Chapter 2: Revenge

  After my versation with Selia, it was time to move to the steps. Tweings had to happen that day—there was no room for mistakes.

  First on the agenda was Cir, my Vice President. I trusted her above all others in this pany; she was the only one who truly mirrored my mi. Clever, sharp, and resolute, Cir thrived under pressure and navigated even the most intricate situations with ease. We had oraiogether in martial arts until a sparring act left her with a perma injury to her left arm—a wound that only hardened her resolve. I kept her close not just because she was indispensable, but also because I couldn’t afford to have her as an enemy.

  Cir’s voice cut through the phone like a bde.“You’re sure about this?”

  I watched a pigeon collide with my office window, its panicked wings spping the gss.“Brody gets his night. Theodore’s crew will be there with you to ensure she arrives intact. I don’t wao do something drastiderstood?”

  “You mean suicide?” Cir asked, her toral yet razor-sharp.

  “Yes.”

  There was a beat of silence—I could almost hear her jaw tightening."But if Brody touches her—" she began.

  “He’ll do worse if we renege,” I snapped.

  “And the other part of the deal?”

  “The trucks will cross the border tonight. The warehouse receives the shipment tomorrow m.”

  My pany, at least on the surface, was a legitimate financial teology firm—a sleek online payment system for seamless transas. But beh that fa?ade, we trafficked in something far more valuable: fidential information. We bought, sold, and traded intelligehrough our vast work. The products Brody was helping us smuggle were cutting-edge, illegal hardware desigo ter the test security measures. For now, he was crucial to the operation.

  I gnced over at Selia as I left my office. She sat at her desk, her red-rimmed eyes betraying the tears she’d been holding back. I chose to ignore her and walked away.

  Brody reeked of mothballs a when I met him at the docks. His fingernails were bitten raw, and his eyes darted like those of a ered rat.“You’ll drug her,” he insisted, pag the dim warehouse. “She has to want me.”

  I smirked. Obsession had hollowed him—a puppet with Selia’s name carved into his bones.“She’ll be pliant. That’s the deal.”

  His backstory was a tragic cliché. In his youth, he had fallen in love with Selia—a love that was not returned. She’d rejected him for an older boyfriend in military school, a blow that drove him to join the military himself. He eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant general, only to muster the ce to propose to her once more—only to be rejected yet again. Shortly afterward, she married someone else.

  Her husband’s suddeh in an act and her parents’ mysterious illnesses had raised red fgs for me. The more I dug into Brody’s past, the clearer it became: Brody would do anything for Selia—even orchestrate tragedies to capture her attention. His obsession rendered him both dangerous and useful.

  I’d promised Brody one night with the woman he adored, and iurn, I’d received two million dolrs upfront along with uricted access to my smuggled products. It was a deal that disgusted me, yet one I couldn’t refuse.

  Cir had been instrumental iing this pn, though she never hid her distaste for Brody. I’d noticed her subtle attempts to dey the arra—her reasons remained unclear, but I suspected she harbored her own motives. That’s why I sted her to work with Theodore’s crew, people I trusted implicitly.

  By 6:00 PM, as the office begaying, exhaustion threateo overtake me. I forced myself to stay focused. I firmed the time and location with both Cir and Selia. Everything is in pce, I reassured myself. Cir will firm Selia’s arrival, and in 30 minutes, word will e that the trucks have crossed the border.

  At 9:00 PM, Cir’s call came through.“Selia met Brody, but we have another problem,” she reported.

  “What happened?” I demanded.

  “The pany is on fire.”

  I paused, thinking quickly. “Let me speak to Theodore. He’s with yht?”

  “Hold on.” A momeheodore’s voice came through the line.

  “Yes, Boss?”

  "Is this some kind of joke? What is happening?" I asked urgently.

  “No, sir. The fire—it’s bad. It’s ing from the pany. We see it from down here!”

  I instructed, “Stay where you are and keep watg Selia. I’ll hahe fire.”

  As I approached the building, a firefighter stopped me.“Are you the owner? You’re lucky—the fire didn’t damage the building, just the trees and pnts outside. Likely caused by a cigarette.”

  Relieved but still suspicious, and without being noticed by the firefighters, I decided to iigate. Ihe power was out; my only light came from my smartphone. As I ventured deeper into the building, I heard footsteps.

  “Who’s there?” I called out. No response followed.

  Then dizziness struck. My knees buckled as I realized—too te—that I’d been poisoned. I staggered toward the exit but colpsed before I could reach it.

  I awoke tied in a T-position, arms and legs bound tightly in my own office. Before me stood Cir, holding a rge, impeccably ax.

  “What is the meaning of this?” I demanded, striving for a steady tone.

  “Oh, hi, Boss,” she replied with a cold, uling smile.

  “You haven’t killed me yet, which means you want something. Let’s settle this quickly.”

  “You’re mistaken, Boss. This isn’t a iation—this is your end.”

  Her voice rose, ced with bitterness. “Do you remember when you broke my arm? When you shattered my dreams?”

  Before I could answer, agony exploded in my left arm. I screamed as she severed it ly with the ax. The room spun as she cauterized the wound, ensuring I wouldn’t bleed out.

  “Not so fast, Boss,” she hissed. “You’re not dyi. You kept attag me when I was down—now it’s my turn.”

  She stepped back, releasing me. I colpsed to the floor, my vision blurring, yet I forced myself to stand—fueled by raw anger and desperation.

  “How dare you?” I roared, grabbing a gss cup with my remaining hand. cealed by the desk, it went unnoticed as I staggered toward her.

  “Was the mission a success?” I demanded, stalling for time.

  "I didn't let her meet Brody, I ruined your pns, and I will ruin whatever is left after you die. You ain't gonna die in peace—you will die knowing that everything you lived for is now destroyed."

  In a sudden burst of energy, I hurled a gss ot directly at her, but at the wall beside her. I expected her to instinctively block the ining projectile with her ax, and that’s exactly what she did. The impact shattered the gss against the wall and her ax, sending shards flying. The broken gss momentarily obscured her vision, creating the perfect opening. Seizing the opportunity, I lunged forward and delivered a devastating blow that sent her flying across the room. My strength waned, but I refused to let her recover.

  In one final act of defiance, I drove her head forcefully against the wall. The room fell silent as she crumpled to the ground, her body motionless.