The next morning, Pablo summoned Marco to his office in the juice section.
The atmosphere was quiet. The factory was running as usual behind them.
Pablo did not give any introductions.
"It's ti to take over the gang."
Marco looked at him. He was not surprised. He knew this day would co.
"John is still their leader."
"That's why you will get rid of him."
"How?"
"I will leave it to you to decide the thod that suits you."
Marco paused for a second.
"I have thought about it."
"And what did you decide?"
"I will conspire against him. I will tell him I want to face him directly. John is a strong man, and he will accept the challenge because he thinks he can defeat ."
"And he can't?"
"No." Marco said with confidence. "But I will not take risks. The four n I gave the guns to will be there. When the fight starts, they will shoot him."
Pablo looked at him for a long ti.
"Good."
"After that, I will announce myself as the leader. I will reduce the number of mbers to fifteen. The rest will be expelled. And the three closest to John... will be killed."
"In front of everyone?"
"In front of everyone. So they see that John's gang is over."
Pablo nodded.
"When you are done, co to ."
"I will."
Marco left the office.
---
That night, Marco gathered the four n he had given the guns to.
They sat in a side room in the gang's headquarters. The lights were dim. The faces were tense.
"Tonight, I will end John's rule."
The n were not surprised. They knew this would co.
"What do you want from us?" asked one of them.
"When I face him, you will be there. If the fight starts, shoot him. Do not hesitate."
They looked at each other. Then they nodded.
"And if John refuses the fight?"
"He will not refuse. John does not refuse a challenge. It's the pride of a man who thought he was the strongest for years."
They left the room. Marco walked to the main hall.
---
John was sitting on his large chair at the end of the hall. He was drinking whiskey and laughing with his n.
When Marco entered, everyone stopped talking.
"John." Marco said in a loud voice.
John looked at him. "What do you want?"
"I challenge you. Face to face. You and . Whoever wins rules the gang."
There was a mont of silence. Then John laughed.
"You are bold, Marco. But do you think you can defeat ?"
"We will find out."
John stood up. He was taller than Marco. His shoulders were broader. His face was full of scars that proved he had survived many battles.
"Alright. Let's finish this."
The n stepped back. They left space in the middle of the hall.
Marco and John stood facing each other.
John attacked first. A strong punch toward Marco's face.
Marco dodged it easily. He replied with a punch to John's chest.
John stepped back. His eyes widened slightly. He did not expect Marco's punch to be this strong.
"You are stronger than I thought."
"It's not over yet."
John attacked again. This ti a series of punches. They were fast and strong. So reached Marco's shoulder and arm. But Marco did not retreat.
Then... in the mont John was occupied with his attack, the sound of gunfire was heard.
Four bullets. From four guns. Hit John in his back and legs.
He stopped. He looked back. He saw the four n to whom Marco had given the guns pointing their guns at him.
"You..." he whispered.
He fell to his knees. Then onto his face. He did not move again.
Complete silence in the hall.
The twenty-six n looked at John's body. Then at Marco.
Marco stepped forward.
"John is dead. From now on, I am the leader of this gang."
He paused for a mont.
"Anyone who does not accept can leave now."
No one moved.
"Good."
Then he pointed to three n standing in the corner. They were the closest to John. His old companions.
"These three. They will not stay."
The four n with him stepped forward. They drew their guns.
"Why?" shouted one of them. "We did nothing wrong!"
"You are the closest people to John. I will never trust you. And I will not take risks."
They fired. The three fell quickly.
Four bodies were lying on the floor of the hall.
The remaining n were trembling. So looked at the ground. So avoided Marco's gaze.
Then Marco said:
"The gang is too big. From today, we will beco only fifteen n. The rest will leave. No harm will co to them if they leave quietly."
The n looked at each other. Eight n began moving toward the door. So were afraid. So were hesitant. But no one dared to object.
They left. Fifteen n remained. Among them the four who were with him.
Marco sat on the large chair where John used to sit.
He looked at the hall.
It was large. Dirty. In need of cleaning.
But it was under his control now.
"Clean this place. Tomorrow we start anew."
---
After he finished, Marco went to John's back room.
It was a simple room. A bed, a wardrobe, a table, and a small iron box in the corner.
He broke the lock and opened it.
Inside was six hundred thousand Beli.
He took it and put it in his bag.
Then he headed to the factory.
---
In Pablo's office, Marco placed the bag on the table.
"Six hundred thousand."
Pablo looked at the money.
"From John's room?"
"Yes."
"What do you want to do with it?"
"I want you to send half of it to my family in the East Blue. Three hundred thousand."
"And the other half?"
"For the gang. To buy food, weapons."
Pablo nodded.
"I will send the money tomorrow."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank . You took it."
Marco looked at Pablo.
"Pablo, I want you to co see the headquarters."
"Now?"
"Now."
---
Marco and Pablo walked together through the forest at night.
The road was long but Marco knew it well. After twenty minutes, they arrived at the gang's headquarters.
Pablo stood looking at the building.
It was a large two-story house, built of wood and stone. It was surrounded by dense trees on all sides, making it almost hidden from the main road. From the back, there was a narrow path leading directly to the rear side of the eastern port. An excellent strategic location.
The building was old but strong. Many windows, a large main door, and a wide backyard.
They entered inside.
The main hall was wide, easily accommodating thirty people. It was still dirty from the night's events, but Pablo imagined it clean and organized.
A staircase led to the upper floor where the rooms were. Pablo climbed and saw several small rooms that could be used as bedrooms or storage.
Other rooms. A wide kitchen. And even a small bathroom.
"A good place." Pablo said.
"Good? It's excellent." Marco said.
"The location is excellent. Close to the port from the back. And hidden from the main road."
"That's what I thought too."
Pablo stood in the middle of the hall and looked around.
"From now on, this will be our official headquarters."
"The Pablo Family?" Marco asked, smiling.
"Yes. The Pablo Family."
Marco looked at him. "We need to improve it. It needs cleaning, new furniture, and more weapons."
"We will start tomorrow."
---
The next day, Pablo gathered the followers he truly trusted.
He invited Marco, Lorenzo, and Ido only.
He did not invite Kavor. He did not invite Tom.
He knew that each of them was useful in his place. Tom was useful for information about the director and the owner. Kavor was useful for managing his old section.
But they were not the type to follow him into the darkness. They did not have enough courage. They were not ready for real risk.
Lorenzo and Ido were different.
The three sat around a long table in the middle of the main hall of the new headquarters.
The hall was still simple, but it was clean now. The wooden walls, the large windows overlooking the forest, and the silence that hid that this place had been the scene of a fight hours earlier.
Pablo stood before them.
"The factory is under our control. Every important position in it is now ours. And today, we took over the gang that will be our arm in the streets."
He looked at them.
"This is not the end of the road. This is only the beginning."
He paused for a mont.
Then he looked at Lorenzo.
"Lorenzo. You were a simple worker months ago. Now you manage fruit reception. And you embezzle with us. How do you feel?"
Lorenzo thought for a second. Then he said with unusual honesty:
"I feel... that I am finally sowhere that matters to . Before, I worked to live. Now... I live to work. Because what I am building here is bigger than ."
Pablo nodded.
Then he looked at Ido.
"Ido. You were a silent eye. Then you beca my assistant. And now you are here. How do you feel?"
Ido was quiet as usual. But in his voice, there was sothing different.
"I always wanted to be part of sothing bigger. I didn't know that sothing would be under the leadership of soone your age. But I no longer care. You know what you are doing. And I... feel belonging for the first ti."
Pablo looked at them.
"This is what I wanted to hear. You are not here because I only need your hands. You are here because I want you with . Because I want you to build sothing lasting with ."
Then he looked at Marco.
"And Marco... you know why you are here."
Marco smiled slightly.
"Because I would not be anywhere else."
Pablo stood up.
"This is the path I have chosen. And you are with on it. From now on, we are not just a group of people working together. We are a family."
He paused for a mont.
"The Pablo Family begins today."
The three looked at Pablo.
In Lorenzo's eyes, there was burning ambition and loyalty to soone who gave him an opportunity he had never dread of.
In Ido's eyes, there was silent loyalty to soone who saw sothing in him that no one else had seen.
In Marco's eyes, there was absolute trust in soone who had changed his life.
They were not just followers.
They were his first family in this world.
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