Josie made a low hooting sound in agreement. I hadn’t been down there in months. The air changed soon as we stepped off the last step since the elevator didn’t come down to this lower level. Beneath Grand Corp, below the boardroom and past the surveillance and detox cells along with my lab was the Hell Cage.
It was my personal version of a forgotten underworld. No lights, ventilation or mercy was shown in this area, not even feelings.
After this, I will have her violin delivered to her…let her come back to me…no matter how long it takes, she has to place herself back onto my chess board…
I squeezed my eyes shut purposely ridding my mind of Mira. I placed my hand on the secret panel to scan my prints then waited for the steel doors to open. Immediately, the heat punched me in the face like a brick wall. The humidity clung to my skin as I stepped into the room. It reeked of sweat, rust, and mold. Tone always complained that it smelled like old meat left to rot down here.
The overhead light flickered, it always amazed me how the dying light bulb had never gone completely out over the years. It flickered on and off whenever it decided to. Dre was tied to a steel chair in the center of the room. No clothes or shoes attached to him; his head was slumped forward. His unkempt hair stuck to his forehead; his entire body was drenched under the weight of the heat.
The air was over a hundred degrees and the box fan in the corner was broken on purpose. I chuckled at the big puddles of sweat around his feet. I stepped toward him; Josie flew off my shoulder and landed on the top of Dre’s head.
“Grand, I’ll tell you whatever man…just please—ahhh!”
He struggled against the chains as Josie dug her claws into his scalp. She withdrew sharply with blood leaking from her sharp nails then attempted to dig back in but stopped when I clicked my teeth. I looked over at Tone with a derange smile covering my face. Tone stood in the corner of the room like he was trying to disappear into the shadows of the room.
He wouldn’t be able to look me or Dre in the eyes. Dre wasn’t just a worker to Tone like he was me. He was Tone’s friend,maybe even considered family in a way that the streets made family from shared scars. It sucked that Dre crossed the board, I felt nothing for him but his fate that was in the palm of my empty hands.
Slowly I unbuttoned my silk black button-up shirt since I made the heat inside of here intentional, just like Dre’s stupid betrayal. I inhaled then exhaled Dre’s fear then willed him to look me in the eyes.
“Grand, please man! Let me at least explain why.” Dre cried out.
I circled Dre purposely, each step was slow and deliberate, my shoes scraped against the concrete as I moved. His breathing grew ragged, chest heaving, every muscle tensed beneath the harsh glare of the flickering bulb. I let the silence stretch between us until I was sure that it was thick and suffocating. I wanted it to gnaw at the edges of his composure.
Josie preened herself on his crown, feathers ruffled in the stagnant air, her eyes glinted with an intelligence that made Dre flinch every time she cocked her head. I eyed Tone once more and noted him shifting uneasily, his arms were now crossed across his chest with his gaze fixed on the floor. He wanted no part in what came next, but he wouldn’t leave. Loyalty chained him here as surely as Dre’s steel bonds.
Finally, I grabbed a metal chair and dragged it across the concrete so I could sit in front of Dre. I laced my fingers in front of me and tilted my head in the same direction as Josie’s head.
Fuck, I wish I could see her…what is she doing right now?My chest tightened as I forced Mira out of my mind for the hundredth time.
“You know what pisses me off?” I asked in a quiet tone as Dre whimpered something under his breath that I didn’t care to make out.
I leaned in closer, my voice dropped.
“It’s not when a plan fails, Dre…it’s not when someone dies either or when someone cost me to lose money.”
I paused to watch a single bead of sweat drip off his chin.
“It’s when my chessboard lies to me.” I smirked angrily.
“When a fuckin’ knight pretends to be a rook or when a bishop tilts sideways. I hate when I map every move, every sacrifice then someone off the board thinks they can outplay the Grand Master.” I spat.
I eyed Dre as he shamefully lifted his head barely an inch. His lip was split, his left eye nearly swollen shut. Tone got him good but even through him cringing out of pain, I saw the guilt locked within his eyes.Too late to be guilty…
“You worked with Smack…I don’t know for how long, but after checking your money stats…I assume it’s been for some time. I don’t need an explanation onto why… It’s the principal behind the greed that you reek of.” I stated flatly.
Dre groaned but didn’t deny anything.
“Tone vouched for you, I partially trusted you because of him and you spit on that.”
“Kenric…” Tone stepped forward.
I turned my head just enough to catch Tone in my peripheral. His expression was tight, jaw clenched with red rimmed eyes. My eyes darkened as I dared Tone to beg for Dre. If he did, he would be good as dead and wouldn’t make it out of the Hell Cage. Tone knew the game; I taught it to him well.
“I’m sorry, bro,” Tone said looking directly at Dre. “I thought he was solid.”
“So did I,” I said focusing back on Dre. “You understand what happens now?”
“I do.” Tone answered firmly.
