The man reviewed the papers in his hands, his face immersed in concentration. The results were positive, but he could not let his guard down so easily. He needed to check every last detail to make sure everything would be really okay.

"Relax your frown, Frank. I checked them a million times too. The girl is safe. We just need to make a small incision and remove them. Chances are high that they won't form again."
"Have you seen her again?"
"Not yet. She was due back in a few days, but I wanted to run everything by you first."
Dr. Frank closed the folder. "I'll get in touch with her. Start looking into available dates for..."
"Excuse me."

Both men turned toward where the voice was coming from. A girl with noticeable curves and black hair biting her lip in shyness returned their gaze.

"Can I help you with something?" the taller man asked.
"My name is Katherine. I was Justin's college classmate. I have something for you," she opened her bag and pulled out a yellow envelope. "Can you tell Justin and Anne that I'm very sorry? I shouldn't have acted the way I did. I'm truly sorry. I hope this can make things right," she handed the thin package to the man who kept frowning at her and, after giving a half-smile, turned and walked away.

Dr. Frank looked at the envelope in his hands.

Dr. Frank looked at the envelope in his hands.

"R.F.?" spoke Dr. George. "Aren't those your wife's initials?"

***

The door opened sharply and the man smiled when he saw who entered. His features looked grim and the dim light in the place added to that sinister look, almost like a danger warning.

Justin repressed the urge to cover his nose. A very strong stench permeated his nostrils mixed with a distinct odor of liquor. He heard a wry chuckle coming from the man in front of him and a shiver crept down his spine.

"You're still so predictable."
"Where are they?"
"When I was a kid we used to speak to the elders with respect."
"Cut the crap. Tell me where are they," he clenched his fists trying to contain his anger. He had to remain composed to achieve his goal.
John let out a chuckle. "I can't believe my daughter got involved with you. She's such a fool sometimes."
"Tell me where they are!" his eyes were beginning to sting. He couldn't conceive another second in that situation. He needed to get his family to safety immediately. "I'm not as much of an idiot as you think, and I swear, if you don't tell me where they are, I'll turn over the evidence I have against you to the police."

A grim laugh escaped the man's lips and, suddenly, his expression became serious and gloomy. Danger was palpable in the air, consuming the oxygen in the room.

"Are you willing to give up your mother too?" he spat near the boy's feet, but the boy didn't flinch. "Your whole family is cursed in the same way. They have an emporium built on blood and she's no innocent about it."

Justin frowned. "The problem is ours."

"You're as much of an idiot as I always thought you were. And since your parents didn't have the decency to tell you anything, I'll tell you the real story about your family," he picked up the bottle of whiskey on the floor to his right and took a sip before continuing. "Years ago your parents and I were friends. I met your father first at a job interview. We hit it off quite well and ended up leaving the interview to risk our last savings on an idea. Your father was too ambitious and soon made deals with some wrong people. He convinced me to be part of it, saying it would be good for business and help us prosper. My daughter was a child then," he took another swig of whiskey. "Your mother pretended to be friends with my wife all that time. They both pretended to be sincere friends and I was stupid enough to believe it," he laughed. "Do you know where they were when those men came for my wife? Hiding. Your mother saw the whole thing and did nothing. They locked themselves in the store and left my Rose at the mercy of those bastards."

Silence flooded the room. Justin could see the man immersed in his memories. "We can settle any accounts from the past," he said. "Give you any money you want, part of the business if that's what you want, but you must leave Anne and Jason out of it."
John started laughing until his jaw broke open and his gesture became hysterical. "Do you think you have any future with them? You're just as cursed as your parents!"
The brunette approached him and held him against the chair resting his forearm on his neck. "I'm going to turn this place upside down and beat the shit out of you if I have to until I find them. If you know what's good for you, tell me where they are."

The man smiled, "I give you my word to take care of them personally from now on. After all, they have a better chance of actually getting to live being away from a murderer like you," the sound of police sirens wailed in the distance. "Anyway, you'll be sinking in jail when this is all over."

A punch crammed into the man's face, yet he did nothing but laugh. Pasty saliva mixed with alcohol and blood dripped from his mouth. The boy felt disgust and turned away from him.

"What's the matter, kid, don't you have the guts to keep your promises? That's why you ran away and left my pregnant daughter? You're just like your parents! You have no chance to have any kind of life. That child will be lucky not to see you as an example. You're a coward, a bastard and an idiot," he wiped the blood dripping from his mouth and stood up from his chair in disgust. He took a sip of whiskey and grimaced before continuing. "You're not a man, stop trying to pretend you are one. You're just a spoiled, cowardly little boy who hides under his mother's skirt and runs away when he's scared."

Justin felt the gun press against the skin of his lower back. He didn't want to use it, but the man in front of him looked more and more out of it. Sirens wailed in the distance, still not close enough to be of any use.

"Tell me, did your father's friend promise to protect you too?" he smashed the base of the bottle against the back of the chair and threatened the boy with the splintered remains. "Because I don't think he can protect you now." The boy pulled the gun in one swift motion and pointed it at John, John laughed. "You're as much of an idiot as I thought," he said and a punch was crammed into the boy's skull.

A pain in the lower part of his head invaded Justin. Everything went black. The sound of sirens and John's laughter began to fade with the atmosphere around him and only then did he understand how stupid he had been. He had left his family at the mercy of a psychopath.