Content Warning: This chapter contains graphic descriptions of violence, torture, and intense situations. Reader discretion is advised.
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He walked beside her with a casual stride as he guided her through the maze of corridors and rooms, each more opulent than the last.
She observed the undeniable authority in his gait and how everyone who passed acknowledged him with respectful nods and greetings of "Boss."
Gesturing to a large room filled with polished mahogany desks and leather chairs, he said, "This is the centre of our operations, everything that happens, every deal, every move, is planned here".
They continued with the tour walking past rooms that housed armouries, filled with all kinds of weapons. He pointed out the security rooms, training areas, cafeteria, lounge, safe rooms, communication hub, and the library lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with ancient tomes and rare manuscripts
They came to a stop at a large door at the end of a long corridor. She could tell that there was a shift in the atmosphere. The air seemed to grow heavier, and the cool, sterile environment of the base gave way to something darker.
The door was plain, made of reinforced steel, with a small plaque that simply read "No Entry."
"What's behind there", she couldn't stop herself from asking, but deep down she already knew the answer, she was used to how syndicates operated, and The Organization had been no different.
He stayed silent, stepping forward and placing his hand against the fingerprint scanner embedded in the wall. The device emitted a soft beep and lit up as it confirmed his identity. With a low, mechanical hum, the door slid open inviting them in with the beckoning call of the darkness.
As they stepped in, the lightbulbs flickered on, illuminating the place and casting harsh shadows across the floor. The luxurious décor that defined the rest of the base was gone, it was replaced by cold, stark metal and concrete.
The hallway stretched out in front of them, long and narrow, lined with heavy metal doors on either side.
The walls were bare, the concrete beneath their feet unforgiving. A faint, musty odour hung in the air, mixed with the unmistakable scent of metal. A scent she would recognise anywhere. The scent of blood.
She followed him further in, and the farther they went, she could feel the air close in around her, heavy with the weight of the darkness in the atmosphere.
The metal doors were identical, each one bearing a small, reinforced window at eye level. She couldn't see what was inside, but she could feel the sinister presence lurking behind them.
She stopped, this time more determined to pry an answer out of his lips. "What are these rooms for?"
He paused for a moment and turned to face her. She watched as his lips turned up in a devious smirk, his eyes gleaming with a dark cruel amusement.
"Simple. Torture" he said, the words rolling off his tongue with a chilling finality.
Goosebumps rippled down the length of her arm, not at the words he had just spouted, but at the stark difference between his usual friendly demeanour and this bone-chilling man standing in front of her. Were they really the same person?
Not realising they were not alone, Liling was mildly shocked when a man in all black walked over to them and bowed deeply to Li Hao. He whispered something into his ears and she watched another smirk grace his lips.
The two men began walking towards the end of the hallway, and she followed, bracing herself for the things she was about to learn about the man she regarded as her husband.
They stopped at one of the last doors in the hallway and she watched as the black-clothed man opened the door. As they stepped in she was hit with a strong musty smell, the unmistakable smell of human waste.
She was handed a black nose mask to which she gratefully put on, and her eyes quickly adjusted to the flickering yellow lights.
By now Li hao already had a mask and gloves on, and he was approaching the unconscious man strapped in the chair in the middle of the room. His face was bloodied and bruised, with a nasty gashes decorating his entire frame.
She watched as the black clothed man was instructed to pour water over him, and did so with no hesitation. The man woke up with a jump, spluttering and coughing from the impact of the water.
She watched as pure horror filled his features as he recognised Li Hao. He violently shook in the chair and desperately tried to release his arms from the piercing bindings that held him to the chair.
"Are you finally ready to talk?", Li Hao's icy voice rang out reverberating through the practically empty room.
Now realising that struggling against his bindings was futile, he stared unwaveringly at Li Hao with hatred evident in his eyes as he ground his teeth in defiance.
Li Hao's expression was unreadable as he stretched out his hand to the black clothed man and a plier was placed in his palm.
Liling was familiar with torture techniques, after all, they had been used on her. She clenched her teeth as she reminisced about her first few months in The Organization. She had naively refused to listen to orders, thinking she could avoid having to murder people. In response to her defiance, Zhang Wei had personally tortured her for days on end.
She could feel the hatred coursing through her veins at the mere thought of his name. She had promised herself she would get revenge, it was just a matter of time.
The sound of screaming uprooted her from her from her thoughts. It was a raw, animalistic sound that echoed off the walls, filling the room with his agony. Li Hao stood unperturbed, the pliers in his hand now dripping with blood as he stood intimidatingly over the man.
"You should understand how this works by now. For every time you fail to answer a question you lose a fingernail"
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Author here,
From next week I will increase the number of days I post to Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 10:00 am UTC+8
I'm sorry for being inconsistent but I'm trying to find the best days for me to post. I'm a student and I live in a country with a different time zone so I'm still trying to get used to it.
I have increased my chapter length to at least a thousand words so I will only be posting one chapter per day.
If I can't post for any reason, two chapters will be posted on the next posting day.
So thanks for reading, please add to your collection and leave a review and comment so I know how to improve.
Bye~~
Content Warning: This chapter contains graphic descriptions of violence, torture, and intense situations. Reader discretion is advised.
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"You should understand how this works by now. For every time you fail to answer a question, you lose a nail"
Liling flinched as the man's screams tore through the air. She knew she shouldn't have continued watching, but she couldn't tear her eyes away.
He tried to spit at Li Hao, a futile attempt, as the gesture only caused more pain to himself. "You think I'll tell you anything?" he rasped, his voice hoarse and trembling. "I'd rather die."
Li Hao chuckled, the deep rumbling sound filling the room as he walked slowly around him, almost like a predator circling its prey. "Oh, I don't doubt your willingness to die," he said softly, in a conversational manner. "But we both know death is the easy way out. It doesn't work like that here"
The man's eyes flickered, betraying his fear before they hardened again. His shifty eyes found Liling standing in the corner. Their eyes locked onto each other and she could instantly tell what he was trying to do. He was searching for some flicker of mercy in her eyes, some sympathy to reassure him his suffering would end.
She almost felt bad for him. Not because of the torture being inflicted on him, but because she was the one he was looking to for some glimmer of hope. If only he knew she was the last person to turn to for help.
Her years at The Organization had hardened her towards scenes like this. She felt fear towards herself at the realization she could stay watching, and not feel a shred of sympathy for the man.
Li Hao stood in front of the man, bending slightly to look him in the eye. "Who sent you?" he asked quietly, his voice devoid of emotion.
The man glared at him, his jaw clenching in stubborn defiance. "F*ck you," he spat, his words filled with unrestrained venom.
Li Hao straightened up, his expression unchanged as if the insult hadn't even registered. Without warning, he latched the pliers onto another fingernail and pulled it out in one swift movement.
"Who sent you?", he asked again, his tone still calm and unperturbed.
The man coughed aggressively almost wretching as his voice cracked from screaming. She could still see the hard set of his jaw amidst the pain as he refused once again.
Li Hao sighed softly as if disappointed, "You're making this harder than it needs to be," he said, his voice almost pitying. "All I need is a name."
His eyes flickered again, but his lips remained sealed.
Another nail was pulled out and was followed by more agonizing screaming. The painful cycle continued until the last fingernail had been pulled out leaving a bloody mess in its wake. He had fallen unconscious several times from the pain, but each time, he had been woken up with freezing water being unceremoniously poured on him.
She raised a brow, almost impressed at his loyalty.
"Very well," he said straightening, his voice frigid now, all traces of his earlier calmness gone. "We'll do it this way then"
He walked slowly over to the table in the corner, the soft click of his polished shoes against the concrete floor the only sound in the room. Various tools lay displayed—knives, a blowtorch, and other implements designed for one purpose: to inflict pain.
He grabbed a hammer and gripped it, testing the feel of it in his palm. The man watched his actions, his expressions becoming more bleak. Li Hao smiled cruelly as he dropped it and opted for a knife instead.
He walked back to the man and drew the blade slowly along the man's upper arm, the cut shallow but agonizing.
Li Hao's eyes darkened significantly. "Now let's play a different game. For every question you don't answer, you choose where I stab this into. Understood?"
No response.
Li Hao spoke up again, his voice coated with a tone of finality. "Last chance, give me a name"
The man stared at him, his breath coming in ragged gasps, his face pale from blood loss and fear. Even with the threat hanging over him, he shook his head, his voice weak, "You… won't… break me."
"Where should I put it in"
He shook his head clenching his teeth together.
"Then I'll choose" As soon as he spoke, the knife pierced through the man's leg, just above his kneecap.
He let out another feral scream, this one more gut-wrenching than the rest. His gaze fixed on Liling again and he channelled his fury towards her. "You evil b**ch! You're supposed to help me!"
His words were immediately met with a sharp, brutal punch to his face, causing him to gasp for air as blood poured down his nose.
Li Hao grabbed onto his neck choking him, he struggled to remove himself from Li Hao's grasp, but it proved impossible because of his inability to use his hands.
"You will not look at her again let alone call her names, if you do, you lose your eyes. Am I clear?" His tone was dangerously low, he was not only threatening him but was also making a promise he would readily fulfil.
He nodded vigorously, tears streaming down his face. Li Hao released him and he gasped fighting for air to enter his lungs.
The man sobbed, his resolve finally breaking under the weight of the prospect of almost losing his life. "Pl... Please j... just let m... me go. I'll ta... talk", he said his words slurred and desperate.
Li Hao studied him for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Then, without a word, he pulled out the knife from the man's leg. Stepping back, he took off his gloves and wiped the rest of the blood from his wrists with a crisp white handkerchief.
The man slumped in the chair, his body trembling uncontrollably, tears streaming down his face.
"Took you long enough"
At Li Hao's command, he was released from the bindings around his arms, and given water to drink. He sat on the chair provided to him and crossed his legs imposingly.
"Now talk"
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