Roses are red, like blood

ROSE

ROSE. It was just a four letter word, but it was more than a word. It wasn't just a flower; no, it was much more than that. Tom slammed his car door shut as he got out of his car. He couldn't believe his father had kept such a thing from him for 18 years!

[Flashback]

Tom had just got out of school and was about to walk home, but he stopped when he saw a figure off in the distance that looked like his father. Naturally, he followed him only to find him disappearing into a dark alley. Tom found it weird how his dad always told him to always stay away from them. Yet here they were, both plunging into the deep unknown. As he ventured deeper in the alley, Tom did not notice the three men in black suits following him.

Tom soon got lost in the alley. He never thought this path would branch out this much. He rarely got lost;, Tom had a natural sense of direction. But as Tom was wondering where the end of the alley could actually be, a cloth was pressed right against his mouth. Although Tom tried not to breathe, he couldn't hold his breath any longer and after inhaling, he felt his consciousness drifting away from him.

When Tom woke up, he noticed his hands and feet were bound to a very stable-looking chair. His head jerked up immediately at the sound of a door opening. He had to squint his eyes due to the brightness coming from the other side. Ton was hauled up to his feet by a tough looking man and was forced to start walking forward through maze-like corridors. He was sure that the man was walking through more hallways than necessary so that Tom couldn't memorize the way out. Alas, they had finally stopped in front of two metal doors. The tall masculine guy banged his hand on the door in some sort of secret code-like rhythm. After the series of knocks, the two doors swung open silently. When they it did, he couldn't believe what he saw. Rows and rows of arms lined all four walls of the room all of them locked and loaded, each and every gun expensive enough to be able to break a man's bank. As his eyes trailed the wall, he realized that he was in mafia territory. Shaken to the bone, Tom asked the man who was silently observing him where he was. The man silently answered "The Boss's office" before untying the rope binding his hands and feet then turning around and leaving. Tom looked around the room. He thought about arming himself with a gun and busting himself out of here but noticed alarms on each gun. He figured they would ring once he got the weapon out of its place. Even if he managed to get one out, he realized that he had no clue about where he was, how long he had been here, or if someone actually knew he was there. His dad must be worried sick. Tom's mother had ran away three years after giving birth to Tom. Tom wasn't close to his dad at all. His father always had something work-related to do. As he was thinking this, Tom heard the door open behind him so he whirled around and was shocked to see his father there with a blank expression on his face.

"What are you doing here dad?! Did they kidnap you too? Where am I?!" Tom shouted

"You're still in Seattle, no they didn't kidnap me, as for what I'm doing here," said his dad, "Tthis is my office."

[Back to present]

Tom recalled how cold his father had been to him after telling this to him. He was forced to leave and drive home to his home (Tom's dad and Tom liveds in the penthouse suite of a five star hotel). Tom was also threatened not to speak a word of this to anyone. When he got home, he found a contract on his table along with a note saying "Sign it". Tom assumed the note was from his dad and read the contract but nearly dropped it when he read the first sentence.

"I Tom Rose hereby accept the position of second-in-command to the ROSE mafia group"