Chapter 17

Mallori woke up as she felt her body being picked up. She looked up to see that it was Andras, who was now carrying her in his arms. She looked around and remembered how she had fallen asleep while listening to the record player. Andras looked down at her noticing she had woken up. She felt like he was going to say something, but he decided against it. He was about to carry her out of the room when Mallori suddenly remembered that she had forgotten something.

"Pillow," she said looking back at where she was sleeping before.

Andras paused and turned around to see there was indeed a pillow on the carpet. He felt it was unnecessary to get it now, so he simply said, "Leave it."

Mallori who was within his arms with a strong movement of her head interjected and whispered to him, "Your… Pillow." Andras's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but in a split second, it was gone as he was able to put everything together. A cocky smile played on his lips as he looked into her eyes and asked, "Miss me that much?" She nodded her head a quick yes that made Andras crack up. However, he really did not predict what she did next.

She leaned her body even more against him, as he was holding her, and then took a big breath in and held it. When she finally let the breath out, she said with a happy and cheeky smile, "Smell. Like. Missed it." Andras' eyes went wide, he slowly put down Mallori on her own two feet as his eyes went cold. Meeting her eyes dead-on he asked, "This bloody smell of mine?" Mallori did not reply, she dropped her head to look at the floor instead. Andras snickered in his mind, 'Nobody likes the smell of blood. She wouldn't be an exception.' Thinking that he might have hurt his woman's feelings a bit, he retracted his cold gaze and was about to say something to change the topic somehow when she with a bit of a strain in her voice uttered, "I…I…" She seemed to have given up, Andras thought, but then suddenly her face shot up to meet him with teary eyes and sorrowfully with her eyebrows knitted cutely together said, "Mallori likes the smell. Can't?" Andras was bewildered. Who was he to tell someone they couldn't like something? But it piqued his interest. Was his smell, the blood on him, that appealing to her?

"Why do you like it?"

Without any slight hesitation, she replied, "Smell like Mom." Her mother smelled like blood? Was she a butcher? Andras doubted someone related to the Mallory family would be in a bloody line of work. He would be aware of such an instance. As he thought about Mallori's words he remembered the smell of his own mother. Though as she raised him, she kept her workload light, whenever she was back from work instead of blood, his mother smelled like disinfectant and bleach more than anything else. He unconsciously brought his hand to touch above where the small black notebook was placed in his inner suit's pocket.

Mallori who was still waiting for Andras' reply saw him touch his chest and walked up to him and placed her hand on his hand making a questioning face. Her soft touch on his hand brought him back and he took it in his. Wanting to tease her serious expression, he raised her hand to his lips and softly kissed her knuckles as he stated, "As you please, my Mallori." As soon as his lips had departed from her pale soft skin, she took hold of his hand in a similar manner.

His hand easily being twice or even larger than her own, she held it slightly awkwardly, curious as to what she was planning, he let her do as she pleased. Then she brought his hand with one fluid motion to her own lips and softly kissed them, then with fierce eyes that could befit any tigress, she declared her claim over him, "Mine, Andras." He couldn't help his desires from ever-growing.

Their hands stayed entangled as they walked back to their bedroom. In her other free hand, Mallori had not forgotten to take Andras' pillow back with her. __

Wilhelm Rogers, one of the top killers and currently serving as Master Mabuz's assistant, had returned to the Waltz of the Dead to finish all the remaining business. Master Mabuz had assigned him to a task and though he was not one to question, he had a feeling it was related to the shopping spree and the swimming pool situation. Information on the Mallory family was not hard to gather, generally. However, when he had tried to normally dig deeply into 20 years ago or so, the available content was dwindling and too accurate.

However, as gathering intel was not a specialty of his, he wanted confirmation before he brought the requested information forward. That was the reason why Jasper Foss, who had recently experienced Master's wrath, was standing in front of him.

Jasper had become much less talkative and cocky after the incident. He also was quite aware that the man in front of him was not a simple killer. The man was Wilhelm Rogers, an expert in mass killing and arson. The rumor had it that the half of his face covered by his long bangs are burned to a crisp and that nobody had lived after seeing it. Not wanting to take a chance on his life before he had reached a triple-digit killing record like the man in front of him, he made sure to not look the man too much in the face.

Not beating around the bush, Wilhelm ordered, "I need some information on the Mallory family." Not being completely unknowledgeable Jasper asked, "Regarding which members?"

"All that have married within their own family, meaning both having the same last name." Jasper took a moment as he gathered the information in his head. After which he replied, "Not aware of any currently. Can you give me time? One of the members has a weak spot, I am aware of." "How long?" "Three days max." Hearing that the amount of time was only 3 days, Wilhelm was pleased internally but kept it in as he simply nodded and dismissed him. He could hear Jasper dialing and having already spoken to someone on the phone in various tones.

Jasper was the best in infiltration and getting personally close to a target before the final kill. His way of killing was risky as it involved personal interaction with a target and maintaining a false identity for a prolonged period. As it had the feel of being a spy more than an assassin, not all the killers are as adept as Jasper. He had proven himself as a skilled killer.

Having assigned someone to the task, Wilhelm tidied up and left the Waltz of the Dead. He drove to his home, an abandoned building complex that had experienced a fire in the past. Before the fire had spread to all the floors, the firefighters had successfully put it out. He let himself into one of the surviving flats after he had bought the land and the building years ago. This was the scene of his first arson. Coming face to face with it every single day helped him keep his mind burning.