Revealed [UNDERGOING EDITING]

Chapter 20- Duke Baxter

Duke Baxter sat comfortably in his leather chair. He had paid a lot of money to achieve this level of comfort and was pleased to see it lived up to its cost.

He looked back at the group of ragged, dirty imbeciles in front of him with disgust. He could not believe their level of utter stupidity.

"So, let me get this straight," he began, "I sent ten of you to bring me back one girl and not one of you could complete the mission."

Duke looked at each one of them, waiting for a response.

"Well?" he asked.

One of the men on his left cleared his throat to speak.

"Sir, though we outnumbered the group, we were not prepared for their level of proficiency in combat. We were particularly shocked by the target. She managed to injure one of our best soldiers," the man said, pointing to a man who was cradling his wrist.

Duke looked at the soldier with the broken wrist and burst out laughing. He could not believe the little brat was actually capable of such violence. It amused and angered him at the same time.

He called the man to come closer. The man did so nervously, still holding his wrist.

"You were the one assigned to bring in my daughter?" Duke asked. He looked straight into the injured man's eyes.

The man nodded his head, shaking slightly.

"Do not fret, my good man, there will always be another chance," Duke said jovially, "In fact, that wrist of yours must be throbbing by now. Let me pour you a drink. It will take off the edge."

Duke reached into a cupboard under his desk and brought out a new bottle of tequila. He also brought out a couple of shot glasses.

He served up the drink and reached for a large metal ball on his desk. He pressed a button, revealing some salt and limes, and passed them to the man along with the drink.

The man quickly went through the process, drinking the tequila quickly and finishing with a big smile.

"Better?" Duke asked.

The man nodded.

"Would you like more?" Duke asked, smiling.

The man nodded again without hesitation.

Duke served the drink again and smiled at the man.

As the man reached for the drink, Duke grabbed the heavy metal ball and slammed it down on the man's good wrist.

The man screamed in agony, as he rapidly drew back his arm. Tears flowed freely from his eyes.

Duke stood up and grabbed him by his collar, causing him to fall forward on his injured wrists. This made the man to release another shout of pain.

"Your first mistake was having the audacity to come here after failing a mission. Your second mistake was thinking that I would waste another drop of my tequila on a pitiful mess like you. Now, get out of my house."

Duke pushed the sobbing man away from him and sat back down. He would not spare another thought on the man.

The rest of the soldiers stared straight ahead as the man dragged himself out of the door.

"As for the rest of you, do not think you have managed to escape my wrath. You will all be punished later. Give me an hour to come up with a suitable sentence. For now, you are dismissed," he said.

The men saluted him before heading to the door.

"Here's a little advice for all of you. The next time you fail me, pray I never lay eyes on you again. Because if I do, my face will be the last thing you ever see in this world."