"But anyway...we really fucked up, dealing with this nobody."
"Yeah." Ferucci muttered, running a hand through his hair. "We can't kill him, but he's seen our faces and knows our nas."
"Then let's cut out his tongue." She twirled the knife between her fingers.
Hector turned to her. "If we cut out his tongue, he can still use his fingers..."
Bella paused, then shrugged. "Then cut off his hands too."
Ferucci smirked, nodding along. "Not a bad idea. Maybe break all his fingers first, you know, just for fun."
"Then we need to blind him too." Hector added.
Bella snapped her fingers. "Ooh, good point. And we should break his legs before cutting it off."
Hector and Ferucci turned to her at the sa ti.
"His legs?" Hector asked, raising an eyebrow.
Bella rolled her eyes. "He can type with his toes."
There was a brief silence as the words settled.
Then Ferucci leaned down, poking Takoi's cheek with his boot. "So, we cut off his arms, legs, take out his tongue, and blind him..."
"Are we trying to turn him into a potato?" Hector laughed.
"Actually this is too much work. Let's just kill him."
"You were literally the one saying we couldn't kill him two minutes ago..." Hector rubbed his forehead.
Takoi let out another weak wheeze, like he wanted to say sothing. But honestly, after hearing their conversation, he was pretty sure words weren't going to help him anymore.
"I was really looking forward to a little more... entertainnt." Ferucci eyes flicked to Hector. "You sure we don't wanna at least take a finger?"
Takoi stiffened, his entire body trembling.
"No, we can't kill him nor chop off bits...but psychological damage lasts longer than physical." Hector said, tossing Takoi's phone to Bella. "Check his contacts."
Bella caught the phone easily, gripping Takoi's hair again to tilt his bruised face up. His one good eye was barely open, the other swollen shut. He let out a weak whimper but didn't resist as she pressed the device against his face to unlock it.
"Fuck, it didn't recognize him." She said, grabbing one of his fingers and pressing it to the fingerprint scanner, but the blood wasn't helping. "Tell your code."
"0...62...5." He barely managed to say.
She scrolled through his contacts, ssages and photos. "Let's see... " She smirked before tapping on another folder. "Oh, look at that, he's got two sons."
"Nice." Ferucci said with a slow grin.
"Alright, you walk out of here, you act like this never happened. You go ho, kiss your kids, pretend you didn't just shit yourself in front of us." She tilted her head with a smile. "But if we even hear a rumor that you ntioned our nas?"
Hector crouched down. "Then, we pay a little visit to your boys and trust I love family reunions."
Takoi nodded so fast it looked like his head might fall off. His breath ca in ragged gasps, his swollen eye twitching.
"Good." Hector said, standing up and wiping his hand in the suit. "Now, get the fuck out of here before I change my mind."
Takoi struggled to his feet. His legs wobbled beneath him, barely supporting his weight. For a mont, it seed like he might collapse again, but pure terror kept him upright
He staggered toward the door, clutching his side where Bella had slamd him with the crowbar.
Every breath he took was labored, his ribs probably cracked,maybe even broken. But he didn't dare stop moving.
"Who were these guys?" Asked Ferucci as she knelt before the bodies, slowly checking out their tattoos.
"A street gang." Hector replied. "Called Westside99."
"Westside99?" Ferucci raised a brow.
"They're a gang from the west side of Hangurn, the old District 7, Olympia. The '99' cos from the residential blocks they claim."
Ferucci snorted. "Why not just call themselves the Olympia, then?"
"That na's already taken by another shity gang." Bella said.
"And they don't have numbers?" Ferucci asked, glancing between the two.
"Nope, the Olympia are just another gang with teengers and Ogs who think they are still young. They rob from other gangs, drive by shooting and shit like that. But in the end, they're just another group of idiots trying to play the mafia."
"Well they are no longer on the west side." Ferrucci laughed
"Yeah, but there are so things that quite worry ." Hector said.
"What?"
"There were no agents at the funeral. Only gangsters. That never happens. It ans one thing, they're preparing for sothing big."
Bella crossed her arms."You think they're making their move soon?"
Hector nodded. "I don't know when, but it's coming. And I saw Silas's son watching Jas. Not just looking, staring. He wants sothing."
"Silas Ricci son, huh? That little bastard never had the guts to step into his father's shoes. But if he's watching Jas that closely..." His voice trailed off, a smirk creeping onto his lips. "Then he's either looking for revenge or an opportunity."
Bella's gaze darkened. "Or both. If they're preparing for sothing big, it's not just about Jas. The whole city's about to shift."
"So what's the play, Hector? You wanna test the kid, or are we cutting him down before he grows into a real problem?"
"No, we let him. His father was the real deal, an old-school gangster before we were even born. His son? He can't do shit without him."
"You're saying he's nothing without his father's shadow?" Bella asked.
"Exactly. He's just so rich punk trying to play the role. Without Silas, he's got no spine, no instincts. He's trying to step into a world that'll eat him alive. We don't need to waste ti making the first move. He'll screw himself over eventually."
"Maybe. But he's still got his father's na, and that's enough to make people follow him. Desperate n will take desperate leaders if they think it'll bring them power." Ferucci said.
"Yeah but the more problematic one to is the Takoi guy, aftre all he is dating the vice president daughter..."Bella said
Hector shook his head. "He showed up at the funeral with full of gangsters alone. No governnt security. And we kidnapped him without a fight."
Bella crossed her arms, eyes sharp. "Maybe. But don't forget what he said one call and Jas disappears. If he's bluffing, he's got balls. But if he's not..." She trailed off, the implication hanging heavy between them.
"We are not just n following orders. We are the hands that enforce his will. The shield that guards his na. If they think they can touch him, they have no idea what kind of war they're starting."
They all agreed. There was nothing more to say.
Without hesitation they started the clean up procces which was tow things, gasoline and a lighter.
After the flas engulfed the whole building, one by one, they disappeared.
Bella, however, had only one destination in mind.
She needed to ask him.
She needed to know.
When she arrived, the sa usual scene unfolded before her, cars blocking the driveway, guards patrolling with guns in hand.
As she made her way inside, she heard the low hum of the TV from the main living room.
And there he was, sitting on the couch, eating a bowl of cereal like it was just another quiet day.
On the other side of the couch, Charlotte was completely knocked out sleeping so Bella took the opportunity to slip closer to him.
"Bella?" His voice was calm, steady.
She didn't answer. Not right away. Instead, she watched the screen, eyes unfocused. Then, after a long breath, she spoke.
"I heard sothing..." Her voice was quiet, almost careful.
Jas put his bowl down looking at her. "Heard what?"
She hesitated, then t his gaze. "That you once had an underboss... Is that true?"
Jas didn't answer. He just stared at the screen, unmoving. His eyes didn't shift, didn't blink.
It was as if he was looking straight into the abyss.
Bella's chest tightened.
That underboss whoever he was he had been at Jas's side. Trusted. Important.
And now, he was nothing.
Just like that.
Bella's breath hitched as a horrible thought sank its claws into her heart. One day, would that be her?
Would she beco just another face Jas turned away from? Another person he let slip through his fingers like they had never mattered—
"He died by suicide..."
Her heart stopped.
Jas didn't look at her, didn't explain further.
The silence, the hesitation, this wasn't a man he had killed. This was a man he had lost.
"Sothing happened....and... he—"
His words trailed off, and he just stared at the TV, as if he had been pulled back to that exact mont in the past.
And then she saw it. A tear.
A single tear slipping down the edge of his jaw she almost didn't believe it.
Jas never cried in font of them.
But now, in the stillness of this house, in the weight of the past he did.
And sothing inside Bella shattered.
She didn't think. She just moved.
She just hugged him, feeling the rise and fall of his breath, the quiet tension in his body.
Jas never spoke of his past. Never let anyone see the weight he carried.
But tonight, for the first ti, he let the silence speak for him.
And Bella understood.
She wasn't replaceable.
Not to him.
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