up at that moment. They werenât in support of this cheesy public display of affection.
.....
âSo we all thought your psycho fatherâs residence was impenetrable, unless, of course, youâre invited there,â Victor laughed, spreading the blueprint over Marcelâs desk and all of them gathered around it.
He went on, âAnd so as your honorable consigliere, I thought it was sensible that I made myself more useful for once. Yeah, dear cousin, I know this is merely a ceremonial position. You have men more useful and resourceful than me yet you put me here. Iâm so touched,â He dramatically placed his hand on his chest.
But Marcel warned him,â Youâd kicked out of that position pretty much soon if you donât keep talking â â
âIâm talking,â He reminded him.
âThe plan talks,â Marcel emphasized, tired of his semantics already. He loved his cousin, but he would bash his head if he didnât get down to business now.
âAlright,â Victor said, to everyoneâs relief, except Mimi. She kind of thought his blabbering was cute.
âAnyway, I did more research and it turns out that your father has a cleaning crew,â
âA commercial cleaning company?â Marcelâs brows rose interestedly. He didnât even look in that direction, and Victor finally proved his usefulness.
âYes, people who manage his fortress and make sure every nook and cranny is clean and sparkly. The house is too large to be managed by his staff alone, moreover, these people do more intensive cleaning like sniffing out bugs, cockroaches, and blah blah. In other words, he contracted their services and theyâre due to visit in three days. Lucky us. â Victor grinned brilliantly, hands outstretched and waiting for the praises to rain on him. Not that they came anyway.
âSo in one word, you want us to pose as the cleaners?â Arianna thought.
âNo, youâd be one of the cleaners,â Victor told her.
âHow is that possible?â Mimi was confused this time, âWe donât even work in the company.â
âDonât worry you would, starting from tomorrow,â Marcel said, his eyes deep with thoughts and Arianna turned to him. She knew at that moment that he was working on the crazy plans in his head that probably involved blood and violence. And how did she forget blackmailing as well.
âYeah,â Victor agreed with him, looking down at his screen, âIâm sure you wouldnât mind paying a visit to the owner of the S & M cleaning company tonight,â He grinned at Marcel knowingly.
âSo...â Mimi thought over it, âDoes that mean that weâd be formal employees and work amongst the other staff there?â
If that was the case, that meant her job here would be on hiatus. Not that she has been doing much here anyway. But then, you know, just asking. A change of scenery wouldnât be bad and Arianna would need the air.
âI wouldnât count on that,â Marcel grumbled and none of them needed to ask what he meant by that.
If they were to work like normal staff of the company, that meant Arianna would have to leave the base and that increased her chances of escaping or being rescued by Elijah and Marcel couldnât risk that.
Even without that, his fatherâs eyes were here and if they moved too much, it was sure to attract attention. If Arianna was going to be leaving this place to work, that meant Marcel would put her under heavy security, and not only would that distract her in her duty, but draw the attention he dreaded. Their plans might be put in jeopardy because of it. Hence she leaving here can not happen â until the day of the plan at least.
The stakes were high, Marcel realized at that moment and he was suddenly frightened. His hands shaking, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette stick, just as he announced to them, âYou can leave, now. I need to think. Donât worry, youâll be updated on the plans.â
Without wasting time, as if Marcel did him a huge favor, Victor took Mimiâs hand and beeline for the door, leaving Arianna.
But she didnât leave.