Chapter 2: Chapter Two

Diamante woke up, gasping for air. She continued to cough and hack as her lungs felt like breathing fire. James immediately got to her side with a glass of water. She frantically looked around and saw that they were in the abandoned Manor. Even though she was safe, she was still seething with rage.

But she had to applaud them.

Diamante chuckled. Her chuckle turned into a cackle; it was such a cackle that would give witches shivers. Just as she was about to plot her revenge, Onice barged into the room.

"What happened? You were supposed to have twins," Onice's demands rang through the room. Diamante gave Onice a stare that could freeze hell. So, his cousin almost dies in the circus, and this is the first thing he says.

"Shut your mouth. They took their chance to escape and betrayed me. I almost died in this fire. My God, I will have my revenge," Her hoarse voice was interrupted with her coughing.

Onice rolled his eyes at his cousin's stupidity. It looked like this plan needed some extra help.

"Do not worry, Diamante. I will seek help to make things easier. But it will take time." His artificially sweet tone and attitude held reassurance and protection. The quick change of mood was so odd that it felt out of place. Even though that Diamante was previously mad at Onice, she smiled at him. She drank from the cup of water and felt herself relax.

Onice walked outside of the Manor. However, as soon as he closed the door, the sweet smile changed into a sinister smirk. Her stupid decisions were so laughable. Onice knew that she had good intentions. But her way of doing it was not the brightest.

The lush, green grass that surrounded the Manor put a smile on his face. Onice grabbed his mare from the makeshift stable and rode off. His next stop was the Sûreté Nationale.

The trip was all a blur to him. He needed to clear his head to get the upper hand of the authority. He had to make sure that the plan went successfully.

He carefully got off his mare and tied her next to the post. Onice's walk into the building held poise and purpose. Preparation was necessary.

He walked inside the building. And immediately, he felt the cold metal of a pistol in the back of his head. Onice rolled his eyes; he has been threatened with the weapon so many times that it didn't even scare him anymore.

"Explain why you came here, Onice Stanzolio," Onice chuckled. He quickly grabbed the hand behind him, turned around, and twisted the arm. The man screamed in pain and fell to his knees. Onice then proceeded to push him down while snatching the pistol off his hand. Just the sound of his screams made Onice grin from ear to ear.

He knew that the other officers were now surrounding him. All of them were ready to shoot him at any moment. Being surrounded by officers wasn't his first time, but he was willing to play nice for now.

He shoved the puny boy to the ground and raised his hands in the air, dropping the weapon. The officers lowered their pistols and started to dissipate. But a familiar face began to walk up to him. No greetings were necessary with him; he was going to get him what he wanted.

"Take me to your files." The seven-foot-tall, muscular man stood in front of him and crossed his arms, to try (and failing) to intimidate Onice. The smirk on the officer's face showed him that he thought that he won. But Onice knew that he had the upper hand.

"What makes you think we will allow that?" Onice answered the man's question with silence. He looked into his eyes. His pitch-black eyes were one of a kind. They were able to see right through the people he looks in. And because of that, it left them vulnerable.

"Jacques Dubois, it's been a long time since we met. How is your little wife, Étienne? Carrying your child must be difficult for her." The smirk on the idiotically smug officer faltered. Onice gave an innocent smile, wanting nothing more than to ruin him.

But, he kept the urge down. He needed to make sure that Diamante could have the rest she needed. Even though he never admitted it, the thought of Diamante getting hurt made his chest ache. Onice tipped-toed until his lips were almost touching the whimpering officer's ear.

"If you want them to live longer than two days, then I want you to lead me to those files, ALONE. Alright?" The deadly whisper was more than enough for the officer to nod frantically at his demand. He took him to the classified files and closed the door. Onice's deadpan hid the ferocious grin that disappeared beneath his face. He quickly paced down the archives with pure determination.

The chambers that held the classified data was a big room. Inside, it had bookshelves around the walls that reached up to the roof. He quickly climbed the ladder to search for file #437. That file was the thing that was between the plan working or him having to give up easily.

He would rather die than give up.

If he remembered properly, it was on the fifth shelf with a red seal of approval. He went past file #435, file #436, file #438, file #43- wait. The file wasn't there. Onice started to panic a little. The only people that have ever been able to access the place were Jacque.

"Are you looking for something, Onice?" Onice whipped his head to look down, and there he was. He had to be around six feet tall. His uniform had no wrinkles like the others, and his short silver hair and snow-white skin gave him a ghostly look. He stood in front of the ladder with a wide grin. But Onice saw that he was holding the familiar file in his hand. He needed that, and the fact that this newb had it annoyed him.

"How did you get in? Did you threaten the security guard with your eyes?" Onice was not listening, not at all. Instead, his body went in a trance, and the only thing that he wanted was the file. If he had to get rid of this puny pest, then so be it.

"I have heard stories of your black eyes seeping into the souls of those you look into." Onice just continued to climb down. He was intent on getting that file. Once he wanted something, he always got it. One moment he was on the floor; the next Onice was standing right in front of him. The man just smiled, his eyes giving him a cold feeling.

"You have what I want. What do you want in return?" Usually, men and women of all kinds will cower before him. What he didn't expect was for the mysterious man to bend down and grab his face. And instead of fear lingering in his eyes, there was... there wasn't anything. A shiver crawled up Onice's spine, as he felt his cold hands.

Onice was too shocked to remember what he wanted. Seeing nothing in his eyes was the first time that ANYONE had their soul hide from him. And the fact that he didn't have the upper hand made him even more annoyed. He had to be in control; otherwise, he was nothing.

However, the man leaned his face closer with Onice's. They were so close that their noses were almost touching.

"The stories are right, they are as dark and beautiful as the Onyx jewel. And just like the jewel, they comfort me." Onice felt his face become warmer. He had never felt so vulnerable, humiliated and embarrassed in his life. This man was dangerous, and he needed to leave quickly.

"Who are you?" Onice's quivered as he asked the question. His voice that usually held strength and power felt weak and unrecognizable. The man just let go of him and stood back.

"I am sorry, I was not polite. My name is Sapphire, and I'm the reason your cousin is currently injured." A switch lit up in Onice at the mention of Diamante. Onice felt the anger in him boil up; he had to do something.

Onice clenched his fist. He raised it to hit him in the face, but Saphir caught it. Onice could feel the chilling burn from Saphir's hand. His eyes widened in realization.

Saphir gripped his fist harder, causing Onice to buckle onto his knees. He clenched his teeth in pain, but he was not going to cry out in pain. Onice's gaze looked up and noticed the cruel smile on Saphir's face start to falter.

Onice smirked and quickly pulled his hand, surprising Saphir as he fell onto the floor. Onice took the opportunity to pinch the nape of Saphir's neck, and within seconds, Saphir fell unconscious. Onice took the file, walked out of the room, and rode his mare back to the small cottage.

Onice had to hurry. But now, Onice had the file. He just had to initiate the next part of the plan.

When he returned, the sun was almost setting. But his face was still heated. Lord knows what would have happened. He got off his mare and took to the horse to the stable. There, the mare ate next to the stallion.

The moment that Onice walked inside the old Manor, everyone rushed towards him. Onice immediately pushed everyone away. They all stood in front of him in confusion, which made him even angrier.

"Everyone, get away from me! We must have a meeting. NOW!!" Everyone quickly got away from him. Also though Onice and Diamante were able to help them escape, both of them were dangerous people who wanted them to do their bidding. They all ran off into the dining hall, awaiting Onice.