Benjamin held out the ring toward Jas. His eyes held nothing but seriousness, the smile was gone.
This has gotta be a trap. How the fuck did he co up with an idea like this?
Jas’s thoughts swirled between the possible outcos, accepting Benjamin’s loyalty and the problems that would co with it.
It wasn’t just a problem for him but for the others as well.
He had loyal n, and how would they react if he accepted a federal agent so lightly into his family?
It would make him look like a snitch, or worse, that he had made a deal to save his own ass.
Jas’s hand twitched at his side. All the movies, all the docuntaries he had watched, every single one of them ended the sa way.
If they accepted a deal like this, they all died.
"How interesting." Jas grabbed the ring from Benjamin, who watched him carefully.
It was a gold signet ring, a beautifully crafted one.
In the middle, there was a capital B with leaves around it, but the most eye catching detail was the black stones embedded around the ring.
"Do you like it?" Benjamin asked, leaning forward slightly.
"What are these black stones?" Jas asked, his face still stiff. He didn’t smile, nor did he give any hint of what he felt.
"Oh, they’re natural black diamonds. Very rare and valuable. The whole ring is 24 karat gold. I designed it myself." Benjamin sounded genuinely proud, as if he had accomplished sothing great.
No way they’d go this far just to get … A handcrafted ring with my initial on it? It screams that sothing big is about to happen if I accept it.
"What do you say, Jas? Or should I refer to you as Mr. Bellini?" Benjamin smiled again.
"No, Jas is enough for ." He spun the ring in his hands, inspecting it. "But why would I accept it, knowing full well that you’re the head director of our country’s national security? It’s kinda a crazy idea, don’t you think?" He looked at him before placing the ring down on the table.
Benjamin said nothing back. For a mont, he stayed still before slowly standing up and taking off his suit.
Hector and the others watched him carefully, but as he removed his jacket, there was no weapon on him.
Slowly, Benjamin unbuttoned his shirt, revealing his upper body.
Jas’s eyes wavered slightly as he took in Benjamin’s scar riddled body. Bullet wounds, stab wounds, and what appeared to be burn scars covered his upper torso.
Without saying anything, Benjamin buttoned his shirt back up and sat down.
"I’m sorry if I took away your appetite, but these wounds on my body… they are the reason I beca who I am today."
Jas leaned back, tapping his fingers on the table. "Explain it."
"I am against the governnt and its entire structure. That’s why I pursued a career where I could cause change. But alone, I am nobody. That’s why I offer you my loyalty, to do sothing greater for the people." His eyes never left Jas.
"Against the governnt?" Jas narrowed his gaze. "That’s not sothing you usually hear from soone at your level. If you could enlighten , I’d appreciate it."
"It’s a long story, but—"
"We have all the ti in the world, you and . So please, go ahead." Jas wasn’t asking. He was ordering him to continue.
"I’m 53 years old, but I’ve done my best, I have multiple degrees, served in the military, and was part of a special task force called ’Goblin.’ But my story begins when I was a kid.
Our country has more than 50 million people living in it, and every day, people die in the countryside from hunger. n, won, children. But in the capital, we pretend everything is fine. Our governnt has no intention of doing what it should. Instead, they waste money on dumb shit.
When I was 15, a disease broke out in my village. Eight thousand people were affected by an illness that only needed one injection to cure." His eyes grew teary.
"What happened?" Jas asked.
"Instead of giving the injection, they slaughtered half the village and threw them into a mass grave, saying there was no possibility of survival. They didn’t knock, didn’t warn us, they just ca through the door and shot everyone they saw. My family died. I was shot, too.
Halfway through, they realized there were too many bodies to throw into the grave, so they started burning them instead. I was shot twice, and they set our house on fire. That’s where I got my burn wounds."
"I’ve never heard or read about a story like this. And if you were 15… that ans it was more than three decades ago, during a ti when democracy had already been established."
Benjamin laughed at Jas’s words. "Democracy in our country is just a fancy way of saying dictatorship. Think about it. What are the chances that our current president’s classmates beca high-ranking ministers? What are the chances that the richest man in the country is our president’s uncle? What are the chances that after the Country’s Union gave our governnt 15 billion dollars for healthcare and infrastructure, the president suddenly started building his own mansion and bought a private jet?"
Benjamin shook his head, letting his words settle in Jas’s mind.
"I know ti has passed since I was 15, but what angers the most…" His hand curled into a tight fist. "That sa motherfucker who ordered the killings is still in a position of power within the governnt. He can barely walk or talk, yet he still sits there like nothing happened decades ago, like he didn’t kill my family and half my village.
He did it because the injection cost 43 thousands per dose. And instead of saving lives, he and his friends stuffed the money into their pockets. One hundred seventy-two million dollars ant more to him than four thousand lives…children’s lives."
Jas felt his anger rise as well. He had never heard this story before, or more importantly, the truth had never been revealed.
"There are 23 states. We have mountains, fertile land that could feed the people, yet we’re doing nothing with it in the 21st century. They only pour money into the big cities, where the rich live, where the industries are, the sa industries that don’t even pay minimum wage. And don’t even get started on the military. The amount of money they spend could save every life in this country. Isn’t that funny?
We border countries we call allies, yet we waste it on building a military for nothing."
"You want to fight corruption with corruption?" Jas asked.
Benjamin leaned back, taking a long breath. "Yeah. That’s exactly why I’ve suffered all these years to get to this position. But more than that, I only expect you to help the people. Give them hope that soone actually cares about them."
"What exactly do you an by that?"
"The Minister of Justice is in your pocket. The ISB director, too. And now, I’m here as well. I analyzed your movents, and from what I see, you’re shifting your operations and production into the country. What I want from you is to build jobs in these villages and towns instead. The people are desperate, but it’s a better option than forcing them into the slums. These villages have anywhere from 1,000 to 9,000 people, but they’re suffering. I want you to move your production lines to the villages. I’ll provide you with information. I’ll fabricate reports. I’ll never investigate you. I’ll never move against you with bad intentions. Just help these people, Jas. Give them hope, because no one else will."
"We originally wanted the slums," Jas admitted. "But we don’t have the funds to do it. And there are too many issues, like loyalty. The people in the slums can’t be trusted. And, of course, the dia. The sa applies to these villages. If we suddenly start improving their lives, soone will sniff it out." Jas said.
"I understand your concerns. But I’ll do whatever needs to be done. I’ll kill if I have to. If necessary, I’ll even funnel governnt funds directly to you. The governnt allocated four billion in funding, which I can redirect to you in the sa way they steal it for themselves."
This is too much. If I accept his offer, I’ll beco a warlord ruling over territories.
"If I take over villages, I won’t just be a mafia boss anymore. I’ll be a terrorist." Jas exhaled sharply. "And I don’t like that word or its aning."
"You’ve already crossed the line of morality, Jas. You run a drug trade that supplies both the governnt and the mafia. You manipulate the market, control prices, and decide who gets what. You already dictate the lives of thousands, you just don’t own them yet."
Jas scoffed. "And what? You want to own them?"
"No. I want you to lead them. You fear the word ’terrorist’ because it implies chaos. But think about it, what if you beca the order in this chaos?"
"What you’re asking to do is nation-building in the shadows."
"Exactly." Benjamin said. "With my position, I can secure everything from legal loopholes to dia silence. The slums are a lost cause. The governnt would rather burn them down than save them. But these villages, isolated, ignored, desperate, mthey would be yours. In return, I ask for one thing...keep them alive."
Jas tapped his hand against the table.
"I give you my loyalty, Jas," Benjamin continued. "I’ll ensure no governnt agency moves against you. The Justice Minister is already compromised, and with in your corner, you’ll have real protection. All I ask is that you don’t let these people die like my village did."
Jas’ fingers twitched. Every ti a deal like this was made, the outco was the sa, the man who accepted it eventually died.
"How interesting."
Still, he couldn’t deny the logic behind Benjamin’s words.
The real question was, could he afford to take this step?
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