“Do you think you are the owner of what is in your hand?” Richard said over the phone, stalking Corey until he reached the turning of a lonely alley.Before Corey could turn back to see who was behind him, Richard hit him with a powerful right hand. “You told me you saw nothing. You told me you knew nothing.” Richard kept on hitting Corey, breaking his nose and almost all part of his face. “I-I swear, I was just about to call you,” Corey said in defense of himself, crawling on his butt as tried to get away from Richard. “You were about to call me… is that so?” Richard pulled Corey up by the collar of his shirt, and pinned him to the wall, “the phone has been with you right from the very moment I walked into that door in the morning, isn’t it?”Corey nodded negatively, shutting his eyes out of fear, “please don’t kill me. I only wanted to know why it was important…. And…” “Sell it? Why must you always be a crook,” Richard relaxed his voice and released his grip on the boy
“Richard Morgan, it never gets old to listen to your voice,” Hank said with fear in his voice but still able to disrupt Richard. “And all this year I thought you were dead you filthy motherfucker,” Richard responded holding the phone tighter to his ears, “why must you always be a pain in the ass to me?” Richard’s face morphed into a grimace that was backed with a thirst for something beyond just a feud, it was something that echoed years of an unhealthy relationship fueled by hatred and anger. “And here I am thinking you broke out of jail. What a turn of incidence life can throw at us, isn’t it?Richard paused, then looked into the sky and turned back at Corey, “How did you go from working for one of the most prestigious security companies in the nation to becoming a worthless kidnapper?” “The same way you were too weak to take action when you had the opportunity to shoot me on sight?”Hank’s words flooded Richard’s head with memories of the night he lost everything he work
“W-what are… you saying?” Elijah said with a stutter, his eyes betraying the next words that came from his mouth, “This is rubbish. I don’t have a hundred million dollars to give you, neither am I the heir of the West Empire.”Hank rose back to his feet, rolling his eyes into his socket, and whined, “Do we have to go back and forth over this again and again?” he strode back to his seat, “This is not a superhero movie where you have to keep your identity. I know who you are.”Elijah paused with the apple treat Hank gave him, hoping he could just choke on the ones he ate already, to avoid any discussion related to his identity, most especially with Hank or any of his captors. “It could be a trick,” Elijah thought to himself.Hank hoisted his legs on the table, crossing one on top of the other, and tilted the chair backward with his weight, “I can assure you of one thing, this is no trick,” Hank said, staring up into the wooden ceiling of the warehouse, like he’d just read his capti
Two minutes transitioned into two hours, and Elijah still could not get the pain out of his heart, nor the mystery behind the misery Hank told him about. It came to him clean and cynical, just like a tornado swallowing a skyscraper. “He is the one behind all your misery.”Hank’s voice kept on reverberating in his head, unable to erase the memory. His mind could not fathom the truth behind Hank’s voice. His mind provided reasons north of a dozen on why he should distrust Hank: it could be for what he wants from him, or it could be a trick to manipulate him. And a list of other reasons why he should not trust Hank. Nevertheless, his curiosity clung to him just the way a Lion would hold on to the jugular of its prey. “Tell me what you know. What is the truth you are hiding?” Elijah echoed his mind, yearning to know what was hidden behind the awkward smile that glued to Hank’s face.Hank strode toward the door, giving deaf ears to Elijah’s request. “You! Wait, please!” Elij
“I think---” “Let us make the terms clear enough,” Hank interrupted Elijah’s moment of confession, cooking up some more of his underlying tricks to break Elijah completely, putting him under his wings, “if it is not promising, this will be the last time negotiating with you.”Elijah, with an emaciated face, looking dry and frail, forcefully lifted his eyes and summoned every last strength in him, “What do you want? A hundred and fifty?” His words were met with a muffled chortle, as Hank could barely hold his amusement at how tough a man can still be, even in the face of difficulties, in the most trying moments. How bad could it be? “Well, I must say, you are one hell of a strong bastard,” Hank said, and pulled Elijah by the hair, glaring straight into his eyes, “Play a joke on me once again, and that will be the end for you. Do you think I negotiated for a higher price with that thick-skulled Greene boy, only to settle for a hundred and fifty with you?”Hank could no longer be
The dinner table was being set by the time Daniel got home from his visit to Elijah, after a three hour drive. He held his joy within, with hope that he would final be able to get rid of the man causing him pain. “Good evening, grandmother,” he greeted, settling at the dining table with his eyes fixated on his meal.There was a moment of silence at the dining table, until Mrs. Greene peered her eyes at Daniel inquisitively. “You look very busy and stressed out these days, hope all is fine with you?” Mrs. Greene asked, while Daniel was poking at his meal, unaware of his environment.All eyes were fixed on Daniel, with fear skittering all over his face, and beads of sweat forming all over his forehead, he paid little attention to what his grandmother said, or to the fact that his family members were starting to think he was crazy and needed medical attention. Either of the two, there was no doubt or uncertainty that he has been up to something for the past three days. “Da
For two weeks since Daniel sent the proposal of partnership to the West Industries, he noticed something was off with their system of working that has been kept hidden form the public. His itching nose could not keep itself at bay until he got what he wanted. There was an unusual silence from Daniel, scrambling his head for the next thing to do or say. His knees weakened and he plopped onto his bed, with the phone still held closely to his ear. “What else have you gotten?” he said with his face lit up like he had just been struck with a thousand jolts of electricity. “Nothing yet. Some of the board members seemed like they were hiding something, and I was only able to find out the little information I could lay my hands on.” “Has anyone mentioned about a revolt or a takeover of any sort?” “Negative. But…” “But what? Tell me.”At this moment, Daniel’s breath cranked up to the max. An unusual fear gripped him to the core, his mind traversing through a million thoughts
Daniel realized he had struck a cord in Hank’s bone, and decided to walk in like nothing had just happened. He refused to be distracted about his purpose for coming, and only went straight to meet Elijah. He ordered Gusto to set Elijah back at the table, to have a real discussion with him. Hank and the rest of the crew, like always, had to excuse Daniel to have his moment of privacy with Elijah. “So you are now drinking with my men,” Daniel said with a fake smile stuck to his face.Elijah knew what mind games Daniel was capable of, and refused to play into his traps. He kept mute for a while, and every time he decided to say something, the only thing that crossed his mind was the hole in his feet. “Your men?” Elijah scoffed, holding a firm stare on his face, “nobody is loyal to you, don’t butter yourself up.” Daniel sucked in a reasonable amount of air and tutted, “still mad about the hole? Poor boy, this is something beyond your reach, and as a great wise man once said, d