Chapter 45 Interrogation
“Did he talk yet?” Kael queried as he strode through the room which was lit only by a single bulb and reeked of blood and urine, among other unpleasant odors that one would prefer not to describe.
“Not yet, boss,” Val replied, setting down the pair of pliers he was holding, still dripping with thick crimson liquid and bits of flesh that clung to the rust-crusted metal.
“Hmm,” a low rumble resounded on Kael’s chest as he veered his eyes towards the man seated on a wooden chair whose legs and hands were bound. Blood beading down from his mouth and nose, his eyes blackened from recent bludgeoning, his face almost distorted beyond recognition with some of his teeth missing, broken, and chipped.
He’s awful to spare a stare, but in Kael’s eyes, he looked like a magnificent piece of artwork chiseled by violence and power.
Val took a step aside, making way for Kael to step closer toward the suffering man. His chest heaving, barely holding on to his consciousness as his bloodied eyes struggled to peel open, gazing at him with a crooked grin plastered on his misshapen lips.
“The great Master Kael Aslanov,” the man snarled, mockery hinted on his voice as he uttered his name.
Kael inhaled sharply, leaning forward as he inclined his arms on both sides of the chair, leveling his gaze on the mangled face of a man.
“You touch my property, you know the consequences,” he gritted through his clenched teeth as he tries to hold back his temper and not kill this man without squeezing some information as to what he was doing inside his property and touching Lilia with his filthy hands.
However, the man only snorted, grimacing as his busted lips stretched into a sneer.
“Ah, beautiful young lady. Has she, perhaps, taken the string of your rotten heart?”
Kael narrowed his gaze on him, refusing to get his words into his head and distract him from his agenda, the reason why he had to endure this dreaded conversation in the first place.
“What are you doing in my dome?” he interrogated, taking his collar and yanking his face closer, ignoring the horrid smell wafting through his nostrils. His patience is getting thinner and thinner, yet he didn't have the information he wanted to have.
Kael curled his fingers on the old man's collar sleeves, drawing him near to keep himself from punching the crap out of him.
“I was merely watching the fighting pit,” the old man reasoned out, wheezing as Kael began to cut his airways, dissatisfied with what he had been hearing for the last minutes, squabbling and nothing more.
“Don’t play me a fool, old man. I am not very fond of it,” the turmoil of rage began to swirl inside him from his time getting wasted by this goon, but then that wasn't the only thing that made him even more furious.
The man only preened, goading him into losing his temper and doing things so rashly that would result in his endeavors being fruitless.
“Does the king start to get shaken by mere henchmen of his rival?” the old man clicked his tongue, flashing his blood-covered mouth, taunting him.
This would be a a futile attempt if he forfeits his temper, cause that would only mean he loses. Kael elicited an exasperated long sigh, eying the discarded pliers that Val had used prior to his interrogation with this old man. Just then a wicked notion enters his mind as he straightens his stance, resting one of his hands on his waist, waiting for the man to answer his question.
“Should I display more of my craftsmanship before you start talking?” The corner of his eyes loops upward, reaching for the pliers and holding them closer to his face.
“There is nothing to talk about,” for one second, fear flashed across the old man’s face as he tries to back away.
He struggles to free himself from the binds upon seeing that Kael had picked up the pliers that Val used to pull out his teeth.
However, stubborn as the bullheaded shark, instead of telling Kael everything he knows, he snorted the clogged blood on his nostrils and spit it out near his feet.
Kael only stared at the spittle with a blank expression on his face before continuing with his questioning.
“The hospital,” he began, adjusting the bloodied pliers, then he drags a single stool from the side and sits on it. Kael looks down at the old man's crooked hands, noting that there were still two nails attached to his fingertips.
“I wasn't there, but I heard...I see that you are fine. How many men had you lost that day? Your men recovered well,” the old man's battered eyes shifted from him to the person standing behind him, sniggering in the process as though the whole situation amuses him despite his current condition.
All the reserves Kael had been keeping for his temper not to get in his head, this man right here seemed to have a talent for depleting it.
He couldn't hold it much longer, everything that happened at the hospital. The attack, something is going on right under his nose that he had failed to notice.
And there's one person who he knew dares to cross him. Without uttering a single warning, Kael raises his hand above his head and smacks it down on the old man's face.
“Quit blabbering!” He roared in rage, feeling quite satisfied from the sickening crunch he heard as the old man's nose broke.
“What is De Luca playing at this time? We made some agreements not to cross each other’s paths, why did he attack me?” He probed, grabbing his thinning gray hair and yanking his head back. The old man grunted in pain but still doesn't give in yet.
He was stoking his fire, and it is only a matter of time before it will get out of hand.
“My, my, my....the kingpin doesn't know the catch he holds in his hand. You see, you have something he wanted so dearly,” he taunted, pushing him right on the edge, but Kael got intrigued by what he had said.
What does he have that De Luca wanted?
They have been in the same industry, and to keep the peace between their territories, they agreed to stay away from each other’s businesses. So far, he had known none. He acquired all his things fair and square, and whatever it is he had that De Luca wanted, then might as well he’ll unleash the chaos.
That raises the question of ‘what does that mean?’
His confusion must have broken through the surface of his stoic facade as he began laughing like a mad man.
“I guess, it’s for you to find out,” he sniggered at his remark, looking at him with bemusement.
He knows if he continues this interrogation, he will only lose his precious time rather than actually spending it on something more valuable than his shitty worthless life.
This time around, it was Kael who smirked at him, opening his pliers and grabbing him by the face, squeezing his jaw open as he loomed even closer.
“I see you wanted this the hard way, then so be it.”
With that, he pinches the old man's tongue using the rusty pliers, pulling it excruciatingly slow as his horrified screams sound melodies in his ears.