Page 32 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

Chapter Nine

ORAZIO

––––––––

Anger coursed through Orazio’s veins as his mind raced, thoughts flicking from one dilemma to the next.Monique, Trevor, Meka, Toya, Cas, his father, and his uncle. There was so much for him to take care of, and he felt he wasn’t getting anything done.

At least not fast enough and not how he wanted to get things done. The med team had arrived and were taking care of Monique in the far corner of the warehouse. At the center of the establishment, Trevor was tied to a chair as Raz sat across from him, watching him.

Raz took in the bruises on Trevor’s face and his busted lip. Trevor blinked, his swollen eyes struggling to focus. Though the bastard’s face was covered in dark purplish bruises, Raz wasn’t satisfied. He felt he hadn’t put a good enough ass whipping on Trevor yet. He knew he hadn’t inflicted enough pain yet.

The darkness inside him wouldn’t be appeased until he’d made Trevor beg for his life at least a hundred times. However, Trevor had leverage:Monique’s friends. So, his darkness would have to wait.

“Where are they?” Orazio growled, his voice like gravel against pavement. He leaned forward, dark eyes locked onto Trevor’s.

Trevor smirked, blood oozing from his split lip. “I’ll tell you where Meka and Toya are if you let me go.”

Orazio clenched his fists, rage boiling within him. His mind raced through various ways to make Trevor suffer. Yet, he couldn’t act on any of them. Not yet. Just then, he heard a movement in the far corner of the warehouse where the med team worked diligently on Monique.

Though he told himself not to, Raz couldn’t help looking in that direction.Monique. She was so still. Her eyes were closed. But she was alive, and that was what mattered the most. For her sake, Orazio swallowed his anger and loosened his fists. He wouldn’t kill Trevor. Not yet.

“You actually love her, don’t you?” Trevor asked, speech garbled due to his busted lips. However, Orazio noticed the surprise that tinged his words.

“Don’t talk about her,” Raz growled, facing Trevor. “I want to talk about her friends. Where are they?”

“If I tell you right now, you’ll kill me. So, I want to negotiate a deal.”

This bitch. Orazio forced his anger down.

“Alright, let’s negotiate,” Orazio said, a dangerous edge to his voice. “What do you want in exchange for their lives?”

“I’m a simple man. And what I want is simple,” Trevor replied, attempting to sound confident despite his injuries. “Let me live, and give me the money the Don promised me. That’s all I want.”

As Trevor rattled off the amount he’d been promised, Orazio gritted his teeth, trying to contain the anger that threatened to consume him.

“I want one thing: Monique’s friends’ location. Yet, you’re asking for two: your life and money. Does that make sense to you?” Raz asked.

Trevor smirked, or at least he tried to. “Two lives are on the line. Seems fair to ask for two things in return.”

If Raz gritted his teeth any harder, he’d grind them to dust. Trevor’s audacity made Orazio want to slice the man’s throat right here, right now. He didn’t want to give Trevor anything, but he’d play along for now. For Monique’s friends, he would swallow his pride and indulge this piece of filth. But letting Trevor truly escape was another matter entirely.

“Fine,” Orazio agreed, his voice cold and restrained. “You have a deal.”

“That was easier than I’d thought,” Trevor managed, his smile more like a grimace.

Inside, Orazio seethed. This was far from over, and Trevor would learn that soon enough. No one crossed Orazio and lived to tell the tale. The bastard’s days were numbered, and each tick of the clock brought him closer to an inevitable and painful end. Trevor’s mangled grin only fueled Orazio’s burning hatred.

“Wire the money to me now. And I’ll contact you with Meka and Toya’s location once I’m away from this warehouse,” Trevor bargained.

“Absolutely not,” Orazio snarled. “You’re not leaving here until I have their location.”

“Look, they don’t have much time,” Trevor insisted, desperation creeping into his tone. “If you want them alive, you have to let me go. Now.”

He’d hoped the bitch would be stupid enough to reveal the duo’s location before leaving the building. Orazio’s anger surged. Fists clenched, he stood, eager to deliver another blow to Trevor’s battered face.

But Trevor’s words echoed in his mind.They don’t have much time. With a frustrated growl, he lowered his trembling fist. He’d have to let Trevor go for now, but Orazio vowed to hunt him down again.

“Fine, I’ll let you go now. But you don’t get the money until I get their location.”

---