Okay, I'm going to be perfectly honest. I had no idea Fanfiction had an OC category for original stories. If I knew, I would have uploaded my work here straight away, rather than messing around with Google Docs. So, I'm breaking away from Vocaloid stories and all that, to work on a full original novel. I don't plan on getting this published, but I figured I could get some feedback while I'm at it. I hope everyone enjoys! Since this is an original novel, I urge you to leave a review with constructive criticism. Thank you!
…
Family's Wrath
Prologue – Calm Before the Storm
Darkness envelops the vast forest, like a thick blanket. There is not a single sound made by man to be heard. With the bright stars twinkling high above, and the moonlight shining through the trees, the night has been claimed by nature as always. Not much can be seen from an outside glance, but there are many things of nature to be heard. A cool night breeze rustles the golden leaves on the trees. A chorus of crickets and other insects fill the lower ground, while the birds tweet in harmony above the trees. Nothing could possibly ruin such a beautiful night.
However, soon, footsteps begin to fill the area, chasing away any animals that are trying to collect food in preparation for winter. A few birds' wings can be heard flapping frantically as they move away from the humans. A group of four men have gathered under the cover of darkness, protected by the distance between the forest and the city, and they hope to come to an agreement. In the distance, faint owl cries can be heard, as the men proceed to talk.
A young man, around the age of 18, stands beside an older man; the two other men stand opposite them. Clearly, they have come in pairs, and they appear to be rivals with each other. The older man seems to be the leader between him and the teenager, naturally. He is the first to speak up, his tone coming out deep and rather serious. "I assume you both know why we arranged this little get together."
The teenager beside his boss remains silent, his arms folded over his chest as he observes the two rivals. He will only speak when spoken to, and will only act when given permission. Despite being so young, he somehow managed to get himself dragged into this messy business. His own expression appears to be hardened, showing that he's no stranger to such business. He's been in this game a while. One may mistake this teenager to be the son of the older man, but their facial features aren't similar enough. Along with this, the older man has light blonde hair, whereas the teen has dark brown hair.
One of the two rivals promptly answer – he seems to be the boss of the other man, and looks to be around the same age as the blonde man opposite him. "Yeah, 'course we do. It's because this whole payment deal is bullshit."
The teenager grits his teeth together at the man's words, growing frustrated already. He remains silent, however.
"I'm sorry… Bullshit?" the blonde man repeats, sounding almost shocked. Yet there's a hint of disgust in his voice. "I helped pay off some of your debts. I lent you my hard-earned money because I'm a kind man. But I don't like it when you aren't gracious enough to return the money to me on time."
"You never said anything about having to return it!" the other man remarks. He brushes some of his black hair from his eyes, growing just as irritated as the teen.
"Things change. I need it back now," the blonde simply says, remaining calm in the heat of the moment.
"Yeah, well good luck with that. I don't have it."
Taking in a deep breath, and slowly exhaling, the blonde man turns his glance to the teen at his side. "I don't have time for this. You know what to do, kid."
Finally receiving orders, a sort of smirk pulls at the teenager's lips. Not wasting a single second, he reaches his hand into a pocket, and swiftly retrieves a pistol. He holds it up, aiming as steadily as possible right between the black-haired man's eyes. "You heard the boss. You either pay up now, or we'll paint the trees with your brains." Seems as though someone is enjoying this messy business far too much.
The man seems visibly shaken now, as he raises his hands in an act of surrender. His partner in crime doesn't look so happy either.
"Oh, did someone forget to bring weapons to this little meeting?" The blonde speaks in a mocking manner. "Incompetence is very risky in this business, gentlemen."
"Look, just- Just put the gun down, okay? If you give me a week or so to gather some money…"
As the black-haired man tries his best to beg, the blonde sends a discreet nod to his teen partner. The moment the teenager receives this subtle cue, he wastes no time in acting out.
A sudden single gunshot rings out through the forest. A split second later, a loud thud caused by dead weight can be heard. Any remaining birds in the surrounding area are quick to flee, startled by the echo of the gunshot. The once peaceful night has now become the scene of a murder. The wind begins to pick up now, sending an even icier blast through the trees.
With the end of the pistol still smoking, the teen slowly lowers the weapon to his side, his eyes now fixed on the rival boss's partner. The teen had landed a clean shot to the man's head; the bullet went straight through, and he immediately died upon impact. His now lifeless body lies on the cold, hard mud path, blood almost delicately trickling out and staining the once pure grounds.
The rival boss's partner lets out a frightened yelp, staring down at the deceased man with nothing but fear in his wide eyes. He starts to tremble violently on the ground beneath him, his breathing growing shaky as he darts his glance between the blonde and the teenager. His only reaction to this, after staring at the two men, is to turn around and run. Bolt out of the area as fast as he can. As he swiftly spins on his heels, he only makes it a few paces away before the teenager lodges several bullets into his spine.
"Good riddance," the blonde man simply says, scoffing and turning his head away from the dead bodies. "I couldn't allow them to keep bullshitting me."
"Absolutely, Mr Anderson," the teenager responds, nodding in agreement with his boss. He holds the gun out to the man, to give it back to him. After all, the teenager couldn't be trusted just yet with his own weapons. Despite this, in the boss's eyes, the teenager is doing well. He showed no remorse, and more importantly, no hesitation when it came to shooting down two traitors. A dangerous couple of traits indeed.
"You've done very well tonight, Eric," the blonde says, addressing the teenager. The so-called 'Mr Anderson' now speaks openly to his young partner, taking the gun from the teen's hand and sliding it into a pocket. After this, he places a hand on the male's shoulder, seeming to be genuinely proud of his actions. "You showed just how loyal you are to me – to my whole family. You truly are like the son I never had."
"You don't think that kid of yours will be into this stuff?" The male, Eric, now raises an eyebrow in curiosity. He knows of his boss's children, but not a whole lot about them. His voice comes out as naturally deep, almost naturally intimidating.
The Anderson boss slowly shakes his head, before sighing heavily with disappointment. "No, no. I'm afraid not. I keep trying, though. Don't want to give up on the kid while he's still young."
"Of course," the teen nods, agreeing once more.
"Anyway. Let us discuss such matters when we're away from this forest. But before we go, let's check these goons' bodies, see if they had anything valuable on them."
Silence falls in the forest once more. The only sounds that can be heard now is the footsteps from the two men, along with the occasional leaves rustling and crunching under their feet. Soon, their work was done – but this is not the first job they've ever taken, nor will it be the last. The Anderson boss has been in 'business' for as long as he can remember; he inherited the head position from his father at a young age, and he intends to pass it onto his own son.
However, the Anderson family is far from perfect. From an outsider's glance, the family seems to get along well. They don't look like the type to be involved in such dark crimes; no one suspects them. But things may be dangerous for the family. In all their years of being involved in this business, they've never ran into any trouble. They've never experienced betrayal from a family member. And they most certainly never expect to. But, of course, no one knows what the future holds.
…
Ryan has always known his family was different. It's almost as if he's been aware from the moment he was born. One of his earliest memory of things not feeling quite right is from when he was four or five years old. He can recall so many different things from his past. Sometimes, he thinks it's odd just how good his memory is, but then again, he is glad he can always remember. It helps him come to a better conclusion on the type of people in his family. He loves his family; he believes he always will. But at times, he thinks it is best to distance himself from them altogether. Their lives clash too much – they're simply too different.
Ryan's father is one of the top bosses in a 'business'. At least, that's the word the boss uses to describe it, as if he feels the need to sugar-coat it or hide it. However, Ryan knows what it really is. For his family is involved in the mafia, one of the largest organisations in America, in fact. Their name is 'The Bloodstained Butterflies', a sort of dark twist on something once so innocent. Due to this mafia business, Ryan has had a restricted upbringing.
The boss could never trust his two children to make their own friends. He insisted on hiring a tutor for home schooling purposes, and the family moved to a new house at least every two years. On top of that, he always picked out his colleagues' children to be 'friends' of his own children. Naturally, Ryan grew up lacking the essential communication skills; to this very day, he still finds himself unable to maintain eye contact for very long; he ends up stumbling over his own words, too. Despite this, he's unsure whether the blame is on his father or simply himself. After all, Ryan did all he could to avoid being around those children. They were innocent, just as Ryan was in this situation - but due to being young and naive, he saw other children as rivals.
Having an overbearing older sister didn't make the boy's upbringing any easier. The siblings are a mere two years apart, and were raised together, but to Ryan it feels as though they are complete opposites. She took an interest in her father's work from a young age, whereas Ryan wanted to be left alone most of the time. She grew up to be strict, bossy, and rarely showed any kindness… Just like her father. Ryan doesn't feel much of a connection to her. He finds it to be rather upsetting, considering they were once so close. But once their father tried to drag Layla and Ryan into his business, the young boy resisted as much as he could. His sister, on the other hand, couldn't wait to start. And so, Ryan turned to music; something that would be a distraction from his chaotic family life.
The only one the boy admires in my family is his mother. His sweet, caring mother. She's everything Ryan aspires to be when he is older. Throughout his entire childhood, she was the only one who was truly there for him. She understood all his fears; she could always put his mind at ease. He felt as though he could talk to her freely, all the time.
Despite this family being so different… despite everything being so chaotic… There were never truly any serious problems between them. Okay, so the parents were always at each other's throats, and Layla was always trying to push Ryan into the business. But up until a certain point in time, things were relatively calm. That was… until the boss took on some new help for his business. Ryan himself can recall the day quite well, even though he was only six-years-old. Even then, the storm didn't strike for another two years after that day. But of course, there's always quiet before a storm.
…
