Herald of Vengeance

"Okay, Tiger. That's it! You're free to go now".

The officer patted Hermes as he signed the last piece of documents.

"Obviously". Turning over the stack of papers, Hermes glared grimly at his jailer, then his eyes shifted to the cuffs which lay lonely on the counter before him.

Those twin shackles were going to miss the feel of his wrists. The edge of his lips curled upwards, and the gruesome look on his handsome yet pinched face faded into a slight smile. He was free at last!

Three years it had been since he first felt the pain of being a prisoner. He could still remember the life he had before he was jailed, the love he had. It was all perfect. Then he was suddenly arrested, manhandled and put behind bars.

His life was taken away from him, everything he had, everything he loved. They all dissapeared with the pass of a single judgement, in the twinkle of an eye.

But now, life had presented to him another chance. As he took his steps towards the exit door, his exit to freedom, his heart raced expectantly. He knew for sure that Haisley would be waiting behind that block of metal.

She was the first person whom he contacted the moment he was granted freedom. She must have missed him a lot by now, just the way he missed her. He missed the slight touch of her lips, the gentle push of her breasts. He missed everything about her. That was the woman he loved, and who loved him back in folds.

Pushing open the iron door, he heaved in a breathe of fresh air.

"Blood". He sighed long and loud. The air outside the prison walls was certainly different from the air inside. It was awkwardly liberating and surreal that he was not sure if he used to breathe that same air before, as opposed to the toxic environment in which he had spent the last three years.

As he moved away from the damned building, wallowing in joy, his eyes searched around wildly for that beautiful figure which he would never fail to recognize.

"Where is she? Is she hiding? Come on Haisley, we've grown beyond these pranks". He called loudly but received no reply. There was nobody around and everywhere was silent. "What's going on?" He wondered.

Haisley could not have failed to turn up on this day. She would want to be the first person to meet him without the restraints of a glass wall. She would be the happiest to see him back as a noble citizen, without having to wear a prisoner's uniform.

As he stood beside the road confused, his eyes caught the sight of a red car from afar speeding towards his direction.

Was that Haisley? So, she came late? He waved his hands in the direction of the car which pulled closer with a blistering speed.

When the over speeding vehicle got to Hermes, it pulled to a stop.

"Hey babe, what took you so long?" He said to the tinted windscreen which came rolling down to reveal the face of a young man.

"I thought you were straight, that's why I came to pick you up. I guess I'm gonna have to leave you behind then. Bloody gay". The man muttered while fumbling with his car keys in an attempt to restart the vehicle and drive away.

"Zeid!" Hermes was very happy to see his best friend.

"Hop in while you can. You're welcome".

"I thought you was Haisley", Hermes said as he jumped into the vehicle. "I'm really happy to see you, dude. Trust me, I am".

Zeid scoffed while kicking the car to a start. "Yeah, I'll try and believe that".

"I'm serious, man", Hermes repeated as the car began to move swiftly along the empty road. "By the way, where is she? Thought you'd come with her?"

There came no answer. Instead, Zeid pushed the music box on and raised the sound to a high volume.

Hermes was stunned at his action, it could only mean something was wrong. Did something bad happen to Haisley?

"Hey!" Hermes yelled to Zeid on top of his voice while punching shut the loud music. "Where's Haisley?"

The reply was not convincing. "You just got back from there bro, you shouldn't bother yourself yet about shit". Zeid turned on the music again.

Now, it was more suspicious. Something must have happened. Was it an accident? A sickness? Hermes' thought wandered in every direction. In anguish, he delivered another blow on the music box.

"Tell me! What has happened to Haisley? Where is she?" He yelled again at Zeid, not minding that he was driving.

Zeid yelled back this time. "She is at her own wedding, alright? Nothing happened to her! Nothing!"

"What?" Shock was written all over Hermes' face.

Zeid sighed, "look, you've been out for three years bro. This shouldn't be a suprise to you.."

If only he knew that his words could no longer reach Hermes who was lost in the shock. Could Haisley marry someone else? Was that really possible at all?

As he questioned himself on the possibility, he turned again to Zeid. "Where? Who is it?"

Zeid replied with a long hiss. "You really don't wanna hear this".

"Spit it!"

"Derek Bradbury".

"The fuck?"

"I told you".

Hermes was pierced to the bones. His girlfriend was going to marry the same person who sent him to jail?!

Three years ago, Hermes was a demigod of his own dreams. As a special young man of talent, he had everything he wanted; a great career, constant flow of cash, a muscle packed body that shook every woman desperately, and a special woman with whom he planned to happily spend the rest of his life.

Then everything changed when Derek Bradbury, one of the richest kids in the city took interest in Haisley.

He disrespected her in the presence of Hermes, that too on their date.

This made Hermes furious, and he attacked Derek in anger. Before he knew it, things escalated and the Bradburys used their influence on him, sending him to jail.

Now that he was back, discovering that his girlfriend now belongs to that same man was the worst possible news he could receive.

"How?" He muttered into the air, bemused.

"Apparently, everything he did was just to take you out of the way. After you were sentenced, he made his move on her. It didn't take long. She shut me out, she shut everyone else out. Guess she loved the money more than she did you".

Hearing those words, Hermes blood boiled in anger, and he could feel the heat building up within him. How could she? How dare her? She would marry the person who destroyed him? After all they had gone through together? He had to see for himself.

"Where?" He raised his eyes again, red and threatening. "Where is the wedding?"