The car had stopped. She didn't know what was happening but her abductor had left the car to chat with someone outside. She could just hear their muffled voices conversing in Spanish. Her knife, phone and money had been confiscated, and her bag searched.
The door was tugged open roughly. A different man stood there.
'The Boss wants to see you.'
Hana stared mutely at the hulking figure. She noticed the outline of a revolver under his fitting shirt, then cautiously swung a foot onto the pavement. Apparently, her movements were too slow for she found herself being grabbed by her arm and dragged out of the vehicle.
'Hurry up!' he snapped.
Hana scrambled to catch up. She vaguely realised that they were at the back of some buildings. The stench of trash and the heat from vents made her giddy.
'Let go!' she exclaimed. His hold was too tight and his gait too fast. Her arm was about to be wrenched off its socket and her skin was about to be ripped off.
She brought her face to the man's arm and bit down hard.
His reaction was instantaneous.
'Bitch!' he snarled as he grabbed her by her coat and flung her to the ground.
Her hands instinctually flew to her belly
'Do that again,' he growled, 'and I'll do more than just throw you.'
~
A live jazz band was playing on a stage to groups of well-dressed men who sat around polished wood tables, smoking and drinking, and appearing to discuss important matter with their equally important looking counterparts. Dim strobe lights hung from the ceilings, casting a soft glow around the space. The atmosphere was almost classy, as if she had stepped into a gentlemen's club, and the girls dressed in identical skin-tight outfits were merely servers and nothing more.
That was all she could take in before she was shoved up the stairs and into a dark room on the second floor. The air was doused in a combination of cologne, alcohol and cigarette smoke. She wrinkled her nose as she was prodded further into the room.
A large semi-circular sofa took up most of the space in the room and sprawled on it was Juan Gonzales with a glass in one hand.
'The girl's here,' the man said before he stepped out and shut the door behind him.
Juan's eyes slowly opened as he lazily pushed himself up into a sitting position. As her eyes adjusted to the lighting, she realised how his cheekbones were jutting out from his skin and how dark the circles beneath his eyes were. He didn't appear well.
'Hana,' he said, his voice heavy as if it had taken him some effort to speak. He didn't even lift his head. 'Come sit here.'
She gingerly sat herself on the edge of the sofa. Somehow, seeing him so exhausted and weak didn't scare her.
He reached for a bottle on the table, then tipped its contents into his glass.
'Want a drink?' He shot her a glance. His green eyes were bloodshot.
'No,' she mumbled.
'Not even a cola?'
'No.'
'More for me, then.'
Juan took a sip of his drink and slumped back onto the couch. Then he passed his free hands over his eyes and scrubbed his face, as if trying to dispel some invisible ache. He groaned something in his native tongue but she quite ignored him.
The table was littered with empty bottles, spilled alcohol, and peanut shells. How much had he drunk? No wonder he looked awful. Darts for the currently filled dart board were scattered around, and one was within reach. She could grab it if the need arose.
Then his head lolled to the side and his startling green eyes fixed on her. They were glazed over. He slowly reached a hand out as if wanting to touch her face but she shrank back before he could do so and his hand remained hanging in mid-air.
'You're a nice girl,' he mumbled.
'I don't think we're here to discuss my niceness,' she snapped.
His hand returned to his side as if in defeat, but the crooked grin remained on his face.
'Do you know why you're here?' he asked her.
'How would I know?' she grumbled. Obviously, she was some sort of bait, wasn't she?
'You aren't so smart, are you?' When she remained silent, he went on, 'You're my bait.'
She could almost imagine herself hanging on the end of a hook, dangled over Leon's snapping jaws.
'I'm an attention seeker, you see,' Juan continued. 'And one person I especially want attention from is from Leonidas Federov. My men tell me he got into an accident and was arrested.'
What?! Her eyes widened at the news. No way!
'Once he's released, the first thing he will do is to look for you. Then I'll finally get my revenge on him.'
'He got into an accident?' she murmured under her breath, her mind reeling. That couldn't be the truth. She had just seen him this morning. How was he? Was he alright?
'That man you married,' Juan started with a dazzling grin. 'He's a murderer, you know? A bloody monster.'
'I know,' she muttered dully. She hoped Leon was alright.
'No, you don't!' he shouted, startling her out of her reverie. He shot abruptly to his feet, staggering a little as he shook a finger in front of her face. 'You. You don't know what he can do because you've never seen it before.'
She raised her eyes to him, aware of the danger she was in. Juan was raving, the alcohol taking control of his faculties.
'Have you ever seen someone die in front of you?'
She slowly nodded her head.
'Have you seen someone kill a person in front of you?'
She shook her head.
'Ha!' He dropped onto the sofa beside her. 'Too well protected, are you, princess?'
'I'm not a princess,' she bit back. 'I'm trained to take care of myself.'
'And what does training do for you?' he snapped. 'Training doesn't prepare you for when you see the people you love get killed in front of you!'
'What are you talking about?' she asked quietly.
'Are you finally starting to understand? Why I hate your husband so much?'
'He – killed someone you love?' The words were difficult to say. She didn't want to believe it. The Leon she knew and loved was different from the Leon who operated mercilessly in the underworld. And after all this trouble, it was all boiled down to the fact that Leon had killed someone precious to Juan?
She looked down at her feet because his eyes were glistening with tears. She didn't dare to feel the pain he currently felt. To do so was disloyal.
'He killed the people I love,' he whispered harshly. 'My father, my friend, they died because of him!'
Her head popped up and her eyes widened.
'He didn't kill your father. He said that!'
A scoff left him.
'Oh, he killed my father alright. He stormed into my house one day with his men and demanded for us to leave his turf. I must say he's fucking daring. Which boss goes straight into an enemy's home?' A heavy sigh left him as he scrubbed his face with a hand. 'I couldn't even get to my father. None of us could. My father was sitting in his study, having a heart attack, and you know what Leon did?'
'He fucking did nothing,' he went on, his voice oddly calm. 'He just stood there in front of my father and fucking smiled! The pills were there in front of him but he didn't do anything. He just let a man die!'
'After that,' he continued, 'he killed off everyone in the house. Twenty-three men in total. He let me and five other girls go. And you know what he said? He said 'Well, someone has to bury the dead.''
The tears were gone, only to be replaced by a bright smile.
'Now, Hana, do you understand why I hate him so much?'
~
She was numb. His story shocked her. The person she loved could be a heartless man, and it scared her.
But what were you expecting when you married him?
'I'm sorry,' she whispered, her words barely audible. 'Now I know.'
'I'll be taking you to a place where all the other girls are staying. When you're there, you have to behave. You'll have duties to perform.'
Duties!
'I want you to bring me my food every night,' he went on.
An arm snapped her back. She was wrenched about and she came to an abrupt stop against him. Pure revulsion caused her to shudder but his fingers were tight on her arm where he'd grabbed her and another arm was an iron band around her waist, holding her in place.
'I forgot to mention one more thing,' he whispered.
She tried not to gag on the alcoholic fumes in her face.
'I may be friendly with you, but I have rules too. And one of them is to listen to the things that I say, including the things that I don't say.'
She blinked wildly, trying to ignore the stares of his guards.
'When I hold out my hand to you,' he continued, 'what should you do?'
She swallowed hard.
'Take it,' she said softly.
'Good girl. You learn fast, don't you?'
'Are you scared of me?' he breathed.
Of course not! But her heart thudded wildly and she turned her face away. Her mouth remained glued shut
He pressed his fingers into the soft flesh of her neck, and in that instant, she could feel her rapid pulse. It was tremendously fast.
She wasn't scared of him. Yazumi Hana wasn't scared of punks who threatened her. Yazumi Hana didn't let people trample over her. Yazumi Hana was –
She squeezed her eyes shut when he lowered his mouth to her ear.
'You'll be a good girl, won't you?' he whispered. His breath tickled her skin and she winced. 'Will you be good?'
'Y – yes,' she exhaled.
~
A/N: Remember to comment and vote!