Half A Heartbeat Away

08

•Beckham Blackford•

Waking up to the ringing of my phone, I let my eyes droop open and answer in undeniable gruffness.

"Talk".

It was 8 a.m and whomever wanted to interrupt my sleep, had better gotten a bloody good reason for it. Out comes the voice of my second in command.

"Morning, boss. We got bloody Keto in, he's detained in the warehouse downtown ready for questioning".

Excellent. Keto was the guy we've been suspicious of, so I sent dozens of my men to surveillance him. Follow him wherever he went. Once he starts acting fishy, I told them to detain him.

I liked the sound of that, before I could even notice, I was up and about walking straight to the bathroom to take a shower.

"Good, I'll be there in an hour, nobody talks to him until I reach there. Also, mindless to say, top security at his cell". I instructed.

"Of course, got it, boss" Dano responded before the call cut and I placed the phone on the counter and jumped into the shower. The cold water hit my shoulders, awakening my sleeping form. The shower was undoubtedly useless, seeing I was about to get my hands all bloody in about an hour with the little rat we've managed to catch.

I finished my shower and got dressed peacefully, which was a surprise considering the kids' constant need to have me around lately. Whether it was a nightmare, hunger, difficulty getting dressed or whatever. I took a look at my watch, only to note it's quarter to nine and still no sound. I strode to their room, finding it empty. The clanking and chatter from downstairs didn't escape my ears.

I descended downstairs only to come to an unusual sight in the kitchen. The kids all dressed up and neat, seated at the table having breakfast while Milena was intently listening to Lily whom was chatting endlessly, at the same time, stuffing her face with food.

"Daddy, daddy! You have to taste the pancakes Milena made, they're so yummy" Come out Lily's joyful exclamation. She was always so cheery in the mornings. I took a quick glance to my watch, finding it already ten to nine.

"I can see sweetie. I'm not hungry though. I have to go to work, and you and Soir need to be dropped off to kindergarten". I said and she nodded her head in agreement.

"Come on honey, get finished so you can go to school". Milena said while brushing Lily's hair away from her face and I wondered when the two had bonded long enough to be on endearment basis. I made sure to get a maid to grab their bags and stuff and I stood there quietly reading updates off my phone while Milena gathered the dishes into the sink in order to wash them. Each to their own business, it was a sort of a silent agreement to not admit the other's existence.

Few minutes later, they were both done and ready as we boarded the car to reach their school.

After I dropped them both off, I drove hastily to the warehouse, the thought of getting closer and closer to my wife's killer only made my jaw tighten, and my hands clench around the steering wheel in a death grip.

I walked into the building, a few men and women here and there greeting me along the way. I kept my nonchalant expression on my face and went straight to the detaining cells.

"Where is he?" I ask one of the men guarding the cells.

"In cell 204, Dano's inside as well, waiting for you, boss" He answers and I nod my head and start taking off my suit jacket and rolling the sleeves of my dress shirt.

I enter the cell to find they've confined him to a chair in the middle of the room with duct tape covering his mouth. It can barely be described as a room because it had no windows or any other furniture, besides the small coffee table the held some guns and knives.

Dano was standing in a corner, smoking a cigarette, once he saw me inter he crushed it underneath the boot of his shoe. He straightens up "Good thing you're here, I was having difficulty with waiting for you and not beat him up myself" His usual smirk made it way onto his lips and I kept my motionless expression.

I strode lightly to where he is, his eyes widened a good measure upon seeing me. Good, he knows he's screwed. I quickly tore it off his face, while he hissed at the pain.

"You're going to make this easy or do I have to get my hands all sweaty and bloody?" I asked in a dark tone, while he nods his head frantically.

"I don't know anything! I-I swear" He starts jiggling the chair and I near him with slowness.

"Fine, you chose the bloody hard way" I threaten as I punched him straight in the face which turned red upon meeting my fist.

"My men have proof of you talking to Dimitri" I announce and his eyes bulge in fear.

"No no, it must be a misunderstanding" He defends himself, I pick up a knife and start cutting paper thin cuts, the blood slowly but surely oozing out of him; some even dirtying my white button shirt.

"Who sent you?" I yell in his face, waiting till he cracks and gives me an answer.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I-I hadn't done anything" He keeps defending himself, but it was useless. I had concrete photographs of him meeting up with the people whom supposedly murdered Celia.

"WHO MURDERED MY WIFE?" I screamed with ferocity and when he didn't answer, I picked up a gun off the table and shot him in the kneecap. He hissed in pain and shuddered from the blood dripping on the floor.

"I-I don't know anything, l-let me go!" He kept insisting he knew nothing.

A knock sounded on the door, I let out a quick 'come in'. One of my men stepped in and nodded "Sir".

I nodded off and he stepped closer and whispered in my ear "We've identified whom he had been talking to" He said and I nodded. Perfect news. It means I don't need him anymore.

A smirk appeared on my face and I stared at his cowering face. He must've understood the look in my eyes for which he opened his mouth and started mumbling "I, i have met up wi-".

Before Keto could finish his sentence, I blew a shot into his skull, shutting him up for once and for all.

"Clean this up" I told Dano and he nodded quickly, pulling out his phone and calling the cleaning crew.

The mess of red stenches my shirt, some even on my bare hands, as I walked away in a an urging primal need to wipe it off and change into fresh clothes.

I took a quick shower in my office and gotten a change of clothes. In the meantime my trustees had been organizing everything they'd discovered into a file so I can have a look at it once it's finished.

I spent a few more hours in the office, reviewing some papers, until dawnfall came and it was time to head back.