akiruchan | [fic] The Devil's Canvas [chapter thirty-three] (part two)

Title: The Devil's Canvas
Chapter: 33 (part two)/?
Authors: Akiru chan & Disgruntled Minion
Pairing/Characters: Sebastian/Ciel
Rating: M
Summary: Ciel's skin was marred with ink and blood, telling tales twisted in darkness. What an evil path the devil walks, tainted hands staining the innocent canvas. For the most beautiful art is painted in blood.
Warnings: Violence, adult content, yaoi, and language

Part Two

They entered the classroom and Sebastian nodded slightly to The Undertaker, who grinned widely at him. Following Ciel, Sebastian took a seat behind the younger male so he wouldn't distract him and leaned back in the chair, silently looking around the room.

Ciel could practically feel the looks being directed at Sebastian, some individuals going so far as to say hi to the man they had once drawn last semester. Blue eyes darted to Nicole who sat with her giggling gaggle of ninnies. She seemingly ignored Sebastian while her friends gossiped and fawned to themselves. Ciel breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed that she had kept her mouth shut, not that Ciel really cared much in the end. There was no point in hiding his relationship with Sebastian, not when it had grown to such an extent.

At the front of the room, The Undertaker grinned for a few minutes and munched on a cookie while he waited for the clock to reach the top of the hour. Once it did, he slid off the desk and addressed the class with their instructions for the day.

They would be working on a still life which had been assembled at the head of the class. It was a collection of random items; a cow skull, a ceramic pot, an old buoy, a ladder, and what might have been a dismembered mannequin. Sighing, Ciel got his stuff together and began to sketch out the chaos.

Sebastian followed suit and busied himself with his sketchbook. There were several new tattoo designs that he wanted to sketch out and now was a good time to do just that. He missed the parlor and Sebastian couldn't wait to go back and start working again. Now that he was healthy enough to work assignments, he would also start working at the parlor again.

Ciel's neck craned around, trying to see what Sebastian was up to. He had long since grown bored of the meaningless still life, and hoped for something more inspiring. "Hey," he whispered, trying to draw Sebastian's attention. "What are you doing?"

Crimson eyes flickered up to look at Ciel and Sebastian fought back the urge to say something that would get him in trouble. "Nothing," he answered in an innocent tone and moved his arm to block his sketch pad. Somewhere in the time that had passed, Sebastian had progressed from sketching designs to drawing Ciel's profile.

Turning around, Ciel leaned forward into the back of his chair, trying to see past Sebastian's arms and to the hidden sketch. "Come on, let me see," he pleaded.

The page was turned quickly and Sebastian flipped the book around, showing Ciel a sketch for a tattoo he was designing for someone. "Here," he stated.

"No," Ciel continued to demand. "I want to see the other one!" He leaned forward more, hands reaching out to try and grab at Sebastian's sketchbook. The older man kept it out of his reach and Ciel growled under his breath, trying his best to keep from making a scene. "Give it here." Ciel pushed himself closer towards Sebastian, color draining from his face when he felt gravity pushing down upon him. His hands flapped about, reaching for Sebastian to stop his fall. It worked, in the end, but not in any way that Ciel had hoped it to.

The chair clattering to the ground made an awful racket, drawing attention Ciel's way. Ciel's hands gripped at Sebastian's thighs, his body falling between the older man's legs and his face unfortunately finding itself in Sebastian's crotch.

"Maybe I should've gone to the cafe," Sebastian murmured as heads started to turn in their direction. He glanced up to see The Undertaker laughing at the front of the class, his body close to rolling off the desk he was sitting on.

Ciel lifted his head, hands still comfortably placed on Sebastian's thighs, and glared. It would only be later that Ciel would realize that anyone else would have jumped away the second they realized the position they were in. Ciel, unfortunately, had grown too comfortable with Sebastian, so much so that he did not blink an eye at their current position, seeing nothing wrong with it.

"This is your fault," Ciel said, one hand going out to grab for the sketchbook. He shot a look towards The Undertaker, frowning, and then hesitantly, as if just realizing the situation, Ciel's head turned to regard the entirety of the class.

Sebastian's lips twitched slightly. "Sorry," he stated and leaned down to reach for a pencil that had rolled under his chair. "Here's the pencil you were trying to get." The object was pressed into Ciel's hand and Sebastian helped the younger male sit up again.

"Idiot." Ciel snatched the pencil away, but didn't pull back just yet. Sebastian's save had been pathetic and Ciel doubted that anyone in the class had bought it, not with Ciel's mad grab for the sketchbook a moment later. Nor did them coming into class together help their case. On a side note, Ciel's left hand was still gripping Sebastian's thigh; he let go quickly, arm falling to his side.

"I apologize," Sebastian muttered softly so only Ciel could hear. "Should I just kiss you now to help further seal the deal or would it be better if I let you see the sketchbook now?" His hand gripped the sketchbook in Ciel's hand tightly.

A quick glance around the room showed that everyone was still watching, some less interested than others, while The Undertaker continued to giggle behind his hand. Ciel sighed, not being able to keep the smile off his face. It all seemed so humorous then. What would happen if he did allow Sebastian to kiss him, right then and there? Suddenly he wanted to find out.

"Would a kiss be sufficient payment for the sketchbook?" Ciel questioned.

Sebastian's eyes lowered. "Yes, I think it would be a very sufficient payment," he answered and dragged Ciel closer to him. Heat passed between them and Sebastian's hand rested on Ciel's lower back, his fingers brushing over the fabric of Ciel's shirt.

Ciel's eyes flickered back to the class for a moment. Some were waiting to see this play out with baited breath; even Nicole seemed interested. Blue eyes shifted back to meet wine red eyes and Ciel smirked, devious and impish. "Then by all means, collect."

"With pleasure," Sebastian answered and pulled Ciel up. Their lips met for a quick and heated kiss, one that had Sebastian's eyes lowering in pleasure. His hand tightened around Ciel's waist, bringing the younger male closer to his body.

Their lips pressed firmly together, however brief, and Ciel indulged himself in the public display of affection. No tongue was used, leaving the kiss simple but passionate all the same. When Ciel pulled away, it was to the sound of a silent class; even The Undertaker had quieted his laughing.

When they broke apart, Sebastian's eyes opened and took in the people in the room. The Undertaker was hiding a grin behind his hand while some of the students in the classroom sported mixed emotions. Sebastian's hand tightened more on Ciel's body as red eyes glared at those who looked slightly disgusted and he growled lowly as they turned away.

Taking advantage of Sebastian's distracted state, Ciel snatched the sketchbook away. He stood quickly, picking up his chair, and seated himself while acting as if nothing out of place had happened. The book was flipped open and Ciel flipped through different tattoo designs until one page stood out from the rest.

Ciel blinked, taken by surprise at what he was seeing. He looked up at Sebastian, blue eyes wide. "You drew this?" he asked, pointing towards a sketch of what he guessed to be himself.

"Well it wasn't finished yet," Sebastian answered, spinning a pencil around with his fingers. He glanced around the class again, noting that most people had gone back to work; only a few students kept looking up at them, as though they would put on another show.

Ciel aptly ignored everyone else, eyes focused on Sebastian and the sketch. "It looks wonderful," he kept praising. "You're going to finish it, right?"

Sebastian hummed. "I need my book back first and you need to turn around again before I can start it." He tilted his head to the side. "But yes, I will finish it."

"Fine, fine." Ciel turned around quickly after returning the sketchbook. He regarded his own sketch and frowned when he realized he still had a lot to do before he could call it done. Grudgingly, he forced himself to ignore Sebastian and the eyes he felt staring so that he could finish before class's end.

The class passed by in silence and Sebastian was more than happy to continue sketching Ciel. It had been months since he had drawn for himself and it was relaxing; he would have to ask Ciel if they could do it again.

After another hour passed, Ciel threw down his ebony pencil and called his drawing finished. Around him, other students were packing up their things, some already having turned their completed pieces in to The Undertaker who was once again sitting behind his desk.

Ciel packed his own supplies, turning around to see Sebastian still sketching away despite Ciel having moved. "You almost done?" he asked, slightly guilty at interrupting.

Sebastian looked up and turned the book around for Ciel to look at. "For the most part," he answered and stretched before standing up. The room was almost empty and Sebastian could feel The Undertaker's eyes on them, just waiting for them to come to the front of the room.

"Looks good," Ciel commented, throwing his bag over his shoulder. There was no mistaking that the portrait was of Ciel; it was quite impressive. "I would get that as a tattoo if I were you," Ciel teased.

"I'll pass," Sebastian stated. "I have the real thing to look at and it's much better than a picture."

"Shame, I was so hoping for his and her tattoos." Ciel waved the thought away, jumping when a cackle sounded from the front of the room. His head snapped around to see The Undertaker sitting behind his desk and looking positively giddy. Something about the sight made Ciel feel slightly unsettled.

The man eyed them as they moved closer and waited until Ciel had set his sketchbook on his desk to be graded. "You two put on quite the show today. It was a wonderful way to start the day," he commented with a giggle. "Your next trip to the Underworld will be on me, Sebastian."

Sebastian chuckled and inclined his head. "Glad to be of service. I'll let you know when I plan to take my next trip."

Ciel raised an eyebrow, but didn't bother to comment. "Sorry about the disturbance," he ended up apologizing. What else was there to say. "It was his fault." Or there was that. Ciel pointed to Sebastian, frown on his face.

The Undertaker waved the apology aside. "I had my suspicions between you two for a while now after I found this in the closet." A drawer was opened and a small vibrator was set on the desk. "But today just confirmed it and now I am content."

"Is that..." Ciel's cheeks flamed a bright red, long forgotten memories being slammed into existence. He turned sharply to Sebastian, his blush turning angry. "You left it in the closet!"

Sebastian looked slightly sheepish. "There were more pressing matters at hand and I lost track of it after you threw it at my head." He shrugged and picked up the device, tucking it away in his bag.

"No!" Ciel tried to grab for the bag. "You are not keeping that." He shot a warning glare to The Undertaker who was sitting by cackling at the scene. So many bad things could come out of Sebastian keeping the silly little vibrator. If Ciel could help it, Sebastian would hand it over to be destroyed.

"Why not?" Sebastian asked curiously. He leaned down and nipped at Ciel's earlobe. "I'm surprised that you don't want to use it on me. But I suppose if you really want me to destroy it."

"Either way, whether I plan to use it on you," Ciel blushed. "Or destroy it, I still want it in my possession and not yours. I don't trust you with it." He just knew Sebastian would weasel it back into him if Ciel gave him the chance. The temptation would be too great for the older man.

Sebastian hummed and set the bag back on his shoulder, its weight reminding him of the job that was to come. "I'll think about it. As tempting as it is to try to use it on you now, we have another place that we need to be first."

Darker things began to overshadow Ciel's mood and he quickly sobered. His easygoing nature vanished, replaced by a cold and hard exterior. "We should get going," Ciel said quickly, nodding his head to The Undertaker who was still grinning despite the change in atmosphere.

Giving his own nod, Sebastian led the way out to the car and kept a tight grip on his bag. His mood mirrored Ciel's and Sebastian couldn't wait to see Elizabeth again. If it hadn't been for her, today would've turned out differently.

Instead of keeping Ciel to himself for the rest of the day, lavishing the younger male with kisses and soft touches before dinner, they were going to spend the majority of the day interrogating the female spy. And as much as Sebastian enjoyed torturing and interrogating people until they couldn't tell up from down, Sebastian enjoyed being with Ciel more.

"How long is this going to take?" Ciel ventured to ask as they approached the car. The dinner was in six hours, and Ciel would have preferred having two or more hours to relax and get ready. There was no doubt in Ciel's mind that he would need a shower upon returning, lest he wanted to smell like a whore through the whole affair.

Sebastian shrugged as he unlocked the car door and set his bag inside. "It all depends on how willing she is to talk. If she doesn't break before dinner, we'll take her to a separate facility and have someone watch her until we can get back." He slid into the car and started it up, waiting for Ciel to shut the door so they could move.

"Something tells me she won't be too hard to break, but lets hope I'm right." Ciel's back pressed into the seat, hand going forward to mess with the radio. He wasn't up for another silent ride and needed something to break the tension.

As the radio filled the car, Sebastian eased out of the parking lot and down the road in the direction of their new destination. He was anxious to meet with Elizabeth and get to the bottom of this by any means necessary. There was a chance that she was already spooked from their meeting yesterday and was thinking about running.

They got to the brothel quicker than Ciel would have liked. He eyed the building with distaste, frowning at a new banner that had been hung by the door boasting a new massage treatment. It still boggled Ciel's mind as to how the establishment hadn't been found out to be a whore house yet.

Sebastian parked against the curb and Ciel unbuckled his seat belt and pushed the car door open. "Does Lau know we're coming?" Ciel asked as Sebastian rounded the car to stand beside him.

"No," Sebastian answered. "I want to have the element of surprise when we see Elizabeth. And it'll give us the chance to see if Lau is involved with her as well." It was hard to think that Lau could also be working with Elizabeth, but Sebastian didn't want to take any chances.

Ciel felt slightly uncomfortable, hand unconsciously going to pat the glock tucked away against his back. He could only hope that he wouldn't need to use it. His hand dropped and reached for Sebastian's, giving it a light squeeze before pulling away. "Let's get this done quickly," Ciel proclaimed as they pushed through the door.

Sebastian nodded and looked towards Lau who seemed surprised to see them. "Hello, Lau," he greeted calmly. "We need to see Elizabeth."

The man cocked his head. "Oh my, were her services less than satisfactory yesterday?"

"Something like that," Ciel said, looking none too pleased. Lau smiled and Ciel shot him a poisonous look. "I hope this isn't an inconvenience for you." Ciel really didn't care if it was, but he said it regardless for formality sake.

"Not at all, my doors are always open for the family. I have been nothing but loyal to you and will continue to do so." Lau gave a small bow. "How might I serve you two today?"

Sebastian hummed and looked over Lau, assessing the man to see if he was telling the truth or not. Finally he waved the man away. "We just need to see Elizabeth."

Lau nodded and moved down the hallway. "She's free right now and isn't expecting anyone until one."

"Clear her schedule for the day." Ciel pushed past Lau, heading down the hall to where he knew Lizzy's room to be. Behind him he could hear Sebastian following and they stopped in front of the old oak door.

"Certainly," Lau answered and they paused outside Elizabeth's door. "I will give you a list of her most recent customers and the ones she had planned to see today and for the rest of the week."

Sebastian nodded and sent the man on his way. Once Lau had vanished, Sebastian's hand rested on the door handle, testing to see if it was locked. Finding that it wasn't, he gave it a slow turn and pushed the door open.

Lizzy looked up immediately as the two men came in. Her brows furrowed and she looked slightly confused, if not anxious. She forced a smile on her face as she greeted them. "Ciel, Sebastian, welcome. I wasn't expecting you," she said, seating herself on her bed.

"Sorry to intrude," Sebastian offered as an apology. It was best to put the girl at ease for now; it would be better to get the information out later. "But we had some more questions that we wanted to ask of you."

She nodded and folded her hands in her lap. "I see," she answered and gave a bright smile. "What can I help you with then?"

Ciel looked to Sebastian, unsure how to proceed past this. A situation like this wasn't something that had been covered in his training. You always knew your enemy, hated them. Ciel, despite his dislike for this brothel, did not hate Lizzy. He hated the situation and disliked her for causing it, but he did not hate her.

"We acquired some new information that I think you can help us make sense of," Ciel said finally, his voice quiet.

"Okay," Lizzy said hesitantly. "Do I need to look at something?"

Sebastian nodded and pulled out the papers that were once in the possession of the dead journalist. "As you know, a month ago, someone was writing about our family and other gangs in the area." He paused and glanced at Elizabeth, taking in her reactions. "Turns out that he wasn't finding this information by himself, but rather, someone was feeding it to him."

The papers were passed to Ciel and Sebastian watched as Elizabeth's eyes followed the movement. She kept her gaze on Ciel as he shuffled through the documents, and refused to look at Sebastian.

"We were wondering if you would know who wrote them." Ciel passed the papers off to Lizzy who took them with her manicured hands. She shuffled through them and the slight tremble in her fingers did not go unnoticed to Ciel.

"I don't understand," Lizzy said, voice guarded. "I've already given a report on what I knew about this situation. No one has said anything to me about who wrote them."

Sebastian shifted slightly. "There was never a need to ask about it before. But we've found new information and now we would like to know if you knew anything about who was writing them."

Green eyes scanned over the paper. "The writing isn't familiar to any of the patrons who leave notes here for the girls." Lizzy's eyes looked up at the two males before glancing back down at the paper. "And most pay in cash to avoid signing for anything."

Ciel sighed, rubbing his temples. He didn't want to get to the heart of the matter, but dancing around the subject seemed pointless. "We don't think it was one of your patrons who wrote it," Ciel said completely serious.

"Then who?" Lizzy placed the papers down in her lap and Ciel did not miss the movement of her eyes glancing hurriedly to the door. She looked nervous and unsettled, and Ciel knew that they had not been wrong in their assumptions.

Sebastian moved closer to Elizabeth and his eyes looked down at her. "You," he answered simply. He patted her check and offered a smile as the blood drained from her face. "I think this reaction is all that we need to confirm our suspicions."

Elizabeth squeaked and tensed as Sebastian's body lowered until they were eye level. Wine colored eyes looked into green and she closed them tightly, shaking her head. "I didn't write those letters."

A chuckle left Sebastian's mouth and he leaned his head forward so his mouth brushed against her ear. "Your lying only makes it worse for you." He felt her tense. "Tell me another lie so that I may kill you."

Ciel stood aside, allowing Sebastian to handle this. The fear in Lizzy's eyes made Ciel's hands twitch and he forced them into fist. That was a look Ciel had come to enjoy from his victims and it unsettled him that he felt slightly jealous and irritated with himself for allowing Sebastian to have all the fun.

A pleading look was sent Ciel's way and Lizzy shrank back at the cold look she received. Her whole body shook, not knowing what she should do or what her fate might be; she knew that they could kill her and no one would ever know. "Please." A whimper left her, and Lizzy began to try and plead for her life.

"Now that won't do," Sebastian teased and pulled back so he could look at Elizabeth. "Why should we offer you the chance to live after you've been lying to us all this time? And pleading for your life doesn't work unless you have something of honest value to give."

"I never lied," Lizzy said, fighting back tears. "I always gave you the information you wanted, all of it." She wouldn't meet either man's eye, bringing her knees up to shield herself from whatever might come.

Sebastian smirked and tilted his head back to look at Ciel. "Did you hear that? She said that we were given everything we wanted. Do you believe that?" he asked and turned to focus on Elizabeth again. "Because I sure don't believe that."

"You never asked who wrote the letters," Lizzy stated, her voice muffled from behind her knees. "I only told you what you wanted to know. I can't help if you didn't ask the right questions."

Sebastian's eyes flashed and he backhanded the female harshly. She let out a cry and pitched to the side before catching herself. "You would do well to remember your place right now," he growled and yanked her head back, pressing a knife to her exposed throat. "I wouldn't want to stain this pretty rug with your blood."

"Sebastian." Ciel had moved closer, hand out and gripping on Sebastian's shoulder. He hated showing weakness but this was not the way to get answers out of Lizzy. It would be best to keep her calm and only use harsher methods if needed.

Stooping down to the girl's eye level, Ciel gave her a hard look and began to speak. "Why did you do it, and who are you working for?" he asked, wanting to get the information they needed quickly for all of their sakes.

Lizzy held her cheek as she looked at Ciel, silent tears streaming down her face. "I wrote those letters to keep suspicion away from the group I'm with. If they were all about our enemies, then it would look suspicious. So I added in a few letters about your family." She looked away. "I had worked with your family for so long that I knew what was dangerous information and what wasn't. I only gave him trivial pieces."

"One of these 'trivial pieces' killed three of our members," Sebastian stated coldly. His fingers curled, itching to wrap themselves around Elizabeth's neck, but Ciel shot him a look and he swallowed the urge.

More tears spilled from Lizzy's eyes, and she choked on a sob. "It wasn't supposed to happen like that. No one was supposed to get hurt." She shook her head back and forth, trying to deny the terrible truth. "I wanted to keep you safe." Green eyes flashed to Ciel as she said this.

Sebastian's eyebrow rose and he looked towards Ciel. The younger male had spent more time with Elizabeth compared to Sebastian and during that time, she might have developed feelings for Ciel. "Only Ciel?" Sebastian asked. "Or the family in general."

Lizzy just shook her head, not giving much of an answer. She was quickly growing to a hysterical level, whines and whimpers escaping her as tears kept cascading down. Ciel scrunched his nose, finding the whole show unsightly.

"What are we going to do?" he asked turning to Sebastian.

"We could take her back to a secure room and continue interrogating her there. At least there, she could scream as loud as she wants and no one else would hear." Sebastian suggested.

The comment only made Lizzy even more frantic and her breath came in short, fast gasps as she tried to suck in air. Her actions earned Sebastian a harsh glare, but the older male just shrugged. "Maybe it would be better if you just talked with her."

"You need to work on your bedside manner," Ciel commented dryly, looking back to Lizzy. "We're not... I'm not going to hurt you," Ciel quickly amended, knowing he couldn't speak for Sebastian. "So please stop your crying. You look pitiful, and I'd rather not deal with it."

Lizzy hiccuped and tried to force the tears away, looking apologetic and thankful for Ciel. "Sorry," she said in a small voice. "I promise... I'll tell you what you want to know."

Sebastian snorted but stayed silent. Without a word, he moved across the room and sat down in a chair that was tucked away in the corner of the room. It was far enough away from Elizabeth to help her relax, but still close enough to take her down if she made any wrong moves.

"I haven't been doing this for long," she began, sniffling between words. "Someone came, a man, redhead and a little odd. I just thought of him as a new customer so I treated him with the same hospitality that I show to all my customers. He denied all my advances, very similar to your first time here." Lizzy nodded to Ciel who blushed at the memory. He had done everything in his power to keep the girl from coming on to him.

"What happened?" Ciel pushed, wanting to hear the story.

"He ended up offering me a job, similar to what I do for your family. I got him to agree that I would not be forced to betray my other clients unless I saw that it was needed. Believe me when I say that I didn't want to hurt any of you." Lizzy began to tear up again, black trails of mascara already painting her cheeks. "I couldn't turn him down. He promised that his men would pose as customers and would pay full price but were forbidden to take more from me then the information I gave. Despite what you might think, I don't enjoy this life, allowing men to claim my body in exchange for money. I couldn't refuse an offer that would benefit myself in such away. The fewer men I have touching me, using me, the better."

"So you gave away information in exchange for money and the agreement of no sex," Sebastian stated, making sure that he understood everything that Elizabeth had said. His hands gripped the armchair tighter when she nodded and he forced himself to keep still. "What about the other clients that you saw; the ones you reported to us about? Did this man ask for information on them, or just our family alone?"

"He never asked for information on your family, at least not anything that he couldn't find out through other sources. I wouldn't tell him anything to condemn you, and he knew that. He only had me listen for certain things, and if I had anything significant I would relay it back." Lizzy sat there shaking, no longer looking to Ciel. Her eyes kept to the floor, a small puddle of tears forming below. "I was able to edit the information as I wished. Never did I leak information that you would not want out."

Sebastian frowned, unsure what the man was looking for. It seemed as though he was looking for information on all the gangs in general and not just one in particular. "What significant things did you report back?" he finally asked.

Lizzy went quiet then, eyes unsure and wide. "Mainly if I had heard word of certain individuals; I've forgotten many of their names and the information I gathered was put into my reports to you anyways." she ended up saying. "Everything I ended up telling him always got back to you."

"Does this 'him' have a name?" It had been bothering Ciel for a while. From the way Lizzy talked, she didn't know much about the man. That gave little hope that she would know his actual name, and Lau catered to those hoping to keep their identity unknown.

Elizabeth paused, not sure if it was a good idea to give out any more information. She knew she was already in trouble with Sebastian and Ciel, but she didn't want to bring the wrath of her clients down on her as well.

She swallowed and looked at Sebastian. The older man looked calm, but his red eyes betrayed how he really felt. They were cold and ready to kill at a moment's notice. If she said something wrong, she doubted that Sebastian would hesitate to kill her.

"Kelvin," she said finally. "I remember hearing him say the name Kelvin."

"Kelvin?" The name sounded oddly familiar, like something he had been told but never fully committed to memory. He frowned and thought but came up with nothing. Turning towards Sebastian, Ciel was worried to see a severe scowl crossing the man's face.

"That man is dead," Sebastian stated, eyes narrowing slightly. "His funeral was last year. I remember reading the report of his death myself; a single gunshot to his head. Execution style."

Lizzy looked just as surprised to hear this news. "Perhaps there is another man by that name? Or the family itself." She shrugged her shoulders with some difficulty and said no more.

"What does this mean?" Blue eyes smoked with confusion and he had a feeling they had run into a wall.

Sebastian shook his head. "I'm not sure. We were always on good terms with Kelvin. Our communication stopped after his death but that was to be expected. The man was close with Tanaka, but no one else in the gang really was." He frowned and leaned against a chair, leveling a glare at Elizabeth. "You're sure that's the name he used."

Elizabeth nodded quickly. "Yes. I remember because I thought it was an odd name. I thought it was supposed to be Kevin and I questioned him about it, but he was adamant that the name was Kelvin."

"With Kelvin gone, do you think they are trying to make a move against us?" Ciel wondered. "What reason would they have?" There would be many. Money, control, power, and territory could bring any gang to seek out those ahead of them. They would try to destroy those above them so that they might have the same riches.

Sebastian was silent as he thought about it. There were so many things that it couldn't be just narrowed down to one item. And it wasn't as though they would tell Elizabeth what their goals were. In a way, they were almost back at square one and it was increasingly frustrating.

"We'll bring this matter up with Tanaka later on. He had more connections with Kelvin and might have an idea," Sebastian finally stated.

"I still don't like this," Ciel said, eyes settled on Lizzy. He had hoped the girl would have more answers than questions, but he should have predicted as much. Nothing would come easy for them it seemed.

Silence settled in the room and Sebastian drummed his fingers along the edge of the chair. He was tempted to kill the girl and just be done with this little leak, but that would only confirm that they were onto them and the gang would pull back more. As of now, this was the best lead that they had and they couldn't afford to be rash.

Sebastian stood up and circled back around the bed again, crouching down to look at Elizabeth. "If we ever hear that you're betraying us again, I will come back and kill you in the most horrible way you can imagine," he said quietly. "But if you decide to play nice and act as a double agent for us, I'll put this little incident behind us."

Lizzy didn't need to think twice about her answer; she nodded her head quickly. "Yes, Sir," she said, hands gripping onto the thin material of her stockings. "I won't make the same mistake twice."

Beside her, Ciel hummed his relief, tension easing from his shoulders. He eyed Sebastian, thankful that the man had decided against spilling blood tonight. Quickly he checked the time, happy to see that only a little over an hour had passed. "For your sake, I hope you don't." Ciel knew that he would not be able to stay Sebastian's hand if she stabbed them in the back again, nor would Ciel be willing. He would not be so weak as to show her mercy twice.

Sebastian looked over her one last time, trying to find any hint of lingering betrayal, but it seemed as though their words had taken hold of her. She wouldn't release anymore information on them again.

With a small sigh, Sebastian turned from the girl before he could change his mind about the whole situation. There were still things to prepare for tonight and they needed to get back to the mansion.

Ciel stood and backed away from the still shaking girl. He gave her no kind words in the form of a farewell, acting as if she had not been sitting there in front of him. "Ready?" he asked Sebastian, turning his back on Lizzy and the situation.

"Yes," Sebastian answered, ready to leave the place. He wanted to shower and relax for the rest of the evening and that wasn't going to happen here. He moved out into the hallway, Ciel following him silently. "Let's go home."

Not needing to be told twice, Ciel followed Sebastian closely. They passed by Lau but did not bother to acknowledge him or his cheerful goodbyes. Ciel could not bring himself to stop his escape from this place when it was so close before him. When fresh air filled Ciel's nose, he breathed easy and nearly ran to the car.

Sebastian chuckled at Ciel's actions but didn't bother to say anything about it. He didn't blame the younger male for acting the way he did; it was a relief to breathe in some fresh air as well. They climbed into the car and Sebastian started the car up so they could head home.

With that out of the way, Ciel was open to a whole new dose of anxiety as they grew closer to the mansion. In no time at all, they would be in the presence of the entire family announcing both Sebastian's new position and their relationship. Ciel couldn't say what had him more on edge, or if he was merely feeling overly excited at the idea of having everything finally out in the open. Thinking hard on it, Ciel decided that he was anxious for the revelation and sent Sebastian an excited smile.

Sebastian cocked his head slightly at Ciel and reached over to grab the younger male's hand. He pressed a soft kiss to Ciel's palm before turning onto the main road so they could go home. The time spent with the younger male before the announcement would be welcomed and Sebastian couldn't think of a better way to spend the rest of the afternoon.

"Nervous?" Ciel asked after a small while. He could see the tension still in Sebastian's jaw and knew something was weighing heavily on the man's mind.

"Somewhat," Sebastian answered and glanced at the car behind them before changing lanes. "We still have some time before the dinner so let's not worry about it for now."

Ciel shrugged it off, feeling more and more confident of everything as time went by. "There's not much to worry about. It's not like anyone is going to dispute it," he said, playing with the air vents. It was already beginning to warm up as they headed into spring.

Sebastian chuckled slightly. "I suppose not; nothing you can really say now." The car came to a stop outside the mansion and Sebastian climbed out after shutting off the engine. The smell of perfume hit his senses and he wrinkled his nose. "Let's go shower. We can relax after that until dinner."

"Or we can always relax and unwind in the shower," Ciel said with a saucy wink and snap of his hips. His eyes sparkled with mirth and he danced just out of Sebastian's reach as they made their way up the stone steps.

A low hum left Sebastian's throat and he followed Ciel into the mansion. They walked up the steps and made it into the bedroom before Sebastian pounced. After a tease like that, Sebastian wasn't about to let the younger male go. There would be plenty of relaxing in the shower, that much Sebastian was sure of.

To Be Continued . . .