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Then Nathan put his arm around Crystal and glared at his brothers. "Crystal is my woman," he said seriously. "So, no funny stuff, you hear me?"

The other two nodded, and Owen said, "Of course. That goes without saying."

Alex: "We would never take anything that

belonged to you."

.

Owen: "Yeah! Everybody knows to stay out of your way."

Suddenly the door opened, and Antony and Eric barged in. Nathan smirked at Eric and said, "Not everyone knows that. I mean, I, for one, certainly do not know that!"

Eric lazily leaned against the door frame. He had a cigarette in his hand, and he took a casual drag from it. He held it in for a moment, and then he blew the smoke into Owen's face.. Then, as he took a second drag, his fox-like eyes turned to Crystal. "Isn't that right?" he asked.

Crystal was taken aback. She frowned and turned away, saying nothing.

"I didn't know that Nathan Davis was the man who'd tried to claim you," Eric said. "Why didn't you say so? Nathan and I grew up together. When we were little, we shared many things, including a yard and a pair of pants." He sighed. "Alas, that was then, and this is now. Nothing ever lasts, does it?"

Eric and Nathan had been like brothers, but they'd had a falling out, and now they hated each other. If it hadn't been for their "big brother" acting as a mediator, once upon a time in the early days of their careers - they might have killed each other.

Antony nodded to Owen and Alex, and they moved over so that he could sit down beside them. When he looked up, he could see the murderous look in Eric's eyes from this angle. Below the anger, though, he could also see a dark sadness. Eric's rage had been birthed by pain, and Antony worried about what would happen next. After all, Eric wanted Crystal, and he typically got what he wanted. And he was never unwilling to fight for what he wanted.

Nathan glared at Eric but remained silent for the moment.

"Nathan and I have had our disagreements," Eric continued, "but that doesn't mean we can't be civil around each other." Then, he touched Crystal's shoulder and said, "Make some room for me, will ya?"

Crystal moved over, and Eric sat down beside her, across from Antony. Then he crushed the remaining of his cigarette on the table. The air was thick with tension, and for a while, nobody said a word. It was like time had been put on pause, and they all knew that things would never be the same once it started up again. There was a sense of danger at the table, and it was palpable.

Finally, Antony turned to Alex and asked, "Where's big brother? I thought he would be here by now."

Alex: "He's gone to the lab to get the results."

Antony: "From the paternity test?"

Alex nodded, and Antony said, "If I'm big brother's blood brother, that wouldn't be so bad. But the alternative would be unbearable."

Alex: "You don't trust the results Leslie showed us, do you?"

Antony: "Of course not! And neither does big brother."

Alex took his pants off as they talked, folded them, placed them on the table, and farted. Owen frowned and said, "That's disgusting! How dare you take off your pants and fart like that, and with Mrs. Davis here no less! How rude! Your sense of consciousness gone?"

Crystal blushed, and she said, "There's no need to be formal around me. Make yourself comfortable, and please, call me Crystal."

"They've not yet married," Eric said, "so it is premature to call her by Nathan's surname anyway."

Nathan remained silent, but the corners of his mouth lifted to form a half-smile. He knew Eric would still deny the fact that Crystal is his woman and stubbornly compete with him.

Suddenly, the door opened again. Several men in military uniform walked in, and all of the men at the table stood up to greet him. The man in the lead was General Arnold Corin, and the other men were his bodyguards. When the General saw Crystal, he smiled and said, "And who might this be?"

"This is Crystal," Nathan said, answering for her. "She is my woman." Then he turned to Crystal and said, "This is my big brother, General Arnold Corin."

Crystal was impressed by Arnold. She had thought that Nathan had a muscular build, but Arnold made his muscles look small in comparison.

Eric smiled, and he hugged Arnold. "It is good to see you," he said. "What a sight for sore eyes. It has been too long, hasn't it?"

Arnold nodded and agreed that it had, indeed, been too long. Then he hugged the other men, and lastly, he hugged Crystal. As they parted, Arnold swept the hair out of Crystal's face, and he stared into her eyes for a few seconds. Then he turned to Nathan and said, "This must be the girl that you called in the army to rescue from the corrupt police."

Nathan nodded. "She is," he said.

"What a mess that was." Arnold laughed and said, "I don't envy whoever had to write up the paperwork." Arnold had a gentle voice. His tone was soft. His pitch was low, but he spoke with authority. And power. Here is a man who could put the fear of God into a man without raising his voice - thought Crystal. She didn't know what to call him, so she looked meekly into his eyes and said, "General Corin, I don't know what to call you…"

General Corin laughed, gave Crystal another hug, and said, "That's sweet of you to say, but you're family now; call me Arnold."