Mafia King's Contract Breeder
Chapter 22 A Difficult Man to Kill

Chapter 22: 22 A Difficult Man to Kill

Emmanuel POV

I held out my hand towards Dover. He put a scalpel into my palm, already knowing exactly what I was looking for.

I grabbed the man by the jaw and dislocated it in one swift movement.

He let out a muffled groan, eyes wide and bloodshot as he realized what I intended to do with the scalpel.

"If you don’t have anything useful to say..." I said pleasantly. "Then you don’t need to speak at all."

"W-wait— Emmanuel— Mr Sagres—"

Oh, so he did know how to speak to me respectfully?

Too late.

Seconds later, the cell was filled only with the sounds of anguished screams.

I wiped my hands on the cloth Dover offered, the fabric coming away stained.

I stepped out of the cell. The air in the hallway felt cleaner, cooler. The heavy door shut behind us with a solid metallic clang that echoed down the corridor.

I didn’t need the man to talk to know the story — yet another ploy from those who desperately wanted me dead.

"Take the phone to Shen Kai and have him decode it."

"Shen Kai already has it," Dover replied. "Just trying to get through without blowing the whole damn thing."

I nodded without comment.

"Keep going with the traitor," I said. "Break his bones. Start with the toes. Leave him a hand to write with. If he still won’t talk when he’s out of bones, then he can die."

"Yes, Boss."

I turned away.

Interrogation was usually a fun part of my day.

Better, surely, than dealing with the inevitable stupidity of my subordinates.

Another day, I might have dragged it out. Finished him myself. But after only a few minutes, the man’s screams were boring me.

Not as interesting as my little fox.

When I saw that determined little look on her face — how I wanted to break her. Own her.

I ran a finger over my lips, thinking of the taste of her.

The guards in the hallway bowed their heads as I strode by, Dover at my heel like a shadow.

"That’s the second worm we’ve found in Mikhail’s men," I said. "Tell him to come and see me. If there is a third, he can bring his head on a plate."

Dover nodded.

He opened the door at the top of the stairs and held it for me without a word. I pulled my thoughts back from entertainment to mull over how I would deal with Mikhail.

Lara POV

Mr Ricci went on with his grand tour.

"That’s the gym. That’s the laundry — you can leave your clothes there, Maria will bring it back to your room."

I tracked the security cameras at every corner. The elevator that only worked with an access card I didn’t have.

"If you need anything else, clothes or make up or whatnot, you let me know and I’ll have it delivered."

"So I’m not allowed to leave?" I asked sharply. "What if I want to go out?"

"Then you need to get the Boss’s permission," Mr Ricci said.

"Fine, fine. I get the idea."

My brows twisted together.

I brushed a hand against the wall as we walked, mapping the boundaries of this gilded cage.

So this was what my life was going to look like.

I could be fed well. I had access to comfort, even luxury.

But if I wanted to so much as go to the grocery store?

Or make a call to my family?

I had to go through Emmanuel Sagres.

The thought made my heart sink.

If my employer wasn’t the mafia king, of all people, maybe I could convince myself to get on board with this.

All my life, it had been a struggle just to survive. I had been working part time jobs after school since I was fourteen. I had no idea what it meant to just...relax.

Have someone else to take care of me.

But no amount of luxury could make me forget who he was.

It gave everything a bad taste.

Just be loyal to him, and he wouldn’t let you down?

I didn’t believe it for a second.

—

Later in the day I found my way to the kitchen. I was helping Chef Srisuk peel potatoes, thinking that I had found the only nice person around here.

"How did you start working for Mr Sagres?" I asked her.

"My husband was Chef," Chef Srisuk said.

Her knife flew over the potatoes like magic, turning them into perfectly even cubes.

"Oh, did he introduce you to Mr Sagres?"

Chef Srisuk tended to make very short statements, so I found myself babbling on, trying to fill in the gaps.

"I kill husband. Now I am Chef," said Chef Srisuk calmly.

I dropped my potato peeler.

"Sorry, I think I heard you wrong."

Chef Srisuk shook her head.

"Husband was bad man. Beat me."

She gestured towards her face, miming a black eye.

"No good. I am better."

"Uh — you’re, you’re better off without him, yes, for sure," I said faintly, picking up my potato peeler.

That was when Mr Ricci limped through the steel doors.

"Oi — what are you doing here?" he said, frowning at me.

"Helping," I said.

"Is that for Mr Sagres?" he demanded, looking at Srisuk.

"Only for us," she said, not looking up as she continued to dice potatoes.

"Hmmm," said Mr Ricci, still not pleased. "Get out of here," he said to me.

"What, why?" I asked.

"No one touches Mr Sagres’s food," he said curtly.

He marched me out of the kitchen.

"What, you think I might poison it or something?" I realized, my eyes widening.

Mr Ricci gave me a side-glance and shook his head, as though that should be obvious.

"There was already a whole fucking strip search situation when I came into this building. How paranoid can you get?"

"Paranoid?" Mr Ricci said. "Do you know how many people want our Boss dead?"

I didn’t answer, pressing my lips together. Me included, I thought. Not that I was planning to poison him, but...

Emmanuel Sagres must be a very difficult man to kill.

A difficult man to kill, AND a difficult man to escape from.

What option did that leave me with?