A/N: Warning! In this chapter a character failed to use a crowbar in proper way. Nothing graphic, but still, it might be slightly disturbing.
Chapter 2
And then things are going awry some more
Jack, as every evil boy genius should, knew a lot of people. He needed wide network of contacts to get his work done, parts for his robots weren't making themselves. He also needed to know what was going on in the more shady parts of the world, the ones that didn't show up on news channel or the internet.
Among people he knew there were many disturbing persons which he preferred to keep as far away from his home as possible. You just do not bring wanted criminals on the sleepover party.
Most of them were finding Jack irritating enough to stay away, the further away, the better. But sometimes, someone wanted something from Jack and then situation was starting to get complicated.
Right now it was far beyond that. Because in the middle of elegant living room, seated at antique creamy sofa, was no one else than Pandabubba, with a smug smile on his obese face.
"Well, well." He said, gesturing towards Jack. "Look who finally decided to showed up."
Jack stepped back, his eyes wide. On the left, next to the window he could see his father, seated in one of the armchairs, Pandabubba's goon on the each side. They looked like some sort of a clones, or copies made by Ring of the Nine Dragons, both in black suits, with black ties and sunglasses, their faces thick and hard. And they were not the only one. He could feel the presence behind his back, even if he didn't turned back.
"How they are saying it now? All your base belong to me?" The obese man laughed with glee. "Something like that, I guess."
"W-what are you doing here?" Jack swallowed. There was no reason to not believe the guy. The mansion was under the siege - if not taken over completely - and no robots to save his sorry skin. He really should have repaired them before starting playing with anything else.
"Ah, merely paying a visit to unfaithful business-partner." the huge man answered, waving his hand. The goon behind Jack had recognized the signal, because he forced the teen to walk further into the room.
The only one good thing in this whole mess was that his father looked okay, considering the situation. his strawberry blonde hair were in a mess, true, his shirt looked like something cat left on the carpet, and he was as freaked out as Jack, but in one piece.
"To think that I didn't connected the dots before...!" Pandabubba laughed aloud, too happy with himself. "I just bumped for little slice and dice if you catch my drift, and here you are!"
"What are you talking about?" Jack asked, then quickly added. "Sir!".
Because he could feel cold glaze of goons in his direction. They definitely like the 'slice and dice' stuff and Jack preferred himself in one piece.
"He don't have anything to do with all this crap!" Dad wasn't that good in recognizing mood in the air and was making a show of himself by playing a hero. At least trying too. Jack grimaced, trying to give him some sort of signal to stop doing that stupid thing right now, but he failed. "It's just a kid!"
"Aww, isn't this cute, Spicer?" Pandabubba laughed once again. Jack somehow knew that the obese Mafioso was talking to him rather than dad.
"Seriously through" Jack licked his lips nervously. "What do you want?"
"Oh, I might have changed my plans slightly, because of you..." He chuckled and Jack shivered, because that was just so bad sign. No mention, the mere sight of several bonus chin of the man, jumping up and down while he was laughing was stuff of the nightmares. "You see, I was about to teach that little foolish man a simple lesson, after he decided to play me a little in business..."
"You did what?!" Jack screamed looking at his father like he saw the man for the first time in his life. No man simply tricks people like Pandabubba. You need solid backup plan to pull thing like that off and be alive to tell the tale.
"Like you didn't tried that trick already" PandaBubba smile was smug.
"What?" This time was dad's turn to look horrified.
Well, ups, Jack through, finding this little detail in the whole mess actually funny. They never really talked and now the beans were spilled by mobster kind. Besides, he probably just saved dads live by being evil and having connections and reputation good enough to at least make the huge asshole think for a moment.
"At least I didn't brought them home!" Jack rolled his eyes. " And seriously, mister PandaBubba, he`s really, really sorry and he promises to pay you twice as much he tried to rob you off!"
"Sorry kid, but no deal." Mafioso was even more enjoying himself then moment before. "There is just so much more now to gain. Why should I go away, when I can use you?"
"What are you talking about?" Dad still didn't get it.
"Uh, okay." Jack said slowly, trying to sound as calm as he was able to. "You definitely have here some really good bargain tools, like, seriously. But can't you just agree to get some mad amount of money and then we each go our different way to never met again, or something?"
"Oh, I'm sure you can make much more money for me, than just one agreement, Spicer." Pandabubba suddenly started to looking menacing. "Consider yourself hired for life. From this day on, you're building your cute killing robots only for me."
"He`s going to build what?" Dad blinked at Pandabubba. "Are you completely mental?! There is no such a thing…"
The massive man just laughed.
"Oh, you didn't know about yours brat little hobby? What a shame!"
"You really think I`m going to do anything for you?" Jack screamed, shocked by his own bravado. But there were thing that he just couldn't give away to people like Pandabubba. To just imagine, what person like him would do with Jackbots … Making the robots fight someone on monks level was one thing. Using them in street fight with normal people would be similar to changing whole streets in one giant slaughterhouse. Jack might consider himself evil, but it was that elegant kind of evil, not murdering–everything–in–sigh evil. "Forget it!"
"Oh, but you didn't heard my arguments quite yet" gloated PandaBubba. "Boys! Show him, what we have to offer... just remember, he need his hands and head intact."
"Okay, okay!" Screamed Jack in high-pitched voice, feeling like his blood just turned into the ice. "I`ll totally work for you!"
"But dear boy, you still don't know how serious I am..."
Jack tried to weasel his way out of the room, but the goon behind him cached him by collar, and forced to stay, choking him a bit. Two other moved towards him. The whole situation seemed like some sort of really surreal, really nasty dream. Two huge guys were holding him by arms, and thing one was standing in front of him, with nasty smile and a crowbar in his hands, petting the hard metal like some sort of kitten. A crowbar.
He wasn't able to believe that the whole situation was real, even after he was hit for the first time, right in the stomach. White–hot flash of pain almost blinded him. His father was screaming something in the background, but all the sound become very, very muted, like they were coming from far away.
He didn't know, how many times he was hit, or how long it took to satisfy Mafiozo to commend his men to stop. Jack fell on the ground, grasping for air, his throat feeling completely raw – was he screaming? It was so hard to remember – body still hurting way more than after any other beating he took in his entire life. It was so hard to breathe, he was sure he's going to suffocate any moment, his nose and throat full of fluid, tasting like salt and iron.
They let him go to the loo. They actually dragged him there, and then threw him inside, almost breaking the armature with Jacks head in the process. Jack managed to drag himself to the toilet before he vomited. Only few moments after he finished he registered that his face was wet from tears, still running from his eyes.
At least they weren`t going to kill him just yet. They just wanted to cause as much pain as was possible without breaking too many bones. For Jack his rib was in the 'too much' territory, but apparently they spoke two different languages in this case.
He felt cold and couldn't stop the shivers. His face was wet from sweat and tears, his make-up was completely messed up. He looked and felt like shit.
And there was no running away, at least not in the nearest future. Pandabubba knew him well enough to keep his brutes next to Jack at all times. And there was Jack`s father too. For all stupid things the man could done...!
Dad was never the bright one. All the money of his came from grandparents and mom. Besides, he was just a simple businessman, completely not used to the harsh world outside cozy rooms and meeting in offices, where backstabbing was some sort of a sport. He didn't get the rules at all, but felt like he did. He made a mistake. Nasty one.
The only good thing – through Jack wasn't so sure about that one – was that Pandabuba needed him, needed his genius, his work, his robots, so at least there was no dying in the nearest future. For both of them, since Mafiozo needed some sort of bargaining tool against Jack too. What else to use, than a life of loved one? Nothing less would force Jack to stay in this hell.
This was going to be a long and very miserable life. At some point he will definitely end up in prison, because Pandabubba would insist on leaving some sort of signature on every metal beast he's going to create, taking from him yet another choice and forcefully turning him into mere criminal.
At least he would not steal his ideas, Jack through, feeling suddenly like laughing. There was nothing else to do but laughing or crying or doing both, or nothing at all. No difference, no more dreams about world domination, no greatness in his future. Just mere mass murdering by robots with his name on it, and life of a slave to a mobster, until the man decided that he's tired with Spicer's breathing.
And then Jack saw his father cellphone, lying forgotten on the bathroom floor. He reached and checked the battery with trembling hands, and then smiled. It was possible that not all hope was lost.