Kidnapped By The Mafia

Stakes

•Noah Verlice•

The rain was pounding heavily against the windshield and the wipers were struggling to keep up, flicking back and forth furiously. The visibility was nearly zero and the headlights barely pierced through the thickness of the rain. My knuckles were turning white on the steering wheel, the leather felt cool and damp beneath my trembling hands. The car's engine roared in protest as I pushed the accelerator to the floor, the speedometer needle going dangerously high.

Every fiber of my being screamed for answers, for a way to gain control the situation slipping out of my hands. Only one name cane to my thoughts and refused to leave. Xander Marcellus.

I barely registered the security gates opening. I parked the car and I jumped out, not bothering to even shut the door and dashed through the downpour to the front door, the rain soaking me to the bone in seconds.

Ignoring the shocked and concerned stares of the servants, I stormed towards the staircase. The heavy oak doors of the office splintered against the wall with a crash as I flung them open. He was there, just as I'd pictured. Perched on his high backed leather chair, dressed all in black, his green eyes gleaming with maddening nonchalance. He didn't even look up from his laptop.

I hated how unbothered he looked. It was like he knew I'd come, like he had planned this out, every last detail.

"You motherfucker." The words erupted from within me. "You're behind all of this bullshit, aren't you?"

He didn't even flinch, just a slow, deliberate closing of his laptop. His green eyes snapped up to meet my blue ones. There was no surprise in them, he didn't even look bothered. It was almost as if he had been expecting me.

I was furious. I could feel the rage boiling over inside me. This whole fiasco has pushed me to the brink and I could think of only one person who would want to see me fall so spectacularly, and he was sitting right in front of me.

"Be more specific, Verlice." Said he.

"You're the one stirring up the Moon case with that private investigator. Don't you play dumb with me."

My hands itched to reach across the desk and strangle him. I wanted to kill him. I really did. It would be easy. His bodyguards aren't around and I'm better at hand to hand combat than him. And I don't see a gun on him either. I just need one opening...

A slow smile, devoid of humor, stretched across his face.

"And what exactly would make you think it was me?" His voice was calm.

Who else could it fucking be?

"What the fuck are you trying to do, Marcellus?" I forced the words out, my voice a low growl.

"You know damn fucking well what I'm doing." He growled, slamming his fists on the table. "I will make sure you see the inside of a jail cell. There's no fucking way you'll walk around as if you haven't done anything."

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. "Are you pulling up all this for Melena? Really want her to hate me that bad, huh? You're still the same idiotic fool, Marcellus. What, can't take a little competition? Even now?"

He stood up, the veins in his neck popping up. "I will make you regret the day you ever crossed me." He promised me. "You can pretend to be unbothered but I know damn well as this case comes out again, you'll try the same old tricks to not pledge guilty. And I promise you, I will make sure you won't escape this."

I won't lie, it took everything in me not to lunge at him. But I kept my cool. Barely. Because no matter how much I wanted to tear him apart, I knew that's exactly what he wanted.

"Oh, shut the fuck up." I scoffed. "You're so fucking desperate, dude. Get a grip on yourself. These stupid threats won't do shit to me or my reputation. Go ahead, try as much as you want. You will never be able to frame me. You already failed once. Go on, try again."

"You really think you can get away for a second time?" He asked, amused. "You think you can just pay off the jury again and be done with it?"

I clenched my jaw at his words. He was seriously starting to piss me off.

"You're in denial, Marcellus. You're too fucked in the head to accept the fact that her disappearance wasn't some shitty foul play. I know it kills you still when you think about her, about how they both chose me over you-"

"One more word," His tone suddenly changed, he met my eye with a promise. "And I shoot you."

I laughed a harsh, humorless sound.

"Shoot me?" I challenged, walking forward and loomed over his desk. Did he really think I was that stupid? We were both high profile businessmen with eyes and ears everywhere. A bullet would leave a messy trail, sure. But, it'd be a trail that would lead straight back to him.

"You wouldn't dare." I smirked at his state. "After all, we both know this game."

His gaze drifted down to the picture frame on his desk. It was Rhea, captured in a moment of carefree laughter, her eyes sparkling with a life. I remember that day because I was there too and it was my fucking joke she was laughing at.

I can't believe he still keeps her pictures with him, especially with Mel around. And knowing him I bet he hasn't told her a single thing about his past.

About our past.

Somehow, every memory, every moment he had and shared with her connected itself back to me.

And I knew it killed him.

My fave broke into a smile as I started at his poker face. "What? Did it hit a nerve?"

He smiled in return.

"This has nothing to do with games, Verlice. I'm not as petty as you. This is about what has happened to Melena." His voice hardened, a steely glint entering his eyes. "And I won't let you do to her what you did to Rhea."

"You think you can dig up some dirt from six years ago and have me gone from her life?"

"I don't need proof." He countered, his voice taking on a chilling calmness. "All I need is a little nudge in the right direction. I need answers. I don't know what the fuck you were doing that night with her but I swear to god, Verlice, if you have something to do with her."

He didn't even need to finish his sentence.

I didn't say anything either.

I couldn't.

He reached into his desk drawer, the glint of metal catching my eye. My breath hitched. Was it a gun? No, it was a lighter. He snapped it open, the flame was like a tiny light in the gloom.

"Wouldn't it be ironic?" He continued, his voice a soft murmur. "If the very fire that was used to silence her became your end?"

He flicked the lighter shut, the click echoing in the uncomfortable silence. I knew then that this wasn't just about revenge. This was about winning. He wouldn't just try to take me down.

He was trying to push me over the edge, to make me lose control. But I wasn't going to give him that. Not now, not ever.

Because I knew that if I did, if I let myself fall into his trap, it would be the end of everything. The end of me.As he sat there, threatening me with his pathetic lighter, I realized something.

This wasn't just about revenge for him. It was about proving something, about proving that he could take me down, that he could erase me completely.

But he was wrong. Because no matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, he would never win.

I wouldn't let him.

___________________________

Hey loves, sorry for taking forever to upload. Been really busy with university work. I shall get back to posting more consistently soon! Until then, happy reading<33

(This chapter will definitely undergo some serious editing.)