BROKEN; REVENGE

Everything was so dark, but I could make out his face as he spoke to her. "Where is Rose? If you tell me, I might spare you." She smiled and replied, "You'll spare me? Shouldn't I be the one asking where my daughter is, Mr. Stones?"

"When we married our daughter to you, we thought you would take care of her. But now, here you are, asking about the very person you swore to protect with your life," she said, her eyes mirroring the same dangerous look he was giving her.

"Anyway, why don't you sit? Let me get some tea for you. When my husband returns, you can tell him what you did to his daughter," she added with another smile that spelled nothing but danger.

I woke up, sweat drenching my skin. The nightmares were back. I hadn't had those dreams in nearly a week, and I thought I was finally overcoming them.

I decided to go about my normal morning routine, but it was too early-it was only 3 a.m. I walked to my wardrobe, changed into my sportswear, and headed down to the gym.

I worked out until six, then decided to freshen up so I could join my sister and Uncle Smiths for breakfast. We had new recruits joining the team today, and it was our job to ensure they were strong enough. Our team couldn't afford to have any weak links.

I was about to open my door when I saw my sister coming out of her room, already dressed. "Sis, you're up practicing again?" she asked, her face full of concern.

I smiled. "Yeah, I couldn't sleep, so I decided to practice a bit before we enter the battlefield. Remember, we have a lot of interviews today."

"I know, but you should save your strength for the interviews," she said as she started walking away.

"I'll be down in a few minutes. Tell Uncle Smiths I'll join you soon," I called after her.

"Okay, I will. Let me go down first-we don't want to keep him waiting," she replied before heading downstairs.

You're probably wondering why I call him Uncle Smiths. He's not my biological father. He found Lisa and me on the streets, trained us for his own purposes, and later decided to adopt us as his children. But what kind of father uses his kids for underworld jobs? Anyway, that's a story for another day.

Although he gave us the life we wanted, we never lived like other kids. We fought and fought until we were exhausted. But I'm not complaining-I need him to get to the person I want most in this world. So, it's a win-win.

I went downstairs after freshening up. "Good morning, Uncle Smiths," I greeted him.

"Morning, Bella. How was your night? I presume you had a lovely rest," he asked with a smile.

"Yes, Uncle, I did," I lied with a forced smile. Soon, breakfast was served, and we all ate in silence.

Once we finished, the servants cleared the table.

"Okay, girls, today's interviews are up to you. Make your papa proud, alright? I have a meeting to attend, so I'll see you both later. And don't forget to each pick a male partner for the upcoming job," he said, finishing his coffee.

Lisa bid him goodbye with a kiss, while I just smiled. "Have a nice day, Uncle, and don't forget to take your security detail with you."

"Sure, Bella, don't worry too much about me," he said, kissing my cheek before he left.

The interview begins, and I know you must be curious about how it works. It's a dead-or-alive game where new recruits have to fight our strongest men. If they pass this first test, they proceed to the next level. I was already tired of watching bodies being removed-not dead, but in critical condition. None of the new recruits could defeat our men, which means they all have to start from level zero. At level zero, we train them in our own way.

"This is disappointing. They were supposed to be the best, which would've made our work easier," I said, frowning. Lisa chuckled. "Your face looks so furious; I bet you're going to give them a hard time."

"Trust me, they won't know what hit them. But this means we need those partners Father was talking about. We really do need capable partners."

"Wow, you called him Father," Lisa remarked, a little surprised.

"Yeah, just in front of you," I replied.

"You're full of surprises, sis," she said with a half-smile. "But you're right. We need partners, not just for training the new recruits but also for our missions, which are getting tougher every time."

I excused myself and walked over to the man in charge of the new recruits, both the injured ones and those too scared to fight.

"Jack, how are you holding up with them?" I asked.

"Good day, Miss Bella. Not too well, though. It's like they don't know a thing, and it's more work for us. We really need men who are already trained," he said, looking stressed from today's events.

"I know, Jack. But can you start training the ones who are still fit first thing tomorrow morning? We need stronger men, and it's better if we train them ourselves so we can be sure of what they're capable of."

"Okay, Miss. I'll move them to their camp now, and the injured ones are already being treated," he said before he left.

My phone rang, and I picked it up. "Bella, how are things going over there? Were you able to pick a partner, sweetie?" I heard Uncle Smiths ask.

"No, Uncle. There's no need to pretend you don't know those men aren't capable, yet you sent them our way. You just risked lives-do you know what that means?" I asked coldly, anger simmering in my voice.

"Oh, pardon me if I angered you. I thought they were capable. Why don't I make up for my wrongdoing?" he replied, sarcasm dripping from his words.

I decided to ignore his tone to avoid getting angrier. "I know you have a reason for calling, so spell it out and stop acting nice, Uncle," I replied in the same tone he used.

"Oh, Bella, no one understands me like you do. Okay, I have a surprise for you and Lisa. Just go to the address I'll send you. I'll also meet you there, but I'll keep the surprise a secret for now. See you soon," he said before hanging up.

I walked up to Lisa, who was busy helping set up the camp for the new recruits. "We have to go. Father just called and said he has a surprise for us."

"I don't like the sound of that, sis."

"Me neither, but we have to go. Get ready. Let's take our bikes-it'll be faster. And don't forget your mask; our faces must not be seen, okay?"

"Sure thing, sis. But where exactly are we going? I don't trust Dad when it comes to surprises. Remember the last time he said he had a surprise for us, but instead, he used us as a bait? You almost fought with him that day," Lisa said, reminding me of what happened. But I was prepared this time.

"Don't worry, sis. Let's go," I said as we both headed inside to grab our bikes.

We left the mansion, input the address into the map, and started heading in that direction. When we arrived, everything was eerily quiet. It was a very old, abandoned house. We parked our bikes and went inside, not surprised to see a trail of red lights on the walls pointing the way. We followed the trail, as he had said he would leave one.

At some point, the trail stopped, and we heard footsteps approaching. We both covered our faces halfway and prepared to fight.

"But Ken, why would Mr. Smith tell us to come here without any other instructions? He only said he'd leave a clue, but I don't see anything, and this is so tiring," Mark said, disappointment clear on his face.

Ken often wondered how he ended up with Mark. Though he had a fighting spirit, Mark was never serious about anything.

"Mark, we were told to look out for tracks. Can you please focus on that?" Ken urged him.

"Oh, tracks? Like the red ones we passed a couple of times? They looked weird and funny, too. You should have seen them; I bet you would have laughed," Mark replied, chuckling. Ken stared at him, stunned.

"What?" Mark asked, puzzled.

"We passed a red track, and you didn't tell me? Oh God, Mark, that was supposed to be our clue!" Ken said, feeling frustrated.

"Can you find the track again?" he asked, trying to keep his cool.

"I guess I could, but those tracks looked so weird. I never thought they were what we were looking for," Mark commented casually.

"Mark, just be quiet and lead the way to the track," Ken said, exasperated.

"That was rude, man," Mark muttered, but he noticed Ken was already angry and decided to behave, leading the way.

They followed the same track and soon heard footsteps. They exchanged glances, preparing for whatever was coming. To their surprise, two figures dressed in black, with masks covering half of their faces, appeared. Despite the masks, it was clear they were female.

Mark looked at Ken with questioning eyes, but Ken was just as confused about who they could be.

Bella and Lisa were equally surprised to see two men, visibly puzzled by their presence. They stopped in front of them, and Bella spoke in a cold tone, "What's your business here, and who told you to come?"

"Hi, ladies, my name is-" Mark began, but he clamped his mouth shut when Ken gave him a stern look.

"I don't think that's any of your concern. Now, move aside so we can pass," Ken said firmly.

Bella eyed the guy with deep brown hair, noticing his black attire, similar to theirs.

"You'll have to make us move, because we're not planning on going anywhere without answers," Lisa replied sharply.

"Well, I guess we're doing this the hard way," Mark said with a wicked smirk before launching an attack on Lisa, who immediately fought back.

Bella stood still, trying to figure out what Uncle Smith-or rather, her father-was up to, but she couldn't solve the puzzle. She sighed in frustration and noticed Ken staring at her. Their eyes met, and she approached him, thinking maybe this big, handsome guy was scared of her. She smirked, trying to appear harmless as she closed the distance.

"Hey, we don't have to do this. Just let us pass," Ken said, hoping to avoid a fight with the small woman in front of him. But seeing how well her friend was handling Mark, he knew this wasn't going to be easy. Mark was struggling to keep up with Lisa, who was smiling like she was playing a video game.

"Answer our questions, and then we'll consider letting you pass," Bella said sweetly, still moving closer to Ken.

"Then you leave me no choice," Ken said, throwing a punch at Bella. She effortlessly caught his hand and delivered a hard kick to his stomach.

Ken was shocked that someone so small could pack such a powerful kick. He attacked again, but Bella skillfully avoided every punch and kick he threw at her.

Meanwhile, Lisa was still busy with Mark, who couldn't stop talking. She attempted a double punch, but Mark trapped her hands, turning her back against his chest.

"Who taught you to fight like this? Tell me, because I'm really curious," Mark whispered in her ear.

Lisa responded by driving her elbow into Mark's stomach, making him groan in pain. As he released her hands, she delivered a hard kick to his face.

Mark was caught off guard and couldn't dodge the kick in time. The sharp pain in his head was immediate, and when he got up, his mouth and face were bleeding.

"Hey, watch the face, okay? Shit, I guess it's too late to warn you," he said, wiping the blood away, determined to teach Lisa some manners.

Bella was impressed by Ken's fighting skills. He was dodging all her punches and kicks, but she knew he was trying to tire her out. Realizing this, she changed her tactics, stopping her barrage of punches and kicks and instead decided to get serious.

Ken was taken aback when she shifted her strategy, distracting him by kicking a brick in his direction while simultaneously landing a punch on his stomach.

He groaned in pain as both the punch and the brick hit him. Mark was also kicked, stumbling backward and nearly falling on top of Ken, whose face was now bleeding.

Bella and Lisa pulled out guns, aiming them at Ken and Mark, who raised their hands in surrender.

"Put your hands behind your back," Bella ordered as she handcuffed both Ken and Mark.

"Both of you are coming with us," Bella said, dragging them away.