Page 2 of Brutal Don

When Cara woke up in a cage, she understood it hadn’t been a nightmare at all. She still felt groggy and nauseous. Trying to sit up felt like an Olympian task. At the very least, she fought to remain conscious.

Gripping the cold metal bars of the cage told her this was reality. Cara still couldn’t believe what happened to her. She vaguely recalled a news report about several missing women, individuals taken right off the streets only two neighborhoods from where she lived.

Cara thought nothing of it, because awful things like that happened all the time in the world. She just never expected to become a victim herself. Quiet despair filled her. What were the kidnappers’ plans for her now? In some of the crime shows she watched, heroes would always rescue those who were abducted.

Cara didn’t believe in white knights. They only existed in fictional works. No one would be looking for her either. Her father was dead and she had few friends.

Working all the time prevented her from growing her social circle. In essence, Cara was the perfect victim. No one would miss her.

Tears filled her eyes but she hastily swiped them away. Her father didn’t teach her to be a quitter. First, Cara had to control her nerves. Panicking wouldn’t do her any good. Cara breathed in and out and counted to twenty silently in her head. So many “what if” scenarios ran in her head but she had to push away her fear for now.

She studied her surroundings. Cara had been shoved into a large cage she suspected was specially made to house large merchandise. There were other cages next to hers, all of them empty. What did that mean? That she was the first of this batch taken, or was she the last to be shipped out? She thought “batch” was an appropriate word.

Judging by the twelve cages and the reinforced windowless room, she had a feeling these bastards had been running this operation for a long time.

Was escape a possibility? Cara had too little information to work on right now. She needed to know more about her captors, about how they ran this sick op of theirs. Cara was still trying to come up with solutions when the door to the room opened.

Familiarity hit her as she spotted the bald, muscular man with the hideous neck tattoo. He beamed at her, flashing her a mouthful of black and yellowing teeth which he or someone had sharpened into fine points to look like fangs.

“Hello there, Beautiful. You’re going to fetch us a nice fat paycheck. They’re going to love you,” he said, crooning to her like she was some pet or animal.

“Why is that?” Cara managed to whisper.

“Most merchandise who find themselves in your position would be screaming or begging by now, but you, you’re levelheaded. You fought me yesterday night as well. They like fighters.” Bald Guy grinned. “They’re more fun to break, you see?”

A chill went down her spine at those words. Cara was beyond terrified. She wasn’t levelheaded at all, but the last thing she wanted to do was show this creature she was afraid. Cara dug her nails into the palms of her hands. Bald Guy called her “merchandise,” which only affirmed this was some kind of trafficking operation. Also, he basically told her she’d been out cold for hours.

Bald Guy received a phone call. The chirpy sound of his ringtone made the fine hairs on her arms rise.

“Got it. I’ll dress the product up and bring her to the stage,” Bald Guy said.

Product?Cara gritted her teeth. She had a name, damn it, and she was a person, not a thing that could be bought.

Bald Guy pulled a key ring from his back pocket and showed her a silver key. “Let me give you some advice, Beautiful. It would be in your best interest to behave. You’ll sell for less if you have marks on you, but I won’t hesitate to hurt you. You understand?”

He unlocked the cage and Cara stared at the open door for a few seconds. Cara debated making a run for it, but had a feeling she wouldn’t get far. She had to play this safe, not reckless. Cara took her time and crawled out of the cage. She still wore the same waitress uniform she had on last night, but Bald Guy mentioned something about dressing her up. Just thinking about him helping her dress made her shudder in revulsion.

Bald Guy beamed at her like she was a dog that just performed a complicated trick. “So, you can be taught, but your good girl act doesn’t fool me one bit. You’re going to bolt the moment you see an opening, am I right?”

She didn’t answer him. He only laughed. “That’s good. I envy the buyer who will get you. I bet he or she will have a ton of fun.”

Chapter Two

Dante Massimo listened with a bored ear as his younger brother Lucas excitedly droned on about tonight’s exclusive auction.Dante only went to events like these for one reason—to remind all the big players in the city that the Massimo Familia truly controlled Ringsor City.

“What time will this auction end?” Dante interrupted Lucas.

Malik, Dante’s second-in-command, gave him a concerned look, which Dante ignored. Malik knew Dante was in a foul mood these days and for a good reason.

One family had been pushing at Dante’s buttons lately. The Gambinos claimed they had nothing to do with the missing shipment of drugs that mysteriously disappeared from the docks three nights ago. Malik just informed him before they left the house that a runner for the Gambinos had been seen on one of the dock’s security cameras. Dante cracked his inked knuckles. He’d always prioritized business over everything else. That was one of the traits that made him a good Don.

Now that he’d gotten proof that the Gambinos were to blame for the loss of a nearly half a million in revenue, he needed to respond in kind. He always enjoyed this aspect of his work—retaliation.Dante planned to show every other crime family in the city what the Massimo Family did to those foolish enough to cross them.

“Why? Do you have any other place to be tonight?” Lucas asked with a scoff.

Lucas checked his reflection using his phone camera. Women in the family claimed Lucas was the refined version of Dante and their deceased father Leonardo, the former Don.

Dante had to admit he made a mistake in Lucas. Lucas was too vain and spoiled for his own good. After Leonardo died in a rain of gunfire, Dante took over the family business.

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