My dear little broccolis 💚💚💚

💚 So remember that this pic is RATED M, and it is not only for the sexy times. Some dark moments will be approached in this story, and they can trigger some people. This is a fair warning to remind you that this story sets place in a dark world, which means it is bound to mountains dark themes.

Love, Mina 💚💚💚

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Chapter 22: Tears In Heaven (3,6K)

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Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton

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Christian's PoV

Christian was reading the day's newspaper on his couch when Bastille jumped on his laps and required a bit of attention. With a small smile, he properly placed the kitten on his laps and moved the newspaper to not disturb the small ball of hair nestled against him. Absentmindedly, he caressed his pet whilst his eyes were looking through the WallStreet section, and a thought occurred to him. Why didn't Raymond ever try to invest in the stock market?

It had been a while since he thought that he himself should find himself a stock to invest in, just a contingency plan. But the more he thought about it, the more he wondered why Raymond never explored that option. He was actually becoming more and more interested in the fluctuation of a special stock that he was sure would pay off later on.

After thinking about it for a few more minutes, Christian decided to call Raymond and propose him to make money without having to move a single finger. Before pressing the call button, he still hesitated a little. Not because he thought Raymond would mind his proposal, but because he knew that today was a mournful day for the Steele's. Ana's grandfather had passed away a couple of days after she came back from Orlando, and though he wasn't Raymond's father, Christian knew that Raymond still cared for his late wife's father. They had buried him earlier in the day, so Christian was pretty hesitant on disturbing Raymond on such a day.

Still, he pressed the call button and waited for his boss to answer to him, which he did after the second ring.

"I'm not disturbing you, I hope."

"No, don't worry. What is it, Christian?"

"I was wondering if you ever thought of investing?"

"I do invest every day, Christian. Except the law calls it illegal loans of money, or money laundering."

Christian repressed himself from chuckling because Raymond wasn't wrong. It was all a question of point-of-view. Still, he clarified his thought, "I meant, did you ever think of investing in Wall Street."

There was a small silence before Raymond let him know, "Eric suggested it at some point, but I don't like the idea of it."

"Why not?" Christian asked though he was now uncomfortable having had suggested something that Lincoln had suggested earlier on. He didn't like knowing that the two of them had the same trail of thoughts.

"I don't like not being able to break somebody's legs if my money isn't worth it," Raymond simply stated, and though he did not agree with that logic, Christian couldn't argue with it.

Being a man in Raymond's position required of him being able to literally beat the money out of a person if necessary. Still, Christian could see that it could be easy money if they played their cards right, though he didn't know how he could convince Raymond that it was worth it.

"Eric had already tried to sell me the idea on many occasions. And on more than one, I would have made myself a lot of money if I had listened to him. But like I said, I like dealing with people directly," Raymond said, making Christian understand that it was a conversation that was not open to discussion, and so he acquiesced, feeling that this was a battle for another time.

He hung up, contemplating the idea of calling Ana to see how she was holding up. He knew that she was really close to her grandparents and that she must be devastated by the death that struck her grandfather, but he didn't really know how to deal with grieving people. To be honest, he was more used in creating reasons to grieve, than helping the pain to go away.

With a shake of his head, he put down his phone, waiting for it to ring for he was waiting for Luke, and he got back to reading the paper, focussing on the news section as he petted Bastille. It occurred to him that Ana was right on this issue. He never really thought of himself as a lonely person when he alone, and never felt the need to be with another being, but now that Bastille was there, he knew he would feel lonely without him.

There was a night when the cat wasn't there when Christian got home, and as long as he was missing, Christian couldn't go to sleep. He even considered definitely closing the windows so the cat couldn't escape (since he left them open for the feline to explore), but it felt wrong to him to imprison the kitten just to reassure himself. Bastille came back, and Christian just had to believe that he would always come back.

He was lost in his thoughts, his brain half focused on what he was reading, when he heard a noise at his door. Silently, he put the cat down and reached for his gun, waiting for the intruder to come into his flat and knowing that he would see them immediately given the fact that he was living in an open space. When the door opened, he aimed his gun, but quickly discarded it on his coffee table when he saw that it was Ana.

He went to her and took her his arms. "What are you doing here?"

"I didn't want to sleep alone tonight," She tells him with a small voice, before bursting into tears.

Christian held her in his arms, letting her out her sorrow and not saying a single word. She cried there for the longest time, whilst Christian rubbed her back with comfort, not sure of what he could tell her. Loss wasn't something that he ever experienced, because he didn't have much people in his life, even less people that had died. He couldn't relate to her, and only be there to listen and do his best to take the sorrow away.

When Ana's cries turned into sob, Christian directed them to his sofa, and he sat her there before making her some infusion. When he went back to her, Bastille was cuddled up on her laps, purring as she was petting him. Christian Gave her the mug that she absentmindedly took, and he sat next to her. She rested her head on his shoulder, and Christian caressed her arm as he told her,

"I have to work, tonight. I will come back as soon as possible, but I can't postpone it."

"It's okay. I showed up unannounced."

"I would cancel it if I could, and stay here with you.'

"I know you would," She assured him with a reassuring tone.

Christian glanced at her with her puffy red eyes and puffy red nose. He tried to think of something to say other than the usual and useless words people usually said in those situations, but she sadly smiled and curled up so her head could be on his laps as she let him know,

"You don't have to say anything. I just wanted to be with you tonight. I didn't come for empty words, but … I don't know why I came."

Christian leaned down and kissed her cheek. "You can come whenever you want. If you need comfort, I am here for you."

Another sad smile formed on her lips, and for a moment, they remained like that, in a peaceful silence that was only broken by Christian's phone buzzing and indicating him that Luke was waiting for him downstairs. Christian got up and kissed Ana as he promised her, "I'll be back as soon as possible. This isn't supposed to take long, anyway."

She nodded, and after a final kiss, Christian left his apartment and joined Luke in his car.

"You okay, man?" Luke asked, seeing that Christian was preoccupied, and Christian dismissed the man, telling him to drive. He didn't like the idea of leaving Ana like that, when she obviously wanted him by her side at this moment.

But it wasn't like he had a choice. Luke had noted a disturbance amongst some dealers that were working for Idris, and was sure that it was the pattern of a mutiny as he would call it. And when he exposed his worries to Christian, Christian had to admit that Luke's thoughts were making sense, so he decided to kill whatever coup those dealers were thinking off, in the bud.

If he had followed his guts, he wouldn't have taken Luke with his for this mission, but Ryan, because Luke wasn't a man of the field. But it was him who found out about this uprising, and it only seemed fitting that it would be him to help calm down the situation. Plus, Luke wanted to be more involved on the field, and Raymond had told Christian to grant him this wish.

So whilst Ana was in Orlando, Christian had taken Luke with him when he followed Patrick Hyde to show him how it was done in real life, rather than on a computer. And he had to say that Luke seemed to have a natural talent for it. Even though the test subject wasn't that hard to follow. It turned out, that for once, Christian's instincts weren't his best allies. The only crime Patrick Hyde was really guilty of, was having two wives.

His second wife was a really well conceded affair, in the state of Washington, and Christian highly doubted that either woman was aware of the existence of the other one. He even doubted that Hyde's children knew about his double life. But on a business point-of-view, Hyde had done nothing wrong. Well, nothing more than any other business man, which meant that he was always doing his best to pocket a maximum amount of money, with a minimum amount of investment.

When they arrived at the meeting place, Christian was surprised to see more people than he expected. Usually, when drug dealers and gang leaders wanted to talk seriously, they didn't bring their whole squad. But it seemed that it had been the case. Luke was about to get out of the car, when Christian stopped him and asked,

"Are you sure that we are not expected?"

"Yes. No one knows who I work for," Luke confidently assured, already opening up his door. Christian prevented him from doing so, his eyes steady on the crowd where a few pair of eyes were already on them..

"Somebody figured it out. This isn't a meeting to talk. This is a setup," Christian warned, but Luke didn't take him seriously.

"Stop being so paranoid, Christian. Everything is going to be ok—" He was interrupted as he exited the car, a bullet finding place in his chest.

Christian swore, manoeuvring himself inside the car so he could take the driver's place as other shots were fired in his direction, and he pulled Luke back into the car, all the while driving backward, away from the fire guns. After a short turn, he put properly the wounded man on the passenger seat, urging him to keep his eyes open and to press down on the wound, and he drove to the nearest hospital, ignoring the lights and the other angry drivers.

Several times, he saw Luke blink his way to oblivion, making him yell for him to stay awake. As they were nearing the hospital, Christian called the ER, pretending to be a cop so the medical team would be ready for when they would arrive. He kept on repeating Luke to hold on, but when he pulled over at the hospital, he could see that Luke was closing his eyes, which was never a good sign

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For the longest time, Christian stayed in the car in the parking of his building, staring into nothing and only thinking of what he would do the next day. After what seemed to Christian to last forever, the doctor had come out of the room and told Christian that Luke had stabilised and that he was out of danger. But that didn't stop Christian from ruminating from the inside. It wasn't only Luke that had been shot, but the whole institution that was Idris, and he was very well determined to get to the bottom of it.

With a loud heave, he left the car and took the stairs to his apartment, knowing that there was less chance for him to meet anyone that way. He was hoping that Ana was already sleeping, because he didn't want her to see him all bloodied and worry over nothing, and his wish was granted. She was fast asleep on the sofa, Bastille cuddled up against her and lazily opening his eyes when Christian closed the front door.

Silently, he went upstairs and took a cold shower, washing the blood away whilst he kept on thinking of what had happened that night. He should have followed his instincts and asked Ryan to come along. And he should have told Luke to turn away as soon as he saw the crowd. He didn't like feeling like he could have handled a situation better, and didn't follow his instincts, and he liked even less that another person had to suffer the consequences.

Once out of the shower, he checked his phone to call Raymond, but when he saw the late hour, he simply decided to text him to let him know of what happened, ending the message by saying that he would call him in the morning. Then, he went to pick up Ana and put her in his bed. For a few minutes, he simply looked at her, trying not to think of the possibility that it could have been him in Luke's shoes and he was the one now laying in a hospital bed.

He lied next to the brunette, trying to find sleep, but when it became obvious to him that this was going to be a sleepless night for him, he got up and went in the room where he kept the things he would share with his future children. There, he took the guitar and mindlessly played, trying to ease his mind and bite his bone.

He was very well aware of why he couldn't find sleep, but that did not mean that it wasn't eating him still. Christian had always flattered himself to be a man with a code, and at this right moment, he was going against his code. Someone shooting one of his colleague meant that he would seek revenge the very next second, and he was delaying that revenge for two reasons. The first one was that he was waiting to see if Luke would wake up and if he wouldn't have any sequels. The second was Ana. He had promised her that he would be home for her, and no matter how much he valued his code, he valued more the worth of his word to her.

And this was the scary part. What if one day he was in a moral dilemma where he would have to choose between those two important parts of his life? A few months ago, he knew very well what he would have done. But now that Ana was becoming more and more important to him, and in his life, he wasn't so sure of his choice.

As he kept on trying to see clearly through his mind, Christian started playing Tears In Heaven by Eric Clapton, humming the lyrics along the way. He was so lost in his thoughts that he barely heard the door being opened, and rather felt Ana looking at him. He immediately stopped playing, but she shook her head and came to sit at the feet of the rocking chair he was in,

"Don't. I love that song."

Christian smiled and resumed playing the song, feeling a warmth take over his heart when she smiled back, even though he could see nostalgia in her eyes. When the song was over, Christian put the guitar aside and Ana climbed on his laps, curling in a ball as if she were a cat.

"My very first concert was a Eric Clapton one. I went with Mike and my grandfather because he was a huge fan of his music, and… I guessed he passed it on to me."

"Sorry," Christian said, not meaning to bring back sad memories to the girl in his arms. She shook her head, and looked up to him as she told him,

"No. As I said, I love this song. And I like your voice when you sing it."

They remained silent for a few moments, looking at one another, when Ana asked, "How was your night."

Christian hesitated for a second, not sure of what to do. He knew Raymond's policy concerning telling his daughter about the kind of criminal activities he had, but he also didn't want to lie to her. So he took the grey area that was offered to him, "It was… eventful."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I'd rather not. Maybe some other time," He truthfully said, because he was still angered by what happened, and he didn't want to let this anger out on Ana. "How about I get you back to bed?" He proposed, taking her up in his arms and taking her back to his room, bridal style.

Once they were both tucked under the cover, Ana cuddled against Christian and he mindlessly caressed her arm, waiting for her to go back to sleep as he numbingly stared at the ceiling. He thought that she had gone back to dreamland when she asked with a small voice,

"Can I ask you something without you getting all defensive?"

"Sure."

"And you will answer honestly?"

"I always do."

"You won't try to elude me?" She insisted, which made Christian frown. He was rather curious about what she could want to know so badly, but he also knew that sometimes not knowing something was better than the raw and ugly reality.

"Are you sure you want the answer to your question?" He countered, giving her an escape before she could ask anything she might regret. But she didn't even think twice about it, and confidently admitted,

"Yes."

"Ask away, then."

"Is Mia a hooker?"

This had the merit to stop Christian in his soothing circle, tilting his head down so he could look at Ana. She was looking at him, waiting for him to give her an answer, but all he could think about was how Ana who knew nothing of the blonde girl could have come up with that conclusion.

Ana sighed a little, looking down as she explained, "When we were in Orlando, Elena told Kate and I that… she wasn't much the housewife we thought she was. She explained a few things about her past, and what she does now, and… well, it would make sense to me… I mean, it would explain why we saw the tree of you together the other time..."

For a long time, Christian looked at the blue eyes of the girl in his bed, trying to see beforehand where this conversation could lead, and where it was coming from. Mia had shared a few bits of how and why Elena had started to help young girls, and even though she didn't go into much details, Christian had connected the dots. Still, he didn't know exactly what Elena had told Ana, and what Ana had concluded of what she heard.

Still, he had made a promise, and so told Ana, weighing on the past tense of his sentence, "Mia was a working girl. Now, she is a law student."

He watched Ana hang her head low, and wondered what she could possibly be thinking, though he didn't have to wonder for long.

"I feel so bad, now."

"Why?"

She hesitated, before looking back up, remorse in her eyes, "Because I was jealous, and you were just helping someone in need."

That answer gave Christian many options to keep the conversation up float, but of all the outcome, he decided to go toward the most selfish one.

"You were jealous?" He teased with a small grin. Ana furrowed her brows, pouting and unknowingly giving Christian the urge to kiss her.

"It's not funny," She complained, slapping his chest, and he couldn't help but laugh a little, making them turn so she would be the one laying on her bed. Then, he looked deep into her eyes, tenderly caressing her face as he assured her,

"You have no reason to be. I am not seeing anyone else but you. I only have eyes for you."

He was rewarded with an honest smile that he quickly hid away with his lips.

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💚Your thoughts and opinions are always welcomed💚

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~ So I know this chapter might seem filler, but it was important for a couple of reasons that I will linger on later on.

~ Anyway, question time:

💚What did you think of Luke?

💚What do you think of Christian's and Ana's conversation about Mia?

💚 What did you think of the song and the sweet moment that came from it?

💚What did you think of this chapter overall? And what do you think will happen next?

💚 What was your favourite part?

💚Anyway, E L James owns the names of the characters from the Fifty Shades franchise, everything else is mine.

‼️FOR GUEST REVIEWERS‼️

Guest1: Well, Eric is ... Eric. He did what he did with no regrets, that's all I can tell so far... but I'm glad you liked the Elena story

Guest2: Yes, Elena did not have an easy childhood, but she managed to make a life for herself. Hope you liked this chapter just the same.

Guest3: I know you're waiting for that other update, but it is a bit hard to write it, I'll explain why in the next update, but I think it will be by the end of the year ...

Guest4: I'm so happy that I managed to make you like a character that you usually dislike, hehe

Guest5: Don't worry, we're back to Christian's pov, next chapter. Those outside of Christian are just necessary for the plot.

Guest6: Yup, Ray was not kidding around. He was scary from youth, haha. But I wanted to show as well that, though he rectified the situation, Eric was more the brain when they started

Love, Mina💚💚💚