Rose and Thorns

Note: This chapter contains violence. So, read it only if you are comfortable reading such scenes.  VICTOR  Pew A distant sniper rifle shot was heard followed by the loud screams of the crowd who bolted from the seats to save their precious lives. The campaigning ground turned into a battlefield just in a matter of seconds. The Gonzales were attending the presidential campaign to show their support to Georgio Perez, the candidate they knew would support them after acquiring his position as the President of the country. Ricardo Gonzalez, the Mafia lord of the Northern Province of Latin America was responsible for running various mob groups and for ordering the murders of various people of higher ranks in and around his country. The government was well aware of his crimes but he remained untouchable for years due to the local people’s ardent and blind support. He was called the 'black visionary' for his involvement in charity and funds for the military and feeding the hunger. He was respected and feared by his people but behind all this, he had his ulterior motives. He learned that his people were his shield to save himself from the government. However, he was considered a threat to the other mafia groups of South America due to his rising positive popularity which put his life constantly at stake. The old Gonzales who was standing tall and Majestic just a few seconds ago, waving his hand at the people, was now grunting in pain, clutching his palm over his wounded shoulder. His young mistress, Emilia Vargas was screeching in horror, kneeling next to him. His men were hovering over him to take him to safety. The only person who didn’t seem affected by the attempted assassination of Ricardo Gonzales was Victor, Ricardo’s son and the only heir to his mafia empire. He remained as still as a statue before his stone-cold, calculative eyes traveled to the tall building from where he believed the bullet was shot. “Victor, your father needs you..” Emilia called out to him when Ricardo tried to stretch his arm for his son. However, Victor wasn’t the one to let his emotions take control over his senses. What mattered to him more than his father was the life of the bastard who had the guts to enter his territory and shoot the mafia kingpin. With a hand gesture, Victor asked his men to take care of the situation and began to take slow yet murderous steps towards the building, pushing away the crowd on his way. The grey in his eyes shone with a hunger to kill. He pressed and spoke over his earpiece, “The bullet was shot from the Blue pearl tower. Surround the building immediately..” His second in command, Nikolai, and his men were stationed a few miles away from the campaigning area just for security purposes.  The building was the tallest in the whole vicinity and at least a good thousand meters away from where he stood. Victor got into his big black Benz and revved the engine. The wheels left trails of fire and smoke as the car hit the road with a roar. The car spun at the corner of the sixty-seventh Carrera street and came to a screeching halt in front of the building. It took him less than four minutes to reach the spot. The building had thirty-eight floors and if he was right, the sniper was still in the building. He pushed back his long coat with style to pull out the two handguns that he had tucked into his belt at his back. He began to walk in, with his men trailing close behind him. Glaring straight ahead of him he stretched his left arm to silently signal at one of them to keep a watch at the elevator just in case the sniper decided to take it, which Victor highly doubted. He kept walking towards the spiral staircase of the emergency exit and like a cat began to climb them. He had approached the eighth floor when he sensed a movement on the floor above him. A man swiftly moved out to the extended open terrace from where he decided to seek the pipes to climb down but unfortunately, he was too slow and blunt for not having sensed Victor’s presence behind him. Victor was collected and his face held no emotions as he slowly began to pick up his pace. The man's eyes finally took notice of a large, built silhouette of a man who screamed danger and instantly knew who he was.  Victor Gonzalez Anyone who had heard of him, knew better that he wasn't merciful enough to grant someone with a death wish so very easily. He would first torture him, and everyone in the dark world knew how brutal his ways were. The man was certain if he was captured by Victor, his death wouldn’t be painless. The sniper knew that he wouldn’t make it out of this building without having to shoot Victor and so, he aimed a couple of bullets at him which Victor tactfully dodged. With fear the man’s hand began to tremble to cause him to miss his aim every single time. Victor aimed back at him and shot him on the crook of his knee. The man grunted and his screams pierced the silence of the drizzling night. Not giving in to his pain, he pulled himself up on his feet and limped out to the open terrace. The poor man still had a ting of hope in him. He dragged himself to the edge and looked down to measure the height that he had to jump off. There was no chance he would survive a fall like that but it was still better than getting captive in the hands of Victor Gonzalez. Death seemed and sounded much more convincing to him right now. He glanced back to the door where Victor stood, whose lips twisted up into a malicious smirk and eyes menacingly predatory. He looked like a lion who was enjoying messing with his prey by letting it run for some time before actually hunting it. The man threw his wounded leg over the wall to make a jump but Victor was faster in his action to shoot at his other knee, causing him to topple back on the ground, screaming not in pain but at his ill fate. “Where do you think you are going?” Victor’s voice was calm and collected but the grey in his eyes burned holes into the man’s skull when he bent down to straighten him up by his collar. “Do you think you can escape after shooting a f*****g Gonzalez?” Victor buried his fist into his face several times causing the sniper to groan in pain. The man’s face was severed and was marred with blood and spit as he kept receiving punch after punch from Victor. He was in his mid-thirties and definitely not the very wise choice to be sent after Ricardo’s head. Whoever sent him had misjudged what Victor Gonzalez was capable of. His anger skyrocketed when he thought how his enemy had underestimated him to have sent such a weakling to kill his father. He couldn’t even make a clean shot. Bastard! “I will make you regret the day you were born.” Right on cue, his men rushed behind. “Take this filth to the estate. Make him talk.” He barked before walking away, leaving his men to take care of the slave. His phone had been constantly ringing in his pocket for the last fifteen minutes. He pulled it out and sighed in annoyance when he saw Emilia's name on the screen. Seated in his car, he swiped it. “Hello!!” Anyone who didn’t know if the situation wouldn’t have guessed from his voice that his father, who was also his Patron was shot. “Victor, where are you?” His father’s b***h spoke in Spanish. She was beginning to annoy him lately. She was acting like she was his father’s wife when he knew she was nothing but just a good f**k. “Your father wants to see you. He is losing consciousness.” “I’m busy right now..” He said turning on the engine and hitting the road. “What could be more important to you than your father, Victor? What if he dies?” Her interrogating words were beginning to give him a headache. If not for his father, he would have buried her a long time back. “He dies, if he dies..” He said, his tone laced with dark humor. He smirked at the shocked silence on the other end. Like said, he wasn’t a man to act by his meaningless emotions and sentiments. That’s was how he was brought up. He was just seven when his father handed him a gun for the very first time and asked him to shoot at his victim. Without a second thought, he shot the bullet and it pierced straight into the man’s head. Right from the day, he was brought into this world he was taught to show no emotions and remorse for anyone or anything, which included his father. Even if the old man died, he wasn’t allowed to show weakness. He had to take the positive aspect of the situation. Ricardo Gonzalez’s death meant Victor Gonzalez’s succession to the throne. However, Victor knew the old man was way too strong to die from a mere bullet shot. He lost count of how many times he and his father had been shot in their lives before and this was nothing compared to some of the fatal ones they had endured.  He had inspected the wound on his father earlier. The bullet had just brushed his shoulder. Yes, considering his old age Ricardo might take days to recover but he knew the man was still strong like a mountain even when he was nearing his mid-seventies. “How can you talk s**t like that about your father?” She hissed, trying to act like she was his mother. He sniggered in a dark mockery. No woman could replace his mother. She was the only woman whom he had respected and valued. He still remembered how his mother always tried to instill values in her children. Poor woman, she gave up in the end when all her efforts went in vain. After her, Victor treated women like they were worms, only meant to provide warmth and pleasure in bed. He sighed as he raked his fingers into his thick black hair. He was nearing his destination and he had no wish to continue the conversation with this w***e, “Do you have anything else to say?” “Bastard!!” She seethed before the call went blank. Victor laughed dryly. He was certain that she would fill his father’s ears once he came back to his consciousness like she always did but he didn’t care. His father was no different than him. Ricardo never bought the words of a woman when it came to his son. If Victor was right, his father would want him to act the exact way he was doing now. He would want him to find out their enemies and want them under his feet, begging for his mercy before opening his eyes. And Victor wouldn’t rest until he succeeded in his mission.   ****************************************************************   It had been two days and Victor was beginning to lose patience. He was seated in his large chair taking swigs of his brandy. This was not getting anywhere. Now he understood, why his enemies had chosen this weak s**t to kill Ricardo. He might seem weak but he possessed great stubbornness. He wasn’t ready to spill anything even after the horrendous ways of torture inflicted upon him. He was laid on a narrow table with his limbs tethered. He was currently being electrocuted. His body shook as waves after waves of current passed his body, giving out a burning smell within the room. Even a little more amount of electricity would roast his brain, which Victor wouldn’t want. He had to live and his time to die wouldn’t come until he gave Victor what he was waiting for. Victor slammed his palm on the oak desk in front of him, as he got up and walked near his men. “Bring them in..” He commanded in his authoritative tone. The man’s hands were untied and he was dragged to a sitting position when the door was thrown open. On instinct, his eyes shifted to Victor who was leaning his back on his desk, with his rippling arms crossed at his chest with a sinister smirk lingering on his lips. The man knew something dangerous was coming ahead and he prepped himself to face the worst. He had to adjust his eyes to accommodate the sight in front of him before a loud gasp escaped his mouth because what he saw next was not what he was expecting even in his worst nightmares. His wife and son They were living in London, away and unaware of his secret business. To the mafia world, he was a lone man who had no family or friends but Victor had his own ways to get hold of them. The poor woman had no idea what her husband was into until now. A chill ran under her skin when she witnessed the bloodied body of her husband. From the little bump in her tummy, she looked like she was mid-way through her pregnancy. “J-Jason..” She whispered with teary eyes. “You monsters, what have you done to him?” She began to flail her hands in front to reach to him but Victor’s guard was gripping onto her hair to stop her from moving. Their son, who was just two years old stood there crying at the top of his lungs out of distress from what he was seeing. For the first time, the man whose name was Jason began to weep. He was way too confident that no one could touch the hair of his family members. He was foolishly believing that they were safe but he had clearly unrated the power of the strongest Mafia in the country.   “Leave them. They are innocent..” He whimpered, bringing his hands together. “They know nothing about my profession.” Victor let out a dry chuckle, “Yes, but they are about to pay the price for being your family..” “Please let them go, I beg you..” For the first time in days, Victor could see a glint of fear in his brown orbs which gave him a considerable amount of satisfaction. He didn’t know why but he took great pleasure when someone begged him for their lives. The surge of adrenaline in such situations made him feel like the almighty himself. “You know I will let them free once you tell me everything..” Victor pulled out his pistol and crouched on his toes to carefully press it on the child’s temple, making his parents shudder in horror. “Hey muchacho, you remind me of my son..” pulling the gun away, he ruffled his hair. The woman sighed with a slight hope in her heart when she heard that, thinking he wouldn’t harm her boy when he reminded him of his own son. “Jason, tell him whatever he needs to hear from you, please.” Her softened glittery eyes turned to Victor, “Please sir, I beg you. Please don’t harm my baby. Please..” The feistiness in her tone was replaced by tenderness from an extreme sense of panic. With an evil glint in his eyes, he looked over his shoulder towards Jason and arched his brow as if asking what he was supposed to do with his family. They were vulnerable and at his disposal. Jason gulped hard the lump in her throat, “I-I will tell you everything.. Please let them go..” “Good.” He exhaled enthusiastically. He eyed his guard to seat Jason on a chair in front of him. He grabbed a chair for himself and slumped his huge body on it. “I’m all ears..” He declared, throwing his long legs on the stool in front of him. His gun loosely dangling in his palm. “I-I am just an.. assassin.” His stutters were followed by a loud gasp from his woman who stood frozen behind Victor. For a jiffy, the man’s guilty eyes flicked to his wife before they settled on Victor, who held a permanent smirk. “I g-get my assignments through posts which includes my target’s photographs and details. The sender ID and a-address are never m-mentioned. After I accomplish my assignments the m-money for my job is automatically transferred to my account from an unknown bank account. I know nothing more.” Victor clicked his tongue before getting up swiftly from the chair, “Jason, Oh Jason..” He strode behind him. Cupping his neck painfully from the behind he yanked his head back so that Jason was looking at him upside down. “Your stubbornness is going to cost your family. Do you think this is more important than the lives of your loved ones?” The killer’s throat bobbed up and down in nervousness when he watched Victor racked the slide of his pistol before pointed it at his wife from where he was standing. The poor woman was a shaky mess. Until this morning she had no idea that her world would be turned upside down. Jason wasn’t a fool to believe in Victor’s lies. He knew better that,  not everyone of his family was going out of this room today. “I know you wouldn’t let me see another day but give me your word that you will spare my family, Victor.” His eyes didn’t move away from his wife who was whimpering on hearing his pleading words. There was a tick in Victor’s jaw muscles before he opened his mouth, “I give you my word..” he spoke emotionlessly, his voice giving away nothing.   After a few minutes of silence, Jason sighed and closed his eyes. “Pablo Rios..” Came out his scanty voice which was sufficient enough for Victor to let out a burst of evil laughter. Pablo was one of the three Presidential nominees who wanted to seek Ricardo’s support but when Ricardo pledged his support to his old and loyal friend Georgio, Pablo was left with no chance of winning the election.     “I knew it! I f*****g knew it!!” Victor declared, beating his fist in the air. Suddenly Jason’s eyes were squeezed shut when his ears rang painfully with a bullet shot. When the next time he opened his eyes, he felt his blood chill as his wife was gagged on her own blood. His eyes shifted down and noticed the bullet was shot right where his unborn child was cocooned.   “Nooo….” Jason’s deafening screams filled the room along with his son’s loud cries but the latter ceased abruptly with another bullet shot aimed right between his eyebrows, making the small body fall down with a thump sound. “You sick bastard!” Jason cried out. “You gave your word..” “My Word?” Victor threw his head back and suddenly burst into laughter. The look on his face became eerie when he stopped. “I myself don’t take my word seriously..” He implied and stalked towards him. “This is what happens when you mess with the wrong one.” Shoving the gun into his mouth, he pulled the trigger one last time which silenced Jason forever. “Feed them to the dogs..” He roared before exiting the room.   ****************************************************************   “The entrance is clear boss..” Nikolai spoke through his earpiece after killing several guards who were positioned at the main entrance. “Move now..” Victor commanded, taking his lead to the entrance of Pablo Rios’s estate where the old piece of s**t was spending the weekend, presuming Ricardo Gonzalez was as good as dead when he heard the news two days back. The Gonzales decided to give away no information in this regard until they dealt with the culprit. “Gael and team, take positions. Shoot at any slightest movement..” Victor murmured. “Copy that..” Gael’s voice transmitted back in a hushed tone. His team included professional snipers who were stationed at a distance from the estate.   “Nikolai position?” Victor inquired. “The hallway is secure, boss..”   “The surveillance room is taken care of..” Alek answered whose team dealt with the guards inside the surveillance room. Victor made a subtle run towards the hallway where he saw two guards pacing around. With a silent click from his pistol, he fired two consecutive bullets at the guards before walking ahead. The corridor to Pablo’s room was heavily guarded but it took Victor and Nikolai exactly forty-five seconds to take down each one of them. In the process, a bullet pierced Victor’s left arm but he didn’t care as he kicked the heavy double doors to Pablo’s room. Pablo, who was lying with two teenage girls on both his sides when the doors were thrown open with a boom.  “Now now.. look who is going to die?” Victor mocked stalking towards the foot of the bed, his gun being pointed at Pablo’s face. “V-Victor?” Pablo shivered visibly before his hand went under his pillow to pull out his pistol. He didn’t waste another second as he pulled the trigger at Victor. Cluck Cluck Cluck “Shit..” Pablo muttered when he realized the gun was not loaded. 'How is that possible?' He remembered loading the cartridge the previous night. “Tsk Tsk Tsk.. You see the girls you spent the night with are my best assassins. They could have easily killed you but I wanted to take that pleasure into my hands.” Pablo laughed, “At least I was successful in killing that old bastard..” “You think so?” Victor sniggered, causing a flash of doubt to pass through Pablo’s mind. “You should have invested more in training your men. The sniper you sent couldn’t make a clean shot.” “You son of b***h. I will f*****g kill you..” Pablo cried out, driving his tight fist into the mattress.   “Good luck with that but before that..” Victor straightened out his arm and without warning pulled the trigger, the bullet passing right into Pablo’s skull.  “Get me his head. My father would love to see his face while he is dead." He snorted and walked out of the room. “Sure boss..” Nikolai smirked before sauntering closer to Pablo to do the deed.   ****************************************************************   “Ahh.. There you are, my son!!” Ricardo exclaimed, thrusting his arms out for Victor. He was shifted back home the previous night after resting for three days at the hospital. If not for the sling around his shoulder, no one could say he was recently shot. The man looked as healthy as before. “I have something you might want to see, father..” Victor announced triumphantly. Nicolai came in close behind him, carrying a jute sack in his hand. “And would that be?” The old man straightened his back on his chair with a light groan. With a stiff nod from Victor, his second in command began to pull out something from the sack. The first thing that came into Ricardo's view was thick brown locks of hair, followed by a human head.   Victor grabbed the head by the hair and rolled it too casually near his father’s leg. “This is the bastard who tried to kill you.” Ricardo remained unaffected by his son’s barbarism. He himself was a savage and wasn’t any less cruel than his son in the first place. He turned the head using his foot with narrowed eyes to take a better look, “So it was Pablo who tried to kill me! Poor bastard ended up dead..” He said shaking his head in fake disappointment. “Take this s**t away.” He kicked it away before getting up from his chair. “Now I have something you might want to hear, my son..” He mimicked his son, walking closer and patting his shoulder proudly prior to pushing him towards the huge chair where he was sitting a few seconds ago. Ricardo gave Victor a final push to make him sit on the chair, making Victor's eyes go wide. “You have never failed to make me proud. I am glad that I chose you as my heir years ago. You have proved yourself worthy and it’s time you take over me. I have had enough of this and now I want to rest. I would like to arrange an official ceremony to announce this news to the whole world soon.”   Victor’s face was immediately donned with a victorious smile. He drowned himself into the huge leather chair. He had waited a long time to take over this seat. It wasn’t just a seat. It meant unsurmountable heights of power. With this position, he would become the most powerful man in the country.