Chapter 12
The holding cells beneath the south wing of the estate were a stark, terrifying contrast to the opulent luxury above. The walls were solid, soundproof concrete, the air cold and damp. There was no bright, cinematic lighting here; only a single, caged bulb cast harsh, ugly shadows across the small room.
Evelyn Carter sat huddled in the corner on the cold floor. Her dark-red blouse was torn and stained, her elegant posture utterly broken. Her fair face was severely bruised and swollen from the brutal slap her son had delivered. Across the cell, Victor lay groaning on a thin mattress, his face bandaged where the medical staff had hastily stitched the deep laceration on his cheekbone before locking him away.
The heavy steel door groaned open, echoing loudly in the cramped space.
Daniel stepped into the cell. He brought the imposing, masculine danger of a veteran Mafia boss with him, sucking the sparse oxygen entirely out of the room. He didn't speak immediately. He simply stood in the doorway, staring down at the two people who had tortured his wife.
"Daniel," Evelyn rasped, her voice weak and trembling. She tried to stand up, but her legs gave out, and she slumped back against the concrete wall. "Please. It's freezing down here. Victor needs a hospital."
"Victor is exactly where he deserves to be," Daniel replied, his voice dead calm.
"You can't keep us here!" Victor spat, struggling to sit up, his arrogance trying to fight through the agonizing pain of his shattered face. "The other families will notice we're gone. The commission will demand answers!"
"The commission," Daniel said softly, stepping fully into the cell, "has already been informed that you and my mother have been relocated to a private facility due to severe, sudden mental decline. I provided them with forged medical documents signed by three different specialists. They applauded my dedication to family care."
Evelyn gasped, the sheer, absolute reality of her isolation crashing down on her. She wasn't just imprisoned; she was erased from the world she had ruled.
"What are you going to do to us?" Evelyn sobbed, burying her bruised face in her hands.
Daniel crouched down so he was at eye level with his mother. His dark eyes were devoid of any familial warmth or mercy.
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"You poured freezing water over my wife," Daniel whispered, the words dripping with lethal intent. "You told her I abandoned her. You tried to break her mind."
Daniel stood up, adjusting his cuffs. "You are going to experience every single second of the terror she felt. And when I decide you have suffered enough... you will simply disappear."
