Five days. It had been five days and still, Gio had no idea where Ran could have taken Reianne. His men, at least those who survived, had kept a close watch over Ran's Main Facility but there were no signs that Reianne was being held there. An hour after he lost contact with his men, the bugs installed within the area had started working again, which could only mean one thing: they had already transported Reianne somewhere else.  Gio didn't expect to get anything out of those bugs. Not when Ran purposely laid it out for him like that. But still, he kept the lines open and ordered his men to keep the Main Facility under watch because he couldn't risk missing any information as to Reianne's whereabouts.

It was Ran's way of messing with his head. His brand of cruelty was not about depriving his enemies entirely of hope. He would keep them on their toes; dangle a shred of light before them that they would keep the pursuit in the vain attempt at salvation while unbeknownst to them, their own self had started to rot away. Much like how you end up with a skeleton reaching for a cup which water had long dried up.

Unmoving, he stared at the gigantic screen at one end of the room displaying the map of the entire city, at the center of which is a continuously rotating radar, unbearably devoid of any useful information. Only the constant beeping of the tracker and the occasional static of the radio cut through the heavy silence that filled the room.  Every now and then, the radio would burst with more life than usual, adding more torture to Gio's spirit, especially when those noises sounded almost like a gasp, or worse, a scream. Rei's screams. 

Needless to say, he had not slept the past days.

"It's done." Anton's voice invaded his thoughts. Gio turned and looked at him who was sporting a gruff beard. He was just as haggard-looking as he was. Everyone was. 

"Our nominee directors have pulled out projects from Musa's companies and awarded them to competitors. His stocks have been falling for several days now, but they made a nosedive this morning after we released that study about their latest medicines," Anton explained, keeping his voice level and the information precise. 

Gio pushed a button on his board and another screen popped up showing images of stockmarket charts. As relayed, Musa Medical's stock was at a nosedive along with other related conglomerates. 

"This isn't nearly enough!" Gio said through gritted teeth, his hands clenched tight by his sides. "Keep the pressure on him. Enough that he would make contact!" 

"We do know that Reianne is still within the Metro. We have very weak radio signals. They are not enough to pinpoint her exact location but they are all coming from within the capital--"  

"I already know that!" 

Anton visibly gulped when Gio turned to him, his eyes shooting him daggers. 

"Release the dirt on his illegal tradings and tests. Send the police to his doorsteps," Gio said as he turned his attention from Anton to the giant screen once again. 

"We don't have enough evidence on those--"

"Just do it!" Gio hissed. He was in no mood to argue or to repeat orders, and he was a thin thread away from lashing at everyone. He practically had every resource he had into tracking Reianne's whereabouts, and the lack of result exasperated him more than he cared to admit. Anton had been silent beside him, probably debating with himself how to respond. Unbacked accusations could get ugly in the form of libel cases and could seriously mar his reputation in the business community. At this point, however, it was hard to give a damn. He had to find Rei. Everything else was secondary. Ran's family had taken enough from him. He wouldn't let things repeat if he could help it. 

"I'll...I'll take my leave then," Anton muttered sullenly before leaving. Gio didn't acknowledge him further or voice any more instructions. Gio's silence should be clear enough: Make yourself useful, find Rei.

Anton gave a slight bow and abruptly went away. He let out a slightly relieved breath once he was out of the room. Through the years, Anton had been more of a confidante than a secretary, a friend rather than an employee, and Gio was a stern boss but he was seldom like this. Each time, however, Musa was involved. 

He was about to enter the elevator when his phone beeped with an incoming message.

We got one of Musa's men.

It was sent to him and Gio by one of those tasked to watch the Main Facility. Not a moment later, Gio came rushing out of the room and headed to the elevator. Impatiently, he pressed the button in rapid succession. He might have deemed the elevator too slow for his liking as he abruptly left and used the stairs at the fire exit of the building. 

Like Musa, Gio kept several buildings for operations and research. The building they were now was the main headquarters of the Amedicus Conglomerates, the mother company of all of Gio's business ventures, a humongous fifty-story building and the second tallest building in the city. Anton shook his head when he realized that Gio would have to go down fifteen flights of stairs because he couldn't wait several minutes for the elevator. 

Gio was already in the room where Musa's man was being held when Anton opened the door. The only sign of Gio's physical exertion was the slight rise and fall of his chest and the glint of sweat on his brows. The cold aura he emitted was enough to freeze the room. 

Gio stood in front of Musa's man, his hard obsidian eyes boring into the man's skull. The man tried to keep a brave pretense, however, the slight tremor of his fingers tied behind his back gave him away. 

"Name." Gio's low, menacing voice echoed in the otherwise silent room. The man didn't utter a word, returning Gio's deadly gaze with his own. 

"Anton," Gio spoke again after several seconds of silence passed. Anton was instantly on alert. 

"Yes, Sir?" 

"Cut off his tongue. He's not using it anyway."  

Anton inwardly blanched. He surreptitiously cleared his throat to shake off the unease brought by Gio's orders. It didn't seem that his boss was joking. 

"I'll get someone to do it." Anton fiddled with his phone and seconds after, one of the uniformed men went inside the room, carrying several metal implements. 

"Sir," he greeted both Gio and Anton. 

"Edison, you know what to do," Anton responded a little shakily. Only the stern expression on Gio's face kept him rooted on the spot he was standing at. His more than a decade of service at Gio's side had not prepared him for an event such as this. He was quite sure it was not part of his job description but he kept his mouth shut. 

Edison moved into the man's line of sight who visibly gulped at the sight of the sharp knife resting on Edison's palms. Cold beads of sweat started to trickle down his face in rapid succession. 

"Open up," Edison casually remarked as he shoved something metallic into the man's mouth and snapped the levers, keeping it open. The man's panicked eyes went from Gio to Edison and back again. When the knife drew its first blood from his tongue he screamed and thrashed. 

"Stop," Gio's silent voice snagged the man's attention. 

"Listen. I have no time to waste on you. Either you are useful or you're not. Decide which you will be because I can easily dispose of you.

The man's head vigorously nodded in assent.

Gio signaled to Edison to remove the metal device inside the man's mouth, who visibly panted in relief. 

"Name." Gio's words once again cut through the tensed silence in the room. 

"R-Ramirez," the man shakily said in between pants. Gio's unnerving gaze continued to scorch the man's nerves. "I-I know you. You're that Lee filth. You're a murderer. You kill to get your way!" Ramirez spat.

"Who told you that? Musa?" Anton interjected. He was aware of the rumors about Gio and felt the need to defend him. He shut up, however, when Gio gave him a look. Seeing Gio up close with that arctic glint in his eyes, even he was ready to believe Ramirez's accusations. 

"Where is she, Ramirez?" Gio asked, pinning his deadly gaze on him, his voice barely a whisper. Ramirez involuntarily gulped. Gio remained unbearably silent afterward. Unmoving. An invisible clock ticked. Gio seemed to transform with every second passing away. His face grew more cold and merciless, and this was not lost on Ramirez, who began to tremble on his seat. 

"I--I can't tell you anything. I have a wife and daughters. Musa will hurt them if I tell you a word. Please," Ramirez begged. "I don't know anything important anyway. Please, let me go."

Gio's cold solid features hardened further. The muscles in his jaw ticked. His eyes, however, where once there was detached malicious coldness, now held burning rage. The tips of his lips jutted slightly upward in a wicked grin that didn't reach his eyes.

"You're more afraid of Ran than me," Gio spat. "We should change that."

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

The continuous dripping of my blood mixed with water lulled me to sleep only for my body to jerk back as the sudden folding of my knees tugged my wrists painfully. My whole body bristled at the jarring pain. I was hoping that I could get used to this torment but apparently, it didn't work like that. At all. 

The pain had constantly grated on my mind, eating up my sanity piece by piece. And each time when it was getting too much, each time when I thought I would pass into oblivion and rest, the moment I let my stance relax, the resulting tugging on my wrist would jolt my entire senses awake to begin the torture anew. During moments that I was completely out of it that not even the pain mattered anymore, a bucketful of cold water would greet me awake. This had been my state for God knows how long. Time had lost its meaning already. 

They had bled me repeatedly and since then, I had struggled to take control of my limbs. Tired. I was just so fucking tired.

I knew I had to do something or this might really be the end for me. 

My eyes wearily roamed around the dimly lit room bare of anything except a CCTV camera. The room was unfamiliar. They had transported me elsewhere. If that was the case, it meant they had portable signal jammers. Needless to say, if I wanted to get out of here, I had to locate where they hid those. Against the dull throbbing of my head, I forced my gaze on one corner of the room to another, scrutinizing every possible detail--a change in the wall color, or a slight indentation on the panels, looking for possible hiding spots for the signal jammers. A minute didn't even pass completely before my vision started dimming. 

Exhausted. 

I was once again on the brink of unconsciousness when the door suddenly burst open startling me awake. Not a second more, an enraged Ran entered the room followed by his minions. He took one look at me and his mouth formed into a mocking grin that contrasted sharply with the rage in his eyes. "Anytime you want to get out of there, all you have to do is beg." 

"I beg you, please"--I paused to gather my breath--"shut up. Can you just...stop yapping. You're giving me a headache."

The anger brewing behind Ran's silver eyes flared, his pupil constricting to almost pinpoints. For a while he battled through his own emotions, trying to keep his temper in control. Eventually, the smile on his face grew wider. A calm demeanor washed over his features. 

"You really are something, aren't you?" he chided. "Tell me, do you  miss your dear husband?" 

I kept my mouth shut. I had to admit, in my years rubbing shoulders with the criminal elements of this city's underbelly replete with its fair share of psychopaths, I had yet to encounter the likes of Ran. His crazy was on a different league altogether. He was unpredictable. 

Warily, I kept my eyes trained on him, trying to decipher whatever was going on inside his head.

He took a device from his pockets and pushed a button. A screen promptly descended from the ceiling with a whir. With that sinister smile on his face, Musa signaled to his men. "Call him." 

The screen came alive with static as Musa's devices strived for connection. My heart thudded inside my chest when I realize what Ran was up to. A whirlwind of undecipherable emotions wrapped around my being. I felt utterly dreadful.  

Don't answer.

Don't answer, please.

 I kept my face as emotionless as I possibly could,  though my insides were nothing but. A part of me wanted to see how Gio was doing. But a bigger part of me wanted to hide from him. I didn't want him to see me like this, especially since I put myself in this situation in the first place. I took that risk, ignoring the warnings he gave me. I had no one to blame but myself. 

I kept my wearied gaze at the screen. Establishing contact with Gio was in itself a risk. A risk that Ran was willing to make. Ran wouldn't do it unless he was getting something out of it. This fact alone had me worried. 

The screen flickered. Moments after, Gio's face appeared. I only spared him a glance before I lowered my gaze. I could not keep my emotions at bay and I was afraid that they would be easily readable. That glance was enough to tell me, however, that Gio had not rested ever since my capture. I could see the tiredness in his eyes as his stony, emotionless face masked bitter vehemence, an intensity which I had yet to see from him. Until now.

"How are you, bastard cousin. Did you miss me?" Musa chided.  I raised my eyes to look at Gio, startled. Bastard cousin? 

Gio flinched slightly at the insult.  His reaction was enough to tell me that whatever Ran just uttered was true. They were cousins and Gio was an illegitimate child.

Gio's eyes met mine and flickered with something incomprehensible. His jaw ticked. Was he angry at me for putting him through this? I averted my gaze when the intensity in his became too unbearable. If he was angry, I couldn't really blame him. I practically dragged him into this, stubbornly going with my own plans. I kept my gaze on the floor, trying to hide my face as much as possible from him. I  didn't want him to see me so vulnerable. 

 "Did you miss your wife, couz?" Musa's mocking voice echoed within the walls of the room. Gio kept his silence. For a while, only the faint static from the connection was heard, neither of them uttering a word. A hand grabbed my face and lifted it up. Ran's.

"Don't tell me you didn't miss this lovely face, couz," Ran continued his mocking. I surreptitiously glanced at the screen and was met by Gio's eyes. I could discern the very thin thread holding his sanity at bay. He was on the edge. He would give in to whatever Ran would demand of him if I didn't do anything. The fact that he would do it for me smashed on my conscience like a sledgehammer. My fault.  This is my fault.  I couldn't let him fall into Ran's trap because of my stupidity. I had to do something. 

"You lost," I said, voice hoarse, as I moved my face away from Ran's grip.  

Ran jerked his head towards me. "Excuse me?" 

"I said you lost." 

Ran chuckled and retorted, "I am not the one dangling on a chain, missy." 

I smiled at him mockingly. "You wanted to hurt him, didn't you? That's the purpose of this whole charade, isn't it? Look at him. Does he look hurt to you?"  

Ran's gaze flickered at the screen and hardened. Gio has recovered his stony exterior in an instant. 

"What do you want, Ran?" Gio finally broke his silence. The coldness in his voice seeped through the screen.

"Oh come on, couz. Not even a greeting?" Musa snickered.    

"Stop wasting my time."

Ran painfully jerked my head up, pulling my hair down. "Are you sure you don't want to spend some time with your wife here?"  My sudden movement caused my head to explode in bitter pain.  My world spun.

"Get to the point," Gio spat, his eyes hardening some more. I looked back at him, willing my vision to focus. Don't let him get to you, Gio, my eyes pleaded.

"Very well, couz. This is what we will do, get your hoodlums off my companies, and I shall spare your wife pain." 

It was not readily apparent, but Gio's face darkened. Behind his hard eyes sparked a rage that threatened to blaze uncontrolled. Ran's tauntings were affecting him badly. 

"You're really dumb, aren't you, Ran?" I said as loud as my hoarse voice would allow, hoping it would divert his attention from Gio. "What made you think I matter to him?" 

Ran looked at me. For the first time, there was hesitation in his eyes. "You made a wrong move, Ran. You got the wrong hostage." 

"Shut up!" 

I snickered. "Why? Years of planning down the drain?" 

"I said, shut up!" Ran's grip on my hair tightened and I swallowed a whimper. 

"All these years, he got you running in circles as he wanted and you didn't even notice. He got his people on your companies while you chase me, and now you're paying the price,"  I chided him further. It may or may not be true. It didn't really matter.

 The hand gripping my hair was shaking uncontrollably. I hit a nerve or several. Ran's pupils once again constricted to pinpricks, giving him an eerie demonic aura. I suppressed a shiver that threatened to shatter my already battered composure. 

"I said, shut the fuck up!" Musa backhanded my face hard. The jerking motions brought searing pain down my arms, and disorientation clouded my mind once more. Through dimmed senses, I heard Ran chuckle. 

"Couz, how long would it take you to track her with this connection?" 

Ran's question was met with tensed silence. 

"Let's play a game, shall we, couz?" 

I heard the buzz of electricity before my body convulsed in pain.

Hang in there, dearies. 

Ran Musa is a character,  ain't he?

Much love, 

RF

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