I Am Tired Of Being A Hero

Chapter 318: Extra 2 Genetic Project-Ash

"So wayward!" Malik chuckled. "What’s next? What are you going to do? Be late to school! Not folding your clothes properly? Forget that man in prison; you should check Anouk’s blood. You two might just be related."

"Mal!"

"Uncle Malik!"

Malik just laughed loudly. Ravi wondered if Malik knew that he had been laughing a lot nowadays. Uncle Malik always had a gentle smile on his face, yet he was the hardest to get close to.

"Okay. I need some time alone with my dove, so bugger off, and if I get any storm from Ravi about the file, I will invite the lovely Elene Crane over for a weekend. I am just sure she would love to come."

Asher pursed his lips. Of course, Elene would love to come. She would love to see if there was anything she could hold against him or use to her advantage.

He had even more determination not to let Ravi find out that he was investigating his biological... sperm donor.

But the truth was that in the West-Patel dual household, nothing could ever remain a secret for so long.

--

Ash dreamt of going fishing with Ravi and eating braised fish all night.

It wasn’t until the alarm clock on his bedside table rang that it broke his pleasant dream.

A pale hand emerged from the blanket, groping for the alarm clock on the nightstand and turning off the irritating sound.

The person on the bed, with black hair in disarray, still had that little tuft of hair on top standing up straight.

Asher rubbed his sleepy eyes and sat upright.

He looked across the room, and there was a young woman with his laptop on her lap, staring at him.

Asher swallowed the scream that almost ripped out of him and immediately climbed off the bed.

"Were you watching me sleep? Do you know just how weird that is?"

"You toss and turn a lot in your sleep. That isn’t a good sign. You should go for a checkup at the hospital." Ignoring his words, Lana placed the laptop back on the table. "I passed the time reading the introductory part of your essay on genes. Very interesting. "Of course, I have some corrections and some textbooks I can recommend to help you."

Asher had been in this family long enough that even though he was freaked out, he wasn’t offended.

"You are worried about me."

"Worried is a stretch." She then lifted a silver box and opened it to reveal hand gloves, a syringe and a small glass vial. There was also a small flask and a phone.

"For you," Lana said as she handed the box over to Asher.

Asher curiously took the flask and opened it. "Beer? Ravi would kill you and then ground me for all eternity."

Lana considered his words and decided to explain, "The phone is a scrambler. St Louis Prison uses electric doors. "Both the camera and the door would not be able to open once you switch on the phone." She took the flask and placed it back into the case. "Your chromosomal donor has been known to be friendly with bars."

"He is an alcoholic, you mean, in addition to a gambler and a scum who sells his own son for money." Asher’s voice was a little cold as he clenched his fist. Lana didn’t need to skirt around the bush; he knew exactly what kind of man contributed to the blood running through his veins.

Lana froze for a second and then ran her hands through her hair. "You..." She took a deep breath. "You don’t have to have a conversation with a specimen if you don’t want to. The beer in the flask would be enough to knock him off, enough for you to collect his blood for your project."

She stood up and dropped the case on the table. "Make sure you wear gloves."

Asher looked at the case and then at her. He could feel his eyes getting warm, so he stretched both hands towards her.

Lana took a long, deep breath and awkwardly hugged him. "There. There." She patted his back and let go after three seconds.

Her actions made Asher chuckle, his mood brightening at his discomfort. He must be spending too much time with Uncle Malik.

"Thank you, Lana," Asher said as he held the box tightly.

Lana nodded, moved to leave and then paused at the door to look back at him. "We could kill him for you, you know? I would make him suffer."

It was like every time that Ash held his heart in his hand and asked himself what he was worth.

"Murder is against the law."

"It is fine. "Malik would make it go away," Lana said seriously. It was easier to kill the piece of human waste than send Asher to meet the person who sent him to hell. However, Malik said it was something Asher must do, and they were not allowed to go with him.

Asher laughed, his eyes crinkling in a way that reminded her of Ravi. "What are you saying? The captain of Davenport Police lives here. Lana, don’t teach me bad things."

Even as he lightly scolded her, Asher felt like his heart was floating in his chest.

The door closed in front of him, and Asher threw a pillow at a small shimmering purple dimensional door. "What! Are you going to offer to kill my... him too?"

Sage stepped out of the doorway, the pillow in hand.

"Of course not. Death is easy."

Asher sat back on the bed, completely relaxed. "People in this family should start learning boundaries. Learn from Arlen."

"Boundaries. I did not go to school; I don’t understand that world."

Ash raised an eyebrow at his brother in all but blood. "Sage, you can’t use that excuse forever."

Sage was even more relaxed than him, opening his drawer and taking a packet of coconut crisps, "Watch me."

Asher’s face darkened. "That is the last crisp Ravi bought for me on his vacation. The last one."

Sage slowly took another bite while staring at him.

For a second, Asher forgot everything that was bothering him. He took the pillow and violently flung it at Sage.