Fanny just didn't expect to actually see him again.

"And you're sure it's him?" Michel asked back, mentioning that she had told him it was Archibald with two other men who broke into her house and killed her father.


She nodded, and took another sip of bitter wine, grimacing.

"The other two men are at your house, have you seen any of them today?"

Biting her lip, she tried her best to recall the events that had taken place but ended up feeling useless because she couldn't help.


"It all happened so fast, I couldn't..."

"No problem." He took the glass from her hand and placed it on the wooden table.


Holding her in his arms, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, hoping that her scent would calm his nerves so he wouldn't take his gun and completely go and kill anyone who dared to talk to him.

His family just got attacked and that bastard Archibald is still on the run.

"I swore to kill Mr. Aiden, but I want you to know that I don't just mean him. Anyone who ever laid hands on you, Fanny... they'll regret it, I swear to you."

Fanny remained silent as she returned the hug, feeling the stiffness in his muscles from the tension in his body.

"But if there's one thing I understand, it's also anger and revenge." He added in a low voice that was pointing out something she didn't quite understand.

"What are you saying?" She mumbled leaning against his shoulder.

Taking a step back, Michel looked into her eyes and took a deep breath.

"That means if you want that satisfaction, I'll give it to you."

It took a few seconds for the meaning of his words to sink in, causing her heart to begin to beat erratically.

"You let me..."

"Kill him. Mr. Aiden and Archibald... both. Whatever you want."

Fanny swallowed, her throat dry. Only this time, it was because of a feeling she had never experienced before.

For a moment, she pictured it.

Take a knife into her hand and insert it deep into the flesh of the man who derives so much pleasure from assaulting her, raping her, beating her, drugging her.

Another image is taking a gun and firing bullet after bullet to sniff the life of the asshole who did the same thing to her father.

"Yes..." The word slipped from her lips before she could finish her thought process.

Michel's eyes darkened at her expression. "Whatever you want, Fanny. I'll give you..."

The pair touched lips for a very brief moment until they were interrupted by Rosabella bursting through the door, closely followed by an annoyed-looking Charles.

"It's him, isn't it, Fanny? That voice..."

Michel stood up and nodded, not too worried about Rosabella once again deciding to ignore the rule of first knocking after entering the office.

"That's right. It was Archibald who kidnapped Fanny and ordered the attack on her father."

“I guess he knew about the Davies dealing with Phoenix a long time ago," Charles added with his arms crossed over his chest.

Rosabella reflected on the action as she also crossed her arms, her face scowling.

"And what are you going to do with that? That bastard got away. He..."

"Rosabella," Charles stepped forward, his voice warning her not to cross the line with their Black Roses leader.

Panting, Rosabella dropped her shoulders and focused instead on Fanny, taking up Michel's space from before she crouched down in front of her friend.

"How do you feel?"

Fanny reached out to take the glass back into hers, flinching again at the burning taste of whiskey on her tongue.

How Michel could drink this drink, she never understood.

"I've seen better days..."

---

The days following the incident were filled with every Black Roses member busy going in and out of their homes, following up on sources, and making emergency calls.

Fanny barely gets to see Michel outside in the evening, where he sleeps for a few hours only to wake before dawn to leave.

Wandering through the mansion as she stepped out of Audrey's room, spending time with her and the baby, she decided to go look for Rosabella.

Fanny hasn't talked to Rosabella much lately because she's been busy tending to Eddie and Mark's wounds and keeping quite a bit in her room.

When she entered the hallway where Rosabella's room was located, she was about to knock when she saw Kaylin come out from the room across from her, greeting her as usual.

"Oh, Rosabella isn't here." She said as she zipped up her leather jacket, tossing her long hair over her shoulders.

"She is not?"

"No. She went. I don't know where she went." Kaylin retorted, knowing exactly that Rosabella had left home with Charles in the middle of the morning, but decided not to reveal other people's business.

She had only taken a few steps when Fanny surprised her by continuing the conversation.

Usually, Fanny can't shut her down fast enough, almost never responding to a 'hello'.

"Where do you go?"

Kaylin turned around.

"I want to stop by the Cabaret house where I used to work and then go to a shooting range."

Fanny's mouth opened in curiosity, showing genuine curiosity.

"Fire range?"

She shrugged. "Yes, I mean I used to go there to practice before but since I'm pretty good now it's become more of a hobby."

Fanny remained silent at the explanation, shifting from foot to foot, seemingly contemplating what to say next.

Kaylin guessed that Fanny must have hesitated to ask more questions because maybe Fanny wanted to keep her distance.

Hoping to make it easier for the girl, Kaylin tucked a strand of wavy hair behind her ear and tilted her head to the side. "Want to come along?"

Fanny's eyes almost doubled at the suggestion. "What? Michel would panic." She panted.

"Do you always do what he says?" Kaylin retorted.

Fanny shook her head, clearly wary of her answer.

"No, but last time I did, it got me in trouble."

Kaylin thought about it and immediately put the clues together, guessing that Fanny was most likely referring to a time when she accepted Gwen's offer to take her home only to be attacked and kidnapped.

She doesn't particularly like Fanny because the girl has treated her like an enemy ever since Fanny found out about her and Michel's past. But somehow she also feels bad for what Fanny went through.