Chapter Fifty-two #3
I lifted my eyes to the rearview mirror and found Zachary staring back at me.
The color drained from his face, and his mouth hung slightly open.
Both hands rested motionless in his lap.
He looked less like a politician and more like a man who had just realized the worst part of his day hadn’t happened yet.
“Hello again,” I said, keeping my eyes on the road.
He didn’t speak for a moment. When he did, it came out fractured. “You can’t do this.”
“You think I need permission?”
“Just leave me alone.” The composure he’d managed outside was already gone, stripped away fast now that there were no cameras and no audience.
His voice tightened as he spoke faster, trying to regain footing he no longer had.
“You took all the companies. You already destroyed me enough. What more do you want? I can pay the amount you lost on that gold operation. Whatever you need.”
“I gave the citizens what belonged to them. You think those three companies could have fed me?” I rolled the cigar between my fingers. “Let the orphans enjoy themselves.”
“Where are you taking me?”
I glanced at him once, as if the question itself were unnecessary.
He shoved his hands into his pockets, and then his expression shifted into something worse than fear, something closer to understanding. He patted his jacket, then the other pocket faster, his movements breaking as panic took over. “Where is my phone? I need to call someone.”
I lifted the cigar, took a drag, then pressed what remained of it against the dashboard and tossed it out the window. The road ahead was clear. I drove without hurry, because nothing about this required speed.
The car came to a stop at the entrance of his organization, one of the most recognized logistics companies in Cuba. It was Zachary’s pride, something he had built after convincing himself he could go up against me and still stand. I kept the engine running and looked out through the windshield.
“This is what you built after going against me?” I asked while I stared at the building.
“This is my son’s company.” He leaned closer. “I’ll do whatever you want. Just stop. You can take half the shares. I can make you powerful in Cuba too. I know the right people.”
I let out a short, amused laugh. “Powerful,” I repeated, tasting the word like it didn’t belong in his mouth. I turned my head slightly toward him. “With whose name exactly are you planning to build that power for me? The one you were defending in front of cameras like it still meant something?”
He exhaled sharply. “I know people.”
I leaned back in the seat and rubbed my jaw. “I’ll give you credit where it’s due. The bomb in my car was well-executed. You actually got me with that. The bombing concept, as a strategy, is efficient.”
“Take the company,” he said, and the begging had turned graceless now, whatever dignity he had left bleeding out of his voice. “Just take it and leave me alone. It’s worth billions. Take it all.”
“You know,” I said, “I miss my wife right now. Do you miss yours?”
Something snapped in him then. The begging collapsed, and whatever restraint he had left burned into anger. “You will not get away with this.” he raised his voice.
“Yet tonight I’ll be home,” I smirked, “next to my wife, sleeping like a king.”
He lunged toward the doorknob, rattling it with both hands. “If you take this company, it will fail. It will fall apart without me. I promise you that. It won’t be worth anything without me running it.”
“You’ve misunderstood something.” I pulled another cigar from my jacket, lit it, and smoked it . “I’m not here to take your company.” I caught his eyes again. “We’re just testing how well your bombing techniques are.”
The silence settled for a few seconds before he finally understood. “No… no, you wouldn’t.”
I pulled out my phone and made a single call. “Do it.”
“Wait. Listen…we can talk—” Zachary cut himself off mid-sentence when the explosion hit.
It started as a low, heavy thud from the far end of the building, then the windows gave way in a violent chain reaction, shattering into glittering fragments.
The shockwave rolled through, and a thick, dark bloom of smoke tore up from inside, swallowing the upper floors as alarms screamed somewhere beneath the noise.
“No,” Zachary said while scrambling. I unlocked the doors. He pushed himself out and stood frozen as the reality caught up. After a few seconds, he collapsed on his knees.
I stepped out and stood beside him. “You can go ahead and plan something else,” I said. “You’ll watch me destroy everything you touch, one layer at a time, until you understand exactly who you messed up with. By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be begging me to kill you.”
I turned away without waiting for a response.
Sirens rose in the background, growing louder with each passing second.
Smoke continued to rise from the building as I walked toward a car waiting at a distance where Akim was.
I slid into the back seat, and Akim started the engine as I peeled off my gloves.