The Tenth Explosion

Chapter 13: Appreciation 😂

Prison rumors moved faster than internet gossip. Honestly, prisons and secondary schools operated with almost identical communication systems. Somebody whispers one thing in one corner, then suddenly ten people on the other side already know details that haven’t even happened yet. By morning, the entire prison block already knew Sun Thunder members got slaughtered during Mr. James’ fiancée’s burial. Not arrested. Not beaten. Slaughtered.

The surviving gang members inside prison stayed unusually quiet that morning too. And when violent men become quiet together, something serious is happening. Mr. Jackie sat inside the prison recreational area holding a plastic cup of bad coffee while listening carefully. Around him, several loyal Sun Thunder members pretended to play cards while actually discussing damage reports.

One of them leaned closer. “Five confirmed dead.”

Another shook his head. “Maybe more.”

Jackie’s expression hardened immediately. “How?”

No answer came instantly. That annoyed him. Because Jackie hated incomplete information more than bad news itself.

A scar-faced member finally spoke. “They opened fire during the burial.”

Jackie slowly lowered the cup. “…They did what?”

The man hesitated. “Boss, things got out of control.”

Jackie stared at him carefully. Now honestly, Jackie was dangerous for one particular reason. He rarely shouted. People who shout constantly become predictable. Jackie became terrifying when he spoke quietly instead. And right now? He was very quiet.

“At a funeral.”

Nobody answered.

Jackie leaned back slowly against the chair. “You idiots attacked somebody during his fiancée’s burial?”

The scar-faced member swallowed hard. “It wasn’t supposed to happen like that.”

“Then explain it properly.”

Silence again. Then finally another loyalist spoke carefully. “There was division inside the group.”

Jackie’s eyes narrowed immediately. Ah. Now the smell of stupidity started making sense.

The man continued. “One of the captains wanted more influence.”

Jackie already looked irritated. “Which captain?”

“Drex.”

Jackie laughed once. Cold laughter. Of course it was Drex. Ambitious men inside criminal organizations always believed they were smarter than the system until bullets corrected their confidence later.

The loyalist continued speaking carefully. “He believed bringing Mr. James into Sun Thunder would change the balance.”

Jackie became still now. Interesting. Very interesting. “Explain.”

The man glanced around before lowering his voice further. “Mr. James owns ninety-eight percent of Covalen.”

Jackie nodded once. Everybody knew that. Covalen wasn’t ordinary wealth. That company moved money like governments moved military equipment. Multi-billion-dollar influence. Investments everywhere. Energy. Tech. Security contracts. Medical research. The kind of company that could quietly reshape cities financially without average people noticing.

The loyalist continued. “Drex thought if he forced James into the gang…” A pause. “…then eventually Sun Thunder would answer to him instead of you.”

There it was. The real disease. Power hunger. Honestly every dangerous organization eventually suffers from the same infection. Somebody ambitious starts believing connections matter more than loyalty. And in this case? Drex thought controlling a billionaire CEO would eventually give him leverage over Jackie himself.

Jackie stared ahead silently for several seconds. Then unexpectedly—he smiled. That confused everyone nearby immediately.

The scar-faced member frowned slightly. “Boss?”

Jackie shook his head slowly. “These idiots accidentally saved me.”

Now everybody looked confused.

Jackie leaned forward calmly. “You still don’t understand.” His eyes sharpened slightly. “If James joined Sun Thunder through fear…” He tapped the table lightly. “…then eventually he becomes somebody’s weapon inside the gang.”

Silence.

Jackie continued. “And if Drex controlled access to James…”

Now the full picture landed. The gang members exchanged glances immediately.

Jackie smiled faintly again. “That i***t was planning a corporate coup inside a criminal organization.” Honestly? That sentence sounded ridiculous and genius at the same time. Because criminal gangs and corporations weren’t actually that different structurally. Both chased influence. Both rewarded loyalty selectively. Both destroyed threats internally. Only difference was paperwork.

Jackie exhaled softly. “So James refused.”

“Yes.”

“And then Drex attacked him anyway.”

“Yes.”

Jackie nodded slowly. Then muttered almost to himself— “Good.”

Everybody froze. Good? Five gang members died. One captain destroyed. The burial attack failed publicly. And their boss was pleased?

Jackie leaned back comfortably now. “Forcing men like James never works long term.” He looked toward the others carefully. “You recruit powerful people through respect or shared hatred.” Now his voice lowered slightly. “And James already hates City Sermon Lab enough naturally.”

That was the key. Jackie understood grief better than most people. Grieving people become dangerous when anger finally replaces sadness. And James was already moving in that direction. Drex simply moved too fast and too stupidly.

One of the younger gang members spoke nervously. “So what now?”

Jackie smiled faintly. “Now?” He stood slowly. “Now I send Mr. James a thank-you letter.”

The entire table became silent again. Because honestly? That sounded insane. But Jackie already walked away toward his cell calmly. Inside the prison system, letters passed easier than weapons sometimes. People underestimated paper. That was a mistake. Some of history’s worst decisions traveled quietly inside envelopes first.

Jackie sat at the small metal desk inside his cell and began writing carefully. Not threatening. Not manipulative. Almost respectful. Which honestly made the letter more unsettling. He wrote about strength. About refusing coercion. About removing traitors unintentionally. And finally—he thanked James for not joining Sun Thunder through the influence of fools trying to hijack the organization from within.

By afternoon, the letter arrived at Covalen headquarters.

Mr. James sat alone inside his office reviewing investment projections he wasn’t mentally processing at all. Honestly his brain still replayed gunfire from the burial yesterday. Trauma does that sometimes. Your body survives danger first. Your mind catches up later.

A knock came at the office door. His assistant entered carefully holding an envelope. “This arrived personally for you.”

James frowned slightly. “No sender?”

“No sir.”

The assistant left afterward. James stared at the envelope for several seconds before opening it carefully. Given recent events, every unknown package now carried assassination potential emotionally.

He unfolded the letter slowly. Then began reading. As his eyes moved across the page… His expression changed repeatedly. Confusion. Surprise. Disbelief. Then eventually—laughter. Soft at first. Then stronger.

“Wow.” That was the first thing he said. He kept reading. “Wow.” Again.

Because honestly? The letter sounded nothing like what he expected from the leader of one of the most feared gangs in the city. No chest-thumping threats. No fake intimidation. Instead Jackie sounded intelligent. Calm. Strategic. And somehow disturbingly reasonable.

James leaned back slowly in his chair after finishing the letter. “So the attack wasn’t officially ordered.” Interesting. Very interesting. That meant the Sun Thunder gang itself was more fractured than people realized. And fractured criminal organizations usually became bloodier internally afterward.

James folded the letter carefully. Then sighed. “What kind of life is this?” Yesterday he buried his fiancée while dodging bullets. Today he received appreciation letters from gang leaders. Honestly, normality had abandoned him completely.

Meanwhile somewhere else inside the building, Kate sat behind her desk pretending productivity still mattered after recent events. Which honestly felt impossible. Because less than forty-eight hours ago she was an ordinary employee worried about promotions and office deadlines. Now? Now she had a gang nickname. Ash Viper. Even thinking about it still felt ridiculous. Her shoulder still hurt from initiation beating too. Not enough to cripple her. Enough to remind her constantly. That was intentional obviously. Pain creates memory better than speeches.

Kate stared blankly at her computer screen. Then her office phone rang. She answered immediately. “Yes?”

“Mr. James wants to see you.”

Her eyes narrowed instantly. Of course he did. Honestly she had been waiting for this conversation. Because the entire office already whispered about what happened at the burial. People said armed men attacked. People died. Mr. James survived. And somehow his mysterious bodyguard became urban legend overnight.

Kate stood slowly. Anger mixed strangely with relief inside her chest. Then she headed toward the executive office floor.

A few minutes later she entered James’ office without her usual polite energy. He noticed immediately.

“Kate.”

She closed the door behind herself. “Sir.”

James gestured toward the chair. “Sit.”

She remained standing. Honestly? Fair enough.

James sighed softly. “How are you?”

Kate stared at him like he had personally offended language itself. “Are you seriously asking me that?”

James already knew this would go badly.

Kate folded her arms immediately. “You made me join a gang.”

“I didn’t exactly have choices either.”

“Then when the initiation happened, you disappeared.”

James rubbed his forehead tiredly. “Kate—”

“No.” She pointed toward him sharply now. “Only for me to hear later that you killed all the Sun Thunder members that came after you.”

James blinked once. “I didn’t kill—”

“Fine.” She corrected aggressively. “Your people killed them.”

Silence. Then Kate narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “That means you already have your own gang.”

James stared at her for two seconds. Then unexpectedly laughed. Actually laughed. That annoyed her even more.

“What’s funny?”

“You think I’m secretly some mafia boss?”

Kate threw her hands slightly into the air. “What else am I supposed to think?!” Honestly from her perspective, the logic made sense. Rich CEO. Professional killers. Funeral shootouts. Mysterious bodyguards. That was absolutely billionaire crime movie material.

Kate continued before he could respond. “So why didn’t you just make me join YOUR gang instead?!”

That sentence almost made James choke from laughter. Not because the situation was funny. Because stress sometimes breaks people into humor unexpectedly. Eventually he calmed slightly. “Sorry.”

Kate still looked angry.

James leaned back in his chair slowly. “Listen carefully.” His tone became calmer now. “I do not have a gang.”

Kate looked deeply unconvinced.

James pointed toward himself casually. “The only gang I might have…” A pause. “…is my seventy f*****g billion dollars sitting inside different investments.”

Silence. Kate blinked slowly. “…What?”

James shrugged casually. “Energy projects.” Another shrug. “Defense contracts.” Then— “International infrastructure.”

Kate stared at him now like her brain temporarily disconnected. “Seventy billion?”

James nodded once. Honestly he said it too casually. That was the problem with extremely wealthy people sometimes. Numbers stopped sounding real to them after a certain point.

Kate slowly sat down finally. “Wait.” She frowned harder. “You personally control that much money?”

“Technically more on good market weeks.”

Now honestly? That sentence physically irritated her. Because she suddenly remembered struggling over apartment rent two months ago while this man casually discussed numbers large enough to economically colonize small countries.

Kate leaned back slowly. “Jesus Christ.”

James smiled faintly. “Exactly what my accountant says.”

For the first time since entering the office, Kate’s anger weakened slightly beneath shock. Because now another realization hit her. If James truly possessed that level of financial power… then people like the Sun Thunder gang targeting him suddenly made terrifying sense. Not just for influence. For survival. Control a man like James and entire systems bend afterward.

Kate looked at him carefully now. “So what happens next?”

James became quiet briefly. Then honestly answered— “I’m trying to figure that out myself.”