Chapter 50 Taking The Ultimate Gamble
Cedric's hand moved on pure instinct. He very quickly squeezed the paper into a tight ball, shoved it into his mouth and forced himself to chew it all up.
He swallowed hard, feeling It scrape down his throat, and looked up to find Gianni staring at him with an expression that was completely, utterly unreadable.
The silence stretched for three long seconds, neither of them really sure how exactly to react to that.
Then Gianni’s lips curved another one of his evil smiles. “Well,” he said softly. “That’s certainly a choice.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cedric said, his voice rough from the paper still coating his throat. “Nothing happened.”
“Cedric.” Gianni took a step forward, closing the distance between them. “The last time someone had the nerve to get between us, to meddle in our affairs, I took their fingers, and I only stopped there because of her connections to the family.”
Maria. He was talking about Maria.
Cedric’s stomach clenched, he briefly wondered how she was doing. Where had those men taken her? Was she okay? He didn't dare interrupt Gianni's rant to ask any of that though, he knew he was already in enough trouble.
“Luca is currently downstairs,” Gianni continued calmly, “getting beaten half to death by my soldati because he confessed his role in destroying my gift to you. He needed to be punished, you understand. And what greater punishment is there than suffering pain and humiliation at the hands of those of lesser standing than you?”
He started walking slow circles around Cedric,“So I’m curious. What parts should I take from your co-conspirator? The one who slipped you that note that you needed so badly to keep secret from me, that you consumed it like a child?”
Cedric’s heart was trying to escape through his ribs. “It wasn’t... It's actually not like that at all... Like I said before, he just...”
“An eye?” Gianni interrupted, still circling. “An arm? Maybe his spine, so he can spend the rest of his miserable life unable to walk, unable to fight, unable to do anything but regret the moment he thought he could come between what’s mine?”
He paused, then continued, "Darling Cedric, do you know what a Colombian necktie is?"
Cedric shook his head slowly, but that evil shark smile on Gianni's face told him whatever it was, it wasn't good.
"I could give you a demonstration if you like. Break his jaw wide open, slit his throat underneath, then pull his tongue out from the rip in his throat so it looks just like the real thing you would wear to work. Would you like to see Dante wear one?"
“Stop.” Cedric’s voice came out strangled. “Just stop. It’s not any of your business what I talk about or with who. For fucks sake.”
The words sounded weak even to his own ears, his false bravery crumbling under the weight of Gianni’s presence.
“Not my business?” Gianni paused in his circling, his eyebrows rising. “Everything about you is my business. Your conversations, your thoughts, your secrets. All of it belongs to me, just like you belong to me, down to every last drop of blood in your body.”
“That’s not fucking fair,” Cedric said, hating how his voice shook. “I’m a human being just like you. Don’t I have the right to a few secrets of my own?”
“No.” The answer was simple,“Not when those secrets could put you in danger, or when they involve men like Dante who have agendas you can’t possibly understand.”
“You can’t do what you did to Maria,” Cedric said, desperation creeping into his voice. “Not to him. Not to anyone else. I’m begging you. I can't keep being the reason why you damage other people, it's not fair to them or to me. I can't bear it.”
Gianni’s expression shifted into something darker. “What parts should I take from you?” he asked quietly. “For betraying me time and time again? Disobeying me? For showing me that you cannot be trusted?”
“I haven’t..."
“You took photos of my home. My security systems. My armory.” Gianni’s voice was still calm, which somehow made it worse.
"I didn't mean anything by it, they were just photos and I was bored. I had nothing else to do other than..."
“You destroyed evidence rather than share it with me. You've lied to my face more times than I can count. So tell me, Cedric. What should your punishment be?”
Cedric’s knees gave out.
He didn’t mean to kneel, it wasn't like he knowingly decide to drop to the floor, but suddenly he was there anyway, his good hand braced against the carpet while his casted arm hung useless at his side.
“Please,” he whispered. “Don’t hurt him. Don’t hurt Dante. I won't let you do it. He didn’t do anything wrong, he just...”
Gianni’s hand slid into his hair, gentle and affectionate at first, his fingers threading through the damp strands in a way that would have been calming under different circumstances.
Then his grip tightened, yanking hard enough to make Cedric’s scalp burn, pulling him up to his feet so they were eye to eye.
Cedric gasped at the pain, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. He was trembling now, his whole body shaking with fear and adrenaline and something else he didn’t want to name.
Because underneath the terror, underneath the knowledge that Gianni could hurt him in ways that would break him permanently, there was heat. Arousal pooling low in his belly, his cock hardening against his will at the dominance in Gianni’s grip, at the way he was being controlled and positioned like a doll.
Gianni’s eyes tracked downward, landing on the obvious bulge in Cedric’s silk pajama pants.
His smile was slow and knowing and absolutely devastating. “Is this why you go out of your way to be so disrespectful?” he asked, his voice dropping to that dangerous purr. “Because you liked the punishment so much? Because you wanted me to put my hands on you again?”
“No,” Cedric said quickly, shaking his head as much as Gianni’s grip would allow. “That’s not, I.." I hate you, Gianni. I fucking hate you.
You make me sick, and I wish I never had to see you again.
But even as he said those words in his head, his body betrayed him. His cock twitched against the silk, his breath coming faster, his pupils dilating as he stared up at Gianni.
If his suspicions were right, if the M in that note really did mean Marcus, then Dante absolutely could not be harmed. That would mean destroying his one and only link to the cop waiting for him on the other side of all this nightmare, waiting for the opportunity to save him.
It was a gamble. The M could mean anything. Michele. Mario. Marco. Mc fucking Donald's. It would be foolish to put all his hope in a note from a stranger he’d barely known for twenty minutes.
But he’d tried espionage and failed spectacularly. His phone was gone, his photos were useless, and Luca was downstairs getting beaten within an inch of his life because of him.
Any other option had to be worth pursuing. Any chance at survival had to be taken, no matter the cost.
So Cedric changed his mind. Nodded yes to Gianni’s question even though everything in him wanted to deny it. “Yes,” he whispered. “Yes, I… I wanted you to punish me.”
The lie tasted bitter on his tongue, but he forced himself to continue, to play the role Gianni wanted him to play.
Because the last thing he wanted was to let this man anywhere near him. To surrender his body again to someone who’d proven over and over that he was a monster. To let Gianni fuck him when the memory of Maria’s bloody stumps was still fresh in his mind.
Actually, maybe not the last thing, seeing as his stupid, traitorous body wanted it badly. Wanted Gianni’s hands on him, and the intoxicating edge of danger and dominance that made his brain short-circuit.
He had to play the game and appease Gianni so Dante could be spared, so his one possible connection to Marcus could survive intact.
Cedric sank back down to his knees, this time deliberately, and pressed his face against Gianni’s crotch. The fabric of his slacks was warm against his cheek, and Cedric could feel the hard length of him underneath, already half-aroused.
“Please,” Cedric said, his voice muffled against Gianni’s thigh. “Punish me however you want. I’ll take it. I’ll be good. Just… just forgive everyone else. Let them survive. Let Dante go. Let Luca live. Please, I’m begging you.”
His hands came up to grip Gianni’s legs, his mouth moving to press open-mouthed kisses against the expensive fabric. Degrading himself, offering himself up like a sacrifice on an altar.
“I’ll get what I deserve,” Cedric continued, his lips brushing against the growing bulge. “Whatever punishment you think is appropriate. Just don’t hurt anyone else because of me. Please. I’ll do anything.”
Gianni’s hand was still in his hair, grip tight enough to hurt, and Cedric waited for his response. This had to work, or else...