Next morning, I was back at his office. He handed me the file once
more. "Read it again - you'll want to have as much info on him as
possible. Also," he looked into my eyes, and I knew what came next, "I'm
guessing you remember all we said yesterday?"
"Yeah."
"You have a lot to win, but also a lot to lose. Don't lose on me, okay?" He smiled.
I managed to smile back. "I'll try my best"
"Bonus
points if you don't hurt him, boy. Now, I have something urgent to do.
Tell the guard to call me once you get down. Oh, the target is in the
special room. Ask the guard, he'll lead you there."
And
so he left me alone, in his office, with the file on the target as my
only company. I read it thoroughly. The man was as boring as your
average rock. There was no info on the girls, other than a rough sketch
of their lives. I stared at their pictures for ages, Andrei's words ever
present in my head: "You're to use the girls to get to him." I sighed.
And again, I couldn't help to think that the man was the devil himself.
Once
in the cells corridor entrance, the guard greeted me. I told him our
guest was in the special room, and also to call Andrei. He made the
call, and then lead me through the corridor, 'till the very end. Then
opened a door - seemingly a normal cell - but this one had another door
on the side.
"Boss told me your card can unlock it.
There are two cams inside. There's no observation room in this one -
it's all through the cams. He also said he'll come soon enough, so you
don't have to wait for him".
I took a deep breath, and opened the door.
The
room was bare, empty except for a steel table and two chairs facing it.
The target sat on one of them, his back to the door. The single hanging
lightbulb didn't do much against the prevailing darkness - it didn't
help that the whole room was all painted in a deep gray.
The
man started mumbling as soon as he heard me enter. "Oh-oh, god, what's
this, I-I ... haven't done anything, have I? I mean - I mean, I've
been... asking questions about the Fa-Families, but surely - surely this
has nothing to do with... with them, does it?"
Wait, what?! The families? Did he mean the mob? ... We were... definitely NOT those guys? Were we?
I
was thinking what to do next - I really needed to talk to Andrei. This
didn't make any sense. Except... My mind had a flashback. Yesterday
morning. Shower time. I never saw him even half-naked, did I?
I
had decided to get out of the room and wait for him, when the door
opened. Andrei leaned on the frame, a harsh smile in his eyes, he
brought a finger to his lips - telling me to stay silent.
The
target kept mumbling, more and more nonsensically by the second. Andrei
ignored him, and stared at me, still his goddamned smile as a
terrifying mask. Questioning me without words. Was I going to do it
anyway? Even if he was ... somehow related to the Families? Did I have a
choice?
No, I didn't. I could read the answer in his eyes. Shit. This was not what I had signed up for.
Andrei seemed to read my thoughts, and pointed at the target with his chin. Words weren't needed. I Knew.
I
turned back to the target. He was still mumbling, completely
nonsensically by now. I approached him from the back, and gently pat him
in the shoulder. "Good morning, Mister."
He fell silent.
I
managed to put on the at-work mask. "Boss told me you've been poking
your nose around too much lately, asking the wrong questions to the
wrong people, that sort of stuff. He'd like you to stop."
The
man was shaking, his breath shallow and fast. "I-I've only ever asked
about the... the Families. I s-swear, I don't know wha-what you're
talking about."
I looked at Andrei, not sure what to say next.
He
came to the rescue, silently telling me to stand aside. He leaned over
the man's back, his hands on the hand rests of the chair, his cheek an inch from the man's ear.
The man started hyperventilating.
Andrei got even closer to him, 'till he was barely touching him, and whispered into his ear. "You know who am I?"
The man's reaction said it all. He Knew.
