The Story of Blood and Roses-Chapter 101: Mercurial

Chapter 101: Mercurial

If I had thought had Anthony was mercurial before, it was nothing like what I saw next. He suddenly burst into fits of laughter which threw me off my game. I had been keeping the plates in front of us so that we could eat when he started with his theatrical performance. From what I could see he was glancing at his cell phone for a second or so and then giving away to his laughter. I didn't really think that he was even trying to hold it back.

"Mind if I ask what's got you giggling like a schoolgirl?" I asked exasperated with what seemed like hours of listening to him laugh for reasons unknown. He tossed his cell phone to me, which I caught with pleasure because the curiosity was getting the better of me.

"Unlock the screen and see the text Ethan sent," he said as he tried hard to keep the boisterous laughter away. His shoulders shook in silent laughter as I unlocked the screen and saw Ethan's text. I, too, started snickering.

They're screwed. I'm going to copy these recordings on every possible medium I can find and put it on youtube just to flaunt their dirty laundry in front of the mobster. How dumb are they to be so sloppy about their work? You guys go ahead and have your fun. He can do nothing against you, now that you have proof of what Darcy has been up to. Goad away, Boss. –The bearer of good news, asskicker, Ethan McCarthy.

"That's quite an essay he has written," I comment on the sly. He snickers some more and then leans back on the couch. His legs land on my lap and his hands go behind his head. He seems comfortable with the situation, and I can feel the couch shaking with his laughter.

"He has got a wicked sense of humour. I'm going to assume that he is already assembling the folks so that we can raid the spot where the shipment has been stored, so we better get to the goading before it is too late and they find something on us that will make us lose our game." One moment he's amused and in the next, he's all serious. He is mercurial, but he could be no other way. He had to react to every small change as fast as he could and take care of casualties. It was a boon to be mercurial if you got as much excitement daily as Anthony did. The man truly had an entertaining life. No wonder he gets all the sleep he does despite the wretched deeds he carries out on a daily basis.

"You think they're gonna come at us before we get a chance?" He shook his head before his face morphed into a thoughtful expression. "What's on your mind?" I asked, almost pleading to know every thought that past the over-imaginative mind of his.

"They could attack first, but they'd be dumb to do so. Most of their troops are at Syracuse trying to protect the shipment. They'd lose the battle if they attacked now. But we need to be careful..." as he trailed off, the most brilliant idea entered my mind. All the excitement had made me extremely hungry, again.

"Shift your feet so that I can get off the couch, boss." One of his eyes popped open and he quirked his brow at me. I gave him a stare of my own which seemed to amuse him.

"I'm comfortable this way, thank you," he teased and dug his heels into my lap. I huffed a sigh and pressed my fingers on the sole of his feet. He jerked in surprise, but then a slow smile spread across his face. "Now I feel much, much better. Thank you, Mia." I rolled my eyes and then pressed a bit too hard. It made him yelp in surprise and his foot flew from my lap and landed awkwardly on the floor. Taking advantage of his surprised state, I got off the couch and sauntered over to the kitchen where I helped myself to a bowl of fruits that I had refrigerated a while back. They tasted fine.

I heard his footsteps before I felt him. He huffed as he came from behind me and peeped from over my shoulder. I turned around to face him and saw that he was staring at the bowl with an intense look.

"Is that edible?" he asked, not certain about my judgement about the quality of food. I nodded and popped a piece of apple into my mouth. He seemed to stare at my lips for a long moment before he shrugged whatever worries he had in his mind and reached out to the bowl to grab a piece of fruit for himself. The piece of chopped strawberry was strategically placed between his fingers as he slowly sucked on them and nibbled on. I could have sworn that there was a twinkle in his eyes as he looked at my face while I watched him eat his share. I was hoping that I had either a nonchalant look or any other peculiar expression that would not make Anthony think that I was prone to his deliberate charms. From what I had gathered he was trying to gain my attention, and boy was he doing a good job at it at every turn.

"I'm going to be in need of a foot rub really soon," he muttered as he reached out for a piece of cucumber.

"Ask someone else to fall to your feet and worship the soles of your foot, Anthony," I grumbled as I batted his hands away to grab the only piece of cucumber that was left in the bowl.