Chapter Two- Talons

Just as the door was about to shut on the man’s face, his hand reached out to stop it. Lenora stood calmly as she stared into the brown eyes of the man that she once thought would be her safe haven. His brown hair that she used to lovingly run her fingers through now is nothing but a dull mop on his head. “I know you’re angry. But you need to calm down.” The tone in Liam’s voice nearly made her flinch. Blatant anger storming in his eyes. “I need to calm down?” Liam glances behind Lenora and over to his nephew, eyes glazing over with an emotion that Lenora can't place. “Listen, baby. I wronged you and I apologized. Let me redeem myself. I’ll hire the best lawyer in the city. Everything in Ares name will be yours.” This time it's Lenora scoffing, every inch of her being wants to stab him in the back just like he did with her. “You just want to control Drake City don’t you?” The man in front of Lenora falters, mouth opening and closing as he tries to gather his bearings. “Lenora. How could you say that? I love you. Truly. I want what's best for you.”  Lenora tries hard to stop herself from rolling her eyes, merely eying Liam with disdain. “You won’t be able to overthrow Ares Levine. Even with him being comatose. There’s no way in hell you will be the next Ares Levine. Mark my words.” Liam stared hopelessly at the woman before him. He knew it was too late now.  Lenora Levine was not Lenora Adams; the woman he once knew. Now she was a woman with a spine of steel, no longer a feeble doormat listening to everyones beck and call. “You can leave now,” Lenora says in a stoic tone, ignoring the tirade pouring from Liam. Lenora eyes Liam, taking in every single emotion that coursed through him. Panic was viable, she could almost touch the tension swimming off of him in waves. Liam helplessly looked at Lenora in front of him before focusing back on Ares. Liam’s eyes widen in sheer horror. Lenora herself nearly yanks her head back, wanting to see what evil dead has arisen. “He’s awake. Ares is awake!” Stunned. Lenora practically sprinted to her husband's bedside, leaning over the man to see what had truly come about. Liam was hot on her heels, peering down at the man next to him. Clear dark blue eyes were visible, startling against the jet black hair and pale skin of Ares Levine. They were like a universe, far and wide and sucking everyone in with their beauty. Staring into his eyes, a warm feeling envelopes Lenora. A feeling of protectiveness for a man she doesn’t even know. Overtaken by emotion, Lenora stands upright and blocks Liam from view, hiding her husband and his eyes away from his evil nephew. Liam drags his gaze away from Ares, focusing wearily on Lenora as he then nods. Hopefully he understands the situation, Lenora muses. “You were right. I’ll leave you be. Please take heed of my apologies. They were sincere. I’ll leave you be… Mrs Levine.” With that, Liam turns away and walks out of the room all while Lenora composes herself. This is all too much, way too fast. She can barely wrap her head around what the heck is happening. Shaking herself out of her stupor, Lenora doesn’t risk another glance at her husband as she follows in Liam’s footsteps and races down the stairs. The manor was completely devoid of life since everyone was downstairs, partying the night away. “James! James. I think Ares is awake,” Lenora stumbles down the stairs, her white satin dress billowing around her like a runaway bride. One would have thought she would run away from the first signs of danger. Instead, she was running trying to save the danger himself. “Mrs Levine?” The startled butler barrels out of one of the rooms, startled beyond belief with his toupee hanging sideways. “Is everything alright? You look like you’ve caught a fright.” Mrs Levine places a hand to her chest, trying to calm her racing heart as she nods furiously. “It's Ares. He’s awake.” That was enough for the butler to scurry off, his old bones creaking from where Lenora stood as she fixed her dress before following suit. Lenora was startled to find the butler already exiting the room, his old face scrunched into a calm smile with his toupee sitting correctly on his head this time. “It was a false alarm, Mrs Levine.” “A false alarm?” She stammers out in confusion, not sure how that can come about. James takes in the young woman's ashen face and small body, hunched over with tiredness and fright both. “He tends to do that. It was startling at first but it's a false alarm. It’s quite common in comatose patients. Their eyes open but their mind is still asleep.” Lenora doesn’t understand what is happening but nods her head nonetheless, pretending as if it all makes perfect sense. Now that she was all alone, Lenora didn’t know quite what to do with herself. Wrapping her arms around her, she felt comfort in the constriction. Almost as if she could keep her breakdown at bay with the comforting embrace of a cobra wrapping around its prey. It's then that Lenora starts to feel suffocated. The satin of the dress felt like nails against her skin, the beading like rough jagged stones and the lace like sandpaper rubbing her skin raw. Lenora rushes to the bathroom, not bothering to grab clothes but wanting to shed this distasteful dress off of her. The woman wanted nothing more than to scrub her skin dry of all the makeup.  Soon she stood staring at the drain beneath her feet, the remnants of her wedding day swirling down the drain. With a sigh, she wraps a towel around herself and enters the bedroom, not caring if someone sees. Not like Ares Levine will see. “I’m fine. I can handle myself,” Lenora repeats to herself, wanting to embody the epitome of calm and serene. Changing into some comfortably fresh clothes, Lenora approaches the opposite side of the bed.  “Will you ever truly wake up? Or will I be married to a man who didn’t even give his consent.” Lenora awkwardly sat herself in bed, keeping a reasonable distance between her and her sleeping husband.  Just pretend you’re a happy couple and sleeping comfortably next to each other. The mere prospect left her uneasy but she had to suck it up.  She briefly wondered if this is what her life would be. Surrounded by people yet so intricately alone. No one to properly talk to. Her husband is not truly hers. Everyone around her believes the farce.  It's a bizarre feeling. One part of Lenora wished the man would lay asleep forever. The other, more curious part, kept peeking out to see if the man would awaken any minute now.   With a raging mind, it took a long while to finally succumb to sleep. The woman only managed a few hours before she had to face the new day all over again.   ****** The next day James was already waiting for Lenora with a gentle smile on his face. He stood next to the driver, door ajar and waiting for the woman to exit the car. “Everyone is already here Mrs. Ares. Good luck.” Lenora managed a smile at the teasing. Gathering her wits, she took the first few steps into the unknown. No one knew much about the Levine family. Other than that they were criminal masterminds ready to slash any person's throat when they crossed them. ‘I guess that’s all anyone would really need to know,’ Lenora thought to herself as she entered the large living room of the new mansion. No matter how well Lenora mentally prepared herself, it was nothing when meeting the family head on. Luna, Ares' mother, stood tall when Lenora walked in, attracting everyone’s attention. Lenora pretending like she had her wits about her, a polite smile at her lips as she approached Luna. The woman’s gray hair attracted Lenora’s attention but her ice blue eyes took it away just as quickly.  The resemblance was striking. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Luna.” Luna stared with a twinkle in her eye, shaking hands with the young woman with a smirk at her lips. A simple nod is all she got before Lenora was instructed to meet the rest. She barely remembered who was who but she could get away with pretending. “I heard an altercation took place. I do hope nothing was amiss.” Luna’s voice cut through the quiet chatter but Lenora tried her best to appear nonchalant. “Of course. I handled it.” Lenora knew that Luna had eyes and ears everywhere, keenly aware of what was going on. “Perfect. I have something for you.” Luna snapped her fingers once and almost as if melting away from the shadows, a man stepped forward decked all in garb holding a cushion. Lenora eyed the man as he approached her, holding the object out to her. “A token of appreciation. A gift from me to you.” Lenora hesitantly reached out, opening the box to see a scarlet pendant gleaming back at her. “It's wonderful. Thank you,” Lenora whispered. Both meaning it but also having to accept it unless she wanted to affront Luna.   “Wonderful. Of course such gifts are normal to the Levine’s but everything comes with a price.” Lenora was aware of everyone's eyes focused on her, riveted by the conversation taking place. “I understand. It's a dog eat dog world,” The woman quipped, earning a nod of approval from the older woman. Lenora didn’t let it show but her legs nearly buckled. Thoughts ran rampant in her head at what Luna wanted her to do. Nothing normal if it concerned the Levine family. “Is there anything in particular you would like me to do?” Luna sighed deeply, raising her hand to her chest as she stared at the floor before glancing at Lenora. “As a mother, it truly hurts to see Ares, my eldest son in disrepair. I have only the hope that he comes too once more. But if not… I would like you to have his child.”   One could hear a pin drop in the silent room. Everyone flickered their eyes between Lenora and Luna, waiting to see what would happen next. Lenora stood in a trance, trying to process what just happened. I guess the Levine had an all too different meaning of carrying on their lineage.