It had been almost an hour since Ian left Aria in Noah's ward. He had been shifted to the VIP ward which was being heavily guarded by his men. The entire hospital was under his men's scrutiny and no one, other than his most trusted men, was allowed near his ward without Aria or Ian's permission.

Aria had checked his vitals twice within the hour to make sure his condition was stable. She then gazed at his attractive face, taking in his features. He had a striking face, no denying that. He looked tall, around 6'2" maybe, she guessed, although he was in a sleeping posture. The most striking feature was his chest muscles. Even the hospital gown, couldn't hide those well-toned muscles. Aria swallowed a lump in her throat. All she wanted to do was run her hands on his muscular body.

Immediately realizing her perverted thoughts, Aria shook her head.

"Come to your senses, Ari. What are you thinking?"

"But he looks delicious." She voiced and took a long breath.

"What am I even doing? You and your perverted thoughts." She chided herself and continued to stare at him for a few minutes, admiring his good looks.

The phone in her coat pocket beeped suddenly killing the silence in the room. It was a voice message from Ian.

"Ari, cutie, sweetie. I am sorry for the trouble. I'll make it up to you someday. Please don't be angry, I'll do anything you want me to do. Call me in case of an emergency," his cute voice played in the room.

Aria walked towards the sofa and lied down sighing, "You owe me big time, Ian."

.......

Warning: Violent content ahead

The Underworld Base

The man shouted in pain, "I don't know anything." He pulled at his shackles, but in vain. It only deepened into his flesh, causing him to bleed more.

"What do you mean you don't know? You were clearly out there to kill Noah." A voice boomed from across the room. It sounded like a thunder in the quiet room. It was cold and scary, making the man tremble. He looked in the direction of the voice and sniggered, "Dr. Davis."

Ian raised his eyebrows. "You know me?" he asked surprised.

"Who doesn't know you, doc? But what are you doing here? If I remember correctly, you are against violence right?" His tone was laced with sarcasm.

"Cut the chase, Marcus. Tell me who sent you to kill Noah?"

"Oh you know my name, I'm impressed doc."

"I also know that you are the famous sniper, MM." Ian divulged while Marcus remained silent.

Ian scrunched his eyebrows and gestured for his men to proceed. "Ronnie you know what to do."

"Yes Dr. Davis," Ronnie replied with a wicked grin. He opened his toolbox and surveyed his tools. "What shall I use on you?" he mocked, glancing at Marcus.

"How about a hammer? Ah.. No. I'll use it next. Yes, the nutcracker." Ronnie exclaimed pressing it in his hand.

"Are you crazy?" Marcus asked, petrified.

Ronnie stared at him in the eyes and replied with a smug, "Yes."

He removed the shackles from Marcus's hands and feet. Seizing the chance, Marcus made an attempt to escape towards the exit.

"I like it when people think they can escape from my fingers. It gives me pleasure to break their confidence." Ronnie remarked before throwing a dart at Marcus' thigh.

Marcus grimaced and fell to the ground.

"Oh..I love that sound."

Ronnie walked towards his prey, taking his time, making Marcus dread his fate. He placed one of Marcus's fingers in the nutcracker.

"Who ordered you to shoot our Boss?" Ronnie questioned while his hands pressed on the cracker.

Marcus cried out in pain.

"You don't want to answer? I think you don't like your fingers." Ronnie increased the pressure on the cracker and ended up chopping off two of his fingers.

"Two down. Let me use the hammer now."

"What? No," Marcus shrieked.

"Come on, let me have some fun."

Without waiting for his reaction, he swung the hammer at his head slowly so as to not kill him. But the impact was strong enough to break his facial bones. Not satisfied with the result, he swung it again, this time directly on his skull. Marcus' face started to bleed and he collapsed."

"Keep him awake," Ian ordered from his seat. All the men stared at him. Although Ian rarely visited the underground base, he was equally ghastly as their Boss. They knew that Ian only behaved this way if his bottom line was crossed and his bottom line was his two friends. He was an orphan, but it was his friends who had made his life worth living.

The men dragged Marcus and shackled him again.

Ronnie pulled one of the levers on the wall, and scorching water poured onto Marcus from above.

"Just kill me already." He hissed.

"Oh, we will. But not yet. I'm not done with you." Ronnie smiled with a playful glint.

"I think it's time for the scourge." He picked the scourge and struck it on Marcus's back, tearing his skin with it. He howled in agony. His shirt immediately became bloody. It was then he realized what pure torture was and why no one wanted to piss off the Underworld King, Noah. If the gentle demeanor Ian was this scary when he was angry, then how would the cold and ruthless Noah be?

"Stop. I'll confess. I'll confess." Marcus spoke before Ronnie could strike the third time.

Ronnie stopped with a dejected look. He still wanted to play with him, but getting the information was more crucial.

"Speak."

"I don't know who it was. I received a private message a few days back to kill Noah. They paid me a large amount, even before I accepted the contract. I was only informed of the time and venue to kill him."

"Are you saying the truth?" Ian questioned, leaning forward.

"Yes."

"You guys continue to have fun, but remember to keep him alive." Ian cautioned and walked out of the room.

All he could hear was loud cries before he closed the door and made a call to Aria.