Chapter 220: RAGE IN HER EYES
Hazel had planned to visit the Lozen family’s house, but Ranon came, and she needed to change her plan. Thankfully, he gave her the freedom to venture the city alone; therefore, she could go back to her original plan.
Police lines surrounded the house, but after the investigation was over, they left the property as it was. The conclusion of what happened here was clear; it was a robbery that went wrong.
Hazel would call that bullshit.
She was sure there was no investigation at all. Those dirty cops were under the Barlowes’ payroll. She knew that for sure.
The sun was so bright when she walked in the untrimmed garden, casting a shadow on the pavement. The main building was looming in front of her, gloomier than she remembered.
Hazel didn’t hasten her steps as she scanned her surroundings, comparing them with her memories of the last time she was here. This house had turned into a haunted house by now, with the lingering grudge from the murdered people.
Hazel herself was a walking ghost, fueled with revenge.
Her demeanor turned even darker. The murderous intention in her eyes hardened as she stepped into the foyer. It was not locked; even if it was, a locked door had never stopped her.
When Hazel opened the door, the musty stench of the typical abandoned house hit her. She scrunched her nose and looked around. No one was there, but Hazel didn’t turn on the light. She knew this house like the back of her hand. More so, it was still bright outside.
Hazel climbed the stairs and headed towards her bedroom first. It had been so long, but there was nothing that had changed, aside from the pile of dust.
Her bedroom was always so barren, but Hazel noticed something: an old picture on the desk was missing. Probably, it had been broken during the attack.
Thereafter, Hazel went to her father’s bedroom to retrieve something. Not many people knew about this hidden spot, and she was sure no one had touched it.
She was right, though.
Behind the cabinet beside the bed, on the second drawer, there was a hidden switch that revealed a small hole underneath. Inside was her father’s spare gun. There were two bullets there.
Hazel weighed it in her hand; it was a little bit heavier than the way she liked her gun. But it was better than nothing since Ranon still confiscated her weapon, and she didn’t have any idea where he hid it. She wouldn’t try to look for it, though, as Ranon was going to make a fuss over it.
However, Hazel didn’t come only for this. She was also looking for more information from last year. She wanted to know who had ordered the hit on the Leighton; this person was very persistent.
Not just anyone could make such a request. She should be able to find some clues here if they had not taken everything away yet.
Hazel rummaged through the room, but after a few hours, she still couldn’t find anything. There were two possibilities: either there was really nothing here, or the McKennas and the Barlowes had erased all the traces.
Frustrated, Hazel went to her father’s study. There was another hidden switch here where Arthur saved a few confidential documents.
Despite the musty stench, the room still smelled like her father, but probably that was only in her mind.
Hazel leaned her back against the bookcase and began sorting the documents into two piles: the old cases and the recent cases within the past year, when she had been gone.
She couldn’t believe it. It had been a year since the incident happened. Time flew quickly, but at the same time, Hazel also felt her time was frozen.
Under the sunlight that streamed down from the window, Hazel perused the documents. A few hits came after she had gone missing. Twenty-three, to be exact. However, almost half of them failed due to the flawed strategies.
Arthur didn’t seem to put his mind on this, because as far as Hazel knew, her father was always on top of his game.
Because of that, these were the worst failures the Lozens had experienced in a year, including the attack on the Leightons.
From the document, she also learned that the last killing attempt on Ranon was not recorded, even though it was explained that several of their men were killed in the mission, where the Barlowes took charge of it.
The more Hazel read them, the angrier she became. Her father had turned senile; all of these failures were ridiculous.
Hazel was too engrossed in what she was reading; she didn’t notice someone else was already inside the house. She only noticed it when she heard soft footsteps in the corridor. She immediately grabbed her guns and took cover under the table when someone entered the room.
His shadow was cast on the vinyl floor, creating a silhouette on the wall. Hazel didn’t realize that she had spent a few hours there, and the sun was almost set.
Her eyes narrowed at the movement of the other person. They stopped walking, probably noticing the scattered documents on the floor that Hazel didn’t have time to hide.
Shit. Hazel didn’t think someone would come.
At first, she couldn’t tell who it was, but then, when she heard the footsteps again, she knew almost immediately who this intruder was. She would recognize his footsteps anywhere, even before he spoke.
"I know you are there. Come out now, or I will not be polite." Arlo’s low voice carried anger because someone had stepped inside the Lozen family’s house.
The audacity of this man. This was not even his house.
Hazel cursed at her luck. She had met him this morning, and she didn’t wish to see him again.
But then, a flicker of rage passed her eyes when she realized it was not entirely bad luck. She was going after him in one way or another. This could be her chance to kill him.
With that thought in mind, Hazel closed her eyes and calmed her nerves as excitement rushed in her veins like drugs. She was going to kill this man right there and then.
And when Hazel opened her eyes again, her gaze turned very cold. Resolved with her decision. She heard closely again. The room was very still, and even the ghost didn’t make a sound. All they could hear was their steadfast breathing.
The gun in Hazel’s grip was cold as she cradled it in her dominant hand. From under the table, Hazel tried to pinpoint Arlo’s location. The sunlight created two shadows of him, which confused Hazel a bit.
But then, she heard it—the sound of rustling paper—and she moved as fast as she could, opened fire, and missed. Shit.
Hazel aimed for his head, but the bullet grazed his shoulder and hit the painted wall that Elise loved.
She noticed the surprised look on Arlo’s face because he didn’t expect Hazel to be the one who broke into the Lozen family’s house.
Hazel seized the opportunity to fire at him for the second time, but she lost the momentum when Arlo pulled down a cabinet and used it as cover, which he didn’t need to do since Hazel had run out of ammo.
Her body didn’t move the way she wanted. It frustrated her, even though she knew it would take time to get into the fighting shape that she wanted.
After all, River had trained her whole life, while Hazel had just given birth and started exercising recently.
"What are you doing here, Mrs. Leighton?" Arlo asked lightly, but Hazel could hear him loading his gun, and she walked towards the fire extinguisher and used that instead to attack Arlo.
Of course, he didn’t expect this move, and the white smoke filled the room. This distraction was enough for Hazel to disarm him and kick the gun away from both of them.
"Shit." Arlo jumped back to put the distance between them. He growled angrily at her. "You have not yet answered my question, Mrs. Leighton," he tried again, but this time his voice was strained. He tried to act calm but failed miserably.
Hazel threw the fire extinguisher at him, but he dodged it easily. This time, she grabbed a pair of scissors from the desk and used them like a blade.
When it came to hand-to-hand combat, River had the upper hand. Arlo had never been a combatant to begin with, but the problem was how Hazel’s body could handle it.
For a brief moment, Arlo was stunned; he was familiar with that stance. He had sparred with River a few times in the past. His face turned grim.
"Are you going to kill me?" Arlo asked again, but got no answer from Hazel. The murderous intention in her eyes was palpable. "May I ask why?"
Hazel didn’t answer that either. She charged forward, and they exchanged blows, but Arlo couldn’t use his right arm as he wanted, since his shoulder was shot and the wound was deeper than just a graze from a bullet.
Hazel took advantage of that fact and punched him in his injured shoulder. He yelped and buckled. Seeing the opportunity, Hazel raised her knee and hit his face.
Arlo stumbled backward. He tried to regain his balance, but Hazel grabbed a vase and hit him on the head. She was crazy and blinded by rage and vengeance.
For a split second, Arlo thought he was seeing River instead.