Chapter 4: Iris And Her Friends
"IRIS"
"I'll see you soon Succubus of the North." His voice kept on repeating itself inside my head. I couldn't help it! Everything about that man is addictive yet dangerous. His scent has attached itself to my nose and his presence has invaded and successfully captured my soul, yet I know little of this person. We did a little quickie, sadly interrupted, and that was it. We couldn't deepen our bond after that, I tried to find him but I, later on, found out that he suddenly left the party to do some errands. The party ended without me knowing who was that new police officer named Erimez.
****
Two days later, I was once again dragged into a social gathering, but this time it was with my friends, not my father. I have three best friends that I'm happy and safe with, because, just like me, they are also daughters of a notorious father and mother whose jobs are seen as illegal to the general public.
"Iris, how about this dress? It's a little expensive but it looks good on me right?" A voice called out. I snapped out of my little daydream and saw one of my best friends, Kayla Rivers holding a ruby red dress.
"Uh pick another one, the fabric on that dress looks cheap," I commented and she happily took my advice.
Kayla is the daughter of an infamous hitman couple "Bloodreds". Her father and mother often take the contract killings seriously but most of the time they like to goof off and play with their targets. They were named "Bloodreds" due to their style of clothing whenever they take on a case, they often wear red outfits and leave red clothing, commonly red handkerchiefs in the crime scene.
Kayla and I met when we were in kindergarten, she was one of those students that didn't really talk and is always shy at first so many people always want to befriend her and make her comfortable and it worked. She became an instant icon in our school and many people wanted to be friends with her, I was smart and lucky enough to befriend her before she got famous because now, she often gives cold shoulders to new people she meets. Kayla is obsessed with clothes and fashion but didn't pursue to become a fashion designer, instead, she became a doctor due to her mother's wishes. She's a pretty well-known doctor and she's even so popular that she has her own medical television program aim to inform the people of Wolas about diseases, proper nutrition, the importance of proper hygiene, basically all of those boring but important conversations between a patient and a doctor.
Amidst all of her clean and innocent reputation to the general public, Kayla has a dirty little secret. In the daytime, she is seen as a good and celebrity doctor that is willing to help anyone but when the sun sets and nighttime comes, she turns into this persona she calls Kayleen. Kayleen is Kayla's alter ego, she is the total opposite of Kayla, instead of helping and saving people, Kayleen kills people in the dark just like her parents but the only difference is, is that she hides their bodies somewhere in her house or building first for a couple of days to let the grieving families search for their loved ones first and when the noise quiets down, she then buries the bodies in places that are deserted.
She and her family is my dad's first choice whenever he wants to kill someone smoothly and quietly but he tends to choose Kayla first because she's always a quiet killer, unlike her parents that sometimes want to play around with their victims for a while.
"Ugh, Kayla, do I really have to buy this garbage? You know I hate dresses." A grumpy young lady stepped out of the dressing room and stumped her way towards Kayla who was busy looking for something to replace the ruby dress.
"Porter, you looked good in those sparkly purple dress." I chirped, I hold my laugh in, afraid that if I let it out Porter might kill me in an instant.
"Okay, why isn't SHE not wearing nor picking dresses!" She complained, pointing her fingers towards me, I smile at my grumpy best friend, who I honestly would've thought was a guy before we met.
Porter Elizabeth Ross is the youngest of three siblings and an only daughter. She is the daughter of a well-known drug lord here in the city of Wolas. Porter's parents met when her mother tried to sell a knockoff of his father's illegal drug in the black market, her mother was poor at that time and was desperate to earn money but did not offer her body due to her strong belief in the bible and the religion of Christianity. Porter's father fell in love with her, seeing her as a strong and independent woman who is witty and learns how to defend herself. They soon got married and was blessed with two sons, unfortunately at that time, Mr. and Mrs. Porter always wanted to have a daughter especially Mrs. Porter. They tried and tried but end up with nothing. Mr. Porter was extremely devastated to see his wife in grief, they do have everything, the wealth brought by their illegal selling of drugs, their two lovely sons that brought them joy and love. they have each other but to Mrs. Porter, it felt different, as if there's a missing piece in her heart and only a daughter could fill it.
One rainy night, when the boys were deep in sleep, the couple tried it again one last time, having in mind that this will be their one last time to try and conceive a child and hopefully, a daughter. Praying to God that hopefully, this will be it, they gave it their all, especially Mr. Porter who shot every single ounce of his "strength" that night. A few days later, Mrs. Porter conceived a baby and it was soon confirmed that their baby was a girl.
"Iris why did you let them do this to me? You know I hate these things." Porter said as she sat on the chair next to me.
"At least you can spend time with Alessia." I teased, Porter slowly turns red and tried to change the subject. I laughed at her and her silly reaction.
"Not so loud Iris, people might hear you," Porter whispered. I patted her head and smiled at her.
"You know I've kept your secret for like what? Two to three years now? Relax, your secret is safe with me." I reassured her.
"I know, and I thank you for that. It's hard being closeted you know?" Porter replied, looking at one of the dresses that was hanged for display.
"Then why can't you just step out of that closet and proudly yelled out who you truly are?" I asked, it soon hit me that I shouldn't have asked that question.
"I wish I could honestly but you know how religious my family is. I'm afraid that they might disown me, especially my mom." Porter answered.
Porter, unlike us, was different. She did not take her family's business and path towards illegal doings, instead she became an actress and pursued fame and wealth the right way. Her career might not be as successful as other actresses in the industry but she's very happy as to where she is right now. Life as a celebrity with two secrets is hard on Porter, she's afraid that one day, her family's business or her personal secret might spill out and her life is over. She's constantly paranoid about everything and everyone, fearing that one single mistake might cost her everything. Her only glimmer of hope is the people she helped, us her friends and Alessia, the fourth member of our little group, and one of my best friends whom she secretly has a crush on.
"Hey guys, what are you chatting about? I hope it's lunch cause I'm starving." Alessia suddenly said and came out of nowhere. Porter and I snapped and tried our best to lie at Alessia.
"Yeah, actually we were talking about that new restaurant that has positive reviews on Yelp." Porter started, she looked at me and pleaded in her eyes to say something.
"...Yeah, I heard on the news that the restaurant's food is better than any restaurants here." I blabbered a lie, thankfully Alessia seemed to buy it as she quickly smiles and her eyes are filled with wonder and excitement.
"Wow seriously? That good?! Okay, we have to check this place out! I'll go get Kayla." She excitedly stood up and ran towards Kayla to inform her about this new restaurant that doesn't exist.
"How are we going to get out of this hole we dug ourselves into?" Porter whispered. I looked at her and nervously smiled.
"Don't look at me you started to dig, I just went along and jumped," I replied.
Alessia Acciai is Miles' twin sister. They were both conceived by their mother with another baby but the third baby, unfortunately, died at birth. That's probably why their parents treat them with everything they got. Luxury home, expensive food, designer clothes, even their water is expensive.
Alessia and Miles' parents the leader of a small but relatively active mafia gang called "Sparo", deal with the illegal selling of firearms and supplying every group that they're friends with, with firepowers like guns, grenades, and ammunition. Aside from that their parents also own one of the two most famous and popular casinos in the country, one on the north side of the city and one in the capital where all the rich and famous spend their money.
Alessia and Miles thankfully didn't grow up to become spoiled jerks, instead, they helped their parents and their family's business. Miles handles the illegal selling of firearms while Alessia handles the casinos and its profits. Both are successful and both are skilled at their territory.
"So the restaurant with high reviews and was titled "one of the best restaurants in the city" is McDonald's?" Kayla questioned. Porter and I looked at each other and communicated through our eyes.
"Yeah, who doesn't like McDonald's?" I commented as we spot an empty table and sat on its cushions.
"I don't, their clown creeps me out, and their food is meh," Kayla replied with little to non-enthusiasm.
"Well, give it a try! Order everything out of their menu! I'll wait in the line." I declared and quickly stood up, I do not want to spend anymore seconds and constantly lying to my friend.
"No, wait, Iris, I'll go wait in line. You sit here with Kayla and Alessia." Porter tried to call out and switch the table on me as I walk towards the line of customers ready to order out a meal, I ignored her and acted as if I didn't hear her.
The line in McDonald's is brutally long especially when it's time for lunch and especially when it's on a weekend where many people are out in the city socializing and enjoying life. My friends slowly came to me and told me their orders, Porter once again tried and begged to switch the table but I stood my ground and advice her to distract Kayla and Alessia with video games, and surprisingly it worked!
As time goes by and I slowly close in on the counter, I heard a familiar voice talking to somebody besides me. I turn around and saw Erimez talking to what looks like his friend.
I must've stared too long because Erimez's friend started to call his attention and point at me. Erimez slowly turns around to face me. Our eyes met each other and I could feel butterflies in my stomach as I gaze into that emerald eyes of his. I stiffened and stood still as he walks towards me, I could feel my heart beating wildly as he leaned forward and moves his lips towards my ears.
"Nice to see you around Succubus of the North." He whispered. I gasped as he suddenly licks my earlobe using the tip of his tongue. He promptly left me and walk towards his friend, a sly grin was visible on his face and a slight hint of desire was noticeable in his emerald green lusty eyes.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone