forgot how to communicate 6
Chapter 329: Would You Like a Demonstration?
Maya let out a soft laugh, immediately catching the possessive little title.
“Wife, huh?”
A faint smile finally broke through Damien’s serious expression.
“Yes. My wife.”
Before Maya could respond, Harper proudly cut in.
“She helped me make a decision about how justice was delivered last night. One that completely changed the way we traditionally handle things.”
Damien’s faint smile disappeared.
“You did what?”
“She’s exaggerating,” Maya quickly said.
Harper scoffed. “Oh, please. Don’t downplay it.”
She turned toward Damien, the same pride from earlier returning to her expression.
“Traditionally, their punishment was mine to decide. But I couldn’t decide how I wanted to carry it out… until Maya made me realize something.” Harper glanced at her. “I wasn’t there.”
Damien’s brows drew together.
“I wasn’t the one who went through what they did,” Harper continued. “She made me realize that just because I have the authority to decide someone’s fate doesn’t always mean the decision should be mine to make.”
Understanding slowly began to settle across Damien’s face, while Nicholas, who had remained quiet until then, raised his brows.
“Wait.” He looked at Harper. “So you gave them the prisoners?”
“Yes. I let them avenge their brothers however they saw fit,” Harper replied simply. “But their final breath still belonged to me.”
Nicholas slowly nodded as the pieces fell into place. “Damn… that actually makes sense.”
Damien, however, wasn’t looking at Harper anymore. His attention had returned entirely to Maya.
“That was your idea?”
Maya gave a small shrug. “It just seemed fair. They were the ones who suffered through it. I thought they deserved to have a say in what happened to the people responsible.”
For a moment, Damien said nothing. He simply stared at Maya, clearly taken aback by the answer.
Then his eyes fell to the small handmade gift still resting in her hands.
a Demonstration?
Suddenly, the widows gratitude made perfect sense.
Clau
“Who would’ve thought you had it in you?” Nicholas looked at Maya with an impressed grin before giving her a thumbs–up. “I’m proud of you, sis.”
Maya gave him an almost innocent shrug. “It made sense at the time.”
“At the time?” Harper scoffed. “It still makes sense.”
Damien finally spoke.
“I want to know everything.”
Maya immediately shook her head. “There’s really no big-”
“Oh, come on!” Harper cut her off, suddenly looking far too excited to tell the story. She started walking again and motioned for the others to follow. “Let’s get moving. I’ll tell you everything on the way there.”
Maya sighed as the others followed, knowing there was absolutely no stopping Harper now.
As they continued toward the opposite wing, Harper eagerly recounted everything that had happened the night before, starting from the moment she caught Maya following her into the underground passage.
True to form, she spared almost no detail, occasionally earning corrections from Maya whenever her storytelling became a little too dramatic. Nicholas listened with obvious interest, while Damien remained mostly quiet, his attention shifting toward Maya every now and then.
Despite his earlier concern, he couldn’t stop the quiet sense of pride growing in his chest as he listened to how bravely Maya had faced a side of his world he had always tried to shield her from.
They had nearly reached the other wing when Harper suddenly stopped mid–sentence.
“Oh, right!” She looked at Damien. “Speaking of which, I’ll be Maya’s personal trainer from now on.”
Damien immediately frowned. “What do you mean?”
Maya chuckled at his reaction. “I asked Harper to teach me how to use knives.”
“Ah! Excuse me!” Harper immediately corrected. “Not just knives, Anything sharp.”
Damien’s frown deepened.
Nicholas glanced at Harper. “Why does that sound significantly worse?”
“If you can’t handle the heat, get out of the kitchen,” Harper shot back.
Nicholas scoffed. “I’m not the one proudly advertising myself as an expert in stabbing people.”
Maya laughed softly. “In fairness, she’s good at it.”
Harper stopped walking.
“Good?”
All three of them looked at her.
a Demonstration?
Стани
She placed a hand against her chest, looking personally offended. “After what you saw, good is all I get?”
“Okay, sorry.” Maya laughed. “I stand corrected. Her skills were impressive.”
“Thank you.” Harperlifted her chin with satisfaction. “Much better.”
Nicholas snorted. “Careful, babe. Your ego is showing.”
“My skills justify my ego.“/
“That remains to be seen.”
Harper slowly turned her head toward him. “Would you like a demonstration?”
That was enough to make Nicholas immediately raise both hands in surrender. “I fully believe you.”
The exchange between them made Maya laugh, but Damien remained noticeably more serious, his gaze settling on her.
“You really want to learn?” he asked.
Maya met his eyes without hesitation and nodded. “Yes.”
He studied her for a moment before glancing toward Harper.
“And you promise you won’t be careless?”
Harper gave him an offended look. “Do you seriously think I would be careless with my best friend?”
Nicholas casually slipped an arm around Harper’s shoulders. “Do you want him to answer that, babe?”
Harper immediately drove her elbow into his side, making Nicholas recoil with a pained grunt.
“Ouch! I’m just saying!” he protested, quickly putting some distance between them as he rubbed his side.” That hurts!”
“You deserved it!” Harper shot back with a glare before turning her attention back to Damien.
“Okay, I get where you’re coming from. Don’t worry. I promise I won’t be careless.” Her expression suddenly brightened. “Actually, tomorrow, I’ll take you guys to our training grounds so you can see for yourselves.”
She wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.
“Think of it as an audition–slash–live demonstration. What do you guys think?”
Maya glanced at Damien, barely suppressing a smile when she saw the thoughtful look on his face.
Damien caught her gaze, and the corner of his mouth lifted before he turned back to Harper.
“Alright,” he agreed with a small nod. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”
By the time they reached the opposite wing, the others were still gathered in the sitting area, waiting for any news from the medical team.
Dahlia looked up as they approached. “You’re back.”
hapt
929 Would You Like a Demonstration?
Claim
Maya smiled and took the seat beside her, with Damien settling down next to her.
“Any news about Jaime?” she asked.
Dahlia shook her head. “Nothing yet.”
Maya simply nodded. She had known it was still too early to expect anything, but she couldn’t help asking.
Harper glanced around and noticed someone missing. “Where’s Dad?”
“He went back to his study,” Alice replied.
Harper nodded and was about to sit down when Nicholas suddenly cleared his throat.
She looked at him.
He said nothing, but his eyes shifted pointedly from Harper to her mother, then back to Harper.
Her eyes widened slightly.
Now?
Nicholas raised his brows as if to say, Why not?
Unfortunately for Harper, Kenji caught the entire silent exchange.
A mischievous smile slowly spread across his face.
“Mom,” he suddenly said, “I think Harper has something she wants to tell you.”
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