34. Tate
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
TATE
W e stop a mile away from the location. It’s surrounded by a wooded area, which is great for us. It’s out of sight and there’s no one nearby.
We all exit the vehicles and make our way through the forest on foot, watching out for any guards we can take out quickly and quietly. I take the gun from behind my back, ready to attack at the first sign of trouble. My men move through the shadows with me, flanking me. Rick sticks close by to protect me. He’s always watching my back.
There doesn’t seem to be any guards this far out of the perimeter, which is Daniel’s flaw. He’s too arrogant. He doesn’t think we can find him, so he hasn’t put up enough security. Suits me just fine; we’ll have the element of surprise.
“Whatever happens today, Daniel is to be taken... alive,” I say to my men.
Rick nods, and so do my other men. Rick pumps the barrel of the shotgun to make sure it’s loaded.
We reach the edge of the wooded area and peek out. Daniel hasn’t got many patrols, not even this close to the estate. His cockiness knows no limits if he thinks no one will ever find him. It’s a mistake that’s going to cost him dearly.
I’m out for blood.
My mind drifts to Sian and what she must be going through, and it makes me sick to my stomach and makes me more determined to get to her.
I nod at Rick as he reaches my side in seconds. We need to attack straight away, so we make our way down the embankment and immediately open fire on the guards we can see, taking them out ruthlessly one at a time. Daniel will now know we’re here. I race down the embankment as I shoot, Rick and Clint covering me. I see a guard rushing for a gate. I run after him, shooting the fucker in the back, and as I approach him, I shoot him in the head. I breathe deep, rolling my neck, absorbing the adrenaline rushing through my veins. I haven’t felt the satisfaction of spilling blood like this in a long time.
With the gate still open, we make our way within the walls of the estate.
No guard is safe, regardless of whether they beg for their lives. It isn’t my problem. They chose this life, to serve a sick, twisted fuck.
The devil has come knocking and he takes no prisoners. My men and I don’t show mercy to our enemies. Blood will be shed, and it won’t be from my side.
A woman runs out of the estate screaming. She’s dressed in dirty maid’s clothes. She sees me, fear on her face.
“Run! Get out of here,” I tell her. She nods frantically and disappears.
There are gunshots firing around me like a war zone. The dead bodies are piling up quickly, but my focus is finding Sian. I need her safe and unharmed. Then, I will deal with Daniel.
Rick and Clint move with me into the building, and we immediately get shot at. We duck behind a wall, and thankfully, no one is injured. I wait for a break in the firing before I peek around the wall. A guard is reloading his weapon, so I step out and shoot him four times; three in the chest and one in the head before I slip back down the wall and reload. Rick and Clint move forward, and once I’ve finished reloading, I follow.
Three of my men enter behind us, and I motion for them to sweep upstairs where we can hear footsteps. I motion for Rick to go left and Clint to move right, while I go straight ahead. Rick doesn’t look pleased that we’re splitting up, but it’s my order, so he won’t argue with me. He knows time is of the essence.
I walk into a large entertainment area and look around. There’s no one here, so I turn to leave, but I hear footsteps nearby. I press myself flat against the wall, and as the footsteps pass me by, I turn the corner and grab the woman that’s passing. She shrieks and begs for her life.
“Do you want to live?” She nods, too afraid to speak. “Then head for the nearest exit. Don’t stop and don’t come back.” I release her from my hold. I look around for more people, but there don’t seem to be any more nearby.
I continue to move through the house, unfazed by what’s going on around me. I hear footsteps to my right, coming up from the basement, and I train my gun there. First, a burly man comes up the steps, and I fire at him, ducking behind a wall. He fires back at me and shouts downstairs for Daniel to stay out of sight. At least now I know where he is.
I peek around the wall and fire. The guy fires back at me and I duck behind the wall again. Finally, I peek out and manage to shoot the guy in the chest, followed by three more shots to the stomach for good measure.
I approach the stairs with caution. I see Sian’s face first, and I tense. She’s bruised, and her clothes are torn. She’s trying her best to wrap herself with what’s left of her dress. I feel rage I’ve never felt before. There’s a gun pressed to her head and an arm holding onto her shoulder. Daniel walks her up the stairs and I glare at him, keeping my gun trained on them. The relief on Sian’s face when she sees me will stay with me until the day I die. She’s petrified and shaking. I’ll make Daniel suffer immense pain for what he’s done to her.
“Now, now,” Daniel says. “You wouldn’t want to shoot her, would you?” He smirks, and it riles me up. I show no sign that he’s got to me and focus on Sian, who’s struggling to keep herself upright.
“You okay?” I ask her.
She nods, but I know she’s lying. I can see the pain in her eyes. She’s forced up the last step with Daniel pushing at her back. She winces in agony. I move backwards, trained on their every movement.
“Daniel, you don’t care about her. Give her to me and I’ll consider making your death swift,” I say through clenched teeth.
Daniel chuckles. “You’re not going to get to me.”
“You sound so sure. I wouldn’t be so confident as almost all of your men are dead. You’re probably the last surviving person on this estate. My men are thorough.” It’s my turn to smirk.
“I intend to keep it that way,” Daniel growls, pressing the gun against Sian’s head with more force.
I don’t stop pointing my gun at him. My eyes meet Sian’s. There’s something different in her gaze. Before now, her fear was evident, but there’s a defiance there too. I nod slowly, getting the message she’s trying to send me. I understand her completely. I watch in slow motion as Sian takes a deep breath before she moves forward then throws her head back, hitting Daniel in the nose. Daniel releases her and she falls to the floor from exhaustion. I quickly scoop her up and out of harm’s way, shooting Daniel in the leg as I wrap her up in my arms. I look over my shoulder and see Rick slowly approaching. I spin Sian around and into his arms. “Get her out of here.”
“Tate, no,” Sian cries.
I don’t listen as I turn back to Daniel. Now she’s out of his clutches, my focus zeroes in on him. I step towards him and kick his gun away as he groans, one hand on his nose and the other on his leg where my bullet is embedded.
“Well... you win.” His voice is nasally. “Go ahead and kill me. Get it over with.”
I lean down, inspecting his wound. I watch as the blood leaks from the sick fuck’s leg. I place the tip of my gun on the wound and apply some pressure. Daniel’s groan of discomfort is music to my ears. “I don’t want to kill you, Daniel. I want to make you feel what I felt, along with the pain and suffering you made Sian feel. I want you to suffer like you made me suffer. I’m going to topple your little empire, and your life. I’m going to make sure that you feel every fucking second of it, and I’m going to enjoy it.”
I take my gun off his wound and hit Daniel on the back of the head, watching him pass out from the impact. I turn to see Clint behind me. “Load him in one of the cars and put him in my basement. I’ll deal with him there.” Clint nods sternly and picks Daniel up, throwing him over his shoulder.
* * *
As soon as I arrive back at the estate, I get an update on Sian. She’s in her room, where Imogen is working on her.
Sian’s sleeping, and seeing her lying so still as I peer around the door is a shock. She’s so bruised and battered, but I saw a strength in her tonight that wasn’t there before. It made me so proud that she wasn’t going to let herself be Daniel’s victim. What Sian went through this evening was brutal, and although her physical scars will heal in time, some will remain as a constant reminder of what happened to her. What he did to her, Daniel will answer for it; I’ll make sure of that. I’m already going to hell for my sins, so I might as well go all out with him. No regrets.
I watch Sian for a moment longer, her chest rising and falling steadily in her sleep. Imogen comes to stand next to me. “She’s tough.”
“She shouldn’t have to be,” I say quietly.
“It’s what happens in your world, Tate. I’ve been telling you this for a long time,” Imogen says softly.
“Are you trying to discourage me from seeing her?” I ask.
“If I did, would you listen?” I curl my lip, giving her my answer. “I thought as much. I know you’re not all bad, but I’m not sure how much more that girl can take, Tate. This is the third time I’ve tended to her injuries already. However, for some reason, Sian feels something for you, and I get the feeling she would be in more pain without you. She sees beyond all your deadly sins and the dark shit that surrounds you, and the only reason any woman is capable of doing that is because they have strong feelings for the person. If that’s the case here… don’t break her heart or break her any more than she is already.” Imogen pats my arm. “I’ll send you my bill and come back to check in her.”
“Of course you will.” I smirk, then turn and leave.
I can’t even comprehend what she’s just said. Not yet anyway. I need to become the devil to finish what I started. Only then can I let her words really sink in.
I leave Sian to rest and pass Mary. I shrug off my suit jacket and hand it to her, then unbutton my shirt while I stand in the entrance hall and pull it off along with my tie, leaving me in my socks, shoes, and trousers. I take my watch off and hand that to her as well. She doesn’t say a word, knowing this routine and what it leads too. I look up and see my father standing on the stairs.
“You’re going to do this personally?” he asks curiously.
“This is personal,” I say calmly. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“Very well,” he says, and with that, he leaves.
I descend the stairs to the basement as a guard unlocks the door for me. I step inside and pull on black medical gloves, then look at the host of tools that are prepped on a tray in front of me. I look at Daniel, stripped naked, dangling from his wrists from a beam on the ceiling. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Daniel has been locked in my basement for a few hours, and the sun is just about to rise on the horizon.
Daniel stirs, and I smirk. “Good morning, sunshine,” I say sarcastically.
Daniel lifts his head. Dried blood is on his face from where Sian split his nose, and there’s a patch of blood smeared down his leg where I shot him. I breathe in deeply then release it and stand straight. “Shall we begin?”
“You haven’t got it in you.” Daniel chuckles. “You don’t have a big enough imagination.”
“I have plenty of imagination. You inspired me all those years ago,” I say confidently. “I’ve studied torture techniques people haven’t used in centuries. I’ve collected tools that you only find in museums. If the torture doesn’t kill you, then infection will ravage your body. But don’t worry. I’ll keep you alive long enough for you to pay your dues.”
Daniel shakes his head. “We can reach an agreement.” He sounds pathetic. I haven’t even started and he’s already begging me to go easy on him. There’s no chance of that happening.
“We’re far past an agreement. We were past any agreement when you tortured Rick and me, and you sealed your fate when you took Sian.”
“Don’t tell me you care about the little slut.” Daniel laughs.
“For someone who is so obsessed with her, someone so full of envy when it comes to her, you don’t treat her all that well. That’s where we differ. I don’t have to force myself on her. She chooses for herself.” I pick up a metal pipe and step forward, swinging it up into his mouth. I knock out a few of his teeth, which he spits out, along with more blood. His cries of pain echo off the concrete walls.
“We’re not here to discuss Sian. Her name doesn’t belong in your mouth, and if I hear you say it once, or anything related to her, I’ll cut out your fucking tongue. We’re here for you. You wanted it to be all about you, Daniel. Now, it is.” I smack the pipe into his ribs until I hear a cracking noise, and he grunts.
I hover over him. “You thought you had everything under control. Every little detail planned out, didn’t you?” I spit in his face.
“I did.” He looks up at me with bleary eyes.
“Did you have a plan for Joey?” I ask with a smirk, using the pipe to keep his chin tilted up so he has no choice but to look at me. “That little drug mule of yours that I turned onto my side.”
“You couldn’t have. There was no rat in my camp.”
“Oh, but there was.” I laugh. “Liam didn’t know. I didn’t trust just anyone with that information. He didn’t know about all of my dealings, Daniel, or the location of my warehouse. Only the men I trust know everything.”
Daniel’s chest heaves rapidly as the realization sinks in. “Speaking of warehouses, I have the location of your warehouses, and Joey and some of my men are burning it down as we speak, along with the place you call home. I want you to know I’ve taken everything from you before you take your last breath.”
Daniel shakes his head. “That’s impossible.”
“Not when you threaten the people working in the shitholes. I have something better to offer them. More money and more respect. They jumped at the chance in exchange for any other locations and dealings you were into. Power talks, Daniel, and that is something you never had.” My sinister smile greets him.
“You fucking bastard. You won’t get away with it.”
“I already am.” I drop the pipe and go back to the table. “How does it feel knowing it’s me that’s taking everything from you?”
“Like you did before?” Daniel gasps.
I frown. “Before?”
“Did you even wonder why I picked your clubs to distribute my drugs? Drugs I knew would compete with yours? I chose ecstasy over cocaine because it was cheaper and more efficient.” Daniel looks up at me.
“Your shit doesn’t even come close to mine. Doesn’t matter what drug you decide to sell.”
“If my plan had worked, the police would have showed up and found my ecstasy in your clubs, but you saw the drugs before I could really get my revenge.” He spits blood on the floor by my feet.
“Never would have happened. You know why? Because I’m smarter than you, Daniel. I know what goes on in my clubs. I take pride in all my business. You never see the bigger picture, do you?”
“I guess not. My pathetic father’s world fell apart because your father got the best pickings. A truce, he called it, but we were losing everything. You had everything to gain while I had nothing.”
“You were jealous? Envious that my father built something you never could? That’s why you tortured me and Rick?” I shake my head. “Jealousy makes you nasty, Daniel?”
“So they say,” he grunts. “But it was worth it. The look in your eyes. The dread. The hopelessness.”
“I want you to remember that while we continue,” I say as I pick up a weight and some rope. I thread the rope through the hoop at the top of the weight and carry it over to Daniel. I tie the other end of the rope around Daniel’s balls. His eyes widen in fear, “You won’t need these anymore.”
I drop the weight and Daniel cries out.
I can see his balls already changing hue from the pressure of blood building up.
That is just the beginning.
“You’ve harmed and killed so many innocents,” I murmur. “How many has it been? Ten? Twenty?” I pick up a pair of pliers and go to his hand. “I’m going to break a finger for every innocent you’ve killed, so you can stay awake while your dick falls off.”
Daniel can’t talk; he’s panting hard. I can see a thick film of sweat breaking out on his forehead.
“Do you enjoy feeling what Sian felt?” I ask. “Feeling as though you have no hope? Because you don’t. No one is coming to save you.”
I take the pliers and grip one of his fingers. I pull them back sharply and hear a crack. Daniel cries out. I don’t think he could scream even if he wanted to. I take the second one and break it. I move onto the third. Daniel’s panting like a dog. Tears leak out of his eyes; not even he can deny this pain. I break every finger he has, and then I take a hammer and smash each toe.
His toes bleed, and I smirk devilishly. He doesn’t need them anyway. When I’m finished with him, there will nothing left of the scumbag.
As the hours tick by, I don’t sleep. Rick brings me energy drinks to keep me going, but I don’t talk to anyone. Days pass by, and eventually, I need to rest. I have my guards tie Daniel to a chair and leave him there, with them standing guard while I go upstairs to sleep.
And man, I sleep well.