- Serena -

Ben was obviously insane.

Shawn wasn't a killer and he definitely didn't work for Tyronne.

My brother was anything but a killer. He wasn't one to join gangs or anything of the sort.

He was the best. He was a top student in school, had the nicest manners and the most awesome personality a guy could have.

He even found a part-time job in the mountains at the ski resort so I could come down and ski for free.

He knew how much I loved the cold, he knew all too well.

I couldn't sleep the whole night, Ben told me to get some rest and left me alone with Felicia.

He seemed to be unable to comprehend the situation at the moment. Same for me.

Roxanne came into the room somewhere in the middle of the night and rested on the other side of the girl.

Felicia hugged my arm and Roxy patted her back, I watched her and she sighed.

"I thought you didn't like kids?" I raised an eyebrow and she shrugged.

"Yeah but it's different with her because we've actually seen her come and go from our shop. We literally watched her grow up."

I smiled, it was unusual to see Roxanne's soft side. Especially with kids.

"I heard from Ben earlier, you really think that guy is Shawn?" She asked.

I nodded, "I can't get it wrong twice Roxy. I saw him once that day, today's the second. I know it's him. Plus Ben knows him too."

"But Ben said Shawn works for that gang leader, what are you going to do?"

I sighed, "I don't know, I need to see him again though. Ben seems to think Shawn was out to kill him."

"Well apparently Shawn now knows that Ben is alive when he's supposed to be dead. So Tyronne will then most likely know that Ben is alive. Long story short, Ben's life is in danger. Not just him, it is for Austin, the both of us and even Felicia."

I caressed the five-year-old's head and closed my eyes, "Felicia mentioned something about her father taking her mother away earlier. Then she said her father beat her. She also said she saw a snowman. I don't know what to think Roxy, do you think Shawn is like what everyone is making him out to be?"

"I don't know Serena, I only know all of our lives are in danger now. Especially Ben and Felicia."

I sat up, feeling anxious and exasperated, "Who would think that Ben would know Shawn? After so long, if only I was more aware of the signs."

Roxanne patted my back, "It's no one's fault, just chill, have a rest. You'll feel better in the morning."

The cold in my body was stirring up, I had to calm the fuck down.

I laid back down on the bed, taking deep breaths, holding Felicia close to me. 

Shawn, what the hell happened to you?

***

Ben got us new sets of clothes again. For Felicia as well. 

I stood on the balcony of his apartment after washing up and took a sip of the tea I prepared for myself.

I sighed, feeling the warmth run through me before the cold took over again.

"Good morning Serena," Ben's sexy, rough voice sounded from a distance behind me.

The hairs on my back stood up, his voice alone could send ripples of sensations through me. 

But he knew my brother, I wanted to know more.

I turned to him and his messy tousled bed hair was so hot I wanted to melt on the spot.

"Good morning Ben," I merely responded.

He wore a long-sleeved loose grey shirt with a pair of black joggers and he looked as good as always.

"I'm going to cook breakfast, you want anything in particular?" He walked over to me, wanting to close the space between us.

I tilted my head, as if inspecting him, "You want to cook for your assassin's sister?"

A handsome grin spread across his face and he leaned down to me, "I'll cook for you even if you are my assassin."

I smirked and he reached an arm around my waist to support me to the kitchen.

He helped me sit on the island stool and pulled out some eggs, "Scrambled, sunny side up, or omelette?"

I watched him crack a few eggs into a bowl single-handedly, it was so hot.

"Scrambled please."

He chuckled and scrambled the eggs at a crazy speed with a fork. He threw a blob of butter in and seasoned it with salt and pepper.

What he said last night came to me.

For helping me pick up cooking again.

"Ben."

"Yeah?" He poured the eggs into a heated, oiled pan and started on his magic.

"What made you quit cooking?"

His hands stopped moving for a second before resuming, "It's a- a long story."

"I don't mind another storytelling session."

He eyed me and shook his head, a smile spreading across his lips, "I've not even heard anything about you."

I straightened myself, "How about this instead? Tell me about my brother."

He stiffened really obviously this time, "Shawn?"

I nodded, "How was he like? When did you meet him?"

He buttered two pieces of toast and dumped them into the toaster, "Shawn was a little disoriented when I first met him. I was working for the boss before Tyronne came along.

I joined for only a month or so and I was still a greenhorn, we had a package to pick up at this town at the bottom of a mountain.

It was a huge package. More than ten crates of illegal weapons. Huge machine guns, parangs, daggers, grenades, all sorts.

Shawn was literally crawling at the side of the road, he looked weird as hell. He was blue in the face, his whole body was covered in snow. It was weird because we were at the bottom of the mountain. 

There hadn't been heavy snowfall at all. Yet there he was, covered head to toe in snow and ice."

Ben placed the beautifully toasted bread and eggs on a plate before serving them to me. I thanked him and he started cooking his own meal. 

He took some soft cream cheese out and slathered it on the toast before toasting it.

"He asked for help, and we helped. We took him in and he worked hard. Extremely hard. He was smart, he thought of all our possible escape routes and planned our schedules to collect our stuff and where to sell them.

We worked together, he told me he was looking for someone but refused to tell me who. I'm guessing now that he was looking for his family," Ben cast an understanding glance my way and I couldn't help but smile.

Yes of course Shawn will want to look for us, who wouldn't search for their family after an accident like that?

Ben continued, "Then Tyronne took over after killing the boss and both Shawn and I instantly became his assistants.

We were the most prized possessions in the gang. All the guys listened to our instructions like their lives depended on it.

Then one day when Shawn and I were having a beer, his eyes were kind of psychotic. I don't know what happened. He was missing the whole day so I figured he was taking a break. Then out of nowhere, he insisted that I was trying to take over Tyronne. 

I don't know where he got that information from but I never once thought of it. The more I tried to deny it, the more he would accuse me. 

He listed out the different deals that I handled and my secret contacts."

Ben leaned forward from across the table towards me as I forked a mouthful of egg into my mouth, "The thing is Serena, Shawn and I planned to get Tyronne arrested. I have no idea why he would backstab me and push all the blame unto me."

I squinted at him, as if that will help me understand better, "What happened after that?"

"Then his group of men came out of nowhere and started beating me up.

We literally fought to the death that night, I knew there was no way out. I collapsed and passed out, I must've been dead at that time. Or there would be no way Shawn would leave me in the middle of a street unconscious.

When I woke up, Austin was there. He was my only friend that wasn't from the gang. I didn't tell him anything about my work, I didn't want him to get involved.

But that night after being beaten to a pulp, I had to tell him everything.

We got out of there the moment we had the chance.

That's how we ended up here."

It sounded like an action movie. It was too crazy for me to believe.

But yet, it was the only thing that could explain everything that happened.

"That night, when Austin and Roxanne were drunk, that gang was also under Tyronne?"

Ben nodded, "Shawn has been Tyronne's second in command the moment I died."

He did air quotes when he said "died" and I realised how bad the situation was.

"You said you and Shawn were the most prized possessions of the gang, why is that? There must have been other men that worked as long as you both."

Ben chewed on his cheese toast and gave me a look that I couldn't comprehend, "Would you believe me if I said it was our good looks that gave us that much value?"

I knew that look now, it was pride and mischief, "Well I would believe it if it was in relation to my brother, but you? Not so much."

He chuckled and grabbed some milk from the fridge, "You, my lady, are a very hard person to please."

I shrugged and heard little footsteps come up behind me, "Hungry."

I turned to Felicia and saw that she was washed, I picked her up and placed her on my lap, "Who cleaned you?"

"I did, little bitch gave me a hell of a time," Roxanne came out with her hair in a pretty mess.

Felicia giggled and Ben gave her a bowl of fruits to snack on while he prepared everyone's meal.

I switched the television on and the news broadcasted another case of a warehouse being blown up in flames.

I turned to Ben and he drank from his glass of milk, totally unperturbed.

"Seems like another warehouse mysteriously caught fire huh Ben?" Austin mumbled absentmindedly and I realised that he knew all along that Ben was behind it.

No wonder the atmosphere was so awkward the other time.

Roxanne laughed, "If Austin didn't tell me that you were the one doing it I wouldn't have known, good job there."

She was crazy, she loved the idea of danger and drama.

Felicia was staring at the television, eyes wide, then she turned to Ben.

"Fireman," she mumbled to me and I nodded.

"Yeah there are firemen at the scene, they will put out the fire at the warehouse."

She shook her head profusely, "Fireman!" 

She pointed at Ben and started screaming and yelling her head off.

Austin shot Ben a look and I tried calming her down.

"Hey hey sweetie calm down, what's wrong-" 

There was a loud pounding at the main door and all of us turned, they were kicking our door down.

Roxanne grabbed Felicia from me and quickly ran to the room to calm her down. Austin was pushing me to get into the room but Ben was standing at the door, ready for the ambush that was coming.

"Austin we have to help him!" I screamed at him but he shook his head.

"We'll handle them Serena, get inside now!"

"But I can help!"

Austin grabbed my shoulders and shook me, "Get a fucking grip on yourself! Your ankle is twisted! You can barely stand! Get into the damn room!"

The main door flew open and I pulled the guest room door closed from the outside. I had to help.

Austin was already punching the people that got close to me and Ben was running toward me as three guys started clambering on him.

I raised my hand up and aimed it at the guy who was hitting the life out of Austin, I felt the cold churn from within me and a huge icicle shot into that man's head.

He collapsed on the ground and Austin stared at the down man before turning to me, eyes wide.

Ben swung one guy from behind him to the ground and he stared at me, "Serena?"

One guy lifted me up by my shirt and I recognised him as the one whose balls I froze off, "You will fucking pay!" 

I reached for his neck and watched as his face, neck, chest and legs turned to ice. I slammed a fist on his arm that was holding onto me and his ice sculpture shattered on the ground.

Someone ran towards Ben with a huge knife and I pushed the cold within me to freeze him.

But before anything could happen, Ben turned to him and the man blew up into flames.

I stopped in my tracks, Ben. He looked at me and I saw the red glow in his eyes.

He was the fiery man.

That was what Felicia was trying to tell me.

I stared at him and he held a hand up towards the door, a wall of fire stopping anyone from coming in.

Austin was hitting whoever was still in the house and I waved my hand over them.

Making the two men who were attacking Austin freeze on the spot and the one guy who was running towards me stop mid-step.

Ben and I stared at one another and all the broken puzzle pieces clicked back together.

When Ben knocked on my door at the cafe, he melted my ice. When I invited him to my house, my chandelier melted. The two ice packs he pressed on my body melted too.

Ever since he moved here, all my ice has been melting. 

That night, that drunk man, he saved me. That fiery man in the shadows, it was him.

Ben's confused gaze turned into a small smile, "I knew something was up when I saw that weird chandelier at your place that night."