Kratos

by T. L Smith

  “Um, um, I think his name is Giovanni,” he stammers.

  I know he’s telling me the truth so I choose to reward him with his life.

  “Where can I find, Giovanni?” I yell, to the rest of the room.

  They all look around like the dumb fucked up shits they are.

  “We don’t know. He comes in unexpectedly,” the young guy advises.

  I huff, turn and walk out the door, because I soon realize that this conversation is getting me nowhere. I’ll have to dig up information on Giovanni and I know someone who can help me. I will get her back! And, whoever took her, better hope he is dead before I reach him. No one fucks with my Princess.

  Just as I pull up to Roberto’s, my cell rings. Kontos is calling to see what info I have.

  “The only lead I have is a man named Giovanni. He’s in charge of Alberto’s crew now. I am at Roberto’s to see if he knows anything.”

  I hear him take a deep breath before he responds. Kontos is usually a calm and collected man. He will shoot you and not even think twice about it. “Keep me posted! I am following leads of my own,” he says and hangs up.

  I step out of the car and into Roberto’s restaurant. I notice he’s at the back of the room. I walk straight past the man at the front and he doesn’t seem happy.

  Fuck him! My job is to not make cunts happy!

  “Stefanos, how can I help you?” Roberto asks and gestures for me to sit.

  I don’t want to sit, I need information. “What do you know of Giovanni? Has he taken over Alberto’s crew?”

  “Ah, never here for pleasure, only for business,” he says, taking a sip of his bourbon.

  “Roberto, I don’t have time for small talk. I need to know what you know, now!”

  “I have heard of him, though I don’t know much about him. Alberto left him in charge. He isn’t a nice man, if you get my drift.”

  Fuck! I know what he’s referring to. He’s like me, completely fucked up and has no remorse.

  “Where can I find him?” I ask, because he can’t be a ghost. Someone has to know something.

  “That, my son, I do not know. I’ll ask around though.”

  I leave him without a thank you, and take off. I don’t know where to look, but I will find her, if it’s the last thing I do on this motherfucking earth.

  I’ve decided to hit Alberto’s strip clubs. So far I’ve gone into two and killed five men in each. These men are stupid if they think they can protect a single man from me. I will put them all six foot under. As I walk into the last strip club, I see a line of men at the front, obviously they have caught on that I’m not here for pleasantries and have been warned ahead of time.

  “Gentlemen, I hope you are all out the front to give me the information I need,” I say¸ taking out my guns from my trousers and placing them by my side.

  “Why would we give you anything you need?” one man yells.

  I look at him and notice that he’s quite a bulky man. Some people may feel intimidated by this, just not me.

  “Because I will only ask you once.”

  Some men shift under my threat and look to the others with raised eyebrows and a questioning glance. Someone will talk, I’m positive of it.

  “Who are you, and why do you need this information?” the same man yells out again. Obviously he’s in charge. He will be my first target if I don’t get the answers I need soon.

  “Stefanos and that is none of your concern.”

  At the mention of my name some men just walk away. I can see the ringleader of his group is not impressed. They obviously know who I am. That makes me smile because it means they know I will kill them without warning or hesitation.

  “I’ll tell you what I know, which isn’t much, but you must leave and never come back.”

  I nod my head and wait patiently. I can tell he doesn’t want to give me any information, but he’s also a smart man and he knows I’ll drop him and his men, if he doesn’t.

  “We haven’t met him more than a hand full of times. When Giovanni comes in it’s only to take his money. He doesn’t do anything consistently. Last time he was in, he was talking to a Japanese woman. He’s Alberto’s son and was left in charge. That’s all I know.”

  My blood is boiling, that fucking bitch. I will shred her. Then, I will keep her alive, just so Eliza can torture the bitch for fucking with us. And Alberto’s son, he’s probably as fucked in the head as his father was. I will kill them all if they’ve hurt her. Fuck it! I’m going to kill them anyway because they think they can touch her. I turn my back on the men and make my way toward the car. I ring Kontos and wait for him to answer, while I drive to Naoko’s house.

  “Meet me at Naoko’s.” I hang up in his ear. He isn’t dumb he might even make it there before I do. I just hope he doesn’t kill her, before I let my Princess do it.

  As soon as I pull up, I see that Kontos is already there. I knew he would be here before me and now I’m thinking maybe I should have waited before I called him. Lord knows what I am about to walk in on.

  As soon as I open the door, I hear Naoko screaming. I make my way in and see her tied to a chair. She sees me enter and her wide eyes scream at me for help. She must’ve really lost her mind if she thinks I would help her. Fuck, the only reason I’m not killing her right here, right now, is because I need to make my Princess happy. And to make her happy would be letting her torture the living shit out of Naoko.

  “Stefanos, you have to tell him I did nothing,” she pleads with me. Once I get closer I can see a knife sticking out from her leg. That makes me smile. My Princess is so much like her father.

  “Don’t fucking lie to me, Naoko,” I growl and watch as Kontos turns the blade on her bare skin making her scream more.

  “Now tell me, Naoko, what information did you give, Giovanni?”

  She looks up at me through tears, and I see in that moment that she realizes that she’s busted. She can no longer lie to me. Obviously this man went to great lengths to keep her quiet and me saying his name made her realize I know something.

  “I didn’t give him much, I swear,” she pleads again.

  “Even a little is too much, you filthy bitch. Do you know who I am? Do you value your fucking life? I will gut you, just for mentioning her name. Now tell me what the fuck you said?” Kontos is clearly pissed and is nose-to-nose in front of her face.

  “He asked about her and I told him I met her through you,” she says, looking directly at me. “He was very curious about her. I didn’t understand why. He played me. He’s very charming,” she says and looks down like she finally realized it just that second.

  “I don’t care how charming he is. What did you tell him?” I ask her.

  “Where she lived with you.”

  Fucking bitch just signed her own death warrant. Kontos goes to pull his gun out to shoot her, but I stop him. He frowns with a puzzled look and I turn back to her and smile.

  “Krinos will have fun with her. She will need it,” I tease.

  Kontos nods in understanding and flicks his head to our men to grab her, after he pulls his knife from her leg making her scream out in agony.

  “No, no you can’t do that. She will torture me,” she pleads, except it falls on deaf ears.

  “I can get hold of him,” she says, as we are almost at the door. We both turn around in unison and stare at her.

  She better hope she can!

  “But first, you have to promise me you won’t let her kill me.”

  Ah, smart girl, but not smart enough.

  “Done, now contact him,” Kontos tells her.

  Matt unties her and she limps slowly to her cell and sits down on her sofa, drenching it with her blood.

  Naoko tells us he will meet her at their usual spot. She doesn’t ask about Eliza, she only says that she has a new shipment.

  So, that’s who her new clients are!

  She goes to tuck her cell back into her bra when Matt takes it and throws it across the room, and hauls her to her
feet. She screams out in pain from her leg, but Matt is not fazed by her.

  “Where are you taking me? You said you wouldn’t kill me?” she screams, as she’s being dragged from the room.

  “We won’t kill you, but Krinos may want to ‘play’,” Kontos says to her, with a smirk.

  She throws him a hateful scowl and turns to me. “You can’t let him give me to that mafia Princess. I know her, she will fucking torture me. You can’t let her, Stefanos,” she pleads, but she can plead all she likes, it will only fall on deaf ears.

  “You signed your own death, the minute you opened your mouth about her. Just be thankful I haven’t killed you myself.”

  “Be thankful? Be thankful?... you are the fucker who brought her into my life. I was fucking fine without that mafia bitch anywhere near me. She has you pussy whipped, like a bitch.” She’s angry and hurt now, trying to provoke me to kill her, just so Eliza won’t hurt and torture her skanky ass. But, who am I to deny my Princess anything... she gets anything she damn well pleases.

  Kontos and I head to the meeting spot situated in a house near one of the strip joints. We have taken Naoko’s car. The windows are tinted, so you can’t see in. I notice a very large man waiting at the front looking our way. He has no other men with him, so either he’s very stupid or extremely good. Kontos looks at me and I can see he wants to get out and blow this guy’s head apart, but he knows he can’t. Me, well, I want to do worse, but I won’t be doing a thing ‘till I know where my Princess is. As soon as we step out of the car I see the man smirk, like he was expecting us. Kontos and I reach him and he looks us up and down to check out what we have on us. My guns are never visible. I am not stupid.

  “So, you are the big bad wolf I should be scared of,” he says, with his evil sadistic smile never leaving his face.

  “You must be Giovanni?” Kontos steps forward. I haven’t spoken since I stepped out of the car, the man’s eyes finally leave mine and he looks to Kontos sizing him up.

  “You are correct! And correct me if I’m wrong, but you must be Kontos and your colorful employee here must be Stefanos,” he says looking back to me again expecting a response.

  “Where is she?” Kontos asks the man, who is looking directly at me.

  “Where is who?” he asks, smirking again, looking back to Kontos.

  “Don’t play games, Giovanni, I’m not a patient man who likes to play,” Kontos says.

  “But, Krinos is, isn’t she?” As soon as her name leaves his tongue, Kontos takes his gun out and points it to Giovanni’s head. I take his arm and pull on it so it lowers, because we won’t get any information if he’s dead.

  He looks back to me and his smirk hasn’t left his face. “She’s a spitfire that one isn’t she? Also one hell of a looker. Wouldn’t want to put a gun or a knife in her hand and be around though.”

  “Where is she?” I grit out, barely keeping my own anger in check.

  “She’s safe, for the time being. I planned on slicing and dicing her as soon as I found her, but what I didn’t expect was... ” he drifts off, getting an odd look on his face like he wasn’t expecting someone so beautiful. This makes me think that the sick bastard likes her more than he should. “She did kill my father after all, and I wanted revenge.”

  “I don’t care about your daddy issues, I want her back. Tell me where the fuck she is,” I snap.

  “I would consider being nice Stefanos, as I have your pregnant, soon to be wife in my hands.”

  I hear a gasp near me and realize I haven’t told Kontos our news.

  Fuck, he is going to rip my balls off!

  “I will only say this one more time and then if you don’t tell me, I will make you wish you had. Where the fuck is she?”

  He puts his hand to his head and scratches it for a bit, like he’s debating telling me or not. “As lovely as that offer sounds I’m going to have to pass. You see she doesn’t want to be found. She knew you would put it together. I told her you wouldn’t, that no one could find me. But, I guess now I owe her a new knife for being right. Smart one, that girl you have.”

  My nerves are shot and I can’t listen to his lies anymore. I take out a knife from my pants and throw it directly at his leg. It takes a moment for him to realize it has sliced through his flesh. Though it doesn’t seem to faze him as he pulls it out and throws it back at me. I catch it and smile. He might not be such a dumb fuck after all, but that doesn’t make me want to kill him any less.

  “Are you saying she’s here by choice?” Kontos speaks on my behalf.

  I am furious and wondering if he’s willing to give her a knife, knowing what she can do with it. How close have these two become? And why hasn’t she left yet?

  “Well, at first she wasn’t, until we started talking. I stopped wanting to kill her for my father’s crimes. You are a lucky man Stefanos, and because you are, I will let you follow me. But keep in mind, if you hurt her, I will hurt you,” he says, then turns around and climbs into his car. I’m dumbfounded; he’s threatening me if I hurt her? I could never hurt her.

  Kontos hasn’t spoken one word since we got back in the car. In a way I’m thankful, because my mind won’t shut off anyway. I’m trying to think of all the reasons she’d choose to stay away. Even if she hasn’t been gone for long, it’s been like an eternity for me. I feel the darkness coming back. It only comes out when necessary. But, I’m afraid it will stay and consume me.

  We pull up and watch as Giovanni gets out of his car and walks into a very nice suburban house. It even has a white picket fence. There are three cars parked in the driveway and it looks like there’s a party going on inside, as I can hear the music from the car. I turn to Kontos and his jaw is clenched. He’s no happier than I am now, though he’s pissed for two reasons instead of one. The biggest one right now would be that he didn’t know Eliza was pregnant, and the second that Giovanni has been saying she has chosen not to come home.

  We step out of the car and follow Giovanni into the house. We hear a few men laughing. When we get to the living room, everyone’s eyes turn to us as all laughter ceases. I notice her thick brown hair before she sees me. I watch as she turns around with a smile on her face and then see it drop when she notices the expression on my face. I can hear my heart beating like mad in my chest. God the things she makes me feel are crazy.

  Utterly. Fucking. Crazy!

  “I owe you that knife,” Giovanni says, walking to her and handing her a new knife with a red handle, which she pockets in her jeans. There is no threat here, she’s here by choice, it’s clear as day.

  “Krinos,” Kontos addresses his daughter in a tone that says he’s clearly not happy, but she hasn’t taken her hooded eyes from mine.

  “Father,” she addresses him, still trying to work out the look on my face, which would be hard because my face is blank. But my mind and body want to go all caveman on her ass, throw her over my shoulder, take her home and then tie her to our bed.

  “Seems like you’ve been having fun. Have you been having fun, Krinos?” I ask, her eyes showing I’ve hurt her, because I don’t address her by that name, ever. But what does she think? That it’s okay to make your loved ones fucking crazy while you’re out having fun?

  “I was taken captive, you smart ass prick. And for your information I was having fun, for the first time in a long while. I was planning on coming home tonight after I’d sorted out some business. But I don’t plan on coming home with you now, Stefanos, especially seeing as you want to be a prick. Maybe I will stay with Giovanni, he seems to appreciate me,” she berates, with her hand on her hip and looking at me with her trademark, ‘go fuck yourself’ look.

  I’m sick of this banter. She can play games with other people, but the only games she’s allowed to play with me are in the fucking bedroom. I walk over and I see her smile grow. She knows me so well. I reach her and hoist her body over my shoulder and carry her out. As soon as I reach the car I throw open the door and place her into the passenger seat and buckle her
in. She looks up at me, but doesn’t speak. When I shut the door, I see Kontos and Giovanni standing there. Kontos nods his head and walks back inside with a smiling Giovanni by his side.

  She hasn’t spoken a word the entire drive home, and neither have I. I haven’t looked at her once, but I can feel her stare penetrating me. I’m afraid if I open my mouth I will say something mean or hurtful, but I know she has a knife. I’m not willing to risk my manhood before I’ve had the chance to be buried inside her.

  Just as we are getting closer to our house, a car speeds toward us from my left and clips the front of my car sending us spinning. I control the car enough so we don’t flip, but my already flaring temper is now past the point of no return. I look over to Eliza before I step out of the car and grab her forcefully by the hair once I see she’s fine and devour her mouth with mine. She responds eagerly to my mouth and starts pulling at my hair. This kiss isn’t passion it’s possession, I need to possess all that is her. Just as I pull my tongue out of her mouth, I bite down on her lip, then open my door and step out. The other driver of the car is stuck and can’t move, but he has his gun pointed at me.

  Fucking idiot.

  I don’t bother with pleasantries, it’s time to get Eliza’s ass home. I take a cigar from my pocket and light it. I watch as the screaming man, who I now recognize from one of the strip joints earlier, tries to set himself free. It doesn’t work though, as soon as I have had my first draw, I flick my now lit cigar toward his leaking fuel tank. I smile a sinister smile at him and salute the bastard.

  Just as I reach our car, his car goes up in flames along with the dickhead in it. I hear the screams and grin as I climb back into the car and take off. Eliza shakes her head at me, but is also containing her own smirk. Wait till we get home, that smile of hers won’t last long.

  We reach our house and I go around and open her door. I wait for her to get out, but she doesn’t move. I reach down and unbuckle my stubborn bitch, grab her and carry her bridal style through our house ‘till we reach our bedroom. I place her on the bed and stand in front of her, taking long breaths before I let the words leave my mouth. She looks up at me smiling. She knows I’m trying to calm myself.