NOVPUBJames mind was spiraling.
This is a trap. It has to be.
Benjamin was offering too much. Too muchntrol. Too much power. Too much trust.
His eyes flickered to the ring on the table. The black diamonds, a reflection of the abyss he was about to step into. This wasn't just a deal. It was a declaration.
Ammitment to something far bigger than drug trading, political manipulation, or survival.
If I accept this, I stop being just a mafia boss. I stop being the man who works in the shadows. I bme something else. A ruler? A warlord? A fucking revolutionary?
How the fuck can life turn this bad?
James already felt like he was barely holding things together, but this, this was another level of insanity.
He was already walking a fine line, already balancing between power and survival, but now?
If he took over three towns, that meant thousands of lives would be under hisntrol. Thousands of mouths to feed, thousands of people to keep silent. And someone…someone…would talk.
There was no way tontain it forever.
Jamesuld already picture it, some desperate fucker, some careless fool, some greedy rat selling the story to the highest bidder. And then?
The government wouldme. The military wouldme. The world would turn its fucking eyes on him.
It wasn't just paranoia. It was history.
Think about the biographies, James. Think about the documentaries you watched.
They all died. Every last one of them.
The men who tried to build something greater, the men who thought theyuld fight the system with their own twisted rules…they all ended up dead.
Some were shot in the streets. Some rotted in prison, forgotten. Some were betrayed by their own people, their bodies dumped in the very places they once ruled.
And if he did this, if he took this step, he wouldn't just be a mafia boss anymore.
He would bme a fucking living legend a myth.
There would be no in-between.
"You're thinking about death, aren't you?" Benjamin asked.
James was visibly tense, his posture stiff, his shoulders tight, and his eyes filled with worry.
"Yes… This is just too much to handle. And more power means more enemies. I know very well that there are people out there who want my head. Even my own alliance backstabbed me."
"Don't worry about that. I've already thought of a special division that would monitor everyone who stands against you. You just need to run the operation properly and give people hope that they can actually live."
"You know that's not enough. Different cartels and mafias want to break into theuntry, and all they need is some motherfucker to put a bullet in my head, or worse, my family's."
For the first time in a while, Benjamin laughed. A genuine, amused laugh.
"If they really wanted you dead, they would've done it already. But nothing's happened, except for the police force trying to move against you. And that was Carter's order, that power hungry nobody."
James stayed silent as his leg started to shake untrollably under the table.
"I order Carter to be dead. Would it be a problem if he dies?" James asked.
"There would be nothing big." Benjamin replied. "And I personally assure you that Linda is already working on it."
"Nothing would happen?"
Benjamin shook his head. "The agency has dealt with similar situations, killing high-ranking officials, generals, and ministers. If he dies, there will be a few days of mourning, some barking about 'howuld this happen,' and then someone else will step into his role."
James tapped his fingers on the table, his mind racing. This was a big moment, one thatuld define his future, not just as a crime boss but as something much bigger, much more dangerous.
If he accepted Benjamin's offer, he wouldn't just be running an underground empire anymore. He'd be stepping into something far beyond mere business. He'd bme a warlord,ntrolling entire towns, ruling over thousands of desperate people looking for salvation.
And with that power came risks.
"Even if Carter dies and someone else replaces him, what guarantees that the next person won'tme after me even harder?" James muttered. "The more I grow, the more enemies I make. At some point, I'll run out of places to hide."
Benjamin smirked. "That's why you don't hide, James. You stand at the top and make sure no one can ever challenge you."
"Sounds nice in theory. But reality doesn't work that way. Eventually, everyone falls."
Benjamin nodded in agreement. "True. But the question is, will you fall as a man who was merely running from death? Or will you fall as a legend who changed everything?"
A legend huh…
"You're asking me to make a decision that changes everything." His voice was lower, more serious. "And if I say yes, there's no going back."
"That's exactly why I came to you, James."
I should say no….I should walk away.
But it was a decision thatuld save lives. A decision thatuld benefit him. A decision thatuld show a side of James that he wanted people to see.
The one who cares. The one who isn't just a monster.
For years his name had been whispered in fear. To his enemies, he was death itself.
But what if, for once, heuld be something more?
"Do you have ain?"
Benjamin froze for a moment…heuldn't believe it.
Such a decision, and he wanted to leave it to ain flip?
His body shivered as he stared at James, speechless. This was beyond reckless. Beyond insane.
"Give me ain." James said, turning back to the others.
The room was silent. No one moved. Hector, standing nearby, looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"James, this is more than just a decision. This is—"
"Hector, give me ain and stop talking."
There was no hesitation in his voice. No fear no doubt.
Hector reached into his pocket, pulling out ain and placing it in James's hand.
James turned back to Benjamin. "If it lands on heads, we never met. We never talked. If it lands on tails, I accept your loyalty, and we can discuss the future, but with onendition."
"Ofurse. Say it."
James stared into his eyes.
"Forget about it."
And with that, he flicked thein into the air.
It flipped again and again, before finally landing on the table.
Benjamin didn't look at thein, his eyes were on James.
James glanced at thein.
"Heads."
Then, without a word, he reached out, picked up thein, and slipped it into his pocket.
"We never met. We never talked."
Benjamin's mouth opened slightly, his face a mixture of shock and disbelief. "James… this isn't—"
"I don't like this either." He said, finally looking up at Benjamin.
"Then why—".
"If I take your offer, I don't just bme a bigger threat. I became the biggest one. That's a death sentence. It's not just my life on the line, it's everyone around me. And to be true I never wanted this life…"
Then he stood up and walked out of the warehouse leaving Benjamin sitting in silence.
He lost.
And yet, as he looked at the empty seat James had left behind, heuldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't the end.
Because James took the ring with him.
He had faith in James that he would change his mind.
For the people.
