Woops sorry for the delay! I thought I had scheduled this post but I accidentally left it as a draft!
Chapter 28: Human Cushion
Li Xin was unaware of the internal turmoil her actions were stirring up inside the man before her; she had no idea how close to pushing the wrong b.u.t.ton she had come. After she finished drying his hair, she grabbed the clothes beside him and hesitated for just a second before narrowing her eyes determinedly and untying his bath towel. The sight of Qi Mo"s nakedness made her face heat. In all her years alive, she had never actually seen a man naked from top to bottom.
The overlord had no reaction whatsoever, waiting calmly for her to dress him as if it was a perfectly normal task. His lack of concern for modesty prompted Li Xin to gather herself together and proceed with the dressing, one article of clothing after another.
Despite her attempts to avoid looking at him, she unintentionally caught glimpses of golden-colored skin. It was impossible to ignore the myriad of glaring scars that marred its otherwise smooth surface — pale, circular splotches that resembled cigarette burns and long, narrow lines criss-crossed across his chest and all over his legs. They were old scars; pale, but not too noticeable, but even so, they looked malevolent and sinister.
It seemed to Li Xin then, that he hadn"t always been the powerful Qi overlord that no one touched and everyone served. She couldn"t help raising her eyebrows bemusedly, wondering what kinds of experiences had left the man with such profound scars.
After she finished dressing him, Qi Mo got up and left the room without acknowledging her existence, his face devoid of any facial expressions. Li Xin briefly straightened up her own clothes before following him.
She decided that from today, escaping would not be her top priority. She needed to figure out where Sui Xin was. She doubted Qi Mo was really going to let the other girl off the hook.
"How are you?" Deep in thought, she jumped at the voice, then saw Red Falcon appear from around the corner.
She scowled, pointing at her neck. "Are you blind?" Her voice came out casually, as if she were talking about the weather.
He had, of course, noticed the wounds on her neck. If he were to be honest with himself, the wholly uncharacteristically calm manner in which Li Xin answered him was unnerving. Her typically expression-filled face revealed nothing, and Red Falcon found that it scared him to not be able to figure out what she was thinking. Her sudden silence triggered his suspicion that she was up to something.
Li Xin swept a cool glance over him and then looked straight ahead, moving to shoulder past him. She despised being threatened, coerced, and controlled by others, and while there was nothing she could do about Qi Mo due to his power, Red Falcon was another story. She was p.i.s.sed off and in a mood and she needed to throw her att.i.tude at someone.
"The boss has always had insomnia and can never fall asleep, but he seems to be able to rest well holding you."
Red Falcon"s quiet words stopped her in her tracks. She swiveled around to see him staring directly at her. "Don"t fight him, and don"t even think about leaving," he continued, speaking slowly and deliberately. "The boss doesn"t treat his own people unfairly, but if you want to make yourself his enemy, death is not going to be the worst thing that happens to you. You should know what I"m getting at."
"Are you threatening me?" She asked coldly, leveling her gaze.
He shook his head. "You know I"m not," he answered. "Boss"s sense of smell is quite acute. Your scent must make him feel calm." He was still in disbelief over the scene yesterday in the car — the two of them sleeping against each other. He had known Qi Mo for years, and had never witnessed anyone get so close to him. The Falcons were his closest confidants, yet even they made sure to stay a meter away from his personal s.p.a.ce. Yet Li Xin had gotten so physically close to him, and they had even spent the night together… it was apparent to him that she possessed the ability to alleviate the overlord.
Red Falcon"s explanation gave Li Xin pause as she stood there mulling over the night before. No wonder all Qi Mo did last night was hold her and sleep; he never intended to do anything else to begin with. He had literally just been using her as a cushion. The thought placated her somewhat, and she felt just a tiny bit of her resentment towards him dissipate. Taking on the role of a sleep cushion and sleeping pill was doable.
"Stay here quietly. Every day that you are with us is a day where neither the Blue Clan nor the thief organization can touch you. And whether you like it or not, you"ve allied yourself with our clan. By now, the entire criminal underworld of Southeast Asia has heard about the woman at Overlord Qi"s side because there has never been one before. Without his protection, you don"t know will happen to you. Likewise, everyone knows what happens when they touch Qi Mo"s people. The safest place for you right now is by his side. As long as you don"t defy him, your life won"t be difficult."
Red Falcon cut himself off. He had already surpa.s.sed the parameters of what his job entailed. If it hadn"t been for the astonishment of realizing that Li Xin provided Qi Mo with a serene-like ambiance with her presence, he would not have said so much. This was as much as he could allow himself to say.
Li Xin watched him swirl around and leave. She pursed her lips and made a face at his retreating back. He was really unbelievable — the way he talked, it sounded like he took her for Qi Mo"s girlfriend. She rubbed the bruises on her neck and shrugged, making her way towards the dining room. Let them think whatever they wanted, it didn"t matter.
She was still walking when she ran into Yellow Falcon, who raised his eyebrows at her. "You only have two minutes," he said. He was heading in the direction of the parking garage.
She stopped, then scoffed. "Seriously? I haven"t had breakfast yet."
Yellow Falcon fingered the brand new handgun tucked into the waistband of his pants. "Boss"s word is law. If you don"t want to obey, well…" and he turned away from her, made a gun with his hand and pretended to shoot before walking away, laughing all the while.
She cursed silently. Qi Mo"s rules were so excessive, really. She glanced at the watch on her wrist: There was exactly a minute and 40 seconds remaining. It was an easy decision; she picked up her pace and ran towards the kitchen.
Yellow Falcon turned around at the sound of her running and paused, raising his eyebrows as her watched her quickly retreating figure. Was she really going to ignore Qi Mo"s orders?
Outside, two Hummers and two Cadillacs were parked and raring to go. Everyone was already sitting in the vehicles, including Qi Mo himself. Except there was a significant absence: his driver, servant, temporary sleep cushion, and legendary thief, Li Xin.
"What the h.e.l.l is she doing, making everyone wait?" Red Falcon muttered, eyeing the closed front door in distaste.
From the rearview mirror, Yellow Falcon could see Qi Mo leaning against the car seat with an indifferent look on his face. There was no trace of either anger or compa.s.sion. The icy lack of expression was terrifying. "There"s still ten seconds," he said to Red Falcon.
As he spoke, Li Xin came charging through the front door like a tornado, storming out the entrance as fast as lightning and coming towards them. With just three seconds on the clock, she plopped herself on the driver"s seat and promptly started the car, its engines rumbling to life. In the same breath, she asked, "Where to?"
Yellow Falcon frowned. She had come so close. He waved a hand to the other cars, telling them to lead the way. They set out one by one, zooming away, Li Xin following closely behind.
It was only until then that Qi Mo opened his mouth. "What do you think you"re doing?" He demanded in a seething voice.
Li Xin steered the car with one hand and turned her breakfast in her other, swirling it around triumphantly.
Qi Mo didn"t pursue the question. He simply frowned and said nothing, and the ensuing silence was crushing. "You"re pretty good with time," Yellow Falcon observed out loud in an attempt to quell the silence.
The female thief was eating and driving at the same time. "Don"t forget what it is I do for a living," she retorted in her distinctive husky voice.