At twenty-one, Dino finds himself kidnapped by a familiar man whose name he no longer cares to know.
Five Years Can Change a Man
Despite all of his misgivings, Dino ended up inheriting the Cavallone Family by the time he's twenty-one.
It hadn't been something he'd wanted to do. He'd fought his responsibility off as long as he could, and at one point, he even tried to convince Romario to take the job instead. But after being tutored by Reborn, and after taking to heart the harsh lessons the Arcobaleno imparted to him, Dino found that he could no longer protest against his duty. Not when it meant forsaking his Family.
He vowed to protect it now, and was proud of the man he'd become.
But, much to his mortification, it seemed that almost as soon as Reborn left, Dino ended up being kidnapped again.
It wasn't the first time it had happened since that dreadful first time five years ago, but it was certainly the most pathetic attempt. Dino felt more embarrassed than scared though, and it was obvious by the way he was casually chatting up his kidnapper.
"I see you're still in the business," Dino huffed as he finally saw the face of his kidnapper. He didn't spare a glance to the bag that was being carelessly discarded to the floor, the bag that had, just a second ago, been covering his head. Instead, his eyes roved over the familiar face before him.
This was the man who had kidnapped him five years ago. He was sure of it.
Dino hadn't recognized him immediately. His face was a blurred memory. The last time he'd met the guy, Dino had been blindfolded for the majority of the incident. But he remembered his voice all too well, and he recognized all too clearly the eyes he'd caught a glimpse of five years ago.
Dino was amused to note the man didn't seem as tall as he'd remembered.
"And I see you're still as easy to kidnap as ever. Heard you inherited your pop's business, bet you're regretting that now," the man taunted, his expression turning a little smug, as one was wont to do when they thought they had the upper hand.
Dino sighed and began to discreetly test the bonds that had him tied to the chair he was in. "Enough with the intimidation tactics. How about you just get to the point? Who hired you? What are their demands?" he asked in a cool tone that held a bit of impatience.
His kidnapper's eyes narrowed. He was obviously displeased with Dino's reactions.
"Acting awfully calm, aren't ya? Bossy too. I'd watch your mouth if I were you. Best not piss me off, eh?" he warned the blonde, taking a threatening step forward until he was towering over him.
"Oh, please. I've faced worse things than you," Dino retorted without fear, looking more amused at the other's threats than anything else. Nothing this guy did to him could top the type of torment he'd endured under Reborn's tutelage. Just the thought of that awful Spartan training still made him blanch on occasion.
"That so?" His kidnapper's lips pursed as he stared down at his captive. The way his jaw clenched was telling of how short his temper was, but Dino was unfazed. This guy was a small fry, and even if he wasn't, Dino knew better than to appear weak.
"Yup. A lowlife like you just isn't worth my fear," he assured him, smirking winsomely.
Predictably, his kidnapper snarled in anger and proceeded to backhand him. Dino didn't cry out.
"You've grown into quite a mouthy brat. I much preferred you when you were mute and terrified out of your wits."
"Heh. Sorry to disappoint," Dino told him, paying no mind to his throbbing cheek as he calmly turned to face his kidnapper head on once again.
The two of them stared at each other for a long moment, trying to see who would break away first. Dino's expression was impassive as his gaze bore into the older man's which was steadily growing angrier by the second.
The last straw was reached when Dino cocked his head, and his challenging smirk broadened as he drawled in a taunting voice, "See something you like?"
An irritated growl escaped the older man's throat. Dino watched carefully as his kidnapper reached into his pocket. He'd been expecting a gun, but the man merely took out a small pocket knife and flicked it open with a quick movement of his wrist. The blade gleamed under the dim lightning of the room.
"I warned you to watch your mouth, didn't I? Don't piss me off, I said," the man muttered as he placed the sharp edge of the blade under Dino's chin, unnecessarily forcing him to look up more.
Dino felt a hint of irritation, but he raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "You think your employer will approve of this?" he said, unflinching even with the threat of the pointed blade poking at his throat.
"Hah! Try another line. I know for a fact that the boss man has no problem with having you roughed up," the man said, smirking widely. After another second, he pulled the knife away. There was a thin warm trickle of blood running down the skin of Dino's throat. It was a distracting, tickling sensation. Dino ignored it. He pretended not to keep track of his kidnapper's hands, or more importantly, the knife, and instead did his best to meet the older man's gaze unflinchingly. There wasn't a part of Dino's body that portrayed his fear, but his kidnapper didn't seem to think so. The small show of power he'd displayed had obviously soothed his ruffled feathers. In fact, it seemed to have given him confidence, because now that he thought he had the upper hand again, the man began to get rather chatty.
"Staying quiet now, aren't ya? How typical. You know what I hate about guys like you? You're all weak chickenshit that never know what you're getting into. You think you're all that just 'cause you're not the ones getting your hands bloodied? Because you can just hire people to do your dirty work?" The older man scoffed. "You're pathetic," he spat.
Without a warning, the man leaned forward and clamped his hands over Dino's forearms. His face was uncomfortably close to Dino's own, and the movement had been so sudden that Dino had instinctively pulled back. He couldn't deny that his heart began to race a bit, but he felt irritated by his reaction. Dino's eyes narrowed at the other, but he continued to talk back to the older man without a trace of unease.
"You're equally as pathetic, don't you think? Just an indispensible grunt spilling blood for money. No one will care if someone like you lives or dies," he told him, enunciating every word in a quiet voice. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"
The older man's grip on him tightened the longer Dino talked. His stubbly nails dug into Dino's skin painfully, and the plastic encasing of the pocketknife, which was trapped between the man's palm and Dino's arm, pressed against the bone of his left forearm uncomfortably.
"I've had just enough out of you. That false bravado is beginning to piss me off!" the man hissed. He pulled back then and backhanded him across the face again. The skin of Dino's cheek split open into a shallow cut with the action. The blonde tensed and wondered what was taking his men so long. How much longer would he have to endure being here?
Come on, Romario… Hurry up!
Dino's patience continued to be tested as he felt the man's calloused fingers wrap around his arm again. His kidnapper was holding down Dino's right arm, putting his weight on it as his other hand began to trace the tan, bare skin of his left arm.
"You've got a lot of nerve to talk to me like that. Just 'cause you think you're somebody now, doesn't mean you're worth shit." The knife in the older man's hand finally came back to play. Dino tensed as the blade skirted over his skin. He swallowed down the gasp that threatened to escape him when he felt the blade carve deeply into his arm. Blood spilled from the wound thickly, and Dino grimaced at the stinging sensation. He bit his tongue as he felt the knife drag down, cutting against the resistance of the skin. His face paled, and his expression became pinched. His kidnapper thrived in his pain.
"Look at you. You're still just a useless little brat who can't do a thing to save himself. So much for being the great big boss of the Cavallone Family, huh? You're just—"
Suddenly, the door of the room he'd been confined in burst open. About a dozen or so of Dino's men rushed into the room.
"Boss!" a chorus of voices cried out.
"What the—!"
Dino's kidnapper straightened up and turned around quickly. The sight of Dino's men made his eyes widen in shock. "How did you get here!?" he spluttered, and took a step back. He reached blindly towards Dino, ready to recreate the scene that had happened five years ago—but Dino wasn't where he was supposed to be. The older man glanced down and panicked when he saw his prisoner was out of his bonds. The ropes had been cut and were now sprawled across the floor uselessly.
"When did you—?"
The man's question was cut off by a loud crack. Dino's whip crashed against his kidnapper's back. The blow sent the man stumbling onto the floor. With another flick of his wrist, Dino managed to capture his opponent by wrapping his whip around the man's neck. The older man immediately tried to fight off the choking hold, but Dino tugged on the whip mercilessly and warned him to stay still.
I can't believe I was captured by this guy, Dino thought with a grimace, distaste and mortification washing over him. The guy was an amateur. He hadn't even bothered to check him for weapons.
After making sure the older man wasn't going to cause further trouble, the blonde turned his attention to his right-hand man, who was looking at him with a concerned frown.
"You had us worried, boss," Romario said in a heavy voice, looking as relieved as he could be considering the situation.
Dino shot him an apologetic smile and shrugged slightly. "Sorry about that. I was careless. It won't happen again," he promised.
Romario sighed, but took the apology without further word. "In any case, the place has been cleared, boss. What should we do now?" he asked.
"That's not…. possible…"
Dino glanced down at his captive, whom was still struggling to free himself from the tight leather grip coiled around his neck. Dino felt a sick rush of satisfaction at seeing him there, but he ignored that and instead got straight to business.
"Hey," he said, tugging at his whip until the man was forced to look up at him. "Who ordered the hit this time? The Brucelli Family? The Selvaggio's?"
"I ain't telling you shit," the man spat, glaring up at Dino murderously.
Dino's lips thinned and all traces of amusement were gone at that moment. "You know, you should have known better than to mess with me twice. You were lucky to get away the first time around," he told him.
"Bite me!" the man snarled, and whether he was unaware of the dozen or so guns being pointed at him, or just dumb, Dino didn't know, but the older man reached up to tug at the taut leather between them with a strength Dino was surprised he had left.
Pain shot up Dino's arm at the action. He didn't stumble forward, but as he tightened his hold and pulled back roughly, he grimaced and clenched his teeth with effort. Blood continued to trickle out of the deep wound, and his arm began to shake with the strain he was putting it in. "Obstinate bastard, aren't you?" He sighed. "Well, alright then. If you've got nothing to say, then I have no need to keep you alive."
The man's eyes widened. A flash of fear crossed his eyes, and he didn't look threatening at all at that moment. All his cocksure swagger was gone, replaced by that familiar look of panic. He just another man then—no one to be afraid of. Dino had known this from the beginning.
Without giving it another thought, Dino tightened his grip and slowly pulled the leather back until all he could hear was the choking gasps coming from his enemy's mouth. Dino stared at the man briefly, but he soon found his gaze drawn to the chair he'd been tied to just moments ago. Dino examined the chair quietly, a frown on his lips, and when he heard the telling thud of a body slumping to the floor, he quickly pulled his whip back and coiled it around his hand.
"Romario."
"Yes, boss?"
"Find out who sent this bastard after me. And get someone to clean up this mess."
"Yes, boss. Anything else?"
Dino looked down at his arm and grimaced at the bloody stinging mess. He clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Call a doctor, and then my usual guy. I think it's time for a new tattoo."