One and a Half Years Ago
"So, if we get the port under our territory, that would an nothing but good things—money, free transfers, and the ability to tax others." Hector said, drawing a circle on the map.
Jas barely paid attention. His thoughts lingered on the consequences—if he took the port, people would die.
Before Hector could continue, Ferucci burst through the door.
"We found it." He sat down, his finger stabbing at a point on the map. "The hangar, just outside the city. It used to be an old factory. And it's exactly what you said."
"Fuck..." Jas leaned back, clutching his head. "How bad is it?" His gaze locked onto Ferucci's eyes, demanding the truth.
"Really bad." Ferucci exhaled. "There are at least 30 won." His voice lowered. "And they're selling them. But before that, they... 'break' them in."
Jas's blood boiled. His heart pounded in his chest, a deep, raw fury taking hold—far beyond anger. His fists clenched, his knuckles turning white, veins bulging.
"Without rcy." He growled.
"Of course." Ferucci said, standing up.
But Jas stood too, gripping Ferucci's shoulder with a force that sent a chill down his spine.
"Without a drop of rcy. Do you understand?"
Jas's grip tightened, his fingers digging in like iron. Ferucci didn't even dare to speak. He just nodded.
"Call when it's finished." Jas said, sitting back down, his leg shaking uncomfortably.
He had experience with this.
Because once, a dear high school friend of his had been kidnapped. What they did to that innocent 15-year-old was so horrific that her father took his own life, unable to bear the guilt of failing to protect her.
Her life was stolen. And not long after, she ended it herself.
That beautiful girl, soone so close to Jas, was gone.
After that, he made a promise to himself, if he ever had the power to protect soone, he would.
And after everything that had happened to him, the misunderstandings, the chaos he could protect people now.
"Should I get sothing to drink?" Hector asked as he observed Jas, sensing the rage boiling inside him.
"Sothing strong." Jas muttered.
Hector brought a bottle of whiskey, and they drank in silence until Jas' phone rang.
"We're done." Ferucci said on the other end of the line. "But there's a problem. If you could co here, that would be good."
Without hesitation, Jas stood up, grabbing his coat. Hector joined him, and they drove to the location with a few n accompanying them.
The sight before them was grim.
A rusted hangar stood in the middle of nowhere, its windows shattered.
As they stepped inside, the stench hit them imdiately a mix of blood, sweat, and sothing far worse. The air was thick with it, suffocating.
Rows of cages lined the walls, each filled with won. So were curled up in the corners, others stared blankly, their eyes hollow, as if their souls had already left them.
Jas' gaze drifted downward. The bodies of the n responsible for this horror lay scattered across the floor, lifeless and drenched in blood.
Ferucci stood among them, lighting a cigarette with shaky hands. "We left one alive... if you want him to talk."
Jas turned his head slowly, his expression unreadable. In the dim light, he saw a man tied to a chair, his face already swollen and bloodied.
Hector stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. "Your call, Jas."
He exhaled sharply, stepping closer. The man's eyes flickered with desperation as he recognized the one approaching him—the one who decided if he lived or died.
Kneeling down to et his gaze, Jas spoke in a low, controlled voice.
"Start talking."
"Please, I have a family..." the man begged, his voice trembling with desperation.
Jas started laughing—a cold, empty laugh that made even his own n take a step back. The rage in his eyes was sothing they had seen before, but never quite like this.
"Family?" Jas repeated, his tone laced with pure contempt. His gaze shifted to the side, landing on one of the cages. Inside, a woman, maybe the sa age as he, sat curled up, her body trembling.
His grip tightened. "Give your knife," he said, extending his hand toward Ferucci. Without hesitation, Ferucci handed it over.
Jas swiftly cut the ropes binding the man.
"Th—thank—"
Before the bastard could finish, Jas grabbed him by the hair and dragged him toward the cage. The man scread and struggled, but Jas was stronger. He slamd the man's face against the cold tal bars.
"Look!" Jas growled, his voice filled with fury.
The man whimpered, but Jas wasn't done. He yanked his head back and smashed it against the bars again.
"Look at her!" He shouted.
The girl inside flinched, her wide, broken eyes filled with silent terror.
"Isn't she beautiful?!" Jas hissed, his grip never loosening. "Isn't she an innocent woman?!"
Another brutal slam. Blood sared against the cage.
"Answer !"
"Y-yes," the man choked out, his breath shaky. "She... she is..."
Jas slamd his head against the bars again, harder this ti.
Blood sared across the rusted tal.
"Then tell , where was her family when you did this to her? Where was her father? Her mother?" He yanked the man's head back, forcing him to look directly at the girl. "You took everything from her, and now you beg for your family?"
The man sobbed, his body writhing under Jas' grip. "P-please... I-I had no choice... they made do it... I—"
Jas' grip tightened, his jaw clenching. His body was shaking—not from anger alone, but from sothing deeper, sothing that had been buried inside him for too long.
"No choice?" He let out a bitter laugh. "You had a choice every single ti you locked those cages, every ti you watched them suffer. And now, you get to suffer too."
He pressed the knife against the man's throat. The room was silent except for the soft gasps of the survivors and the shuffling of Hector and Ferucci, who stood back, watching.
But before he could answer, a low, broken voice spoke.
"Am I beautiful?"
Jas looked up at the woman in the cage. Her face was swollen and bruised, but her eyes were wide open, tears streaming down her cheeks as she slowly crawled toward the bars.
"Is that true...?"
Jas let go of the man, stepping closer to the cage. Carefully, he reached his hand through the bars, gently touching the girl's face.
"You are truly beautiful..." He said softly.
At his words, the woman let out a heart-wrenching scream, crying at the top of her lungs, her voice filled with pain and despair.
Her cries echoed through the empty hangar, a sound so raw and broken that it sent chills down the spines of everyone present.
And then Jas said to the man, "Run."
The man looked up, his head bleeding, his face twisted in fear and confusion.
"I said run." Jas repeated, his voice eerily calm.
The man struggled to his feet, his legs shaking beneath him, but he obeyed. He turned and started running, stumbling over the bodies of his fallen comrades as he made his way toward the hangar doors.
As he ran, Jas spoke again.
"Ferucci."
Ferucci said nothing in response.
The man barely made it a few steps before the gunfire tore through him.
His body jerked violently as the bullets ripped into his flesh, sending him crashing face-first into the dirt. The shots kept coming until there was nothing left but a lifeless, mangled corpse.
Ferucci lowered his gun, blowing out a sharp breath. "No rcy," he muttered, echoing Jas' words from earlier.
The hangar was silent again, except for the quiet sobbing of the won still trapped in the cages. Jas turned back to them, his eyes dark, unreadable. "Get them out," he repeated. "Now."
Hector stepped forward, his face unreadable as he signaled to the n. They moved quickly, unlocking the cages, helping the won out one by one. So collapsed the mont they were free, their legs too weak to hold them up. Others clung to their rescuers, shaking uncontrollably.
Jas stood there, watching. His body felt like it was burning from the inside out. He wanted to scream, to tear the whole damn place apart with his bare hands. But he didn't. Instead, he turned and walked out, stepping over the dead without a second glance.
"Hector," Jas stated, "I will pay for all of their dical expenses, and after that, make sure to buy them houses and give them enough money to start their lives."
"No problem." Hector replied.
"Let's get the fuck out of here," Jas said. But as he started walking, soone pinched him from behind. When he turned around, he saw the won standing there.
"You are safe now and will be safe for the rest of your life." He said, gently patting her head before turning away. But the woman's grip remained firm.
"Your na..." She said in a low voice.
"Jas Bellini. And yours, beautiful?"
The girl's eyes widened, suddenly filled with life despite the horrors she had endured.
"Bella, Bella Hone."
As the girl said her na, Jas saw blood pouring from her side—a lot of blood. Without a second thought, he grabbed her and kissed her, transferring the dicine hidden in his fake tooth.
And that day, that kiss ant sothing greater to Bella Hone than Jas could ever imagine.
That girl beca soone who would make a na for herself in less than a year and rise as a powerful figure.
And then she was there on Jas' side.
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