Page 47 of King

A few minutes later the goon drags in a prisoner.

A man - blindfolded and bound at the wrists, filthy, coated in blood, his skin torn and bruised. His front teeth are missing, punched out or pulled with pliers, it’s hard to tell.

My stomach twists. I’ve never seen someone who’s been tortured before. And that is obviously what’s happened here.

Tensing, I sit up straighter in my seat and glance at Giovanni. A sly smile drifts over his lips. He wanted me to see this. Maybe he knew all along.

“Did you get anything from him?” he asks without emotion. My eyes are torn between Giovanni and the prisoner. My heart is beating fast I watch them both.

Marcus nods. “He mentioned our old friend Emiliano. But he didn’t give any specifics.” My chest tightens at the mention of that name.

“I see.” Giovanni says, walking towards the prisoner. The goon pushes the prisoner down into a chair and he lets out a yelp of surprise. Giovanni slowly pulls his blindfold down and the prisoner blinks rapidly, squinting against the bright lights above him.

He narrows his eyes and sneers at Giovanni who is standing over him.

“Do you work for Emiliano?”

“Fuck you.” The man snarls.

He’s about to spit blood at Giovanni when his eyes catch sight of me. His mouth drops open and his eyes narrow with malice.

“Pretty little fucking thing. Something so pretty should watch her step in this world.” He snorts laughter and Giovanni’s eyes darken with anger.

He pulls his gun from the shoulder holster and flicks the safety off.

“Do you know her?” he growls, pressing the gun into the top of the man’s knee.

He laughs. “If you let me fuck her, maybe it’ll jolt my memory about whether I know her or not.” He licks his blood stained, bruised lips, his eyes devouring me from across the table.

The loud snap of a single gunshot bites into my ears and I jump in my seat, my heartbeat tripling in speed. My breathing is faster, sharper, but I try to cover my shock, noticing that no one else in the room is surprised by Giovanni’s cruel and violent display of power.

The prisoner is screaming.

He’s leaning forward and clutching at his knee. Blood bubbles from the hole in his leg and flows down onto the floor forming a puddle around his foot. His face is distorted in pain.

“What the fuck?” The prisoner spits, tears streaming over his face, streaking against the grime.

“Nobody threatens Zina.” Giovanni says darkly. He turns to look around the room. “Does everyone understand that?” he asks, and men quickly nod, glancing at me, then back at Giovanni. “She is under my protection. I want my enemies to know that. Send a clear message. Use his body, make it look good, leave it somewhere they can find it.” Without looking at the prisoner he lifts his gun towards the man and fires a single shot into his skull.

The men standing and sitting within range of him get sprayed in a fountain of blood, brains and bone fragments as the bullet erupts from the back of the prisoner’s skull and smacks into the concrete wall, missing one of the goons, but coming close enough to make him yelp.

In slow motion the dead man rocks forward, Giovanni steps aside and lets him fall into the concrete floor, his face landing with a wet slap against the ground.

I press my lips together, fighting the surge of nausea churning in my stomach.

Giovanni turns to look at me and his eyes are so dark they’re almost black. One corner of his mouth curls upwards in a dangerous smile. My heart beats faster and my body floods with desire despite the gory scene behind him.

His darkness, his power and the ruthless way he was willing to declare his protection over me - it’s incredibly enticing.

Despite knowing better - I can’t help but be attracted to this side of him.

Giovanni slides the gun back into its holster and walks to me. He holds out his hand. “Come, let’s go.” He says calmly.

I place my hadn’t in his and he lifts me to my feet. When his eyes lock with mine, a smile spreads over my lips. I bite my lower lip, fighting the wild urge to kiss him.

“Marcus.” Giovanni says, turning towards the other man. “Good job with getting that information. See what else you can find out.”

“Will do.” Marcus says. He gestures over the body and nods towards the goons. “Clean this up. We have work to do.”

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