UNDER HIS RULES

Her stomach rumbled loudly even though he was fully dressed now. Beatrice was extremely embarrassed when someone found her tied up and naked. Beatrice can’t stop thinking about what’s going on in the mind of this woman who seems a few years older than Beatrice. She felt really uncomfortable.

“Thank you,” Beatrice said after managing to regain control of herself. Her eyes remained downcast and slightly lost. If it weren’t for the shocking news, maybe tonight would have been a night she would spend with deep trauma.

Especially her growing hatred for Sam.

“It’s okay,” the figure said softly. She also gave a reassuring pat on Beatrice’s shoulder. That made Beatrice look up, and their eyes met in the air. The woman’s thin smile looked genuinely sincere, which eventually infected Beatrice, making her smile briefly too.

“Oh, by the way, we haven’t introduced ourselves,” the woman extended her hand. “I’m Anne.”

“Beatrice,” Beatrice replied shortly, shaking her hand.

“You have a nice name,” Anne praised.

“What’s so nice about it? My fate is so bad that I ended up here,” Beatrice muttered unconsciously.

“What brought you here?” Anne asked with a curious expression. “Is it more tragic than mine?”

Those words made Beatrice frown. “What do you mean?”

“Try telling me why you ended up here.”

Beatrice was about to speak, but then her lips were sealed shut again.

“Ah, I feel impolite asking you this,” Anne chuckled softly. She swept aside her beautiful short black hair. “Let’s pretend I never asked.” She stood up from her seat. “I’ll fetch some food first, all right?”

“Can’t I get out of here?” Beatrice asked.

Anne turned and shook her head. “If Sam has said so, then everyone here has to obey him.”

“Is he a king or something?” Beatrice grumbled unhappily. “Making rules as he pleases. He’s worse than a president.”

Anne still chuckled, amusing Beatrice. “Sam is indeed a king, Beatrice. The king of the South.”

“I don’t understand what you mean. All I know is that Sam is an arrogant thug. He only knows how to find opportunities and personal gain. He’s also lewd, and his mind is as filthy as trash!”

The girl who had been staring at Beatrice slowly wiped away her smile. She nodded slightly as if agreeing with Beatrice’s statement. However, shortly after, she said, “I hope what you think about Mr. Sam can change.”

Beatrice rolled her eyes in disgust. In her mind, she had ingrained a very negative image of Sam. What kind of thug has a good heart? Polite? Yeah, right!

“Later, Miss Ute will bring food for you. I have other work to do. If you need anything, just call me,” Anne said.

“Using a loudspeaker?” Beatrice asked.

Anne laughed. “You’re funny, Beatrice.”

“Unfortunately, I’m not a clown.”

“You can ask the guard outside your door to call me.”

“So, I’m imprisoned here?” Beatrice stood up as well.

“Just as Sam ordered.”

“Goodness!” Beatrice roughly ran her hand over her face. “Is he crazy?”

“Or do you want to be outside and continue fighting with Bella?” Anne teased.

Beatrice gaped. “You know about that?”

Instead of an answer, Anne gave a mischievous wink. “We’ll talk again. Let me finish my work first.”

“What’s your job?” Beatrice wondered. Does everyone work here? What do they do? Is it important? Including Bella? Or is it like what Beatrice thinks?

It’s not impossible, right? Once again, Beatrice didn’t get an answer, just a faint smile, and the figure moved away. Until Anne’s back disappeared behind the door, Beatrice kept watching. Leaving behind a significant question and a frown on Beatrice’s face.

Nevertheless, when Beatrice looked at the bed where she had almost experienced a terrible incident, she couldn’t stop feeling grateful. She sighed with relief, knowing she had passed through it, although she couldn’t guarantee whether God had shown mercy to her once again or not.

***[]***

Elsewhere.

Sam got out of his car immediately. Since he sat in the passenger seat-Hugo was driving-not a word was spoken between them. When they arrived, several of Sam’s men were already guarding the lifeless body sprawled on the ground.

Lifeless.

“Damn it!” Sam cursed as he recognized the blood-soaked figure he knew all too well.

Tony.

He encountered the young man, who was probably in his mid-twenties now. Still young, spirited, energetic, and quite known for his cheerful nature among others. He had many friends, was easy to get along with, and one thing Sam remembered distinctly-he was one of the most loyal subordinates.

But now?

Finding him in this state infuriated and enraged Sam. The last time he saw Tony was about two days ago at the Flown nightclub. They laughed together with their friends after carrying out what Sam had ordered. Delivering several packages of rare alcoholic beverages that were exclusive to certain circles in the Southern region. There were no complications. The buyer was also someone Sam knew well. They wouldn’t dare to touch his subordinate. If that happened, Sam wouldn’t stay silent.

“Boss,” Rudi, one of Tony’s friends, called. “I found this at the end over there.”

A projectile.

Sam quickly took what Rudi offered. He examined the remaining parts as closely as possible. He was very familiar with the types of weapons circulating in the Southern Region. Everything was under his supervision, even in the black market. Sam was involved in their distribution. However, he didn’t recognize these leftover projectiles.

“Do you know?” Sam asked Hugo, who had been by his side the whole time. Hugo received the object his boss had been examining and let out a soft sigh.

“It’s a 9×18 mm caliber. Made in Russia. The sound suppressor is advanced, Boss. From the wounds I observed, Tony was shot from a considerable distance. I think…” Hugo scanned the dark area across the way.

There was indeed a forest with tall pine trees over there, serving as a border between the Southern and Northern Regions. “There,” Hugo pointed to one corner, calculating that it could accurately hit a target like this.

Sam fell silent. “We don’t distribute weapons from Russia. Find out what information you can gather about the weapon used.”

“Understood, Boss,” Hugo quickly responded.

“I won’t forgive anyone who dares to touch my trusted people, Hugo. You know that, right?”

Hugo chose to remain silent.

Sam’s voice sounded much more terrifying than when he cursed at the people around him. But Hugo couldn’t prevent the anger rising in Sam’s heart. Hugo himself couldn’t accept that one of his friends was treated like this. His speculation pointed to Sam’s only enemy, but the lack of evidence was not enough for him to voice his suspicions.

Everything was under Sam’s control, knowing the dark history between the two factions. The South and the North secretly observed and monitored each other’s movements. They engaged in resistance and competition in the dirtiest ways possible.

However, none of them wanted to initiate a large-scale upheaval. There was a pact that bound them. The Northern Region was led by someone much more ruthless and cruel than Sam.

Gerald Hasolomone was known as the leader of the Northern Region and the highest-ranking member of the Eagle Wing clan. Just like Sam, who controlled the dark and gloomy underworld, Gerald was far more mired in filth than Sam.

He would do anything to achieve his desires. Even the local government, including the high prosecutor of the Northern Region, bowed down to Gerald. On top of that, the Eagle Wing clan was supported by one of the wealthiest conglomerates in both regions-the Quassano family.

Meanwhile, Sam refused to support the government of the Southern Region. Once he got involved in the dark business with the intervention of officials, Sam would have to be prepared to bow down and comply with them. There was also one thing Sam emphasized: they surely rode on the Twin Dragon clan for their personal interests, including as guard dogs.

Samuel Aaric Cyril was not someone who liked being commanded by others. He was not willing to be driven by someone else’s desires.

The problem was, decades ago, long before Sam and Gerald reached the pinnacle of their clans, the two factions had already been in conflict. There had been a war between the clans that nearly caused severe chaos between the Southern and Northern Regions. The economy came to a halt for nearly half a year. Many lives were lost, especially among civilians, due to their feuds. Eventually, they were forced to agree on certain terms, including never interfering with each other’s activities.

“Prepare Tony’s funeral properly. He was a good kid during his lifetime. We have to honor him,” Sam said with a final tone.

Everyone present there unanimously responded, “Yes, Boss,” nodding with slightly lowered gazes.

Sam’s black cloak fluttered slightly in the wind. The moon perched in the darkness of the night formed a beautiful arc. Its light shone brightly, but not the sudden turmoil in Sam’s mood.

“Get my motorcycle ready, Rudi.”

The person called immediately nodded obediently. He swiftly hopped on the motorcycle next to Sam’s car. Two others followed Rudi, while the other subordinates carefully attended to Tony.

“Have you contacted Tony’s family?” Sam asked Hugo, who was busy tinkering with his phone.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

“I have. Tony only has one younger sister. Eland informed me just now, and, well… you know. She’s hysterical knowing her brother is dead.”

“You said he was shot?” Sam frowned, disliking Hugo’s jovial chuckle.

“I didn’t go crazy enough to make a girl faint.”

Sam sneered. “Don’t joke around, Hugo.”

“I’m just playing games, Boss. Relax,” Hugo said, still laughing.

“Make sure Tony’s sister receives assistance from us. Is she in school or something?”

“She’s in college.”

Sam nodded.

“You know what’s interesting here, Boss?”

Sam turned to Hugo, who was still playing with his phone. Sam immediately snatched the phone, causing Hugo to scream in surprise.

“Damn it! I’ll lose that later, Boss! I bet four million Diamonds on it!”

“I’m serious, your asshole!”

Hugo laughed, but when he saw Sam about to throw his phone, he quickly held back and tried to snatch back the flat object that always accompanied him. “Look first at what’s interesting there, Boss!”

“Your games?!”

Hugo shrugged. “Just take a look first.”

Reluctantly, Sam complied and was quite surprised by the screen on his phone. Guna Bakti University. “You want to go to college?”

“Hera and Beatrice go to the same university,” Hugo shrugged and immediately snatched his phone back. “They’re also friends.”

Sam fell silent.

“I’ve told you before, right, that the girl you’re interested in is just-”

Before Hugo could finish his sentence, he stared in disbelief as Sam’s hand gripped his face quite tightly. Sam’s gaze turned cold and fierce. His jaw clenched from holding back his anger.

“Once again, I warn you, Hugo. I have thoroughly investigated who Beatrice Catalina is. She’s just an ordinary girl. The daughter of Wayne, who enjoys gambling and getting drunk. Erase that absurd idea from your narrow mind.” Sam tightened his grip. “Understand?”

“Y-yes, Boss.”

“Once again, if I hear you doubting my investigation, your tongue will pay the price.”