Before the events...
Sosuke POV
I stretched as I finished some paperwork about yesterday's events. My uncles and I are glad that the event went perfectly. Esmeralda's friends played very well, and many of our guests wanted to hire them for their services. Esmeralda was also a hit as the main event. My uncles told me many business partners tried to hire her for many positions.
However, we all knew the men were interested in her for a particular reason. They all were told no. Deep down, I hated how Esmeralda was viewed as; a sex object. True, she dressed provocatively, but she danced for culture. Esmeralda is not the type of woman who seeks validation from other men.
She has self-respect, maturity, and intelligence. Maybe we should have lunch together to celebrate the success of the party. I might as well get some Chinese food, something simple. It's strange. A part of me wants to see Esmeralda, and I always become happy when I see her.
Why do I feel this way? Then I remember Uncle Vlad's words. Do I like her? She always makes me feel warm inside. She was the type of woman I was not used to being with. She is rare in this modern time and era. I shook my head.
I can't. I can't have feelings for her. She's still young, and I don't have a good history with women. Deep down, I'm afraid that I might hurt her. I sighed as I took out my phone to order food and drop it off.
...
Sosuke picked up the food he ordered and went off to where Esmeralda and her friends were staying. When he got there, he parked his SUV. However, Sosuke noticed another car that didn't look familiar. Was there a visitor?
Sosuke felt the worst when he thought it was his father and immediately got off the SUV with food on hand. When he got to the entrance, a visitor stood by the door.
"Ace?"
Ace turned around as he wore a matching jacket and sweats. He seemed to be smoking a cigarette. Ace threw the cigarette. "Sosuke, what a surprise. What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing. How did you know where Esmeralda and her friends were staying?" asked Sosuke.
"I asked my old man."
Sosuke raised an eyebrow. "But why are you here? Are you here to see Esmeralda?"
Ace cleared his throat. "Yeah, I want to see how she was doing." He noticed the bags Sosuke was holding. "You came to see her too?"
"I came to bring her and her friends lunch. I know it was a long day yesterday." Sosuke got the keys and entered the house. Both men entered, and it was silent.
"Probably, they're still hungover," said Ace.
Sosuke put the food down and walked through the halls. He could hear snoring from the different rooms. Sosuke gave out a slight knock when he got to the last room. There was no response. "Esmeralda, it's me. I brought some lunch."
There was still no response. Ace arrived. "Ain't she answering?"
"No, she's probably still asleep."
Ace gave a louder knock, and there was still no response. Suddenly, he opened the door and entered.
"Ace!"
"She ain't here, Sosuke."
Sosuke saw that the room was empty, and there was no sight of her.
"Do you think she went out?" asked Ace.
"She couldn't have. She and her friends don't have transportation here. If she needed something, she could have called me." Sosuke got out his phone and called Esmeralda's number. It went straight through voicemail. "Esmeralda's not answering." Sosuke was getting worried, and Ace noticed.
"Should we ask her friends?"
"I doubt they know. They're still sound asleep. This is not like her." Then, Sosuke remembered something. He remembered when his father and Esmeralda danced. He knew that they spoke while dancing. After the dance, Esmeralda looked like she was trying to hide something. His light brown eyes became wide. Sosuke immediately ran out of the room and then out of the house.
Ace followed as he closed the door to the house. "Yo, Sosuke! What's going on!?"
"I know where Esmeralda's at; I must go to her!"
"Where!?"
"She's with my father!"
Sosuke got inside the SUV; Ace followed. "You don't need to be here, Ace. I-"
"I can if I want to. Either we go together, or we will go separately. Either way, I'm going. Now drive, damn it!"
Sosuke didn't need to be told twice. He drove off to his father's home. As for Ace, he wasn't close to his Uncle Yhwach. Along with the rest of the family, he knew how Yhwach was, especially towards women. His father told him and his mother about Yhwach's new interest in Esmeralda. To Ace's disgust, Esmeralda was only eighteen years old.
The young man couldn't deny that he was interested in knowing who Esmeralda was. When he finally got to know her, Ace was amazed at how beautiful she was. He saw her dance, but her passion and skill were what made him intrigued with her. Not only that, she spoke with maturity for her age. She asked him many questions about his hobbies, and she seemed interested.
Ace couldn't deny that he dated women. However, many were still immature and liked him for his looks. The young man didn't deny that he would sleep with them since they gave him the opportunity. However, he could sense that Esmeralda was different. His Uncle Bradley told his father, and his father said to him that Esmeralda held a sense of morality and self-respect. Ace saw that in her. In a sense, Ace could understand why his Uncle Yhwach was attracted to her.
However, Yhwach was still too old for her. Yhwach already lived his youth, while Esmeralda hadn't. Ace could tell that his cousin was worried, and he couldn't blame him. Both didn't know what Yhwach would do to her.
After an eternity, both made it to Yhwach's home. "There she is!"
"I knew it," Sosuke parked his car. Both he and Ace got out.
"Sosuke, Ace, what a surprise," said Yhwach.
Esmeralda's eyes were wide open. She was surprised that Sosuke had found her, but he wasn't alone. Ace was with him. "Ace, what a surprise. Why-?" Esmeralda couldn't finish as Sosuke got a hold of her hand.
"We're going." Sosuke glared at his father but said nothing.
The young woman felt the tension and was afraid to say anything. Sosuke led her to the back of the SUV. All three got inside and drove away. Yhwach watched them leave. Deep down, he was angry that his time with Esmeralda was cut short. "If they think they will stop me from having Esmeralda, they're dead wrong." A smirk came across his lips. "Sosuke has his secrets, and if he continues to get in my way, I might as well bring them to light."
...
All were silent in the SUV; Esmeralda sat on the back and felt the tension. She glanced at Sosuke, whose eyes were on the road. She could tell that he was angry. As for Ace, he looked thoughtful and would occasionally glance at her. Ace felt annoyed with the silence. "Esmeralda, what were you thinking?"
"I-I promised Mr. Yhwach that we would have lunch since he proposed the job to me. I only wanted to be respectful."
"You don't know how Yhwach is, Esme. He may speak and look nice to you, but he's something else. He wouldn't invite a young woman like ya to have nice talks," said Ace.
"That day of the party, when you danced with him, he told you not to say anything, didn't he? Even when I asked if he told you anything, you lied to me," Sosuke.
Esmeralda felt a chill go down her spine. "Sosuke, I'm sorry. It's just that I don't want to judge people immediately. I'd rather get to know the person before passing any judgment."
Sosuke squeezed on the driving wheel; Ace noticed. "Look, Esme. My cuz and I know that you are nice, but it's best to listen when people tell you things about someone. You don't know our family entirely. People act on how they want you to view 'em; it doesn't mean they are who they act." Ace turned to her. "If we hadn't come by, Yhwach could've done somethin' to ya."
The young woman bit her lower lip. She felt so confused and didn't know who to believe anymore. Sosuke parked on the side of the road; he sighed. "Look, my family and I tell things for a reason. You are too nice for your good, Esmeralda. Don't you know how worried I was when you couldn't be found? What's worse is the fact that you lied to me. I understand that you don't want to think of the worst in people, but you have to accept that people won't hesitate to hurt you. My father is one of these people." Sosuke turned to look at the young woman. "Now tell me the truth. What happened?"
Esmeralda fought the urge to cry. "We just talked. That's it, I swear. He asked me questions about my hobbies and so forth. He also spoke himself."
"Anything else? I have a feeling there's more."
"H-He also wanted to offer me a job. Something like a secretary; he told me that he would give me time to think about it. It's the truth."
Ace and Sosuke looked at one another. "Uncle Brad was right; it's going bad," said Ace.
"Change of plans, we're going to my Uncle's. I think he should try to resolve this." Sosuke drove on the road again and drove to his Uncle's house.
...
King Bradley was in the backyard of his home playing with toy swords with his grandson. "Grandpa, it's not fair! You're too tall for me to fight back!"
The older man laughed. "Come now, Selim. A good swordsman never complains. Besides, it's just a game!"
Selim is nine years old, with light skin, dark brown eyes, and black hair. He had an innocent face but a sense of intelligence. He did a slight pout. "I'm not complaining, grandpa! I'm just telling you that you're taller than me."
Suddenly, Bradley got the toy sword and gently hit his grandson on the head. "Tag, you're it."
"Hey!"
Bradley began to run slowly, ensuring he did not overrun his grandson. On the corner of his eye, he saw his wife Amelia letting guests into the house. To his surprise, it was his two nephews and Esmeralda. Bradley stopped. "Selim, it's time to go inside. I think we had enough playtime."
"Wha? Grandpa!"
"Besides, Sosuke and Ace are here."
Selim's face lit up as he saw them inside the house. "Sosuke and Ace!"
...
"Sosuke, Ace, what a nice surprise!" said Amelia. The older woman hugged both her nephews, and they did the same.
Amelia then noticed the young woman. "Why hello, Esmeralda. I'm Amelia, the aunt of these little ruffians! You danced beautifully yesterday." Amelia extended her arms and hugged her.
Esmeralda smiled and felt at ease. "She seems so nice, reminds of (1) nonantzin." She hugged Amelia back, and the women separated. "Thank you so much, Ms. Amelia. You and Mr. Bradley have a lovely home."
Amelia was about to respond, but Selim interrupted her when he ran inside the house. "Sosuke, Ace! You're here!"
"Well, if it ain't Roy's brat!" Ace got a hold of the little boy and began tickling him. Selim laughed and squealed. He stopped, putting Selim down.
Selim then went to Sosuke. Sosuke gave Selim a genuine smile as he held the small child. Esmeralda felt her heart skip a beat. She had to admit that Sosuke looked so fatherly when holding Selim. "He would look so good as a father," she thought.
"Well, if it isn't my nephews and Esmeralda." Bradley walked inside his home. He wore black dressy pants, a long-sleeved white buttoned shirt, and a black vest. Bradley went to his wife and their grandson. "Esmeralda, this is my only grandson Selim; he's Roy and Riza's son. He's my and Amelia's only grandchild. I wish my other sons would marry and give us more." He then eyed his nephews playfully. "You two should hurry and settle down and have children."
Amelia giggled. Selim eyed Esmeralda; he waved at her. "You're pretty, Miss."
Esmeralda smiled at the child and walked to him. "You are so sweet, Selim; thank you. You're handsome, little one. You'll be popular with the girls when you get older."
Selim giggled.
Bradley and his nephews walked away while the women spoke to one another. "So, what's the issue?"
"Esmeralda met with Yhwach. Probably made her keep it a secret, Uncle Brad," said Ace.
"I was hoping you could talk to her, Uncle. The situation isn't getting better and will never be better. We dragged her too much into our world. It would help if you talked to her," said Sosuke.
Bradley sighed as he massaged his forehead. "You're right. I should speak to her alone. I can tell that you hold tension among one another." The older man walked to the women. "Amelia, I need to speak with the young lady. Esmeralda, please follow me."
Esmeralda flinched but did what Bradley told her. Ace and Sosuke watched as she followed Bradley to his study. Amelia noticed her nephews. "Is it about Yhwach?"
Her nephews nodded, but Amelia just shook her head.
...
Bradley and Esmeralda were alone in Bradley's study. Esmeralda saw the bookshelf walls filled with so many books. He also displayed many swords and pictures of him and his wife in their younger years. The young woman was surprised at how good-looking Bradley was in his youth. There was also a picture of Bradley, his wife, and their children. Even Sosuke was among them when he was a child.
Bradley truly cared about his family. Bradley served her some water while he served himself a whiskey and sat before her. "My nephews told me why you're all here. They told me that you went with my brother in secret."
"S-Sir, he just invited me for lunch. It was just professional, I swear."
"That's what he told you, didn't he? Is it professional to ask about one's hobbies and talk about one's life? What professional things did you both speak about?"
Esmeralda was silent. Bradley made her think. "Well, he wanted to offer me a job, but I haven't responded."
The older man's mood became more serious. "A job? Let me guess, as a secretary."
"Y-Yes, sir. How did you know?"
"Oh, dear child. I know my brother too well, especially how he is with women. Unfortunately, you are different from the women that he has been with. This is why he is trying to be more discrete."
This confused the young woman. "I'm sorry, but what are you talking about?"
"Haven't you noticed that he's interested in you and not in a professional manner? He sees and wants you as a woman."
Esmeralda flinched. Yhwach wanted her. "Why?" she asked in a whisper-like tone.
"You're young, beautiful, intelligent, talented, respectful, and innocent. You hold so many traits that are rare in many women nowadays. That's why my brother desires you."
"Desire me? Mr. Bradley, he's too old for me. He's old enough to be my grandfather." She put her arms around herself. Yhwach wanted her. It made Esmeralda feel sick.
Bradley sighed. "Unfortunately, he doesn't see it that way, as many men do. Many men are in denial of their age as women are. That's why my nephew and I warned you not to get too close to him. He has a desire for you. I think you should know the truth."
"Truth?"
"The truth about Yhwach and our family. You need to know the whole story, the past. As you know, Yhwach is my and my brother's half-brother. We all shared the same father, Alucard Vlad Tepes; Yhwach had a different mother; my brothers and I had a different mother. It all began..."
...
Translation:
1. Nonantzin means 'mother' in Nahuatl.
