Chapter 9: Nine

"Where are my men?" He asked again, and despite how low his voice was, it carried an undertone of ferocity that demanded the truth.

And Locke, who was supposed to deliver the information, seeing how angry he was became hesitant. Because he feared that Blaze was going to explode.

The silence stretched too long as nobody said a word, and Blaze's anger continued to rise. He could barely hold it together at that point. Lucy, who was standing a couple meters beside Domenico, had flinched at the anger in his voice.

Dom finally turned to Locke and gave him a nod, wordlessly asking him to relay the news. Locke didn't say anything immediately. He exhaled slowly, wondering how he was going to break the news without making Blaze go crazy. When he spoke, finally, he sounded very calm, not wanting to give Blaze the snuggles snuggles that they were sorry for what happened last night.

"Things didn't go as expected," Locke started with that casual tone. But the uneasy look on his face was already starting to give him away.

Blaze knew something wasn't right. "And what the hell is that supposed to mean?" He asked. Locke looked down at the floor, then back at Blaze.

"Your men threatened to kill your brother. Was that your order? Because it didn't just end there. They raised their guns to shoot at us. So..." He paused for a few seconds, letting the weight of it linger before he gave the utterly devastating news. "They were taken care of."

Blaze’s heart stopped.

Considering what Locke had been accusing his men of, he knew what that meant. And it wasn't a good thing. In fact, he was trying really hard to not accept what he was hearing. Then he tilted his head slightly, as if his ears had deceived him.

"Taken care of?" He repeated, voice trembling between disbelief and utter rage. "What do you mean- taken care of?"

Locke kept his gaze right at Blaze then leaned back. "Exactly what you think it means. They are dead. And their bodies will be sent to you later today so you can do your duties by them. Pay your last respects and of course, have them buried."

Blaze was trying really hard to make it seem like the news hadn't hit him, but he couldn't help it. His face had drained of color and for the first time, the fire in his eyes instantly faltered. In the corner, Lucy gasped softly, her hands flying to her mouth as she continued to shake.

The earlier shouts and threats Blaze had made scared the senses out of her, and hearing about death now only made it worse. She erased her back into the wall, already hearing the blood roar in her ears. They were talking about death like they were casually discussing the weather.

Dom, who'd said nothing the whole time, smiled at the devastating impact the news had left in its wake. He pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and took in a long drag before exhaling the smoke in Blaze's direction, as if daring him to do something.

"This," Dom said at last, in that deep, measured voice. "Is a warning. And if you're wise enough, which I hardly doubt you are, you should have already learnt your lesson. You should be ready to face the consequences of your actions. Anything that involves this family shouldn't be taken as a child's play. But you ignored that, and see where it has led us."

Blaze's head snapped towards him. He was red with anger now. But Dom didn't stop. He gestured to his brother with the cigarette.

"Locke, give him the ledger."

Locke reached into the briefcase he had brought with him, pulled out the ledger and dropped it onto the table with a heavy thud. But Blaze didn't reach for it.

He was still battling the thought of standing up and wrapping his hands around his brother's throat, wringing the life out of him till he was dead. Dom took another drag of his cigarette, now carrying a smirk.

"Don't waste your energy staring at me, brother. No need for any hard feelings. My men got hit, and they died too. So you should realise that I'm also taking this calmly, which shouldn't be the case. But I won't stop putting it in your face. This was all your fault. You could have avoided all of this if you had done the right thing from the start."

He took another long drag.

"And another thing. Maybe next time, train your men better. Teach them to watch their tongues when they're speaking to someone above them. High above them. Now I don't want to assume that you were the one who asked them to point their guns at us, but if it was your order, then just be aware that you're playing with fire."

That's when Blaze snapped. The pent-up rage that he had been holding in exploded in a raw and venomous outburst.

"Are you really talking about my men like that? Like disposable pawns?" He slammed his hand on the table, rattling the ledger.

But Dom chuckled darkly. "That's exactly what they are. And in this case, shedding blood was totally unavoidable. You let your emotions get the better of you, like you always do."

"I can't believe you did this," Blaze spat. "All because of a damn ledger. All because of that stupid maid who had it. And here you are, talking about sending her to the hospital instead of putting a bullet in her head."

At his words, a sharp sob tore out of Lucy. Her knees buckled, and she clutched the wall, crying softly as her body continued to shake violently.

Blaze didn't look at her, his anger was still rooted on his brother. "I've tried to make you change. I have tried to save you from yourself. But it is clear now- you'll kill your own brothers if you get the chance. You are exhibiting the signs already and I've tried to dissuade myself from thinking that way but I have realised just how jarringly foolish that is. You don't want to change? Fine. Then you're going to see what I'm also really capable of."

He turned, landing his gaze on spooked Lucy. "I'll start with her. She's not going to any hospital. I don't care if her injuries are going to kill her, thats even better because she deserves a slow painful death. And if she takes even one step off this property, I'll blow her fucking head off."

Another cry ripped out Lucy’s throat at the threat. She could feel her head swelling from the terrifying word she'd just heard. "Please- please don't. It was just a mistake."

"Shut up!" Blaze roared.

She flinched back before covering her face with her hands. He pulled out his gun and when Lucy saw it, she screamed, utterly terrified.

"Shut up!" Blaze barked again, this time in a loud and fierce voice.

The guards who had been ready to escort her out to take her to the hospital immediately stepped away, carrying grim looks on their faces. Blaze dropped the gun on the table, eyes still lasered towards Lucy. That's when Dom growled.

"Stop looking for someone to blame. Accept that you fucked up, by trusting a whore with your ledger."

Blaze's eyes went wide. He turned slowly towards his brother again. "Who did you just call a whore?"

Dom chuckled, knowing that had hit his brother deep. "Nicole of course."

Blaze stared at him for a long moment before he said. "Laugh. Smile. Enjoy it while you can. But I promise you, I'm not letting this slide. I'll make you pay for the lives of my men that you took."

Dom stood up, not bothered by the threat. "Before you do anything rash or stupid, remember that the contents of your ledger have been compromised. Be a good boy and stop looking for ways to cause more trouble."

He got out of the chair, dropped the cigarette onto the floor and crushed it under his shoe.

"We'll see later." He said before he started towards the door with Locke following close behind.

They left Blaze there, alone, with Lucy who was still trembling. The silence that followed was unbearable for her. Blaze's rage was still simmering, boiling and eating him alive. He felt like punching something, or shooting something or someone even.

And seeing Lucy only made him more livid. She looked like she was about to faint because of the fear that had gripped her. She slowly raised her head and when she saw him glaring, she begged.

"Please... I didn't mean to cause any of this."

Blaze grabbed the gun, stood up and stepped towards her. Lucy shrank back against the wall, her body shaking now. "You think 'sorry' is gonna fix this?  Do you even fucking realise what you've caused?"

She shook her head quickly, the tears spilling down her cheeks in torrents. Her throat had tightened so hard she could hardly breathe now.

When he took another step towards her, she flinched hard and then a strangled sob ripped from her throat. Her whole body was shaking uncontrollable now.

"Move. Sit the fuck down." Blaze roared.

Shaking violently, she obeyed without a word and when she sat there, already resigning herself listlessly to the looming realisation that this was the end of her life, he raised the gun slowly, deliberately, until the barrel was pointed directly at her face.

"P-please?" She stuttered, sniffling and sobbing profusely as she begged. "Please don't kill me."

Hearing her beg only fueled his anger.

Blaze cocked the gun, pressed the barrel firmly against her forehead, and then... pulled the trigger.