Chapter 3 Badass Daughter

"Any news about Janet?" Connor asked, turning his gaze to Alex, one of his most trusted men.

"We're still investigating who might be responsible. Do you have anyone in mind?"

Connor shook his head. "I have yet to reconcile myself with the notion that our territory was violated and we were attacked. Who would be brave enough to stand up against us?" With the help of the hospital bed, he managed to stand on his feet.

"This has to be Marco. Our soldier accidentally killed his brother while we stopped his gang from selling drugs in our territory. It is him. He's seeking revenge against us. I was his target, but my daughter fell into his hands!" His jaws clenched tightly, and his eyes burned with anger.

Seizing the opportunity, Alex asked the question that had been racing through his mind. "If you don't mind me asking, what made you keep your daughter a secret for so long? You stated that she has died. We would have ensured her safety if we knew of her existence."

Connor's black eyes narrowed as he focused on him. "I do mind answering your question, Alex! It's in your best interest to avoid meddling in my personal affairs."

He stared out the window, watching the leaves rustle in the wind. "I'm your boss, and I'm not answerable to anyone!" he barked, his voice filled with frustration over the danger his daughter was in.

"Not even to me?" Breaking the silence of the room, a voice caught Connor's attention, and he turned toward the door.

"I'm your boss. Does that make you answerable to me?" Anton looked into his eyes and saw a flicker of despair, but his usual cold demeanor quickly replaced it.

"Boss," Connor pressed his lips and took a step toward him.

Anton's attention shifted to his bandaged shoulder before he looked up to see Alex standing behind Connor.

"Leave us alone." The words escaped his lips, and Alex walked out of the room, the sound of the door shutting punctuating his exit.

"Now, can you share more about your past and perhaps shed some light on your daughter that you might have forgotten to mention?"

Connor swallowed hard. "She's not worth mentioning. You shouldn't have bothered to come back from Australia. I can handle everything here."

Anton reached forward and placed his hand on Connor's other shoulder. "Three years ago, you endangered your own life to rescue mine. When the bullet hit my chest, I felt my life slipping away, but then you appeared and saved me. You exposed my capo, who planned to rig my body with bullets. I had to come back to save your daughter! It's payback."

Connor nodded in acknowledgment, then looked down at the floor. His thoughts went to his daughter, and he shivered at the brutality she might be enduring because of him.

"Our focus should be on consignment and strengthening ties with Stallions," he said, looking resolute as he gazed up at Anton.

"Why did you keep your daughter a secret?" Anton interrupted him, and Connor paused, taking a deep breath before answering.

"I wanted to keep her away. She was too much to handle, so I gave up on her."

"Where is her mother? Is your wife alive? What else are you hiding from me?" Anton's voice was deep and authoritative as he spoke.

"I loved my wife, but she cheated on me, so I..." Connor pressed his lips. "I killed her."

"You, what?" Connor's response caught Anton completely off guard. He was aware of his brutality and lack of mercy, but he wasn't aware of his capacity to murder his wife.

Connor responded with a nod. "She deserved it!" He gazed intently into his eyes, showing no remorse for his actions.

"I thought I could get rid of those haunting memories of finding her with another man in my bed. But every time Janet cried and I had to hold her, her face prevented me from forgetting those memories. It was as if my wife were still alive and watching me through her amber eyes. Every time she giggled, it felt like a sharp pain in my chest, as if my wife was mocking me." His voice was sharp, filled with resentment and loathing.

"So, I gave her up at the adoption center. However, my cousin and her husband turned up as her savior and adopted her."

Anton stared at him, absorbing every word of his ruthless confession. "So why are you concerned now if she is kidnapped?" he couldn't help but ask. "You should be happy she's gone!"

"I have already punished her for her mother's mistake. Now, I want her out of my sight and life, but I don't wish bad upon her."

"She made a mistake by coming back. Because she is my daughter, they took her captive, and it is my responsibility to set her free."

Anton opened his mouth to speak, but their conversation was suddenly interrupted when Alex hurried inside. "Boss, you're right! Marco wants to speak with you."

Connor quickly snatched the phone. "Put it on speaker," Anton mouthed in a whisper.

***

~ JANET ~

"Let me go!" I cried out in terror as they threw me onto the freezing dungeon floor, and I watched the silhouettes of five towering figures looming over me in the dim, flickering light.

"Let's call her dear father and check if he will save his daughter."

One of them crouched down and sneered intimately close to my face. "Marco," Clutching my knees to my chest, I learned his name as his gang member passed him a cell phone.

The moment Dad picked up his phone, he switched it to speaker mode. As soon as I opened my mouth, one of them clamped down on it, silencing me with a firm grip.

"Where is my daughter?" My father's voice carried a sense of desperation.

"What's the rush, Connor?" Marco teased maliciously. "Your daughter is safe with me. My buddies and I will take good care of her."

"Touch her, and I'll bury you alive. Stop the fucking nonsense and keep your dirty hands off my daughter. How much money to release her?"

Marco's face fell, and I heard him softly sigh. "You don't sound like a helpless father. I expected you to plead for her life! You spoiled the moment!"

"Marco, how much?"

As I listened to my father's anxious voice, I couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort, knowing that he still cared about me and that the little confidence in me was sure he would do anything to rescue me from this place.

"I want the diamonds you're sending to the Stallion Bratva!"

"Are you fucking kidding me? Do you even know the worth of those rare diamonds? Fucking one billion!"

Marco snickered. "If you're willing to see your daughter again, just do as I say or forget she ever existed." The sound of their sinister voices sent a wave of fear down my back.

"Will you choose your daughter, or will your loyalty to Anton Genovese prevail?" he taunted.

"You have but a minute to make a choice!" He finished the call and looked at me with murderous eyes.

"I pity you. You chose Connor to be your father out of all the men in the world!"

I struggled against the man who had his hand over my mouth until I managed to break free and retort. Gradually, the fog in my mind lifted as the drugs wore off, and my confidence came back.

"Pity yourself! Because he won't spare you now."

"Oh, really?"

I lifted my eyebrow in a defiant challenge. "Uncuff my hands, and I will show you why I was chosen to be his daughter! Just be a man enough and fight with me alone without your wolves." My eyes quickly darted to the other four figures before returning to him, and they all seemed to be taken aback by my words.

"I don't fight with women!" Marco's face twisted into a sneer. "Unless it's a bed. I love to tame them." He winked at me.

"That's because you know you don't stand a chance against them outside the bedroom!" I glared at him.

"You guys are five, and my hands are still cuffed. I like the fear!"

"Time's up!" I heard the cell phone ring again, and my father finally answered it. "So, have you decided?" Marco asked.

"What you're asking is unreasonable! We can't give you the diamonds."

My heart jumped into my throat as he answered. The sparkle of diamonds was more enticing to him than the beating of my heart.

Marco gave me a mischievous grin as he looked up at me. "Even if I cut her into small pieces and send her back to you?"

"She's all yours to do as you please. However, if you want money in exchange for her. Call me back."

The call ended, and so did my hope that my father would do anything to save me.

Despite the threat of harm, my father stayed loyal to the Genovese family and made the decision that left me facing the consequences of their wrath.

Marco gritted his teeth. He slapped me so hard that I collapsed to the floor, the metallic taste of blood filling my mouth.

"No!" My screams echoed as the man injected me with a drug, and everything began to fade slowly until the last thing I saw was the door of the dungeon closing.