"Now it's your turn to explain yourself." Alex said with a dark expression, staring at Rudeus, who didn't even bother turning in his direction. Rudeus was far too tense to worry about the fly buzzing in his ear. That, he could ignore… but Ryan? No, Ryan was impossible to ignore.
Silence settled under the table as Ryan simply waited patiently, while Alex grew closer and closer to flipping the table over and grabbing Rudeus by the collar. Meanwhile, Rudeus just stared at Ryan thoughtfully.
"I think the same, kid…" Rudeus broke the silence with a deep sigh, running a hand through his hair. "First of all, what you did is impressive. The answer might seem simple once you know it, but reaching that conclusion on your own is admirable…" He suppressed a laugh. "And here I was thinking I'd be the one teaching, only to run into another teacher. No one would expect that from a kid like you, least of all me. I'll give you that credit, and as the rules say, I'll reward you accordingly. You deserve my respect."
Rudeus coughed dryly, his true expression turning serious. This time, there was no mask, only the naked truth. Whether that was good or bad, Ryan was right: he had already gone too far to be treated like a child. He deserved the truth, and everything that came with knowing it.
"Your father… he was part of the upper ranks of our organization. An old and trusted member who trained and led many from the new generation, earning the respect of many in the process, as you can see, Alex is one of them. He's part of the upper ranks, equal to your father in the hierarchy, and even so, he refuses to stop calling him 'boss', and he's not the only one who acts like that."
Ryan briefly glanced at Alex, who nodded in response, confirming every word that came out of Rudeus's mouth.
"People were loyal to him…" Rudeus sighed again. "More loyal to him than to the organization itself… he might even have become the next Boss, not by a decision of the council or a nomination from the current Boss, but through sheer popular pressure. All it would take was a word from him, and everyone would rebel against the current regime in his favor."
Ryan narrowed his eyes, a mix of surprise and tension. At the same time, Rudeus and Alex grew distant looks, as sincere smiles slowly emerged from their cold, tense expressions. They were reminiscing about a distant past that would never return, no matter how much they wished it would, and they wished it deeply. But Ryan had no time for old soldiers' nostalgia, so he cleared his throat, pulling them back to reality.
"Why is that important?" Ryan asked, ignoring the almost mystical reverence they held for his father. To him, the damn old man would always be the damn old man. Rudeus quickly explained.
"A few days ago, your father was conducting an ultra-secret investigation. His location was unknown even to us. He had only taken his most loyal subordinates, people who refused to rise in rank out of loyalty to him. Later, those same subordinates announced his death during the mission. According to them, he had been shot multiple times in a firefight, even losing an eye. They said they performed first aid on the spot and sought medical help, but he was too weak and died a few hours later… but of course, they altered the details so his family wouldn't discover the truth, the official cause of death would be illness."
In an instant, Rudeus's face wrinkled like a dried plum. "It all happened too fast. He died and was taken to the funeral before we could investigate, by the time we found out, the entire family was already around the coffin, blocking any inquiry. Several standard procedures were ignored, and the cause of death being that specific virus created yet another barrier, just like you said, it was too much work. Someone wanted to hide something."
Ryan nodded, bringing a hand to his chin, trying to reconstruct the entire scenario. The fact that his father was a high-ranking member could mean he carried hundreds of the organization's secrets, making his disappearance an extremely serious threat that needed urgent resolution. If he betrayed his colleagues, the organization could collapse.
Ryan quickly formulated three hypotheses: Betrayal, Escape, or Kidnapping. In every case, he was a ticking time bomb.
Still, the betrayal hypothesis was one of the most likely, considering the internal friction. His loyal subordinates were with him, they lied about his death, and obstructed investigations. With decades of accumulated wealth and a vast network of contacts, he could start over somewhere else, leaving everything behind, possibly selling his knowledge to the police or other interested groups.
Basically: let everything burn while I sip a drink in Hawaii.
At the same time, the idolization he received could have caused problems with his superior, who surely wouldn't like feeling threatened within his own organization. Perhaps he had been deliberately sent on dangerous missions so he would die, maybe even with the Boss offering rewards for his subordinates to betray and execute him in secret, forcing him to flee to save his own life.
In that case, he would flee for protection, trying to avoid disaster. His longtime subordinates might have betrayed him but failed to kill him. Then they would try to cover up their failure, pretending the mission had been successful to avoid retaliation from the Boss.
In other words, a rushed escape that might still be ongoing.
And of course, there was the third option. Ryan's father was investigating something in secret and was discovered, again forcing a hurried escape. Ryan couldn't question that much, after all, he wasn't part of the organization, and it was certainly a sensitive topic…
But in that case, his father might not have managed to escape. It would be a harder escape with an entire organization after him, and he might have been captured alive, since this wasn't a simple internal dispute ending in his death. At this very moment, they could be trying to extract everything they could from him by any means. At the very least, his captors would want to know who was behind the investigation…
"We'll keep investigating," Rudeus said. "His subordinates won't talk, and everything is still murky. But dark skies always clear to reveal the light. Eventually, the truth will come out. But we didn't come here to talk about that."
Rudeus then reached down and grabbed a black suitcase with metallic edges, opening it on the table to reveal some papers. He coughed dryly.
"I think we're past the point where I can lie and say I'm your father's lawyer and blah blah blah. We came to deliver your inheritance… or at least part of it." Rudeus handed a stack of papers to Ryan, whose heart pounded with excitement. "That said, your mother should've received everything, but since she can't, due to her… 'Intense' feelings toward your father. I'll give it to you in parts. Don't mess it up, and I'll give you the rest over time. Oh, and yes, some of it is theirs too! Don't spend it all by yourself!"
Ryan barely listened, swallowing hard and nodding repeatedly. He had no idea what his father had left him, but decades of hard work surely meant a lot of money and assets. Considering he was a criminal, Ryan could even dream of receiving the Mona Lisa.
Diamond rings, pearl necklaces, gold bars!
No dream was too big!
What young man wouldn't be thrilled by that?!
Rudeus pointed at the paper.
"This is the old, beat-up apartment you live in now. That's all you're entitled to for the time being. Sign here." Rudeus said casually…
Ryan slowly raised his head and stared at him in silence with a broken smile… Time passed in an awkward silence.
"What are you waiting for? Don't you want the apartment?"
"That apartment?That's all?"Ryan had never been a criminal, but at that moment, he began planning a man's murder. Beside him, Alex sensed his killing intent and nodded, offering support. Alex already had a whole plan formed in his head.
Rudeus scratched his head, uncomfortable with the tension, and muttered before speaking. "Look, I know, that apartment's ancient. Even your father only used it as a cover. But in this economy, not everyone has a roof over their head. And you're getting one for free! At sixteen, you own your own apartment! Just imagine what girls will think! You can throw parties without asking anyone, fill that dump with young people thirsty for se—I mean, fun! You'll be very popular!"
Ryan remained silent, dejected. His expression slowly fell despite himself. He clearly wanted more.
"Ungrateful brat," Rudeus muttered.
He clicked his tongue and pulled a key from his pocket. "Alright, I get it. You youngsters are a pain in the ass." He tossed the key onto the table, catching Ryan's attention. "I can't give you everything, you're still just a kid. I'm not handing it all over for you to waste on booze and women. But you really did something impressive today. So I'll give you some credit. But listen, what I'm going to give you isn't a reward, it's a responsibility." He tapped his index finger on the table.
"This key isn't a joke... The choice is yours, Ryan, as are the consequences. Know this: if you choose to take this key, you will no longer be just a boy caught in the middle of your father's shootout. You will become an affiliate member of our Mafia, and with that will come much more trouble than you can imagine, as well as some privileges... the choice is yours."
Ryan swallowed hard, surprised by the proposal, but still, no one needed to tell him what the right choice was.
Ryan grabbed the key and inspected it curiously.
"Good choice."Rudeus coughed again, picking up more papers."I'll give you the Manhattan Café, It also belonged to your father. There's a luxury apartment upstairs for you to live in, and John comes with it to help you... We used that place for many things in the past; So the least I expect is good management!" Ryan nodded quickly, his eyes shining brightly. "On top of that, I'll give you fifty grand. For administrative and personal use, but mainly for emergencies! You never know when you'll might need to flee the country!"
Rudeus coughed. "And to make it clear! I expect you to multiply it tenfold! At least! And give your sister a treat!"
Ryan nodded even faster, in total ecstasy, thick sweat running down his forehead. He was starting to like this story.
"Oh, right. This too." Rudeus pushed a gun across the table, a small handgun. "You never know when you might need it. As for the fake license, it'll take some time. When we deliver it, buy a motorcycle. It might come in handy, got it?"
Ryan grinned from ear to ear, almost crying with joy. "Thank you, Uncle Rudeus!"
…
At that moment Ryan didn't know it, but upstairs in that coffee shop, in a room that hadn't been opened in a long time, under the bed, hidden among old rags, was a box. A letter sealed with red wax awaited him above it. And inside it, was something Ryan had always asked his father for.