Unapologetically Ruthless

--Flashback--

Malek had been jarred awake when the first bomb had gone off just after midnight, Malek had almost thought he was dreaming until several more explosions followed, no doubt to create a nonstop barrage of chaos and confusion, then came the gunfire and men yelling. Malek hadn't even stopped to think about what was happening or the danger that was waiting on the other side of the door as he slid the clip into his gun and ran out to join the fray.

Killing was just a part of the life he'd chosen to lead but he'd always had a reason for it. Protecting those that he'd deemed special enough to care about which was a very short list, when there was no other way out, or to send a message. Anything else just seemed messy and pointless but as the bullets currently whizzing past his head would attest, others did not share his outlook.

The ground had been stained by the blood of those fallen and the stench of death weighed heavy in the air once he'd gotten outside, It wasn't an unfamiliar scene but something that one should never be as accustomed to as he was.

He'd just crouched down behind his car planning on using it for cover when something moved in his peripheral, Could be friend or foe, Malek wasn't asking just swung his arm around that held his gun at the movement, ready to take out whomever or whatever it was. He was a split second from squeezing the trigger when he heard his head of security's voice, "Wait, wait. Don't shoot." Lowering his weapon only slightly, He gave the other man a once over before bringing it down to aim at the ground. "What the f*** is going on Ray? Who are these bastards?"

His questions were met with a shrug and a shake of the head, "They took out the main gate and just came in like they owned the place, so far we aren't sure whose men they are, We've been trying to take at least one alive but they aren't making it easy. As you can see a few made it up this far," He nodded towards where a few bodies lay scattered around. "Mostly they seem to be focused on your brother's place." Malek's eyes darted down the driveway, trying to see past the trees that separated them on the compound but seeing nothing more than a large orange glow where his brother's house used to be.

Time stood still at that point which is why Malek had assumed that it had been hours instead of merely minutes passing from the beginning of to the end of the siege.

--End Flashback--

Present

The silence had been deafening in the aftermath, It almost seemed wrong for it to have been so quiet especially after all that had transpired in the prior thirty minutes. He had shaken his head at the errant thought because although it had been a few hours since the event he still hadn't been able to wrap his head around how so little time could do so much damage. Just thirty short minutes was all it had taken to turn his home into a warzone and his life upside down.

After everything had settled down they still had more questions than answers especially since it was discovered that his brother was gone.

There'd been a small modicum of relief for Malek when he hadn't been counted amongst the dead but disappearing during a fight wasn't something that his brother would do, at least not on his own. Which circled back to the question of who were these men and now led to what the hell did they want with his brother?

He strolled into what they called the 'waiting room' because anyone in there was just waiting to die.

Three men were hogtied and then shackled to a chain hanging from the ceiling inside, heads covered with cloth bags even though they were blindfolded and gagged underneath. This was his signature for those rare occasions that it was needed. The room was set to his specification, Long metal troughs with drains stretched out under each of them, The chain that they were suspended from on an electric pulley system that would turn them upside down when the time came because just as when a farmer slaughters a cow, these f***ers were just going to be a slab of meat at the end and besides it was easier to control the blood flow.

Malek stood and scanned his quarry, one was trying to fight against his bonds, one was shaking as he sobbed, and the last was quiet with his head hung down as if he'd accepted his fate and was resigned to meet his maker.

"I"m going to make this easy for you, Whoever answers my questions first and honestly lives, the other two die." His voice echoed off the stark walls as he gave them a small glimmer of hope, of course, it was bullsh*t. They were all dead whether they talked or not but he did have questions that needed to be answered.

It only took seconds for the first two to start making noises behind their gags and Malek nodded at Ray to relieve the one closest to him of his gag. He sputtered and spit on the floor before speaking. "What do you want to know?" Malek twirled his hunting knife between his fingers as he moved closer,  "Well first I want to know who you're working for and then I want to know where my brother is and why he was taken."

A sneer crossed the lips of the first man as he replied, "First f*** you and second f*** your brother, I ain't saying sh*t." Only two words came before Malek's knife sliced him from ear to ear before flicking his knife sideways and gutting him like a fish. "Wrong answer."

Quiet gurgling could be heard as blood rained down into the waiting receptacle and for a moment it was the only noise to be heard except for the random dull thuds as gravity took over and insides became outsides. Malek finally hit a button and slowly the pulley turned the man upside down to finish turning him into a hollow meat sack.

"One down, two to go so who's next?" The second man started sobbing harder but the third man just let out a loud sigh as if he was bored. Malek nodded towards him and Ray again lifted the sack up and moved the gag. A hint of curiosity tinged Malek's voice as he spoke, "I take it that you have nothing to offer and would just like to follow your friend into the afterlife sooner rather than later?"

The third man didn't speak at first and Malek thought maybe it had just been a death rattle they'd heard instead of a sigh but then the man licked at his lips and before smiling and shaking his head, "Death is inevitable and it isn't going to matter what I do or don't say, You aren't going to let any of us go because that's not how this game is played. So get on with it because neither of us are going to tell you sh*t."

A muffled howl came from the crying man as Malek dispatched the third one in the same way he had the first.

"Do you suppose he was right? That you have nothing to offer me but another mark on my soul? It's three simple questions really and you've had plenty of time to think about the answers so let's see what you have to say."

No sooner had the gag been moved than the man was begging for his life but that wasn't what Malek wanted to hear, so he thought perhaps the man just needed a little more persuasion, "Perhaps I wasn't clear," He grabbed at where the man's hands sat bound uselessly behind him. Cutting one off as he repeated himself. "One I want to know who you're working for," He reached and cut off a second finger, "Two I want to know where my brother is, and three" He paused to cut off another finger. "I want to know why he was taken." At this point whatever the man was trying to say was mostly unintelligible garble between screams.

"Shut up," Malek's voice boomed across the room, "I'm tired of listening to you cry like a bitch so here's the deal, you answer me now and I'll stop cutting off body parts and kill you quickly, Keep trying my patience and I'll show you a new meaning of the term living hell, believe when I say it will hurt you way more than it will hurt me." He took his knife and pressed the tip against the man's arm not quite hard enough to break the skin, "Do you feel that, now imagine it running down the entire length of your body in a continuous slice, what do you think that will do? Not deep enough so you bleed to death but just deep enough to take you apart piece by piece until you are nothing more than a giant meat puzzle."

Whispered words so quietly that Malek had to lean in closer to hear them fell from the man's lips. His eyes narrowed in disbelief but at this point, he didn't think the guy was lying so as he stood up trying to process everything, He muttered a quick thank you and headed for the door before turning back to look at Ray, "Finish him and then get the crew to take out all the trash. When it's finished torch the house and the rest of the land to make it look like an accidental brush fire. We're going underground for a while, spread the word. I'll be in touch when plans are finalized."