Ottis King

Marcus looked at a tall, thin man trembling with fear in front of him. The man's eyes darted between Marcus, who was seated on a luxurious sofa, and two of Marcus' subordinates, who blocked the window and the door of the lavish office.

Marcus' eyes were cold, and the aura of death emanating from his body made the thin man tremble every time he made the slightest movement.

Ottis King's week could only be described as a disaster. First, an important member of the clergy suffered a heart attack and died, causing some confusion in Yorfem's religious community. Then, his beloved daughter was kidnapped, and he was threatened by a rough gang of men who said absurd things and made insane demands for poor Megan's safety. Now, this group of terrifying men had invaded his office in the middle of the night.

Ottis just wanted to scream. He had a pistol strapped under the desk, but something told him that if he tried to draw it, he would end up dead. Damn it! He had never felt so powerless as he did now.

Seeing Ottis' state, Marcus couldn't help but sigh. He had planned this conversation many times in his mind, trying to remember every mafia movie and series he had seen, imitating the rough Italian gangsters while threatening Ottis. But seeing the man's condition, Marcus couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Ottis was pale and had heavy dark circles under his eyes. Marcus knew he was under 50, but he looked as if he had aged 30 years due to worry and stress over the past few days.

Marcus sighed again and spoke in the calmest and most composed voice he could muster:

"Relax, Mayor. I did not come here to harm you. On the contrary."

He said while reaching into his coat pocket, searching for something. After feeling around for a moment, he pulled out a small golden medallion and extended his hand to show it to Ottis.

Ottis' eyes widened upon seeing the medallion. It was a gift he had given his daughter on her 12th birthday. He had personally commissioned it from a famous jeweler in the capital. Ottis couldn't help but stammer at the sight of it:

"Is this...? It can't be... Megan... Where did you get this?"

Marcus calmly placed the medallion back in his pocket and looked into Ottis' tired blue eyes.

"Your daughter is fine, Mr. Mayor. We rescued her last night from a Petrov captivity."

"Rescued?!" Ottis shouted anxiously, standing up from his chair and casting a desperate look at Marcus. "Did you bring her back here? I'll pay you whatever you want for Megan's safety. Name your price!"

Marcus shook his head in refusal and cut Ottis off:

"Not here. I can assure you that she is safe and that no one will harm her, Mayor. But my mistress has no intention of returning her to you."

Marcus paused, cast a serious look at Ottis, and then continued:

"At least, not yet."

Ottis' mind spun. What did he mean? So it wasn't a rescue, but just a change of captors? He collapsed back into his chair. Since his wife's death, his daughters had been his only source of strength. Just thinking about what poor Megan might be going through in the hands of these suspicious-looking people made him want to vomit.

Little did he know that the object of his concern was currently having her hair braided while chatting about the latest novel from her favorite author with Isabella, laughing happily.

"She is fine, Mr. Ottis. I give you my word—there is no safer place for her right now than where she is."

Ottis reclined in his chair and looked at Marcus with a distressed expression.

"SPARE ME! JUST TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT, YOU BASTARD!"

Marcus was surprised by the man's sudden outburst but was somewhat pleased by this unexpected display of courage.

"It's simple, Mr. Ottis. My employer will not only return your daughter and provide protection for you and your family for a simple favor—she wants to know what the men who kidnapped your daughter demanded."

Ottis looked at a pile of papers on the desk, picked them up, and handed them to Marcus. He stood up and began reading through the documents.

They were reports on some properties outside of Yorfem, mostly small patches of forest belonging to the public domain. Marcus frowned. What did the Petrov want with land in the middle of nowhere?

Marcus stored the papers in his coat and looked at Ottis again, who was watching his every move from behind his desk.

"Public lands? They kidnapped your daughter over land?"

Ottis just nodded in response.

"I don't know. It's a decent stretch of land, but it's not worth the trouble of kidnapping my daughter. But how am I supposed to understand the minds of lunatics like you?"

Unlike his usual fearful expression, Ottis' eyes now burned with pure hatred. Marcus couldn't help but smile.

"It doesn't matter, Mayor. You will pretend you don't know that your daughter is with us and will continue processing the documents for the Petrov until you receive further instructions from me. If you do your job properly, you will see your daughter soon. I give you my word."

Ottis scoffed at Marcus' words.

"And I'm supposed to trust the word of a man who abandoned his wife and daughter to become a criminal? I didn't recognize you before, but now that you're closer, I know who you are."

"Baltazar..." Ottis murmured.

He opened a drawer, took out a piece of paper, and threw it in front of Marcus. It was a photograph of him standing next to a beautiful woman with dark hair and a young girl who bore a striking resemblance to her. Below the picture, in large letters, was the word "WANTED."

For a moment, Marcus' mind went blank.

Damn it, how could I have forgotten about this? It was the only thought in his head before being hit by a flood of memories that overwhelmed his brain.