Plan was set

Plan was set
Dante

The phone was on speaker.

“Hello?” Viper’s voice came through the line, his voice was just as calm as he appeared. Cool, collected, taking each word one syllable after the other, making one think he was a cool headed person. “Hello? Who the is this?

Carlos froze. His lips parted, and for a moment it seemed like he wouldn’t speak at all. The silence stretched long enough to make him sweat, but finally he found his voice.

“It’s your father,” he said, still trying to make one believe he was not petrified. 

There was a pause. Then Viper’s voice returned. “Why the are you not in Africa? What the hell happened? Don’t tell me—” He broke off with a sharp inhale. “I’m calling the pilot right now—”

Before he could finish, I reached out and took the phone from Carlos’s shaking hand. He stared at me with knitted eyebrows as if wondering what next I would be doing.

I brought it close to my mouth, my lips curving into something that wasn’t quite a smile but close enough to unsettle anyone who saw it.

“Viper,” I said slowly. My voice calm, almost casual, like this was not a call that was intended to bargain the lives of people.

The other end went silent.

I let the silence sit, I wanted him to know what it meant that his father was here with me. Let reality dawn on him. Like the fear coat him. Let him feel the anger I felt when I found out my sister was gone.

“There’s no need to talk to the pilot.” I said.

The silence dragged on for a few more seconds, heavy and suffocating. I could almost hear his breathing, calm, trying to keep his temper down but I knew him better. He was just like Orion but he was a pretentious fool.

Finally, his voice came. It seemed like he had thought of exactly what he wanted to say, but his words came out shaky.  “Why… Why do you have my family?”

I chuckled, low and rough. “You took something from me. My sister. One person.” I glanced at Carlos and Eliza, tied to their chairs in front of me. They tried to mask their fear, but it slipped through their eyes. I caught it. I always caught it. “And in return,” I continued softly, “I took two.”

“I want my family back,” Viper said. His tone carried force, I guess he learned from his father how to pretend. He was scared. Terrified. 

“And I want my sister back,” I said. No hesitation. No mercy.

“If you touch them—if you dare—” His voice dropped lower, turned into something almost animal. “You’ll regret it, Dante.”

I laughed. A sharp, humorless sound that filled the room. “Regret?” My lips curled, the sound of my laugh lingering like smoke. “You think moving them out of the country was going to keep me away? You think a plane ride and a new location could protect them from me?” My voice hardened. “I told you before, Viper… there is nowhere on this earth you can hide from me. Nowhere.”

Silence again. The kind that isn’t empty but heavy, alive.

I leaned forward, elbows on my knees, speaking into the phone with quiet certainty. “You will follow my instructions. Every single one. Because you only have my sister. But me?” I let the words drip, slow and deliberate. “I have your father… and your sister. And I can wipe them both off the face of the earth without even blinking.”

There was no sound on the other end at first, only his breathing. Then a long, hard exhale. Like a man who realized he was cornered.

“Fine,” he said at last.

“Good.” I let the word drag out, a smirk tugging at my lips. “We’ll meet back in the country. When I arrive, I want my sister. Without a scratch. If anything has happened to her…” My gaze shifted back to Carlos and Eliza, who were watching me with wide, terrified eyes. “…your family dies.”

“I said fine!” Viper snapped. His voice lingered between anger and desperation. He was furious, but he was trapped, and we both knew it. There was nothing he could do and if he was a fool, he would let his anger take control of him. 

I didn’t give him the satisfaction of another word. I hung up. 

The room felt thicker in the silence that followed. Carlos shifted uncomfortably in his chair, his chest rising and falling too fast. As for Eliza, she had tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn’t pretend like her father or her brother. 

Turning to my men, I gave a sharp nod. “Prepare the substitutes. We’re getting my sister back.”

Carlos frowned, his brows drawing tight together. His voice shook, though he tried to sound steady. “Wait… you’re not taking us along? What’s going on?”

I walked toward him, slow steps echoing against the floor. He tensed in his chair, leaning back like he had a way of escape. The sight was rather humorous. 

I crouched down until our eyes were level. My gaze locked on his, and I let a slow smile spread across my face. 

“Carlos, Carlos…” I said softly, almost like I was comforting him. “You’ll sit right here. And you’ll watch. You’ll watch and you’ll learn why no one—” I leaned in closer, my voice dropping to a whisper. “No one ever messes with my family or my business.”

His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. His eyes darted away from mine, unable to hold my stare for more than a second. It seemed he finally understood what getting caught by me meant. 

There was no escape.

I stood and pulled out my phone. My fingers dialed quickly, and I quickly dialed a number. 

“Draco,” I said. I kept my voice calm and steady. Wanting to not let Draco feel the anger that had oozed from me when I spoke to Viper. “I’m coming back. We’ll be landing in two hours. Be ready.”

There was no hesitation on the other side. “Yes, boss,” Draco answered firmly.

I hung up, sliding the phone back into my pocket. The plan was set.

This wasn’t just a game. This was war. And I always won.