THE CONFRONTATION

If you're constantly surrounded by assholes, maybe you're the problem, sweetheart.

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WARNING: Completely and 100% unedited. Proceed with caution.

CHAPTER XLVII

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“Daniel.”

His heart stopped at the sound of her desperate voice calling out for him. He couldn't help but glare at the far wall, not focusing on any of the gadgets in front of him.

“He can't hear you, sweetheart,” he heard Antonio chuckle from the other side.

But he could. And he knew she knew he could. In that moment, he wondered if she would ever forgive him for what was happening; for purposely ignoring her when she so desperately needed him.

“Daniel, please. I don't want to do this anymore. Please, just come get me.”

He squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed his hand over his chest to stop the way his heart hurt at the sound of her voice.

What was wrong with him? Why was he suddenly feeling like this? He knew no harm would come to her, so why was the sound of her pained voice causing his heart to ache?

Was he—

No, he couldn't be. Not after her. He couldn't.

“Pablo,” she whispered. That's the only thing they could call it. A low, breathy whisper with no energy, showing that the drugs were starting to take affect on her. “I need you, Pablo. Hermano mayor. Just come get me.” [Big brother]

“Fuck,” Pablo drawled out, squeezing his eyes shut as he willed himself to stay there.

What am I fucking doing? He thought to himself. Why the fuck am I still here?

Pablo shot up, making to walk to wherever his hermanita was and rescue her, but Daniel shot him a sharp look. “Don't you fucking dare,” he said, his voice coming out icy as Pablo matched his stare. “Leave this room and I'll shoot your fucking ass.”

“She's suffering!” Pablo yelled, trying to prove a point that Daniel already knew.

“And she'll only suffer more if we don't catch the person who's trying to take her. This is a sacrifice that we all need to make if we want to ensure her safety in the future,” he said, reminding Pablo of the whole plan.

There was no point in sabotaging everything. They were so close to finally getting to the fucker who was trying to take Araceli and if she had already given up so much, it wouldn't be fair to end it like that.

With a reluctant sigh, he slumped back into the chair and listened.

For a while, all they could hear was Araceli's deep, troubled breathing with the occasional whimper for help here and there. It was difficult to sit through it, but they knew it had to be done. For her sake.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps filled their ears and they listened closely to whatever Antonio was saying. He was obviously still clueless about the fact that he was being recorded.

“Boss is a real idiot if he thinks I'm going to let something so beautiful go to waste,” they heard him say lowly, as if whispering to her. “How about we make the most of the small amount of time we have left together, Venom? You don't have to worry. I'll put you to good use.”

Both their blood went cold at the sound of his voice. It was only until they heard a belt buckle that they both lurched into action.

“He's going to rape her. He's going to fucking rape her.” Daniel didn't attempt to hide the rage in his voice as he picked his gun up off the coffee table and went zooming down the hallway towards the stairs.

He didn't wait to see if his men where following him, the only thing he could think of was Araceli. He stopped in front of the room he knew they were in and knocked, knowing that there was no way he was going to be able to barge the door down without alerting Antonio of a threat.

“Room service,” he called out in the most calm voice he could muster. It came out strained, but he couldn't find it in him to care. He just had to get in before the wretch behind the door could succeed in hurting his Araceli.

“I didn't ask for room service,” Antonio called out, his voice sounding less than pleased at the disruption.

Ignoring Pablo who ran up to him with some other men, he continued his charade.

“It's the champagne for the bar,” he said, thinking quick. It took a while before he finally heard shoes against hardwood floor.

Antonio didn't bother looking out through the peephole before he opened the door which proved to be a fatal mistake. Daniel raised the gun and aimed it straight at his head as relief swarmed over him.

He came in time.

“Walk in,” he commanded Antonio who followed his instructions and walked back into the hotel room.

Daniel's men filed behind him, two standing to guard outside the door while two others followed Pablo into the room.

As soon as Daniel laid eyes on Araceli, he felt something in him snap. He lowered his gun and rushed to her side, placing her head on his shoulder as he pulled a pocket knife out and cut through the zip-ties that left red marks on her soft, brown skin.

Her breathing was too shallow, her heart too slow and she didn't stir at all as he moved her. Once he finally had her out of her restraints, he found himself uncharacteristically wrapping his arms around her and holding her close to his chest.

For once, it wasn't to make her feel better; it was to make him feel better. She huffed against his chest and meekly pushed away from him.

“Daniel,” she mumbled lowly, fighting against his tight hold on her. “Please, Daniel.”

“I'm right here,” he muttered into her ear, smoothing her hair out of her face as she leaned into him.

She mumbled incoherent words under her breath before shaking her head rapidly and pushing away again. “No, Pablo,” she mumbled, completely unaware of the affect she had on him. “Get me Pablo.”

“If you care about her so much, then why did you send her to me?”

He snapped his eyes up to glare at Antonio who looked like he didn't give a shit about the three guns that were aimed at his head. Daniel knew better, though; Daniel knew that he was scared shitless.

Without looking away from Antonio, he called for the attention for Pablo. “Take her to the car. Drive her to the house.”

Pablo looked like he was ready to object. After all, he was Daniel's right-hand and he should've been there desligg with Antonio. But after glancing at Araceli's restless form, muttering incoherently in her slumber, he couldn't help but feel he owed her that much at least.

“Yes, boss.”

Daniel stood up with her in his arms and hiding his reluctance, gently handed her to Pablo. He turned the corner and soon she was out of his sight, letting him finally slip back into the role he was so used to for so long.

Not the worried lover. The heartless killer that he needed to be. One of the reasons why she was known as venom. Because only evil could love evil. And her evil came in the form of something so beautiful, you'd think she was an angel.

“If you want to know why I sent her to you so bad,” he chuckled, picking his gun up from the floor and putting it in the waistband of his pants, “It's because we needed to get to your boss.”

“Fuck,” Antonio cursed, realisation dawning on him. No wonder.

Daniel wasn't the type to leave trails that followed him unless he wanted to be followed. He made it painfully obvious that he was with Araceli so Antonio thought he was one step ahead by knowing. When in actuality, that's what he wanted him to know.

When it came to Daniel, you only knew as much as he was willing to tell you.

“And it would've worked if you knew how to keep it in your pants,” he said, taking a seat on the coffee table. He looked up at Antonia and smirked. “Take a seat.”

Antonio's eyes followed his hand gesturing to the seat opposite him before he turned to the two other guards who were still holding him at gunpoint. He knew he didn't have an option in the matter.

With a reluctant sigh, he took a seat in the chair opposite Daniel and turned to him with a harsh glare.

“What do you want from me?”

“What do you want from Araceli?” Daniel asked, placing his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together as he carefully scrutinised Antonio.

“Nothing. Honestly, my boss wants her and that's it.”

Daniel nodded as if he cared before picking Antonio's phone up from the coffee table and handing it to him. “Call your boss. Tell him you have her.”

Antonio stared at him in confusion, about to decline before Daniel suddenly pulled his gun out again and pointed right between his eyes.

“If you value your life, you wouldn't argue with me on this.”

Daniel was only twenty-two, but he had made a name for himself among men like him. He was known as the most evil man alive - the literal span of Satan. Being caught in Daniel's web didn't mean instant death.

It meant constant torture of different kinds until you were begging for death. He made you fall to your knees and beg him to do you the favour of taking your life. Daniel was evil.

And yet somehow, she still loved him. He couldn't wrap his head around how.

Antonio sighed and unlocked the phone before going to his contacts and tapping on the one under the name 'boss'. It rang a couple of times before it was finally picked up. Daniel used his hand to lazily gesture for him to put the speaker on and he did, letting everyone in the room hear the deep voice of the 'boss' in question.

“Antonio,” the man said in acknowledgement, his voice gruff as he spoke.

“I have her with me, boss,” Antonio said, not meeting anyone's eyes as he spoke. He didn't like lying. He didn't want to give his boss out, but it was either his boss or him and he was selfish

“That's good,” the man said, yet he didn't sound nearly as pleased as his words made it seem. “Bring her to me.”

“Actually, boss, I've run into a little altercation. The cars won't start.” It was at that moment that Antonio finally looked up, meeting the cold stare of Daniel and gulping in fear. “You're going to have to come to me.”

He knew that everyone in the room was looking at him and everyone in the room was thinking that he was pathetic. And he was. Because in the world they lived in, people died silent. Nobody knew anything, even if they were threatened with torture. Nobody ever spoke and they were always ready to die for their people.

Yet there he was.

The silence on the other end of the phone stretched on for a minute before the 'boss' finally spoke.

“Kill him.”

Movement in the room froze, but Daniel's lips only stretched into a smile as he lifted the gun to point right at Antonio's forehead.

“If you're hearing this right now, Daniel, go ahead and kill him,” the man said, making Antonio's eyes go wide. “Nobody likes a snitch.”

And then the call cut.

Daniel knew it was too easy. There wasn't going to be an easy way to get to whoever was trying to get to Araceli, but at lesst he got some information out of the day's endeavours.

It wasn't just one person after her. There were two of them; each for different reasons. Reasons that he was yet to find out. Reasons that could cost her her life.

Not if he had any say in it.

He stood up and took the phone off Antonio and threw it in Pablo's direction. “Hack the phone. Find the location of the last call,” he ordered even though he could find it himself. He had more pressing matters to handle.

“Now, before I kill you,” he said, standing up from the coffee table, “what is it that you know about my woman's mother?”

*****

You know that saying about how it can only get worse before it gets better. Yeah, well this book is the opposite. It gets better before it gets worse.

btw sorry this update came out soooo late. I completely forgot.

Also Midnight Sky by Miley Cyrus is a complete bop and nothing is gonna change my mind.