At night, Pablo was sitting in his office in the juice section.
The light was dim. The papers were arranged on the table. His small notebook was open in front of him.
He was reviewing the numbers when he heard a light knock on the door.
"Enter."
The door opened. Tom entered.
He stood at the threshold for a mont. His face was tired, his eyes carried sothing that had not been there before: surrender.
"Close the door behind you."
Tom did.
He sat on the chair opposite Pablo without speaking.
Pablo looked at him. He did not ask why he ca. He knew.
"Tom."
"Pablo." Tom said in a low voice. "I have thought a lot."
"And I think I know what you decided."
Tom paused for a second. Then he said:
"I want to join you."
He did not say it easily. The words ca out of him as if they were pressing on his chest.
Pablo looked at him. Then he smiled.
Pablo smiled a small, real smile.
It was not the smile of victory over an opponent. It was the smile of a man who saw a big obstacle disappear from his path without having to lift a finger.
"Welco, Tom. I was waiting for you."
Tom breathed with difficulty. "Don't make regret this."
"You won't regret it. But you must understand sothing."
"What?"
"From now on, you are with . Not beside . With . The difference is clear."
Tom nodded slowly.
Pablo opened his small notebook and wrote a new na in his list: Tom.
Then he raised his head.
"I will ask you for one thing now."
"What?"
"Your work records. All of them. Every deal that passes through your office. Every ship that leaves. Every goods that is exported."
Tom looked at him with slightly widened eyes.
"That... that is a lot. So deals—"
"I know. That is why I want them."
Tom was silent. He was thinking. Then he said:
"This might put at risk if—"
"Tom." Pablo interrupted him. "You are with now. This ans you are in danger from this mont. The records do not increase your risk. But they let see where we can enter to achieve the greatest inco."
Tom breathed deeply.
"Alright. I will bring them."
"Every week. A copy of everything."
"Every week."
Pablo extended his hand. Tom shook it.
It was not a warm handshake. It was a handshake of agreent. A handshake between two n who knew that their interests had now beco one.
"You can go now."
Tom stood up. He stopped at the door for a mont.
"Pablo."
"Yes."
"Pedro... do you have anything to do with his disappearance?"
Pablo looked at him with eyes that revealed nothing.
"Do not ask about things you do not need to know, Tom."
He did not say no. He did not say yes.
Tom understood.
He left and closed the door behind him.
---
Pablo remained alone in his office.
He closed his notebook and looked at the ceiling.
Tom was now with him.
Daniel, Lorenzo, Kavor, Tom, Marco.
Every important position in the factory was now under his control.
Reception, production, both shifts, juice, export.
Everything.
Pablo sat for a mont reflecting.
Months ago, when he arrived in Naraka, he was just a sorting worker on a moving belt. His salary was thirty thousand. No one knew him. No one feared him.
Now... now the entire factory was under his control.
Not officially. Of course not. The director was still above him. And the owner was still above everyone.
But practically... everyone who moved inside this factory did so with his permission or avoided being seen by him.
Money flowed to him from every section.
Four hundred thousand here, three hundred there, a million here.
In the past month alone, he had gathered from embezzlent more than any man in this factory.
Pablo smiled again.
He wanted to control the factory as a base. And now he had the base.
It was not a perfect plan. But it worked.
Pablo closed his eyes for a mont.
This was not the end. This was just the beginning.
The factory was a big leap from Verona. But it was still a small leap compared to what he was planning.
He opened his eyes.
Now that he had controlled the factory, he needed to understand who really ran it.
The director.
Who was he? What were his connections? Who protected him? Who threatened him?
And the factory owner.
A person Pablo had never seen. Only his na on the papers.
Who was he? Where did he live? How did he think?
He could not control anything completely without understanding who stood above him.
Tom would help him with this.
Tom had worked at the factory for years. He knew the director. Perhaps he knew sothing about the owner.
He closed his notebook. He turned off the light.
He left the office in the darkness.
The factory had beco his.
And the next step was to understand who stood above him.
---
Within a few days of Marco joining the "John Gang", everything changed.
John, the gang leader, a man in his forties, his face full of scars from old confrontations. His only weapon that those who knew him feared was his old pistol. He knew how to use it quickly.
Before Marco, the gang depended only on John's skill with this pistol. John threatened with it. Sotis he fired a shot in the air. He rarely used it against anyone.
The twenty-six n who made up the "John Gang" were not fighters. They were cowards.
They were good at intimidating the weak. They hit those who could not fight back. They stole from those weaker than them. They sold drugs to tired workers in the back alleys of Naraka.
But they knew they were not the strongest gang. They knew that any rival gang could crush them if they wanted.
That is why, when Marco joined, John felt as if he had found a treasure.
On the first day, John saw Marco destroy a wall with one punch. It was not a test. Marco was just stretching his body after a day of sitting.
John stood astonished.
"Where did you co from?"
Marco did not reply.
On the third day, John asked Marco to accompany him to "collect tribute" from a small rchant who was late in paying.
The rchant refused. He started shouting. He said he would call the Marines.
John pulled out his pistol.
But Marco was faster.
He took one step forward. He gently grabbed the rchant's hand. He did not even squeeze.
The rchant scread in pain.
"I will pay... I will pay..."
He took out the money and handed it over.
John looked at Marco with different eyes after that.
On the fifth day, John said to his gang mbers:
"From today, Marco is the second-in-command. What he says is what I say."
No one objected.
No one dared.
They knew they were weak. And they knew that Marco was not weak.
Within just a few days, Marco beca the second-in-command of the "John Gang".
He slept in the large room with the rest of the n. He ate with them. He accompanied John on the big tasks.
But every so often, he would secretly return to Pablo and tell him everything.
The n's nas. Their hiding places. Their thods of work. Their weaknesses.
And every so often, Pablo would listen, calculate, and draw a map in his head.
A small gang. Cowards. A leader who depended on an old pistol.
It could be controlled easily.
But not now.
Now, Marco needed to learn more. To build greater trust. To understand how larger gangs worked through this small one.
Pablo was patient.
And he knew that Marco would be the key to entering a world larger than this factory.
---
At Night - After Marco's Return
Marco sat on his bed. He was tired, but his eyes were bright.
"John is very happy that I joined. He says I am the strongest man he has ever seen in his life."
"That is true." Pablo said.
"The gang is chaotic. Twenty-six n. Most of them are cowards. John is the only one with so skill at using his pistol. The rest carry clubs and small knives."
"And their source of inco?"
"They intimidate small rchants. Sell drugs in the back alleys. Steal from small ships at the eastern port. Their profits are modest."
Pablo wrote everything in his notebook.
"Keep building their trust. Do not attract the attention of the larger gangs. Learn first."
"I know."
"How does John treat you?"
"Like a treasure. He is afraid to lose . He is also a little afraid of ."
"That is good. Fear and greed make people predictable."
Marco nodded.
Then he said:
"Pablo, when will we take control of them?"
"Not now. Give them ti. Let them depend on you more. Then... I will tell you."
Marco understood.
He lay down on his bed and closed his eyes.
---
Pablo remained awake after Marco fell asleep.
He opened his notebook again.
He wrote under the heading "Factory - Next Step":
· Understand the director: Who is he? What are his connections? His weaknesses?
· Understand the owner: Who is he? Why does he not appear? How can he be reached?
Then he wrote under the heading "Gangs - Preparation":
· The "John Gang" will be under control soon.
· Use it to reach larger gangs.
· Marco is the key.
He closed the notebook.
The factory had co under his control.
And now, it was ti to understand who stood above him.
Then... expansion outside the factory.
He turned off the light.
The road was still long.
But he knew where he was walking.
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