Simon held his breath as he waited for Torres to speak. He’s been dreading to hear what he has to say about the painting. Simon wanted to ask why he wanted it so much that he could take a life just to have it. Of course, Simon knows he can't do that directly to Torres, so he’ll have to settle for eavesdropping on the conversation. “It’s a surprise, Alberto. I wasn’t expecting you to come today. I thought you’ll be in Spain next week.” Federico spoke in a calm and collective voice. Simon couldn’t even find tension from his voice. Federico hid it well. “Simo, are we just going to listen to their conversation?” Janus whispered beside him. He glared at his friend. He already told him to shut his mouth up. It was a good thing the door was slightly ajar, making it easy for them to hear the conversation from the inside. ‘“Well, I decided to pay you a visit before I leave for Spain.” “Why, I am flattered,” Federico replied playfully. There must be a reason why Torres suddenly visited
Federico stared at Alberto Torres as he paced back and forth in front of him. He looked tense as he kept on glancing on the empty space of where the painting was placed before. He knew exactly why he was here. Alberto needed to see for himself that the painting was really gone. Though Federico never told even one soul that the painting was stolen, he knew Alberto’s connection told him. “You seem bothered, Alberto. Is anything alright?” He feigned concern. Federico will not fall for his drama. The man approached him solely because he’s interested in the painting. Alberto halted, he gave Federico a taut smile and shook his head. “I’m sorry, it was just work and my wife. You know, women can sometimes be a pain in the ass.” He chuckled. “Well, I can’t argue with that, though I was never married, but the women I’ve been with are natural in that department.” They both chuckled. Alberto went to sit on the couch. He took a sip from his glass, his eyes were glued on the wall, the one whe
Simon was able to breathe when Alberto Torres left the mansion without so much of a drama. He had listened to the conversation, and it irked him that Federico had to give away information like that to the likes of Torres. But Simon also understands that Federico was simply fishing out for any reaction from the man. And as Simon saw, Torres was bothered as hell now that the painting was nowhere to be found. A part of him wanted to laugh that he had the upper hand at this point, and he will make sure he will always have the upper hand to this game that they started. “He left already.” Simon nodded at Janus. “Stay here, I won’t be long,” he told him as he turned the knob of the office door. Federico was still sitting behind the mahogany table that his father used to use before he died. His grim expression morphed into something when Federico saw Simon. Simon wore his black cap but he removed the mask when he entered the office. “Salvatorre,” Federico called him out. Automaticall
They sat around the table, their eyes were focused on the painting that was laid at the center of it. After Federico explained everything he knew to him, Simon decided at that instant that he would find the truth about the painting. If what Federico told him was tru, then he has to find where that treasure is. He knew he needed that treasure to build his own empire, the one that would dominate in the entire underworld. With the amount of money that he could get, Simon was sure as hell that he become invincible and powerful if that would be in his hands. Federico glanced at the men sitting with him. Simon called another two men to join them in this secret meeting. The two men were strangers to him, but he trusted Simon that these men were trustworthy. “Salvatorre, are you sure about this?” Federico was a little bit skeptical when Simon declared that he would do anything to find the treasure. Federico knew that with that amount of money their lives would be put in danger, not tha
Someone’s POVBlood splattered on the floor as the man stumbled and fell on the bloodied marble tiled floor. He groaned in pain as he tried to cover the wound that caused his body to become limp.. “Please….” The man was crying, blood and tears mixed in his face. The other men just looked at him, they couldn't do anything but stare at him with pity in their eyes. “Please? What are you begging for? Your life or the life of you mother?” The thick accent of the man in front of them rolled. He was dressed in a suit but it was already stained in blood, but the man didn’t mind though. If there was one thing that he liked the most, it was the image of a man bathed in his own blood that makes his mind go crazy. He loved it when people are dying, especially if he’s the reason for that. The other men who witnessed it were scared to death, they may look composed and relaxed, but that’s not the case deep inside. Their boss was the most cruel human being they had ever encountered, if he’s eve
Much to Federico’s dismay, Simon didn’t approve of his offer to stay in the mansion. Technically, Simon was still the owner of the mansion, and he was just a mere caretaker of it since he disappeared. “Are you sure?” Federico still doesn’t approve of Simon’s decision to rent a place for him to stay. “I don’t want people to know I’m still alive. You were the third person who knew that I survived that ambush. I have no plans to add more people to that list.” Even butler John was oblivious of his presence in the mansion. Simon had been very careful no one would notice him. He’s been in the mansion a couple of time, and as always, he uses the entance at the back to enter the house. Federico let out a defeated sigh. “I just feel you are much more safe if you stay here, the security is top-of-the-line.” “Yeah? But I still managed to sneak inside unnoticed.” Simon didn’t mean to mock, but he wasn’t impress with how the security works. He got in without so much of a fuzz, that means it’s
Betrayal. It is one of the constant things that one would have to deal with if he's involved with criminals. Simon has no tolerance for betrayal for he's one of the few who suffered from it firsthand. He woke up the next morning feeling bothered. He could feel that something was wrong inside his room. The silence was kind of uncomfortable. He let his eyes scan the area. Everything was fine, it was the same as he left it last night before he dozed off to sleep. But why does it feel like something was amiss? The windows were still closed, just like how it was last night. The door was locked, and everything looked the same. But it didn't feel right.But his gut feeling told him that there was something not aligned in the room. He took his gun from his pillows before he got out of his bed. He always keeps a gun under his pillow. He doesn't let his guards down and be killed in his sleep, that's pathetic and downright embarrassing.With slow steps he went to the closet where he stashe
Simon held his breath as he watched in focused eyes the video recordings captured during the time of the intrusion. The man entered the front door, which was a bit odd because Simon made sure that the house was locked and the security was activated by the time he had gone to bed. Based on what he saw from the camera recordings, the man wore a mask to conceal its identity. A black jacket with a huge hoodie covered his whole head, so it was hard for them to identify him. “He certainly knows where to get in and out. I wonder how the hell did he locate you?” Federico was sitting while holding a cigar and puffing smoke. Simon called Federico to come to his house the moment Ryzen got the CCTV footage. They gathered at the small space of the kitchen, Ryzen’s laptop was sitting at the center of the dinning table while they all watched in shock eyes what transpired last night. What Federico has said made sense. Simon frowned as different kinds of thoughts run through his mind. There was o