"I really don't care," Carl snarls. "Your son refused for being a wuss, he couldn't handle the guilt he'd have after murdering Stacy Ferrell but you, you can."

I wiped the little amount of blood I had in the corner of my mouth away, Carl wants me to murder Jane's mother. I didn't even know Albert was in this crap, he never told me anything. I got angry at Carl for hiding it from me, too, and things got physical but after we both somewhat calmed down, he told me he needed me to do the job. If I didn't, he'd hurt Albert no matter how much he likes him.

"I don't want my son in your fucked up businesses," I spit. "I don't want you to hurt him, either." He glares at me, I mirror his glare. "If I do the job, you have to let Albert out of this without a scratch on him."

Carl shrugs, "I don't have much use for him here, anyway. He's to young and if I get caught being the employer of a teen, it'd be bad for me and your son. Do the job and he's out."

I nod, "When?"

"Tomorrow."

Tomorrow I have to murder the mother of my sons girlfriend, that's something I know would hurt him. I drive back to the house after a quick stop at Domino's, my son is surely home and hungry by now.

"Hey, Dad." Albert beams, my back facing him as he's in the kitchen and I'm walking through the living room. "Jane's here, she wanted to say hi earlier but you weren't here so she waited."

"Hey, Mr. J." Jane speaks as I appear in front of them with the pizza in hand. I notice Chinese takeout on the table and realize they already ate but I still place the box on the table and let them know it's for them. "How was your day at work? Albert says you work nearly all day, now."

"Um, yeah it was alright." Tomorrow that smile on her face would be turned upside down because of what I've been ordered to do, merde. I didn't bother saying another word, I excused myself and went to my bedroom. It isn't like I'm a professional murderer or that I take pride in it every time, either. Murdering people isn't something I ever thought I'd be doing. Heck, I didn't think my son would be up to it, either.

The next morning, I woke up with a pain of guilt in my gut. Carl had already beaten me by waiting for me in the living room. "Rise and shine, Nicolas!" Carl smirks, "You ready?"

I nod, unsure if I would really be ready to murder Jane's mother. I don't like the woman, she's a bitch, but it'd cause Jane pain meaning it'd cause my son to be upset because she's hurting. Carl leads me to his car and I sit nervously in the passenger seat.

We pull up to a beautiful home, the ones that you only see in movies where the garden is out front and the roses are lined up perfectly and are blossoming. "I'll be waiting for you when you come back," Carl assures me. "Don't fuck up, Nicolas."

"I won't," I assure him, hopping out of the car and walking calmly to the front door. I turn the knob a little and notice it's unlocked so I take the liberty of waltzing in. I peak my head around the living room and see that Stacy isn't in here so I glance at the kitchen and she's not there either.

I take note of some stairs and climb up, water is running so I'd guess the woman is in the shower. I follow the sound of the water and when it shuts off, I find its a bathroom inside her bedroom so I walk in and take my seat on her bed. Stacy walks out of her bathroom in a bathrobe and wet hair, the way my Ruby would do it before. It'd always have a certain effect on me whenever she'd do that.

She gasps in surprise when she sees me seated on her bed. "Who the fuck are you?" Her eyes travel to my right hand, focusing on the gun. "Carl sent you, didn't he? Of course he did! The fucker couldn't have waited a while longer!? He had to send his goon to scare me?"

"I'm no goon," I frown. "You had your chances to pay the man up but you always failed! Carl sent me here to deal with you."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She spits, "Murder me?" She takes a good look at me before she snorts out a laugh. "You don't look like the type of man to be a hit man."

This woman, I swear. I get off of her bed and look at her, "Why are you such a bitch? Don't you know you've created a daughter who's a bossy, slutty cheerleader in her own school? She's probably fucked more guys this year than you've had in your entire life! Oh, but that's right, she was your mistake. You were high off your ass when you fucked her father."

Jane is a good girl and I don't really think all of that about her but Stacy has made the majority of the people she knows, angry or upset because of her attitude and for once before she dies, she should feel what everyone else did. "My daughter is not a whore!"

I get closer to her, taunting her with the gun aimed straight for her chest. "I can assure you," I whisper, pulling the trigger once and again and again. "You won't be missed." Stacy stumbles on the wall in attempt to get to the door but fails. Her own blood is smeared on the walls now and she's creating a mess of blood on the carpet.

I walk out of her bedroom and hurry down to the car where Carl is waiting for me. The only regret I'm feeling is knowing that Jane had just lost her mother and she has no clue yet. "I already found another doof," Carl snarls onto the phone as I climb in. "You're to late." He hangs the phone up and speeds off. At the first intersection we come across, he tosses a wad of cash onto my lap. "Your pay."

For whatever reason, I didn't feel content with what I had just done. I didn't think I'd feel guilty for murdering Stacy but I do and I think it has to do with the fact that Jane is her daughter. Maybe the fact that my son would be hurt just like Jane is because of her loss and he'd be the one to attempt to console her but fail when he can't be the one to bring her back.

I started cooking lunch when Albert stormed into the kitchen, anger radiating off him. "How could you accept Carl's order regarding murdering Stacy!? How could you be the doof that he hires for something like that!? When did you even start working for him!?"

"You've been working with him behind my back, too, so you can't confront me about anything!"

Albert scoffs, "You're still the one to murder Stacy, she is Jane's mother and I can't let you go through with it!"

"Too bad, fils!" I seethe, "I already did it, I didn't know it was her mom." Lie. "Carl had me do it in order to protect you, needless to say, of course I did it for you!" I wasn't about to let Carl cause any harm to my son for someone who isn't worth the trouble.

Albert shakes his head and rushes out the door without uttering another word to me, I'm sure he's probably heading to Jane's house.

I know I let my son down, his face said it all but I couldn't help it. I wasn't about to let Carl hurt Albert. How could he even blackmail me into doing what I did? I didn't even consider the possibility of heading to prison for it! What if they lift my fingerprint off something and match it to me? What would happen to Albert?

I quickly pick my phone up and dial Carl's number. "Nicolas! I was just about to call you!" Carl greets through the other side of the line.

I interrupt him before he can say something else. Not knowing how I could say what I want, I come out with it, bluntly. "Will I go to jail, Carl? For what I did, will I be arrested!?"

Carl pauses for a few seconds, registering what I said before letting out a small fit of chortles. "Of course not and if you do, I'd bail you out. There's no way they'd ever find out that it's you. You've murdered before, Nicolas." Oh, right! "They haven't caught you and they won't now." I breathe a sigh of relief. "Anyway, I have a job for you, my man."

I let my eyes shut for a brief second. "Another murder?"

"Yup."

I didn't think I'd have to assist in the murder of a teenager, ever. I couldn't bring myself to say yes but Carl blackmailed me again by saying he wouldn't let Albert out of his business if I didn't oblige.

Today is Stacy's funeral, it's been two weeks since I murdered her and her husband thought it would be best if it was a closed ceremony for just the three of them: Stacy's husband, Jane and my son.

Carl demanded me to park the car a few feet away from their position so we wouldn't be seen. "He's avoiding me," I say to Carl. "He hates me for doing what I did."

Carl waves me off after giving me a quick glance. "He'll get passed this, don't let him get to you."

We sit in silence while the casket was being lowered. I see Jane placing the palm of her hand on her moms casket as it slowly goes down. "It's time," Carl speaks. "Drive. Just like I told you, got it?" I nod, knowing what'd happen next would destroy my son.

The tires of Carl's vehicle screech against the road as gunshots were fired and Jane's body is shot repeatedly. "Jane!" Albert shouts at the same time her dad does. I'm so sorry, fils.

Albert tilts his head to catch a glimpse of the ones who murdered Jane. Carl began to snicker, viciously and I couldn't help but cringe. Through the rear view mirror, I saw the disappointment in my son's face. Jane was now dead and it's all because of me. "Albert is out now, correct?" I say, barely audible.

Carl nods, "Indeed. Thank you." I nod, this is the only thing I did right, getting my son out of this bullshit of a business.

To bad Albert won't see it the same way. No, he'd see me as the cruel man who murdered the girl of his dreams — a criminal.

I was right about Albert despising me, he came home later on and scowled at me every time I tried to speak to him. I told him I got him out of Carl's business and it didn't seem to matter to him. Maybe what I did wasn't what he would've wanted me to do. Of course it isn't, I just killed his girl, for fucks sake!

Currently, we're both seated in the kitchen table, occasionally glaring at one another. It reminds me of how Ruby and I did the same whenever she'd get angry.

Ruby sits across from me, stealing a glance at me whenever she can. I know she's pissed off about my decision to not celebrate her birthday but she needs to grow up. A grown woman such as her shouldn't even want a birthday party.

I don't think I did anything wrong, maybe just spoil the fuck out of her when we first met. Maybe then she wouldn't have urged anything out of me but I can't really complain. She's one hell of a wife to me and she does her best to satisfy me in everything. Maybe she does deserve a birthday party. "Mon amour," I speak gently, her eyes meet mine but her lips remain sealed. "I'm sorry, I was being a jerk. You definitely deserve a party for your birthday and I'll be the one to arrange everything for you!"

She shakes her head. "I don't want anything anymore."

"Why not?"

"Because you're a big jerk, Nico!" She frowns, "I only asked for this one party and I instantly get a rejection! I've never rejected you for anything, not even when I'm not in the mood to fool around and you keep poking my side until it gets annoying and I give in!" She sighs, "Forget about the party. I don't want it."

I did throw the party for my beloved, she was surprised when she arrived to the house and saw all her friends and family waiting for her. That was also the party in which my affair with Athena started. "Why'd you do it?" Albert speaks, softly. "And don't say it was to protect me because it wasn't."

"I didn't have a choice, fils."

"Bullshit!"

"I didn't, fils! If I wanted you to be safely out of Carl's business then I needed to do what he asked!" I blurt. "You're the only family I have, now! Do you really think I'd let Carl ruin that!?"

Realization dawns down on him, "You're right, I'm sorry. I didn't think about that." I don't say anything, there's nothing much to say. "Are we good, then?"

Smiling, I nod. "We always are, fils." It won't be long before my son gets feelings for another girl, attempts to woo her and results in falling in love with her, soon he won't care much about what happened to Jane.

Two Years Later:

"Homecoming?" I ask, eyebrows furrowed. "Since when do you want to go to homecoming? It's been two years since Jane and all you've done is fool around with every other girl. Like Brielle, her father confronted me about it."

Albert rolls his eyes at the mention of Brielle. "I've told Mr. Dunlop that his daughter is the one who started it all. I didn't think she'd be psychotic. Anyway, please? Could I go?" He avoided the entire topic of Jane. A sign that maybe it doesn't hurt much, anymore.

"Alright," I smile. "I'll be home late, anyway. Have fun and don't knock a girl up." He beams, thanking me before hurrying outside to his friends who've been waiting for him to go buy his outfit for the dance. I doubt my son would wear something fancy, though. He's a teen, after all. He deserves to have fun.

Besides, he's been a good boy these passed two years. Carl hasn't bothered him about dealing and he's sort of laid back on me and everyone, to be honest. Sie is graduating and on her way to college so that might be a reason for it since he's really attached to his niece — our niece.

On my way to work, I made a quick stop at the hospital where my beloved worked. I debate for a second before barging in and asking for her but I choose to do the opposite since there's a high chance Ruby doesn't live near here, anymore. Chloe's husband told me himself when I ran into him at the market.

"Ruby is headed to the other side of the country with her husband." He said, eyes pitiful. "I'm sorry, Nicolas. I thought you forgot about her since you never returned for information."

I never forgot about her, I think of her everyday. I just focus on my son, now. I can't let anyone hurt him or take him from me. "Nicolas," My boss struts toward me with his wife beside him. The woman who took my position in the company. "Could you run an errand for my wife? She needs something picked up from the dry cleaners."

"But I'm working?" I state in a questioning manner.

He nods, "I'll give you a bonus for it." I accept and head my way to the dry cleaners. I'm not a messenger boy and our company isn't about clothes so I don't understand why he had me do this. Why couldn't his wife do it?

I returned to my house late at night, Albert was already home, probably asleep but it doesn't stop me from heading to his room to check up on him. "Fils," I call, peaking in through the door, "Did I wake you?"

Albert shakes his head and sits up. "I'd have to be asleep in order for you to wake me. What's up?" I allow myself inside his bedroom and take a seat on his bed.

"How was your dance?" I ask, "Did you have fun?" Albert nods and I smile, contently before giving him a firm look. "You didn't happen to get into trouble, right, fils? No fights?"

Albert rolls his eyes, I know it gets on his nerves when I ask if he's been a fight but ever since he got suspended from school for three weeks, I don't know what he's capable of doing if I don't check up on him every now and then. "No, none whatsoever. I did, however, encounter a beautiful girl. She was so upset so I did my best to cheer her up. I think it worked."

My eyebrows raise in surprise. Albert encountered a girl and he cheered her up? I'm stunned, "Vraiment? Who?"

"Evangeline," He smiles brightly. "She's magnifique, she has the brightest blue eyes, short blonde hair and her smile is glorious."

I chuckle, "She must be something, now isn't she? She managed to have you smiling like you've just won the lottery. That's wonderful, fils. Are you planning on wooing her?" I haven't seen him this joyful in two years, if this girl managed to do that, then she must be something special.

"Yeah," He smiles, talking more to himself than to me, "I want her to be my girl"

The next morning, I have the day off. Albert has school so I'll be at the house alone for a while, I take this opportunity to search through his room again for the diary. Unlike last time, j had better luck. I found the R-initialed diary in his underwear drawer. I didn't get to check there last time, I grab it and make a note of where it was so I could place it back just how it was.

I head to my room to read it. I thought diary's had some little lock on it that could only be opened by a small key but not Regina's. Her diary looked like a normal, little journal. I open it and read the first entry.

Dear, Diary.
I married this man, Nicolas Jourdan. He seems to be a bit distant with me and I'm not entirely sure whether it's because I dropped the bomb on him about being pregnant or because of the obvious fact that he's madly in love with someone else. Maybe both.
I, on the other hand, find him very attractive and if he only gave me the chance, he'd see that I'm not as bad as I appear.
Maybe with time, he'd give himself all to me.
Hopefully our baby will bring us closer but I know that's to much to ask for.
Signed, R.C.J.

I didn't think anything of this first entry, it seemed sad. Regina thought she could make me be closer to her but I never did. Albert wasn't going to change that, either. Ruby is always the one I preferred. I skip the page to another entry.

Dear, Diary.
I've gotten myself into the habit, again. I didn't know what else to do, I couldn't handle the hatred Nicolas has for me.
No, I don't blame it on him. It's entirely my addiction and my problem.
If Nicolas does find out, he'd take my son from me and I don't want that — I can't allow it.
Every day, every fucking day, Nicolas and I argue about the same thing: Athena.
Who was she to him? Wife? Who knows but he always tells me she's better in bed than I am. We've only fucked once and I got knocked up. He doesn't know what I'm capable of in the bed, if he'd just let me.
Surely, he'll be home soon.
Signed, R.C.J.

Regina's diary is pretty much boring except for one entry. The last one she wrote.

Dear, Diary.
I'm going to kill myself.. El Callajero is after me and if I don't die before he reaches me, he'd hurt me and my son.
I don't want that.
Knowing Nicolas or my son would find this diary, I choose to say a few things.
To my son, I love you very much, Albert and you are not the cause of everything that has happened in your short life.
Grow up and be a man, a much better man than your father. Don't give up on your dreams and I'm sorry. I love you!
To Nicolas, you've always been a neglectful, rude, son of a bitch but I did like you. Fuck, I even love you, I never told you but I do and I can't believe it, either.
Whoever the fuck Athena is, I hope she's sucking another mans dick, laughing at you right now.
One more thing, I slept with your boss. Love you!!
Signed, R.C.J.

I set the diary down about an hour ago. I didn't read all of the entries but the few I did, were enough. I hear the door open, Albert's surely home. Hopefully, with Evangeline. That girl, she's educated and so polite. She'll be good for him. I just know it.

"Fils," I shout, loud enough for him to hear but not loud enough to scare off Evangeline. I hear her muffled voice in a distance. "Is Evangeline dining with us tonight?"

Albert shrugs, "She's calling her Mom for permission," He says, fiddling around with his phone as he mutters the next part. "I asked her at the last