Chapter 27 Brewing

Dominic

Beauty Grace Anderson Vasiliy. All of his vast properties. His wealth. His empire had her name on it. The papers were finalized and signed as soon as he entered his domain.

She was his world. The only woman he had allowed in his heart. She owned him. The unborn child growing inside her was proof of that.

His plans should not have loopholes or else...

Clenching his hands, his gaze roamed the office he now shared with Beau.

No. Losing her would never happen.

Dominic left her sleeping soundly on their bed. He had exhausted her. Good. She needed all the rest she could get.

It was almost mid-afternoon and he was waiting for Rafael Montero to arrive. He was still skeptical if he could trust the man. Though his instinct told him to, he couldn't take the risk. Not with his detka's life at stake.

The Mexican Cartel leader will have to share everything there was to know about him before he could trust the man. Only then could Dominic decide.

What happened yesterday was a fucking setback that should never be repeated. The mole had to be terminated before they could proceed with their plans.

Firm taps on the door brought him back from his musings. "Enter."

"Tzar," Alec, his general inclined his head. And he was followed by a guest. No one else.

"Please. Make yourself comfortable." Dominic gestured to the cushion seat in front of him.

Alec went to a sideboard and poured them a drink.

Rafael took his poison with a murmur of thanks and Dominic sipped his.

"I understand you need me here." His guest stated, breaking the silence.

"Why do you want to kill Antoine Lemonte as bad as I do?" No used beating around the bush. He needed answers.

Rafael's whole body became tensed and rigid. A pained expression filled his dark eyes. "It's a long story."

Dominic shrugged. "We have a few hours to kill." He hoped Beau was sleeping soundly. He had a feeling the story he was about to hear was gruesome and he didn't want his detka to hear it.

"I was thirteen when Antoine joined our household. My father saw the potential in him and he wanted to train him to be a sniper, later on, a commander. And the old man did." There was a faraway look in Rafael's eyes, remembering. "He was a few years older than me, about my sister's age. At first, everything was going smoothly. As I grow older and began my training, I saw something in him shifted. Although he was a competent commander, he grew distant from us. Later, I found out he was in love with my sister but she doesn't return his feelings. Maria fell in love with her music teacher. Since my father doted on her, he didn't protest much. He consented to a marriage between them. Maybe because he also wanted a normal life for her. Away from the violence and shit." Dominic watched him took a deep breath. "Until that day..." He paused. "Her wedding day. I was eighteen and my father made an announcement and declared he was retiring and would want me to take over the family business. It was predestined and it was no surprise. What we didn't foresee was Antoine's reaction. He and my father had an argument. Since my father practically treated him like a son, he thought he would inherit. After their heated exchange, he walked away. And my father let him. It was the biggest mistake of our lives."

Rafael got up and refilled his glass. The room was so quiet. They waited for him to continue with his tale.

"A few months later, we found my sister, who was very pregnant, and her husband dead in their house in Texas. Tortured and massacred. An initial police investigation was made but we made our investigation. That was the first raid I handled. We found the gang responsible and killed every one of them but not before someone confessed that they were working for someone. A leader. They called him The Assassin. We didn't believe it. My father only knew of one assassin and she was retired. Although she was a deadly professional in her lengthy career, she had never resorted to hurting innocent people. So, it only meant there was a new breed of a hired killer on the loose in our world."

Dominic and Alec knew who the former assassin Rafael was referring to. And, indeed, SHE would never do those things and she had long retired. More than two decades in fact.

"We searched and kept searching, turned every stone but we found nothing. My father became impatient and he went deeper into the underworld and announced he would be paying $100 million to whoever will bring us The Assassin. He found Antoine, he had formed his own gang. A small one but gaining status. The man my father treated as his son volunteered. And we were gullible. We were fooled!" Rafael laughed bitterly. "A few days later he called. Informing us he found our enemy. He and his men will bring him to us. Trusting him, we prepared the money and granted him access to our compound. We were gifted a trojan horse."

He was pacing now. Edgy. He was reliving the moment. "Did you know I had a younger sister? She was so innocent and sweet. We all adored her. She was the baby of the family."

Dominic's stomach clenched. Had. He knew what was coming.

"He double-crossed us. For revenge, he tortured me and my father."

Rafael removed his suit and he unbuttoned his dress shirt. Underneath his tattoos, he had scars, from bullet wounds and knives, they were faintly noticeable but if one would look closely... "These were nothing to me. The real torture was when he made us watch him rape my 15-year-old sister and mother. And then his men took their turns. They both died after. Antoine shot my father in the head, me on my chest several times. That was his fatal mistake. He should have gone for the head and made sure he had killed me properly."

Fuck! More reasons to hunt their common enemy. Beau, his family, and his household were his to protect.

"It took me a year to emerge from my comatose state. Another two to fully recover. And several years to build my empire back. By then, my men and I lost any trace of Antoine. Though I had personally hunted and killed every one of his men." His lips curled in a snarl.

"He was the only one left. I had been searching for him. I never lost hope. Until someone tipped his return to Mexico. Now, you know why I want him so bad." He took a huge gulp of whiskey. Then he began to dress. Silence reigned once more.

"Once we have him, I give you my word, he is yours to kill," Dominic uttered, surprising himself. He shrugged. So long as they get rid of that cocksucker, he was content.

"That is all I ever want, tzar," Rafael answered. Grateful.

"But I want the traitor in your midst killed." Fuck! Dominic hated moles and rats.

"Yes. You have my word. I'll have enough evidence in an hour or two then he will be killed."

"Good. Be ready. As soon as you kill him, we are going to hunt The Underworld." A few hours to prepare. That will be enough.

"You are going to need me then, my love. I'll have all the information you need in a few minutes then we can go." A familiar sassy voice spoke from the doorway. Damn! His detka.

This was the worst timing ever. And the answer was an absolute NO.

***

"Please, baby. You shouldn't be so stressed about this. Alec and I will be just fine. And I still have this." Dominic pointed at his wrist. "You can still monitor me from our office."

They shouldn't be having this argument. He didn't want her upset. After introducing her to Rafael, the men bowed and left them alone, sensing what was coming.

"But...I'll be in the car the whole time. Monitoring the area closer would be very beneficial. And...and...I could track him right away if he escapes." Fuck! He closed his eyes tightly so he wouldn't see her pout and her pleading eyes. No!

Pulling her to his lap, he buried his nose on her neck. Breathing deeply to control his temper. "Please, moya lyubov, I want you and our baby safe. It would kill me if something happens to you."

His voice was hoarse from emotion. Especially, from what he had learned of Rafael's history. He and Alec were very much affected.

Dominic was an effective leader because he was deadly. But only to his enemies. And he had never hurt innocent women and children. Ever.

"My love," she cupped his face. Her beautiful brown eyes softened. Beau knew. She heard everything. "Ok. You win. But please promise me you will be extra careful, Dom." Thank you, God!

"Thank you, detka. I will. I promise. After this, we'll go anywhere you want. Just the two of us, ok?" He kissed her softly, tightening his embrace.

She nodded and deepened the kiss, surrounding his neck with her arms and pressing her breasts to his chest. Damn pregnancy hormones. He loved it.

"Europe. I want to visit Lily, my older sister." She murmured on his lips.

"And we will." He wished they had more time but the cartel's leader will be back soon. "What do you think of Rafael Montero?"

Beau shrugged, reached inside his side drawer, and handed him a thick folder. "These are medical reports of a gruesome massacre eight years ago from the FBI secure server in El Paso, Texas. I also dug this from Mexico's crime lab. He was telling the truth. And actually, he was already pronounced dead when the police arrived at the crime scene. I believe your friend was brought to a secret hideout to recuperate. That's why our common enemy was not able to finish the job. And finally, I have records of his dealings from the streets' CCTV cameras. He's ruthless but he's fair. You can trust him."

Dominic gazed down at her in amazement. Fuck! She was really something. "And you found out all of this when?"

She grinned and pecked his lips. "Yesterday, during your meeting in Mexico. And..." She held up her finger. Reaching for another folder, she pulled one paper with numbers written on it. From closer inspection, there were account numbers and huge amounts of cash deposited to a certain bank in Mexico. "He is your traitor." She tapped her finger on the one name that was encircled. "He was the only member receiving a steady flow of income outside Mexico from the last five days."

Arturo Montero. The Mexican Cartel's commander. Rafael's cousin.

Alec's instinct was proven right.

***

Torture Scene 18+

Please be guided

"Rafael," Dominic greeted him but his eyes were glued to the man tied from the ceiling. Naked. Battered and bruise.

"Tzar, I prepared him for you." He waved his hand towards his traitorous cousin.

"Good." This was a delightful detour. "Did he talk?" Dominic's impenetrable prison for his enemies was located beneath his men's hideout. A few kilometers from his detka's mansion. He left her sleeping, sated, at their office after he fed her the foods she was craving. Berries and fresh cream. And hot buns and dumplings. He was glad her appetite was back.

"He's not saying anything, tzar," Alec responded while Rafael was cursing the air blue. The front of his shirt and sleeves were covered in blood.

"Puta! Pendejo! I will fucking skin you alive after the butcher is done with you!" He growled and paced once more. Like a caged animal. Dominic knew then and there his friend had lost a significant part of his sanity way back then.

"Well, since you are so worked up. Be my guess." He gestured to his cabinet of knives and Rafael did exactly just that. He had chosen a favorite. "Great choice, my friend. Shall we begin?"

"You betrayed me, primo."

"No! Rafael, I didn't. He made me!" Arturo's eyes were begging. Darting back and forth around the soundproof room.

Dominic and Alec sat in a corner and watched the scene unfold. Observing.

Shirtless, Rafael approached his prey. "You knew what our family had been through. What I had been through." He was murmuring his words yet they could decipher him clearly.

"I needed money. I had debts. Please, Rafael."

"Ah, money." He pointed the tip of his sharp blade on the man's chin. Blood began to seep. "Tell me more." Running the edge of the steel down to his collarbone, his skin cut like a hot knife on butter.

Arturo sobbed and pissed himself. Pathetic. "The...the...Samuel Grant. He was sending me money. They wanted to know about the tzar's movement in Mexico." Rafael continued to remove a chunk of brown skin on his cousin's chest, his flat nipple went with it. Hoarse cries of agony filled the air.

Samuel Grant. His father made the man CEO of their chain of hotels in Las Vegas. The name was included in Beau's financial report. So, the old man was Antoine's financer.

Dominic made sure he will suffer.

"What else, primo?" Rafael traced his cousin's face with the knife. Wiping his own blood on him surreptitiously. More blood trickled and several tiny strips of skin fell.

The thrashed, writhing in pain. "Ahhhh...please, Raf. That's all. Have mercy!"

His leader laughed bitterly. "Honor Sobre todo. That's our family motto, primo. And you failed. You know what comes next." He plunged the knife to the hilt below his right collarbone.

Their prisoner was panting hard, ready to faint. Dominic nodded his head and one of his men splashed him with iced cold water.

Rafael waited until his cousin became aware of his surroundings. "Raf, I will tell you everything but please don't kill me."

"Go on." He approached him again.

"I...I heard them...he thought he ended the call but he didn't." Arturo glanced at Dominic nervously. He stiffened. His body suddenly on high alert. "They plan to kidnap the new tzarina and the mafia princess. They said they could make money out of it but... Antoine...he wanted the girls as sex slaves. That's all I know. I swear!"

The roaring in Dominic's ears intensified. His body was filled with unbelievable rage. "We are hunting tonight. Kill him now."

With precision, Rafael sliced his cousin's throat, his blood spilled all over, coating the prison's floor.

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