Jasón blinked to make sure that what he had just witnessed wasn’t a figment of his imagination. When he opened his eyes, Christopher was still there in front of him. It was real.“You can hurt me instead; just pardon him; he’s not from here, so he doesn’t know about you, Maxwell." Christopher’s voice faltered, and his body trembled as he pleaded on Jason’s behalf.Maxwell stopped in his tracks, and his lips curled into a sinister smile as he took in the sight before him.“You should take a cue from your friend over here and beg,” Maxwell said to Jason.Jason snapped out of the shock that Christopher’s gesture caused and moved Christopher to the side. “What are you doing?” he said to Christopher in a hushed tone.“I’m making sure you don’t get killed, Jas. I know you want us to get our money back, but it’s not worth what Maxwell will do to you,” Christopher replied, his tone genuine.Jason opened his mouth to respond to Christopher, but for the first time, he couldn’t find the words to
“Lick my shoes clean like a dog would,” Maxwell commanded.His words hung in the air as Jason’s mind raced, thinking of what to do. Jason looked over at Christopher, who was trembling with fear, still in the clutches of one of Maxwell’s men.Maxwell clapped his hands twice to get Jason’s attention. “Chop chop. Get to it, dog. If not, I’ll have my men smash you and your saviour’s heads in the wall fifty times.”"No, please, I beg you.” Christopher shrieked “Shut up, imbecile. Don’t beg me. Beg your friend to do as he’s told, or else I’ll make sure you’re both unrecognisable after I’m done.” Maxwell sneered.Christopher bit his tongue. He peered at Jason, who was also looking at him. Christopher was conflicted; he didn’t want to tell Jason to do it because he knew how humiliating it was, but at the same time, he didn’t want them to be hurt.As he looked at Jason with terrified eyes, all he could think of was to mouth a ‘sorry'Jason nodded. He was conflicted as well, and it was evident
Maxwell’s face twisted into a mix of confusion and anger. “My boss? What the hell are you talking about?”“You heard me. Your boss, do you think he’d like what you’re doing?” Jason repeated."Oh, Jason, what are you doing?” Christopher whispered, bowing his head low.“I realise that you’re not familiar with this area, so I’ll give you grace and clarify something for you,” Maxwell said. He walked closer to the gate that separated him from the crowd and addressed them, “Does Maxwell have a boss?”The people seemed too scared to even respond to him, unsure if his question was rhetorical or not.“Are you people deaf? I asked you a damn question.” He glared at them. “Am I or am I, not the boss around here?”“You are the boss." The crowd chimed in unison, their tones laced with fear.A dark smirk coloured Maxwell’s features as he heard their voices. He walked back to Jason and folded his arms. “So you see, I'm the boss around here. No more questions; do what I say or your heads will be smas
Maxwell’s eyes darted between Dario and Jason. The smug look that Jason had on his face made him want to erupt like a volcano, but he had a much bigger problem in front of him.His mind reeled as he thought Jason could have possibly contracted Dario, whom he knew was virtually impossible to reach. He doubted that he would get any answers to his questions, though.The crowd was also bewildered. They couldn't believe that Jason actually knew Maxwell's boss, and neither could they believe that Maxwell had a boss. They were now the ones who felt stupid for doubting Jason.“Let them go," Dario said to Maxwell’s men, and immediately the order left his lips; they freed Jason and Christopher.Christopher finally let out the breath he had been holding in since he was grabbed by the man. He looked over at Jason with his eyes full of gratitude and confusion. Like everyone else, he wondered how Jason was able to contact Maxwell’s boss."Dario, please, I can explain,” Maxwell said, his voice barel
Christopher stared at Jason without saying anything. Jason noticed that there was something different about the way that Christopher was looking at him.The best way he could describe it was that for the first time, it felt like Christopher was looking at him and not looking down at him. In fact, it was as if Christopher was looking up to him.“What do you want to talk about?” Christopher stuttered.Jason slightly raised a brow at him, wondering why he sounded so scared. Then it hit him that it was because of what he had just done with Maxwell. “Calm down, Christopher; I'm not going to hurt you,” Jason assured him.Christopher scraped his fingers through his hair. “But you could call your men to hurt me.”He thought that Dario was one of his men. Jason had to stifle a laugh.“I’m not calling anyone to hurt you either; I just want to talk,” Jason said. Christopher took a step back, widening the distance between him and Jason, his eyes still full of fear and admiration. "Jason, I unde
“Let me get this straight: you want to give Christopher a job?” Reuben said it with one eyebrow raised.He and Jason were at Jason’s apartment, sitting opposite each other in the living room. Jason had just filled Reuben in on everything that took place with him, Maxwell, and Christopher."Yes, I do,” Jasón said as he brought the mug of coffee he had in his hand to his lips and took a sip from it.“Hmm. The same Christopher who kidnapped you?” Reuben asked with his tone raised slightly.Rolling his eyes, Jason answered, "Yes, Reuben, that one.”Reuben nodded. “I see. And Ethos is also the same Christopher who tried to kill you, right? Or am I getting it mixed up?” “This is annoying, Reuben,” Jason blurted.Reuben raised his arms in a mock gesture of innocence. “It’s not my intention to be annoying my friend, but did he or did he not do all those things?”Jason heaved a sigh. He knew that Reuben had a point. Christopher had done many things to Jason, much more than the things Reuben h
“Amelia, what’s wrong? It sounds like you’re giving me bad news,” Jason said.“No…no” Amelia cleared her throat. “It’s not bad news; it’s just that you have to attend the meeting before you start your duties',' she clarified, but her tone didn’t ease Jason’s worries.“But that wasn’t the case before. Did something happen?” Jason asked.Jason heard Rose call for Amelia on the other end. “Jason I really can’t say until the meeting tomorrow because I was given very few details myself; just make sure you make it on time. I’ll text you with more details, but I have to go now. Bye,” Amelia said.Jason breathed a sigh. "Okay, bye,” he said, then hung up.He slowly sat down and impatiently waited for Amelia’s message.Ding! A few minutes later, Jason received the notification that he had been waiting for.Amelia: The meeting is with the shareholders of the company. It’s by 9:00 a.m. tomorrow. I don’t have many details on it myself, but they said to hold all managerial decisions until after t
The elevator finally stopped at the highest floor, and all three men stepped out.The highest floor of the Elysian Syndicate was the pinnacle of prestige. Once they stepped out of the elevator, they were greeted by a spacious reception area that was adorned with minimalist pieces and luxurious furnishings. The floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the city and coloured the room with natural light. Only the top members of the Elysian Syndicate were seen on the floor, save for the receptionists. Jason knew that Kent and Roland were about to be rude to him since he was on this floor. He smiled to himself at the irony.Kent and Roland looked at Jason with confusion and annoyance etched across their faces as he walked behind them, approaching the conference room.“Are you lost?” Kent snarled at Jason.“No, are you?” Jason replied. He decided to toy with them a bit if they were going to be rude."Listen, buddy, this is the top floor where executive meetings take place. If y