After all the hoo-ha, the group only managed to get home well past eleven at night.
Upon entering the residence, Lilian told Laurence, "Make me something to eat. I'm hungry after burning all those calories.
"Oh, pop open a bottle of a good wine too. It's been a while since I had alcohol. Tonight, Jane and I are going to enjoy a couple of glasses."
Noelle jumped in. "I'll make it. What do you and Mom fancy having?"
"Anything's fine with me. Just whatever that's the quickest to make.
"Laurence should do the cooking since he's my apprentice. It's a chance for him to show some appreciation to me."
Lilian made a beeline to the sofa and took a seat, refusing to let Noelle cover for Laurence.
“Noelle, have a chat with Mom and Master while I whip something up."
Not letting Noelle into the kitchen either, he stepped behind the stove.
When Doc was alive, Laurence and Noelle had to handle every chore, and cooking was part of the routine. He barely set foot in the kitchen.
Laurence was just a boy when he had to cook for Doc. At first, his cooking was barely edible, but the legendary doctor never put him down. He would give pointers to Laurence to get better.
With time and practice, Laurence and Noelle became great cooks by the time Doc passed on.
Noelle poured Lilian and Jane a drink.
"Master, you were fast out there. You have already defeated everyone before Mr. Laurence and I got there."
Since Lilian appointed Laurence to the task, Noelle could not take the job from him. She stayed and kept them company.
Noelle tended to be talkative around Jane and Lilian.
She sat down and said, "Mr. Laurence panicked and led us to rescue you when he got the call from the Longbottoms, but we ran into you while we were halfway there."
Lilian gulped down most of her drink.
The heat and the workout took a lot out of her, making her thirsty.
After putting down the glass, Lilian clapped her hands together and said, "It's been ages since I had such a rush. The Longbottoms' bodyguards put up a good fight, but they still have a lot to learn.
"I packed a lot of my special itching powder. They couldn't run away from the itch.
"Anyone who got hit with that stuff was practically out of the fight. I barely had to do anything. Jane took out most of them. I only had to handle the bodyguards who avoided the itching powder. Between the two of us, it didn't take long to bring them down.
"Was that all the Longbottoms had?"
Lilian looked skeptical.
Tony and his group would not have pulled off the elimination of the direct bloodline without some serious skill.
Noelle replied, "Those are just the bodyguards they keep out in the open. "They're all strong, well-trained in combat. They are more than enough to handle routine protection. The dangerous ones are the ones hidden from plain sight. They are assassins, willing to die for a cause.
“Even if they can't end themselves after failing a mission, they will find ways to silence themselves when caught. They are the type who would rather die than betray their master.
"These people are orphans, raised by Tony. He's the only person they ever know. Since it took quite an effort to train the group, Tony doesn't send them out unless absolutely necessary.
"Before, the Longbottoms only sent one of their trained loyalists among all the assassins to kill Mr. Laurence. That operative would hire independent contract killers to carry out the attacks, so the operation didn't trace back to the Longbottoms.
"Whenever a mission failed, the loyalist was usually dead by the end of it. As for the hired killers, all they knew was the contact person who hired them and knew nothing about the Longbottoms.
"The money used to pay for the contract killing never came from any account linked to the Longbottoms."
That was why Manny and Tony could not be brought to justice, even when the assassins were beaten and handed over to the police, despite everyone knowing the Longbottoms were behind it.
Jane finished her drink.
Since Lilian's glass was empty too, Jane took her glass and got up to get refills. "Let me, Mom."
Noelle rose to her feet to take the glasses.
“It's okay. I can do it. This is your home with Laurence. I'm your mom, so I'm basically home too."
Noelle sat back down.