He would never spit on his father’s memory that way.
But he was getting really tired of holding that line. Sixteen years of utter bullshit had taken its toll on him. Not just physically, but mentally.
C’mon, Dar. Just eighteen more months. You can do it.
Then he’d inherit his father’s empire and finally be in control of his own destiny.
You don’t really think that’ll happen, do you?
He had to. Even though his gut told him that he’d most likely be murdered between then and now, it was all that kept him sane these days. That and the one person he couldn’t talk about to anyone.
Not even Maris.
That secret was currently the only lifeline he had.
Darling lifted his hand to signal the waiter that they were ready for the check. If his uncle’s men followed their usual routine, he only had about fifteen minutes before he was dragged out of here by royal guards.
That was the last degredation he needed, especially after this morning’s round of Humiliate Darling in Front of the Ruling Gerents.
Don’t think about it. He would be governor soon and then they’d all learn just how not weak he was.
He pulled his card out and laid it on the table. He didn’t need to look at their bill. It didn’t matter to him if it was right or wrong. Time meant more to him than money.
The waiter came by, flashed a dimpled smile at Maris, and took the check and card.
He was back in record time… with a small container of the cake Maris had started to order, then changed his mind about. There was something to be said for Maris’s outrageous flirting. They always received the best service in the United Systems.
Darling pressed his thumb against the scanner, then signed his name on the electronic ledger. As soon as the payment was accepted, he got up and followed Maris toward the entrance.
“Where are you heading after this?” Maris asked as he held the door open for him.
What Maris really meant was where would Darling try to hide to keep from being dragged home like a felon, and beaten because he’d dared to have an afternoon of peace out of his uncle’s sight.
“I’ll grab my fighter and head over to Caillen’s for a while. I haven’t had a chance to see his daughter since she started walking. What about you?”
Maris glanced back into the restaurant. “I want to grab something, all right. But it’s not a fighter… Or maybe he is. With that tight body, it is possible.”
In spite of his disgust at having to leave so abruptly, Darling smiled. It was what he loved most about Maris. No matter how bad he felt, Maris could always amuse him. “Seriously, you want to come with?”
“Sure. I can always stare at Caillen. That man…” Maris bit his knuckle with lustful glee.
Darling laughed as they joined the huge crowd on the street and had to push their way through the sea of shuffling bodies. “Better be careful, his wife might get jealous.”
“True. And I’m not dumb enough to upset a woman who knows how to use a blaster and a blade. I like my body parts attached.”
Darling didn’t respond. Damn, the crowd was always thick this time of day, but this was ridiculous. He could barely move.
Then again, he should be grateful. It would slow down his uncle’s men and help conceal him from them.
His alarm buzzed again.
“Bastard,” he snarled under his breath before he looked down and reached to silence it.
“Dar! Forward front! Point one!”
With reflexes honed by the best assassins in the business who’d taught him to protect his vital areas, Darling turned at Maris’s military command that warned him of an imminent attack. The instant he moved, he felt the sting of a knife sliding into his flesh, just below his shoulder blade.
A knife that had been aimed at his heart.
Cursing, he reached around to catch the assassin’s wrist. For several seconds, Darling’s blue eyes glared into those deadly gray ones that were too stupid to realize their owner had just made a fatal mistake.
The assassin yanked at the knife.
Grinding his teeth against the pain that rushed through him, Darling let the assassin pull it free of his flesh. But the moment the blade was out, he tightened his grip on the man’s wrist and head-butted him. Wrenching the assassin’s arm, he heard the bone snap before the knife fell from his broken hand. The assassin came at him with another knife he’d pulled from a sheath on his leg.
Bring it…
Darling jumped back, out of his reach. Stomping his left heel on the pavement, Darling ejected the blade in the toe of his boot and used its sharp point to catapult the fallen knife on the street up so that he could catch it with his hand.
The people surrounding them realized what was going on and began to scatter, screaming in fear of being accidentally injured or killed in the fight.
His attacker charged again.