Marzia smiled at Ian and crouched inside the car as he opened the door. She sat beside him as Romeo shifted gears, turning around to drive to the location Marzia mentioned. After a few minutes, they got to a reclusive place that was outside of the capital.
There were no residents nearby, and there was only an empty market and an abandoned building beside it. Marzia then surmised that they were in the slum residence right on the outskirts of the city. The place was sketchy and eerie. It looked like the best place to hide dead bodies and transact illegal business.
"Thanks. I'll be going," Marzia said to Ian before she opened the door.
Ian, however, stopped her. His face looked rather concerned about where they would drop her. "Are you sure this is the place, Marzia?"
"Yes. I really need to go. You guys can go back. Thank you!" Marzia then got out of the car and walked through the dark streets of the night, heading inside the run-down building.
As she scanned the place, she realized that it was not just an ordinary building that had been lost to bankruptcy, but an old factory. Letting her fears go, she trotted valiantly to the main entrance, ready for anything that might happen.
On the other hand, when Marzia went out of the car to head toward the building, Ian was still processing his thoughts about the woman's intentions. He felt that this was not just some random errand that she needed to run, but something much more than that. Somehow, he couldn't help but feel worried about her, thinking that something drastic or horrible might happen.
The fragile Marzia was all alone there. Only God knows who she would meet in this treacherous place. It wouldn't surprise him if he found out that she had been kidnapped, or worse, molested! Realizing this, Ian told Romeo to stay online because he would follow Marzia.
Romeo just nodded at him, and Ian didn't waste any time dashing out of the car. He ran to the building where she went, hoping that he could get there on time.
Going back, Marzia reached the pinpointed location. In one of the rooms on the second floor, she saw her mother tied up in a chair. With no hesitation, she ran to her and untied the ropes that were on her arms and ankles. Her heart leaped in relief when she saw Mary without any scratches or bruises.
As she removed the last piece of the rope from Mary's ankle, her voice quivered when she asked her mother, "Are you okay, mom? Did they hurt you? Where are they?"
Mary was jittery. She nodded at her while the tremors in her nerves stayed still. "No, they didn't hurt me. I'm okay. Thank God, you're finally here, Marzia!" She pulled away from their embrace and added, "Do you have the money? They need the money, or else we can't get out of here."
Marzia shook her head. "I don't have the money yet. I was hoping that I could ask them for a grace period... " She paused for a while and then raked her hand through her hair. "But I promise I will pay them right away when I get my salary."
"Shit, Marzia! They won't agree with that!" Mary became even more anxious. She then pushed her daughter in agitation, as though she wanted her out of the building quickly. "We have to somehow get out of here. Marzia, leave me alone for a while and look for an escape way."
"But, mom!" Marzia protested.
"Please, honey! Listen to me, they won't listen to you and they might do something awful if we don't—"Mary squeaked when her eyes turned to the group of men behind Marzia. She stopped talking and went to grab her daughter's hands.
Then, Marzia saw the large men surrounding them. She glanced at the man in the middle, who was the biggest among them. He seemed to be the leader of the group and might have been the one who called her.
"You didn't say your daughter is pretty, Mary. If you had told me from the start, I wouldn't ask you for the full payment. Instead, I will allow you to let her be the reimbursement." His eyes were dark, full of lust and wickedness.
"She's a pretty thing, boss. Looks like she got a tight one," his second-hand man cackled with laughter.
Marzia squirmed in her place while they undressed her with their perverted eyes. Stepping backward, her shoulders flinched, feeling the buckets of shivering sweat from her temples.
The stubby man on his right side commented, "Shut it, man. She's out of limits. The bitch is the boss's possession."
Marzia felt her legs buckle in a shudder. She stepped back with her mother as they tried to get away from them slowly. Her chest began to constrict as her gaze landed on the leader's menacing eyes. His stare differed from anyone she had ever seen.
She knew that blood and malevolence would be drawn out by the time he caught her. He was exactly the kind of man that you should not be dealing with. Marzia didn't know what his relationship with her mother was, but she recognized that her mother was afraid of him.
Nonetheless, Mary should be, because he was not a man that could be tamed.
"She's not available, Keery. It's the money you need, not my daughter," Mary spat. She moved closer to Marzia and whispered, "When I say run, you run. Got it?"
"What about you? I told you I couldn't leave you alone, especially with him!" Marzia hissed.
Mary grunted. "Just do what I said, Marzia. I will follow shortly…"
"Hand over your daughter to me, Mary. You can escape this place unharmed if you give your daughter to me. Your debts will be paid at the expense, of course, of your daughter's life," Keery explained to her, getting a little impatient.
Marzia swallowed the lump in her throat. Her body went rigid and her thoughts became scattered. She couldn't think properly. She felt the cold air that penetrated her mind, which was the reason for her distraction.
"No, I won't!" Mary objected.
Keery bared his teeth, clenching his jaw. "I'm getting restless, Mary. You're being too stubborn. Hand her over and we will let you go!"
Before Mary could say anything, Keery dashed toward them, and in the blink of an eye, a man had blocked him from getting to them. Marzia squinted, flickering her eyes to check if her vision was clear. Mary, on the other hand, jumped out of her spot when she noticed the back of a hefty man in front of them.
"Don't you dare touch her!" Ian spat out of spite as he held Keery's jaw with his bare hand.
Marzia couldn't help but spout his name. "Ian? What are you doing here?!"
"Get your hands off me, you fucking vause!" Keery bellowed while struggling to get out of Ian's firm clutch.
"Who's this swank with you, missy? Your sugar daddy?" The men behind Keery jeered in laughter as they stepped closer to help their leader.
Ian didn't budge. He dug his fingers deeper against the branch of the gang leader's neck and turned his shoulders to peek from his side. "Ah, so these guys are your sycophants? Ain't I right?" He smirked deviously. "To be fair, your pathetic minions look like they'll betray you any minute after I throw your ass out of this goddamn building."
"You don't fit here. Don't meddle in other people's business, wuss. Go back to your gold and shit fartshow!" Keery's nose flared. Lifting his arms, he grabbed Ian's wrist and shoved it away.
Despite how facile Keery could counter his attacks, Ian didn't shrink from him. He still stood tall, regardless of the former's towering heights. Keery might be a few inches taller than Ian, but it didn't bother him.
"Then let's get to business, shall we?" Ian splayed his arms to his side and added. "How much is the debt? I'll pay you in full amount."
Keery wolfishly grinned. "I change my mind, pussy. I don't need the money." He hankered, pointing his eyes toward Marzia. "I want the bitch's daughter."
Ian looked at his back and shifted his gaze to Marzia. Her glinting eyes landed on him. He could almost see the fear in her eyes as he stared at his reflection on her glistening orbs. Marzia jostled in her position while her mother clasped her hands.
"No. She's not for sale, jackass." Ian looked back at Keery. "It's the money you need, not her."
The leader's arms lay athwart each other. "That won't do, bourgee. The bitch is more minted than your money!"
"I'll double the price. Take it or leave it." Ian brought out his checkbook and pen from his coat and tore a piece of paper from it. After scribbling something, he handed it over to Keery. "Here's the payment. I don't give second chances to the likes of you, so either you take this now or I'll break every one of you into pieces. The woman behind me is not yours to keep. She's… mine."
Keery' eyes glowered. He peeked through the amount written on the cheque, but his face was on a bluff that even his men didn't have any idea what he was planning. His second-in-command, however, eyed the cheque and gasped at what he saw.
"Shit! Take it, boss!" He convinced Keery by tapping his back.
The other members of the gang became more curious about it that they almost squeezed Ian just to see the amount written on the check. In all honesty, the money he would be giving these small-time hooligans ain't much. Ian could earn a few million dollars a day, after all.
"Damn it, Keery! Let's just get the cheque! It's twice the old hag's debt!" His other men stated.
Marzia chimed in from Ian's back. "You don't have to do this, I—Ian. I can pay them once I get my salary!"
However, Mary hushed her. "Marzia, shut it. You can't handle negotiating with those guys!"
"But mom!" Marzia hissed with objection.
Ian had heard them talking. He didn't turn to look at them, but he replied in a warning tone, "We'll talk later. You'll tell me everything after this, and I don't want you to leave any single detail, Marzia."
"Come on, boss! Get the fucking money!" Another member of the gang implored amidst Ian's words.
Keery's stone-cold expression changed into a distressing frown. He waved the check from Ian's hand and spat, "I don't fucking need your second chances, wimp. It's the girl I want, and she's the one I'll get." He grimaced. "You rich fuckers think you have it all! Well, let me tell you this with your wussy, chicken ass… You're in our world right now, big time. Ain't everything is about your money! Sometimes, us real men need some fun too."